Venturing Out in Faith
Genesis 12:1-4a
by Rev. Randy Quinn

Now the LORD said to Abram, "Go from your country and your kindred and your father's house to the land that I will show you. 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 the one who curses you I will curse; and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed." So Abram went, as the LORD had told him.
Gen. 12:1-4a

We always bring our own stories with us whenever we encounter the scriptures. That’s true of you and it’s true of me. We bring the experiences of our past as well as our concerns about the future. We carry with us the questions we have about God as well as the numerous sermons we’ve heard. We also carry with us those conversations and insights we’ve gained in Bible Study or Sunday School or small group discussions.

I don’t know what your first thought is when you hear about Abram leaving his home, but when I read this passage, I hear about moving. That’s because I know about moving. I’ve moved in 53 times in my life. I know pastors have a reputation for moving a lot, but I moved a lot more before I became a pastor than since I was ordained. In fact, the longest I’ve lived in any one place was a parsonage – and the second longest I’ve lived in one place was also a parsonage. And believe it or not, the third longest I’ve lived in any one place is a tie between a parsonage and the place we lived when I was in Junior High School1.

So I read this text and I immediately connect with the idea of leaving things behind and making a new start, of meeting new friends and starting new routines, of getting used to new surroundings and learning the local customs. I’ve done that many, many, times.

But after studying today’s text more closely, I’m not sure that’s what it’s really about. When we read the text in the larger context, it becomes evident that the story isn’t necessarily about a geographical change. The call of Abram is not so much about a change of scenery as it is a change in allegiance. It is a dramatic change in the direction of history.

You see, up to this point in the story of Genesis, sin and sorrow has been the underlying theme. From Adam and Eve to Cain and Able to the tower of Babel, most of the stories have been about people moving further and further away from God – not physically but spiritually.

The Biblical story takes a sudden shift with the story of Abram. Rather than turning away from God, he responds to God’s voice. He leaves his home and goes to a place God will show him. God is the only one who speaks at this point in the story, but Abram reveals his faith when he acts. He leaves. He chooses to live his life differently. He steps out in faith to do something new.

I know and you know that people don’t like change. We like things the way they are, and preferably the way they’ve always been. Let me show you a video that I think may help you see that some change is not only important, it’s essential.

Video.

A short video clip that shows a kindergarten class throughout the day at school from the time they arrive to the time they go home. It looks like a regular class except that one of the students looks to be about 30 years older than the rest. His voice is the narration that we hear, explaining why he chooses to remain in kindergarten – because he knows the answers, for example, and is certain that he won’t fail. The video ends by asking if our faith is still in kindergarten. Here is a link to preview the video:

http://www.bluefishtv.com/Store/Downloadable_Video_Illustrations/3296/Faith_in_Kindergarten

In our church newsletter last month, I talked about the last time I read Abram’s call story as a part of my daily Bible readings. What struck me was the verse before our passage for today. In Genesis 11, there is the story about Abram’s father who left Ur, heading for Canaan (Gen. 11:31). He stopped when he came to Haran. When you do the math, you realize that Abram left Haran after his father died.

That has made me wonder if Abram’s father, Terah, had received a call similar to Abram’s but rather than going to Canaan, he stopped short. I wonder if he was not willing to complete the journey because he didn’t like the uncertainty of the unknown and liked what he saw in Haran. Maybe he had experienced enough change and was ready to stop.

But the real question is: how often have I been like Terah?

In August, 1986, I conducted a funeral for a member of the church I was serving. Her name was Loddie Bird. She was always fun to visit, and always had a good sense of humor. She died shortly after her 105th birthday.

But it was her friends who told me the story of her surgery when she was 92. I don’t remember what the surgery was for, but Loddie wasn’t sure she was going to survive – and she was OK with that.

When she came out of surgery, her friends told her, “Well, it looks like God has something else in mind for you.” To which Loddie immediately replied, “I got news for God: I ain’t doing it.”

How often have you or I said that in our actions?

Abram traded a familiar home in a familiar place, for something he had yet to see. He stepped out in faith, not knowing where it would lead. All he knew was that God was leading and he was willing to follow.

In his letter to the church in Rome, Paul uses the faith of Abram as an example for us to emulate. He suggests that it was Abram’s willingness to act that was counted as righteousness (Rom. 4:3, 9, 23; quoting Gen. 15:6). It is what made him right, or justified.

When John Wesley refers to justification, he sees the faith of Abram as a gift of grace.2 Like Abraham, we are “made right” or justified in the eyes of God, except we are justified by what Jesus has done. It is a gift of grace bestowed upon us because of the love of God, a gift that changes the way we live as we respond to it; new life begins when we respond to God’s grace.

You see, our actions matter to God. Abram left his home in Haran and traded it for the home God had in store for him. God has offered you a home, too, a home, as the song says, “way beyond the blue,” an eternal home, “not made with hands, but eternal in the heavens” (2 Cor. 5:1).

And our eternal life begins here and now. We don’t have to wait until our mortal life ceases to begin reaping the benefits of trading the values of this world for the values of God’s world.

It does, however, demand a choice.

And like all choices of consequence, there is some risk involved.

Call to Discipleship:

During Lent, we will be ending each sermon with a call to discipleship. Today, I want to ask you to pray silently like we did last week, but I want to add an invitation to take a risk, to make a choice – and to make that choice public.

While we are praying, if there is anyone here who has never responded to grace, never said with their lips or made public their profession of it, I invite you to come and join me at the kneeling rails. Pray with me here or pray with me in your pews.

There are people here who will celebrate your decision with you. There are also people, like you, who are afraid of how others will react to your public witness.

For that reason, I’m asking everyone to close their eyes as we pray. Close your eyes and listen for the voice of God. You will recognize it when you hear the affirmation that you are a beloved child, a child God loves so much that there has been prepared for you a place in the Kingdom of heaven. It has been prepared by a God who invites you to change, to exchange your own priorities for God’s priorities, to trade the comforts of your life for the uncertainties of what God may offer.

I can assure you that God loves you so much, you will experience more joy in losing what you have than in keeping it all and living the way you’ve been living.