In reflecting on the current world situation I got to thinking about all those folks out there that are just “hoping” in “hope.” They don’t really have anything solid to hang onto as the world buffets and pushes them from one corner to another. Perhaps the very strong are fortified in their hope in their own abilities, but what happens when that runs into a dead end? I’ve been there and at the end of the day that little dark corner is the same for everyone; it’s just your reflection in the mirror.

I’ve taught a lot about the difference between hope and faith and I won’t repeat it here, but just note that like the thermostat on the wall, hope is where we dial in the temperature but without a furnace to respond — our faith — the temperature in the room isn’t going to change. It always comes down to faith, the very faith that God instilled as the key ingredient way back in the beginning.

Go back to Genesis 15 where we read about the covenant that God made with Abram; his given name before God changed it to Abraham. I would just like to point out a couple of things I saw this morning that I think helps us to understand just how God views faith.

In verse 8 Abraham asks God the obvious question, how will I know? And rather than provide an explanation God sets forth the action to solidify His promise; He cuts a covenant with Abraham. But this covenant was different than any other. As you read through the verses God has Abram cut the animals in half and set the halves opposite one another. This was the traditional way of “cutting” a covenant between two parties. It had to involve the shedding of blood and the parties had to walk between the two halves, signifying that if they broke the covenant that the same thing would happen to them. So far so good.

But what did God do with Abraham?

He took it upon Himself to make a unilateral contract; one way, one party. God made the covenant with Himself; swore by Himself as there is no higher authority. That was evidenced when God passed through the sacrifice while Abram slept. Now let’s step back a moment and look at a couple of important things that preceded that. Where was Abraham?

Gen 15:11 And when the fowls came down upon the carcases, Abram drove them away.

I think we can all identify with that. There he was, God made a promise and all he asked Abraham to do was bring what was needed and stand guard while he waited on God. The birds were representative of the evil that would try and attack the covenant that God would make with Israel; and speaking of Israel, just a note of interest here. God asked Abraham to bring every animal that would be used in the sacrifices spelled out under Mosaic Law; and the doves were left just as they would be  in ritual sacrifice. God’s planning is incredible.

When God makes us a promise it’s no different, we need to bring all that we have — our faith — and do what He has asked us.  And like Abraham, when the fowls come down — the birds of doubt and unbelief — we need to drive them away. That’s our job; the rest is in God’s hands.

And because God didn’t want Abham to have any part in the covenant — because He knew he couldn’t keep it — God put him into a deep sleep:

Gen 15:12 And when the sun was going down, a deep sleep fell upon Abram; and, lo, an horror of great darkness fell upon him.

I find it interesting that the Hebrew word for deep sleep (tardemah) is the same word used when God put Adam (Gen 2:21) to sleep to create Eve. It was all God’s work and none of Abraham’s. In fact He has already done the same for us when He made a covenant that involved the sacrifice of His Son; a covenant that God made in which we had no part, no involvement. As it was for Abraham so it is for us, we can never claim having had any part in the promise. We are only to bring what God asks and drive away the birds of unbelief.

Paul covers this very well in Galatians 2:3 where he clearly shows that the promise that was made to Abraham was fulfilled in the “seed” of that promise; Jesus. Which brings me back to my initial comment;  what hope is there for the unbeliever to hang onto in today’s troubled world? It’s the empty hope of the world’s system that will always fail in the end. The only real hope they have is the hope we hold in our hearts, and if we don’t share it with them they truly are just “wish’n and hope’n.”

So when the tribulations and trials that surround us seem to be overwhelming, we need to remember that we have a sure covenant in Jesus. Our job is to press on to the promise as did Israel, through all the trials and tribulations; driving off the birds of doubt and unbelief. We have a sure hope in eternity, a sure hope that we need to share with those that can only hope in hope itself. God sealed His covenant with Abraham by walking between the sacrificed animals and He sealed His covenant with us by sacrificing His Son on the cross.

Let us not forget the wonderful hope that we carry — good news that the world desperately needs as the day of His return is surely at hand.