I preached this sermon a week ago, but have not been able to put together a post. But today, worship is done and I am enjoying a quiet afternoon, so here goes!
We covered Genesis 20, wherein Abraham falls into the same sin that he struggled with way back in Genesis 12. But much time had passed over the course of these chapters – decades in fact. And Abraham has had much time to learn and understand the ways of the Lord.
But, the man who is called the friend of God falls – big time. He blows his testimony before a pagan king. And he puts the covenant promise at risk.
Why? Well, we can speculate on the reasons. He had just seen the destruction of Sodom – which came after his intercessory pray in chapter 18. He did not know what had become of his wayward nephew Lot. Perhaps he was under pressure from the local populace, those who were his friends may have turned their back on him – or worse. And so, Abraham may have been very discouraged and disheartened. In this weakened state, he proved to be vulnerable to fear. He had a crises of faith. And he fell. He sinned. He lied. He didn’t protect his wife. He put the covenant promise on the line – in an effort to save his backside.
And yet, God comes and saves the day, yet again. God moves against the sin in this chapter, bringing comfort and grace. And God also brings correction to the wayward prophet.
There are a number of applications for us from this chapter. The first is for us to understand our own propensity to fall into the same sin, over and over again. Also, we see that God takes the estate of marriage seriously. It is not something He takes lightly. Do we? Another point that is clear in this chapter is that God speaks to us in a number of ways. We certainly have His Word, the Bible. But God could speak to us through someone else, pointing out ways that we fail Him. Are we listening?
And we also see God moving to bring restoration. Even though we don’t deserve it, God sent His Son to die on a Cross for us – taking on Himself the penalty we deserved.
I pray last Sunday’s sermon proves to be a blessing to you. You can listen to the sermon here. (Right click to save it on your computer)
We also have an application guide with study questions available here.
If you are ever in the Peoria area, feel free to worship with us at Providence Church. Worship starts at 10:00 am.
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