#114: Giants of Faith VI: Against all hope, Abraham in hope believed.

Therefore from one man, and him as good as dead, were born as many as the stars of the sky in multitudes innumerable as the sand which is by the seashore. By faith Abraham, when he was tested, offered up Isaac, and he who had received the promises offered up his only begotten son, of whom it was said, "In Isaac your seed shall be called," concluding that God was able to raise him up, even from the dead, from which he also received him in a figurative sense. (Heb 11:12; 17-19)

Continuing the account of Abraham's faith from where we left off last week, we learn more from the life of Abraham. The writer of Hebrews 11 writes these narratives to pass one message across: it is easy to miss the point when we read about these characters in the bible. In summary, they all did what they did because of faith in God. They were flesh and blood like you and I. They had family, they had feelings, they were rational beings, they were not robots, but the faith they had in God made them to do the unthinkable exploits that we read about in scriptures today.

When God promised Abraham and his descendants that the world would belong to him, he did so, not because Abraham obeyed the law, but because he believed and was accepted as righteous by God. For if what God promises is to be given to those who obey the law, then faith means nothing and God's promise is worthless. And so the promise was based on faith, in order that the promise should be guarantee as God's free gift to all of Abraham's descendants - not just to those who obey the law, but also those who believe as Abraham did. For Abraham is the spiritual father of us all; as scripture says, "I have made you father of many nations." So the promise is good in the sight of God, in whom Abraham believed - the God who brings the dead to life and whose command brings things into being what did not exist. Abraham believed and hoped, even when there was no reason to hope, and and so he became the father of many nations just as the scripture says, "Your descendants will be as many as the stars." He was then almost 100 years old, but his faith did not weaken when he thought of his body, which was already practically dead. He was sure that God would be able to do what he has promised. That is why Abraham, through faith, was accepted as righteous by God.  (Romans 4: 13-22)

What can we learn from the account of Abraham? God told a man without children that he would be the father of many nations. The statement was very irrational and to make the matters worse, God went further to say that the descendants that he was referring to would actually come from Abraham's loins. And the very next things that Abraham did, which is what every person would do was to consider himself. Abraham reckoned that he was very old, and the writer of Heb 11 and Rom 4 said he was practically dead; nothing (re)productive could come out of Abraham. He was at the age where one would stop making plans and start making do with what ever he or she has done so far in life. But Abraham believed God. If God said, he would have a son, he would. Abraham had no reason to hope for a son. He was too old to hope for a son, but against all hope, Abraham in hope believed God. And God kept his promise. Rom 4 says that it was not because of any particular thing Abraham did in obedience to the law but entirely because of his faith in God.

When God gave Abraham the promised son, God said the son should be sacrificed. and Hebrews said that this command did not make sense to Abraham, because God had initially told Abraham that it was through Isaac that He would fulfill the promise of being a father of many nation; so why would God be demanding him to be sacrificed? Even though it was making no logical sense to Abraham, the bible said that Abraham went ahead to sacrifice Isaac, because he believed that God was able to do the impossible. And God proved Himself faithful.

What is the LORD telling you to do? When you look at your qualifications, do you envision the possibility of it coming to pass? is there any hope? is there a slightest hope that it is possible? Abraham stands today as an example to teach us that God calls into existence the things that do not exist. He is the God of all possibilities. His commands to us are not based on our qualifications, but based on His capabilities. He is the God of creation. There is nothing that is too difficult for Him. If He can create everything from nothing, there should be no reason to doubt Him. Can you be an Abraham?

Thought: The words "he was accepted as righteous" were not written for him alone. They were written also for us who are to be accepted as righteous, who believe in Him who raised Jesus our LORD from death. Because of our sins He was given over to die, and He was raised to life in order to put us right with God. (Romans 4: 23-25).

DO YOU BELIEVE? It is not about what you can do, it is about what God can do and what He has already done for you. Most times God speaks to us and demands things that are beyond us just like a 100 year old Abraham hoping for a son, in such cases, He demands our total trust.