058 Abraham: The Compromise
Self-protection is one of the strongest of human instincts and sometimes drives us to do foolish things. That’s exactly what happened to Abraham in his journey of learning to trust God.
When Abram arrived in Canaan, he and his “tribe” lived in tents, raising sheep and goats for food, clothing, and trade. As such, they were constantly on the move to find new grazing land.
The time came, however, when a famine struck the land of Canaan causing the water sources and pastures to dry up. Without water, soon his crops, his flocks, and ultimately his family would die.
So, Abram made a decision. He packed up his family and went to Egypt.
The problem was, we see no indication that he sought the Lord about the decision.
Once in Egypt, Abram’s self-protection kicked in. Fearing the pharaoh would kill him and take Sarai (Abram’s wife) for his own, Abram lied. “Say you are my sister.
Abram’s plan backfired. Pharaoh took Sarai into his harem anyway and sent Abram numerous wedding gifts. Apparently, Abram accepted them but had no idea how to get out of this predicament.
Fortunately, God did!
He inflicted Pharaoh and his household with serious diseases. Putting the pieces of the puzzle together, Pharaoh turned to Abram, “What have you done to me?” Abram confesses and is unceremoniously deported.
So, what can we learn from this remarkable story?
1. Every journey contains trials.
Some are due to our own poor decisions. Some are due to someone else’s poor decisions. Some of the tests come because of the natural circumstances of life in a broken world.
Trials are part of life. And while threatening and fearsome, they can, however, provide the opportunity to take your relationship with God deeper.
2. Every trial provides an opportunity to trust.
Trust builds over time when issues, whether large or small, are placed in the Father’s hands.
3. Every failure to trust triggers a default response.
It starts with that self-preservation reflex. When facing a threat, our natural response is to ask, “How do I get out of this?”
For Abraham, that default response was to lie. You might share that response.
Or perhaps you try to control or manipulate. Or you may intimidate with explosive anger. Or, in a passive/aggressive way, you may withdraw. Or you opt to escape in sleep or substance abuse.
I know some individuals whose reflexive response is to refuse to admit wrong or to deny responsibility.
Over time, these default responses can take over and keep us from trusting God.
4. Every default response leads to compromise.
Whenever we revert to our default response, someone we love gets hurt.
First, you hurt yourself. Your character will be compromised and you will bog down on the journey of trust.
Secondly, you compromise those closest to you. There is no such thing as a victimless sin.
Finally…
5. Every compromise jeopardizes our witness.
Falling back into our self-protective behaviors ends up bringing shame to God instead of glory.
In the backwash of his failure, Abram repents. He returns to Bethel - back to where he got off track and bows before the Lord.
When you recognize that you’ve made a wrong move or a short-sighted decision, go back to where you got off-track.
If you will, God will meet you there – just as He met Abram. It’s never too late to go the right way and do the right thing. That’s why this is called “a journey of trust” – one step at a time in the right direction.
Text: Genesis 12:4-13:4
Originally recorded August 24, 2014, at Fellowship Missionary Church, Fort Wayne, IN.