Hebrews 11:8 By faith Abraham, when called to go to a place he would later receive as his inheritance, obeyed and went, even though he did not know where he was going.

Hebrews 11 is the chapter of the Hall of Faith. Hall of fame honors individuals who have excelled in a particular activity or industry, in the world’s terms, but Hebrews lists some people who made it to the faith kind of hall of fame by their choices and decisions. Faith is a choice and would always have to be seen by choices. This means our choices are reflective of the faith we have. 

Choices are reflective of faith.

-The Word in Clarity

Adam could have made it to the hall of faith in Hebrews 11 but he didn’t. Why? He failed the test of his faith by making the wrong choice. Angels were not made in the image and likeness of God but we were made in God’s image. God desired to commune with man and have a relationship with us. He couldn’t do that with angels because we relate with people like us and choose friends based on things we have in common.

The first humans were not born, they became adults and went through no process. People ask why God would put the tree of life and the tree of knowledge of good and evil there when He knew they would eat from the latter. There would have to be an alternative for faith to be seen. For instance, I can’t say I am not a thief until there was a situation in my life that was reason enough for me to steal, and yet I didn’t steal. For Adam to qualify for the Hall of Faith, he had to prove himself and he had two options of trees to choose from. If there was only one option, that was simple to live by. Life would always offer you more than one option. These options will fall under two major headings, Life and Death or Good and Bad. Deuteronomy 30:19

Throughout Hebrews 11, we see people like Abraham, known as the father of faith make a choice by obeying God’s instruction to sacrifice his beloved son. Noah also separated himself from the perverse generation of his time to build an ark in preparation for the flood that was to come. Abel gave a better offering,  which was a choice Cain failed to make. The key is that everyone mentioned there made a better choice. 

Hebrews 11:25 He chose to be mistreated along with the people of God rather than to enjoy the fleeting pleasures of sin. This was said of Moses.

Matthew 7:13-14 Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it. There would always be another alternative if faith is to be tested. At the heart of it, faith will always be a decision. It’s not independent of one’s will but an active choice. Faith grows by choice and not by chance. 

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