Day 17 – Genesis 16-18

Talking Points

• God had promised Abram and Sarai an heir. Without seeking the counsel of the Lord, and without trusting in His faithfulness to fulfill His promises, Sarai went out on her own and thought she had a better plan. She chose “less than.” Oh, how often we do that! Sarai regrets her decision and ends up hating the result. Trust God and submit patiently to His plan and timing.
• God reminds Abram of His promises to him and changes his name as a sign of the covenant. Abram becomes Abraham, and Sarai becomes Sarah. Again, we see Abraham’s faith shown in obedience is credited to him as righteousness.
• Circumcision is introduced as the outward sign of God’s covenant people. What a weird sign!
• The wickedness of Sodom prompts God to judge the city for its sin. Abraham asks God to save the city if a certain number of righteous people could be found. The city is completely evil. We see, because of man’s nature, sin always escalates.
• Throughout all these accounts, we see God is a God of judgment, and also a God of great patience and mercy.

Thoughts

“Clean up on aisle 7. Clean up — aisle 7,” the PA system blared. As I walked past aisle 7, I couldn’t help but look to see the giant mess that someone in their carelessness had made, that now some poor employee would get to mop up. I wonder if that is how we have been trained to treat God. We make messes and turn to Him to tidy them up. Not that God is not faithful in the mess, but that there is a better way — avoid the mess!

Sarai knew God’s plan. God had made it plain to her husband. Yet, after some time had passed, she began to reason things out in her own logic. Either in disregard for God’s plan, or more likely, to help God’s plan along, she made a plausible course of action. She convinced her husband, and the mess was made. The consequences were immeasurable. In fact, we still see them today.

Trusting God seems to come in two parts. First, it is trusting that God’s plan actually is best. God is good, and He is wise, and His plan is best. Second, it is trusting that He is faithful and powerful enough to accomplish it. Simply — He will do it! It may not be how we think (it probably won’t be), and it may not be when we think. But, He is trustworthy. We can trust Him, so we can trust His plan. So. we. trust.

“…trust in Him, and He will act.” – Psalm 37:5