ABRAM S FALTERING FAITH

Transcription

1 1 Dear Friend, this is a transcript of a sermon preached by Pastor Jeremy Tan from the pulpit of Amazing Grace Baptist Church Singapore. We are committed to expository preaching because we believe it is the most effective way to expose, explain and expound the Holy Scriptures. And beginning at Moses and all the prophets, [Jesus] expounded unto them in all the scriptures the things concerning himself (Luke 24:27). Through careful systematic and sequential exposition, the preacher is able to declare unto you all the counsel of God (Acts 20:27), and Christians are blessed with a regular, well-balanced diet of God s Word. Expository preaching also helps us to have a high view of Scripture. We wish to extend a warm welcome to you to join us in our church services for a time of uplifting worship and helpful Bible study, which will bring rejoicing and refreshment to your soul. Do visit our church website at or write to us at amazingracebc@gmail.com. ABRAM S FALTERING FAITH Genesis 12:10 20 In many ways, Abram is our example of faith. Abram teaches us the meaning and the measure of faith in God. By faith, Abram obeyed God to leave his family and his homeland in Mesopotamia, to go to a land unknown and unseen to him. He had no information to make an informed decision about the land. He had no roadmap to guide him to the Promised Land, and no images to inspire him on his journey to the unknown destination. All that Abram had was the bare word of God. When Abram arrived in Canaan, the LORD God appeared to him to speak a second time. God confirmed to Abram that Canaan is the land promised to his seed. Abram responded to God by building altars, first at Shechem and then near Bethel. In these places, he worshipped God with sacrifices and proclaimed the name of the LORD. It required faith for Abram to live in the presence of the Canaanites, people who had no reason to be friendly and hospitable to him. It also required faith for Abram to build altars to worship God in the land of these idolaters, and to proclaim to them the name of the LORD. There are other acts of faith from Abram that we will see in the latter chapters of this book. No wonder then, that more space is given to Abram in Hebrews 11, that chapter renowned as the Great Hall of Faith, than to all the other faithful persons listed there. But now as we continue the journey with Abram in Genesis 12:10-20, we become witnesses to his faltering faith. Abram is now confronted with another test to his faith. Our outline of Genesis 12:10-20 follows the flow of the narrative, and as we follow Abram we will note the theological and practical lessons presented in the text. We begin with I. The Migration. Genesis 12:10 And there was a famine in the land: and Abram went down into Egypt to sojourn there; for the famine was grievous in the land.

2 2 Egypt is mentioned here for the first time in the Bible. In biblical typology, Egypt is often representative of the world. To go into Egypt often means going into the world, becoming involved with the world, becoming worldly, or to be in alliance with the world. In Isaiah 31 we have one example of Egypt as a type of the world. Isaiah 31:1 Woe to them that go down to Egypt for help; and stay on horses, and trust in chariots, because they are many; and in horsemen, because they are very strong; but they look not unto the Holy One of Israel, neither seek the LORD! Him. God warned Israel against going to Egypt for help, when they should be looking to Abram went down into Egypt. With Egypt as a type of the world, some interpret Abram s migration to Egypt as a moral failure. We can understand the spiritual application and the admonition to God s people against worldliness, but here in Genesis 12 Abram s going down to Egypt is nothing else than a description of topography. When Abram travelled from Canaan to Egypt through the Negev region, he had to go down. Now think about the converse application. In John 5:1, the Lord Jesus went up to Jerusalem. Are we to interpret that Jesus was ascending to a higher level of spirituality? Of course not! Thus, going down or going up may be mere descriptions of topography, as it certainly was with Abram. Famines were not uncommon in Canaan. According to the text, the famine was grievous. As the days passed, we can imagine Abram s people, which are Lot and those whom Abram had gotten in Haran (Genesis 12:5), murmuring about the dire situation in Canaan. Like the Israelites and the mixed multitude murmuring to Moses, Abram could have overheard the complaints from his household, as they voiced their unbelief and regret, Did God bring us to Canaan to starve us to death? Let us return to Mesopotamia, where our lives were much better and our stomachs filled, than stay here and die of thirst and hunger! Canaan s agriculture was dependent upon rain, unlike in Egypt where the River Nile provided water for farming. Thus, In a famine it might well seem a providence that Egypt was nearby, watered by the flooding of the Nile. (Derek Kidner, Genesis: An Introduction and Commentary, vol. 1, Tyndale Old Testament Commentaries, p ). Now, what would you do in the same situation, if you were Abram? Abram decided to migrate south because of the circumstances. Was he wise to take this course? We read in Genesis 12:10 that Abram intended to sojourn in Egypt, which means that he did not plan to settle in Egypt. He would stay temporarily in Egypt until the end of the famine, and then return to Canaan. Think about it. If Abram planned to leave Canaan and not come back, he would have returned to Mesopotamia, his homeland, rather than to go down to Egypt, a land unknown to him. But Abram, who had exercised life-changing faith in God to leave Mesopotamia, was still young in his faith. He had yet to learn the meaning of the wise man s counsel, who wrote in

3 3 Proverbs 3:5-6 5 Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. 6 In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths. God had appeared to Abram not too long ago to confirm His promise about the land. God had promised to protect Abram, and the famine was Abram s opportunity to trust God and experience His faithfulness. But just like Peter who saw the waves and began to sink because of fear, Abram became frightened and fled to Egypt. In his fear, he forgot the promises of God. We like to see with our own eyes, but what we can see may frighten us. When fear comes in, faith goes out. Now, Abram was not wrong to be concerned for the safety of his household. Faith does not mean that we are blind to the realities of life. The famine was real enough. Hunger, thirst, and the risk of death cannot be ignored. However, Abram did not believe that God could protect him and provide for his needs in the place where God had called him to live. Now here is an important point we must note. The providence of God will not lead us to where the grace of God cannot keep us. God called Abram to Canaan, not to Egypt; but Abram left for Egypt. Many of us are like Abram; we find it easier to trust God in the far-off promises, such as eternal life, than in the needs of the everyday life. II. The Deception. Genesis 12:11 And it came to pass, when he was come near to enter into Egypt, that he said unto Sarai his wife, Behold now, I know that thou art a fair woman to look upon: Abram s life in Canaan was characterized by his worship of God. But as he got near to Egypt, worry arose in his heart. His faith in God was replaced by his fear of the Egyptians. He began to worry that the Egyptians would kill him for Sarai. Forsaking God s promises, Abram is now on his own. He has to live by his own wits. That is how unbelievers live; without God and His promises, they live according to the wisdom and devices of their own hearts. Sarai was a fair woman to look upon. The description fair woman means that Sarai was a beauty. Sarai turned heads everywhere she went. However, her age seems to contradict her beauty. Sarai was ten years younger than Abram (Genesis 17:17). Abram was about 75 years at that time, so Sarai was 65. At that age, most women are usually more concerned about preservation than being pretty; the priority is maintaining the appearance against the ravages of time. However, the people in patriarchal times lived twice as long as we do in our era. Abram lived to be 175 (Genesis 25:7), and Sarai lived to the age of 127 (Genesis 23:1). Abram s son, Isaac, lived to see his 180 th year (Genesis 35:28). Jacob, who said to Pharaoh that his days were few and evil lived to the age of 147 (Genesis 47:9, 28). Long lives means that the aging process was also slower and extended. In those days, it took people a long time to become old, and to look old too! Sarai at the age of 65 would be equivalent to women today who are in their thirties. She still looked youthful and radiant. So with this knowledge, we understand how Sarai, a 65-

4 4 year old woman, could still be considered a stunning beauty. Her attractiveness to Abram was not due to his biased opinion, or to poor eyesight! Abram was fearful that Sarai s beauty would endanger his life in Egypt. The Egyptians could kill him to get Sarai. If they killed him, what would happen to God s promises to them? So he continued in Genesis 12: Therefore it shall come to pass, when the Egyptians shall see thee, that they shall say, This is his wife: and they will kill me, but they will save thee alive. 13 Say, I pray thee, thou art my sister: that it may be well with me for thy sake; and my soul shall live because of thee. It is true that Sarai was Abram s half-sister. Abram said so in Genesis 20:12 And yet indeed she is my sister; she is the daughter of my father, but not the daughter of my mother; and she became my wife. But this was a subtle lie because their primary relationship is that of husband and wife. Still, Abram could satisfy his conscience by knowing that she was indeed his sister. He would also know the reaction of the Egyptians to their relationship. The way that Abram saw it, the Egyptians would negotiate the bride price with him for Sarai. According to that ancient culture of the Near East, in the father s absence the brother had the authority to decide on the marriage of a sister. We have the example of Laban in Genesis 24, who negotiated with Abram s servant, Eliezer, for his sister Rebekah to be married to Isaac. But Abram s deception was a ploy to buy time. He hoped that, in the time needed to haggle about the price for Sarai, they would have stayed in Egypt long enough for the famine in Canaan to pass; and then, he would think of a way to escape. Abram intended to deceive the Egyptians. Instead of trusting God, he used deception for protection. We do not hear him praying to God at all for help. Nevertheless, half a truth is half a lie. Half a truth is called a white lie because it sounds better. We think there is not much harm from a little white lie. Abram thought so too, but his half-truth about his relationship with Sarai led to III. The Abduction. Genesis 12:14 And it came to pass, that, when Abram was come into Egypt, the Egyptians beheld the woman that she was very fair. Sarai was not only a beauty to the eye of the beholder, her husband. The Egyptians confirmed Abram s eye for beauty: She was indeed a beautiful woman. Sarai s beauty was so exceptional that it was known to many Egyptians, including the nobles. Genesis 12:15 The princes also of Pharaoh saw her, and commended her before Pharaoh: and the woman was taken into Pharaoh s house. Abram s deception backfired on him. The princes recommended Sarai to Pharaoh. Abram expected some negotiation for Sarai, but what is there to negotiate? In Egypt, anything Pharaoh wants, he gets. Pharaoh s servants came and abducted Sarai. However, Pharaoh did not leave Abram empty handed.

5 5 Genesis 12:16 And he entreated Abram well for her sake: and he had sheep, and oxen, and he asses, and menservants, and maidservants, and she asses, and camels. Abram s relationship with the Egyptians changed because of Sarai. He entered Egypt a stranger, but now he was the honoured guest of the Pharaoh. Abram became a very rich man due to the generosity of his host. But with Sarai gone, Abram lost a part of himself. Although he now had wealth, he didn t sleep well without his wife. How could he? He had lost his wife! In all likelihood, he would never see Sarai again! He didn t even know where they had taken her. How was she? Would you sleep well, if you know that your loved one is in danger? What about Sarai? She must be filled with dread, as she waited in the harem to be called to the Pharaoh s bedchamber. Abram now learned the foolishness of using deception to deliver himself from a bad situation. Now, this is the first time but it is not the only incident of such a deception. There are three such sister stories in the book. Here in Genesis 12, Abram lied to the Egyptians about Sarai as his sister. In Genesis 20, Abram told the same lie to Abimelech the king. The third incident is in Genesis 26:1-11 where Isaac lied to another Abimelech that Rebekah was his sister. It would seem that Isaac, the chip off the old block, learned his tricks from his father. Once again in Genesis, through fear and disobedience, the intimacy of the man and the woman is broken; once again someone has taken that which God had put off limits. But this time God would prevent it from going further, for his word of promise was in jeopardy. (Allen P. Ross, Creation & Blessing, p. 276). The abduction of Sarai leads to IV. The Intervention. Knowing that God chose to preserve the seed of the woman through Abram and Sarai, the abduction of Sarai was a threat to the fulfilment of God s promise, given in Genesis 3:15, of a deliverer. This situation also threatened God s promises to bless Abram s descendants, which He made in Genesis 12:1-3. Sarai in Pharaoh s harem was a dangerous situation for the ancestress of the Messiah. Thus, God intervened. Genesis 12:17 And the LORD plagued Pharaoh and his house with great plagues because of Sarai Abram s wife. God afflicted Pharaoh and his household with great plagues. Moses does not tell us the nature of the plagues, but that it was great means that every person from Pharaoh to the lowliest servant suffered great pain. We do not know how long they suffered, but as they looked at one another, they noticed that the only person in the palace untouched was Sarai. They put two-and-two together, and realized that Sarai had something to do with their suffering. Their investigations led them to Abram. Now we have to ask about the timing of God s intervention: did God intervene before Sarai could be defiled? From the experience of Esther in Persia, we know that a woman kept in the king s harem would go through a lengthy period of purification and preparation, probably for some months, before she is ready to be summoned into the king s presence. But God always acts at the right time; He is never too early or too late, but always on time.

6 6 Therefore, we can be sure that Sarai was not defiled in any way. God intervened to preserve the purity of Sarai, through whom the seed of the woman would come. As for Abram, we must not think of his wealth as the profit of his deception. Without God s intervention, the entire episode would have been disastrous. Abram lacked faith and lied to save himself. God does not bless unfaithfulness and sin, and He is not obliged to deliver us from our foolishness and unbelief. Next V. The Confrontation. Genesis 12: And Pharaoh called Abram, and said, What is this that thou hast done unto me? why didst thou not tell me that she was thy wife? 19 Why saidst thou, She is my sister? so I might have taken her to me to wife: now therefore behold thy wife, take her, and go thy way. An angry Pharaoh summoned Abram to his palace, and rebuked Abram for lying to him. Now, this is an idolater rebuking one of God s people for poor conduct. Pharaoh s scolding humiliated Abram before the world. With this confrontation, the man called by God immediately lost his testimony before the world. If God s people couldn t live by faith, why should the unbelievers put their trust in God? Pharaoh s rebuke reminds us of the well-known Singaporean preacher summoned to court for a scandal about the misuse of church funds. The prosecutor called the pastor a well-practiced liar, and the judge said he had the tendency to embellish or exaggerate. (The Straits Times, October 23, 2015). These are strong words against a man supposed to preach the truths of God! I do not know if the prosecutor and judge are believers or not, but even unbelievers hold Christians to biblical standards of conduct. According to Romans 2:24, the unfaithful and unbecoming conduct of Christians will give to unbelievers the opportunity to blaspheme God. It has been said that the lives of Christians may be the only Bibles that unbelievers would ever read. Let us be mindful that God s people are called to shine for Him in the world. Philippians 2:15 That ye may be blameless and harmless, the sons of God, without rebuke, in the midst of a crooked and perverse nation, among whom ye shine as lights in the world; VI. After the confrontation with Abram, Pharaoh ordered The Expulsion. Genesis 12:20 And Pharaoh commanded his men concerning him: and they sent him away, and his wife, and all that he had. The Egyptians escorted Abram, Sarai, and their household, to the Egyptian-Canaanite border, and there they were expelled. Now, the words all that he had are not just about his possessions, but it includes some problems that followed Abram and Sarai out of Egypt. Soon, there would be strife between the herdsmen of Lot and Abram, and the separation of nephew and uncle. Then one of the maidservants that Pharaoh gave to Abram (Genesis 12:16), a maid named Hagar, would cause trouble to Abram and Sarai, and also trouble for their descendants. When these

7 7 troubles occurred, Abram and Sarai would no doubt be reminded of the source: their troubles stemmed from their faithless excursion to Egypt. Now, the Israelites reading the Pentateuch would have noted that they too were expelled from Egypt because God afflicted the Egyptians with plagues. The ten plagues affected the Egyptians, but not the children of Israel in their houses. Before their expulsion from Egypt, the Egyptians also gave precious things to the Israelites. Both Abram s deliverance and the exodus of the Israelites from Egypt were the works of the sovereign and covenant-keeping God, who intervened in their behalf. Conclusion Let us retrace the steps of Abram s faltering faith and learn the key principles for ourselves. There are six of them. (James Montgomery Boice, Genesis: An Expositional Commentary Volume 2, Boice, ). The first faltering step is unbelief. Being spiritual does not mean we are blind or we ignore the realities of life. But we should not just see the circumstances of our life; we must also see the God of our circumstances. We spoke about Peter, who took his eyes away from the Lord Jesus and sank because the sight of the sea waves frightened him (Matthew 14:30). In the case of the twelve spies that went into Canaan, ten of them saw giants and they became grasshoppers in their self-estimation. The other two spies kept their eyes on the greatness of God and believed they could overcome the Canaanites and occupy the land. What do you see in your own life? Are you focused on your own circumstances, or do you see God who is in control of your circumstances? When we take our eyes away from God, fear will replace faith in our hearts. The next faltering step of faith is the lack of worship. When Abram left Canaan for Egypt, he left his altars behind. Abram built his second altar near to Bethel. The name Bethel means house of God. The implication of Abram leaving his altar in Bethel is that he left the house of God. Thus in Egypt, we do not read about Abram worshipping God. When people stop worshipping God in His house, which is the local church, their unbelief will increase. But when we are growing in our faith, we will look forward to worshipping God. The third step in faltering faith is self-confidence. When faith in God decreases, selfconfidence increases. But self-confidence is not as good as it sounds. Self-confidence is based on what we see and what we think. When our vision and wisdom combine with a heart that is desperately wicked (Jeremiah 17:9), we will misinterpret what we see and think, and we will make decisions contrary to the will of God. Abram looked at the famine and thought that his solution was in Egypt. We may think that the solution to our problems lies in the world, so we look to the world instead of looking up to God. Being worldly, we then live by our wits and apply worldly methods. The world s method is always practical, never spiritual! Friend, self-confidence lasts only so long as we think we are in control. Are we in full control of our lives?

8 8 The fourth step in faltering faith is more sin. Abram s initial unbelief is sin, but more sin was added when he lied to the Egyptians. Moreover, he involved Sarai in sin. One sin leads to another. We must not think that we can control sin by our own strength. Fifth in faltering faith is great loss. Abram was concerned about his own safety, and he never expected to lose Sarai to Pharaoh. Abram caused trouble to his wife. Yes, we know that Sarai was unharmed and undefiled, but only because of God s intervention. The English Baptist preacher F. B. Meyer ( ) made the following observations on this passage. The world may entreat us well (xii. 16), but that will be a poor compensation for our losses. There is no altar in Egypt, no fellowship with God, no new promises, but a desolated home, and a wretched sense of wrong. When the prodigal leaves his father s house, though he may win a brief spell of forbidden pleasure, yet he loses all that makes life worth living, and brings himself down to the level of the swine. In such a case there is no resource, save to retrace the way that we have come, to do the first works, and like Abraham to go up out of Egypt to the place of the altar where we were at the first (xiii. 4). Abraham s failure in Egypt gives us an insight into the original nature of the patriarch, which was by no means heroic. (Quoted by Boice, p. 476). The sixth and final step of faltering faith is rebuke and humiliation. Abram could have stayed in Canaan through the famine, have his faith tested, and then received the reward of God s promised blessings of protection and provision. Instead, he went to Egypt and was rebuked and humiliated by a heathen king for his faithless and feckless conduct. Pharaoh rebuked and humiliated Abram for lying about his wife and putting her at risk to save himself. God used an Egyptian unbeliever to chasten Abram, and he returned to Canaan humiliated and ashamed. These are the six steps of faltering faith. Are these steps familiar to you? If you are one of God s people as a believer in Christ, where is your faith? Are you walking in faith according to God s revealed Word? Or are you faltering in your faith? Are you filled with fear when you look at your circumstances in life, or are you looking in faith to the God of your circumstances? Do you believe that God cares for His own? Or are you tempted to think that God will not protect you, and that He cannot provide for your needs? Abram faltered in his faith, but we can learn not to follow his footsteps! If you are not a believer in the God of Abram, the true and living God who keeps His promises to His people, your first step of faith is to ask God to forgive you of your sins, and then to ask His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, to be your personal Saviour. Permission: We share our materials with you as a blessing from the ministry of our church. You are permitted and encouraged to reproduce and distribute this material in any format, provided that you do not alter the wording in any way and you do not charge a fee beyond the cost of reproduction. For web posting, a link to this document on our website is preferred. Any exceptions to the above must be explicitly approved by Amazing Grace Baptist Church. Please include the following statement on any distributed copy: Copyright: Amazing Grace Baptist Church Singapore. Website: Used by permission as granted on website.