"He did not waver at the promise of God through unbelief, but was strengthened in faith, giving glory to God, and being fully convinced that what He had promised He was also able to perform."
Romans 4:20, 21 (NKJV)
In Romans 4 we read about the promise God gave to Abraham about having a son. When God first gave this promise to Abraham in Genesis 17:15-17, Abraham fell on the ground laughing! Laughing at the promise of God does not sound like something someone who is fully convinced about something does; it sounds like someone who does not believe what was said. The question is, how did Abraham go from not being convinced to being FULLY convinced and what can we learn from this story?
Romans 4:20, 21 (NKJV)
In Romans 4 we read about the promise God gave to Abraham about having a son. When God first gave this promise to Abraham in Genesis 17:15-17, Abraham fell on the ground laughing! Laughing at the promise of God does not sound like something someone who is fully convinced about something does; it sounds like someone who does not believe what was said. The question is, how did Abraham go from not being convinced to being FULLY convinced and what can we learn from this story?
In Genesis 17:5 we read that God said, "No longer shall your name be Abram, but your name shall be Abraham; for I have made you a father of many nations". The name Abraham means, "father of a multitude". The interesting thing is that this was not the natural reality in Abraham's life. Then in Romans 4:17 it quotes what is said in Genesis 17:5 and adds "God, who gives life to the dead and calls those things which do not exist as though they did". Abraham had a choice, to call himself what God called him (Abraham) or to call himself what he had always called himself (Abram). Abraham made the decision to talk about himself in the same way that God did and that is the key.
Many people are weak in faith and unconvinced about what God says in His Word, first of all because they don't really know God's Word, and secondly because they are not talking like God talks or seeing themselves as God sees them. No matter what is happening in our life we need to go back to God's Word and see what God has to say about it and then speak and act accordingly. This is how we get to the point of being fully convinced about God's Word.
At first Abraham did not believe what God had said and laughed about it. But as Abraham continued to act and speak in faith, by referring to himself as Abraham (father of many nations), Abraham developed in his faith to the point that he was not laughing at the promise but expecting the fulfillment. How about you? What is happening in your life and what does God's Word have to say about it? You may look at God's Word and what God has said about your situation and it looks as impossible as God's promise did to Abraham. But if you continue to focus on what God has said and continue to speak like God speaks, you will receive the promise and then you will really have something to laugh and rejoice about!
