By faith Abraham, when called to go to a place he would later receive as his inheritance, obeyed and went, even though he did not know where he was going. By faith he made his home in the promised land like a stranger in a foreign country; he lived in tents, as did Isaac and Jacob, who were heirs with him of the same promise.
Hebrews 11:8,9
This is one of the most amazing stories in the history of the world. It tells us just how great God is and what a man of faith Abraham was. But, at the same time, it’s more frightening than just about anything I can think of. And why? Because of these two very small and powerful words.
Called. God reached out from heavenly eternity and gave a personal message to Abraham. And that message was to leave everything he’d ever known and to go someplace else.
Obeyed. Abraham did more than just hear the words of God, he answered with his actions. He put his whole life on the line and let God’s words shape his life. His future.
While he was being called, Abraham obeyed. There wasn’t any time in between the calling and the obeying. He didn’t call for a time out to noodle over his options. There was no discussion with his friends. He didn’t go through some “pros and cons” checklist to think about his calling from all sides.
No. Abraham did what we almost never do. What we’re deathly afraid to do. He did the unamerican thing. The unthinkable thing. He heard God’s call and he immediately obeyed. God spoke and he acted. God action was to speak the words and Abrahams’ response was to get up and get going.
Think about this for a minute. God tells Abraham to go. But where was the place? What’s the location? Where is it on the map? What roads do you take to get there? Are there any stores along the way? Where are we going to buy lunch? Will we know anyone there?
God’s call to Abraham was a call of faith. A call to faith. You see, when God called, the destination wasn’t part of the call. The call didn’t include any of the details that we normally expect before heading out. No GPS location. No turn-by-turn directions. No timetable of where he’d be by what date.
Just this week, I made plans for Mary Ann and me to get away for a few days. You should see how I sweated the details. I first looked at the calendar to make sure that it wouldn’t interfere with scheduled appointments or anything already marked down. Then I searched far and wide for just the right place. In the right town. Right on the water. At the right price.
But this wasn’t enough. I needed more information and details before I could make a decision and actually do something. Because we have an electric car, I made sure that there were charging stations all along the way. I know, they’re popping up all over the place. But you’ve never known real fear till your car is on four-percent and you don’t know exactly where the next charging station is.
Finally, I had all the information and everything looked good. I keyed in the request for reservations, took a deep breath, and hit enter. I held my breath until I saw that it was confirmed and the deposit was accepted. With the confirmation in hand, I entered the dates and reservations into our calendar so I wasn’t tempted to schedule something else on those dates. And since Mary Ann and I both lead Small Groups at church, I logged onto their website and updated it.
All that and more just for a five-day escape weekend. God speaks to Abraham about the rest of his life and boom, he’s gone. No asking questions. No looking for details. No trying to figure things out. No worrying about what he’s going to do when trouble happens. Or what to do when one of his camels gets a flat tire.
God never told him exactly where he was going. Who he’d meet along the way. When he’d arrive. God didn’t give him a heads-up on all the troubles that he’s run into along the way. Or the enemies that would try and stop him. God says go and Abraham gets up and goes. It was that simple.
So why do we make it so hard? What causes us to pull away when God so clearly calls us? Why won’t we follow when he leads? The answer is as simple as the fact that we want what we want. We like the idea that we’re in control. That we’re independent.
Don’t let the fact that we don’t know everything get in the way. Or the truth that we’re absolutely not in control change our minds. Or let the reality that there ain’t no way that we’re independent mess things up. All of these things come from pride. Pride that somehow we’re in charge. Everyone and everything was made for our enjoyment and pleasure.
But faith means not knowing. All the details and information that we so desperately want aren’t in our control. But in God’s. Faith say that we will immediately follow where he leads. Do whatever he says. Say his words to anyone. Faith is the one and only true freedom. Giving up our right of knowing in exchange for knowing God and all he is.
Noodling Questions
What’s the difference between God’s calling and our obeying?
List three things that stand in the way of your obeying. Explain.
How has pride interrupted our ability to hear and obey?
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