I am using the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on Romans 4-7

Paul tells us that Abraham’s faith in God’s promise to him never wavered.  Yet, Paul was aware that Abraham took Hagar as a concubine in order to have a son by her.  This tells us that God does not count our moments of human weakness against us.  Or, perhaps it tells us that Abraham came to believe that he needed to change his life’s course in order for God’s promise to be fulfilled.  In any case, we know that God told Abraham that His promise would be fulfilled through a son which Abraham would have with Sarah, and that is indeed what happened.  My point being that even when we make mistakes in following God’s plan for us, if we maintain our faith, God will honor His promises.  From a human point of view, we would say that Abraham’s faith had wavered, but Paul tells us that from God’s point of view it did not.

Perhaps Paul gives me the greatest hope towards the end of chapter seven in verse nineteen when he says, “I want to do what is good, but I don’t. I don’t want to do what is wrong, but I do it anyway.”  Then he provides the answer by telling us that God, through Jesus Christ, will free us from this situation.  I know that all too often I do what is wrong and do not do what is good, but I have faith that the Holy Spirit will transform me in God’s time.   This passage gives me hope.  If God considered Abraham’s faith to have never wavered, and if Paul found himself doing what was wrong, then I can know that even I can be changed by the Holy Spirit.