Let’s take a little Biblical pop-quiz together.

In the New Testament, who is presented as the greatest, most exemplary Christian of all? (and it’s not our Lord Jesus, but good try!).

Well, there are plenty of guesses that we might make.

Likely first on our list would be the Apostle Paul, for after all, he wrote half of the New Testament books and was the first and greatest missionary and Church-planter of the early Christian era. Also high on our list might be one of the other original twelve disciples, perhaps Peter, or John. Another Christian highly regarded in the New Testament is Apollos, who is commended no less than ten times in the New Covenant Scriptures. And then there is the more well-known Timothy, the young pastor and beloved companion of Paul who is so highly esteemed by his older apostolic mentor.

But what if the answer is none of the above? And what if the answer is not even a character from the New Testament at all? What if the greatest ‘Christian’ believer set forth in the New Testament is actually an Old Testament figure? I know. . . sounds crazy!

Well, we have it on very good authority that this is true, and that the man’s name is Abraham! That right, the Abraham of the Old Testament!! You might even take some time over the weekend to do a search of “Abraham” in the New Testament, and then you’ll see what I mean.

One of the many New Testament passages that make this amazing case is Hebrews 6:13-18, our text for this Sunday’s message. In this passage we find that Abraham is the man that we should imitate as we seek to be faithful to Christ. And this is really remarkable, given that Abraham lived 2000 years before Jesus came! And yet, in this passage and in others that we will discover, he is held up as the prototype Christian believer! Now, if you are wondering how this can be true, then you are not alone!

This Lord’s Day we will explore this wonderful mystery together from the pages of God’s Holy Word. Let’s pray that we might understand how this can be true, and how the life of Abraham brings us not only a worthy model to follow, but great encouragement and hope as well!