God Keeps His Promises
OPENING PRAYER:
My Lord, may I take You at Your word. Speak to my heart today
The Call of Abram
12 The Lord had said to Abram, “Go from your country, your people and your father’s household to the land I will show you.
2 “I will make you into a great nation,
and I will bless you;
I will make your name great,
and you will be a blessing.
3 I will bless those who bless you,
and whoever curses you I will curse;
and all peoples on earth
will be blessed through you.”
4 So Abram went, as the Lord had told him; and Lot went with him. Abram was seventy-five years old when he set out from Harran. 5 He took his wife Sarai, his nephew Lot, all the possessions they had accumulated and the people they had acquired in Harran, and they set out for the land of Canaan, and they arrived there.
6 Abram traveled through the land as far as the site of the great tree of Moreh at Shechem. At that time the Canaanites were in the land. 7 The Lord appeared to Abram and said, “To your offspring[c] I will give this land.” So he built an altar there to the Lord, who had appeared to him.
8 From there he went on toward the hills east of Bethel and pitched his tent, with Bethel on the west and Ai on the east. There he built an altar to the Lord and called on the name of the Lord.
9 Then Abram set out and continued toward the Negev. Genesis 12:1–9
REFLECT:
Think of a time when someone made a promise to you, which they didn’t keep. How did this make you feel?
God’s command to Abram to “go” was combined with a series of specific promises. These promises are tied together by a recurring note of blessing (2, 3). “Blessing” is shorthand for God’s favor and protection. These verses explain that when God has blessed Abram, His protection and favor would spill over to others – first in Abram’s immediate circle, but ultimately to everyone who will ever live on the planet! These are big promises for Abram to absorb, but he is convinced enough to pack up and go, as God had commanded (4).
It’s important to recall God’s promises. In fact, if we neglect to do this, our obeying of God and His commands may become little more than a harsh duty. It’s not long before the trials and difficulties we face in following God cause us to become disillusioned or even cynical. Perhaps Abram’s actions in building altars at Moreh (7) and near Bethel and Ai (8) are timely for you today. And notice too that having built these altars, Abram didn’t stop his journey. He kept going (9).
APPLY:
Is there a promise God has made for which you are thankful? It might even be something as simple as “I will be with you always” (Matthew 28:20, CEV). Write down your promise and carry it today.
CLOSING PRAYER:
I Praise You, Lord, for Your precious promises. Your words to me are so sweet. I trust Your promises.
WORSHIP: