We find that Abraham enjoyed the benefits of the enemy at least twice by going down to Egypt during a famine and once going to Gerar. But in the process of enjoying the food for his family and household even Abraham fell into sin by lying about his relationship to his wife.
Genesis 12:10-13
10 Now there was a famine in the land. So Abram went down to Egypt to sojourn there, for the famine was severe in the land.
11 When he was about to enter Egypt, he said to Sarai his wife, "I know that you are a woman beautiful in appearance,
12 and when the Egyptians see you, they will say, 'This is his wife.' Then they will kill me, but they will let you live.
13 Say you are my sister, that it may go well with me because of you, and that my life may be spared for your sake." ESV
Genesis 20:1-2Not only did Abraham lie about his relationship to Sarah in both cases, he also placed his wife at risk since she was placed in the Pharaoh’s or the King’s harem.
1 From there Abraham journeyed toward the territory of the Negeb and lived between Kadesh and Shur; and he sojourned in Gerar.
2 And Abraham said of Sarah his wife, "She is my sister." And Abimelech king of Gerar sent and took Sarah. ESV
While the Lord still protected Sarah despite her husband’s sin, could not the same Lord have just as easily kept Abraham from being killed as he feared?
Or could not the Lord have fed Abraham?
I mean really, the promises God had given Abraham had not yet been fulfilled so surely the Lord would do what He said.
We see the reason Abraham gave for lying was because he knew he was in the midst of the enemy.
Genesis 20:11 Abraham said, "I did it because I thought, There is no fear of God at all in this place, and they will kill me because of my wife. ESVAbraham knew he was “warming with the enemy” just as Peter did (Luke 22:54-62). The enemy didn’t sneek up on them, but both Abraham and Peter, just as Lot, went to the enemy to enjoy the "warmth" (benefits). Yet all three soon found themselves in sin.
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4 comments:
This example is my favorite for many reasons. One, when many women say they don't have to obey their Husbands if he is wrong...this cleary demonstrates that is not an option AND it shows that someone who was a giant of faith (Sarah) could be so faithful in two serious instances where her husband was wrong..but still made a mistake later on (insisting on him laying with her slave to conceive instead of waiting on the Lord).
Many Blessings :)
Ace
Ace,
I'll have to disagree slightly here. I don't think that wives must obey their husbands when they are sinning. We as wives have a higher authority than our husbands and we should always be obedient to God above men, even husbands. (Acts 5:29) The example of Abigail who fed David's soldiers comes to mind. (1 Samuel 25:23-25, but also the whole chapter) But the example of Sarah shows wives that even if our husbands sin God will still protect us and be with us. However, just because we may disagree with our husbands does not mean that they are sinning. Most disagreements between spouses are not a matter of sin but of differences of opinion. In that cause a wife should also defer to her husband as the head but that does not mean she cannot even express a different opinion prior to the decision.
Our children should be obedient to their parents (Colossians 3:20) but wives are called to submit to their husbands (1 Peter 3:1), similar to a military type chain of command. But never must a wife obey sinful instructions and place her husband above God (make him an idol). Even in the military there are ways to report authorities that have abused their authority or done illegal things.
But Sarah and Abraham both show us that no matter how closely we may walk with the Lord we as sinful humans will fall. Yet the Lord is gracious and merciful to those He has called and will protect His own. And we would do much better if we stayed away from the enemy’s fire and the world’s teaching.
Berean Wife
Sorry about that, I actually agree with your stance. I didn't mean when Husbands' are sinning. For instance, if a Husband wants his wife to watch porn or say have a threesome. No WAY! I meant the same thing, even when our husbands make MISTAKES...God will protect us.
I have run into too many women who say that they don't have to obey their husbands if they THINK he is wrong...never mind even getting to the level of sin. For instance, they think they should not have a television in the house (not a bad idea, but not SIN) so they cancel the cable against his wishes. They get self-righteous about it because they think that it is wrong.
Great, it may be..but it is not sin and we are to obey and trust God to protect us when our husbands make a mistake.
I note this because this was a stumbling block to me because of these types of false teachings. As a young wife and mother we all make mistakes, and husbands will too. These mistakes and our reaction to them can draw them closer to the Lord or drive them away.
I see that when I acted like I thought God wanted my husband to act...in his stead (again, not talking about sin)...I drove him FROM the Lord.
My obedience, my TRUE obedience drove him TO the Lord....because he knew that it was only divine intervention that that was happening LOLOLOLOLO.
Many Blessings :)
Ace
Ace,
I misunderstood what you were saying, so sorry. :(
It seems most people are not content to find what the Bible says. Either they go to the extreme that a wife must always obey her husband no matter what he says or does or else they fall in the other camp that says submission is outdated and only for that Biblical time frame.
Just because a wife doesn't like an issue doesn't mean it is sin. But then women that tend to have a big issue with their role also don't usually follow the whole of Scripture very well themselves. Sorta the half-baked, cake unturned types. (Hosea 7:8)
Berean Wife
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