When I close out any series, I feel a kind of loss. I’m excited to share the next thing, but sometimes closure is sad. I’ve learned quite a bit about Abraham that I had never learned before – even things I haven’t shared with you as I’m still chewing on it. My favorite though is what I closed out last week’s post with: giving glory to God is having a good opinion of Him
As I look over what’s recorded of Abraham’s life, I’ve noticed a few things that can help us in having a good opinion of God. We can debate all day long on Abraham having it easy or tough, but the fact remains that he was blessed and highly favored before that was even a thing in scripture. We have this uncanny ability to dwell on our mistakes, make excuses for our behavior, and beat ourselves up for messing up over and over again. While Abraham made some bad calls, it doesn’t appear that he stayed soaking in them – and neither did God. While the New Testament could have reminded all the generations to come of Abraham being deceptive and doubting God, Abraham was recognized instead for his faith and applauded for having a good opinion of God.
“And I will make you a great nation, and I will bless you, and make your name great; and so you shall be a blessing; and I will bless those who bless you, and the one who curses you I will curse. And in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.” Genesis 12:2-3 NASB
“Do not fear, Abram, I am a shield to you; your reward shall be very great.” Genesis 15:1 NASB abridged
After reading just these two scriptures, I get the idea that Abraham had nothing but easy street. He didn’t need to worry about anything – no famine, enemy, or old age could mess with him. God promised to bless him, make his name great, give him descendants and would protect him. When’s the last time you went through something that can be described as a tough time? A time when you struggled. Whether it was of your own making or not, maybe you called out to God for help. Did you worry? Did you experience stress or anxiety? Did you doubt that God would save you?
By his divine power, God has given us everything we need for living a godly life. We have received all of this by coming to know him, the one who called us to himself by means of his marvelous glory and excellence. And because of his glory and excellence, he has given us great and precious promises. These are the promises that enable you to share his divine nature and escape the world’s corruption caused by human desires. II Peter 1:3-4 NL
Abraham obviously worried at times. He reasoned that it would be best for weathering out the famine in Egypt – God didn’t tell him to go there. Abraham didn’t need to rely on a slave (Hagar) to provide an heir for him, but he reasoned that it would be the only way. He reasoned that lying about his relationship with Sarah was the only way he would stay alive on two separate occasions. He reasoned wrong, but God still blessed him. By observing his actions, he probably worried, but God had his back the entire time. God was faithful even when Abraham wasn’t.
And the Father who knows all hearts knows what the Spirit is saying, for the Spirit pleads for us believers in harmony with God’s own will. And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them. Romans 8:27-28 NLT
God did not need Abraham to depend on Egypt to get through the famine. God did not need him to lie about his relationship with Sarah, and He certainly did not need him to take Hagar – a slave to Sarah – to produce an heir. God’s plan was perfect – is always perfect – but we’re the ones, like Abraham and Sarah, who clumsily try to help and end up messing things up. But God can still make all things work together to turn out good because He has a purpose for us (Romans 8:28) and it’s His faithfulness that protects us (Psalm 91:4).
Abraham didn’t beat himself up over his blunders either. Did you notice that God didn’t even seem to wag His finger at Abraham for lying to the Pharoah or with King Abimelech? Instead, God threated the very people who Abraham lied to! God even told Abimelech to ask Abraham to pray for him and his household after Abraham lied to them – and then Abraham was given servants, money, livestock, and permission to settle anywhere in Abimelech’s land (Genesis 20). A blunder that God turned into a blessing based on God being faithful to keep His promise.
All of these mistakes and mess-ups could have been avoided. Because we are able to learn about them through scripture, I find it encouraging and faith-boosting. If there was nothing of Abraham’s mistakes, we would think him to be perfect and therefore we would never fit the bill as children of faith. But instead, we’re able to see God, as always, extending grace and mercy. We’re able to see God being faithful to someone who was unfaithful – and then that person was named the Father of our Faith! We’re able to see that God can take these horrible blunders and turn them into blessings for the guilty. I loved learning how Abraham matured and grew to trust God. Even trusting that God would be faithful to restore life to Isaac (Hebrews 11:19).
How often do we go through trials and struggles and immediately think about how it’s because we messed up and we’re getting what we deserve? Or that we’re still paying for mistakes from years ago that are always going to haunt us? In the New Testament, we don’t read about Abraham lying or doubting God, because his mistakes were not being held against him. And neither are yours.
He has removed our sins as far from us as the east is from the west. Psalm 103:12 NLT
My husband and I have faith conversations daily. Because of the frequency, we often have some repetition, and the topics are often interwoven together, so the idea of sin separating us from God is a frequent one. Maybe it’s a bit of a bold statement, but I want you to read it, to chew on it, and to receive it: Sin does not separate you from God. Repeat until it sinks in. Your sins, my sins, and the sins of the entire world were dealt with when Jesus died on the cross. But not all will go to Heaven because not all will accept Jesus. It’s not a sin issue – it’s a faith issue. God is there, ever faithful, but we have to choose Him.
My dear children, I write this to you so that you will not sin. But if anybody does sin, we have an advocate with the Father—Jesus Christ, the Righteous One. He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world. I John 2:1-2 NIV
The distance we often feel when we’ve messed up is entirely on our end. We feel as though we can’t approach the throne or talk with God because we feel like failures and He must be mad at us, ashamed of us, or just flat out ticked. This is one of the reasons I love the Old Testament account of Abraham. Even when he messed up, he didn’t hide from God. He didn’t hang his head in shame. Likewise, we shouldn’t hide from God when we mess up and we shouldn’t hang our head in shame. If we belong to Jesus, we no longer stand condemned for sin (Romans 8:1)! We’re obviously not faithful to Him, but He is always faithful to us.
The New Testament shows Abraham in the light of righteousness, as the Father of Our Faith. It shows that he was considered in right standing with God because he believed God. Romans 4 includes us in this as well – not about any rules we follow or about how much good we do or how much we help the poor, widows, and orphans. It’s about faith. It’s about believing in the finished work of Jesus Christ. It’s about trusting that He is – and will always be – faithful.
Abraham never wavered in believing God’s promise. In fact, his faith grew stronger, and in this he brought glory to God. He was fully convinced that God is able to do whatever he promises. And because of Abraham’s faith, God counted him as righteous. And when God counted him as righteous, it wasn’t just for Abraham’s benefit. It was recorded for our benefit, too, assuring us that God will also count us as righteous if we believe in him, the one who raised Jesus our Lord from the dead. He was handed over to die because of our sins, and he was raised to life to make us right with God. Romans 4:20-25 NLT
Abraham’s story in Genesis is for our benefit – so that we can see that he made wrong choices, he lied (even justified it), and made a mess of God’s perfect plan. This is encouraging in that we know God will also see us as righteous – not because we earned it, but because He is faithful. In doing so, we, too will bring glory to God.