The Faith of Abraham
Genesis 17:1 – 7, 15 -16
You have probably all heard and probably all sung this song, “Father Abraham had many sons; many sons had Father Abraham. I am one of them, and so are you, so let’s just praise the Lord. This song has been a favorite for countless children who have flapped arms and legs, spun around, sat down, and paid tribute to Father Abraham. Today’s texts we will remember that Abraham is the father of our faith because of his faith in a life-giving God.
Last week we read through the story of Noah and his Ark built to carry the only remaining righteous seed of mankind, along with two of every kind of beast to repopulate the world after a great flood. The world had become corrupt and God needed to press “restart” and he does it through Noah.
The story of Abram follows almost immediately, in Chapter 12, only two chapters away from the end of the story of Noah. It brings us to a relatively non-descript man and his non-descript, almost dysfunctional family.
This childless family includes Abram, as he is known, his wife Sarai, who was the widowed wife of his brother and her son, Lot. There are eleven generations between Noah and Abram, through the lineage of Noah’s son Shem. The story of Abram begins in chapter 12 in finishes in chapter 25. Thirteen chapters that tell the story of a man whose faithfulness to God changed the world as we know it.
Despite what had happened with the flood, the disobedient nature of men continued because of evil in the world. Despite God’s swift judgement most people ignored him and continued to sin. But a handful of people really tried to follow God; and Abram was one of those.
In chapter 12, wanting to find a righteous person to carry out his plan of reconciliation and redemption for mankind, one day God appeared to this childless Abram, who was 75 years old at the time by the way and promised to give him numerous descendants and to his descendants into a great nation. In this covenant between God and Abram, the only thing that Abram must do was simply obey God and, as it turns out, to have righteous patience and spirit filled trust in God’s promise.
By Genesis 15, ten years had passed since Abram and Sarai first obeyed the Lord’s demanding call, yet they still had no child, and Sarai was barren. God comes back to Abram in a vision. In response to God’s comforting words, Abram asked hard questions about His promises. God replied with reassurance and a sign. “Look up at the sky and count the stars” God says to him “if indeed you can count them. So shall your offspring be.”
Once again, without wavering, Abram believed God and Abram and Sarai waited for the promised son. Trusting God is not an easy journey; it is a hard-fought battle where deep conviction faces hopelessness and yet patiently replies, “Nothing is too hard for the Lord”.
In today’s text Aram is now ninety-nine years old, and still the promise is not fulfilled. There is no son, there is no multitude as numerous as the stars in the heavens. Yet, God comes and asks for a recommitment. God asks for a sign that Abraham is still on board, twenty-four years into this— is he still on board?
Without going into the details for time’s sake, over the years Abram had moments when he wasn’t so sure. You can’t blame him, really. He was getting on in years. It’s a long time to hold on to hope; a long time to see a future that seemed to be so far from the reality. Now God is back and using that covenant word again. And there seems to be another condition, God says “Walk Before me and be Blameless”.
This is only the second time that this word has appeared in the Bible. The first time was when Noah was introduced. “Noah was a righteous man, blameless in his generation. Blameless means, then, I suppose, good enough to save humanity. No pressure there. But Noah walked with God.” Abraham is told to walk before God.
Christopher Toh writes: So what’s the difference between walking with God and walking before God? Let’s start with “walking with God”. The notion of the word “with” comes in intimacy and relationship. Walking with God means having a deep and intimate relationship with Him. Walking with God means knowing God. Walking with God shows that God loves us, and He wants us to enjoy an intimate relationship with Him.
The notion of the word “before” refers to “in front of” or “in the presence of”. When we walk before God, it means that we walk in respect, honor and fear of His and Holiness. God wanted Abraham to walk before Him and be blameless (perfect and holy).
Walking before means on display, it seems. Before means to represent. But perhaps most significantly, before means that Abram had to walk with trust in God’s plans, without all the answers to the questions that he had for most of his life of faith.
He had to walk before God gave him specific directions. He had to decide for himself how to follow the path of faith. And he got it wrong sometimes. He made decisions that got him into trouble, and he put loved ones at risk. He messed up, he wasn’t perfect, but then none of us are.
However, none of that precluded him from continuing to walk before God. He kept walking and he kept seeking. He kept asking for God’s guidance. And when it came, he changed direction. In our lesson today, God changed his name to match his new identity and his mission.
As Abram his name meant exalted father, but now his name will be Abraham, meaning “father of many” because Abraham’s faithfulness spawned a multitude of children who also come to seek to walk before God with as much faith as did Abraham.
Let’s not forget his wife, because God didn’t. She was included in this story in a way that women often weren’t in the biblical saga. Sarai is translated as contentious or quarrelsome. But now her name would be Sarah, meaning princess. She will take her place as a leader, in shaping this nation to be.
Twenty-four years into the journey with God, and now with their new names to match their missions, Abraham and Sarah are still in the dark, still waiting for fulfillment. And yet, somehow, they are still willing to believe. They are still willing to walk before God, step after step after step. Abraham was 100 years old when their son Isaac was born and legacy of Abraham, the generations that would come after him begins because of his trust and faithfulness to God.
Because of The Faith of Abraham, as we look back at religious history, the most important person of ancient times was not a king or conqueror, not an Egyptian pharaoh or Persian king. He was not a brilliant Greek philosopher or Phoenician mathematician, but a man of faith, our friend Abraham.
He accepted the call of God and believed the divine promise. Abraham became the father of nations and forefather of the Messiah. Today, three world religions look to Abraham as the example of faith: Jews, Christians, and Muslims. The patriarch was called to have faith in the future, and he fulfilled that call.
The Lord promised Abraham’s descendants that “I will be your God”. Today we believe that promise to be true not only for the Hebrews but also for all of Abraham’s children by faith, all believers. We all belong to God, and he is our God.
Hear the Good News my friends……….
The life and faith of Abraham show us that one person plus God can make a great difference. Abraham believed God’s promises and entered into a covenant relationship with him. The world is different 4,000 years later because of one man’s faith!
Abraham never doubted that God would fulfill his promise. Abraham’s life was marked by mistakes and failures as well as by wisdom and goodness, but he consistently trusted God. His faith was strengthened by the obstacles he faced, and his life was an example of faith in action. Abraham looked to God, obeyed him and waited for God to fulfill his word.
His faith in God made him brave. He went when and where God sent him not knowing why or how but by putting his strength and trust in God, and he did not fear. His faith made him high-minded, generous, and courteous. Abraham was a plain man, dwelling in tents, but still a mighty prince, not merely in wealth of flocks and herds, but a prince in heart and faithfulness.
Faith in God made Abraham a truly holy man and it made him the friend of God. His communion with God is the special glory of Abraham’s character. Abraham believed God because there was something that was in his heart, which can be in every heart if we are willing to accept it, something which answered to God’s call repeatedly and faithfully.
Blessed is the person who has chosen his share of Abraham’s faith. They and their children will have their share of Abraham’s blessing. It was The Faith of Abraham that kept the favor of God upon him throughout his journey to the promised land and to the raising the fathers of nations. We should all endeavor to have such faith! Amen.