WEBVTT 00:00:00.340 --> 00:00:01.640 all the way to page 8. 00:00:04.940 --> 00:00:08.480 All right, we're going to look at chapter 12 in Genesis, verses 10 through 20. 00:00:09.140 --> 00:00:10.640 Let me read this for us if you're there. 00:00:12.300 --> 00:00:13.280 Picking up in verse 10. 00:00:13.759 --> 00:00:18.519 Now there was a famine in the land, so Abram went down to Egypt to sojourn there, 00:00:19.260 --> 00:00:21.059 for the famine was severe in the land. 00:00:22.160 --> 00:00:24.800 When he was about to enter Egypt, he said to Sarah, his wife, 00:00:25.100 --> 00:00:27.379 I know that you are a woman beautiful in appearance, 00:00:27.379 --> 00:00:31.019 and when the Egyptians see you, they will say, this is his wife. 00:00:31.839 --> 00:00:33.939 Then they will kill me, but they will let you live. 00:00:34.519 --> 00:00:37.539 Say you are my sister, that it may go well with me because of you, 00:00:37.920 --> 00:00:40.000 and that my life may be spared for your sake. 00:00:41.500 --> 00:00:44.899 When Abram entered Egypt, the Egyptians saw that the woman was very beautiful, 00:00:45.519 --> 00:00:48.079 and when the princes of Pharaoh saw her, they praised her to Pharaoh, 00:00:48.480 --> 00:00:50.399 and the woman was taken into Pharaoh's house. 00:00:51.079 --> 00:00:53.159 And for her sake, he dealt well with Abram, 00:00:53.159 --> 00:00:57.699 and he had sheep, oxen, male donkeys, male servants, female servants, 00:00:57.819 --> 00:00:59.000 female donkeys, and camels. 00:01:00.000 --> 00:01:04.000 But the Lord afflicted Pharaoh and his house with great plagues 00:01:04.000 --> 00:01:06.239 because of Sarah, Abram's wife. 00:01:07.159 --> 00:01:09.340 So Pharaoh called Abram and said, 00:01:10.000 --> 00:01:11.079 What is this you have done to me? 00:01:11.620 --> 00:01:14.379 Why did you not tell me that she was your wife? 00:01:15.039 --> 00:01:18.579 Why did you say to me she is my sister, so that I took her for my wife? 00:01:19.000 --> 00:01:20.500 Now then, here is your wife. 00:01:20.840 --> 00:01:21.679 Take her and go. 00:01:21.680 --> 00:01:25.380 And Pharaoh gave men orders concerning him, 00:01:25.780 --> 00:01:29.340 and they sent him away with his wife and all that he had. 00:01:30.160 --> 00:01:30.780 Let's pray. 00:01:32.500 --> 00:01:35.760 Lord, we are grateful to be able to come together tonight, 00:01:36.180 --> 00:01:38.980 together as your people here in this world. 00:01:39.620 --> 00:01:44.520 Lord, thank you that you have showered your incredible grace upon us, 00:01:44.560 --> 00:01:47.420 that you have blessed us with every spiritual blessing in Christ. 00:01:47.520 --> 00:01:50.219 And now we get to come to your living and active word, 00:01:50.219 --> 00:01:53.359 and we get to hear what your spirit is saying to us, your church, 00:01:53.359 --> 00:01:58.680 so that we might respond rightly to all of this grace and mercy that you have shown to us. 00:01:59.180 --> 00:02:01.260 So Lord, help us to do that tonight, we pray. 00:02:01.519 --> 00:02:03.039 In Jesus' name, amen. 00:02:03.040 --> 00:02:03.160 Amen. 00:02:05.660 --> 00:02:11.240 Well, I wonder if you've ever faced a test or a trial or maybe some kind of hardship, 00:02:11.740 --> 00:02:19.040 and in the face of that test, I wonder if you know what it's like to fail, 00:02:19.840 --> 00:02:21.659 to fall short. 00:02:22.319 --> 00:02:26.620 You knew the right thing to do, and yet you didn't do it. 00:02:26.620 --> 00:02:32.340 Our series this summer is about trusting God. 00:02:33.180 --> 00:02:35.099 It's about the Old Testament character of Abraham. 00:02:35.580 --> 00:02:39.259 And as we said last week, we're studying Abraham, 00:02:39.860 --> 00:02:42.680 and the study of Abraham is really important for three reasons. 00:02:43.000 --> 00:02:44.300 Greg laid this out for us last week. 00:02:44.860 --> 00:02:48.360 First, it's really important to know who Abraham is and to understand Abraham, 00:02:48.460 --> 00:02:52.640 because you can't really understand the Old Testament rightly, fully, 00:02:52.639 --> 00:02:54.179 until you understand who Abraham is. 00:02:54.859 --> 00:02:59.579 Along with Moses and David, Abraham is sort of one of the key figures in Old Testament history. 00:03:00.199 --> 00:03:04.699 Second, we said you can't really understand the New Testament until you understand Abraham. 00:03:05.199 --> 00:03:09.199 Paul says in the New Testament that we are all children of Abraham. 00:03:09.379 --> 00:03:11.119 Abraham is the father of all who believe. 00:03:11.199 --> 00:03:13.359 So as Christians, we're all spiritual ancestors of Abraham, 00:03:13.479 --> 00:03:16.299 so we should get to know him so we can understand the New Testament message too. 00:03:17.259 --> 00:03:22.459 And then thirdly, we said that Abraham shows us a concrete picture of what it means 00:03:22.460 --> 00:03:24.040 to live by faith. 00:03:25.140 --> 00:03:30.100 What does trusting God really look like for us in the day in and the day out of life? 00:03:32.439 --> 00:03:33.460 Abraham shows us. 00:03:33.520 --> 00:03:35.439 That's why we've called this series Trusting God, 00:03:35.879 --> 00:03:38.340 because Abraham is such an illustration, such an example, 00:03:38.460 --> 00:03:42.260 such a forerunner for us of what it means to walk in faith, to trust God. 00:03:43.800 --> 00:03:47.640 But what we see in our text tonight that we just read is that learning how to live by faith, 00:03:47.780 --> 00:03:49.260 learning how to trust God, 00:03:49.259 --> 00:03:53.359 means also learning how to come to grips with our own unfaithfulness. 00:03:54.879 --> 00:03:57.079 There are times, right, when we don't trust God. 00:03:58.259 --> 00:03:59.439 And what do we do about that? 00:04:01.479 --> 00:04:03.620 Well, we're going to walk through our text tonight and find out. 00:04:05.000 --> 00:04:06.819 And our passage opens in verse 10. 00:04:06.879 --> 00:04:08.560 If you look down at verse 10, we'll start there. 00:04:09.159 --> 00:04:09.719 Verse 10 says, 00:04:09.799 --> 00:04:11.439 Now there was a famine in the land. 00:04:11.439 --> 00:04:15.460 So Abram, now Abram was Abraham's original name, 00:04:16.019 --> 00:04:19.779 and God later changed Abram's name to Abraham in chapter 17. 00:04:19.959 --> 00:04:20.959 We're going to get there in a few weeks. 00:04:21.420 --> 00:04:23.899 But for now, he's Abram, but I'm going to just keep calling him Abraham, 00:04:24.120 --> 00:04:25.339 because that's how we're used to calling him. 00:04:25.620 --> 00:04:27.240 So Abram went down to Egypt to sojourn there, 00:04:27.500 --> 00:04:29.240 for the famine was severe in the land. 00:04:29.319 --> 00:04:33.220 So this scene in Abraham's life opens with a severe famine. 00:04:33.220 --> 00:04:39.100 I think it's hard for us to imagine what a severe famine might look like. 00:04:39.920 --> 00:04:41.600 You know, you and I can drive to the grocery store, 00:04:41.840 --> 00:04:45.140 and it's filled with food every time we go, right? 00:04:47.800 --> 00:04:50.560 But imagine going to the grocery store, and it's empty. 00:04:50.680 --> 00:04:51.400 There's no food there. 00:04:52.120 --> 00:04:54.120 You think, oh, that's funny, so I'll go to the corner store, 00:04:54.260 --> 00:04:55.120 see if there's any food there. 00:04:55.420 --> 00:04:55.740 Empty. 00:04:56.620 --> 00:04:58.660 Your fridge, your cupboards, empty. 00:04:58.760 --> 00:05:00.280 A severe famine. 00:05:03.220 --> 00:05:08.040 And it's important to see that this severe famine comes when in Abraham's life. 00:05:08.100 --> 00:05:08.620 When does it come? 00:05:08.880 --> 00:05:13.500 It comes right after, right on the heels of Abraham's calling, doesn't it? 00:05:14.120 --> 00:05:16.400 In the first half of chapter 12 that we looked at last week, 00:05:16.480 --> 00:05:17.720 God speaks to Abraham. 00:05:17.860 --> 00:05:19.560 He calls him to go, right? 00:05:19.700 --> 00:05:23.520 Leave your country, leave your kindred, head out to a new land 00:05:23.520 --> 00:05:25.440 where God promises to make him what? 00:05:25.500 --> 00:05:29.420 Make him a great nation, and to bless him, and to make his name great, 00:05:30.020 --> 00:05:31.320 and to give him a land to live in. 00:05:31.319 --> 00:05:34.779 And God even gives Abraham this great gospel promise 00:05:34.779 --> 00:05:38.680 that through his offspring, all the families of the earth will be blessed. 00:05:40.219 --> 00:05:42.219 And in response, what does Abraham do? 00:05:43.519 --> 00:05:44.379 He goes. 00:05:46.060 --> 00:05:48.740 What a spiritual high that must have been for Abraham. 00:05:49.259 --> 00:05:51.019 The living God just talked to him and said, 00:05:51.100 --> 00:05:52.399 I'm going to bless the whole world through you. 00:05:52.519 --> 00:05:52.779 Go. 00:05:53.019 --> 00:05:53.759 And he goes. 00:05:53.759 --> 00:06:00.680 But now, in our text tonight, so soon after this great spiritual high point in his life, 00:06:01.819 --> 00:06:05.539 after this incredible beginning to Abraham's story, 00:06:06.139 --> 00:06:07.899 there's a severe famine. 00:06:07.899 --> 00:06:12.699 And I think this teaches us something very, very important. 00:06:13.799 --> 00:06:19.859 It teaches us that God's calling and God's promise of blessing upon us 00:06:19.859 --> 00:06:26.039 does not mean that we will have no trials or afflictions or struggles in this life. 00:06:26.040 --> 00:06:34.480 Abraham was learning at an early stage, as one commentator put it, 00:06:35.000 --> 00:06:41.100 that to be in the place of God's appointment is not to be exempt from suffering. 00:06:43.500 --> 00:06:46.840 Unless we think that this was just sort of a fluke of Abraham's experience, 00:06:47.379 --> 00:06:49.939 you know, maybe this is just sort of a weird thing that happened once and done to Abraham. 00:06:50.120 --> 00:06:53.100 No, you know, we look across the rest of Scripture and we see the same pattern, don't we? 00:06:53.100 --> 00:06:57.420 When God draws near or when he speaks in a special way in the course of redemptive history, 00:06:57.620 --> 00:06:59.300 when these spiritual high points come, 00:07:00.320 --> 00:07:03.180 they're often followed by seasons of unusual testing. 00:07:04.560 --> 00:07:07.879 Do you remember Elijah's experience after the high point on Mount Carmel? 00:07:08.240 --> 00:07:09.780 What happens on Mount Carmel, right? 00:07:09.840 --> 00:07:10.680 This is this great scene. 00:07:10.760 --> 00:07:13.120 My kids love this scene when we read it to them in the children's Bible. 00:07:13.980 --> 00:07:18.980 On Mount Carmel, God literally sends fire from heaven to demonstrate that he's the one true God. 00:07:19.980 --> 00:07:23.040 Burns up an entire altar of wood that's covered in water. 00:07:23.700 --> 00:07:25.180 And there's nothing left but dust. 00:07:27.280 --> 00:07:31.660 And in response to Elijah's prayer, Elijah prays and says, 00:07:31.760 --> 00:07:35.820 God, show everyone that you're the one true God and not all these other gods that people are following. 00:07:35.920 --> 00:07:38.280 God says, okay, done. 00:07:38.840 --> 00:07:40.220 That must have been a high point for Elijah. 00:07:40.220 --> 00:07:43.020 But what happens right after that in Elijah's life? 00:07:44.040 --> 00:07:49.460 After that incredible manifestation of God, Elijah ends up on the run, hunted, discouraged, and worn out. 00:07:49.560 --> 00:07:51.840 An incredible season of testing right after that. 00:07:53.100 --> 00:07:58.360 And of course, don't we see this pattern supremely in Jesus himself? 00:08:00.520 --> 00:08:01.620 After his baptism. 00:08:02.660 --> 00:08:03.900 Remember what happened at his baptism? 00:08:04.100 --> 00:08:05.160 The heavens rip open. 00:08:05.560 --> 00:08:07.520 The Holy Spirit comes down in the form of a dove. 00:08:07.519 --> 00:08:11.839 The voice of the Father calls out, this is my beloved Son in whom I'm well pleased. 00:08:12.099 --> 00:08:17.299 After that incredible experience of the Father's love and presence, what happens next in the life of Jesus? 00:08:19.240 --> 00:08:21.139 He undergoes a great testing in the wilderness. 00:08:21.479 --> 00:08:23.439 40 days and 40 nights tempted by Satan. 00:08:23.439 --> 00:08:27.339 Okay, so what does that mean for us? 00:08:27.920 --> 00:08:29.120 I think it means a few things. 00:08:29.980 --> 00:08:37.340 First, we should not expect the Christian life, the life of faith, to be free of trial and suffering and testing. 00:08:38.440 --> 00:08:46.320 You know, there are many preachers and teachers out there who will say that the life of faith is one of undiminished health and wealth and blessing, 00:08:46.320 --> 00:08:48.940 as long as you just believe enough or name enough. 00:08:50.100 --> 00:08:51.879 But friends, that's not the biblical pattern. 00:08:54.600 --> 00:09:03.280 If you're a new Christian here tonight, my guess is if you're a new Christian, you probably know something rich about the Father's love and acceptance. 00:09:03.279 --> 00:09:12.500 I remember when I became a new Christian, it was like I was on spiritual overdrive for months because God loves me, right? 00:09:12.740 --> 00:09:13.639 How incredible is that? 00:09:13.679 --> 00:09:14.799 He gave his own Son for me. 00:09:15.980 --> 00:09:19.740 But, you know, you also need to know that times of hardship are going to come. 00:09:21.500 --> 00:09:23.059 That's what trusting God looks like. 00:09:23.579 --> 00:09:25.720 And maybe if you're here tonight, you've been a follower of Christ for a long time. 00:09:26.100 --> 00:09:29.240 I bet if we were to talk after the service, you'd say, oh, yeah, that's true. 00:09:29.240 --> 00:09:33.360 I know what it's like to experience times of testing, times of suffering and hardship. 00:09:34.480 --> 00:09:37.539 But, you know, I think we also need to remember, if we've been following Christ for a long time, 00:09:37.799 --> 00:09:43.659 that even following Christ for a long time doesn't exempt us from trial and affliction because we've been through lots of it. 00:09:43.799 --> 00:09:44.639 Aren't we done now, Lord? 00:09:44.720 --> 00:09:47.120 Don't we kind of get off the train at this point? 00:09:49.100 --> 00:09:54.759 No, the normal life of faith is a life where there are seasons of hardship, even severe hardship like Abraham faced. 00:09:56.180 --> 00:09:57.700 So we need not be surprised. 00:09:59.240 --> 00:10:04.779 And we don't need to be alarmed as if God's not in control when things start to get tough. 00:10:05.539 --> 00:10:08.539 Many saints have walked these waters before us, before you. 00:10:09.639 --> 00:10:12.159 And this is what trusting God, the life of faith looks like. 00:10:12.200 --> 00:10:15.399 It looks like high points being followed by times of hardship. 00:10:18.039 --> 00:10:19.840 But, you know, there's another lesson here in our text. 00:10:19.980 --> 00:10:23.860 In the face of this famine, Abraham decides to do what? 00:10:23.899 --> 00:10:25.360 He decides to go down to Egypt. 00:10:25.360 --> 00:10:32.139 You see, in the ancient world in Abraham's time, Egypt, with the Nile River kind of running through it, 00:10:32.500 --> 00:10:39.740 was much more immune to sort of these drought conditions and seasons that would happen in other places like Canaan, where Abraham was. 00:10:39.919 --> 00:10:43.700 So, you know, in times of famine, people would often flock to Egypt. 00:10:43.700 --> 00:10:51.840 And you have to kind of wonder reading this at this point in the biblical story, you know, was this an act of obedience or sort of disobedience on Abraham's part? 00:10:51.980 --> 00:10:54.800 Was it right for him to go down into Egypt or not? 00:10:54.900 --> 00:10:56.040 It's hard to say, actually. 00:10:56.120 --> 00:10:56.960 We don't really know. 00:10:58.259 --> 00:10:59.100 Because, you know, it's interesting. 00:10:59.180 --> 00:11:01.960 Later in Genesis, God's actually going to command Jacob to go to Egypt. 00:11:01.960 --> 00:11:06.480 And he's going to actually preserve the chosen family in Egypt later in the story. 00:11:06.900 --> 00:11:13.780 And when we go to the Gospels, we see that God actually commands Joseph and Mary and with the child Jesus to go to Egypt to save them from the wrath of Herod. 00:11:14.480 --> 00:11:18.160 So, it's not as if Egypt in and of itself is necessarily a bad place to go. 00:11:19.440 --> 00:11:28.740 But isn't it interesting that here with Abraham, while we can't say for sure, isn't it interesting that we have no indication that Abraham sought the Lord in this decision of his? 00:11:28.740 --> 00:11:36.240 That here comes the trial, and Abraham simply says, Egypt I go, on his own initiative. 00:11:39.820 --> 00:11:42.980 Abraham took everything into account, one writer said. 00:11:43.440 --> 00:11:45.340 Abraham took everything into account. 00:11:46.039 --> 00:11:47.100 Everything but God. 00:11:48.899 --> 00:11:58.720 And it's interesting, as you follow Abraham's trajectory through chapter 12, he sort of starts, kind of works his way down through the promised land, and boop, right out of it as soon as trial comes. 00:11:58.740 --> 00:12:14.840 And it seems that these sort of seeds of unbelief or distrust that we maybe see in Abraham's decision to go to Egypt start to really come to bloom in verses 11 and 13, don't we? 00:12:16.200 --> 00:12:18.680 Abraham's afraid at this point in his life. 00:12:19.259 --> 00:12:20.299 And why is he afraid? 00:12:20.299 --> 00:12:31.319 He's afraid because Sarah, his wife, is so attractive that he thinks the Egyptians will kill him in order to give Sarah to Pharaoh as a gift. 00:12:32.679 --> 00:12:34.439 Which wasn't a crazy fear, actually. 00:12:34.620 --> 00:12:43.699 Pharaohs were known for having large harems in the ancient world, and they were known for paying a handsome fee for an attractive addition to their collection of wives. 00:12:45.759 --> 00:12:46.919 So, Abraham's afraid. 00:12:46.919 --> 00:12:54.579 Now, on the one hand, I think if you're in Sarah's shoes, maybe, I suppose it's a bit of a compliment. 00:12:55.339 --> 00:13:03.299 Abraham saying, honey, you are so unbelievably drop-dead gorgeous that the Egyptians are going to kill me as soon as they see you. 00:13:06.559 --> 00:13:08.159 I mean, that sounds kind of nice, right? 00:13:08.240 --> 00:13:08.519 Wow. 00:13:09.139 --> 00:13:10.219 People would kill for me. 00:13:10.279 --> 00:13:11.059 That's kind of great. 00:13:11.059 --> 00:13:19.319 But in verse 13, Abraham's fear gives way to his failure of faith, doesn't it? 00:13:19.879 --> 00:13:21.899 What's his plan in the face of this? 00:13:22.779 --> 00:13:24.559 Say that you're my sister, he says. 00:13:26.279 --> 00:13:29.619 Now, that was technically true. 00:13:30.839 --> 00:13:37.479 In Genesis 20, verse 12, a little later in the story, we learn that Sarah was the daughter of Abraham's father by another mother. 00:13:37.480 --> 00:13:40.139 That is, Sarah was Abraham's half-sister. 00:13:41.600 --> 00:13:43.820 So, it was technically true. 00:13:44.560 --> 00:13:50.519 But don't you and I both know that using one half of the truth to conceal the other half is clearly a lie? 00:13:53.340 --> 00:13:57.259 So, you see the movement from faith to fear to deception. 00:13:58.320 --> 00:14:02.899 Abraham is showing us how quickly that transition can be made from faith to fear, 00:14:02.899 --> 00:14:05.779 and how ultimately that fear makes us very selfish. 00:14:07.939 --> 00:14:11.220 Because Abraham isn't really thinking much of Sarah's well-being here, is he? 00:14:12.740 --> 00:14:16.159 Even though he sort of gives her kind of a backhanded compliment. 00:14:17.100 --> 00:14:17.879 I mean, it's not backhanded. 00:14:17.980 --> 00:14:19.519 It's sort of this weird thing. 00:14:19.860 --> 00:14:21.379 Look at his reason in verse 13. 00:14:21.899 --> 00:14:24.980 That it may go well with me, and that my life may be spared. 00:14:25.179 --> 00:14:27.819 Not much concern there for what might happen to Sarah, is there? 00:14:27.820 --> 00:14:35.560 And here's the really scary thing about what happens in this episode in Abraham's life. 00:14:36.480 --> 00:14:43.020 When Abraham gets to Egypt, on the surface, he's actually shown to be right. 00:14:44.000 --> 00:14:44.980 On the surface. 00:14:46.240 --> 00:14:49.760 Verse 14, the Egyptians do find Sarah very beautiful. 00:14:50.440 --> 00:14:52.740 Verse 15, she is taken into Pharaoh's house. 00:14:53.080 --> 00:14:57.200 Verse 16, instead of Abraham being killed, Pharaoh gives him a huge sum. 00:14:58.100 --> 00:14:59.800 Presumably as a bride price for Sarah. 00:15:00.200 --> 00:15:04.060 After all, if he's the brother, and if the father's not around, you pay the bride price to the brother. 00:15:05.940 --> 00:15:08.100 So he's given this huge financial sum. 00:15:08.240 --> 00:15:12.240 Sheep, oxen, male donkeys, male servants, female servants, female donkeys, camels. 00:15:12.540 --> 00:15:15.720 In the ancient world, that's like saying a one with a lot of zeros after it. 00:15:18.900 --> 00:15:25.240 But despite the appearances, you see how far Abraham has fallen. 00:15:27.200 --> 00:15:28.879 Faith has given way to fear. 00:15:29.259 --> 00:15:31.440 Fear to selfishness and deception. 00:15:32.040 --> 00:15:33.440 Deception and selfishness. 00:15:33.780 --> 00:15:35.360 Selfishness has led to compromise. 00:15:36.140 --> 00:15:42.020 And to his own wife being forced into the harem of a pagan king. 00:15:42.019 --> 00:15:47.939 And on top of it all, there's a veneer of success. 00:15:48.799 --> 00:15:50.639 Abraham is made rich. 00:15:50.639 --> 00:15:57.679 Now again, I think there are a number of lessons for us here. 00:15:59.199 --> 00:16:06.019 First, don't we see that the Bible is completely honest about the failings of those whom the Lord chooses to be his servants? 00:16:07.879 --> 00:16:10.840 The Bible is not whitewashing things at all. 00:16:10.960 --> 00:16:13.860 It is showing us humanity, warts and all. 00:16:13.860 --> 00:16:19.820 It's funny, Beth and I, our pediatrician, we love our pediatrician. 00:16:21.080 --> 00:16:22.460 I think he's Jewish, actually. 00:16:22.560 --> 00:16:24.720 But, you know, sometimes we'll ask us, like, oh, how are things going with the kids? 00:16:24.779 --> 00:16:25.360 We're like, oh, great. 00:16:25.399 --> 00:16:26.259 He's like, oh, you're reading to him? 00:16:26.300 --> 00:16:26.720 Yeah, good. 00:16:26.759 --> 00:16:28.240 We read the Bible to him every night, blah, blah, blah. 00:16:28.360 --> 00:16:29.300 He's like, oh, yeah, what do you read? 00:16:29.340 --> 00:16:30.200 We're like, we just kind of read through. 00:16:30.240 --> 00:16:32.259 He's like, man, there's a lot of interesting stuff in the Old Testament. 00:16:32.379 --> 00:16:33.300 You sure you're reading that to him? 00:16:34.019 --> 00:16:37.820 Because he knows that the Bible shows us humanity, warts and all. 00:16:37.920 --> 00:16:39.399 It doesn't pull any punches. 00:16:39.399 --> 00:16:46.439 And here we see that even Abraham, the great man of faith, knows what it's like to fail dramatically. 00:16:49.480 --> 00:16:50.799 What does that mean for us? 00:16:52.199 --> 00:16:54.919 Well, first, friends, I think it's a warning to us. 00:16:55.720 --> 00:16:56.840 It's a warning to us. 00:16:57.019 --> 00:17:03.960 If Abraham can give way to fear and deception, then surely all of us need to be on our guard. 00:17:05.299 --> 00:17:08.379 It's so easy for us to think, oh, that would never happen to me. 00:17:08.380 --> 00:17:11.140 I would never do fill in the blank. 00:17:13.180 --> 00:17:16.320 But this story of Abraham should make us very humble. 00:17:16.500 --> 00:17:17.920 We are all susceptible to fear. 00:17:18.200 --> 00:17:20.240 We are all susceptible to selfishness. 00:17:20.640 --> 00:17:29.640 We are all susceptible to failure and the worst kind of failure, the failure that looks like success in the world's eyes so that we don't even see it. 00:17:32.400 --> 00:17:34.500 So I think this is a warning to us. 00:17:34.600 --> 00:17:36.920 It's a call for us to be humble before the Lord. 00:17:38.380 --> 00:17:43.020 But this incident in Abraham's life is also a sign of hope for us. 00:17:43.019 --> 00:17:52.019 Because, friends, after all, who of us doesn't know what it's like to move so quickly from the plane of faith to the plane of fear? 00:17:53.960 --> 00:18:02.799 Who of us doesn't know what it's like to face trial and hardship and testing and suddenly, in the face of that, to be plotting for our own protection and giving no thought to the Lord whatsoever? 00:18:02.799 --> 00:18:10.279 Who of us doesn't know what it's like to face trial and fail? 00:18:10.279 --> 00:18:16.059 But, you see, the Bible is about people who fail. 00:18:17.059 --> 00:18:19.420 The Bible is a message for people who fail. 00:18:20.859 --> 00:18:24.700 The Bible isn't a book for people who have it all together. 00:18:24.700 --> 00:18:30.819 And the message of the Bible is not for those who find themselves to be always faithful. 00:18:32.340 --> 00:18:34.700 The message of the Bible is for you and for me. 00:18:34.840 --> 00:18:36.700 It's for spectacular failures. 00:18:37.840 --> 00:18:39.200 That's who the Bible's written for. 00:18:41.640 --> 00:18:45.420 And, friends, if there was hope for Abraham, then there's hope for you and me. 00:18:45.420 --> 00:18:50.519 And that's where the rest of this passage takes us. 00:18:50.620 --> 00:18:52.640 The rest of this passage shows us that there is hope. 00:18:53.400 --> 00:18:58.480 This is the third thing we have to see here, that though we are unfaithful, God remains faithful. 00:19:00.720 --> 00:19:10.320 You see, God had promised to make Abraham into a great nation, to give him a land, to bless him, and to bless all nations through his offspring. 00:19:10.319 --> 00:19:18.139 Which we know in the rest of the Bible means that God was promising Abraham from the very start that the Savior of the world would come through him. 00:19:19.319 --> 00:19:22.539 But here in verse 16, where are we in the story? 00:19:23.279 --> 00:19:25.839 So soon as it's begun, Abraham is where? 00:19:25.960 --> 00:19:26.939 He's outside the land. 00:19:27.679 --> 00:19:29.119 And his wife has been given away. 00:19:29.220 --> 00:19:30.419 No hope for offspring there. 00:19:31.079 --> 00:19:34.579 And instead of blessing the nations, he's becoming just like the nations. 00:19:34.579 --> 00:19:41.199 So soon, and the plan has gone totally to smash. 00:19:43.519 --> 00:19:47.480 But in verse 17, the Lord intervenes. 00:19:48.980 --> 00:19:55.039 But the Lord afflicted Pharaoh and his house with great plagues because of Sarah, Abraham's wife. 00:19:57.059 --> 00:20:03.519 And I hope you see that this was a very severe, yes, but a very severe mercy that the Lord sent upon Pharaoh. 00:20:03.519 --> 00:20:07.019 You see, unbeknownst to Pharaoh, he had taken another man's wife. 00:20:07.700 --> 00:20:16.139 And the Lord, rather than let Pharaoh persist in that sin, the Lord sends affliction to get Pharaoh's attention and to get him out of that situation. 00:20:16.599 --> 00:20:24.220 Because you see, in the grand scheme of things, friends, it would have been a greater affliction for Pharaoh to remain in that relationship with Sarah, another man's wife, 00:20:24.460 --> 00:20:28.519 than to experience the temporal affliction of those plagues so that he could get out of it. 00:20:28.980 --> 00:20:30.639 You see, there was the Lord's mercy to Pharaoh. 00:20:30.640 --> 00:20:33.840 Pharaoh, the Lord intervenes. 00:20:33.920 --> 00:20:34.800 He wakes up Pharaoh. 00:20:34.920 --> 00:20:36.800 And then Pharaoh turns around and rebukes Abraham. 00:20:37.060 --> 00:20:38.460 What is this you've done to me? 00:20:38.540 --> 00:20:39.480 He says in verse 18. 00:20:40.200 --> 00:20:42.100 Why didn't you tell me that she was your wife? 00:20:44.560 --> 00:20:46.540 And you have to appreciate the irony there. 00:20:47.680 --> 00:20:50.220 Here is Pharaoh, the pagan ruler. 00:20:50.220 --> 00:20:59.339 Pharaoh, in this instance, proving himself to be more upright than Abraham, the chosen man of God. 00:21:00.039 --> 00:21:01.000 Isn't that interesting? 00:21:02.920 --> 00:21:04.700 And by the way, that should be a lesson to us. 00:21:04.759 --> 00:21:08.240 We shouldn't be surprised when we find non-Christians today who are very upright and moral. 00:21:09.019 --> 00:21:11.200 That is God's common grace in the world. 00:21:11.200 --> 00:21:17.840 And here, God's able to use Pharaoh to get Abraham back on track. 00:21:18.539 --> 00:21:23.880 Pharaoh rebukes Abraham and sends him back to Canaan with Sarah and all that they have. 00:21:23.880 --> 00:21:30.460 Now, it's actually kind of hard to say why Pharaoh let Abraham keep all that wealth he had given him. 00:21:30.840 --> 00:21:32.880 All that one with all those zeros after it. 00:21:34.300 --> 00:21:38.880 We aren't even told how Pharaoh found out about Sarah's real relationship to Abraham in the first place. 00:21:42.020 --> 00:21:48.160 I don't think it's a bad guess to think that the Lord spoke to Pharaoh, telling him not to harm Abraham and to send him out immediately. 00:21:48.160 --> 00:21:49.060 But we don't know. 00:21:50.759 --> 00:21:57.060 But the point here for us is, don't you see, the Lord didn't give up on Abraham. 00:21:58.400 --> 00:22:06.700 The Lord's faithfulness to his plan and to his purpose remained rock solid, even though Abraham was like shifting sand. 00:22:08.660 --> 00:22:11.180 And what are the results of the Lord's faithfulness? 00:22:12.940 --> 00:22:13.800 Abraham returns. 00:22:14.759 --> 00:22:15.840 Look back at our passage. 00:22:15.960 --> 00:22:16.880 We didn't read this earlier. 00:22:16.880 --> 00:22:19.000 But look at chapter 13. 00:22:20.460 --> 00:22:21.820 Chapter 13, verse 1. 00:22:23.180 --> 00:22:28.980 So Abram went up from Egypt, he and his wife and all that he had, and a lot with him, into the Negev. 00:22:29.420 --> 00:22:30.540 Now jump down to verse 3. 00:22:31.580 --> 00:22:36.540 And he journeyed on from the Negev as far as Bethel to the place where his tent had been at the beginning, 00:22:36.740 --> 00:22:40.300 between Bethel and Ai, to the place where he had made an altar at the first. 00:22:40.600 --> 00:22:43.420 And there Abram called upon the name of the Lord. 00:22:43.420 --> 00:22:47.240 Do you see the arc of this story? 00:22:48.440 --> 00:22:55.920 Hardship, Abraham's unfaithfulness, but the Lord's faithfulness comes in and it leads Abraham back home. 00:22:56.580 --> 00:22:58.600 It leads Abraham to repentance. 00:22:58.599 --> 00:23:04.699 And it should for us as well. 00:23:07.179 --> 00:23:12.319 So friends, if tonight you see in your own heart fear and selfishness, 00:23:12.319 --> 00:23:19.879 if you see in your distant or recent or maybe even present history failure, small and large, 00:23:19.939 --> 00:23:21.159 if you see faithlessness, 00:23:22.559 --> 00:23:29.039 then tonight look at the Lord's faithfulness and come home and return. 00:23:29.039 --> 00:23:39.420 Come back to where the Lord found you at first and call upon his name and he will answer. 00:23:41.279 --> 00:23:46.159 Let his kindness lead you to repentance, as Paul says in the New Testament. 00:23:48.099 --> 00:23:52.680 Because you see, in the Bible, the Lord's faithfulness is never an excuse to remain in sin, 00:23:52.680 --> 00:23:57.799 but it's always the reason to turn and come home. 00:24:00.200 --> 00:24:04.400 And friends, don't we know the Lord's faithfulness to us in an even greater degree than Abraham? 00:24:07.060 --> 00:24:09.160 In Genesis 12, this passage we've been looking at, 00:24:09.240 --> 00:24:14.759 God afflicts the ruler of a pagan nation in order to rescue Abraham from his failure in sin. 00:24:14.759 --> 00:24:19.599 But you know what happens at the climax of the biblical story? 00:24:20.900 --> 00:24:26.000 That God the Father will afflict his own son in order to rescue us from failure in sin. 00:24:26.119 --> 00:24:27.480 That's how faithful God is. 00:24:27.859 --> 00:24:29.200 That's how much he loves us. 00:24:30.000 --> 00:24:34.660 And Jesus, God the Son, willingly stands in our place to bear the penalty of our sin 00:24:34.660 --> 00:24:37.420 so that we might repent and freely come home. 00:24:39.119 --> 00:24:39.879 I mean, think of it. 00:24:40.579 --> 00:24:43.059 Abraham sees the beauty of his bride, 00:24:43.059 --> 00:24:45.559 sees that his own life is at risk, 00:24:46.000 --> 00:24:49.679 and then in fear and selfishness puts her in danger and trades her safety for his own. 00:24:52.220 --> 00:24:53.759 But Jesus, in love, 00:24:54.319 --> 00:24:56.279 sees the beauty of his bride, the church, 00:24:57.500 --> 00:24:59.599 and trades his safety for ours. 00:25:00.839 --> 00:25:03.779 He trades his own life down for us. 00:25:06.899 --> 00:25:08.379 And he rose again 00:25:08.379 --> 00:25:10.500 that we might trust him 00:25:10.500 --> 00:25:12.619 and follow him in the power of the Spirit. 00:25:13.059 --> 00:25:16.339 And so, friends, 00:25:16.379 --> 00:25:17.419 if you've fallen short tonight, 00:25:17.559 --> 00:25:19.240 look at the faithfulness of your Savior 00:25:19.240 --> 00:25:21.000 and come home. 00:25:21.579 --> 00:25:22.319 Return to him. 00:25:23.859 --> 00:25:24.960 That's what trusting God, 00:25:25.019 --> 00:25:26.440 that's what living by faith means. 00:25:27.099 --> 00:25:28.539 It means admitting your failures. 00:25:28.799 --> 00:25:30.940 It means seeing what Jesus has done for you. 00:25:31.079 --> 00:25:32.639 And even if you failed again and again, 00:25:32.679 --> 00:25:34.139 it means laying down your unbelief 00:25:34.139 --> 00:25:35.240 and coming home to God, 00:25:36.000 --> 00:25:37.779 to your faithful Savior, Jesus Christ. 00:25:37.779 --> 00:25:38.319 Because after all, 00:25:38.359 --> 00:25:39.819 isn't that where God found us? 00:25:40.059 --> 00:25:40.819 At the cross. 00:25:41.299 --> 00:25:43.220 Isn't that the place where we need to return? 00:25:44.980 --> 00:25:46.079 And as we return there, 00:25:46.139 --> 00:25:47.660 we find that God always answers. 00:25:51.139 --> 00:25:53.160 We're going to celebrate the Lord's Supper in just a second. 00:25:53.160 --> 00:25:57.300 And that's the place, friends, 00:25:57.340 --> 00:25:57.900 where we get to, 00:25:58.500 --> 00:25:59.140 in some sense, 00:25:59.220 --> 00:26:00.740 come back to where it all began. 00:26:01.700 --> 00:26:02.860 Come back to the cross 00:26:02.860 --> 00:26:04.040 where Jesus died for us 00:26:04.040 --> 00:26:05.220 and laid down his life for us. 00:26:06.540 --> 00:26:08.500 We get to remember Jesus' body broken 00:26:08.500 --> 00:26:09.620 and his blood poured out. 00:26:09.680 --> 00:26:11.660 We get to remember his faithfulness to us. 00:26:13.440 --> 00:26:14.480 So this is a time for us 00:26:14.480 --> 00:26:16.180 to come back to him with all our heart. 00:26:16.180 --> 00:26:19.259 So why don't we pray? 00:26:19.340 --> 00:26:20.340 Why don't we pray and prepare 00:26:20.340 --> 00:26:21.519 to come to the table together, 00:26:22.279 --> 00:26:24.940 remembering that even when we are unfaithful, 00:26:25.019 --> 00:26:25.660 God is faithful 00:26:25.660 --> 00:26:27.380 and leads us to repentance. 00:26:27.519 --> 00:26:27.880 Let's pray. 00:26:31.920 --> 00:26:34.100 Lord Jesus, we are so thankful 00:26:34.100 --> 00:26:36.140 that when we, just like Abraham, 00:26:37.259 --> 00:26:39.220 in the moments of hardship and trial, 00:26:39.380 --> 00:26:40.980 had doubted you 00:26:40.980 --> 00:26:42.000 and begun to fear 00:26:42.000 --> 00:26:44.920 and begun to put ourselves and others at risk 00:26:44.920 --> 00:26:47.200 and began to compromise and cover up. 00:26:47.360 --> 00:26:49.180 Lord, in all these ways 00:26:49.180 --> 00:26:50.220 in which our own faith 00:26:50.220 --> 00:26:52.180 has been so shaky and faulty, 00:26:52.440 --> 00:26:54.759 Lord Jesus, your faithfulness remains. 00:26:54.880 --> 00:26:55.779 It's rock solid. 00:26:55.920 --> 00:26:57.539 It's an anchor that does not move. 00:26:59.200 --> 00:27:00.060 And thank you, Lord, 00:27:00.100 --> 00:27:01.340 that that gives us 00:27:01.340 --> 00:27:04.220 the strength, the power 00:27:04.220 --> 00:27:06.000 that each of us in this room needs 00:27:06.000 --> 00:27:08.380 to turn back again 00:27:08.380 --> 00:27:09.480 by your spirit 00:27:09.480 --> 00:27:12.140 and to come back to you 00:27:12.140 --> 00:27:13.160 in trust and dependence, 00:27:13.360 --> 00:27:14.759 knowing that you've covered our sin, 00:27:14.920 --> 00:27:16.880 knowing that you'll give us your spirit 00:27:16.880 --> 00:27:18.660 so that we might live for you 00:27:18.660 --> 00:27:20.220 in faith and dependence. 00:27:21.019 --> 00:27:22.380 So, Lord, now as we come to the table, 00:27:22.480 --> 00:27:24.259 help us to celebrate in this time 00:27:24.259 --> 00:27:25.200 all that you've done for us 00:27:25.200 --> 00:27:26.800 and seal in our hearts, Lord, 00:27:26.860 --> 00:27:28.680 we pray your mercy and grace. 00:27:29.380 --> 00:27:29.660 Amen. 00:27:29.660 --> 00:27:29.759 Amen. 00:27:33.259 --> 00:27:34.100 Well, I wonder if, 00:27:34.160 --> 00:27:36.740 Greg, would you mind helping serve tonight? 00:27:36.860 --> 00:27:37.940 Matt, would you help serve tonight? 00:27:44.900 --> 00:27:45.680 So, twice a month, 00:27:45.720 --> 00:27:46.460 what we do here at Trinity 00:27:46.460 --> 00:27:47.920 is we celebrate the Lord's Supper. 00:27:48.759 --> 00:27:51.200 And if you've not been with us before 00:27:51.200 --> 00:27:52.120 for celebrating the Lord's Supper, 00:27:52.220 --> 00:27:52.820 what we're going to do 00:27:52.820 --> 00:27:54.700 is actually quite simple. 00:27:55.100 --> 00:27:56.000 We're going to take some bread 00:27:56.000 --> 00:27:56.600 that's been broken 00:27:56.600 --> 00:27:57.460 and we're going to pass it out 00:27:57.460 --> 00:27:58.200 and we're going to eat it together. 00:27:58.600 --> 00:27:59.380 And then we're going to take 00:27:59.380 --> 00:28:00.700 a cup of some juice 00:28:00.700 --> 00:28:01.840 and we're going to pass it out 00:28:01.840 --> 00:28:02.759 and we're going to drink it together. 00:28:03.319 --> 00:28:04.460 And Jesus said that we're supposed 00:28:04.460 --> 00:28:05.380 to do these very, 00:28:05.480 --> 00:28:05.920 on the surface, 00:28:06.079 --> 00:28:06.740 simple acts 00:28:06.740 --> 00:28:07.460 to remember the most... 00:28:07.460 --> 00:28:07.799 ...