LIFE SCRIPTS

Now Abraham moved on from there into the region of the Negev and lived between Kadesh and Shur. For a while he stayed in Gerar, and there Abraham said of his wife Sarah, “She is my sister.” Then Abimelek king of Gerar sent for Sarah and took her. But God came to Abimelek in a dream one night and said to him, “You are as good as dead because of the woman you have taken; she is a married woman.” Now Abimelek had not gone near her, so he said, “Lord, will you destroy an innocent nation? Did he not say to me, ‘She is my sister,’ and didn’t she also say, ‘He is my brother’? I have done this with a clear conscience and clean hands.” Then God said to him in the dream, “Yes, I know you did this with a clear conscience, and so I have kept you from sinning against me. That is why I did not let you touch her. Now return the man’s wife, for he is a prophet, and he will pray for you and you will live. But if you do not return her, you may be sure that you and all who belong to you will die.” Early the next morning Abimelek summoned all his officials, and when he told them all that had happened, they were very much afraid. Then Abimelek called Abraham in and said, “What have you done to us? How have I wronged you that you have brought such great guilt upon me and my kingdom? You have done things to me that should never be done.” And Abimelek asked Abraham, “What was your reason for doing this?” Abraham replied, “I said to myself, ‘There is surely no fear of God in this place, and they will kill me because of my wife.’ Besides, she really is my sister, the daughter of my father though not of my mother; and she became my wife. And when God had me wander from my father’s household, I said to her, ‘This is how you can show your love to me: Everywhere we go, say of me, “He is my brother.” ’ ” Then Abimelek brought sheep and cattle and male and female slaves and gave them to Abraham, and he returned Sarah his wife to him. And Abimelek said, “My land is before you; live wherever you like.” To Sarah he said, “I am giving your brother a thousand shekels of silver. This is to cover the offense against you before all who are with you; you are completely vindicated.” Then Abraham prayed to God, and God healed Abimelek, his wife and his female slaves so they could have children again, for the Lord had kept all the women in Abimelek’s household from conceiving because of Abraham’s wife Sarah.
Genesis 20:1‭-‬18 NIV
https://bible.com/bible/111/gen.20.1-18.

The story of Abraham and Abimelek mirrors the situation with Pharaoh a few chapters before. It seemed as if Abraham was so fearful about identifying himself as Sarah’s husband to men who were more powerful than him. But verse 11 gives us a clue about Abraham’s mind as he ventured into this land of Gerar. He said to himself that ‘there is no fear of God among these people’. To him, it seemed as if God was far from these people giving him a ticket to do as he pleases. What Abraham was oblivious to was that God is omnipresent. The people of Gerar and more specifically Abimelek, their king might not have had a unique encounter with God like him. However, he was not out of God’s reach. God could still minister to him. God could still reach out to him. God’s walk with Abraham did not stop when he departed Canaan. He went with him wherever he was. He is everywhere. I cannot forget an experience out of the country when we had been invited to a party among Kenyans and other internationals. It was a free space for all to indulge as they wished. As we seeped our drinks and socialized, one of the guests took note of one of my colleagues. He infact remembered that she was a Christian Union leader in her university in Kenya. At that point, my mind raced at the thought of imagining my colleague engaging in wild partying in the presence of this guest who knew her. Her witness travelled before her wherever she went. So did Abraham’s. Another interesting twist to this whole Abraham-Abimelek scenario is highlighted in verse 12. Abraham actually justified calling Sarah his sister. Indeed according to the family bloodline they were sired from the same father (same father might not have meant one father for both but maybe a common male who was related to both of them in their family tree). In real sense, Abraham and Sarah could have qualified to be brother and sister. However, in this context, was it the accurate picture? Abraham spoke of what he wanted Abimelek to hear. He spoke the truth but not the whole truth. Infact, the most important piece of information was actually hidden. The truth he spoke was not enough to aid Abimelek into making the right decision even though he portrayed it as if it was the whole truth. His words were partially truthful but his intent was to deceive. Such are the situations we face often times in life. Truth comes as a package. We can choose to lie, speak half truths or be fully truthful. Interestingly, half truths are spoken when the hidden truths are essential in aiding the other person to understand our position. Half truths always have an intention to deceive. Abraham’s case is no different. Lastly, Abimelek, after hearing from God tried to paint himself as innocent. It’s noteworthy that it took God appearing to him for him to recognize the mix he was in. Probably if he had sought God before, he would not have landed in it. Before making decisions we must commit them before God. Sounds all to common but it’s the bottom line. The mistakes we often make ‘innocently’ are actually as a result of us walking through decisions alone, without inquiring from God. But God is gracious. Even when we are on our way to fall, He still speaks to us either directly or through circumstances around us. What we can learn from Abimelek is to seek forgiveness from God, obey Him, turn from our stray paths and seek restitution before Him and the ones wronged. Having things that belong to others even if we ‘innocently’ aquired them is no reason not to return them to the rightful owner and seek God’s forgiveness once the error is revealed to us. This passage gives us a sneak preview into God’s view of marriage. Marriage is a covenant between a mature man and woman. But not only that. God is a witness in that union. Marriage is permanent. We could choose to divorce or separate from our spouses with justifiable reasons behind it but before God, two married people are together for keeps. Without desiring to equate women to things, Abimelek’s story also mirrors the story of Zaccheus in the book of Luke. In his past life as a corrupt tax collector, Zaccheus knew no difference between wrong and right. The tax collecting culture was such that extortion, bribery and conning people was okay as long as one didn’t kill. But when Christ made an entry into his life, he became a changed man. He chose to repent before Him, change his ways from now henceforth and return all the money that he had stolen from people. Restitution is a tall order because for some of us, it might mean ending up as guests of the state. For others, it may result into a loss of reputation that has taken years to build. However, it is better to be right with God than be right in our own eyes. The goods, we’ve aquired wrongly, the jobs, the money, the benefits we’ve received out of God’s will (and with our knowledge) are good places to start from. At times it may call for wisdom to start doing things the right way from now and ask God for forgiveness for the past wrongs. At times it may call for a complete turn around, return what’s not ours, seek forgiveness, walk right and bear the consequences that go with it.