“Abraham was, humanly speaking, the founder of our Jewish nation. What did he discover about being made right with God? If his good deeds had made him acceptable to God, he would have had something to boast about. But that was not God’s way. For the Scriptures tell us, ‘Abraham believed God, and God counted him as righteous because of his faith.’” (Romans 4:1–3 NLT)

The Bible doesn’t teach that if you’re a Christian, you’ll never stumble or periodically fall short. But it does teach that if you’re a true believer, when you’ve had a lapse or a stumble, you will always get up and move forward. That’s the way to determine whether a person is really a believer or not.

When God came to Abraham in Ur and told him to break away from his family, Abraham basically refused and didn’t go for years. Even after he left, he only partially obeyed God by dragging his nephew Lot along. This only resulted in more friction down the road, when he and Lot eventually parted company.

Abraham told his beautiful wife, Sarah, to say that she was his sister because he was afraid someone would kill him if they realized he was indeed her husband. He did that on two occasions.

After God promised him a son—an heir to continue his lineage—Abraham tried to force the Lord’s hand by fathering a child with Sarah’s handmaiden, Hagar. That decision resulted in immeasurable heartache and strife.

These were just a few of the lapses of faith and acts of disobedience that marked Abraham’s life. It’s important to note, however, that although Abraham deviated from God’s path on occasion, he always came back. He never drifted too far from the One who made a covenant with him. That’s why the apostle Paul wrote, “Abraham believed God, and God counted him as righteous because of his faith” (Romans 4:3 NLT).

No stumble is too great, no fall is too steep, to recover from. First John 1:9 says, “But if we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all wickedness” (NLT). Acts 3:19 says, “Now repent of your sins and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped away” (NLT). When you turn to God and away from the sin that caused you to stumble, you regain your forward momentum on the right path, just as Abraham did time and time again.

If a person says he or she is a believer and falls away and never comes back, then that person is not a believer. The apostle John put it this way: “When they left, it proved that they did not belong with us” (1 John 2:19 NLT). But if a person is a true believer, then he or she will be miserable in sin and eventually will beat a quick path back to the cross of Calvary.

Reflection question: What does moving forward after a spiritual fall look like in your life? Discuss Today's Devo in Harvest Discipleship!

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