Assumptions

We all make them from time to time, and oddly enough, no matter how often they're wrong, we continue to make them. This is a problem that has been repeating itself from the time of Adam, when God said, "If you eat of this tree you will die." Eve assumed God was wrong on the word of the serpent, Adam assumed God was wrong on the word of Eve, and the pattern with man has continued every since.

We find in Genesis 20 the story of Abraham, and another clear example of a wrong assumption. Genesis 20:1-2 reveals to us the plot of the story: Abraham says Sarah is his sister, and the king takes her for his wife. Genesis 20:3-9 continues the story, how God came to the king and the king calls Abraham to him. Genesis 20:10-11 brings us to the point where Abraham is faced with the truth of his assumption.

The king asks Abraham, "Why did you do this?", and Abraham honestly replies, "I thought that there was no fear of God here." We saw in Genesis 20:5-6 that Abimelech had not intended any wrong in taking another man's wife, and God had protected him from any sin in his ignorance. We have no indicator as to why Abraham might have thought the place might be ungodly, but Abraham's assumption brought a king to the brink of destruction.

How often do we just make an assumption and act on it without any second thought, prayer, or questioning? We can see what a dangerous thing it is to make assumptions; how that not only ourselves, but many others as well can be affected by our assumptions. So, let's look at what we're doing and examine our thoughts closely before we act outside the will of God.