By Joshua Cooley
Scripture Reading: Genesis 11:27-31, Genesis 12:1-9, Genesis 15:1-21, Genesis 18:1-15, Genesis 21:1-7
God fulfills His promises through interesting people, doesn’t He?
One of the greatest promises in all of Scripture was given to Abraham and Sarah when God said that He would make their family “into a great nation” (Genesis 12:2) and that “all the peoples on earth” would be blessed through them (v.3).
In many ways, Abraham and Sarah appeared to be a curious choice. At the time of their calling, they were steeped in pagan culture and well past child-bearing years—Abraham was seventy-five years old, and Sarah was sixty-five. They often lacked faith in the promise and needed consistent reminders from God.
The couple also had their fair share of marital issues. More than once, Abraham tried to pass off Sarah, who attracted the interest of several powerful kings, as his sister to save his own skin. And as time passed and the promise remained unfulfilled, Abraham and Sarah even tried to speed things up by having Abraham conceive with Sarah’s servant, Hagar. Perhaps Abraham and Sarah could have benefited from some sessions in the counseling tent.
Despite all their shortcomings, God chose Abraham and Sarah to be the father and mother of His great promise to create a nation—the one that would eventually produce the Messiah. This is how God works! He doesn’t choose all-stars to fulfill His plans. He chooses spiritual scamps, creating beauty from the ashes of human imperfections and heavenly design out of human chaos. God’s promise wasn’t fulfilled because of Abraham and Sarah—the fulfillment of God’s promise was always dependent on Him.
Aren’t you glad that God’s eternal plan of redemption doesn’t hinge on us? Aren’t you grateful that all of His promises concerning your salvation, growth, and eternal glory are based on His wisdom, power, and righteousness and not ours? God’s promises never fail because they are directly linked to His character and His alone. Amazingly, He chooses to work out His sovereign purposes through us. But ultimately, all of His plans will succeed solely because of who He is.
This gives great hope to fallible folks like us. God calls us, warts and all, to be part of His great redemptive plan for humanity. He commands our love, faithfulness, and obedience, but His purposes are not derailed when we inevitably fail. God doesn’t call an audible. He doesn’t need a backup plan. And somehow, mysteriously, He has lovingly incorporated our weaknesses into His grand design.
Written by Josh Cooley
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