SCRIPTURE: Genesis 20
OBSERVATION/APPLICATION:
(Read my reflection from 2008)
Then Abraham prayed to God, and God healed Abimelek, his wife and his female slaves so they could have children again, for the LORD had kept all the women in Abimelek’s household from conceiving because of Abraham’s wife Sarah. [Genesis 20:17-18]
As I read this story, I find myself thinking, ‘what a different world that was’.
How long was Sarah with Abimelek… long enough for the women to realize that they could not conceive children!
And why would Abimelek be interested in a woman at least 90yrs old [Genesis 17:17].
I suppose Abraham had no choice, once Abimelek took Sarah, and we can suppose that he was pleading to God for her, and doing what he could to get her back.
And poor Sarah, held prisoner by this strange man who seemed to collect wives of all ages like trophies.
And then God heals Abimelech, his wife and slaves, through Abraham’s intercession.
Bizarre…
There some people brought to him a man who was deaf and could hardly talk, and they begged Jesus to place his hand on him. After he took him aside, away from the crowd, Jesus put his fingers into the man’s ears. Then he spit and touched the man’s tongue. He looked up to heaven and with a deep sigh said to him, “Ephphatha!” (which means “Be opened!”). [Mark 7:32-34]
I guess what is striking me in these readings is the bizarre factor, and how God works through strange ways to accomplish His purposes.
Fingers in the ears, spit on the tongue, and elsewhere spit in the eyes of a blind man [Mark 8:23], why does God do things these ways?
I guess William Cowper said it best:
God moves in a mysterious way, His wonders to perform;
He plants His footsteps in the sea, And rides upon the storm.
Deep in unfathomable mines, Of never failing skill
He treasures up His bright designs, And works His sovereign will.
Ye fearful saints, fresh courage take, The clouds ye so much dread
Are big with mercy and shall break, In blessings on your head.
Judge not the Lord by feeble sense, But trust Him for His grace;
Behind a frowning providence, He hides a smiling face.
His purposes will ripen fast, Unfolding every hour;
The bud may have a bitter taste, But sweet will be the flower.
Blind unbelief is sure to err, And scan His work in vain;
God is His own interpreter, And He will make it plain.
When I come upon stories in the bible that make me shake my head in confusion, I remember this: God is His own interpreter… and He will make it plain!
PRAYER:
Lord, this is a strange story, though someone has said it well, “truth is stranger than fiction”. Thank You for being faithful and gracious, even when Your ways confuse me.
In God I trust. Or do I?
Abraham, the father of all believers, the man who pleaded to save the righteous people of Sodom, the powerful man who rescued Lot and his family, did not think God would keep him in safety from the king Abimelek. He devised his own scheme. And with that scheme, he also hurt others. Because after all was acknowledged, God healed Abimeleck, his wife and his female slaves, his household. The righteous have fallen.
But God uses a dream to speak to Abimelek to steer him to do what is right. He returned Abe’s wife after also telling his ‘court’ what had happened.
Go figure.
A person who walked and talked with God but going his own way.
A person following the meaning of a dream and doing what is right.
What a mighty God we serve!
Our Father’s wondrous works we see
In the earth and sea and sky;
He rules o’er all in majesty,
From His royal throne on high.
Refrain:
What a mighty God we serve!
What a mighty God we serve!
Reigning now above, on His throne of love,
What a mighty God we serve!
The raging winds and waves are calm,
When He says to them, “Be still”;
The heavens praise Him in a psalm,
And the angels do His will.
He maketh worlds by His command,
Weighs the mountains great and high;
He metes the waters in His hand,
Spans the lofty, starlit sky.
Our God, to save from sin’s control,
Gave His Son: a sacrifice;
His grace, abounding in the soul,
Makes the earth a paradise.