Honey From The Rock

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Honey From The Rock
Psalm 81:16

"Sweet Stuff From God's Word"

A daily Bible study with Victor Knowles
Copyright 2007

"BECAUSE I THOUGHT"

This entry was posted on 02-19-2010 and is filed under STUDIES IN GENESIS.

"And Abraham said, 'Because I thought, surely the fear of God is not in this place; and they will kill me on account of my wife." (Gen. 20:11 NKJV).

Human thinking, analysis, and reasoning can sometimes get you in big trouble. When Abraham and Sarah traveled south they concocted a scheme they thought would work. They would say that Sarah was Abraham's sister in order to spare Abraham's life. What were they thinking? Why not just trust God? Abraham's deceit nearly brought disaster to King Abimelech and his people. Abimelech had integrity in his heart. God said so (see v. 6). At this point in time he had more integrity in his heart than did Abraham. Those three words "Because I thought" led Abraham to the brink of disaster. He thought there was no fear of God in the land. Actually, Abimelech showed more fear of God than did Abraham! Sometimes thinking that is fueled by fear can lead us into great trouble. Sometimes we think there is no hope when there is plenty of hope. Sometimes we fear failure when success is just around the corner. We must be careful not to let our negative, fearful thinking guide our actions.

Not including God in our thinking leads to serious consequences for all involved. At the end of this story (read all of Gen. 20) Abraham prays to God and God healed Abimelech, his wife, and his female servants. What had happened to them? Because of Abraham's lack of trust and made-up story "the LORD had closed up all the wombs of the house of Abimelech because of Sarah, Abraham's wife" (v. 18). Notice that the writer of Genesis gets it right: Abraham's wife, not sister. It is always better to say "I trust God" than "Because I thought." It is better to live by faith than by your wits. Someone has wisely said: "Care not whether men say you are a great thinker. See to it that they know you as a great believer." You can be at your wit's end but you need not be at your faith's end. You are at your best when you stand still and trust God.

Prayer: Holy Father, forgive us when we trust our wits more than we trust You. Empower us by Your Spirit to trust You in every circumstance of life or trial that we face. Through Christ we pray.