3 Thoughts on Abimelech and Abraham (Genesis 20:1-18)

One truth that many Christians hate to admit is that sometimes we can be wrong. Being a Christian does not magically make every opinion that you have the right one, and it does not magically make every action that you take a good one. God is working in us every day to make us more and more like Him, but this process of sanctification is just that: a process. It takes time. In fact, it takes a lifetime. You and I will never be perfect until we receive glorified bodies in heaven. Until then, there will still be times when our pagan neighbors acts more righteously than we do. Hopefully these are few an far between, because we are striving to be more righteous. But they do happen. They happened in the life of Abraham, when King Abimelech was far more righteous than this lying prophet.

Please read Genesis, chapter 20. (I know this was a long passage for a daily devotion, but you can do it! God’s Word is powerful! And I want you to get the fully narrative in context.)

There are three main things that I’d like us to notice about this passage:

1. Though Abraham is God’s chosen vessel, God speaks to Abimelech.

As Christians, we have the Word of God. Most of us have several copies of God’s Word around our house, at the office, in our car, and on our phones. We have verses memorized. We have bumper stickers with Scripture on them, magnets, T-shirts, and more. Furthermore, we have God’s Spirit living inside of us to teach us God’s Word and bring God’s Word to mind. We are immersed in the Word of God.

Yet, sometimes Christians can still miss the point. Sometimes God will speak His truth through a non-Christian. All truth is God’s truth, whether it comes from Mother Teressa or Gandhi. Abimelech is a pagan king, but God speaks to Him. As Christians, we need to be more receptive and better listeners to our non-Christian neighbors. Perhaps God is trying to speak to us through them. Of course, we need to check everything we hear against God’s revealed Word in the Bible. But that doesn’t mean that God won’t speak through some strange sources, like a burning bush, a pagan king, or even a Hollywood movie.

2. Though Abimelech does not know that he is doing wrong, he is still doing wrong, and is being punished.

Have you ever been pulled over for speeding? Have you ever tried the excuse, “I didn’t know that was the speed limit?” If you haven’t, let me save you some time: it doesn’t work. If you are driving on a public road, then you are responsible for knowing the legal speed limit on that road. Ignorance of the law is not an excuse for breaking the law.

This is true in the United States, and it is even more true in God’s Kingdom. There will be many people who will be held accountable for breaking God’s law, even though they have never heard it. Abimelech was about to sleep with a married woman. Even though he didn’t know she was married, he was still guilty. Ignorance of the law is no excuse. Nor is twisting the law, which brings me to my third point…

3. Though Abraham thinks its just a little white lie, its still a lie that causes harm.

Like most of us who get caught red-handed in a sin, Abraham tries to justify himself. He argues with Abimelech that Sarah really is his half-sister, so he didn’t really lie. But of course this is false. Though she is his half-sister, he was also married to her, and he neglected to tell Abimelech that crucial fact, leading to this whole mess in the first place.

There is no such thing as a small lie, or a white lie. A lie is a lie.

As God’s people, we should tell the truth. As God’s people, we should practice the truth. And as God’s people, we should recognize the truth, even when it comes from unconventional sources. Unfortuantely, sometimes our pagan neighbors are better at this than we are. And that's the truth!