Have you ever had difficulty parting with things from your past? My wife and I have moved several times over the past fifteen years and we have always brought a roll top desk with us. It is a beautiful piece of furniture, but would never fit in any of our new homes. We would conclude, this is such a valuable piece, we don't want to seperate from it. However, we could never get it to fit and so it simply took up space, didn't look good anymore and we never used it. But we could never part with it either. It never dawned on us to ask ourselves "How can something we never use, that continually takes up valuable space be so valuable to us?"
So it is with each of us in our walk with Jesus. Abram found this out in Genesis 11:27-32 and 12:4. Abram was called by God to leave everything by faith and follow God. Yet, Abram took his father and other relatives with him. This was an act of faith of Abram to leave his home, yet it was comingled with compromise. The result of compromised faith is a compromised life, and we become obstacles rather than instruments to what God wants to do. Abram, instead of leaving his father, took his father with him and this caused Abram to stay in Haran until his father died. Also, Abram's nephew lot, caused a number of problems for Abram, until they agreed to finally part from one another. Whatever we compromise our faith with ends up being an obstacle to the new life God has for us. The perceived value of people from Abram's past just did not fit in his new life with God.
A new life in Christ demands full allegiance and obedience. But does this not sound like God is going overboard a little bit? How uncaring would it have been for Abram to leave his father and other family behind. This perspective lacks faith as well because it assumes a number of things. First it assumes that although Abram could acclaim God's goodness and faithfulness by leaving his home, he wouldn't lay claim to God taking care of his family that he would have left behind. The other assumption by Abram is by being obedient to God's call, he was also a bit entitled to something for himself. Abram had viewed his family as his reward and his future promised children as his reward. However, God told Abram in Genesis 15 "I am your great reward." As we leave more of our life behind in full obedience to God, we will discover certain things don't fit and that God himself is the One who is most valuable and precious.
What do you and I have in our new life in Christ that no longer fits? Is Jesus Christ truly our great reward or are there things we prize more than him? Is it family? Is it comfort? Is it a noon kick off of football? Is it a cabin? Is it children?
Beams away!
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