Another lie that we keep perpetuating is that if one comes to Jesus, everything will be better. Our problems will be fixed, our life better, we’ll get the job we want, a bigger house, the new car, etc. We may not say it so brazenly (though some do), but this is what we imply. When we tell people life will be better, how will they take it? If they are still thinking with a worldly perspective (what other perspective could they have), they will naturally assume we mean those things. And truth be told, we sometimes (too often, in fact) fall for this trap ourselves. The thing to remember is that Christ didn’t promise this. If anything, Jesus warned us to expect the opposite.

  As they were going along the road, someone said to him, “I will follow you wherever you go.” And Jesus said to him, “Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head.” To another he said, “Follow me.” But he said, “Lord, let me first go and bury my father.” And Jesus said to him, “Leave the dead to bury their own dead. But as for you, go and proclaim the kingdom of God.” Yet another said, “I will follow you, Lord, but let me first say farewell to those at my home.” Jesus said to him, “No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God.”  - Luke 9:57-62, ESV

If Jesus had no place to lay his head, and the servant is not greater than the master, then we must anticipate the possibility that he will ask the same of us. When he tells one not to bury his father, that seems harsh, and taken literally, it is harsh, but possibly necessary. Think of military personnel stationed abroad who have loved ones pass away and they may not be able to make it back. Taken from a cultural perspective, it probably meant the person was waiting on his father to die, but with no set timetable (obviously). Therefore, Jesus calls him at the root of his excuse. Another one wants to say farewell to those he is walking away from and Jesus said no. Again, literally this seems harsh but really, it’s another attempt to beg off a commitment to the Kingdom. These are the responses of those who want what Jesus offers by following Him but aren’t willing to accept the cost to doing so. In other words, they are trying to bargain with God. How often we do that, too.

The bottom line is that following after Jesus has the potential to be costly. It could cost us everything of earthly value in our lives. It could cost us our earthly lives. The Christian faith is filled with stories of martyrs who gave their lives for Christ. Some of these are well known. Most aren’t. And we hear very few stories of folks who have abandoned every earthly possession to follow after Jesus, but for some, this is the requirement. This flies in the face of the idea that if we follow Jesus everything will be better. From an earthly perspective, we must understand that it is more likely to be quite the opposite. That is, if we’re truly being obedient to Christ. We need to “count the cost.” We need to understand what may be asked of us and gird ourselves for it. This will better prepare us to sacrifice what is required for the Kingdom. The silver lining is the promise that whatever we give up in this lifetime will be a pittance compared to what will be prepared for us for eternity.

  When the days drew near for him to be taken up, he set his face to go to Jerusalem. And he sent messengers ahead of him, who went and entered a village of the Samaritans, to make preparations for him. But the people did not receive him, because his face was set toward Jerusalem. And when his disciples James and John saw it, they said, “Lord, do you want us to tell fire to come down from heaven and consume them?” But he turned and rebuked them. And they went on to another village.  – Luke 9:51-56, ESV

Jesus wanted to enter a village, but the residents there didn’t want to let Him. A lot probably had to do with the racial tensions between the Samaritans and the Jews, which is probably why we are told it was a village of Samaritans. The villagers were wrong to refuse Jesus’ entrance. They were refusing entrance to the Son of God. James and John, incensed by this, asked Jesus if they can call down fire from heaven. Likely, racial tensions had something to do with James and John’s response as well. But we’re told Jesus rebuked the two. There would be no fire from heaven. The group simply moved on to the next village.

James and John wanted to take a scorched earth policy, literally. However, Jesus stopped that nonsense. It wasn’t that the two were wrong in their position that the village had no right to stop Jesus. Instead, they were wrong in their response. In other words, they failed the question, “How do I handle being right?” It’s about more than being right. It’s about doing the right thing, even in the face of someone else being wrong or someone else doing the wrong thing. That’s what Jesus teaches us here.

For a lot of us, when we’re wronged or when we’re in a disagreement and the other person is wrong, we want to see some consequences. We want to have immediate results. Whether that be they “get what’s coming to them,” or the other person apologizing and admitting his or her mistake, we want to see recognition of our “rightness.” If anyone should have insisted upon this, that person should have been the Son of God. He didn’t. He took a substantially more graceful approach, didn’t He? When He had every right to bring the fire down, He chose to move on and leave this village in peace. There was more at stake than just one village’s poor choice.

How about for us? Usually when there’s a disagreement or an issue, there is more at stake than what is immediately before us. There are relationships to consider. They are future opportunities to share the Gospel to remember. There is our example to those who might be watching. Therefore, while we may be right, we must consider our approach and our attitude. Sometimes the best thing to do is to accept the fact that it’s a bad situation and move on. This is what Jesus did in the Scripture for today. But in other cases we know Jesus confronted the issue head on, such as at the Temple with the moneychangers. The Holy Spirit can and will guide us to the right choice, but we must be open to not acting as we might want to and instead acting in the best interest of God, willingly choosing to forgo any personal vindication for the future opportunities that we can’t yet see.

John answered, “Master, we saw someone casting out demons in your name, and we tried to stop him, because he does not follow with us.” But Jesus said to him, “Do not stop him, for the one who is not against you is for you.”  – Luke 9:49-50, ESV

There are a couple of key things to understand in these two passages. First, the person John was speaking of was being effective. Second, he was being effective in the name of Christ. When I say effective, I don’t mean in the typical ways we measure success. He didn’t have a large number of disciples. He wasn’t rolling in money. He didn’t have his own time slot at the synagogue. He might have, but that’s not what John referred to. What he cited was the fact that this man was casting out demons in the name of Jesus. In other words, there was something beyond worldly and logical explanation going on with the name of Jesus attached to it. Yet he wasn’t in the group of Jesus’ immediate disciples.

Note what John said, “We tried to stop him.” Why? Simply, because he wasn’t part of the group John was in. Jesus’ rebuke is gentle, but sure, “Do not stop him.” In other words, change course. Don’t get in his way. Why? “The one who is not against you is for you.” The qualifier was that the man was doing things in Jesus’ name that weren’t explainable by normal means. He wasn’t contending with the disciples, meaning he wasn’t the enemy. Rather, he was working for the same purpose: the kingdom of God. Therefore, the disciples needed to let him be. They didn’t need to get in his way. They needed to understand that they and he were on the same team.

From everything we can tell, the man’s doctrine and actions were correct. They matched up with Jesus Christ. As a result, power flowed through him and he was able to cast out demons in Jesus’ name. The only thing that was different was that he didn’t happen to be part of the disciples John was a part of. This gives us a good idea about unity in Christ. Unity in Christ isn’t about putting aside key doctrinal differences. It’s not about supporting someone who is promoting false teaching simply because that person calls himself or herself a Christian. It’s also not about supporting a message that differs from the Gospel because the other religion acknowledges Jesus in some way. Nor is it looking at earthly ways of measuring success and determining, “God must be with this person because of what they are achieving, so they must be all right with God.”

Doctrine (as in, a solid understanding of our faith) still matters. Actions are still critical. Words are still important. They enter into a determination of unity. But if all that is fine and the other person just happens to be in a different grouping, we’re not on different teams. We’re on the same team. And we need to be supporting one another, not fighting against each other. This is an issue that plagues the American Church heavily and we ought to know better. Our nation’s history is filled with examples of teams overcoming and succeeding, of measuring out to be greater than the sum of their parts. Yet when it comes to churches and church life, we can be incredibly divisive, even within a single congregation! This isn’t the way Christ intends it to be. He intends us to all be working together for the good of the Kingdom. This is a calling to all of us. It’s not specific and personal only to a few. If you are part of the Church, then you’re part of that call. Part of that call together.

Do you have an issue with a brother or sister in Christ that you’ve not resolved? If it’s not a doctrinal issue, which must always be resolved through correcting the understanding of doctrine, what else is keeping you separated? What can you do about it? How can you, with the help of the Holy Spirit, correct the situation? What is preventing unity within your local church acquaintances (not just those who are members of your church) if the other points are okay? Will you seek after and desire to correct them today, to be in keeping with Christ’s teaching, to be part of a team moving forward for His Kingdom?

  For whoever is ashamed of me and of my words, of him will the Son of Man be ashamed when he comes in his glory and the glory of the Father and of the holy angels.  - Luke 9:26, ESV

This just doesn’t include the fact that you go to church, or that you call yourself a Christian, or that you are seen as a “goody two shoes” by your acquaintances. It also means the very words of Scripture itself. He made sure we understood that when He said, “of me and of my words.” So maybe there’s a particular teaching we don’t like a whole lot because it hits close to home. Or maybe we’re interacting with a group of folks of whom the teaching is applicable to. You can’t be ashamed of the words of Scripture. I can’t pick and choose when I want to apply them. Not if we truly love Christ.

A classic example is when there’s some off-color humor among the crowd and you want to fit in. While you may not say anything, by sticking around you’re giving tacit agreement to the words that are being used. We’re not to be a part of coarse joking (Ephesians 5:4). Sooner or later someone is going to call us on it. Then what do we do? I can think of some of the responses, “Hey, guys, while those jokes aren’t for me, we’re cool, because you’re my friends,” or “It’s okay, because I’m not the one saying the jokes,” or some other justification. But aren’t we being ashamed of Jesus’ words? Now I’m not saying we shut things down and say, “You fools! Stop this nonsense right now!” That’s not the right approach, either. But excusing yourself probably is. If asked we should respond with something like, “Well, I know you guys like these kinds of jokes and if you want to tell them, it’s not for me to tell you to stop. But based on my beliefs, this isn’t something I can hang around in and participate in. You guys are my friends, but this is just something I’ll have to skip on.” Friends will understand. Real friends will even modify their behavior so you can participate and stick around. Folks who get offended? They aren’t thinking about you. And that’s really all that needs to be said about that.

There are so many examples where we, by our action or inaction, show that we are ashamed of Christ or His Word. We need to stop. We need to put our hearts right and love Him and love His Word more than we love our own comfort or desire to fit in. Our fleshly nature will always rebel against us. We should expect this and be prepared for it. After all, we don’t want Christ to be ashamed of us before the Father. He’s our only way for forgiveness. He’s the exclusive way to heaven. This is what Scripture teaches. We say He is right and perfect and just and loving. Our actions and our hearts should reflect that. Don’t be ashamed of the Savior or His Word.

  For what does it profit a man if he gains the whole world and loses or forfeits himself?  – Luke 9:25, ESV

This has made its way into a very well-liked Christian contemporary song by TobyMac and for this reason a lot of folks in churches today have heard these words repeatedly. However, knowing the words and abiding by them are two completely different things. So how do we abide by these words? We do so by doing a personal review.

• When I look at my life goals, who are they for? Are they for me or are they for Jesus?
• When I look at my proudest life moments, who was glorified? Was it me? Was it someone I cared about (such as a team)? Or was Jesus most glorified?
• When I look at the low points in my life, were they low points because I was brought down or because Jesus was misrepresented or ignored altogether?

These aren’t easy things to look at. However, it is essential that we consider these questions if we want to be in line with Luke 9:25. We can gain everything in this whole world, but if our life is not for Christ, likely we are not saved and that means we have forfeited eternity. These questions force us to think in terms of eternity, to think beyond this life. Are we uplifting self? That’s what we’ve been taught to do. But it’s dead wrong. Self is to be crucified. Christ is to be uplifted. This goes beyond doing just enough to get a back-row seat in heaven (think about that and realize that if we can’t earn grace how silly that sounds). It’s about bringing glory to the One we say we love the most. And it’s easy to say we love Jesus, but our priorities and the things we choose to focus on reveal the true loves of our lives. They also can readily reveal our lack of love for Christ.

Lack of love? If we have a lack of love for our Savior, then the question becomes one about what is the state of our current relationship with Him. That’s not a good question to have hanging over us. It should be settled, once and for all, as a deeply established and passionate relationship with our Lord. Think about the ideal picture of newlyweds. Think about how they’ll do anything and everything for each other. Are our lives the same with respect to our Bridegroom? If they aren’t, we’re showing an awful lot of love for the world. That’s not good.

If that’s the case, then we are the man who is trying to gain the whole world. And that raises into question our salvation. The solution is simple to say, but hard to do:

• Reaffirm our love and our relationship with Jesus Christ.
• Re-order our priorities to be in line with Him.
• Make sure that what we focus on is ultimately for His glory (this is a heart check).
• Go do it.

This isn’t to say we can’t have “down time” to play golf, to watch TV, to do a hobby. God rested on the 7th day, did He not? He knows the majority of us aren’t built to go all out, all the time. Even Elijah needed a break. But when it comes to the big things in life, we need to assess why we’re doing them and who they are for. Let us not be the man that forfeits eternity because he was chasing after something that wasn’t worth it. This is far greater than having an argument and losing a friend. If we insist on being right (and we’re not) in our pursuit of things apart from Christ, then we will lose Christ and lose our salvation. Or I should say, we demonstrate that we never had either in the first place.

I remember back to one of the times when I thought I had lost that robot. I was heart broken. It was after we had come back to the states and I was in junior high school then. I looked everywhere for it. I didn’t dare say anything to my parents because I knew the response, “It’s just a cheap toy! You’ve got plenty more!” Truth be told, this is not something I should have held on to so tightly. My devotion to that cheap piece of plastic is amusing in hindsight. And I see the same behavior in children all the time with respect to those cheap kids’ meal toys. They hold on to something that we as adults realize is pretty meaningless in our culture of over-abundance. But can we say we are any different?

  For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will save it.  – Luke 9:24, ESV

Anything we achieve or get in this lifetime won’t stand the test of time. We could rise to be president of the United States, we could own our dream home, we could get to drive a NASCAR stock car, or we could meet Miss America, but in the perspective of eternity, what does any of that matter? We could meet every career-oriented goal, see the entire world, and write a bestselling book loved and adored by millions. Again, however, through the lens of eternity, none of that matters. When it comes down to it, the only thing that does is whether or not we have received the gift of grace and salvation through Christ. Anything and everything else is like a cheap kids’ meal toy.

Yet we get locked on to so much that doesn’t matter. We make fun of each other and tease each other over choice of sports teams. We become obsessed over project goals and deliverables. We drool over the latest fast car or the latest “hot” man or woman to come into the limelight. We focus on a nagging issue between a fellow church member, brooding over it rather than addressing it and reconciling it. Or we pour all of energy into a relationship with someone other than Jesus to the detriment of our relationship with Jesus. In the scope of eternity, all of these things will fade away.

I realize that most folks would disagree with the viewpoint that career goals, personal relationships, and our standard of living are unimportant. If you don’t have Jesus’ perspective on eternity, then it’s hard to see things for what they are. We shouldn’t expect non-Christians to see the world like Jesus sees it. But as Christians we need to see things through our Savior’s eyes. In other words, as they really are. It’s not that career goals and personal relationships are unimportant. They are important, but when compared to our relationship with Jesus, that importance is dwarfed by the magnitude of our Lord. And with that perspective comes a willingness to give up things, to sacrifice what others consider as all important, for the greater relationship with Jesus Christ. That’s the point Jesus is making here.

See, if we get focused on these other things, then we miss out on the greatest thing. If we try to live our lives cautiously, to not take the big risks God may ask of us, we don’t get to experience the fullness of what a strong faith and trust in the Son will give us. There are no risks with God. When we say risk, we are saying that it’s a risk based on the world’s perspective. With God, anything He ordains is certain. It will happen. And if we live our lives like that, if we are willing to do it His way even following through with actions that seem like madness to the world, we truly live our lives to the fullest even if it costs us our earthly lives. There is something greater than anything that happens in this lifetime. We’ve got to be ready and willing to lose the things this world holds as most important to gain what is truly important. Are you ready? Are you willing? Don’t miss out!

  And he said to all, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me.  – Luke 9:23, ESV

If we would come after Him… in other words, if we would truly be His disciples. See, anyone can say they’re with Christ. They can say they belong to Jesus. It’s not about what we say, however, but what we do. Jesus lays it out. Want to be one of His? Great! He’s got a 3 step formula for us:

1. Deny ourselves.
2. Take up our cross daily.
3. Follow Him.

The world tells us to fight for ourselves. Deny ourselves? That’s crazy talk! We have to fight to get what we deserve. They didn’t get my order right when I ordered my burger? Then I have a right to complain loudly to the manager! After all, I wasn’t the one who made the mistake! And to this Jesus would say, “Wait a minute. Think about your actions and the consequences of them. Is getting upset at the manager going to reveal to him or her who I am? So if you want the situation to be about you, go right ahead. However, if you want to come after Me, if you want to be one of Mine, then deny yourself.”

To add on to that already difficult first step, He tells us to take up our crosses. And not just once in a while. Not just Sundays and Wednesdays. Not even just Monday through Friday. No, He said, “Daily.” Take up our crosses? What is meant by that? A cross was an instrument of extreme punishment. It was a symbol of great suffering. It was meant to demean and break not just the person being executed, but anyone who might come across the scene. And Jesus knew His audience would understand the audacity of His request. He was basically saying, “Do you want to come after Me? Be prepared to suffer. Be prepared to be ridiculed, to be spit on, to be hurt, even to be killed. And be prepared for it every day. Oh, and remember how I did it. I didn’t fight back. I didn’t argue. I took it and I prayed for those who inflicted such harm to Me. That’s what I’m expecting of you, too.” If we do the first, denying ourselves, the second follows as a natural consequence.

Then the third is simple, right? We just follow after Him. But think about where Christ is going. Jesus is at war with the Enemy. He is redeeming those whom the Devil has taken prisoner. He is wading fearlessly into murderous crowds, unafraid and unashamed. Are you ready for this? See, if you want to come after Jesus, you better be. But here’s a point to chew on. Jesus isn’t standing on the sidelines like some coach shouting instructions to His team. He’s leading from the front. He is taking the first hits. He is in the thickest and heaviest of the fighting. It’s not on our shoulders. It’s on His, because He has chosen to be there. How can we possibly say we aren’t willing to join Him?

Actually, it’s rather easy. We see it every day, both inside the Church and out. Jesus’ definition of success doesn’t sit well with most people, even most people within our congregations. But here’s the key point: His definition is the only one that matters. He’s the only one qualified to give the definition of success because He’s the only judge of it. And He gave it in the words we have recorded as Luke 9:23. How does your definition of success match up with His? Is it close or somewhere in the next galaxy? How close is your heart and mind to His definition? Can a Christian be successful? Absolutely, but only if you’re working with Jesus’ definition. And if you’re a Christian, it’s the only definition of success you care about meeting.

For instance, we could have slighted a family member with a poor choice of words. We know that we need to go to that person and swallow our pride and apologize but we can’t decide how or when to do it. So we just dodge the family member except in group settings. At those, said family member is cordial, and the problem isn’t out in the open. So we continue to defer the decision about how and what to do thinking things will be okay. What we don’t see, however, is that resentment is continuing to build in our family member’s heart. If we never make that decision, the resentment will continue to build until one day something unwanted happens. Either the person blows up in a group setting, seeks revenge, or simply writes us off. None of those are good outcomes. Those consequences are the results of avoiding the decision.

Abraham was faced with a tough choice. There was once again conflict between Sarah and Hagar. He was married to them both, however, Sarah was the one given to him by God and she bore the child through whom the promise would be carried, Isaac. Yet Hagar was the mother of his first born son. In this situation, there were no good options for Abraham. He didn’t know what to do. Obviously he loved Ishmael very much because he was torn by Sarah’s request to put Hagar and Ishmael out of the house. What could he do?

And the child grew and was weaned. And Abraham made a great feast on the day that Isaac was weaned. But Sarah saw the son of Hagar the Egyptian, whom she had borne to Abraham, laughing. So she said to Abraham, “Cast out this slave woman with her son, for the son of this slave woman shall not be heir with my son Isaac.” And the thing was very displeasing to Abraham on account of his son. But God said to Abraham, “Be not displeased because of the boy and because of your slave woman. Whatever Sarah says to you, do as she tells you, for through Isaac shall your offspring be named. And I will make a nation of the son of the slave woman also, because he is your offspring.”  – Genesis 21:8-13, ESV

Abraham realized he needed help. We’re not told how he had a conversation with God, but obviously he did, as God gave Abraham the choice he needed to take: let Hagar and Ishmael go. As I said previously, there weren’t any good options here. The past sins had come back to haunt this family and now they had reached a breaking point. The only way to keep any part of the family intact was to break the conflict, at least for now. I’m sure this hurt Abraham deeply. After all, Ishmael was the first born. Ishmael was growing into a young man and Abraham had spent years with his son. He loved and cared about this boy. It seemed so cruel to just cast him out. He likely realized this was his only option, that things couldn’t be rolled back and everything made okay again. However, that wouldn’t heal the ache in his heart.

God doesn’t leave Abraham like this. Note what God said. Ishmael would be provided for. Ishmael would also be okay. He would grow into a nation, too. There would be consequences down the line, but God didn’t mention them, much less dwell on them. Those were already in the future because of the past sins. Right now it was important to tend to His servant, Abraham. Abraham needed encouragement to make the right decision or things would get far, far worse.

When we’re faced with tough decisions, we need to go to God. We can’t see and know everything. We might be able to partially see the consequences of each choice, but we can’t ever see them fully. Therefore, going to the One who has all wisdom and all knowledge is the most logical thing to do. Also, when we’re faced with a tough decision, it may be hard to make the right choice, even when we understand what it is. One of the things God can do for us is provide us reassurance and comfort to make that choice. He may do this even if the whole reason we’re in the tough situation is because of our past sins. While God cares about the past, He wants us to make the right decisions in the present. Dwelling on the past and refusing to act just leads to worse consequences. After all, this is how Abraham, Sarah, Hagar, and Ishmael got to the point where Hagar and Ishmael had to go. Prior situations weren’t properly dealt with. We must make those hard choices and God wants to ensure that we do so. Therefore, He will provide the support we need. However, it all begins by first turning to God for help.

What I find aggravating about myself is when I know God wants to do something in my life and I get tired of waiting. That’s typically when I start to take on the world. Inevitably, that sort of approach ends badly. It did once upon a time for a couple named Abram and Sarai when Sarai deplored the fact that she wasn’t giving Abram a kid, any kid, much less a son. So enter Hagar, Sarai’s servant, and the trouble began. Sarai and Abram tried to take on the world. They tried to make God’s promise happen before God was ready to deliver it. And a lot of people have suffered for it.

The LORD visited Sarah as he had said, and the LORD did to Sarah as he had promised. And Sarah conceived and bore Abraham a son in his old age at the time of which God had spoken to him. Abraham called the name of his son who was born to him, whom Sarah bore him, Isaac. And Abraham circumcised his son Isaac when he was eight days old, as God had commanded him. Abraham was a hundred years old when his son Isaac was born to him. And Sarah said, “God has made laughter for me; everyone who hears will laugh over me.” And she said, “Who would have said to Abraham that Sarah would nurse children? Yet I have borne him a son in his old age.”  – Genesis 21:1-7, ESV

It was a good thing the couple only tried that one time to make the promise of a child happen. Even thought they only tried once, the couple was now very old. Abram was now Abraham and one-hundred years old. Sarai was now Sarah and no spring chicken at 90. But in their old age God finally delivered the promised child, Isaac. This one was totally of God. Everyone understood that. 90 year-old women do not bear children. At least, not normally. So for Sarah to welcome a son into the world meant that she had to be blessed by God to do so. I wonder how much more that child meant to her after so many years of waiting, to receive him in the crowning years of old age? So often we don’t appreciate the things that come our way when we’re young but we note how precious they are in later years. I wonder if it was the same way with Abraham and Sarah. If human nature is our guide, I would think so.

But one thing I don’t want you to miss is that the promise was fulfilled. God didn’t make it happen in the way or the manner Abraham and Sarah expected. Rather, when He delivered the promise, He did so in a way that was unthinkable. He ensured that no one could question that He had a hand in their child’s birth. I wonder sometimes if there hadn’t been Ishmael if God would have delivered Isaac sooner. We won’t ever know, because the could chose the wrong direction because they didn’t trust God enough, but it does make one think. Irregardless, a son was born, a son who would carry a promise of a Messiah through whom all the nations would be blessed. God delivered.

Is there something you know God has promised you that you’re growing impatient over because it hasn’t happened? Remember Abraham and Sarah, Ishmael and Hagar, and also, Isaac. Just because you don’t see it happening doesn’t mean a thing. I am sure that when the men came to talk to Abraham, he had long given up on a child from Sarah. Yet, they told him God would honor His promise and that Abraham and Sarah would welcome a baby boy in a year’s time. God did just that. If God has made you a promise, He is going to deliver on it. There’s no sense of worrying over when it is because only He can deliver it and He will deliver it according to His plan. We can try and make things happen, but we’ll only cause more difficulties in our lives. Trust the Lord’s promises and hold them close to your heart. Then praise Him when He delivers on them.

But God came to Abimelech in a dream by night and said to him, “Behold, you are a dead man because of the woman whom you have taken, for she is a man’s wife.” Now Abimelech had not approached her. So he said, “Lord, will you kill an innocent people? Did he not himself say to me, ‘She is my sister’? And she herself said, ‘He is my brother.’ In the integrity of my heart and the innocence of my hands I have done this.” Then God said to him in the dream, “Yes, I know that you have done this in the integrity of your heart, and it was I who kept you from sinning against me. Therefore I did not let you touch her. Now then, return the man’s wife, for he is a prophet, so that he will pray for you, and you shall live. But if you do not return her, know that you shall surely die, you and all who are yours.”  – Genesis 20:3-7, ESV

Abimelech had taken Sarah to be his wife. As far as he knew, she was just Abraham’s sister. He didn’t know they were married. God, of course, got Abimelech’s attention right away, “Hey! You’re a dead man because you took another man’s wife as your own!” Abimelech, naturally, is shocked and professed his innocence. He had no way of knowing the truth. Note how God responded. God had kept Abimelech from sinning. God had preserved Abimelech despite his ignorance of the real situation. Abimelech didn’t sin because God intervened.

So let’s consider the why. God directly gives us one reason: because Abimelech did it with the purest of hearts. He had no knowledge of Abraham and Sarah’s marriage. But if we look at verse 11, we get another reason. Abraham lied because he though that there was no fear of God in Abimelech’s kingdom. He felt that if he didn’t lie, they would kill him and take Sarah anyway. But Abimelech’s response in the dream and the way he talks to Abraham reveals that there was a fear of God in this ruler. There was also an understanding of right and wrong that was founded in God’s laws. We see that when Abimelech addressed Abraham. And through this fear of God there was a relationship. It might have started with the dream, but God and Abimelech were on speaking terms.

Do you want protection from what you can’t see coming? Spend time with God. Allow Him to guide you, to preserve you, to protect you. Often times we get a sense of what we should be doing, but we may not understand the whys about it. This was the case with Abimelech. In Abimelech’s case, God was guiding his actions. God was protecting Abimelech, keeping him from committing a sin in ignorance. God can do the same for us, but we have to trust Him. We have to fear Him. And we have to talk to Him, both through prayer and His Word. You and I can’t see everything. I rather doubt we see most things. But God sees all, knows all, and has power over all. So let us give up the illusion of control and just rely on what God can do. But to do that, we have to take a walk with Him, as often as we can.