Genesis 15:1-5. 1After these things the word of the Lord came to Abram in a vision: “Fear not, Abram, I am your shield; your reward shall be very great.” 2But Abram said, “O Lord God, what will you give me, for I continue childless, and the heir of my house is Eliezer of Damascus?” 3And Abram said, “Behold, you have given me no offspring, and a member of my household will be my heir.” 4And behold, the word of the Lord came to him: “This man shall not be your heir; your very own son shall be your heir.” 5And he brought him outside and said, “Look toward heaven, and number the stars, if you are able to number them.” Then he said to him, “So shall your offspring be.”
To doubt something is to wonder if it is really true. Sometimes doubting is good. It might be good to doubt things that you see on TV or on social media. It is probably wise to doubt some of the things your friends tell you. Have you ever doubted God? Have you ever wondered if something he said is really true?
If you have, that’s OK. Most people have some doubts, or at least questions, about God, especially when things aren’t going the way we thought they would. That’s exactly where Abraham is in Genesis 15. When God appears to Abraham and reminds him of his promise, your reward shall be very great, Abraham naturally has some questions. God had promised Abraham that he would have a family that would become a great big nation. But Abraham’s wife, Sarah, can’t have children, and Abraham’s adopted nephew, Lot, has left him behind and moved to the wicked city of Sodom. So Abraham is starting to wonder if what God said is true – O Lord God, what will you give me, for I continue childless.
Abraham is doing something very important in these verses. Something that you will need to learn how to do as you grow up as a Christian. Abraham is taking his doubts and questions TO God. Even in his doubts, Abraham still trusted God. He didn’t hide his feelings from God. He didn’t just say, “O, that’s nice,” when God reminded him of his promise. Abraham let God know that what he was thinking. Abraham said, “I guess my servant Eliezer will be my son now.” And God said, “No, you will have your very own son.”
Wait what? That’s impossible. Abraham and Sarah can’t have their very own son.
But with God nothing is impossible.
There are a lot of things that Jesus asks us to believe that seem impossible. Can you think of any? Jesus rising from the dead is impossible. Jesus being both God and a human being is impossible. Jesus forgiving us of all our sins seems impossible. That everything bad will be turned into something good sure does sound impossible. Do you ever doubt that any of these things could be true?
But are these things really impossible?
Nope. Not for God. God can do whatever he wants, that’s what makes him God. And everything God wants to do is perfect, that’s what makes him a good God. So when you doubt God’s promises, or when you aren’t sure that God is going to do what he said, just remember that God is all powerful and always good. Then do what Abraham did: Talk to God about your doubts and questions.
How did God respond to Abraham? He told him even more about the promise. Not only will Abraham be a great nation, but he will have his own son – your very own son shall be your heir. Not Lot. Not Eliezer. A baby boy will be born to Abraham and Sarah (his name will be Isaac).
How does God respond to our questions? By reminding us that we already have all of his promises in another baby boy – Jesus! That’s how we know that God will give us everything he promised, because he has already given us the best thing ever, his son, Jesus Christ. Now we never have to doubt God’s love or any promise of God. If Jesus is ours, then everything is ours through him.
You: Are there any doubts or questions that you have about God?
You with Jesus: How does knowing Jesus help us to trust God even when we have questions?
Prayer: Father, sometimes I doubt you and sometimes I have questions about what you are doing. Help me to let Jesus prove how big, powerful, and good you are. Amen.
TLICfamily 