Descent into Egypt
Adapted from Treasures of Faith
Sharon and Chuck Betters
Today’s Treasure
And I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and him who dishonors you I will curse, and in you, all the families of the earth shall be blessed.
Genesis 12:2-4
In Canaan, God revealed more of His plan for the Patriarch’s family. Upon Abraham’s arrival in the city of Shechem, God told him, “To your offspring, I will give this land.” Abraham demonstrated his growing love and intimacy with God by building altars to the Lord in both Shechem and Bethel (Genesis 12:7–8). He may have concluded at this point that his journey to the city of God was going to proceed smoothly. But trouble, in the form of a severe famine, came into the land, putting Abraham’s growing trust and friendship with God to the test (Genesis 12:9–10). How would God feed Abraham and his family? Abraham was still just getting acquainted with God and the great promises accompanying His call, and thus Abraham’s faith was weak. As a result, rather than seeing the famine as an opportunity to trust God, Abraham immediately fled to Egypt.
God had promised Abraham, in no uncertain terms, “I will bless you, Abraham, you and your family. And, in turn, all people on the earth will be blessed through you.”
And Abraham had concluded in effect, “Hmmm. I guess I’m just going to have to take care of myself in this situation. I’m not sure God can feed us in a famine.”
One could argue that Abraham made a purely common sense decision here. After all, wasn’t he responsible for the needs of his household? In Egypt, his family would have food, and he would one day return to Bethel a much richer man than when he left. But there is nothing here to indicate God ever directed Abraham to go to Egypt. While in Egypt, there were apparently no supernatural encounters with God, no altars built to honor Him. Rather than reflecting a godly concern for his family’s welfare, this “side trip” seems to indicate a lapse in Abraham’s faith; in any case, his decision to do the expedient thing at this point set his entire household on a path to more trouble.
Remember Abraham had been steeped in paganism before God first came to him, and, like all of us, he had much to learn. God had not called Abraham to a life of “common sense” but to a life of faith, and Abraham failed to grasp this at first. Even so, God used Abraham’s mistakes, like this one, as purifying fires to burn away the remaining unbelief from his heart and to prepare him for what lay ahead: the ultimate test of his trust in Jehovah, the God of Glory. (Adapted from Treasures of Faith, pages 86-87.)
LIFE-GIVING ENCOURAGEMENT
Friends, are you beginning to see yourself in Abraham’s life? We, too, come to the Lord, steeped in sin, ignorant of what true worship looks like. When life confronts us with hard places, our default mode might be just like Abraham’s. Instead of carefully pursuing God’s wisdom and provision, we conclude we are on our own and make what looks like a common sense decision, even though somewhere in our spirits we know we are choosing our own way rather than obedience to our Lord’s wisdom. But, do no fear, the Lord knows we are frail and does not waste our disobedience. Instead, each hard place can become a scorch mark, burning away the brush to make way for new life.
PRAYER
Lord, someone hearing or reading this is about to make a wrong decision because they are afraid You cannot feed them in the famine of their own lives. May Abraham’s story encourage them to stop, seek counsel and listen as You whisper, “This is the way, walk in it.”
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Sharon W. Betters is the author of Treasures of Encouragement, Treasures in Darkness, co-author of Treasures of Faith. and co-author with Susan Hunt of Aging with Grace, Flourishing in an Anti-Aging Culture. She is Director of Resource Development and co-founder of MARKINC.org, a non-profit organization that offers help and hope to hurting people. Sharon enjoys quality time with her husband, children, fourteen grandchildren, and one great-grandchild.
Contact Sharon with comments or questions at dailytreasure@markinc.org.