Genesis Part 023
God calls Abraham out of the Babylonian system and its false worship to a place that God would reveal to him. This parallels God telling us to come out of this world and its Babylonian system.
In Hebrews 11:8 we read,
“By faith Abraham obeyed when he was called to go out to the place which he would receive as an inheritance. And he went out, not knowing where he was going.”
Abraham’s faith was outstanding! He responded and obeyed God’s command without knowing all the details. God often asks us to obey Him without knowing how He will work everything out. If we knew all the details of His plan, it wouldn’t require us to have faith in Him. Abraham is an excellent example of this to look to.
Genesis 12:3 contains a tremendous promise from God to Abraham, “and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed." How has the whole earth been blessed through Abraham? Through the Seed (Jesus Christ) of Abraham (Genesis 22:18). The writers of the New Testament confirm this in multiple places:
- Acts 3:25-26, “You are sons of the prophets, and of the covenant which God made with our fathers, saying to Abraham, ‘And in your seed all the families of the earth shall be blessed.’ To you first, God, having raised up His Servant Jesus, sent Him to bless you, in turning away every one of you from your iniquities.”
- Galatians 3:16, “Now to Abraham and his Seed were the promises made. He does not say, “And to seeds,” as of many, but as of one, “And to your Seed,” who is Christ.”
- Galatians 3:29, “And if you are Christ’s, then you are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.”
This promise to Abraham is a foundation through which everything else is built on in the Bible. There were certainly many physical ways that the world would be blessed through this promise, but this promise was first and foremost spiritual. Through Jesus Christ, all who have ever lived, will eventually be given the opportunity to join God’s awesome Family! What a blessing it is!
Notice in Genesis 12:4 that Abraham is 75 years old at this point. It isn't until Abraham is 100 that God blesses him with Isaac. Imagine having to wait 25 years for God to fulfill His promise to you! (This is a sermon on this topic titled “Waiting on the Lord” by Troy Phelps for those interested in looking at this topic further.)
Abraham’s story also reveals his fallibility as a human, and shows that he continues to grow over time. In Genesis 12:13 Abraham asks Sarai to “please say you are my sister.” We learn from Genesis 20:12 that Sarai is Abraham’s half-sister, but that he intentionally wants her to lie because he fears for his own life. “But indeed, she is truly my sister. She is the daughter of my father, but not the daughter of my mother; and she became my wife.” It is interesting that Sarai is still a “looker” at this point in her life as she is at least 65 years old. We learn she is ten years younger than Abraham (Genesis 17:17) and Abraham was already 75 as mentioned in verse 4 above.
God protects Sarai from a bad situation. Here’s what the UCG Bible Reading program states this about this section:
“Surprisingly, this chapter that records Abram faithfully responding to God’s call also shows him later employing a faithless strategy of deception that backfires. Here we see a pattern repeated throughout the Bible—that it is sometimes hard on its heroes. The Bible shows their weaknesses, mistakes and problems. God knows that we slip up, sin, stumble and make mistakes. Yet 'He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness' when we repent and admit our sins (1 John 1:9). God tells us that the examples recorded in the Scriptures 'were written for our learning' and are examples for us (Romans 15:4; 1 Corinthians 10:11).
While the Bible records the sins and problems of many men and women of faith, it also often shows the consequences of those sins—the problems they and others suffered as a result. It also shows that they were forgiven upon repentance and overcame, and that God considers them righteous—as He will consider us if we likewise repent and overcome.”
Let’s be overcomers as we face our human weaknesses and learn to rely on our Heavenly Father!
UYA Team | uya@ucg.org
United Young Adults (UYA) primarily serves the 18–32-year age group for the United Church of God. There are three main areas of contribution to the lives of the young adults: Promoting Spiritual Growth, Developing Meaningful Relationships and Making the Most of Your Talents. The Know Your Sword series is a daily expository message introducing God’s Word from a trusted perspective.
