Choose Faith

Posted On January 22, 2023

“. . . Abram believed the Lord, and the Lord counted him as righteous because of his faith.”

Genesis 15:6 NLT

What makes us righteous in the eyes of God? Is it following all of His rules? Is it being of good moral character? Is it our perfect obedience? Not exactly. We learn from Scripture that what makes us righteous is our faith.

This week we will look at the life and faith of Abraham. Our plan for 2023 is to journey through The NeverEnding Story of the Bible and discover how we fit into it along the way. Our plan for this year is loosely based on The Story, an abridged chronological version of the Bible, and the accompanying study guide The Heart of the Story by Randy Frazee.

Here is where we are in The Story:

MOVEMENT TWO: The Story of Israel (Genesis 12-Malachi)

“God builds a brand-new nation called Israel. Through this nation, he will reveal his presence, power, and plan to get us back. Every story of Israel points to the first coming of Jesus — the One who will provide the way back to God.”

Randy Frazee, The Heart of the Story

Chapter 2 – God Builds a Nation

This chapter in The Story includes Genesis 12-13, 15-17, 21-22, 32-33, 35; Romans 4; and Hebrews 11. In the last two posts, we looked at the origin stories found in Genesis 1-11, where we read about the beginning of the universe and God’s plan to live in perfect fellowship with us. We also read about the origin of sin and the consequences it had on God’s original vision. Genesis 12 begins the story of God’s plan to bring us back to Him . . .

“The Lord had said to Abram,
‘Go from your country, your people and your father’s household
to the land I will show you.
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.'”

Genesis 12:1-3 NIV

“When Adam and Eve disobeyed God, he escorted them out of the perfect place he had intended for all mankind to enjoy forever. But he didn’t give up on his vision of doing life with the people he created. . . . He decided the best way to continue his grand vision of community with us was to establish a nation, a special group of like-minded people intent on knowing God as much as he wanted to know them. Through this specially chosen nation, God would reveal himself to everyone and offer a plan that would try to draw people back into a relationship with him. All other nations would be able to watch God’s special involvement with this new community, be drawn to him as the one true God, and have the opportunity ultimately to join.”

Randy Frazee, The Heart of the Story

“Faith: Complete trust. True faith is much deeper than mere intellectual agreement with certain facts — it affects the desires of one’s heart.”

The Story

Faith to Step Out

“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 11:8 NIV

Abraham’s first test of faith came when God called him to uproot his entire life and literally step out into the unknown. God told him to leave his people and his home country and go “to the land I will show you” (Genesis 12:1 NIV). How many of us would be willing to do this? I would have a very hard time with such a calling. I would agonize over the decision, questioning God over and over about whether or not I heard Him correctly, begging for more details, and asking for more signs. I would put off doing anything until I knew with 100% certainty that this is what God was really telling me to do. And even then, I would be worried every step of the way. Maybe you can relate.

Yet Abraham (who was then called Abram) didn’t hesitate. We may wonder why God called Abraham in the first place. What made him so special? Did he have some extraordinary qualifications or superior moral character? Was he just a really good person? Did he somehow deserve God’s call? The answer is no.

“If you take the time to read and reflect on the rest of Abraham’s biography, you quickly discover that he was a deeply flawed individual. In fact, you won’t make it out of Genesis 12 without seeing Abraham’s compulsion to lie. His life was pot-holed with errors and inconsistencies. More than once Abraham disobeyed God and disappointed the people closest to him. This man of faith also tended to repeat the same mistakes over and over. Does this remind you of anyone? Perhaps yourself?”

Deron Spoo, The Good Book

So, what’s the deal? Why did God choose him, out of everyone else He could have called, to become the founder of God’s new nation? If we read the very next verse following Abram’s call in Genesis 12:1-3, we find the answer: “So Abram went, as the Lord had told him . . .” (Genesis 12:4 NIV).

God chose him because He know he would go. Abraham didn’t question God or ask for more signs or agonize over the decision. He didn’t wait until he was 100% certain that stepping out into the unknown was a good idea. He just went. Abraham believed God’s promises to him, and he acted on that faith. And God counted him righteous because of it. He does the same for us.

“Abram (whose name God later changed to Abraham) had all the wrong qualifications for being a founder of God’s nation: His relatives worshiped other gods in a country far from what would become the promised land; Abram and his wife, Sarai (whose name God later changed to Sarah), were way beyond childbearing years and Sarai couldn’t get pregnant — no children meant no people to populate God’s nation. No problem. God promised the impossible to Abram, and Abram watched as the impossible occurred.”

The Story

“The best way to capture the essence of Abraham’s life and life-style is with the label faith. When God invites us into the adventure of following him, he rarely tells us where we’ll end up. The only way to discover the end of the story is to take the first step.”

Deron Spoo, The Good Book

Faith to Hold On

“By faith Sarah herself received power to conceive, even when she was past the age, since she considered him faithful who had promised.”

Hebrews 11:11 ESV

Abraham’s next test of faith also involved his wife Sarah. Abraham and Sarah were old and childless, and Sarah was well past her childbearing years. So how in the world would they become the founders of a new nation? Abraham questioned God about this, and God promised that Abraham and Sarah would have a son. But it took many years for them to see this promise fulfilled. Abraham was 75 years old when he received God’s call and God’s promises, but he was 100 years old when his son Isaac was born. They were old to begin with, and they still had to wait 25 more years! That’s a long time. Scripture doesn’t cover up the fact that their faith in this promise wavered on occasion, but ultimately, they held on. And they were blessed because of it.

“What promise have you been holding on to for a long time? Take a moment and fast-forward. Picture yourself holding your promise. Is it a baby, a reconciled family member, a dream job, a spouse or healing? As you see the promise fulfilled, look up and offer the sacrifice of praise and thanksgiving to the One who was and still is faithful.”

Faith Blatchford, God of Wonders

I ran across something on Facebook recently that reminded me of the story of Abraham and Sarah. It was a picture of a room, which was nicely decorated as a baby nursery. There was a crib, a changing table, and a big comfortable chair. I thought maybe someone had posted it to show off their decorating skills or to announce their new arrival. But the post that accompanied the picture caught me off guard. This is what it said: “It’s odd. This room . . . .” You had to click “See more” to read the rest, so I did.

What I discovered was that this room is in the house of a couple with no children and who aren’t even pregnant. It turns out that this couple received a promise from God that they will have a son someday, and they decided to embrace that promise by setting up a nursery before they even have a positive pregnancy test. Now that’s faith! If you would like to read more about their story, the Facebook page is called “waiting for baby bird” and the website associated with it is a faith-based nonprofit organization for fertility support called waitingforbabybird.com. I encourage you to read their story of faith and be as inspired by it as I was.

“And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.”

Hebrews 11:6 NIV

Faith to Let Go

“It was faith that made Abraham offer his son Isaac as a sacrifice when God put Abraham to the test. Abraham was the one to whom God had made the promise, yet he was ready to offer his only son as a sacrifice. God had said to him, ‘It is through Isaac that you will have the descendants I promised.’ Abraham reckoned that God was able to raise Isaac from death—and, so to speak, Abraham did receive Isaac back from death.”

Hebrews 11:17-19 GNT

Abraham had enough faith to step out into the unknown. He had enough faith to hold on and wait for God to fulfill His promise to him. But his greatest test was yet to come: Would he have enough faith to let go? “Then God said, ‘Take your son, your only son, whom you love—Isaac—and go to the region of Moriah. Sacrifice him there as a burnt offering on a mountain I will show you'” (Genesis 22:2 NIV).

What?! It’s unfathomable that God would ask such a thing. Why would He make Abraham wait patiently for 25 years for his promised son, the son God would use to found a new chosen nation, and then ask Abraham to offer him up as a sacrifice? Plus, demanding child sacrifice goes completely against God’s character. It makes absolutely no sense! At this point, my faith would not have survived. There is no way I could have done this.

But Scripture records no such objections from Abraham. In fact, this was his response: “Early the next morning Abraham got up and loaded his donkey. He took with him two of his servants and his son Isaac. When he had cut enough wood for the burnt offering, he set out for the place God had told him about” (Genesis 22:3 NIV).

“What we find in Genesis 22 reveals at least two lessons of true faithfulness. The first is this: Abraham valued obeying God more than he valued understanding him. . . . The second lesson of true faithfulness is the ongoing challenge to recognize the distinction between God and his gifts. While it’s right and good to appreciate God for the good things he brings into our lives; it’s vital that we worship the Giver and not the gifts themselves.”

Deron Spoo, The Good Book

Once again, Abraham didn’t question God or agonize over what he should do. He simply trusted God and obeyed. His faith is truly amazing. Now, in case you haven’t read the story, God did not let Abraham go through with it. He stopped him just in time and then provided a ram for the sacrifice instead. Whew!

So, what exactly was God doing here? I don’t know if any of us are qualified to completely answer that. But I think there are a few things God wanted to make clear to Abraham and to us. First of all, no matter how much our faith is being tested, we can trust God completely. Abraham believed God’s promises to him, and he trusted in God’s power. According to the author of Hebrews, “Abraham reckoned that God was able to raise Isaac from death” (Hebrews 11:19 GNT).

But there is a hint in Genesis that Abraham trusted God to have a different plan: When Isaac asked Abraham about the lamb for the sacrifice, Abraham answered, “God himself will provide the lamb for the burnt offering, my son” (Genesis 22:8 NIV). And sure enough, God did provide. Maybe this is just wishful thinking on my part, but I like to believe that Abraham trusted God and His promises so completely that he knew in his heart that Isaac was never in any danger. He knew God had a plan, even if he didn’t understand what it was.

“This is, in fact, our main part to play in God’s story: to trust him even when common sense makes us scratch our head and wonder what in the world is going on.”

Randy Frazee, The Heart of the Story

Second, this story gives us a glimpse of a sacrifice to come. Notice the language God used when he spoke to Abraham: “Take your son, your only son, whom you love . . . “ (Genesis 22:2 NIV). It sounds remarkably similar to the language used later in the Bible to describe Jesus: “This is my Son, whom I love . . . “ (Matthew 3:17 NIV) and “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son” (John 3:16 NIV). God’s plan didn’t require the sacrifice of Abraham’s son, but it would ultimately require the sacrifice of God’s Son.

“As we will see later, God was also foreshadowing, in the Lower Story of Abraham and Isaac, the big climax of his Upper Story — the sacrifice of his own Son. As a matter of fact, the hill of Moriah just happens to be in the hill of Jerusalem where Jesus will be crucified nearly two thousand years later.”

Randy Frazee, The Heart of the Story

Finally, I think God was teaching all of us a lesson about what it takes to follow Him. We have to be ready to give up anything God calls us to let go. We have to be willing to place our hopes, dreams, and deepest desires on the wood for the sacrifice and trust that God’s plan is best. This is very hard to do, and it takes a great deal of faith. But if we can follow Abraham’s example, and surrender all we have to God, we will be blessed in ways we can’t even imagine!

“What is God asking you to sacrifice on his behalf today? What is one practical way you can move away from selfishness toward surrender to him and his purposes?”

Deron Spoo, The Good Book

Faith in Action

“Faith is being sure of what we hope for. It is being sure of what we do not see. That is what the people of long ago were praised for.”

Hebrews 11:1-2 NIRV

“God makes Abram a promise that he’s going to have a son! . . . Abram believes God, despite his advance age. His belief in God’s word is counted as righteousness — not his actions, not his sacrifices, but his belief. This is consistent with what the rest of Scripture teaches us as well. Even in the Old Testament, faith in God’s word is what connects people to God, not obedience to the law.”

Tara-Leigh Cobble, The Bible Recap

So, what’s the take-away from all of this? Simply, choose faith. Living as a follower of Christ requires it: faith to step out, faith to hold on, and faith to let go.

This is not always easy, and our faith will be tested often. So we can’t just coast through life and hope for the best. We must choose faith every day, whether we feel it or not, whether we understand what God is doing or not. We must wake up every day and say, God, I believe in You and I believe in Your promises. I will do whatever You ask of me because I trust that Your plan is best.

We won’t always be good at this. There are times we will fail miserably. But we can never give up trying. Because as Hebrews 11:6 (NIV) tells us, “without faith it is impossible to please God.”

“Our faith doesn’t instantly free us from our faults. The promises of God over our lives don’t translate into instant perfection. The standard we live by as we follow God isn’t immediate perfection but continual progress. To remain in the struggle against sin is a winning strategy. To continue to strive and refuse to settle is the pattern of people making headway in their relationship with God.”

Deron Spoo, The Good Book

“Abraham and Sarah passed the only test God cares about. The same one he still puts in front of us today. They trusted him. And because they did, the story continues.”

Randy Frazee, The Heart of the Story

This week’s Scripture passages are all about the life and faith of Abraham. Through his example we see what it means to put faith into action. As Christians, we are living proof of the fulfillment of God’s promises to Abraham. And Scripture is full of God’s promises to us as well. We, too, have been chosen by God, not because we deserve it, but because we have made ourselves available to be used by Him. So let’s embrace our roles in God’s story and choose faith every day!

“Therefore from one man, and him as good as dead, were born descendants as many as the stars of heaven and as many as the innumerable grains of sand by the seashore.”

Hebrews 11:12 ESV

References:

• Blatchford, Faith. God of Wonders: 40 Days of Awe in the Presence of God. Chosen, 2021.
• Cobble, Tara-Leigh. The Bible Recap: A One-Year Guide to Reading and Understanding the Entire Bible. Bethany House, 2020.
• Frazee, Randy.  The Heart of the Story: Discover Your Life Within the Grand Epic of God’s Story. Zondervan, 2017.
• Spoo, Deron. The Good Book: 40 Chapters That Reveal the Bible’s Biggest Ideas. David C Cook, 2017.
• The Story: Read the Bible as One Seamless Story from Beginning to End. Rev. ed., Zondervan, 2008.

Images:

• Desert and Night Sky featured image by adolfo_mazzotti from Pixabay
• Orange Sky image by Joe from Pixabay
• Desert image by Pexels from Pixabay
• Infant Hand image by Myléne from Pixabay (edited)
• Wood Pile image by TheUjulala from Pixabay (edited)
• Bible image by AgnieszkaMonk from Pixabay (edited)
• Night Sky image by Image by Pfüderi from Pixabay (edited)