A Faltering Faith

Introduction

Well, good morning!

If you have your Bible and I hope that you do, open ‘em up with me Genesis chapter 12. We’re gonna be in the last parts of this chapter and the first four verses in chapter 13.

Listen, this is our third week in our new sermon series, looking at the life of Abram. And so far, we’ve talked about God’s calling and Abram’s response to God’s calling. And honestly, this story, everything we’ve talked about so far, it should really captivate us. First, we saw God approach Abram…a pagan man living in a pagan culture…and He promised him everything…a new place, a new people, a new purpose…a promise to be his God. And then, we saw Abram respond in faith to God’s promises. I mean 2,000 years before Christ, Abram hears the voice of God…this voice, it tells him to go to an unspecified land where he’d be blessed and be able to bless the entire world. And listen, we see Abram believe God, he leaves Haran “not knowing where he was going (Hebrews 11:8). He follows God’s direction and he treks a great 800-mile journey across Mesopotamia and down the east end of the Mediterranean. He descends from Damascus into Canaan where God would then promise him all the land.

Listen, there’s a lot that happens in those first 9 verses…Abram’s journey, it would take him on a tour of faith as he toured the promised land, building altars in its very heart and calling upon the name of the Lord amidst the land’s pagan inhabitants. I mean what an incredible amount of faith! And then knowing his life, understanding that he’d live it all in a tent, living as a foreigner in the land of promise…he’s a model of faith.

But listen, as we talked about last week…all of Scripture, it points to Christ…its all meant to tell about God and who He is. Even Abram’s faith, its about the majesty of God. Abram came to faith because of God’s outward and inward call. Abram heard the word of God, and Abram, through the Spirit, believed the Word of God. It’s really a story about the greatness of God. And listen, I think today’s passage just further proves that point.

While Abram’s faith is the central theme of his life, we see him struggle as he sojourns in these foreign lands. What he’s called to do, its not easy…and so oftentimes, like we’ll see this morning, he loses sight of God’s design and God’s intentions…he loses sight of God’s calling, and he takes things into his own hands. And listen guys, every single time he does that…every single time his faith falters…he brings pain and suffering upon himself and on all those around him. But guys, again…this story…its about God and who He is. And despite Abram’s faltering faith at times, again a man characterizes by his faith, we see God is always faithful to him regardless of whether Abram deserves that faithfulness. In fact, what we’ll find, even in today’s passage, its that Abram was always in the wrong when he faltered and yet God always rescued him from his own shortcomings.

And so listen, if you’re there with me in Genesis chapter 12, let’s stand and read this passage together. Starting in verse 10, it says this:

Genesis 12:10–13:4 (ESV)

Now there was a famine in the land. So Abram went down to Egypt to sojourn there, for the famine was severe in the land. When he was about to enter Egypt, he said to Sarai his wife, “I know that you are a woman beautiful in appearance, and when the Egyptians see you, they will say, ‘This is his wife.’ Then they will kill me, but they will let you live. Say you are my sister, that it may go well with me because of you, and that my life may be spared for your sake.” When Abram entered Egypt, the Egyptians saw that the woman was very beautiful. And when the princes of Pharaoh saw her, they praised her to Pharaoh. And the woman was taken into Pharaoh’s house. And for her sake he dealt well with Abram; and he had sheep, oxen, male donkeys, male servants, female servants, female donkeys, and camels.

But the Lord afflicted Pharaoh and his house with great plagues because of Sarai, Abram’s wife. So Pharaoh called Abram and said, “What is this you have done to me? Why did you not tell me that she was your wife? Why did you say, ‘She is my sister,’ so that I took her for my wife? Now then, here is your wife; take her, and go.” And Pharaoh gave men orders concerning him, and they sent him away with his wife and all that he had.

So Abram went up from Egypt, he and his wife and all that he had, and Lot with him, into the Negeb.

Now Abram was very rich in livestock, in silver, and in gold. And he journeyed on from the Negeb as far as Bethel to the place where his tent had been at the beginning, between Bethel and Ai, to the place where he had made an altar at the first. And there Abram called upon the name of the Lord.

Thank you, you can be seated.

[Prayer]

Guys, as believers, as people who’ve come to faith in Jesus…we have to acknowledge that we walk in a foreign land today. We experience all kinds of trials and difficult circumstances. And while the blood of Christ covers us and justifies us, we live in a world that’s consumed by sin…there’s all kinds of evil around us. And as result, through the sovereign will of God, we’re called to walk through some of these valleys at times. Of course the Scriptures, it tells us that God uses these kinds of trials to test us and grow us…but oftentimes, when we hit these points in our life, we take things into our own hands. Maybe its with some kind of illness or disease…maybe its with a broken relationship or maybe your marriage…maybe its way-were kids. Instead of seeking the Lord’s will or the Lord’s comfort, we just do what we think’s best. We’re not patient…we’re not willing to wait on the Lord. And what we find…more so than not, when that happens…its that our will, it leads to pain and suffering…it causes us to hurt ourselves and those around us…and a lot of times, it causes us to drift further away from God’s presence…until we feel all alone…Like we see with Abram here, our faith, it falters at times. But praise Jesus, despite our constant shortcomings, He’s always faithful to His people!

Listen, if you’re taking notes, our three points this morning…number 1, trials oftentimes cause us to stumble…number 2, trials remind us of God’s faithfulness…and then finally, number 3…trials lead us to repentance and restoration.

Let’s look at this first point together.

I. Trials Oftentimes Cause Us to Stumble (vv. 12:10-16)

Trials oftentimes cause us to stumble.

If you pay attention to the first parts of our passage, it says there was a famine in the land, right? There’s a famine in the promised land. And listen, of course the text here, its talking about a physical famine…Abram struggled to grow crops, feed his livestock…support his family…but I’d also argue there was spiritual famine as well.

Again, we have to remember the story up to this point…God came to Abram, He gave him promises…He told him to forsake his family and his homeland. Of course, we saw last week Abram responded in faith to God’s call…but as you dig into those first 9 verses, its clear it was hard…Abram was in a new place, inhabited by unrighteous people, needing the constant reminder of God’s promise. He became discouraged…often! This wasn’t a walk in the park for Abram. I’m sure at times, as we’ll see in the coming weeks, his family wasn’t always on board with his decision to trust God. Abram faced a ton of adversity as he chose to follow God.

But listen, as we continue this story…there’s a physical famine in the land. Pile everything else on top of this…and listen, the weight of all this adversity, it crushes down on Abram’s faith. And what happens is Abram’s tempted to try and secure God’s blessing apart from God’s design. I think that’s what we’re seeing here in verse 10, its that the famine of food, it fuels anxiety leading to a famine of faith…which of course causes Abram to leave Canaan and head toward Egypt. Now, I don’t think Abram’s giving up here…if that were the case, he would’ve just headed back home, to Ur…but in going to Egypt, we see Abram here, seeking to meet his own needs through means of earthly protection instead of asking for or expecting eternal protection from God.

And listen, I think we see further proof of Abram’s famished faith here. Not only does Abram seek protection from the physical famine but he also seeks the protection of his family. In verses 11 and 12, Abram tells Sarai to misrepresent or to lie about their relationship.

Now, if you’ve been with us since the beginning of Genesis…if you know how the rest of Genesis continues…there’s actually this constant theme of deception that’s tied to self-protection. It shows us repeatedly from Adam to Abraham to Isaac to Jacob to Joseph’s brothers later on…we see repeatedly the idea of deception tied to one’s protection.

For Abram here, even though God’s promises in the previous verses obviously included his wife, Abram’s fear, it leads him to see his spouse as only a risk here in these verses…she’s a risk that has to be managed, she’s a means to an end…almost a matter of convenience instead of commitment.

And so, Sarai, she followed along with his plan. She was taken to Pharaoh’s house. She was obviously a beautiful woman…she’s a knockout. If the face of Helen of Troy could launch a thousand ships, Sarai’s face could launch a thousand caravans. The people there, they dealt well with Abram…they gave him everything they possibly could’ve…sheep, oxen, donkeys, servants…everything.

This adversity, it didn’t just test Abram’s trust in God’s protection but it also tested his trust in God’s provision. This specific inclusion in the narrative, its important, and a lot of times its overlooked, but just as Adam failed to protect Eve from the serpent’s lies in Genesis chapter 3…Abram here, fails to protect Sarai from Egypt and lies during the process, putting her in harms way.

And for a moment, it actually seems like Abram, he’s gonna have to receive the blessing God promised him apart from God’s design. Sarai, she’s taken into Pharaoh’s house, of course, thinking she’s only the sister of Abram…and again, Abram’s given much in return…which actually introduces another theme that’s repeated throughout God’s Word…its the theme of pagan Egypt being a means of provision for God’s people. Several times, in fact, the chosen people of God, they plunder Egypt because of the providence of God. We’ll see ‘em pop up again with Jospeh and his brother in chapter 43. There’s another famine in the promised land and Egypt meets their needs.

But guys, you have to see this…adversity here, it compromises Abram’s authenticity. Abram truly believed the path to a good life was through his own deception rather than God’s design. And listen, if we’re not careful…if we’re not grounding ourselves in His Word and with His people…if we don’t find ourselves seeking Him on a daily basis, we’ll face the same dangers today. It’s so easy for us to face the same kind of trials and adversities and completely bypass God.

And listen, don’t think for a second it can’t happen to you. Abram, he’s known for his faith, and to him…at least at first, I’m sure he didn’t see anything wrong with what he did. I mean it was just a little white lie, right? Sarai, she was his half sister according to the text. I mean he could at least ease his own conscience in saying that “truthfully.” Heck, he probably started congratulating himself for being so wise and so forward-thinking! He was helping God after all. I mean, if something happened to him, God’s promise would all be undone, right? He’s a clever man.

But guys, there’s a few problems with that kind of deception. None of what Abram did was an act of faith. Abram, he was living as if the God who had spoken to him just a few verses back…he was living as if that God didn’t exist. God wasn’t in the driver’s seat…Abram was. And even more, Abram was using a lie to promote God’s work.

Guys, don’t fool yourselves. When we’re faced with difficult decisions, many times…a lot of us struggle looking to God because the reality is, we think we know better than God. Even as believers today, we wrestle with our flesh…and like Abram, it’s possible for our faith to falter at times…its possible for us to take things into our own hands.

We have to be reminded over and over again, we’re sinners who deserve death…we’re sinners separated from the glory of God…we’re sinners, who on our own, will always choose contrary to God’s design. We can’t lose sight of that gospel truth. It’s what pushes us to walk in faith, understanding that God’s way, its so much better…God’s leading is so much more rewarding and satisfying.

Listen, I met a woman at our baptismal service this past weekend, at Edinboro Lake…and we talked about the gospel…God’s Word…and listen, in conclusion she said that all of us, we were all headed to hell because we believe that we’re all saved by grace and that as believers today we believe we still have the ability to sin…that our righteousness, it only comes from Christ and not our own merits.

Church, let us never forget that we’re all sinners, saved by grace. Let us never forget that we have the ability to do what’s unholy and unrighteous…let us not forget that we deserve the complete opposite of everything God’s given us and everything God’s promised. Guys, let us not forget that it’s only by the person and work of Christ we are who we are.

John gives us some very important truths to remember as believers today.

1 John 1:8–10 (ESV)

If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us.

By the grace of God and through the work of Christ. Paul reminds us…that while we struggle in doing what we know is right and while there’s this fight between the flesh and the spirit, Romans 8:1 reminds us:

Romans 8:1 (ESV)

There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.

Which moves us into the next point.

II. Trials Remind Us of God’s Faithfulness (vv. 12:17-20)

Trials remind us of God’s faithfulness.

Listen, as we move into verse 17…we see that in the face of Abram’s faithlessness, God is faithful.

2 Timothy 2:13 says:

2 Timothy 2:13 (ESV)

if we are faithless, he remains faithful—

for he cannot deny himself.

Even though Abram’s eyes were off the Lord, the Lord’s eyes were never off Abram.

What we see here, its that God intervenes by striking Pharaoh and his household with some unspecified plagues…which I believe also foreshadows what He’ll do in Exodus to Egypt. But listen, somehow through these plagues, the Egyptians figure out that things started going badly when Sarai began living with ‘em. They realize that Sarai’s Abram’s wife. And so, Pharaoh command’s Abram to take his wife and go…which if you’re paying attention, it echoes God’s call at the beginning of the chapter to go forth from his country to the land that He’d show him. God’s using a pagan king’s rebuke here to get Abram back to the promised land, to uphold His promise. This incident…or this situation, it just shows us the faithfulness of God in spite of Abram’s faithlessness.

When I read this, I’m kind of reminded of Jonah, right? Jonah ran from the command of God which put him on a boat full of pagan worshipers, heading in the complete opposite direction of God’s call. But yet, God pursed him…the text says, God threw a storm his way…and we see God used these sailors, these unbelieving sailors to throw Jonah overboard and redirect him back toward God. In fact, when the sailors realize what’s going on…after Jonah tells ‘em he’s a Hebrew that fears God and that he’s been running from God…they ask him, “How could you do this?” (Jonah 1:8-10). Without knowing God themselves, they could see Jonah’s inconsistency.

In the same way, Pharoah here, he calls Abram to account and Abram doesn’t say a single word in reply. He just goes off with his tail between his legs, having been rightly chastened by an unbeliever.

Listen, isn’t it embarrassing for us as believers to be rightly corrected by an unbeliever. You ever had that happen? It’s tough to bear witness in those situations. But listen, if its rightly done…if you’ve been acting a fool and they call you out for your sin…just confess it and seek that person’s forgiveness. Don’t ever try and minimize or rationalize your sin. Which also gives us a secondary point here…when your faith falters and when you rebel against what you know God wants, your sin, it will always impact others. I mean we see that every single time Abram tries to take things into his own hands. It always ends with hurting himself, his family, and those around him.

But listen, I love verse 20 because its just a reminder of God’s abundant grace despite our sin. Pharaoh, he commands his men to escort Abram, his wife, all his belongings out of the country. That’s grace, right? That’s undeserved favor! If Abram had gotten what he deserved, Pharoah would’ve killed him and kept Sarai and all his possessions. But God graciously blessed Abram and He did it through Pharoah.

Guys, I can’t say this enough…God’s perseverance in our lives, its a foundational gospel truth. If we recognize our ability to fall and make mistakes, then we have to recognize God’s continued and constant grace in our lives as people who’ve been claimed for Him. Yes, sometimes we go off into Egypt…and yes sometimes we make terrible decisions…but listen, like Abram, God made us a promise…to seal us…to redeem us…to give us eternal life. And like Abram…Ephesians 1 tells us that He chose us…He drew us…and He continues to persevere us to this day. Why? Because we’ve been set apart by Him and for Him. Our faith and everything that comes with it, it’s all a gift of God…His continued perseverance in our lives, its a gracious gift from God. Not because we deserve it…not because we chose it…not because we chose Him…not because we’ve done anything worthy…but because He simply deemed it so. Live in that comfort.

And listen, I’ve heard it before…when people try and elevate their own will over God’s, “In choosing us before the foundations of the world, God looked out into the future and saw that we chose Him.” Dear Christian, if that were the case, all God would’ve saw was a person separated from Him…a person that fell short of His glory…a person, despite the image they were created in, a person that never sought after the Lord. That’s why Paul says what he says in Ephesians chapter 2, that before any of us knew God, we were all dead…unable to do anything.

Guys, let this bring you comfort! Paul reminds us in Romans 8:30:

Romans 8:30 (ESV)

And those whom he predestined he also called, and those whom he called he also justified, and those whom he justified he also glorified.

Find comfort in the fact that God’s in control of your salvation and that He graciously chose you…and that He graciously preserves you today.

Now, I wanna clarify something before we move on…because oftentimes, people hear this kind of stuff, especially weaker Christians in the faith…God’s grace, its not a license to sin. In fact, Paul deals with this in his letters to the Corinthians. Our freedom in Christ, it doesn’t give us the ability to just do what you wanna do. We’re judged by the fruit that comes out of us…and if we truly belong to God, He will produce fruit or works in us. That’s what Paul says in Ephesians 2:10:

Ephesians 2:10 (ESV)

For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.

We were created and we were chosen for good works. We have to remember that. And so, we should constantly test ourselves as Paul says in 2 Corinthians 13:5:

2 Corinthians 13:5 (ESV)

Examine yourselves, to see whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves. Or do you not realize this about yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you?—unless indeed you fail to meet the test!

We should look the part even in our own shortcomings.

I love the words of “Come, Thou Fount,” one of my favorite hymns:

O to grace, how great a debtor, daily I’m constrained to be!

Let Thy goodness, like a fetter, bind my wandering heart to Thee!

III. Trials Lead Us to Repentance and Restoration (vv. 13:1-4)

And then finally…our last point…trials lead us to repentance and restoration.

I included the first section of chapter 13 because its really a conclusion to this story.

After being rebuked…Abram heads back to Bethel…which means “The House of God.” The text says, “where his tent had been at the beginning…, to the place where he had made an altar at the first.” And listen to this, “And there Abram called upon the name of the Lord.”

Last week, if you were with us…we saw two things that marked Abram’s life of obedient faith…a tent and an altar, right? The tent, it showed his life as a sojourner…one just passing through the way to another destination…And the altar, one that showed his worship and commitment to God.

Guys, you have to see this…Abram’s rebuke in Egypt, it caused him to leave the place of his bad decisions…and head back to the place he first built an altar to the Lord…the place where God reminded him of the promise to give all the land to his offspring. He came back to the tent and the altar. He called upon the name of the Lord…He worshiped Him…he recognized that God was faithful despite his own faithlessness. Abram repented and Abram sought restoration.

What Abram did here, its the same response we should have when we’ve disobeyed God and strayed from His path. We have to return to our beginning place with God…the cross, right? We bow there and we remember the great price Jesus paid for our forgiveness. We call on His name, His attributes, His love, His holiness, His grace, His faithfulness. And guys, we reestablish the communion we formerly enjoyed with Him.

You see, for Abram, he had an altar…but for us, Jesus invited us to a table…and guys, we’re invited there to confess our sins, seek God’s gracious forgiveness, and be restored to fellowship with Him.

Closing

Listen, as we close this morning…I just want you to think about what it is the Lord’s been calling you to do? And listen, maybe you’re` sitting there thinking, “Steven, He’s not called me to anything…I’ve would’ve heard it and done it!” But guys, remember Paul’s words in Ephesians 2…God called us with a purpose…He called us for a mission…and God doesn’t waste anything…If you’ve not heard His call, if you don’t know His will, it might just mean you’ve wandered off into Egypt and you’re doing your own thing.

Go back to the place where you first met God and call upon His name!

Will you bow your head and close your eyes with me this morning?

And so, if you’re a believer this morning…that’s all I want you to do…and then respond. Maybe that means coming down to the altar, seeking Him…meeting with Him…confessing to Him. Maybe it just means you praise Him for His grace this morning. But guys, find yourself…like Abram…at the place you first met Him.

But listen, if you’re here and if you don’t know Jesus this morning, what’s holding you back from turning your life to Him…The Bible says all you have to do is repent and believe…All you have to do is confess with your mouth and believe in your heart that Jesus is Lord and that He died and that He rose again…believe that He came to be your substitute, that He took on your punishment…and that through Him, you no longer receive death, but you get to look forward to eternal life.

Listen, if that’s you this morning, I just wanna give you a chance to respond to that. I know a lot times, it just seems so overwhelming…you hear about eternity…you hear about the gospel and there’s just so much going through your head.

And so, this morning, if you’re battling with this and you wanna turn your life over to Jesus, you feel the Spirit tugging on your heart…maybe drawing you this morning…all you need to do is repeat after me…you don’t have to use words, you can speak them in your heart…because that’s what matters…it’s what’s going on there, in your heart. These words I’m gonna say, they don’t save you, they’re not magical in any kind of way…they’re just words…but all I wanna do is help you process what the Spirit’s doing in your heart right now, and all I wanna do is help you turn to Him. And so, if that’s you this morning, would you bow your head and just repeat after me?

"Lord Jesus...I believe you are who you say you are....I believe you came into this world and I believe you lived a perfect and sinless life...I believe you went to a cross and wore the weight of my sin....I believe you experienced the punishment met for me...I confess to you now that I am sinful and wicked....I am in need of grace and mercy and forgiveness...Jesus come into my life and fill me with your Spirit....Help me live in your ways and grow me to be more and more like you…I pray this in Jesus's name...Amen!"

Listen, if you prayed that and met those things in your heart...The Bible says that you've now been given a new life...you've been reborn. You now have hope and assurance in your salvation. It tells us that the Spirit of God has now taken up residence in you. But guys, don't keep that to yourself…let someone know. Come alongside of a church, let that church disciple you. You need to grow and learn what it means to follow Jesus.

And so, as we close this morning, the praise team, they’re gonna play, I challenge you...let someone know. Come talk to me, let me pray with you. Or listen, if you’re struggling with something else and you need to just seek the Lord…this is your time.

[Prayer]