When we want answers; we want them NOW!
No one says "I wish I knew the answer to that, but I don't mind waiting forever to find out!" NO! We want to know who wins The Bachelor/Bachelorette the very first show of the season, so we turn to the Reality Steve Blog. Waiting each week to find out who is getting voted off American Idol kills us. We sit on the edge of our couch wanting to know who will be the last couple to finish the current stage on the Amazing Race. And we all want to know who will make it through the Wipe Out Zone each Thursday night (gotta love that show)!
Well, Abram (as he was called before a name change to Abraham) in the Old Testament was just like us; wanting to know when he was going to get his "son of promise" from God. His wife, Sarai (her name until a spelling change to Sarah), was old and well past the bow-chica- wow wow years of having a child. They both knew God had promised them a son, but didn't know the answer to how it was going to happen!
Abram turns to Sarai his wife for the answer (don't throw down on the boy...we all turn to those we know best/trust best for answers too). And Sarai gives him her answer:
Genesis 16:2 - so she said to Abram, “The LORD has kept me from having children. Go, sleep with my slave; perhaps I can build a family through her.” Abram agreed to what Sarai said.
Now here's the point:
- Was Sarai's answer logical and permissable at the time? Yes!
- But was it Godly advice (meaning did God speak that to Sarai)? No!
- Did Abram follow up to see if Sarai's answer checked out with what God said? No!
It's ok and permissable to ask people for advice/answers. But we must make sure that their advice/answer lines up with the Bible (God's Word)! See God's Word to Abram in Genesis 15:4 was that Abram would have a son (between he and Sarai). Sarai didn't see that happening, so she went with her own logic.
Abram should have listened to what Sarai said, then he should have asked God "Wait, is that right?" If only Abram would have kept his ears "tuned to God"; it would have saved him lots of trouble over the next few weeks, months, and years!
Godly "tuned" ears hear Godly tuned "music"!
