Introduction
We’re
starting a series of talks tonight on how to live by faith. And in order to
learn how to live by faith 2,000 years after Christ, we’re going to be looking
at the life of a man who lived 2,000 years before Christ. You might be thinking
to yourself, “I don’t see how that’s going to be relevant,” but even if
Abraham’s world is very different to ours, the God we worship is the God of
Abraham, Isaac and Jacob – and he doesn’t change.
It’s
really important we understand that because otherwise the Bible is just another
history book. Some people think that the day of miracles is past. In reality,
there has never been a ‘day of miracles,’ there's only a God of miracles and
Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today and forever.
In
asking the question, “How can I live by faith?” I want to say straight away
that the way we hear the word “faith” used in our day is misleading. Here are a
few examples: the media talks about “faith schools” which are often centres of
educational excellence that are usually popular with parents. There’s a
programme on TV at the moment called “Round the World in Eighty Faiths,” in
which context the word “faith” means one path among many to spiritual
enlightenment. We hear about “faith leaders” which usually means men of
ambassadorial status who are basically members of the establishment. “Faith” in
much modern-day English usage is just another word for “respectable religion of
any variety you like.”
But
the Bible never talks about faith in that way. If faith, in our culture, is
like a game of croquet with Auntie, in the Bible, faith is more like bungee
jumping with Mad Max and Crazy Kev. It’s precarious. It’s an adventure where
you stake everything on God’s promises. John Wimber always said we need to
spell “faith” r.i.s.k. You see, faith, for so many of our fellow citizens,
means knowing where you’re heading but Hebrews 11.8 says quite openly that
Abraham, having been introduced as a model of faith, “did not know where he was
going.” And being a man, he probably didn’t ask anyone for directions either...
So faith is not about self-assurance or self-confidence - and certainly not
self-reliance.
In
Romans 4, it says that Abraham is the father of all who believe. Hebrews 11
says five times that he lived by faith. In our gospel reading tonight, Jesus
says, “If you were Abraham’s children, then you would do the things Abraham
did.” Which basically means “if you were people who had faith, you’d be living
on the edge.” We’re going to be exploring together over the next seven weeks
how Abraham lived by faith and what can we learn from it.
Background
All
right. We pick up the story tonight in Genesis 12. Abraham at that time is
called Abram and he is 75 years old. In fact, the story actually begins a
little earlier and it would be remiss of me to skate over the background.
I
want you to notice this: God’s call on Abram’s life came at precisely the point
of his own powerlessness. God’s call often does. Moses had a speech impediment
and a criminal record. Jeremiah was inarticulate and inexperienced. Gideon was
small and unimpressive. David was young and disregarded. Mary was a nobody from
a nothing town. Paul was violent and anti-Christian. God didn’t wait until they
were sorted before he called them. He called them at their point of greatest
powerlessness and when they were most unsuitable. For Abram the problem was
twofold. 1) He was getting on a bit and 2) his wife was childless and now
beyond childbearing age. That’s a bit of a bad start when God tells you to go
off and become the father of a great nation, more numerous than the stars in
the sky and grains of sand on the shore.
Never
dismiss God calling you to do something great on account of you being not yet
ready. Some of you here are young. You’re not too young for God to use you
mightily. Some of you here are older. You’re not too old for God to call you
into new forms of service.
So
tonight we’re going to start looking at what it means to live by faith and, in
particular, how God calls and how he expects us to respond. Probably the
biggest questions we would have tonight are “how do I know God is calling me?”
and “how and when should I respond to that call?”
Well,
I think Genesis 12 sets out four tests. Here they are: 1) Can I trust the
promises of God? 2) Am I determined to keep going? 3) Am I able to work with
others? And 4) Am I ready to step out of my comfort zone?
1)
Can You Trust the Promises of God?
First
test, can I trust the promises of God? We know from other parts of the Bible
that Abram believed that the land of Canaan would be given to him (though it
was inhabited by Canaanites) and that an heir would be born to him (though his
wife was well past the menopause). And it seems that his confidence was founded
on God’s promise to him in the opening verses of Genesis 12 where God sets out
his manifesto; this is what I am going to do. “I will show you. I will make you
into a great nation, I will bless you; I will make your name great, I will
bless, I will curse.”
God’s
call on Abram’s life, and God’s call on your life starts with what he is going
to do; not with what you are going to do. God says, “I will do it.”
About
ten years ago, Kathie and I were trying to sell a house. We placed it in a
number of agencies and put an advert in a seller-to-buyer property magazine.
Lots of interest, many visits, no offers. So, of course, I started to wonder
about whether we had set the too high, and then worry if anyone would want to
buy our horrible house and whether we were going to be stuck with this
millstone forever. Plus the stress of having to keep the place impeccable for
visits which, with four children, is a challenge. Months passed - and nothing
was happening.
And
then I was reminded of these promises from God: “Seek first the kingdom of God
and his righteousness - then all these other things will be given to you as
well.” (Matthew 6.33). And this one: “Don’t be anxious about anything, but in
everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to
God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will keep your
hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 4.6-7).
I
made an intentional decision not to fret about the house. It’s not important,
it’s just a pile of bricks and my heavenly Father will sort it out. Within one
week, two people made firm offers. So the sale became something of an auction
and, in the end, we agreed to sell it for more than it was actually worth. God
is faithful and he honours his promises.
However,
it is much easier to listen to feelings of uncertainty and insecurity than it
is to stake everything on some words on a page. Yes, God says, “I will never
abandon or forsake you.” Yes, the Bible says, “God is faithful, and he will not
allow you to be tempted beyond your strength. Instead, along with the
temptation he will also provide a way out, so that you may be able to endure
it.” Yes, God says, “Those who honour me I will honour.” Yes, Jesus says,
“Surely I will be with you until the end of the age.” But that’s not always
what it feels like, is it?
A
friend of mine, who is a former RAF pilot, told me that when aircraft pilots
fly upside-down they sometimes have the feeling of being right-way up. The
sensation is caused by fluid in the ear. If you tilt your head to one side the
hairs in the fluid-filled part of the ear tell the brain that the head is
tilted and the signal is reinforced by what the eyes are telling the brain -
and you adjust your balance accordingly. However, this sense of balance can be
confused by other sensations - especially during acceleration after take-off
where the fluid may send a signal to the brain that does not match what is
actually happening. The signal can also be even more confusing if a pilot is
flying with blocked ears (a head cold for example) and it’s made much worse
when flying in cloud with no visual references. So, the bottom line is this:
pilots are taught to always rely on their instruments and never on their
feelings.
A
pilot’s life and those of his crew and passengers, may depend on him not
listening to his senses, choosing instead to follow his instruments. It’s
exactly the same with God’s promises. It is deadly to trust your feelings and
ignore God’s promises. Abram must have felt, “Wait a minute; I am old and I am
getting older. Sarai in a maternity ward - it’s not going to happen. Come on,
Abram, wake up and smell the bagels.” But despite all that, v4 says this; “So
Abram left as the Lord had told him…” Can you trust the promises of God?
2)
Are You Determined to Keep Going?
Test
2: Are you determined to keep going? Abram kept moving. God promised him an
heir at the age of 75. But it didn’t happen overnight or even nine months
later. He had to wait. And hang on. And keep going.
Did
you notice how he just keeps going in this passage? In v1 God says, “Go.” In v4
he sets off. In v5 he arrives in Canaan. In v6 he travels a bit further, as far
as Shechem. In v8, he heads off again; this time to the hills east of Bethel.
In v9 he’s on the move yet again, this time to the Negev in the south.
Some
years ago, the was a piece in the papers about hee pot-holers who had gone
missing. Search and rescue teams found them in the end but they got there too
late and they were already dead. Tragically, they were just a few hundred
metres short of daylight but they had become disorientated, cold, and had
stopped for several hours which proved fatal. The coroner’s inquest into their
deaths concluded by saying, “If only they had kept moving.”
Are
you still moving forward as a Christian? Are you reading? Are you learning? Are
you going to conferences? Abram kept going.Are you growing? Are you taking
action to nourish your faith? Compare this with Abram’s father. At the end of
chapter 11, they had all set out from Ur to go to Canaan but Abram’s dad Terah
got stuck in Harran, which is only about half way there. I feel this might be a
word for some here tonight. Your parents may have settled for half measures
with God – but you don’t have to. You can go further. Are you determined to
keep going?
Summing
up Abraham’s life in one paragraph, we can say this: he left his comfortable
home to live in a tent. When he finally arrived in the Promised Land, as we’ll
see next week, there was a famine - so he had to move on again straight away to
Egypt. When he got to Egypt he treated his wife dishonourably which had
embarrassing consequences. So he had to get of there too. He headed back to
Canaan, where a military coalition was waiting to declare war against him.
Eleven years down the line, having spent the whole time wandering round the
Middle-East like a nomad, getting into trouble with everyone he met, he still
had no heir. Sarah talked him into having a child through her servant girl,
(which was normal practice). God had to remind him that he had clearly said
that his wife Sarah was to be the mother of the child to be born. But a full
thirteen years after that episode passed - and there was still no natural heir.
Finally, God said twenty-five years after the adventure started, that the
promised child would be born a year hence. Twelve months later, Isaac was born.
But though all that trouble and frustration he kept going…
The
New Zealand Christian author Mike Riddell wrote about an experience he once had
of driving in the dark in the dead of winter. He reached down to switch the
heater on, just as he was approaching a narrow bridge, but he hit the wrong
switch and he turned his headlights off by mistake. Suddenly the lights went
out as he drove towards the bridge and there was no time to reach down and fiddle
about to locate the light switch. He just had to keep going forward with
nothing but the mental picture of the bridge he had had just before it all went
dark.
If
you’re finding it hard to see your way ahead spiritually, call to mind your
cherished memories of God’s goodness when it was clearer for you. “Bless the
Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits.”
3)
Are You Able to Work with Others?
Test
3. Are you able to work with others? This might seem like I’m stretching things
a bit, but I don’t think so. When Abram was called, v4 says he took Lot with
him. When Moses was called, he took Aaron with him. When Paul was called he
took Silas and Timothy.
Listen;
lone rangers, like Samson and Saul, who want all the glory for themselves, who
refuse correction, who do their own thing, who avoid accountability and who are
on an ego trip go nowhere. God is not going to bless that. Each of us needs to
be able to include others into the call of God on our lives. So Abram took Lot
and all his family with him. They were part of the adventure as well.
I
remember Pat Harris talking once about a time when he was busy with some
frightfully important sermon preparation and his wife popped her head round the
door and said, “You’ll need to look after David today.” David is their son who
has quite severe learning difficulties. Well, this was an inconvenient and busy
time so Pat said, “No. What about my preparation for my ministry?” And she
said, “This is your preparation for your ministry!” Can you take others into
God’s call on your life?
4)
Are You Ready to Leave Your Comfort Zone?
Last
test: Are you ready to leave your comfort zone? God says, (v1) “Go from your
country, your people and your father’s household to the land I will show you.”
So a God tells Abram, ten years into a comfortable retirement, to emigrate to a
foreign land, learn a new language, leave behind his home, his culture and his
friends probably to never see them again.
I
hardly need to say that that is a tough call. About a century ago,
Archaeologists dug up Abraham’s former city, on the shores of the Persian Gulf.
When they reached the layer of soil which corresponds to Abraham’s day, they
discovered amazing things; a temple 23 metres high, canals, smart villas with
cavity walls and central heating, advanced piped sanitation systems and
decorative fountains. Abram left all that at the age of seventy-five to walk
around in a sweaty and dusty old tent, made of camel skins, somewhere in the
Arabian desert, miles from anywhere.
Abram
accepted that life, forgoing a comfortable little villa by the sea, to live in
tents in a desert, at a ripe old age, convinced, says Hebrews 11, that there
was a city somewhere, but not knowing where it was, or how to get there, and
therefore having not the first idea where he was going. Goodbye Comfort Zone,
it was nice knowing you!
Someone
once said “Ships are never safer than when they are in a harbour – but ships
were made for the open seas.” Have you become a bit comfortable? Is it time to
step out and live by faith?
Conclusion
I’m
going to stop there. How are you doing on the “Living by Faith” test? Are you
trusting in God’s promises or are you believing your feelings? Are you still
keeping going or have you slowed down - or stopped altogether? Are you bringing
others into your calling or are you a ministry loner? Are you ready to leave
your comfort zone or are you content with telling your grandchildren you spent
your life watching repeats of Top Gear on Dave?
Sermon
preached at All Saints' Preston on Tees, 15th February 2009
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