God's Promise

The LORD appeared to Isaac and said, “Do not go down to Egypt, but do as I tell you. Live here as a foreigner in this land, and I will be with you and bless you. I hereby confirm that I will give all these lands to you and your descendants, just as I solemnly promised Abraham, your father. I will cause your descendants to become as numerous as the stars of the sky, and I will give them all these lands. And through your descendants all the nations of the earth will be blessed. I will do this because Abraham listened to me and obeyed all my requirements, commands, decrees, and instructions.” So Isaac stayed in Gerar. [Genesis 26.2-6] 

We hear and talk a lot about God's promise to Abraham. That promise is summarized in the passage above as follows: 

Live here as a foreigner in this land, and I will be with you and bless you. I hereby confirm that I will give all these lands to you and your descendants, just as I solemnly promised Abraham, your father. I will cause your descendants to become as numerous as the stars of the sky, and I will give them all these lands. And through your descendants all the nations of the earth will be blessed. [Genesis 26.3-4]

What follows verse 4 however is baffling:

I will do this because Abraham listened to me and obeyed all my requirements, commands, decrees, and instructions. [Genesis 26.5] 

Wait, are we talking about the same Abraham who fathered Ishmael in an attempt to 'do God's will' another way instead of with Sarah whom God had said would mother the child of promise? Are we to understand that Abraham listened to me [God] and obeyed all my requirements, commands, decrees, and instructions? 

God was specific with Abraham about "a son":

Then the LORD said to him, “No, your servant will not be your heir, for you will have a son of your own who will be your heir.” Then the LORD took Abram outside and said to him, “Look up into the sky and count the stars if you can. That’s how many descendants you will have!” [Genesis 15.4-5]

Sarah ("Sarai" at the time) was Abraham's ("Abram's" at the time) only wife when God made His initial promise to him. And yet, Abraham pursued an alternate wife/mother when he took Hagar and conceived Ishmael. Was this not disobedience to God?

And, after the "fail" with Hagar, God was specific about Sarah being the mother of that son of promise:

Then God said to Abraham, “Regarding Sarai, your wife—her name will no longer be Sarai. From now on her name will be Sarah. And I will bless her and give you a son from her! Yes, I will bless her richly, and she will become the mother of many nations. Kings of nations will be among her descendants.” [Genesis 17.15-16] 

And then, after Isaac was miraculously conceived past Sarah's childbearing years, how could it be called obedience for Abraham to take yet another wife, Keturah, and have more children with her? It should be understood that one of those children by Keturah was Midian whose namesake nation led Israel into all manner of idolatry and sin!

So, yes, we should question how Abraham could later be tagged by God as one who listened to me and obeyed all my requirements, commands, decrees, and instructions. Are we missing something?

As was pointed out in Abraham's Faithfulness? the apostle Paul evidently ignored Abraham's indiscretions also:

Abraham never wavered in believing God’s promise. In fact, his faith grew stronger, and in this he brought glory to God. [Romans 4.20]

Okay, so now we've started digging this hole... What do we do with it? We might find our answer (as should be expected) in the Bible:

And Abram believed the LORD, and the LORD counted him as righteous because of his faith. [Genesis 15.6]

What did Abraham believe that secured his "righteous" standing?

Then the LORD took Abram outside and said to him, “Look up into the sky and count the stars if you can. That’s how many descendants you will have!” [Genesis 15.5] 

It would seem that believing God's promise trumped everything else in Abraham's life. Abraham continued to believe God's promise even though he was often mistaken on how that promise would come to be. This should come as no surprise to those of us who believe that Jesus is the sum-total theme of the Bible. Ultimately, the lineage of Abraham, specifically Israel, pointed to God With Us (Jesus). Our lives are riddled with sin and disobedience, but, by faith in Christ (giving up our own way, taking up our cross, and following Him), the One Who was promised, we too are "righteous" just like Abraham even though our lives outside of that faith might reveal otherwise.

As Abraham looked forward to the Promise of Jesus and was counted as righteous, so we look back to the Promise of Jesus and are counted as righteous.

Does this Biblical truth preclude our need to repent? Not at all. In daily repentance (turning away from sin/idols and turning to Jesus), our salvation is worked out every day as our faith grows stronger. Like Abraham, the deciding factor for our righteousness is our enduring faith in the Promise Who is Jesus.

Idols and the sin they promote exist to turn us away from Jesus (God With Us). And, that is precisely why Jesus so adamantly demanded one hundred percent focus on Himself:

If any of you wants to be my follower, you must give up your own way, take up your cross, and follow me. [Matthew 16.24 (also, Mark 8.34 & Luke 9.23)]

Father, the matter of Abraham's righteousness makes perfect sense in light of Jesus. I know the facts pointed out above can at times be confusing... but when the Promise Who is Jesus is factored in, all becomes clear. May we never lose sight of Jesus and, may we understand that idols exist only to take our eyes off Him. So be it.