“From there Abraham traveled to the region of the Negev and settled between Kadesh and Shur. While he was staying in Gerar, Abraham said about his wife Sarah, “She is my sister.” So King Abimelech of Gerar had Sarah brought to him. But God came to Abimelech in a dream by night and said to him, “You are about to die because of the woman you have taken, for she is a married woman.”” (Genesis 20:1–3, CSB)
But God came to Abimelech in a dream by night and said to him, “You are about to die because of the woman you have taken, for she is a married woman.”God isn’t subtle very often. When He needs to communicate a message He often uses bold demonstrations or bold words to get people’s attention. It is the latter that God used to correct Abraham’s continuous deception about Sarah being his sister. And of course, he was her sister technically, as we’ve mentioned before.
Fear drove Abraham to this constant misrepresentation of the truth. Even though Sarah was Abraham’s half-sister, they were first and foremost married. Abraham’s deception out of his dread of being murdered posed a fundamental problem: Did he believe God when He promised to make Abraham a great nation or did he not?
Did God mean this? “The Lord said to Abram: Go out from your land, your relatives, and your father’s house to the land that I will show you. I will make you into a great nation, I will bless you, I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing.” (Genesis 12:1–2, CSB)
If Abraham truly believed God why did he shrink back? Doubt. We all experience it. It creeps and seeps into our soul spreading its fire-freezing cold. It doesn’t take long for the whispers of the Evil One to mutate into the full-fledged fears and insecurities of unbelief.
Despite our doubts and our dumb decisions, God mercifully chooses often to thwart our calamitous choices. In His wisdom and compassion, He steps in when we should have stepped up. As a result, we – our spouses especially – are spared the humiliation and degradation of our decisions made without faith.
Husbands, wives, consider today the choices you make routinely. Often we have failed to reevaluate what we do habitually to our detriment. God will protect us but He also expects us to use His insight and wisdom as found from our daily times with Him in His words.
Magnificent Marriage Mondays are helpful hints, clues, ideas, and solutions for the child of God who is looking for a spouse, in a relationship with someone, or are already married. Each post seeks to bring help, hope, and honesty to your life and make the rest of your life, the best of your life. They are written by Dr. Matthew Lee Smith, Executive Director of Eagles In Leadership, and come from his 38 years, 5 months and 2 days experience with his wife, Melodee, who was promoted to Heaven on November 11, 2017. He is currently seeking God’s will for his new life partner. He welcomes your comments below.
