As I get older, I notice I have become more thankful for things that previously I had not noticed were valuable to me. Like so many Americans, I have been guilty of taking for granted values and principles for which previous generations chose to suffer and die. Such is the case with a four volume commentary on the book of Hebrews originally published from 1668 to 1684 in London by Dr. John Owen, the esteemed dean of Christ's College Oxford and beloved country preacher.
My copy, originally published in 1811, was given to me by my father many years ago and has been in my library since. They have unfortunately been rarely opened and until recently not studied nor appreciated.
It's amazing what treasures are in our possession and we don't even know it. Like the person who brings the picture that's been hanging in the garage to the Antique Road Show and finds out its a valuable original, I have been sitting unawares on treasures that are equally astounding.
A good friend and former mentor told me, "you will become in the next five years two things: what you read and who you associate with". Believing that to be true, I started many years ago to develop a voracious reading habit. Still to this day, I read four to five books a month and sometimes more. At times I read to learn, other times to relax. Some volumes are on topics of interest and others are selected because of a need in my life. It was need that drove me to finally open this great work by Dr. Owen.
A few weeks ago, I felt a real and urgent need to get alone with God. I've been studying the spiritual disciplines and realized that I really haven't been able to experience solitude for the purpose of communion with God and meditation in a long while. Fortunately, I live in a very isolated place, in the middle of the Pacific ocean, on an island where less that 2% of the land is developed. I live next to a mountain that has miles of wilderness. With solitude as my goal, I drove to a very remote part of the mountain, high above the valley floor. The bi-coastal view was spectacular. Wispy clouds rolled in and out obstructing my view at times. Not another soul was in sight. There was not a sound to be heard except the wind through the trees. I was indeed alone with God.
I felt God wanted to say something to me and I had been too busy and preoccupied trying to serve Him to listen. What it was or how he would speak to me I had no idea. In fact, I brought my Bible but I had absolutely no idea where to start. I was even uncertain what to pray. Not knowing what else to do, I simply prayed that He would make His intentions known to me if I would just start reading. That just left one problem; "Where to begin reading?"
Now maybe you've been in a similar boat, knowing you needed to hear from God; knowing the answers to your questions were to be found in His Word, but having no clue where to start. If so, then you can empathize with my situation.
I figured I'd narrow it down to the New Testament, but still felt no real direction, so I simply started in Matthew 1:1 and read the entire book in one sitting. What followed turned out to be one of the greatest days in my Christian experience.
Lots of things came to my attention. Each of the stories of Jesus' life and ministry revealed His divinity, His nature, His compassion, His power, His love for all mankind, His hatred of hypocritical religion, His purpose and so much more. But what literally leaped off the pages and grabbed my attention was Jesus' emphasis on the importance of faith.
Over and over again He either approved someone for evidencing faith or rebuked others for their lack of faith. Whether it was faith in His ability to heal a sick family member, feed a multitude, calm a storm, walk on water or rise victorious over death; Jesus life and teachings continuously challenged and stretched His disciples faith. It was to teach me a lesson about faith that He had brought me up to the mountain.
Now back to Dr. Owen.
Wanting to study more on the subject of faith, I dug into Hebrews 11. That's when I remembered the massive 4 volume, 2163 page commentary on Hebrews. I turned to the fourth volume and opened to the section on chapter 11. That's when I noticed the section pictured above.
Here Dr. Owen, observes that Faith, at it's core, being the 'evidence of things not seen', is the "great means of preserving believers in constant, patient profession of the gospel, against all opposition, and under the fiercest persecutions". He continues to teach that it is faith that:
1. "...discovers that the worst of what we can undergo in this world for the profession of the gospel, bears no proportion to the excellency and glory of those invisible things..."
2. "...relieves and refresheth the soul under all its sufferings..." And "makes (us) joyful in them and victorious over them".
3. "...gives an assurance ... of the greatness and glory of the eternal reward, which is the greatest encouragement to constancy in believing."
His closing observations on Hebrews 11:1 spoke volumes to me. He writes.
"It is faith alone, that takes believers out of this world whilst they are in it, that exalts them above it whilst they are under its rage; that enables them to live upon things future and invisible, giving such a real subsistence to their power, and victorious evidence of their reality and truth, in themselves, as secures them from fainting under all oppositions, temptations, and persecutions whatever."
Perhaps, like me, you need to be reminded that your faith is not in vain. Your faith in God will be rewarded whether you see the end result here on earth or in heaven. For the next 38 verses the author of Hebrews catalogs the faith of the ancients. In 11:39 he reminds us that they were
"commended for their faith, yet none of them received what had been promised. God had planned something better for us so that only together with us would they be made perfect."
I'm thankful for a legacy of faith and faithfulness passed down from my father, and for all 2163 pages of wisdom now appreciated in my library. I'm thankful that God chooses to speak to me through His word if I'll just take the time to listen. I'm thankful I can place my faith in one who is Himself trustworthy and find confidence to face the trials and tribulations of life.
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