What Did Abraham Do?

It’s time to analyze the faith of those in the Bible, and what’s a better part to start than with the Father of our faith Abraham?

Everyone knows Abraham’s story, He had a covenant with God to be the father of many nations, yet He had no children. However, through faith, he and Sarah had Issac, so what made Abraham’s journey to gaining the promise successful, and where did he go wrong?

Move!

Most of Abraham’s success in faith was due to how well he took instruction from God. In Genesis 12, God tells Abraham, then Abram, to “Get out of your country, from your family, and from your father’s house. To a land that I will show you. I will make you a great nation; I will bless you And make your name great, And you shall be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you and curse those who curse you, and in you, all the families of the earth shall be blessed,” and directly after that it says “So Abraham departed as the Lord had spoken to him”.

One thing I noticed while reading this passage is that Abraham gave God no pushback, he just left as he was instructed to do. The problem with a lot of Christians today is that they talk back to God. They give excuses as to why they can’t do it right now and try to delay the Word from God for as long as they can until they’re ready. And that is how you never succeed in life and never see the promises of God unfold in your life. When God says move, you move! God is looking for willing servants not iffy and flaky servants. The more willing you are, the more God will bless you. Abraham left as God told him to and we all know how his story ends, he ends up majorly blessed. So, if you see that you’re not really moving forward or you feel stagnant, examine how quickly you move when God speaks to you. The lack of eagerness when God speaks shows that you don’t trust His plan. You want to keep hold of your plan and do things your way, but the main thing about faith is letting go of your thing and picking up God’s thing. That is the only way things are going to work in your life, if you do it God’s way! God’s plan is always the better way so take a leap of faith and trust God! God said to Abraham if you listen to me, I will bless you, so it is no different for you!

Genesis 17:23 is another example of when Abraham moved promptly at the voice of the Lord. This is when God was officially establishing a covenant with Abraham and told him to circumcise the men of his household. It reads, “So Abraham took Ishmael his son, all who were born in his house and all who were bought with his money, every male-among the men of Abraham’s house and circumcised the flesh of their foreskins that very same day as God had said to him”. The very same day! Y’all peeped that? Because I did. Some of us wait months, even years to do what God has told us to and wonder why we aren’t prospering in life. Duh! It’s because you’re being disobedient and unwilling to do what God told you! Delayed obedience is disobedience. If God said to do it now, do it now! God isn’t going to bless someone who can’t follow His instruction in a timely matter. If God is telling you to do something, it is important at that point in time, so you have to move immediately. It may not be as effective months or years from now, but it is effective now, which is why God is telling you to do it now! God has a purpose for each plan that He tells us, and He wants it done now. We don’t have time to waste as a body of Christ, it is pivotal to move when told to do so. God just needs a willing servant to bring about His purpose on the Earth and God chose you, so don’t pass up this great opportunity.

To be honest, this blog was supposed to be started wayyyy before it did. God told me about this blog back in November 2021 but I didn’t start preparing it until February, then I didn’t launch it until May! Who knows the people who could’ve been impacted if I started this blog right when God told me? And during that time in my life I wasn’t where I wanted to be but now having this blog up and running, I see God is truly blessing me each and every day! Obedience brings blessings and moves you forward in life while also advancing the Kingdom! It pays off to listen and move when God tells you!

Sacrifice

“I know that you fear God since you have not withheld your son, your only son from Me”.

Genesis 22:12

Genesis 22 is a pretty popular chapter as it is the chapter that God told Abraham to offer Isaac as a burnt offering. There’s a lot to get from this chapter when examining Abraham’s faith, but what I want to focus on is how willing Abraham was to give up everything, just for the sake of obeying God. Right when Abraham was about to kill Isaac, Genesis 22:12 says “Do not lay your hand on the lad, or do anything to him; for now I know that you fear God since you have not withheld your son, your only son from Me”. Abraham was willing to do anything to obtain the promise of God and God judged that faithfulness and provided them with a ram to sacrifice instead. God never intended for Isaac to die, it was always a test, and thankfully Abraham passed, otherwise, I wouldn’t be writing about him now. So, what tests in faith are you passing or failing? What are you willing or not willing to give in order to see the promises of God?

Don’t let your possessions, finances, pride, etc, get in the way of you and God. The reason why some Christians fail in faith is that they don’t want to sacrifice anything for the will of God. They want to keep their things and their ways while still receiving the promise of God. However, it doesn’t work like that, God will always require something of you when you’re believing in faith. That could be tithing/offerings, time, your well-thought-out plans, or your life as you know it. Walking in faith isn’t easy, and you will always have to give up something, and God will let you know personally what it is you have to give up. But don’t think you’ll be the same person when you started your faith journey versus when you finish it.

The next time you’re tested to give up something you love like Abraham, just offer it to God. God is just testing your willingness, and the more willing you are, the more God will bless you. Abraham didn’t have to sacrifice Isaac, God just wanted to see his commitment, so depending on what is it, God may just want to see how committed you are to follow His plan. However, I will say this, there are times when you do have to actually give up what God is asking for. Each situation is different so I cannot speak for all, but overall be willing to sacrifice something for God in order to see the promise.

Don’t Waver

I have used this verse a good amount before but Romans 4:20 is a wonderful example of what Abraham did right! At this point, you should have it memorized but the verse says, “he did not waver at the promise of God through unbelief, but was strengthened in faith, giving glory to God, and being fully convinced that what He had promised He was also able to perform”. Abraham believed God! It was that simple, God told Abraham what He was going to do, and Abraham believed it wholeheartedly! He didn’t let doubt or fear creep in but he stood firm in His faith, trusting and knowing that God was going to perform. He was fully convinced that God was able to give him a child and bless him. One of God’s greatest desires is to be believed, He’s gonna show out for those who truly believe in Him and His abilities.

Too many Christians doubt God and don’t trust that is able to perform what He said He would. However, that’s not true! God hasn’t changed so He is still able to perform signs and wonders just like He did in the Bible. You just have to stand firm in your faith! You have to be fully convinced of the promise of God and know that God doesn’t fail. Unbelief cancels out faith! So get rid of any rooted unbelief and replace it with the word of God! That’s how you stay unwavering, saturate your mind with the Word of God and take what He says to be true!

Don’t Depend on Yourself

Now, the mistake that Abraham made was trying to make things happen through His own ability. Genesis 16:2, says “So Sarai said to Abram, “See now, the Lord has restrained me from bearing children. Please, go into my maid; perhaps I shall obtain children by her.” And Abram heeded the voice of Sarai.” Abraham’s first mistake here was heeding the voice of Sarai, not the voice of God. This stemmed from being impatient but one of the most important things about faith is being patient and waiting on God. If God hasn’t come through for you yet there is a reason, but don’t take that as an opportunity to do it yourself. Take it as an opportunity to ask God what needs to be tweaked in your faith, and how can you improve the way you are believing.

Your best will never be God’s best so never try to do it yourself because it will never compare to why God was going to give you. Ishmael wasn’t the heir that God intended for Abraham, through Ishmael, Abraham wasn’t being the father of many nations. It was through Isaac the promise was going to be fulfilled, through Isaac, it was Jacob who then became Israel and had the 12 tribes of Israel. So, be patient and seek God’s face before you try by your own means. It is a mistake you’ll have a hard time recovering from. Ishmael was blessed because of the way that Abraham treated him and Hagar but now there’s this endless fight between Israelites and Palestinians all because of Abraham’s mistake thousands of years ago. Wait on God and see Him provide for you in ways that you never could yourself. God’s plan is the best plan so don’t interfere, He knows what He is doing, and He will do it!

I hope Abraham’s journey was able to help you analyze and think about your own faith journey. There are a lot of things he did right, but he also did mess up! So, go to God about everything! Don’t heed the voice of unbelief and doubt, heed the voice of God, which is the voice of victory! Overall, if anything brings about discouragement, don’t listen to it, God only encourages and builds faith! I hope this helped and God bless!