80. Wednesday after Third Sunday after Epiphany.
Lord, increase our faith!
Lord, make our faith strong. Amen.
Hebrews 11, 8-12. By faith Abraham, when he was called to go out into a place which he should after receive for an inheritance, obeyed; and he went out, not knowing whither he went. By faith he sojourned in the land of promise, as in a strange country, dwelling in tabernacles with Isaac and Jacob, the heirs with him of the same promise: For he looked for a city which hath foundations, whose builder and maker is God. Through faith also Sara herself received strength to conceive seed, and was delivered of a child when she was past age, because she judged him faithful who had promised. Therefore sprang there even of one, and him as good as dead, so many as the stars of the sky in multitude, and as the sand which is by the sea shore innumerable.
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The Lord said unto Abram: “Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father’s house, unto a land that I will shew thee; and I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing. And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee; and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed.” And Abram departed, as the Lord had spoken unto him. And he came into Canaan, and passed through the land (Genesis 12). Abraham had only the word of God by which to go, and on which to rely. The word led him to go forth. He had not seen the land, nor did he have any geographical knowledge of it. The land had no existence to him save by reason of what the Lord had said; but the word sufficed him. Neither did the land come into his possession while he lived; he dwelt in it as a stranger, and even bought there a burying place. Yet he firmly believed that his seed should inherit the country; and so did Isaac and Jacob also, though not a foot of it became their property while they lived. The word of God was their only pledge; but to them this was a better certificate of ownership than any deed duly witnessed and recorded. And after the earthly Canaan they desired an heavenly country, and expected an everlasting, imperishable city. The faith of Abraham is like that of the centurion in last Sunday’s gospel lesson. Even Sara is praised for her faith, although for a long time it certainly was no stronger than it should be. She tempted Abraham to take Hagar to wife; and she laughed at the promise of God concerning Isaac as at a fairy tale. But herein we may find much of comfort; for we are more like Sara than like Abraham. She was, after all, honest and open to conviction; and faith did obtain victory over unbelief in her heart. I hope that this may be true of you, also. We have the promise of eternal life. Let the heart leave Mesopotamia, and enter Canaan. Tear yourself away from everything on earth. Forsake all that is dear to you, and devote your heart to the life in the Lord, to the eternal treasures of love in Christ, in his church. God himself has told you that you shall inherit everlasting life. He has promised this to you by name, and placed the pledge in your hand, at the time when you were baptized. You are a stranger here on earth; then live as a stranger here, and hold fast the gift of God. Surely, his promise is more to be relied on, than are any and all human bonds and pledges. Of his grace in Christ Jesus it has pleased him to give you life; at the proper time you shall see that it is as he says, and as you, persuaded of his promises, believe. Or how was it? Did not the seed of Abraham inherit the land? Or the children of Abraham in faith, have they not become a great multitude? Lord God, help us to believe, in order that we may not make thee a liar. Thou hast promised us everlasting life as distinctly as thou didst promise the land of Canaan to Abraham. Give us grace to believe, even as thou didst give such grace to Abraham; for Jesus’ sake. Amen.*
Faith in meekness, as is meet,
Sits and learns at Jesus’ feet,
Nestles closely to the Lord,
Happy in the Master’s word;
Cleaves to it, defends it then:
This to faith is Yea, Amen.
Faith is sure, where sight is blind:
While lost sense may nowhere find
Hope, to stay a sinking soul
When the billows o’er it roll,
Faith directs its saving quest
To the cross, and there finds rest.
[suggested tune: Dix, TLH 127; listen here]
* Here the head of the family says a short morning or evening prayer in his own words, and closes with the Lord’s Prayer and the Benediction. This is to be done every day. If the stanzas are not sung, they may be read in their proper place before the impromptu petition and the Lord’s Prayer.