God is faithful!

“Abraham never wavered in believing God’s promise. In fact, his faith grew stronger, and in this he brought glory to God.” (Romans 4:20 NLT) The account that Paul refers to here is when God promised Abraham and Sarah that he would give them a child in their old age. Abraham was 75 years old when he first received this promise. (Genesis 12:1-3)

Actually, God’s promise was much greater than this, for he told Abraham he would make him and his progeny into a great nation and that all the nations on earth would be blessed through him!

By the time Abraham was nearly 85 years old, he and Sarah still had not had a child. But God reminded him of his promise. On this occasion, the Lord challenged Abraham to gaze up at the stars and that if he could count the stars, he would be able to count his future offspring. Abraham “believed the Lord, and he credited it to him as righteousness.” (Genesis 15:1-6)

But it would be another 15 years before Abraham and Sarah had their long-awaited child. Abraham was now 100 years old. This is the context in which we read, “Abraham never wavered in believing God’s promise. In fact, his faith grew stronger…” (Romans 4:20 NLT).

Purely from a human and physiological standpoint, the older Abraham and Sarah grew, the less likely they could have a child. Yet in proportion to that dwindling likelihood Abraham’s faith increased. Why? Because the longer he walked with God and became acquainted with his power and his character, the more Abraham became convinced that God could do anything—even give him a child when his body was as good as dead.

God left no doubt in Abraham and Sarah’s minds that their child was his gift, his miracle for them. Abraham could not pound his chest and declare, “I guess I still had it in me in my old age to sire a child!” This was a God-sized task. And in trusting that God could and would give them their promised child, Abraham brought glory to God.

But the Scripture doesn’t tell us about Abraham’s faith merely to share a great story with us. “Because of Abraham’s faith, God counted him as righteous. And when God counted him as righteous, it wasn’t just for Abraham’s benefit. It was recorded for our benefit too, assuring us that God will also count us as righteous if we believe in him, the one who raised Jesus our Lord from the dead. He was handed over to die because of our sins, and he was raised to life to make us right with God.” (Romans 4:22-25 NLT)

God is faithful. He is trustworthy. The Lord declares, “Those who hope in me will not be disappointed.” (Isaiah 49:23)
©2009 Rob Fischer