What is it about Abraham and his story that speaks to so many people throughout human history? The apostle Paul tells us clearly that it is his faith (Rom 4:11-12). Perhaps more than any other place in the Bible, Abraham shows us what it looks like to live by faith in real, everyday life. This Fall, we look to the story of Abraham to bring us into a season of new and renewed faith. We begin by looking at where such a model and example of faith came from. By looking at Abraham’s “origin story”, we can learn some surprising lessons on where God brings about and renews our faith when we ask: Where (ie in what kind of place, in what kind of people, through what kind of plans) does faith begin, get strengthened, go deeper, and revive?
1. In Places of No (or Little) Faith
The story of Abram (later renamed Abraham) begins at a turning point in the book of Genesis. After the Fall into sin, the Flood, and the scattering after the Tower of Babel, it is no surprise to find humanity is in a very depressing place. But our God loves to work in such places. David Clines reminds us that “no matter how drastic man’s sin [or situation] becomes, destroying what God has made good and bringing the world to the brink of uncreation, God’s grace never fails to deliver man from the consequences of his sin… God’s commitment to his world stands firm.” God called Abram and his family out of a place of no (or little) faith, right where most of us would not expect. God can bring about faith in places where we see none.
2. In People without Resources
If God were to pick any couple to begin a great nation of people, it certainly doesn’t seem Abram and Sarai (later renamed Sarah) fit the description. Something painfully emphasized in v. 30 is Sarai’s barrenness. Anytime the Bible mentions barrenness, it points to something very personal and painful but also to something very central about how faith works. As George Mueller once proclaimed, “Faith begins where our power ends.” Abram and Sarai could not look to their own situation, power, or resources for help. God blessed them with His resources. We might be prone to forget this today, especially for people who have a lot of resources. We must become “barren” (poor in spirit) for our faith to turn away from self to God.
3. In Plans that Didn’t Work Out
We must never forget that this is a family story, albeit a troubled one. Their origin story could be called a “dark introduction.” We see a family of confused religious convictions, a father who failed to take them where he intended, a marriage without the promise of children, and even death among family members. However, what seemed to Abram like a failed plan for a troubled family was an essential part of God’s plan for a bright future. As we have seen elsewhere in the Bible, God loves to act where human plans have failed. God can work in plans that look like failures to us to bring about renewed faith and preparation for His plans.
4. Through Someone Willing to Pioneer
It wouldn’t be a turning point without Abram’s response to a hopeless situation. The Lord told Abram to “go,” and we read the action that changed human history forever: “So Abram went” (Gen 12:1, 4). All it takes is one willing to pioneer, to blaze a trail of faith when everything seems wrong. Abram did this not by looking inside himself but outside to God. The first lesson of faith is that it begins or revives by looking beyond ourselves.
Hebrews reminds us that Abraham was the pioneer of faith and that he points us to a greater pioneer, Jesus Christ. God the Father commanded Jesus the Son to “go” to a place of no faith, letting go of all his resources in order to carry out a plan that would appear to be an utter failure. So Jesus went. Should we find ourselves discouraged, we need not look to our place, resources, or plans. We look to Jesus, whose joy in enduring the cross was to pioneer for us a faith that will endure forever.
QUESTIONS
What about the sermon most impacted you or left you with questions?
How would you describe the place you are right now in your faith? struggling faith? strong faith? doubting faith? no faith? How does it encourage you to know Abram’s “backstory” that he came from a place of no (or very little) faith in God?
How would you describe the place our culture is at when it comes to the Christian faith? How can Abram’s story give us hope when living in a place that is hostile or indifferent to faith in Christ?
Why does the text emphasize the barrenness of Sarai? Why does God choose a couple that can’t have children to be ones he will through whom he will build a great nation? What does this teach us about the nature of faith?
Do you have an example of a “Plan A” of yours that isn’t working out now or didn’t work out (in the past)? How does Abram and Sarai’s story help us gain perspective on what God might be doing?
Out of such a bleak situation, Abram became a pioneer. How did he go in faith despite it all? He looked outside of himself. How is Jesus the greater Pioneer and Perfecter of our faith (Hebrews 12:1-2)? What difference does it make when our faith is weak and struggling to know he’s gone before us and blazed a trail? What might this look like to do this for you now?