The Obedience Of Faith.
"By
faith Abraham, when he was called to go out into a place which he should after
receive for an inheritance, obeyed; and he went out, not knowing whither he
went. By faith he sojourned in the land of promise, as in a strange country,
dwelling in tabernacles with Isaac and Jacob, the heirs with him of the same
promise."—Hebrews 11:8-9
The life
of faith begins with the call of God; and it is a life which is characterized
by obedience to God. Though true faith is characterized by obedience,
neither our faith in Christ nor our obedience to him is perfect. Far
from it! Our faith is ever mingled with unbelief and our best obedience with
disobedience. This, too, is evident in Abraham.
There is no indication that Abraham
hesitated in his obedience to God. Yet, it is evident that Abraham, the father
of all who believe, did not comply with God’s command completely. When the Lord
God called Abraham, he specifically told him to leave his country, his people,
and his father's household. Indeed, he left his country and his people, but he
did not leave his father's household immediately.
Terah was Abraham's father. But God came
to Abraham, not Terah. God told Abraham to leave all ties in Ur. God gave
Abraham the promises, not Terah. But we read in Genesis 11:31-32 that it was
Terah who led the way. It was Terah who bound himself to Abraham's promise. And
it was Terah who settled his family in Haran
Abraham "left
Chaldea, but instead of separating from his kindred, he suffered his nephew Lot
to accompany him; instead of forsaking his father's house, Terah was permitted
to take the lead; and instead of entering Canaan, Abraham stopped short and
settled in Haran. He yielded to the affections of the flesh...Though Abraham
had settled down in Haran, God would not allow him to continue there
indefinitely. The Lord had purposed that he should enter Canaan, and no purpose
of His can fail. God therefore tumbled him out of the nest which he had made
for himself (Deu.32:11), and very solemn is it to observe the means which He
used: ‘And Terah died in Haran’ (Gen.11:32; Acts 7:4). Death had to come
in before Abraham left Halfway House. He never started across the wilderness
until death severed that tie of the flesh which held him back." – (A. W.
Pink)
I point out the weakness of Abraham’s faith, because I want us ever to
understand that God’s goodness, grace and mercy, his faithfulness, does not at
all depend upon ours. “If we believe not,
he abideth faithful.” It is not our imperfect faith that is imputed to us
for righteousness, but the Lord Jesus Christ, the perfect Object of our faith.
Understand this, too, —“The gifts and callings of God are without
repentance.” God did not forsake Abraham. Indeed, our God will never
forsake one of his own. (Read Mark 16:7).
Let us ever remember that our Heavenly Father will see that all his
children obey him, even if it means he must take from us those who are dearest
to us (Heb. 12:5-11). The Lord God says, “My son, give me thine heart.” And he means to have it. “Faithful is he that calleth you, who also
will do it.” “God is faithful, by whom ye were called unto the
fellowship of his Son Jesus Christ our Lord.”
Abraham
Went Out
Because
God is faithful even when we are not, because he will not forsake his own even
when we forsake him, because he is true even when we are not, because he who
gave Abraham faith kept him in faith, we are told that Abraham went out of Ur.
He sojourned in the land of promise as a pilgrim in a strange land.
All the days of his pilgrimage, he lived
among men and women who had no regard for God; but he made his dwelling with
those who were heirs with him of the same promise. Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob
lived like they did, believing God, because they had his Word of promise for
the basis of their faith. The promise was and is a promise of grace. Isaac and
Jacob were heirs with him of the same promise because they, too, believed God.
They dwelled in tents because they were
pilgrims. Pilgrims do not built their homes in the land of their pilgrimage.
Let us never forget that we are pilgrims here. This world is not our home. May
God give us grace never to loose sight of this fact.