Covenant Relationship

 DEVOTION

GENESIS

COVENANT RELATIONSHIP

Gen 20:1-7

20:1 Now Abraham moved on from there into the region of the Negev and lived between Kadesh and Shur. For a while he stayed in Gerar, 2 and there Abraham said of his wife Sarah, "She is my sister." Then Abimelech king of Gerar sent for Sarah and took her. 3 But God came to Abimelech in a dream one night and said to him, "You are as good as dead because of the woman you have taken; she is a married woman." 4 Now Abimelech had not gone near her, so he said, "Lord, will you destroy an innocent nation? 5 Did he not say to me, 'She is my sister,' and didn't she also say, 'He is my brother'? I have done this with a clear conscience and clean hands." 6 Then God said to him in the dream, "Yes, I know you did this with a clear conscience, and so I have kept you from sinning against me. That is why I did not let you touch her. 7 Now return the man's wife, for he is a prophet, and he will pray for you, and you will live. But if you do not return her, you may be sure that you and all yours will die."

NIV

Do what is right and live, and do what is wrong and die. That is the truth of this narrative about Abraham, Sarah, and Abimelech. We still wonder why Abraham and Sarah would be that deceptive, considering the LORD called Abraham a prophet. Interestingly, the Hebrew word translated as prophet first means a spokesman, a speaker. Who else would he speak for other than the LORD? Someone whom the LORD has declared as his spokesman was still a man, with the flaws of all men. He was concerned about his life because Sarah was a very beautiful woman. But she was still in her later years, and we had not yet seen Isaac born. This story will unfold according to God's will, but for now we need to consider Abraham's deception. All of us are flawed people, for there is none righteous, not one, including Abraham, a man of God. This brings us to the question of how God would call a flawed man into ministry. Of course, Paul's letter to Timothy gives us the qualifications for being an overseer, which translates to today's position as pastor.  Did Abraham meet those qualifications before they were given to the church? Then again, because God testified to Abimelech that Abraham was a prophet, we wonder if that was in the sense of one of the gifts given to the church at large, the office of prophet. We know there are men today fulfilling, or at least occupying, the position of pastor and teacher, but they are still flawed men, some of whom have fallen into immoral sin while in that position. But then we all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God; just as Abraham was without sin, so are we. How do we possibly stand in judgement of Abraham's flaws, his sins, when we face the same condition of being flawed, having sin in our lives? Nevertheless, God still had a covenant with Abraham and would use him in a mighty way. God also has a covenant with those who will accept and agree to his covenant through Jesus. That is the truth of the story of Abraham, and the truth of our story, living in a covenant relationship with the Lord.