Then God said to Abraham, "As for Sarai your wife, you shall not call her name Sarai, but Sarah shall be her name. "And I will bless her and also give you a son by her; then I will bless her, and she shall be a mother of nations; kings of peoples shall be from her." Then Abraham fell on his face and laughed, and said in his heart, "Shall a child be born to a man who is one hundred years old? And shall Sarah, who is ninety years old, bear a child?" And Abraham said to God, "Oh, that Ishmael might live before You!"
Unbelief is why we don't see more of God's glory, but God isn't hindered by unbelief and stopped from His purpose: He persuades us. Lovingly, He doesn't take “no” for an answer, but He compels us to receive the promise, promising us GOOD in spite of our fears, and loving us IN SPITE OF unbelief and sin. The promises are yours, and you will have them, so He creates the faith that we need.
First, Abraham didn't believe, but God gave him faith by persuasion. He said, “Oh that Ishmael might live”, because he didn't believe that God COULD and would bring seed from 100 year old Abraham and 90 year old Sarah. Scripture says, “Then Abraham fell on his face and laughed, and said in his heart, Shall a child be born to man who is one hundred years old? And shall Sarah, who is ninety years old, bear a child?” (vs17). But, God didn't say, “He hasn't believed, so it is over. Off to the pit.” He graciously gives us proof of His love, causing us to believe with extra comfort. Rather than, “You should have believed”, and, “that's it”, It is, “No, Sarah your wife shall bear you a son, and you shall call his name Issac; I will establish my covenant with him” (vs19). Here, God's “no” is really His “yes”. He tells us that we can't have what we want; He has something better that we must have, and He gives it to us by persuading us to take.
You CAN'T have salvation on your terms, but you will be saved, says God. You can't overcome sin YOUR way, but you will overcome His way, by promise, supernaturally. He says, “For if you live according to the flesh you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live” (Rom 8:13). God saves us by making us willing.
Secondly, salvation demands a response. God deals with the will. We must be WILLING to be saved God's way, for “this is His commandment: that we should believe on the name of His Son Jesus Christ and love one another, as He gave us commandment” (1 John 3:23). The persuaded are willing because He meets our fears. Just as Abraham loved Ishmael, even so, God gave him words of comfort concerning him. He said, “And as for Ishmael, I have heard you. Behold, I have blessed him, and will make him fruitful, and will multiply him exceedingly... I will make him a great nation”, so that He takes care of my fears (Gen 17:20).
I fear that leaving my life will lead to robotic misery, that I’ll be a passionless “do gooder”. But, He gives me the HOPE of joy, and this kindled hope enables me to LET GO and receive Him! He sees that I'm struggling with a specific sin, so He gives persuasion of power and joy in obedience. He sees that I fear following Christ, but He reveals what I have to gain, so that fear is gone. He says, “For whosoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whosoever loses his life for My sake will find it” (Matt 16:25). He sees I'm scared of leaving grandma's religion, but He reveals that I can help grandma, if I only believe. In every way, God deals with our fears, crushing them to pieces by His great provision, so that He proves Himself GREATER than the pleasures of sin, which are only for a season.
Thirdly, we ACT when we're persuaded and evidence that we believe God, even as Abraham acted on God's truth and circumcised his house. We read, “So Abraham took Ishmael his son, all who were born in his house and all who were brought with his money, every male among the men of Abraham's house, and circumcised the flesh of their foreskins that very same day, as God had said to him” (Gen 17:23, 9-14). He is not a hearer only but a doer of the word. He is not unchanged by the gospel, but he shows his faith by his works. James said, “Thus also, faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead” (James 2:17). We BELIEVE God, and this belief causes us to do stuff that's for His glory, honoring Him. Abraham, by circumcision, says, “God, I believe you. I follow you. I live in hope”, and we say by good deeds, “God, Your love is real, and this is all my hope and salvation. It's ALL I've got”. The life of the believer screams, “I agree with God. His terms are reasonable, they can be done, and there is GREAT reward”.
Faith takes the impossible, believes God will do it, and lives reverencing His word. God promises DEATH to the transgressors, and obedience is the evidence that we shall live.
Finally, be strong in the promises. Don't be talked out of them, and don't deny them for your plans.
Abraham loved Ishmael, but he's not the seed God chose, so he takes the better plan.
God has better for us than we have for ourselves, better than we can achieve in our own cleverness and strength. Take the promised salvation, the promised life, and live upon God, rather than you. The joy of life is faith.
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