Faith — The Call – Tuesday
TODAY’S VERSE
Hebrews 11:8
By faith Abraham obeyed when he was called to go out to a place that he was to receive as an inheritance. And he went out, not knowing where he was going. (ESV)
Do you need to be in control? Let me be direct: Are you a control freak? There’s a broad spectrum of control from simply having an up-to-date calendar and orderly to-do list on one end, to a rigid, sleep-depriving need to manage every plan with detail and certainty on the other. Not to mention the need to control others. There’s a destructiveness that goes with the need to have control and certainty about everything. I’ve seen this tension in marriages. In order for someone to have control in a relationship, means that someone else has to relinquish it. We’ll know we’re growing in faith and relationship with God when we realize only He is in control. This is a lesson Abram had to learn.
Over 2,000 years after the fact, the writer of Hebrews was still echoing the story that had been handed down through the centuries. Abram wasn’t selected, or called, by God because of an impressive resume of faith. The man who had spent his life worshiping all manner of false gods didn’t have that to offer. God saw something else. God was succinct when he spoke to Abram, but he didn’t offer any certainty. God instructed Abram to leave what was familiar and meaningful and go to another land. God said, and I paraphrase: “Leave for a place I’ll reveal to you later. That’s right. You need to go, but I’m not going to tell you where just yet.” Today’s verse says Abram “went out not knowing where he was going.” That required faith, which Abram didn’t have an abundance of at the time.
Abram had to learn how to lay down the need to be in control and instead choose to obey. Eventually, his actions would be evidence that he was obedient. When God called Abram to help fulfill His purposes, God made substantial, generational promises to Abram in the form of a covenant. “I will make you into a great nation. I will bless you and make you famous, and you will be a blessing to others.” (Genesis 12:2) But Abram couldn’t be certain God would or could deliver. He had to set aside feelings that created doubt. Faith is not based on feelings but on the trustworthy Word of God (Romans 10:17).
APPLICATION
Abraham’s story powerfully reminds us of God’s intent for us. He first loved us. He calls us. As preacher Warren Wiersbe put it, “We are not saved by making promises to God; we are saved by believing God’s promises to us.” Take some time to write down promises God has kept in your life.
PRAYER
Father, I repent of my need to be in control and acknowledge Your sovereign control over my life. Help me, like Abraham, say yes to Your Word and trust Your promises.
