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Abraham, A Friend of God (Part 1 of 2) Abraham was called a friend of God (James 2:23); what can we learn from him and try to imitate? |
Abraham, A Friend of God (Part 1 of 2)
Abraham was called a friend of God (James 2:23); what can we learn from him and try to imitate?
- He Was Obedient
- Ready to follow God and His will (Gen. 12:4; Heb. 11:8).
- Promptly (Heb. 11:8; Gen. 22:3; cf. Acts 2:37-38, 41; 16:32-33; 26:19, 22:16, 9:20).
- Humbly (he submitted to God’s will; Gen. 18:27).
- In faith & trust (Heb. 11:8, 9, 13-18; Rom. 4:18-22; cf. Acts 27:25; 2 Tim. 1:12).
- No wonder God placed confidence in him (Gen. 18:19).
- He Overcame Obstacles
- Sin/Deficiency of Faith – Gen. 12 tells of a great famine (v10) in which Abraham fled to Egypt and told Sarah to lie about their relationship (v12) which led to Pharaoh rightly rebuking him (v18-20). But Abraham returned to worship God (Gen. 13:3-4; cf. 1 John 1:7, 9).
- Strife – he sought peace with Lot and their herdsman by offering Lot to choose where he would like to go and Abraham would go the other way (Gen. 13:8-9). He again showed humility in so doing but also a desire for peace (cf. Matt. 5:9; Rom. 12:18, 10).
- Dangers & Temptations – Willing to defend Lot and others at personal cost and risk (Gen. 14:14; Phil. 2:3-4); but also not overcome with the desire for possessions (Gen. 14:23; cf. James 1:17; Matt. 13:22; 1 Tim. 6:9-10).
May we learn from Abraham and “…walk in the steps of that faith of our father Abraham…” (Rom. 4:12)
