Epic Faith, Epic Fail, Epic Forgiveness
Epic - The Story of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob • Sermon • Submitted • Presented • 47:25
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The dictionary defines the word epic as "Heroic or grand in scale or character; particularly impressive or remarkable."
The story that we start today is the account of the life of Abraham (or Abram, before Gid changed his name to Abraham) and it is truly epic, as in it includes events and characteristics that are of epic proportions. Throughout the life of Abraham, we will see heroic acts, remarkable faith, amazing foolishness, impressive grace, and yes, even some epic fails.
Epic has become a word most used to describe a type of failure, or fail, by the younger generations. If one were to want to see a stream of people suffering embarrassing mistakes, often causing pain and property damage and sometimes injury, then you would look up "Epic Fail Videos" on YouTube. There are also videos titled "Epic Saves" in which you can see people just barely getting out of harms way in impressive manners.
Today we start looking at the story of Abraham, and as we do, we will see that his story starts out with a display of epic faith.
Actually, Abraham does not start out with that name. He is first called Abram, and his story starts in Genesis chapter 11. Starting in verse 10, we see the lineage of Shem, Noah's oldest son. When we come to 11:27, we see a man named Terah. 27 Now these are the generations of Terah: Terah begat Abram, Nahor, and Haran; and Haran begat Lot. 28 And Haran died before his father Terah in the land of his nativity, in Ur of the Chaldees. 29 And Abram and Nahor took them wives: the name of Abram's wife was Sarai; and the name of Nahor's wife, Milcah, the daughter of Haran, the father of Milcah, and the father of Iscah.
So, in case you were wondering, Abram is the great-great-great-great-great-great-great- grandson of Shem. Seven "greats!"
Terah has three sons and Abram is the oldest with Nahor and Haran being the other two. Haran dies young, but not before having a son whose name is Lot. Lot will be an important player in the life of Abram, so make sure you don't forget him.
Abram and Nahor both take wives. Nahor marries his niece Milcah (Haran's daughter), and Abram marries Sarai, a woman who we find out later is his half-sister. Though this may be something that we think is weird, it is not something that we will dive into today.
As we continue reading this genealogy, there is something that you never want to see.
Look at verse 30 But Sarai was barren; she had no child.
That kind of stops the lineage account dead in its tracts when a phrase like that is mentioned. What really hurts is that Abram's name means "exalted father." Abram's dad apparently had some grand hopes for his son, and now it turns out, Abram is doomed to never have children. But it is the mention of this fact, this horribly sad fact, that drives the rest of the story.
The first epic thing we want to see is Abram's epic faith.
I. Epic Faith
Jump to chapter 12, and this is where we see the account of Epic Faith.
Genesis 12:1-5 Now the LORD had said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father's house, unto a land that I will shew thee: 2 And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing: 3 And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed. 4 So Abram departed, as the LORD had spoken unto him; and Lot went with him: and Abram was seventy and five years old when he departed out of Haran. 5 And Abram took Sarai his wife, and Lot his brother's son, and all their substance that they had gathered, and the souls that they had gotten in Haran; and they went forth to go into the land of Canaan; and into the land of Canaan they came.
We see God's command to Abram. "Get out. Leave your family; leave your father's house, the place you grew up, the place that your ancestors settled. Leave that place, and go to a land that I will show you."
It takes epic faith to follow God completely.
Can you imagine being Abram? Some of us can't stand the thought of a well planned out change in carpet in our own home, let alone the thought of leaving the place in which we grew up, where our parents grew up, where our grandparents grew up.
But God isn't even giving Abram a destination; He just says, "Go; I'll give you your destination later."
And what does Abram do? He packs up his things, gets his wife, and leaves. Along for the journey he is accompanied by his nephew, Lot, and as we see in chapter 11:31, Terah, Abram's father. This is an important observation that we will come back to later.
Can you imagine the faith that drove Abram to obey a command like this?
This is EPIC FAITH! To uproot your family and just go, without even a clear destination; this is impressive faith! And this is why Abram is often called the "Father of Faith." It all began here with this step into the unknown.
(How many of y'all just started singing the Frozen song in your heads?🙂 )
Now God's command, though strange, is not without a promise. God gives Abram five or six promises.
1. I will make of you a great nation. Now, this was all well and good, but Sarai is barren. But, Abram believes God.
2. I will bless you.
3. I will make your name great. I am going to make you famous. Now, contrast this with the people of Cain's lineage and those of Ham's lineage. They tried to make a name for themselves, but here we have a God telling a man, "I will make your name great." And as we continue to study the life of Abram, later know as Abraham, you will see that Abram himself did nothing to pursue greatness, God however make his name great to the extent that he is still talked about today.
4. Not only will I bless you, but you will be a blessing.
5. I will bless those that bless you and curse those that curse you.
6. Everyone in the world will be blessed because of you.
So Abram and his group leave Ur of the Chaldees to go to a place called Haran. We see this in 11:31 And Terah took Abram his son, and Lot the son of Haran his son's son, and Sarai his daughter in law, his son Abram's wife; and they went forth with them from Ur of the Chaldees, to go into the land of Canaan; and they came unto Haran, and dwelt there. 32 And the days of Terah were two hundred and five years: and Terah died in Haran.
The first steps of faith are not always big ones. Remember what God tells Abram to do.
Leave your homeland and leave your family. Abram leaves his homeland, but he does not leave without his family. He takes along with him his father and his nephew. Now as he leaves, God apparently gives Abram direction because now they have a destination.
11:31 they went forth with them from Ur of the Chaldees, to go into the land of Canaan;
But they stop. They don't make it all the way. The wording of scripture makes it seem that it is Terah, Abram's father who causes them to stop in Haran. Genesis 11:31 And Terah took Abram his son, and Lot the son of Haran his son's son, and Sarai his daughter in law, his son Abram's wife; and they went forth with them from Ur of the Chaldees, to go into the land of Canaan; and they came unto Haran, and dwelt there.
This was not a casual stop to get rest and recoup before continuing the journey; they stopped and lived there. I like what Warren Wiersbe says about this: Whatever you bring with you from the old life into the new is likely to create problems. And this is exactly what it does for Abram. We see on the map that their destination is here (Canaan), but they stop far from it. They stay there until Terah dies.
During this time in Haran, there is no communicating with God, no altars are built, no growth is had. For years, Abram dwells in Haran, half-way to being where God has told him to go, half-way doing God's will, and in a stagnate relationship with God.
So Terah dies, and Abram, who is now 75 years old, gets up and takes Lot with him to Canaan. Once again, instead of leaving family, he takes Lot with him. We will see later that this decision does create a lot of problems for Abram, to the point of them having to separate from each other.
They leave Haran and head south to the land of Canaan. Remember, this is the land that the sons of Canaan, son of Ham, son of Noah, have inhabited.
Genesis 12:5-6 And Abram took Sarai his wife, and Lot his brother's son, and all their substance that they had gathered, and the souls that they had gotten in Haran; and they went forth to go into the land of Canaan; and into the land of Canaan they came.
6 And Abram passed through the land unto the place of Sichem, unto the plain of Moreh. And the Canaanite was then in the land.
Here you have Abram arriving at a place called Sichem, or Shechem as it will later be known in the Bible. [Reference map]
And when they get to Shechem of Canaan, look what happens. Genesis 12:7-9 7 And the LORD appeared unto Abram, and said, Unto thy seed will I give this land: and there builded he an altar unto the LORD, who appeared unto him. 8 And he removed from thence unto a mountain on the east of Bethel, and pitched his tent, having Bethel on the west, and Hai on the east: and there he builded an altar unto the LORD, and called upon the name of the LORD. 9 And Abram journeyed, going on still toward the south.
There has been no growth for Abram for a while, no communication with God. But now that Abram is finally where he belongs, God appears in Shechem and says, "Abram, this is the land that I am going to give you."
All along, God had a plan, but didn't tell Abram what it was until Abram was in the place where God wanted him to be.
We need to stop trying to figure out God's endgame and learn to trust Him with the first step.
Had Abram waited in Ur until God told him that Canaan was going to be the final destination, Abram would have never even made it to Haran, but Abram trusted that God knew the way and the destination even though He hadn't told Abram yet.
So Abram builds an altar there in Shechem and travels to a nearby mountain in Bethel. There he builds another altar and calls upon the name of the Lord. That phrase means that he began to seek God out verbally. It carries the connotation of accosting someone, almost harassing someone for an answer. There, in Bethel, Abram begins to truly seek God's face.
What an amazing thing! God moves Abram all the way from Ur to Canaan, and now Abram is talking with God again and God confirms the promise of giving him and his seed, his kids (that Abram doesn't have yet), this land that they are in, the land of Canaan.
II. An Epic Test
Faith will always be tested.
Not too long after, there is a famine in this land of Canaan. Abram and Sarai and Lot and all their servants and animals that they have with them are in danger of starving to death. Put yourselves in Abram's shoes. What would you do?
Based on God's conversations with Abram, what do you think Abram should have done? He should have stayed there and trusted God. He trusted Him to move him from Ur to there, is trusting that he will keep his promise and give him children and make a nation out of him; He should trust God to provide for him through this famine.
Remember, we covered this about five weeks ago, when we start obeying God, Satan will always step in and fight. This does not mean we quit and run away, we fight. The most important piece of the armor of God that we saw in Ephesians 6 is the Shield of FAITH. Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked. This is a big fiery dart for Abram, the thought of not being able to provide for his family. So let's read what he does.
Genesis 12:10 And there was a famine in the land: and Abram went down into Egypt to sojourn there; for the famine was grievous in the land.
Egypt in the Bible, especially in the Old Testament is a symbol of the world and the sinful worldly system. Egypt at this time is prosperous, probably the most influential power in the world. It looks like a good, safe, and more comfortable place to go, so Abram abandons where God leads him, and goes down to Egypt. [Reference the map.]
III. Epic Fail
This turns out to be an epic fail for Abram. Look at verses 11-16. 11 And it came to pass, when he was come near to enter into Egypt, that he said unto Sarai his wife, Behold now, I know that thou art a fair woman to look upon: 12 Therefore it shall come to pass, when the Egyptians shall see thee, that they shall say, This is his wife: and they will kill me, but they will save thee alive. 13 Say, I pray thee, thou art my sister: that it may be well with me for thy sake; and my soul shall live because of thee.
14 And it came to pass, that, when Abram was come into Egypt, the Egyptians beheld the woman that she was very fair. 15 The princes also of Pharaoh saw her, and commended her before Pharaoh: and the woman was taken into Pharaoh's house. 16 And he entreated Abram well for her sake: and he had sheep, and oxen, and he asses, and menservants, and maidservants, and she asses, and camels.
Did you notice those first three verses we read? Abram says to Sarai, "When we get to Egypt, you make sure you tell everyone that you're my sister. Don't tell them that you're my wife because then they will try to kill me so they can marry you." See, even at around 65 years old, Sarai was a looker, and even though this was a half-truth, we see again Abram's lack of faith.
Listen, stepping away from faith once makes it easier to do it again.
But this is a consequence of a sinful agreement they had made a long time ago. Genesis 20:13 And it came to pass, when God caused me to wander from my father's house, that I said unto her, This is thy kindness which thou shalt shew unto me; at every place whither we shall come, say of me, He is my brother.
When they left Ur, Abram told Sarai, when we come to different places, you make sure to call me "Bubba." This thought was a selfish and self-preserving thought that Abram had, and it was cowardly and sinful.
What had happened to Abram to lose the Epic faith that he had displayed earlier?
They get to Egypt and sure enough, not only are there men there that think Sarai is beautiful, but THE man, Pharaoh himself takes an interest in Sarai. Pharaoh gives Abram a generous dowry of servants and cattle for Sarai, and he adds her to his harem.
How far had they come in just a few days of being in Egypt, right? They were starving in Canaan, now they are feasting in Egypt. All is well, right? Well, maybe for Abram. But where is Sarai? She is now the sexual play thing of the Pharaoh. Abram has done something wrong, but he isn't suffering the consequences, his wife is!
Listen, when we sin, we do not always bear the brunt of the consequences, but those closest to us will always be affected.
But thank God that He is faithful. Despite the sinful agreement that Abram and Sarai had made, God still has a plan for Sarai, and letting her be a part of an evil man's harem is not part of that plan.
Genesis 12:17-20 And the LORD plagued Pharaoh and his house with great plagues because of Sarai Abram's wife. 18 And Pharaoh called Abram, and said, What is this that thou hast done unto me? why didst thou not tell me that she was thy wife? 19 Why saidst thou, She is my sister? so I might have taken her to me to wife: now therefore behold thy wife, take her, and go thy way. 20 And Pharaoh commanded his men concerning him: and they sent him away, and his wife, and all that he had.
God afflicts Pharaoh and his house with plagues and word gets out that Sarai is Abram's wife. Pharaoh immediately gives her back and asks Abram, "Why would you not tell me she is your wife? I was planning on marrying her! Get out of here, and take everything you have with you!"
And so it comes to pass, that the Abram, who is supposed to be a blessing to all other nations, becomes a curse to the first nation that he interacts with.
When God calls us to do something and go somewhere, we have to trust Him even when times are hard. Otherwise, we limit God's ability to fulfill His plan in us. "Can we limit God's power?" Absolutely! Psalm 78:40-41 Speaking of the Israelites in the wilderness after God saved them from 400 years of slavery to Egypt, the passage speaks these words: How oft did they provoke him in the wilderness,
and grieve him in the desert!
41 Yea, they turned back and tempted God,
and limited the Holy One of Israel.
With their lack of faith and therefore their lack of obedience, they limited God.
And Abram finds himself at the end of this epic failure, unable to be a blessing to Egypt because of his failure of having faith in God.
So what happens here?
Genesis 13:1-4 And Abram went up out of Egypt, he, and his wife, and all that he had, and Lot with him, into the south. 2 And Abram was very rich in cattle, in silver, and in gold. 3 And he went on his journeys from the south even to Bethel, unto the place where his tent had been at the beginning, between Bethel and Hai; 4 Unto the place of the altar, which he had made there at the first: and there Abram called on the name of the LORD.
(Reference Map)
IV. Epic Forgiveness
It is something for which I will always be grateful, that despite our sins, God is in the redeeming business.
In this passage right here, we see epic forgiveness.
Despite running down to Egypt, despite lying, despite being a curse and not a blessing to a nation, God allows Abram to return to Bethel. There, Abram once again goes back to the altar and turns back to seeking God. We can always go back to Bethel!
But there is one more consequence that happens. We won't get into reading this, for sake of time, but Lot was affected in that journey as well.
Right after these verses, Lot and Abraham are described as being rich and prosperous. They had so much cattle and people that tended to them between the two of them, that the land of Bethel could not contain them both.
This caused fight between the herdsmen about where to take the cattle to eat and rest, so Lot and Abram decide that the only reasonable thing to do is for them to part ways.
So Lot lifts his eyes, the Bible says, and sees the land of Sodom and Gomorrah. He sees that it was well watered, but there is a phrase that stands out in 13:10 And Lot lifted up his eyes, and beheld all the plain of Jordan, that it was well watered every where, before the LORD destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah, even as the garden of the LORD, like the land of Egypt, as thou comest unto Zoar.
How did Lot know what the land of Egypt was like? He had been there. He was taken there by his uncle Abram. It left a lasting impression on him, and when it came time to spit paths with Abram, Lot remembered the land of Egypt, and that is what drew him.
Sodom and Gomorrah were known even then for their absolute sinfulness and debauchery, but all Lot saw when he and uncle Abram were in Egypt was that Abram came out OK. In fact, Abram came out richer from Egypt. So when he gets a chance to go somewhere that resembles Egypt, he jumps at it. We will study later that this drew Lot in and affected his life and the life of his family in ways he never would have expected.
Sin will make us pay costs we never expected.
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LIFE GROUP
In what situations have you had to have EPIC faith?
Was any part of that easy?
What things were difficult to believe?
What were God's commands for Abram? 1) Leave your home, 2) leave your family, 3) leave without knowing the final destination.
How was Abram's obedience not complete? He took his family, he interrupted his journey until his father died.
What is something that you have difficulty obey God fully?
Are there things that you have brought from your old life (unsaved life/life away from Christ) that you have tried to incorporate in your new life? Habits, philosophies, prejudices, etc.?
How can those things stop you from growing in your walk with God?
Abram followed his father to Haran and ended up staying there for years. How can following a person instead of following God stop us from doing God's will?
When Abram finally gets to Canaan, his faith in God is tested with a famine in the land.
Has your faith and commitment to God ever been tested? How?
If you are comfortable sharing, give an example of when you ran from God.
What are consequences that can happen to us when we run from God?
Abram didn't suffer harsh consequences, but his actions affected Sarai and Lot.
How can sin in our life affect our families and friends?
Conversely, how can steadfast faith affect those around us?
We are to be salt and light in the world. What does that mean? We should be a blessing to others and a beacon of God's redemption.
Have you ever encountered Christians who give Christianity a bad name?
When we do sin, when we do run from God, God still wants us back. Abram, instead of following the path that Cain followed, took the option of repentance. He left Egypt, went back to Bethel, and started seeking God again.
If you are here wondering if you can go back to God, the answer is "YES!"
God offers EPIC grace and mercy and love!
Don't use God's grace as an excuse to sin (Romans 6:1-2); understand that sin always affects us and those around us in ways we can't imagine until it is too late.
