Stability When We Don't Undersand: Faith like Abraham

Change is human. So is insecurity. We are riddled with it. We cannot find within ourselves a fixed point, an anchor, for our own souls. We can change with the weather, the news, or a bad doctor’s report. We stand for the first time on wobbly legs, elated, and are thrilled as we take our first steps, never slowing down in a frenzied rush to grow up. To experience. To explore. To find love. To find meaning. Then we dig in our heels wishing time would slow down with the discovery of our first gray hair or the departure of our firstborn for college. We live inside of time, measuring it out in twenty-four hour cadences, ever mindful of the process of decay and proclivity towards sin. We despise change at times, yet are confined to it. The ability to imagine better days is a gift helping us move forward. Without an immutable anchor for our souls, we would drift at sea in an ever-changing world and drown in waves of uncertainty.

Where do we find an anchor?

It is not within the character of God to change. We can fully trust in God because nothing will change in His very essence – His being, perfection, purposes, or promises. He is not subject to any limitations of humanity or creation. God is simultaneously infinite and personal. He is far greater than anything in existence, yet we can relate to Him intimately through prayer, worship and obedience in response to His love. He speaks to us, rejoices in us and loves us. He is the same God who related intimately to David and Moses. He is the same God who called Gideon and answered his requests due to his human frailty to confirm His calling. He is the same God who converted Paul, who answered the prayers of countless people to save, heal, provide for and protect them.

Can we have the same close fellowship with God that people enjoyed in biblical times? Remember, God has not changed. If we peer into the story of redemption through the encounter God had with Abraham when He asked him to sacrifice his son, Isaac, we can see the heart of God to save by ultimately sending His own son as a final sacrifice for sin. God who is holy cannot allow sin and must pronounce judgment. That judgment and wrath fell on Jesus Christ on the cross, ending the continual need of sacrifices for sin.

Therefore, we can draw near to God at any time, in any place, without guilt because of the forgiveness we receive in Him. We stand before God as holy and blameless even while we are being made holy, while we are being conformed to the image of His Son. If we want to interact with God on a hilltop like David, in an ornate sanctuary, in a hospital room or war zone, He will draw near to us as promised. If we want to talk demonstratively and sing to Him like Tevye in “Fiddler on the Roof”, we can. If we want to whisper or pray silently in our hearts, He understands the depths of our hearts, interpreting our thoughts and intentions. Then and now, God is moved by faith and desires for us to seek Him.

Like Abraham, God wants to bring us into His heart and purposes. Abraham became the father of faith, not because he was perfect, but because he believed God. “Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness.” (Romans 4:3) He did not withhold his own son, while trusting that God would provide a sacrifice or perhaps raise him from the dead. This was a foreshadowing of Jesus’ resurrection. Whoever heard of such a thing at that time? The audacity of his faith. We can be glad today that the resurrection is not a myth, fairy tale or crutch. It is ancient fact.

Yes, it is possible to have the same close fellowship as we embark on this wild and risky journey of faith. As C.S. Lewis said about the lion Aslan, a type of Christ, “He's not safe, but he's good.” What is the risk? He requires complete surrender, but we can trust Him. He is mighty good – a refining, holy fire, yet loving and good.

If anyone has moved away, we have. We live in an unprecedented age of complexity amidst a multitude of distractions and enticements. Yet we can find ourselves empty and alone unless our primary need for a relationship with God is met.

Silence the “shoulds”, come away and ask yourself these questions:

• Do I hear God speaking to me? 
• What is He inviting me to? 
• How will I respond? 

He desires to relate to us and lead us on a journey of faith today.

“And without faith it is impossible to please Him for he who comes to God must believe that He is and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.” (Hebrews 11:6)