in hope he believed against hope, that he should become the father of many nations, as he had been told, “so shall your offspring be.”
he did not weaken in faith when he considered his own body, which was as good as dead (since he was about a hundred years old),
or when he considered the barrenness of sarah’s womb.
[romans 4:18-19]
he did not weaken in faith
what a statement.
would you love to have this said over you at your funeral.
seems like a big ask.
but it is possible.
abraham, was not sinless or without his crises of faith.
- he coerced his wife to lie and act as if she was his sister. (genesis 12:11-13)
- he withheld this truth from the pharaoh. (genesis 12:18-19)
- he slept with his female servant at his wife’s request to provide the promise heir on their own doing. (genesis 16:1-3)
- he let his wife banish his son and servant to potential death. (genesis 16:5-6)
- he doubts God ability and longs for ishmael to be the heir. (genesis 17:15-19)
- he lies about his wife being his sister again. (genesis 20:1-2)
abraham was not sinless and he had his crises of faith.
but what is also true – abraham never stop following and believing the LORD.
abraham, with no Holy Spirit in him, somehow believed that the LORD God was truly God. and, he somehow believed, that despite all the circumstances against them, God could give them a son. and, he somehow believed this in his heart in a way – that God saw his belief.
and he believed the Lord, and he counted it to him as righteousness. [genesis 15:6]
(two more “ands”.)
AND, after isaac was born – the son of the promise – God asked abraham to take this son and sacrifice him to the LORD as an act of worship!
AND, he went to do it! built an altar, bound his son, placed him on the altar, raised his knife – then the LORD interceded.
what faith.
listen to how hebrews 11 describes his faith…
by faith abraham, when he was tested, offered up isaac, and he who had received the promises was in the act of offering up his only son, of whom it was said, “through isaac shall your offspring be named.” he considered that God was able even to raise him from the dead, from which, figuratively speaking, he did receive him back. [hebrews 11:17-19]
stunning.
when the word in romans 4 says – he did not weaken in faith – it means, despite his crises of faith – he did not stop following or believing the LORD. the trajectory of his life, his heart – was after the LORD amid his weaknesses and missteps and sin. the LORD saw this.
we have the Spirit – by the work of Jesus – in us.
to not – weaken in faith – for you and i means to follow the LORD, in the Spirit’s power, amid all our crises of faith.
today – let’s plead for that from the Spirit.
“LORD – help me follow and believe you amid all my crises of faith. yes LORD!”
God loves this prayer. hears it. and will honor it because it is his will.
looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, [hebrews 12:2]
and this is the confidence that we have toward him, that if we ask anything according to his will he hears us. and if we know that he hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have the requests that we have asked of him. [1 john 5:14-15]
~ john ryan