Abraham Staggered Not At The Promise of God???

This post is meant to encourage us fallible humans. 🙂 This passage in Romans – especially in the King Jimmy – always makes Abraham seem to me to be a ‘Superhero of Faith.’

²⁰ He (Abraham) staggered not at the promise of God through unbelief; but was strong in faith, giving glory to God;
²¹ And being fully persuaded that, what he had promised, he was able also to perform.
²² And therefore it was imputed to him for righteousness.
Romans 4:20-22 KJV

In your mind, try to hear a radio preacher preaching:

OOOOH HEAR ME, BROTHERS AND SISTERS! OUR FATHER ABRAHAMMM STAGGERED NOT AT GOOOOD’S PROMISE, BUT HE WAS STROOOOONG IN FAITH!

Super-Abraham!

Let’s check out the Old Testament. It is not entirely clear to me when God first promised Abram he would become a great nation, but Abram obeyed when he was 75 years old.

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.
Genesis 12:1-4 NIV

Sometime later Abram and God have a conversation.

After this, the word of the Lord came to Abram in a vision:

“Do not be afraid, Abram.
    I am your shield,
    your very great reward.”

² But Abram said, “Sovereign Lord, what can you give me since I remain childless and the one who will inherit my estate is Eliezer of Damascus?” ³ And Abram said, “You have given me no children; so a servant in my household will be my heir.”

⁴ Then the word of the Lord came to him: “This man will not be your heir, but a son who is your own flesh and blood will be your heir.” ⁵ He took him outside and said, “Look up at the sky and count the stars—if indeed you can count them.” Then he said to him, “So shall your offspring be.”

⁶ Abram believed the Lord, and he credited it to him as righteousness.
Genesis 15:1-6 NIV

But when Abram was about 85 he and his wife Sarai decided to ‘help God’ fulfill the promise.

Now Sarai, Abram’s wife, had borne him no children. But she had an Egyptian slavenamed Hagar; ² so she said to Abram, “The Lord has kept me from having children. Go, sleep with my slave; perhaps I can build a family through her.”

Abram agreed to what Sarai said. ³ So after Abram had been living in Canaan ten years, Sarai his wife took her Egyptian slave Hagar and gave her to her husband to be his wife. ⁴ He slept with Hagar, and she conceived.

¹⁶ Abram was eighty-six years old when Hagar bore him Ishmael.
Genesis 16:1-4, 16 NIV

I can’t really blame Abram. If I had been presented with a similar temptation undoubtedly I would have failed too:
“I’m pretty busy, but if you insist, sweetheart, I’ll do it for you.”

God shows up again when Abram is 99, and ups the ante by changing Abram and Sarai’s names.

When Abram was ninety-nine years old, the Lord appeared to him and said, “I am God Almighty; walk before me faithfully and be blameless. ² Then I will make my covenant between me and you and will greatly increase your numbers.”

³ Abram fell facedown, and God said to him, ⁴ “As for me, this is my covenant with you: You will be the father of many nations. ⁵ No longer will you be called Abram; your name will be Abraham, for I have made you a father of many nations.“

¹⁵ God also said to Abraham, “As for Sarai your wife, you are no longer to call her Sarai; her name will be Sarah. ¹⁶ I will bless her and will surely give you a son by her. I will bless her so that she will be the mother of nations; kings of peoples will come from her.”
Genesis 17:1-5, 15-16 NIV

According to Romans 4, this was Abram’s, er, Abraham’s reaction.

OOOOH HEAR ME, BROTHERS AND SISTERS! OUR FATHER ABRAHAMMM STAGGERED NOT AT GOOOOD’S PROMISE, BUT HE WAS STROOOOONG IN FAITH!

What did Abraham actually do?

¹⁷ Abraham fell facedown; he laughed and said to himself, “Will a son be born to a man a hundred years old? Will Sarah bear a child at the age of ninety?” ¹⁸ And Abraham said to God, “If only Ishmael might live under your blessing!”
Genesis 17:17-18 NIV

So Abraham had doubts just like I do. But when all was said and done, this is God’s analysis of Abraham!

²⁰ He (Abraham) staggered not at the promise of God through unbelief; but was strong in faith, giving glory to God;
²¹ And being fully persuaded that, what he had promised, he was able also to perform.
²² And therefore it was imputed to him for righteousness.
Romans 4:20-22 KJV

You may have to meditate quite awhile to “get it.” But you will. To help you along, notice the Bible says Jesus looks for and sees our faith!

Jesus stepped into a boat, crossed over and came to his own town. ² Some men brought to him a paralyzed man, lying on a mat. When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the man, “Take heart, son; your sins are forgiven.”
Matthew 9:1-2 NIV

A few days later, when Jesus again entered Capernaum, the people heard that he had come home. ² They gathered in such large numbers that there was no room left, not even outside the door, and he preached the word to them. ³ Some men came, bringing to him a paralyzed man, carried by four of them. ⁴ Since they could not get him to Jesus because of the crowd, they made an opening in the roof above Jesus by digging through it and then lowered the mat the man was lying on. ⁵ When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralyzed man, “Son, your sins are forgiven.”
Mark 2:1-5 NIV

Has the rapture happened?
   You can still be saved and go to heaven!
---
Are you following God's plan for your life?    
   You should.
     Your plan is not going to work. 
     It is a really, really bad plan. 
     Please come to Jesus to escape your plan! 

Most people are WRONG! WRONG! WRONG!

Jesus is coming.
   Are you ready to meet Him?
   Give your life to Jesus Christ.
   Time is running out.