Title: Abraham’s Humility
- How It Progresses
Through Gen 12 last week, we looked at the scene where God called Abraham from Ur of the Chaldeans/Haran. One of the blessings He gave Abraham was that he will become a great nation (Gen 12:1-2).
If you look at Gen 15, Abraham says he will appoint Eliezer, his servant, as his successor. So, we can see that Abraham did not have any children yet, let alone a great nation (Gen 15:2). And God confirmed His promise once again, saying, “You will surely have children, and they will be as numerous as the stars in the sky.” (Gen 15:4-5)
Gen 15:6 recorded that Abraham believed this word, and God counted this faith as righteousness. When examining scenes above, the order of works of God became visible :-
- God’s calling (There must be no rejection)
- When there is no rejection, here comes obedience
- The result of obedience is ‘faith’
- The result of ‘faith’ is ‘righteousness’
- The result of ‘righteousness’ is ‘faithfulness’
(Neh 9:7-8)
- The result of ‘faithfulness; is ‘humility’
There is no Bible verse that says Abraham was humble in the Bible, but if you look through the entire Bible to find out why God chose Abraham as the source of blessing and a partner in the history of redemption, the answer is ‘because Abraham was humble’.
In Luk 16:32 a dead beggar Lazarus was held in Abraham’s bosom. In other words, if the kingdom of God can be expressed as the bosom of Abraham, we can guess how great Abraham’s faith was and how much his faith resembled Jesus.
In Mat 11:28-29, Jesus says that He is gentle and humble. If Jesus was gentle and humble, then Abraham, the ancestor of faith, must also be meek and humble, and we, the descendants of Abraham, who follow Jesus Christ, must also be meek and humble.
If we think reversely, without humility, how can obedience to the Word appear in our lives? If we don’t have humility, it is not that we believe in God, but we are using God for our own benefit. And what righteousness could there be to such a person? Also, faithfulness is without lies, but sincerity. What kind of faithfulness can be shown to a person without righteousness?
So, the Bible records that pride is the vanguard of destruction, and humility is the vanguard of honor (Pro 18:12). A proud person, that is, a person without humility can never succeed. Therefore, if there is one thing that God ultimately desires from those who believe, it is humility (Jms 4:6; Pro 29:23; Psa 147:6; Psa 10:17). And Micah 6:7-8 explains that this humility is walking with God and being with God.
- Why Can’t We Be Humble?
- Because we do not fear God
In today’s text (Luk 18:9-14), the attitude in prayer of the Pharisees/scribes and the tax-collector are compared and recorded. The tax collector knew how to fear God. If we look at Luk 18:13, he confessed that he was a sinner, and he did not dare to go in front of the temple. This fear does not simply means trembling in fear. Biblically, the fear of God that we are talking about is expressed as reverence/ to revere.
We need to get out of the consciousness that we must obey because God is a terrifying God who punishes me if we do not obey Him. But rather we should be obedient because God is higher and greater than me, and because He is absolutely and always right.
Abraham’s faith was recognized by God. This is when he tried to offer his son, Isaac, as a sacrifice on Mount Moriah. God gave Abraham the son, Isaac, as the fulfillment of His promise. And now through Isaac, a great nation should be formed if things are moving according to God’s promise. But suddenly, God ordered Abraham to sacrifice his son Isaac as a burnt offering (Gen 22:1-2). When they reached Mt Moriah after a three-day journey and tied up Isaac to offer up a burnt offering.
At this moment, if Abraham said or had a thought in mind, “If I don’t do this, God will punish all of my family, God will bring bad lucks upon all of us, and I have no choice but just do this”, would it be considered as obedience in God’s perspective? No, outwardly it could be the exactly what God had said but inwardly it won’t be recognized as obedience but submission.
Abraham might not understand the entire plan of God why He is asking of his son, Isaac and what He is going to do if Isaac is dead. But, he believes that as God is almighty, even if his son dies, God will bring him out of death (Heb 11:17-19). When Abraham obeyed the Word of God with a heart that respects and acknowledges God, God stopped Abraham’s hand and said, “Now I know that you revere me.” (Gen 22:12).
Dear all, pride is like a shadow. It is always draped in our lives. However, if we have humility, we can overcome that arrogance to have power over us. And I believe that humility is obeying God in reverence, believing that God is absolutely right and that God works as promised.
(2) We must know ourselves correctly
Before God called Abraham, he was just a mere son from a family who lived in Ur of the Chaldeans, a sinful city, and lived by making idols. However, he met God, believed in God, and his life changed in an instant, and he received the blessing of becoming a great nation, receiving a great name, and furthermore, the blessing of being the source of blessing.
In Gen 18, God and the angels visit Abraham before destroying Sodom and Gomorrah. At this time, Abraham fell on his face on the road and begged them to stay in his house (Gen 18:1-3). Can you see Abraham’s humility here? How can he be so humble even when he was in such great state and position? It was because he was well aware of his own circumstances.
To be humble, we must have the consciousness that we are nothing without God’s grace (1 Cor 15:10). The founding pastor told us that honor or reputation should be something given by God. If we chase after these using our own ability, it will become sin before God. I believe when we become lowest, there will be a blessing of God that makes you the highest (Luk 18:14; Mat 20:26).
The Lord's Covenant Church Malaysia 