As a prophet of God, Abraham lived a life that commanded great faith to yield great results. Today, he is highly regarded as the father of faith and believers come around to claim the blessings which God had proclaimed upon Abraham and his seed all over the earth. All of these could only happen as a result of Abraham's life of faith, obedience and loyalty to God.
As such, there are multiple lessons to learn from Abraham's life. These lessons cut across his faith in God, the test of obedience, loyalty and sacrifice. Like every other Bible patriarch, Abraham's life was a test of strength, resilience and how much he could take for God to always lead him. As a believer today, it is only normal to imagine how much Abraham had to go through especially while waiting on God per time before embarking on any journey or taking a decision. This is the same way God wants to lead us today and we can only truly follow His leading if we learn from people who have trod the same paths. In that case, what Lessons can we learn from the life of Abraham?
1. You can walk with God, yet not know the details of your destiny.
Abraham was a strange man. How God ordered him to take his family and move out from the land he was certain of to an unknown land still remains a matter of great discussion (Hebrews 11:8). This is however the first lesson from Abraham's life in this article. By logical standards, his movement out of the land should be coordinated and with utmost direction. This is a show of how far God can deal with a man as regards his destiny and it confirms the fact that the wisdom of this world is foolishness in God's sight. Also, at the point of childbirth, God had promised Abraham that he would become the father of many nations. This was after God changed his name from Abram (meaning Exalted Father) to Abraham (meaning father of nations) and Sarai (princess) to Sarah (mother). However, neither Abraham nor his wife knew how that was going to happen (Hebrews 11:11). This calls to us as believers to ensure that God remains the sole ruler of our lives and that His decisions are final no matter the circumstances. God is never known to make foolish decisions because it's not part of His nature. Trust His leading even if it doesn't look like it.
2. When God makes a promise, the timeline for its fulfilment is up to Him - Genesis 12:2
No body can rush God to do His things. He understands the perfect timing for everything. All through scriptures, God is known to be time conscious in fulfilling His will. This was just the case for Abraham. Having promised to make Abraham a father of nations, there was no need to go through shortcuts to achieving God's will. As believers, we must learn that God's will is not man's and it's execution is not yours either. God prides in Himself and His Glory which He reveals through His actions. Trying to fulfil His will outside His patterns means that you are trying to take the glory. As believers, it is necessary to note that no matter how late the fulfilment of a promise may seem, God always comes just in time.
3. Sometimes, you get it wrong before getting it right.
Abraham fathered Ishmael because he was tired of waiting. To him, the promise of God was taking too long to fulfill and he was aging at the same time. Abraham probably wanted to find a short cut to becoming the father of nations but God was not having it. He made a gross mistake by birthing Ishmael as a result of his impatience rather than unbelief. It is funny how that Abraham still believed that God would make him father of many nations but was impatient about it. In our modern day, Abraham's case here is similar to an individual who believes that God would make him rich but then visits herbalists and money making spiritualists (on the side) to make it happen quickly. You can go wrong before getting it right, but be sure to expect the consequences of your actions.
4. Following God is strictly to your Benefit and for His Glory
God is a very jealous God. He specifically told this to the Israelites in Exodus 20:5 and Exodus 34:14. All through scriptures, every time God was involved (directly or indirectly) in the life of a man, it was solely to defend His glory. At the same time, such individual gets to enjoy the benefits of following God's instructions. For Abraham, God's discretion in delivery of the promise was to show His potency even in seemingly difficult situations. At the time she conceived, Sarah was practically barren and was far off the age to carry a child. However, she successfully birthed Isaac through whom God fulfilled His promise to Abraham.
5. Abraham understood the power of Sacrifice
Sacrifice is a great concept on its own. It means the ability to let go your benefits in other to please the other party. For Abraham, it came so tough that he was asked by God to sacrifice Isaac. A random man would definitely wonder why God would have him murder the supposed "many nations" and then try to keep the child. Abraham understood that the life of the child is in God's hand and no matter how well you try to protect and shield the child, you can never do so if the large breasted one (God) is not involved. At the same time, Abraham understood that if it is Gods will that Isaac be sacrificed, He would definitely find a route to fulfiling the promise. In either case, nothing deposes Him from the throne as God. Understanding the rationale behind Abraham's decision to sacrifice Isaac is one very difficult task too. It just had to be Abraham or anyone who truly encounters God to understand the power of such sacrifice. By this, Abraham also happened to be the only one all through scriptures that practically witnessed what God went through by sacrificing His son, Jesus on the cross of Calvary.
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Looking at these lessons, we are greatly reminded that we are mortal men who are accountable to a supreme being. We do not own our lives as we think we do and it is only in total obedience to God (the one who gives life) that we can find fulfilment.
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