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The grace and mercies of God
In this story, Abram lied to Pharaoh and put Sarai in danger. It was a terrible mistake. Yet the LORD stepped in to protect Sarai and afflicted Pharaoh and his family with great plaques. Instead of Abram being punished for lying, it was Pharaoh and his family suffering. Why?
There can only be one reason — it was the grace of God on Abram, a man who called on the name of God.
If you read the stories of Abram, you will realise that like any human, he had his fears and he made many mistakes. However, he was a man who believed in God, a man who will always build altars to worship and call on the name of God.
Despite all the weaknesses and mistakes that Abram made, God still chose him to be the line from whom our LORD Jesus Christ, our Saviour will come from.
So, when we read the stories of Abram, we see the grace of God on Abram. Do you know that as believers of Jesus Christ, this same unearned, undeserved favour, love, protection, mercy and blessings are yours too (Galatians 3:29)? The blessings of Abraham are yours simply because you believe in Jesus, through faith and not by what you can do to earn them. Just as God chose Abram, God has chosen you to receive this a gift of God when you believe (Ephesians 2:8-9).
Why was Abram not punished?
When we read the story, it seems that Abram got away easily. However, anyone who had got into trouble with authorities will know that it can be an extremely fearful and traumatizing experience. Pharaoh could have killed Abram and his entire family or imprisoned and tortured them. Seeing the wrath of the Pharaoh and the fear of what was to come, was itself a punishment that anyone would want to avoid.
Although Abram and his family were allowed to leave unharmed, with all their possessions, it was not a nice situation to be chased out of Egypt. During that period, Egypt was the richest and most powerful civilisation in ancient times. To be chased out of Egypt means Abram was cut off from trade and supplies. He could have suffered some financial losses with the sudden departation.
Nevertheless, Abram did not take his chastisement negatively. In Genesis 13:4, when he arrived at the altar that he had previously built, he called on the name of the LORD. He turned his eyes upon the LORD instead of focusing on his losses. He worshiped the LORD and looked to Him to bless and provide again.
The chastisement of God
The fact that Pharaoh let Abram and his entire family leave with all their possessions was a miracle of God. It was the grace of God.
According to Merriam-Webster dictionary, grace means unmerited divine assistance. This is a situation where Abram was at fault. He did not deserve any protection. He deserved to be punished. However, God was so gracious to him that he and his entire family could leave Egypt unharmed.
Although Abram was chastised for his mistakes, the LORD was with him, protecting him. The key thing to note here is that as Abram experienced the grace of God, he grew in faith.
As believers, when we make mistakes, we had to suffer the consequence of our actions. However, know that our LORD will not stop loving us eventhough we messed up our lives. If you give were to ponder over the events, you will realise that His hands of protection was upon you. He is with you even when you walk the difficult journey. Do not be discouraged, instead, be like Abram, call on the name of the LORD and be assured that He is gracious, He will, He wants to and He has the power to restore you to even higher position than ever before.
Are you wondering…
How to become a believer?
You can be a believer simply by saying this prayer:
Dear God, thank you for so wonderfully make me and thank you for sending your Son, LORD Jesus to die for me so that I can have the blessed life that you intended for me — a life of leadership and fruitfulness. Now I believe and accept Jesus as my LORD and Saviour. I believe that from this time forth, I am a new creation, I am born again and I have the eternal life that Jesus came to give me. In Jesus name I pray. Amen.
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