It seems almost heresy to talk negatively about Abraham, the father of the world’s three largest religions. But I say only ‘almost’, as he wasn’t Jesus!
Here is the whole 12th chapter. Tomorrow, we will delve deeper, but today, it is an overview.
“The Lord had said to Abram, “Go from your country, your people and your father’s household to the land I will show you. 2 “I will make you into a great nation, and I will bless you; I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing. 3 I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse; and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you.” 4 So Abram went, as the Lord had told him; and Lot went with him. Abram was seventy-five years old when he set out from Harran. 5 He took his wife Sarai, his nephew Lot, all the possessions they had accumulated and the people they had acquired in Harran, and they set out for the land of Canaan, and they arrived there. 6 Abram travelled through the land as far as the site of the great tree of Moreh at Shechem. At that time the Canaanites were in the land. 7 The Lord appeared to Abram and said, “To your offspring I will give this land.” So he built an altar there to the Lord, who had appeared to him. 8 From there he went on toward the hills east of Bethel and pitched his tent, with Bethel on the west and Ai on the east. There he built an altar to the Lord and called on the name of the Lord. 9 Then Abram set out and continued toward the Negev.
10 Now there was a famine in the land, and Abram went down to Egypt to live there for a while because the famine was severe. 11 As he was about to enter Egypt, he said to his wife Sarai, “I know what a beautiful woman you are. 12 When the Egyptians see you, they will say, ‘This is his wife.’ Then they will kill me, but will let you live. 13 Say you are my sister, so that I will be treated well for your sake and my life will be spared because of you.” 14 When Abram came to Egypt, the Egyptians saw that Sarai was a wonderful woman. 15 And when Pharaoh’s officials saw her, they praised her to Pharaoh, and she was taken into his palace. 16 He treated Abram well for her sake, and Abram acquired sheep and cattle, male and female donkeys, male and female servants, and camels. 17 But the Lord inflicted serious diseases on Pharaoh and his household because of Abram’s wife, Sarai. 18 So Pharaoh summoned Abram. “What have you done to me?” he said. “Why didn’t you tell me she was your wife? 19 Why did you say, ‘She is my sister,’ so that I took her to be my wife? Now then, here is your wife. Take her and go!” 20 Then Pharaoh gave orders about Abram to his men, and they sent him on his way, with his wife and everything he had.” (Genesis 12)
So here’s the birds-eye view of this chapter.
God calls Abram. Abram leaves and surrenders everything.
God grants Abram a vision of what is to come. Abram responds and does, “as the Lord had told him.”
God appears to Abram upon his arrival in Canaan.
Abram responds by building his first altar of worship.
Then God is silent, and though Abram builds another altar and calls on God, he receives no answer.
God hadn’t revoked His promise or His presence—but Abram acted as if He had. The famine was real and severe, but Abram’s response bypassed faith entirely. No inquiry. No altar. No “calling on the name of the LORD” as he had done before.
When God is silent, when there is no calling from heaven, no vision and no presence, the temptation can be to do what Abram did and to take matters into our own hands.
- A severe famine in Canaan was not on Abram’s agenda. Without calling on God, he decided to go to Egypt.
- Approaching Egypt, he begins to fear for his life. Without calling on God, he makes a plan: to lie.
When God is silent, we can assume we are on our own; we can then protect ourselves through our own wisdom, and we are in danger of compromise even if we think it is just a one-time experience. But of course, silence is the moment to hold on to God and not let go.
The next time God is silent, try this: don’t take matters into your hands, but stay on course and stay in the truth.
Missions Paul 