I know the next two talks in this series get a bit better, maybe because I had more time, or am getting used to talking to no one.
This term we are going to be looking at the life of Abram or Abraham. If you are going to do any decent Bible overview, you have to talk about Abram. He is kinda big deal. One guy says:
“The story of Abraham is absolutely pivotal in any understanding of the whole message of the Bible.”[1]
We meet Abram and his wife Sarai at the end of chapter 11 in Genesis. They can’t have children and they are hanging out with their nephew Lot.
Before this, in Genesis, we see that God made everything and it was very good. But sin entered the world in chapter 3, and from then on, things don’t look great. The world is fallen and is marked with “Disobedience, murder, deception, drunkenness, nudity, and rebellion”[2]. In the face of all this trouble, God does not end it all, instead, He has a plan for the world even though the world doesn’t want Him. God calls a couple out of the human race to be part of His new plan, one that would ultimately restore the whole world.
Now we might think Abram must have been a pretty alright guy for God to pick him. But that is not right at all. Abram was a godless man from a godless people[3]. Abram and his parents worshipped other Gods (Josh 24:2). Even after receiving some promises from God, well see Abram doing some pretty stupid and disobedient things.
In Abram we see a real struggle in his faithfulness to God. God picked Abram not because he was already good and faithful to God, but because He loves humans and wants them to be restored back to Himself.
Genesis 12:1-3 we read:
There are lots in these promises but basically, we see that God will bless Abram, and Abram was to be a blessing.
God promises that from Abram a great nation will come. For this to happen, he must have land and people, and we see in verse 7 this is what God promises to Abram.
God promises that Abram name would be great. This is vastly different to the story before this, in chapter 11 where the whole city of Bable got together to build a tower so that their names might be great. But here God is picking a guy from that same country and is going to make his name great.
God also promises protection to Abram, that whoever blesses him will be blessed, and whoever curses him will be cursed, and God promised that everyone would be blessed through Abram. Everyone. This is one of the reasons why Abram and these promises are so important, as they apply to us as well.
Romans 4 and Galatians 3 talk about how those who have faith in God are children of Abraham. That our faith is part of the blessing that God promised to Abraham thousands of years ago. How crazy is that? This is why Abraham; his faith and these promises are kinda big deal.
In verse 7 God says that He will give Abram descendants and land he is wandering around, but there is an issue. The Cannanites were in the land, there were already people living here, and we already know that Saria can’t have children (Gen 11:30).
So this promise in verse 7 is a bit rich. Offspring and land, except they can’t have children and there are people already in the land.
This sounds impossible. But our God is one of impossibilities.
Our culture, which celebrates freedom, is still under the impression that this world is fixed, closed and self-contained. But the story of Abram, the story of the true and living God, is that this world is not settled or fixed[4]. God retains the right to show His grace on us, at any time.
In this story, our God speaks His powerful word directly into an impossible situation. That is the ground of the good news. Our God does not depend on anyone else’s potential. Abraham and Sarah were quite without potential.[5]
But here we see that Abram worships God on an altar that he builds to the Lord. This shows faith.
Abram hears the call to leave land and family for a new land and family, and we can tell he believed that he had faith in God by his actions.
God called Abram and he followed. He did not make a deal with God, he did not promise to be good or to uphold some end of his barging. And this is the same for us, we are not saved by making promises to God, but by believing God’s promises to us[6].
So, Abram seems to be going well, pitching his tent and worshipping God, he seems to be going ok trusting in God’s promises. But the very next story in this chapter we see Abram’s faith already coming to a breaking point.
So, Abram goes from the Promised Land to Egypt. He goes from faith to fear[10]. Before going in, he is worried about the Egyptians, he thinks they will kill him because his wife is hot, that they will take her for themselves. Instead of trusting in the promise of protection from God, he thinks this situation calls for his own intelligent plan.
And this plan that he comes up with involves him lying about his own wife and giving her away to others. Abram sees his own well-being as the priority and expects Sarai to sacrifice her life to save his[11].
Not only is this a pretty terrible thing to do, just out of basic principle, but when you also tie this up with the promise of God, it also throws into jeopardy everything God said He would do. No wife, no children, so no offspring. And to top it all off Abram is actually getting wealthy in this land (v16), why would he want to go back to that famine land?
The promise of land and its future is already under threat and it needs a plague to restore it back[12].
The Lord steps in, in verse 17. In the same way at the start of this chapter, God steps in. He didn’t have to, but He does. He deals with this problem in an unexpected way. God shows that his power can guarantee his plans[13]. God sends a disease on Pharaoh’s household, and these people that Abram thought were going to kill him, act honourably and release Sarai. Abram then leaves Egypt and head back to where he came from. He actually goes back to one of his alters and worships God again (13:3-4). He comes back.
Faith is not easy. Faith is always a battle. And we see here that the great father Abraham struggled for faithfulness[14].
We should be humbled by our God. God’s power guarantees His plans. He is almighty, all-powerful and we are not. So if you are a Christian, know that God has purposefully saved you. He didn’t have to, but He did. He intervened in your life and gave you faith to follow Him. How do you know this? Look at Abram, he heard God’s call and left his country and family to go to a new place to start a new nation, trusting in the promises of God. Are you willing to follow God’s call, to leave your family and take up your cross daily to follow God? Whoever tries to live their own life will lose in, but whoever loses their life to Jesus will find it (Mat 10:37-38). Humble yourself before God, for He is massive and powerful and has a plan that will not be stopped.
And this story should give us hope. God’s power guarantees His plans. Do you feel a bit like Abram sometimes? You know the promise of God in your head, but your actions show you don’t trust God. Even when we are stupid, even when we disobey, God is so powerful that His plan is going to happen. Nothing can stop Him. Have hope, God will not let His plan fail. He did not give up on Abram because He made promises and God keeps His word. Our God is a promise keeping God. Jesus came to give life to all who believe (John 10:10, 11:25, 14:6), and he promises his followers peace (John 14:27). We are told that when we pray we will receive a peace that will guard our hearts and minds (Phil 4:6-7). Jesus promised His disciples that He will be with them till the end of the age (Mat 28:20). Do you believe these promises?
Repent of your own intelligent plans without God. Trust in Him, for He interrupted human history because He loves humans and wants them to be restored back to Himself, and that rescue plan started with this godless guy Abram.
[1] The Gospel in Genesis: From Fig Leaves to Faith - D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones
[2] Be Obedient (Genesis 12-24): Learning the Secret of Living by Faith - Warren W. Wiersbe
[3] I think I stole this idea from Mark Driscoll
[4] Genesis (Interpretation) - Walter Brueggemann
[5] Genesis (Interpretation) - Walter Brueggemann
[6] Be Obedient (Genesis 12-24): Learning the Secret of Living by Faith - Warren W. Wiersbe
[7] Faith of our Fathers – Dale Ralph Davis, p. 20
[8] Genesis (Interpretation) - Walter Brueggemann
[9] Genesis (The two horizons Old Testament commentary) - James McKeown
[10] Genesis (Tyndale Old Testament Commentary Series) - Derek Kidner, p. 116
[11] Genesis (The two horizons Old Testament commentary) - James McKeown
[12] Genesis (Tyndale Old Testament Commentary Series) - Derek Kidner, p. 116
[13] Faith of our Fathers – Dale Ralph Davis, p. 25
[14] Genesis (Interpretation) - Walter Brueggemann
[15] Faith of our Fathers – Dale Ralph Davis, p. 26
This term we are going to be looking at the life of Abram or Abraham. If you are going to do any decent Bible overview, you have to talk about Abram. He is kinda big deal. One guy says:
“The story of Abraham is absolutely pivotal in any understanding of the whole message of the Bible.”[1]
We meet Abram and his wife Sarai at the end of chapter 11 in Genesis. They can’t have children and they are hanging out with their nephew Lot.
Before this, in Genesis, we see that God made everything and it was very good. But sin entered the world in chapter 3, and from then on, things don’t look great. The world is fallen and is marked with “Disobedience, murder, deception, drunkenness, nudity, and rebellion”[2]. In the face of all this trouble, God does not end it all, instead, He has a plan for the world even though the world doesn’t want Him. God calls a couple out of the human race to be part of His new plan, one that would ultimately restore the whole world.
Now we might think Abram must have been a pretty alright guy for God to pick him. But that is not right at all. Abram was a godless man from a godless people[3]. Abram and his parents worshipped other Gods (Josh 24:2). Even after receiving some promises from God, well see Abram doing some pretty stupid and disobedient things.
In Abram we see a real struggle in his faithfulness to God. God picked Abram not because he was already good and faithful to God, but because He loves humans and wants them to be restored back to Himself.
Blessing (Gen 12:1-3)
But now, let see how good God is in calling Abram to a new start.Genesis 12:1-3 we read:
The Lord had said to Abram, “Go from your country, your people and your father’s household to the land I will show you.It is hard to miss in these promises that God is saying that He will do it. Five times God says “I will” and at no time does He say “if you do this or that”. These promises are all on God. They are His and He is going to do it.
“I will make you into a great nation,
and I will bless you;
I will make your name great,
and you will be a blessing.
I will bless those who bless you,
and whoever curses you I will curse;
and all peoples on earth
will be blessed through you.”
There are lots in these promises but basically, we see that God will bless Abram, and Abram was to be a blessing.
God promises that from Abram a great nation will come. For this to happen, he must have land and people, and we see in verse 7 this is what God promises to Abram.
God promises that Abram name would be great. This is vastly different to the story before this, in chapter 11 where the whole city of Bable got together to build a tower so that their names might be great. But here God is picking a guy from that same country and is going to make his name great.
God also promises protection to Abram, that whoever blesses him will be blessed, and whoever curses him will be cursed, and God promised that everyone would be blessed through Abram. Everyone. This is one of the reasons why Abram and these promises are so important, as they apply to us as well.
Romans 4 and Galatians 3 talk about how those who have faith in God are children of Abraham. That our faith is part of the blessing that God promised to Abraham thousands of years ago. How crazy is that? This is why Abraham; his faith and these promises are kinda big deal.
Impossible faith (Gen 12:6-7)
So Abram’s life gets interrupted with God calling him to leave his land and people and to his credit he does it. Abram moves around a little bit and then God makes another promise to him. Verse 6-7Abram traveled through the land as far as the site of the great tree of Moreh at Shechem. At that time the Canaanites were in the land. The Lord appeared to Abram and said, “To your offspring I will give this land.” So he built an altar there to the Lord, who had appeared to him.And here we see another hurdle to the promises, but we also see Abram response to worship God.
In verse 7 God says that He will give Abram descendants and land he is wandering around, but there is an issue. The Cannanites were in the land, there were already people living here, and we already know that Saria can’t have children (Gen 11:30).
So this promise in verse 7 is a bit rich. Offspring and land, except they can’t have children and there are people already in the land.
This sounds impossible. But our God is one of impossibilities.
Our culture, which celebrates freedom, is still under the impression that this world is fixed, closed and self-contained. But the story of Abram, the story of the true and living God, is that this world is not settled or fixed[4]. God retains the right to show His grace on us, at any time.
In this story, our God speaks His powerful word directly into an impossible situation. That is the ground of the good news. Our God does not depend on anyone else’s potential. Abraham and Sarah were quite without potential.[5]
But here we see that Abram worships God on an altar that he builds to the Lord. This shows faith.
Abram hears the call to leave land and family for a new land and family, and we can tell he believed that he had faith in God by his actions.
God called Abram and he followed. He did not make a deal with God, he did not promise to be good or to uphold some end of his barging. And this is the same for us, we are not saved by making promises to God, but by believing God’s promises to us[6].
So, Abram seems to be going well, pitching his tent and worshipping God, he seems to be going ok trusting in God’s promises. But the very next story in this chapter we see Abram’s faith already coming to a breaking point.
A problem (Gen 12:10-17)
The land was a promise, but it was also a problem[7]. We find out that the promised land is actually famine land[8]. This is quite an obstacle to Abram; and we will see this term that the life of faith for Abram is full of disappointments[9].So, Abram goes from the Promised Land to Egypt. He goes from faith to fear[10]. Before going in, he is worried about the Egyptians, he thinks they will kill him because his wife is hot, that they will take her for themselves. Instead of trusting in the promise of protection from God, he thinks this situation calls for his own intelligent plan.
And this plan that he comes up with involves him lying about his own wife and giving her away to others. Abram sees his own well-being as the priority and expects Sarai to sacrifice her life to save his[11].
Not only is this a pretty terrible thing to do, just out of basic principle, but when you also tie this up with the promise of God, it also throws into jeopardy everything God said He would do. No wife, no children, so no offspring. And to top it all off Abram is actually getting wealthy in this land (v16), why would he want to go back to that famine land?
The promise of land and its future is already under threat and it needs a plague to restore it back[12].
The Lord steps in, in verse 17. In the same way at the start of this chapter, God steps in. He didn’t have to, but He does. He deals with this problem in an unexpected way. God shows that his power can guarantee his plans[13]. God sends a disease on Pharaoh’s household, and these people that Abram thought were going to kill him, act honourably and release Sarai. Abram then leaves Egypt and head back to where he came from. He actually goes back to one of his alters and worships God again (13:3-4). He comes back.
Faith is not easy. Faith is always a battle. And we see here that the great father Abraham struggled for faithfulness[14].
Humility and hope
In looking at this story we should have humility and hope[15].We should be humbled by our God. God’s power guarantees His plans. He is almighty, all-powerful and we are not. So if you are a Christian, know that God has purposefully saved you. He didn’t have to, but He did. He intervened in your life and gave you faith to follow Him. How do you know this? Look at Abram, he heard God’s call and left his country and family to go to a new place to start a new nation, trusting in the promises of God. Are you willing to follow God’s call, to leave your family and take up your cross daily to follow God? Whoever tries to live their own life will lose in, but whoever loses their life to Jesus will find it (Mat 10:37-38). Humble yourself before God, for He is massive and powerful and has a plan that will not be stopped.
Repent of your own intelligent plans without God. Trust in Him, for He interrupted human history because He loves humans and wants them to be restored back to Himself, and that rescue plan started with this godless guy Abram.
I’ll pray
Lord we thank you that you didn’t leave humanity lost and in rebellion to you. We thank you that you intervened and kept your promises to bring us back to you. Grant us faith, and the humility to repent so that we can trust in your promises, even when it's hard.
Amen.
[1] The Gospel in Genesis: From Fig Leaves to Faith - D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones
[2] Be Obedient (Genesis 12-24): Learning the Secret of Living by Faith - Warren W. Wiersbe
[3] I think I stole this idea from Mark Driscoll
[4] Genesis (Interpretation) - Walter Brueggemann
[5] Genesis (Interpretation) - Walter Brueggemann
[6] Be Obedient (Genesis 12-24): Learning the Secret of Living by Faith - Warren W. Wiersbe
[7] Faith of our Fathers – Dale Ralph Davis, p. 20
[8] Genesis (Interpretation) - Walter Brueggemann
[9] Genesis (The two horizons Old Testament commentary) - James McKeown
[10] Genesis (Tyndale Old Testament Commentary Series) - Derek Kidner, p. 116
[11] Genesis (The two horizons Old Testament commentary) - James McKeown
[12] Genesis (Tyndale Old Testament Commentary Series) - Derek Kidner, p. 116
[13] Faith of our Fathers – Dale Ralph Davis, p. 25
[14] Genesis (Interpretation) - Walter Brueggemann
[15] Faith of our Fathers – Dale Ralph Davis, p. 26
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