And yet, they made it!
If you are a Christian, do you ever feel guilty that you don't have the faith you believe you should have to make it all work. Are you discouraged and depressed because others seem to have it all together and you don't. Do you struggle with doubts, self-condemnation, negative thinking, and wonder what it will all come to.? Do you wonder if God is there and really cares? Or, do you feel that God is an absentee Landlord?
Let's take a look at some of the people in the Bible. I think we will see that their lives were not all perfect and yet we know that they made it. They made it to the very heart of God. They didn't 'make it' because they were so perfect and faithful but because God is.
I am a Bible student and in my studies I have found that the great people in the Bible weren't so great and perfect. In fact, they were very imperfect and did a lot of stupid things. I remember when the great 'pillars of faith' in the Bible began falling off the pedestal for me. It didn't disappoint me when I found they were not so perfect as I had been lead to believe, instead it gave me hope. It gave me hope because they were no longer on a level with God miles higher than I could ever be but that they were human with weaknesses and made stupid choices just like me. They were imperfect just like me but God used them even though they screwed up. God used them not because they were great and had a great faith but because God is great. So, if that is the case, then maybe He would use me, too.
NOAH, THE DRUNK.
Most of us have heard about how by faith Noah listened to God and built an ark in which to save his family and in essence save the world. He is listed in our "Faithful hall of Fame" found in Hebrews 11. We always hear how great Noah was in being obedient to God's call to build an Ark with which to save himself and his family. We are told how great, faithful, and perfect Noah was and because that is all we have been taught, we look at Noah and others in the Bible and think that this is the reason God used them.
Funny, we never hear about how Noah, after settling down to farming after the flood, got so drunk on the wine he had made that he stripped off all of this clothes even to the extent that his sons had to come into his tent and cover his nakedness. Because of his drunkeness, he was exposed to his son Ham in such a way that a curse came upon Ham's son Canaan. What happened to Noah's faith, the faith that had built an Ark in which to save his family, and eventually, the world? What was it in Noah that made him into a drunk? What thoughts were going through his head at that time? Could it be that he was doubting his part in God's plan? God had worked through Noah mightily when he built the ark but now all Noah was doing was farming. Noah had seen the glory of God at work in miracles, but that time was gone and with it Noah's purpose for living seemed to be gone. We can't know for sure how he felt but we do know that he made it. He made it because in Hebrews 11:7 we read, "By faith Noah, being warned by God about things not yet seen, in reverence prepared an ark for the salvation of his household, by which he condemned the world, and became an heir of the righteousness which is according to faith.
He was saved because of his trust in the Lord and not because of his feelings of inadequacy or lack of purpose. He made it in spite of becoming a drunk and making stupid choices. That gives me hope and shows me that God is the Faithful One.
ABRAHAM, THE LIAR
We have heard the story about Abraham.. God called him out of the land of Ur to give to him the promised land of Cannan. When he arrived in Canaan, Abraham traveled its width and length taking in all the wonderful land that God had given to him and his descendants. God had provided everything they needed during their trip to Canaan. Abraham is considered one of the Faithful, obedient servants of God, our Father in the faith.
After all the history Abraham had with God leading him, when famine struck the land, and things weren't going so well Abraham started to doubt God's faithfulness and provision. Famine drove them to Egypt for food and Abraham made Sarai, his wife, tell the Egyptians that she was his sister instead of his wife. He was willing to sacrifice his wife Sarai in order to save his own skin. Faithful Father Abraham who listened to God's voice and became His servant, lied to save his own skin, at least twice.
What was it that made Abraham feel as though he had to lie in order to remain alive? Could it be that he had looked at the good things God had dome for him and when that slipped through his fingers he began to doubt God's faithfulness to him. Yes, Abraham was a liar. It was even passed down to his son. Isaac, the one whom Abraham set off to sacrifice in obedience to God, did exactly the same thing as Abraham. Great Abraham and great Isaac both were liars. As a friend once told me, "A nut doesn't fall very far from the tree."
And, yet, Abraham (and Isaac) made it. They made it because their ultimate trust was in God and His sovereignty of choosing for them to make it and and not upon their own feelings, or obedience, or being perfect, or their faithfulness to God.
Maybe next time I’ll talk about Rahab the whore who is also listed in the Hall of Faith in the Book of Hebrews
If you are a Christian, do you ever feel guilty that you don't have the faith you believe you should have to make it all work. Are you discouraged and depressed because others seem to have it all together and you don't. Do you struggle with doubts, self-condemnation, negative thinking, and wonder what it will all come to.? Do you wonder if God is there and really cares? Or, do you feel that God is an absentee Landlord?
Let's take a look at some of the people in the Bible. I think we will see that their lives were not all perfect and yet we know that they made it. They made it to the very heart of God. They didn't 'make it' because they were so perfect and faithful but because God is.
I am a Bible student and in my studies I have found that the great people in the Bible weren't so great and perfect. In fact, they were very imperfect and did a lot of stupid things. I remember when the great 'pillars of faith' in the Bible began falling off the pedestal for me. It didn't disappoint me when I found they were not so perfect as I had been lead to believe, instead it gave me hope. It gave me hope because they were no longer on a level with God miles higher than I could ever be but that they were human with weaknesses and made stupid choices just like me. They were imperfect just like me but God used them even though they screwed up. God used them not because they were great and had a great faith but because God is great. So, if that is the case, then maybe He would use me, too.
NOAH, THE DRUNK.
Most of us have heard about how by faith Noah listened to God and built an ark in which to save his family and in essence save the world. He is listed in our "Faithful hall of Fame" found in Hebrews 11. We always hear how great Noah was in being obedient to God's call to build an Ark with which to save himself and his family. We are told how great, faithful, and perfect Noah was and because that is all we have been taught, we look at Noah and others in the Bible and think that this is the reason God used them.
Funny, we never hear about how Noah, after settling down to farming after the flood, got so drunk on the wine he had made that he stripped off all of this clothes even to the extent that his sons had to come into his tent and cover his nakedness. Because of his drunkeness, he was exposed to his son Ham in such a way that a curse came upon Ham's son Canaan. What happened to Noah's faith, the faith that had built an Ark in which to save his family, and eventually, the world? What was it in Noah that made him into a drunk? What thoughts were going through his head at that time? Could it be that he was doubting his part in God's plan? God had worked through Noah mightily when he built the ark but now all Noah was doing was farming. Noah had seen the glory of God at work in miracles, but that time was gone and with it Noah's purpose for living seemed to be gone. We can't know for sure how he felt but we do know that he made it. He made it because in Hebrews 11:7 we read, "By faith Noah, being warned by God about things not yet seen, in reverence prepared an ark for the salvation of his household, by which he condemned the world, and became an heir of the righteousness which is according to faith.
He was saved because of his trust in the Lord and not because of his feelings of inadequacy or lack of purpose. He made it in spite of becoming a drunk and making stupid choices. That gives me hope and shows me that God is the Faithful One.
ABRAHAM, THE LIAR
We have heard the story about Abraham.. God called him out of the land of Ur to give to him the promised land of Cannan. When he arrived in Canaan, Abraham traveled its width and length taking in all the wonderful land that God had given to him and his descendants. God had provided everything they needed during their trip to Canaan. Abraham is considered one of the Faithful, obedient servants of God, our Father in the faith.
After all the history Abraham had with God leading him, when famine struck the land, and things weren't going so well Abraham started to doubt God's faithfulness and provision. Famine drove them to Egypt for food and Abraham made Sarai, his wife, tell the Egyptians that she was his sister instead of his wife. He was willing to sacrifice his wife Sarai in order to save his own skin. Faithful Father Abraham who listened to God's voice and became His servant, lied to save his own skin, at least twice.
What was it that made Abraham feel as though he had to lie in order to remain alive? Could it be that he had looked at the good things God had dome for him and when that slipped through his fingers he began to doubt God's faithfulness to him. Yes, Abraham was a liar. It was even passed down to his son. Isaac, the one whom Abraham set off to sacrifice in obedience to God, did exactly the same thing as Abraham. Great Abraham and great Isaac both were liars. As a friend once told me, "A nut doesn't fall very far from the tree."
And, yet, Abraham (and Isaac) made it. They made it because their ultimate trust was in God and His sovereignty of choosing for them to make it and and not upon their own feelings, or obedience, or being perfect, or their faithfulness to God.
Maybe next time I’ll talk about Rahab the whore who is also listed in the Hall of Faith in the Book of Hebrews
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