Reflections on Abraham Part Three: Children and Volcanos

Reflections on Abraham
Part Three: Children and Volcanos
Genesis 16.1 - .16

Now Sarai, Abram’s wife, had borne him no children. But she had an Egyptian maidservant named Hagar; so she said to Abram, “The Lord has kept me from having children. Go, sleep with my maidservant; perhaps I can build a family through her.” Abram agreed to what Sarai said. (Genesis 16.1 & .2)

In our culture we love to be in control and we love to have plans. Huge amounts of money is spent on calendars, personal organizers and software to get our plans and schedule under our control. Recently the entire European continent learned that no matter what their plans, calendars or personal organizers tell them they are not in control. The Eyjafjallajokul Volcano, whose name is nearly impossible to pronounce, shut down most of Europe’s airspace causing thousands if not millions of people to put their plans travel by air on hold. They couldn’t do what they planned to do. They learned that they were not in control and nothing they did would allow them to be in control of the volcano!

When we try to control everything and go our own way rather than waiting patiently for the LORD it causes trouble. Look at Sarai and Abram’s attempt to start a family. Abram knows the LORD has promised him a child but Sarai is either impatient or thinks she has a better plan. So she offer her maidservant, Hagar, as a surrogate and will start a family through her. She wants to be in control of this situation instead of waiting for the LORD. This causes trouble. Sarai becomes jealous of Hagar. Hagar is sent away. Abram is caught in the middle. The family Sarai wanted to start falls apart instead!

When we try to take control it causes trouble. When we try to make plans but don’t surrender them to the LORD we sin. (James 4.13 - .17) Instead we need to wait patiently for the LORD and surrender our plans to His will.

#2 Cain and Able: Reflections on Genesis 1 - 11

Reflections on Genesis 1 - 11

Cain and Able

“Why are you angry? Why is your face downcast? If you do what is right, will you not be accepted? But if you do not do what is right, sin is crouching at your door; it desires to have you, but you must master it.” - LORD God (Genesis 4.6 & .7)

Cain and Able are Adam and Eve’s first two boys. Cain works out in the fields. Able works with livestock. One day both of them bring an offering to the LORD. Cain just brings some of the fruit of the soil. Able brings the fatty portions of the first born. The LORD accepts Able’s offering because it is the choicest parts being sacrificed. While Cain’s offering is just normal everyday food. Cain is upset by this and the LORD warns him that sin desires to have him but he must master it. What a warning!

Now if the LORD spoke directly to me with a warning like that I think I would listen to him. If the LORD spoke directly to me every time my own evil desires were tempting I think I would listen. I think I would know better after some help like that.

But to often like Cain we ignore the warnings and walk through temptation and into sin. We knew better but went ahead. We knew the Holy Spirit was pulling us away but we did not control ourselves. We allowed sin to master us.

Self-control is not easy but I believe it is a defining characteristic of a follower of Jesus Christ. Self-control is about being self-aware and thinking ahead. When we master ourselves through the power of the Holy Spirit then the LORD is our master not sin.

#1 Don't Follow god but Follow God

Don’t Follow god but Follow God
First in a Series of Reflections on Genesis 1 - 11

“So God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them.” - Narrator (Genesis 1.27)

“You will not surely die, for God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil” - The Serpent (Genesis 2.4 &.5)

The truth of the first 11 chapters of Genesis is not just that they happened that they still happen. Each and everyday the same temptations, righteousness, sin and victory occur. We are given a choice. We can either follow god or the LORD GOD.
The Serpent tempts Adam and Eve in the garden with the idea that they can be like god knowing good and evil. They see this temptations as something they desire. The desire to be like god gives birth to sin. The sin to pridefully and selfishly be like god leads to death. This is a death of their, and our, relationship with the LORD GOD. Death of their life in the Garden. Death of the joy they were to experience. Death of who they were created to be. Eventually, their own deaths as they were cut off from the Tree of Life.
What they forgot was they were already like God. When the LORD GOD creates us He created us in His image and (wait for it) LIKENESS. We were already like God but we believed the Serpent’s lie! The lie that we can be like the god of our creation not the God of creation
We were created by the LORD GOD to be in His image and likeness. We will only find who we are truly created to be when we stop following god and follow GOD.