The Sins of the Father

Introduction

We are naturally skeptical people. I think part of that comes from our overly-marketed minds. We look at advertisements for medicine, insurance, home decor, toys for our children etc. and we think, “what is the catch.”

I wonder if Abraham ever felt the same way. Especially, as the text tells us today, Abram gets to the promised land, and a famine his the land forcing Him to go to Egypt. Fear creeps in, and what began as a step of faith now looks like a very, very poor decision.

But Abram’s poor decision was not the faith to step out into God’s promise. It was the lack of faith that drove him to try manage the promise Himself. And his decision made out of fear to keep the promise of God almost cost him everything. In fact, had God not intervened, it would have cost him everything.

See, Genesis 12 isn’t about some horribly deviant sin. Now, there are some horrific consequences to Abram’s sin. BUT this passage is more about Abram’s lack of trust that led him to rely more upon his instincts than God’s promise.

Let’s read and be warned together that we might follow Jesus and trust his promises as best we are able.

Read Genesis 12:10-20.

Abram’s Sin

This story happens on repeat over the next few chapters. Abraham interacts with the Egyptian king. Be believes that he is going to be killed, because his wife is so beautiful.

This whole story begins with a man who knows his wife is beautiful. In fact, Abram believed that Sarai was so beautiful that the Egyptians were going to kill him and keep his wife.

So he tells the Egyptian king that Sarai is his sister, not his wife. The Egyptian king takes her into His household, possibly to make her a wife. And as a result, Abram became rich, and Pharaoh’s house was afflicted with a great plague.

Pharaoh eventually figures out that Sarai is his wife because of the plagues have come upon Egypt because of his having Sarai in his harem.

So he confronts Abram and tells him to leave Egypt.

Not only does this happen in this passage, but it happens again in Exodus 20 where Abraham settled near the land of the Philistines and tells Abimilec, the king of the Philistines, that Sarah is his sister. This second time is AFTER Isaac is born! After God fulfills his promise.

What do we do with the griminess of these passages? What do we do with the reality that one we would call Father, “Abraham,” did something so gross - allowing his wife to become a part of the harem of a king without saying anything.

The Bible does not leave out the gross moments. In fact, it often gives not simply the sin, but it also makes the dysfunction that the sin caused very clear. Now, only the Bible would do this. Because the hero of the story isn’t Abram. It is God who fulfills his promises.

In the Bible’s exposing of Abram’s sin, we see our own sin exposed. As a young pastor, I was advised to spend as much time as I could muster with older pastors. Why? You either learn from other’s stupid decisions, or you make the stupid decisions. And your own stupid decisions are much more costly.

What was Abraham’s sin? Dishonestly.

Abraham spoke a convenient dishonesty. It was a lie that helped him and his wife survive.

Abram told a white lie, or probably better stated, a half truth.

“Sarai, let’s just get through Egypt. There is a famine in our land. We can figure it out later.”

When we get scared, we are tempted to trade our faith for pragmatism. “I can figure this out.” And we trade the power of God for our own power. Friends, that is always an awful trade.

The consequences of Abraham’s sin was great.

His witness among the nations was hindered, and his character was called into question.

His wife was not cherished, protected, or honored. How scary to have spent part of your life in the harem of other kings because your husband was too scared to tell the truth?

A plague fell upon Egypt, and a possibility of death fell upon Abimelech.

A fourth consequence - Genesis 26:6–7 “So Isaac settled in Gerar. When the men of the place asked him about his wife, he said, “She is my sister,” for he feared to say, “My wife,” thinking, “lest the men of the place should kill me because of Rebekah,” because she was attractive in appearance.”

I hear often, especially lately, about generational curses. Scripturally, we see passages where the sins of the father will revisit the next generation. Ezekiel prophecies that father’s have eaten sour grapes, and their children’s teeth are on edge. In popular Christian culture today, some would say that there is a demonic force that passes from family to family.

I don’t agree with the pop Christian culture take that I see often today. I think generational curses is simply your sin affects your family for generations.

If I live a godless life, my children are going to be dealing with that and my grandchildren are going to be dealing with it too.

Nothing, and I mean nothing, escapes your children.

The first time Abraham commits this sin, it is He and Sarai.

The next time Abraham commits this sin is in Genesis 16 and Isaac has been born.

Do you know who commits the sin the third time? Genesis 24 - Isaac.

Since we are talking about building a legacy, you can build a good legacy or you can build a poor one.

You can build a legacy of a good name, character, faithfulness, family values, and love. And that will be a bedrock of

Or you can build a legacy of dishonesty,

In the Genesis 20 narrative, we see Abraham’s mind and heart concerning this sin. He does it again! And he explains to Abimilech why He did it.

Firstly, Abraham was afraid. He saw that the Philistines did not fear God and thought they would kill Him. Genesis 20:11 “Abraham said, “I did it because I thought, ‘There is no fear of God at all in this place, and they will kill me because of my wife.’”

Fear is not a valid excuse for sin. But worse, fear that leads to sin will destroy your relationship with God. You will make decisions about God based upon people instead of making decisions about people based upon God.

Marshall Segal // “I see the fear of man most clearly in my own heart when it begins to suck the moisture out of my soul.” Why? “The fear of man desperately looks left and right, left and right, left and right, but it never looks up.”

Secondly, Abraham justifies what He has done. “She is my half-sister.”

And technically this is the truth. Abram and Sarai had the same dad and different moms. Now, this was an acceptable practice in early ancient days. The problem here is the lie.

And you may say, why was Abram in sin if he actually told the truth?

Abram actually told a half-truth with the intent of deception. Abram did not share that Sarai was his sister so that people would know his family tree. He did so to neglect the fact that Sarai was his wife.

Thirdly, Abraham accepts that He must do things this way. “Promise me that you will do this wherever we go, Sarai. This is the way we are going to survive what God has told us to do.”

The American church does have some blind spots. I think at times, they are similar to Abram’s. Let me explain.

Be really careful about your blind spots. We all have them. And if you say you don’t, your blind spot is probably arrogance.

A blind spot is a in a sin, an idea, or even a practice in your life that is wrong but you don’t see it as wrong. And it may even be that you see it as ok or worthwhile.

Pragmatism/Faith in Jesus

The Lord’s Work in the Lord’s Way // Francis Schaeffer // “There is no source of power for God’s people - for preaching or teaching or anything else - except Christ himself. Apart from Christ, anything that seeps to be spiritual power is actually the power of the flesh.”

As followers of Christ, we are not making pragmatic decisions. We are making spiritual decisions. We aren’t simply asking “what works” but asking God to work in ways that we cannot.

God’s Faithfulness

Who protected the promise? We can certainly moralize this text - that is part of its purpose. But let’s not forget. God’s plagues over Egypt, appearance to Pharaoh, and entering the dreams of the Philistine King. They are to protect and fulfill the promise God gave to Abraham.

God protects His promises - in this text ruthlessly! He will not allow his promises to Abram to be foiled. Abram’s fear, Abram’s pragmatism, Sarai’s time in the harem of Pharaoh, famine in the Promised Land, and nations larger than Abram could have ever imagined - NONE of them foiled the promises of God.

How do we know this? 2 Corinthians 1:20 “For all the promises of God find their Yes in him. That is why it is through him that we utter our Amen to God for his glory.”

Romans 8:35–39 “Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword? As it is written, “For your sake we are being killed all the day long; we are regarded as sheep to be slaughtered.” No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

Invitation

Lord, help me with the blind spots. Help me with my inclination to manage my life even when you have asked me to step out in faith. Because I know more of you is on the other side.

Lord, I want to know your promises. And they are found in Jesus. I want Jesus. I want to follow Him and give my life to Him.