Reading: Genesis chapter 20 verses 1-18.
Ill:
A man opened a new business and his best friend sent him a floral arrangement:
• When the friend popped in to see him a few days later;
• He was shocked to see that the shop had sent a card saying; “Rest in peace”.
• When he called the florist to complain.
• The florist said; “Well, it could be worse.
• Somewhere in the city is an arrangement in a cemetery that reads;
• “Congratulations on your new location”.
• Mistakes of course, are part of life;
• Even the so-called greats have made them!
Ill:
• In Shakespeare's Julius Caesar, Act II, Scene II,
• Caesar asks Brutus, "What is't o'clock?" Brutus replies, "Caesar, 'its strucken eight."
• The great Bard had forgotten that mechanical clocks;
• Were not invented until 14 centuries after Caesar's death.
• So mistakes are part of life;
• And we will see in today’s passage that Abraham & Sarah are about to make a big one!
Actually for Abraham & Sarah this chapter is Déjà vu:
• Abraham and his wife have already committed this sin before;
• We read about it in Genesis chapter 12 verse 10 to chapter 13 verse 4
• Years earlier they faced an almost identical situation;
• And on that occasion they acted in the same way as in this incident.
• Instead of trusting God and relying on him;
• They lied, schemed and deceived as they try to handle the situation in their own wisdom.
Note:
• Although they are repeat offenders;
• Remember that they did not behave like this habitually. They were not doing this every other week.
• There was a twenty-five year gap between the two incidents.
• This sin was not a habitual sin but occasional moments of folly.
Personal: Perhaps you can identify with Abraham here because every Christian:
• Battles with the same struggles and all of us are repeat offenders!
• The same failures can keep at times turn up again and again in the life of a Christian.
• Ill: Life is very circular;
• Certain battles we fought and we won and we assumed were finished;
• May well rear their ugly head in some other guise in the future.
Ill:
• At a certain Children’s hospital;
• A boy had a reputation for wrecking havoc with the nurses and staff.
• Embarrassed by his behaviour his mother tried to blackmail him into being good.
• She made him a proposition.
• If you can behave for 24 hours;
• When I come back tomorrow I will give you a pound.
The next day the mother returned and looking her son straight in the eye said;
“I’m not going to ask the nurses or staff if you have behaved, I’m going to ask you.
You must tell me yourself, do you deserve the pound?”
• After a few minutes silence the boy said;
• “You had better give me 10p”
Maybe we can identify with that boy;
• Even after we have trusted Christ for many years:
• We can find ourselves repeating the same sins over and over again.
• Even though we should be at the stage of receiving the pound;
• Sadly we are still struggling and at the 10p, 20p 30p stage!
Stories in the Bible like this one in Genesis about God’s people failing;
• Are not there to encourage us to sin,
• They are there as warnings, telling us to beware of sin!
• The point being, that if these so called ‘great’ men & women of faith failed;
• Then we so called ‘ordinary’ believers had better be careful.
• Ill: Road sign: ‘Work in progress’.
• That was true for Abraham & Sarah and it is certainly true for us as Christians!
Quote: Alan Redpath:
“The conversion of a soul is the miracle of a moment,
the manufacture of a saint is the task of a lifetime”.
• When we find ourselves facing the same old temptations, circumstances and sins;
• Remember victory is possible …..
• But only if we ‘walk by faith and not by sight’.
• Sadly for Abraham & Sarah they in this chapter ‘walk by sight and not by faith’.
(1). Foolishness.
1“Now Abraham moved on from there into the region of the Negev and lived between Kadesh and Shur. For a while he stayed in Gerar, 2 and there Abraham said of his wife Sarah, "She is my sister." Then Abimelech king of Gerar sent for Sarah and took her.”
We are not told why Abraham moved from where he was to this new location in Gerar:
• He was living in Hebron (Means “Fellowship”).
• He moves to Gerar (“Meaning lodging-place”)
• Gerar was just about in the boundaries of the Promised Land,
• But there was a problem with it, the Philistines inhabited it!
• In fact, most likely Gerar was a royal city for the Philistines.
• A city where Abimelech the King lived.
Note:
• There is no hint from the Bible;
• That Abraham’s move was out of any wrong motives or unbelief.
• But what Abraham did was to put himself in a venerable situation.
• He put himself & Sarah into an awkward situation – into enemy territory!
• He has put himself & Sarah back into similar circumstances;
• To where he had failed God once before.
• The circumstances Abraham put himself in were not healthy.
• And therefore he should have seen warning lights;
Application: That is a lesson for us also:
• We always need to always be alert for sin; but we need to be especially diligent;
• When you know you’re in a situation where you are more likely to fail.
• Ill: Problem with drink then keep out of pubs!
• Ill: Problem with pornography don’t surf the net on your own at night.
• Ill: Problem with debt, then do not own a credit card!
• Ill: Problem with……………. You fill in the blanks
• Each one of us are aware of our weaknesses and areas of temptation;
• Each one of us need to learn to read the warning signs!
Quote: H.E. Fosdick
“He who chooses the beginning of a road chooses the place it leads to.
It is the means that determine the end”.
• Each one of us are aware of our weaknesses and areas of temptation;
• Each one of us need to choose wisely the roads on which we travel!
There are three areas in which we see the foolishness of Abraham demonstrated:
• In fact all three reasons are given to us by Abraham himself:
• After Abimelech rebukes him for his foolish actions.
(A). The Fear of Man (vs 11):
11 “Abraham replied, "I said to myself, 'There is surely no fear of God in this place, and they will kill me because of my wife.'”
The first reason for the foolish act of deception is:
• The fear of man instead of the fear of God.
• Note the irony of this verse:
• Abraham is guilty of what he judged Abimelech to be.
• Not fearing, not trusting God.
• Abraham was more concerned about what Abimelech could do to him;
• Instead of what the Lord could do for him.
• Instead of trusting the Lord to keep his word and protect him,
• Abraham displays unbelief and tries to handle the situation according to his wisdom!
Fear has a way of causing God’s people to do foolish actions:
• We have a Bible full of examples of how Godly men & women;
• Allowed fear to rob them of all that was there’s in God.
Ill:
I like the story of John Chrysostom (Kry-sos-stum):
• A.D. 373 John Chrysostom (Kry-sos-stum) wanted to know God better,
• He decided to became a hermit and went to live in the mountains near Antioch.
• Although his time of isolation was cut short by illness,
• He learned that with God at his side, he could attend alone against anyone or anything.
• That lesson served Chrysostom (Kry-sos-stum) well.
• In A.D. 398 he was appointed patriarch of Constantinople,
• Where his zeal for reform antagonized the Empress Eu-dox-ia, who had him exiled.
• Allowed to return after a short time,
• Chrysostom (Kry-sos-stum) again infuriated Eudoxia, who sent him away again.
• How did Chrysostom (Kry-sos-stum) respond to such persecution? With these words:
“What can I fear? Will it be death? But you know that Christ is my life, and that I shall gain by death.
Will it be exile? But the earth and all its fullness are the Lord’s.
Poverty I do not fear; riches I do not sigh for;
and from death I do not shrink.”
I am glad to say that many of us will never face the circumstances Chrysoston faced:
• But we will face our own situations;
• Question: How are we going to handle them?
• Quote: Proverbs 29:25: “The fear of man brings a snare”.
• Quote: Proverbs 3:5-7: “Trust in the ……..do not lean on your own understanding”
Verse twelve gives us the second reason for such a foolish act:
B. The Rationalization of Sin (vs 12):
“Besides, she really is my sister, the daughter of my father though not of my mother;
and she became my wife.”
What Abraham is saying to Abimelech is that he only told him a half-lie, not a whole lie.
• What Abraham is doing is rationalizing his sin.
• Though Sarah is Abraham’s half sister,
• His first responsibility to Sarah is husband, not brother.
• Abraham simply tells Abimelech what many call a half-lie, not a whole lie.
• Half-truths are not supposed to be as wicked as outright lies;
• But actually they are worse!
Quote:: F.B. Meyer:
“A lie consists in the motive quite as much as the actual words,
a half-truth has just enough fact in it to make it plausible and just enough deception to make it dangerous”
Ill:
• Lying seems to be a way of life for many people. We lie at the drop of a hat.
• The book ‘The Day American Told the Truth’ says that ;
• 91 percent of those surveyed lie routinely about matters they consider trivial,
• And 36 percent lie about important matters;
• 86 percent lie regularly to parents, 75 percent to friends,
• 73 percent to siblings, and 69 percent to spouses.
Ill:
Most common lies are:
• “I never got the message”
• “The check is in the post.”
• “I wasn’t feeling well.”
• “I didn’t want to hurt your feelings.”
• “I was just kidding.”
• “I was only trying to help.”
• Number one Christian lie:
• “I will pray for you!”
Quote:: Austin O’Malley:
“Those that think it permissible to tell white lies soon grow colour-blind. “
Quote:: Sidney J. Harris:
“Once we assuage our conscience by calling something a “necessary evil,” it begins to look more and more necessary and less and less evil.”
Personal Application:
• One of the characteristics of a Christian;
• Should be that they tell the truth!
• A Christian's commitment to truth derives from God's attribute of truth.
• God is truth and Jesus himself said; “I am the…. Truth”.
• Again and again in the letters of the New Testament;
• We are told to speak the truth - honesty should be the hallmark of the Christian!
• Telling the truth is not merely an intellectual exercise,
• Nor even simply a moral imperative.
• Truth telling should flow naturally from our moral character,
The third reason for Abraham’s foolish action is found in verse thirteen
C. Their old sinful natures (vs 13):
“And when God had me wander from my father's household, I said to her, 'This is how you can show your love to me: Everywhere we go, say of me, "He is my brother." ' "
Here we see their old natures taking dominance in their lives:
• In Genesis chapter 15 verse 6 God gave this couple a name change;
• He went from Abram to Abraham. From Sari to Sarah.
• But those new names did not change their old natures.
• They were born sinful, and therefore sinful by nature and sinful by practice.
• Evidence of that old sinful nature at times was very evident;
• We see it here in this chapter and also twenty-five years earlier.
• The first time Abraham had made a pact with his wife Sarah;
• That in certain situations they would lie about their relationship.
• This was done (so Abraham argued) for the protection of his life.
• Abraham the great man of faith, at times did not have the faith to trust God!
Personal application:
• There is a big difference between Old Testament believers and New Testament believers;
• New Testament believers have been given the Holy Spirit!
• In the Old Testament the Spirit came for a while and then left them.
• In the New Testament the Spirit takes up residence in every believers life.
• So every New Testament believer is in better shape than Abraham & Sarah!
• God has given us the helper to keep us on track!
Ill:
• Man with two fighting Pit bull terriers.
• One black and one white.
• Gamblers were annoyed and frustrated;
• Because at different fights one or the other dog would win.
• Someone asked him what made the difference;
• The man replied: “The winner is the one I feed in the build up to the fight!”
• As Christians if we want to walk in victory we need to feed on the things of God.
• And if we want to walk in defeat, we only need to feed our sinful appetites.
(2). Faithfulness.
If you read this chapter for the first time and you did not know who Abraham was:
• You would probably think Abimelech was the believer;
• And that Abraham was the non-believer.
• After all it is Abimelech who reveals an excellent character.
• And it is Abraham who has the flawed character.
Like Abraham we may be unfaithful to God BUT he always remains faithful to us!
Ill:
• In the 14th century Martin Luther;
• Was one of the most influential leaders of the protestant reformation
• This man who used of God in a great way;
• Also was given to times of deep dark depression.
• One time he got really down and depressed and locked himself away in a room;
• He wouldn’t come out for anything or anyone.
• His wife Kathy tried to coax him out of the room with no success.
• Finally she went and dressed with a black veil, and black gloves,
• Totally decked out in black and went into the room with Martin Luther.
• Martin asked her, “dear Kathy, who died?”
• She replied, “Why God died, Martin.”
• Martin jumped to his feet in an outburst of emotion and said,
• “That’s blasphemy woman how dare you talk like that?”
• To that she replied, “yes it is Martin, and so is the way you’re living.”
• He got up out of the room and went and wrote the great gospel hymn
• “A Mighty Fortress is our God”.
“A mighty fortress is our God, a bulwark never failing;
Our helper He, amid the flood of mortal ills prevailing:”
• This song has been called
• “The greatest hymn of the greatest man of the greatest period of German history”
TWO THINGS TO NOTE:
(1). Abraham Lost (missed out spiritually).
(a). As a result of his sin Abraham lost his testimony:
• Abraham could not talk to his pagan neighbours about the God of truth;
• When he himself had told a lie.
• Quote: James Strathan:
• “A bad mans example has little influence over good men”
• The words of king Abimelech in verse 9 cut deep!
• “You have done things to me that should not be done”
(b). As a result of his sin he lost (Paralysed) his ministry:
• Abraham was supposed to be a source of blessing;
• Instead he was the cause of judgement.
• When a child of God gets out of the will of God;
• The discipline of God usually follows.
Ill:
• Jonah caused a storm that nearly wrecked the ship (Jonah 1).
• Achan brought defeat to the army (Josh 7)
• David brought sorrow to his family (2 Sam 12:10)
(2). Abraham Gained (was blessed spiritually).
• Sometimes we may think;
• That our disobedience means that we have forfeited all of God’s promises and protection.
• We blew it and therefore we are on our own!
• But that is not the case; God often blesses us despite our failings.
Ill:
• A potter does not throw the clay away when it collapses on the spinning wheel!
• When the clay begins to wobble the potter will simply start again.
• The clay is unable to shape, hide or moisten itself,
• It can only yield to the potter.
• Who by adding a little here and a little there, with patience and great skill,
• Is able to take a messy lump of clay and produce a real work of beauty.
• God can make something even of our mistakes;
• Abraham is a classic example of that!
Remember God blesses us despite our failings:
• God doesn’t bless us because we deserve it;
• But because of his love, mercy, and grace.
• Under the law we would be treated as our sins deserve (Leviticus 26:21)
• But under grace "He does not treat us as our sins deserve. . ." (Psalm 103:10)
• It is good to know that even though you and I will fail and sin,
• Yet God in his mercy still chooses to blesses us anyway!
Ill:
A banker had just turned a man down for a loan,
• But then made him an unusual offer.
• He said to the man,
• "I have one good eye and one glass eye. If you can tell me which is which,
• I’ll approve your loan."
• The man looked for a moment, then said, "Your left eye is your good eye."
• The banker was surprised. "That’s right," he said. "How could you tell?"
• The man replied,
• "I detected a hint of compassion in the other eye."
Well the heart of God is always full of compassion for his children:
THREE WAYS GOD BLESSED ABRAHAM:
(a). they were kept safe.
• Abraham’s plan of passing Sarah off as his sister;
• Was a disaster waiting to happen.
• Humanly speaking this act could have killed dead;
• Any hope that they had of having a son of their own.
• Humanly speaking it could have destroyed God’s plan;
• Of making a nation from this one couple.
• Humanly speaking it could rob the world of a saviour!
• For Jesus himself was a son of Abraham!
• Abraham’s plan of passing Sarah off as his sister;
• Was a disaster waiting to happen.
Note:
• I am sure Abimalech would normally have killed anyone who;
• Had the nerve to lie, embarrass and deceive him.
• Yet with Abraham there is no punishment;
• Instead verse 14: tells us Abimelech gave him gifts of sheep, cattle and slaves.
• Not only was Abraham kept safe;
• Incredibly his wealth actually increased!
(b). Sarah was kept pure.
• Sarah could have had sexual intercourse with Abimalech;
• Yet God intervened:
• Verse 4 tells us that Abimelech had not "gone near her",
• Verse 6: God says to Abmielech; “I did not let you touch her”
• Which means he had not had sexual intercourse with her,
• So Abimelech had not actually committed adultery.
• God had over ruled in this situation and Sarah was returned safe and pure to Abraham!
Not only was she kept pure but her reputation was saved as well (verse 16):
“To Sarah he said, "I am giving your brother a thousand shekels [a] of silver. This is to cover the offence against you before all who are with you; you are completely vindicated."”
(c). Abraham was recommissioned.
• Notice how God refers to Abraham in verse 7:
• “He IS a prophet”, He does not say “He WAS a prophet”.
• In fact Abraham is told by God;
• That he is the only thing standing between Abimelech and death!
• It will be the prayers of Abraham that change the situation.
• Despite all his failings God in his mercy still chooses to use him!
Personal application:
Quote:
• God would have us grow through the front door of obedience;
• Rather that the backdoor of failure.
• The backdoor of failure is a longer and more difficult route;
• But the end result is even our failures can be an opportunity for growth.
• And God in his goodness and mercy;
• Still chooses to bless us despite our failings and our sinfulness!
• Each Christian like Abraham and Sarah;
• Have the opportunity to grow through their failures;
Quote:
• C.S. Lewis in the Screwtape Letters vividly describes Satan’s strategy:
• “He gets Christians to be preoccupied with their failures; from then on, the battle is won”
God on the other hand wants us to learn from and grow through our failures:
• Each Christian like Abraham and Sarah;
• Have the opportunity to grow through their failures;
(3). Forgiveness.
8 “Early the next morning Abimelech summoned all his officials, and when he told them all that had happened, they were very much afraid. 9 Then Abimelech called Abraham in and said, "What have you done to us? How have I wronged you that you have brought such great guilt upon me and my kingdom? You have done things to me that should not be done." 10 And Abimelech asked Abraham, "What was your reason for doing this?"
11 Abraham replied, "I said to myself, 'There is surely no fear of God in this place, and they will kill me because of my wife.' 12 Besides, she really is my sister, the daughter of my father though not of my mother; and she became my wife. 13 And when God had me wander from my father's household, I said to her, 'This is how you can show your love to me: Everywhere we go, say of me, "He is my brother." ' "
• When God speaks to Abimelech the pagan;
• He responds promptly (verse 7): “Early in the morning”
• He is not out for revenge on Abraham;
• For he knows that Abraham is his only hope;
• And so Ambimelech protects and blesses Abraham.
• Forgiveness is the end result.
God then shows he has forgiven Abraham:
• By listening to his prayer and answering it;
• Forgiveness and healing took place.
Ill:
When the great inventor Thomas A. Edison:
• Was working on a crazy contraption called a “light bulb”;
• It took a whole team of men 24 straight hours to put just one together.
• The story goes that when Edison was finished with one light bulb,
• He gave it to a young boy helper, who nervously carried it up the stairs.
• Step by step he cautiously watched his hands,
• Obviously frightened of dropping such a priceless piece of work.
• You’ve probably guessed what happened by now;
• The poor young fellow dropped the bulb at the top of the stairs.
• It took the entire team of men twenty-four more hours to make another bulb.
• Finally, tired and ready for a break,
• Edison was ready to have his bulb carried up the stairs.
• He gave it to the same young boy who dropped the first one - That’s true forgiveness.
That is the kind of forgiveness that God shows to us:
• When we mess up;
• And when we come to him in genuine repentance for forgiveness!
• God forgives and does not disqualify us from ministry!
• Classic example Abraham.
Ill:
He was recommissioned.
• We noticed how God referred to Abraham in verse 7:
• As a Prophet, He does not say “He WAS a prophet”.
• It was the prayers of Abraham;
• That stood between Abimelech and death or Abimalech and life!
• Despite all his failings;
• God in his mercy still chooses to use him!
Question: Can you remember what caused this mess in the first place?
Answer:
• Abraham disobeyed God because he believed that
• "Surely there was no fear of God in this place."
• Yet verse 8b says that they were "very much afraid."
• In other words they had the fear of God!
• This tells us that;
• The reason for Abraham disobedience and distrust was totally unnecessary!
• God had been watching out for Abraham all along.
• If only Abraham had trusted him in this situation;
• He could have been spared this embarrassing incident!
• And all the sadness, guilt and regret that it caused!
The verse that summarises this passage for me is Proverbs chapter 3 verse 5-7:
Trust in the LORD with all your heart
and lean not on your own understanding;
6 in all your ways acknowledge him,
and he will make your paths straight. [a]
7 Do not be wise in your own eyes;
fear the LORD and shun evil.
