Destination faith: Promise
It had been 10 years since God had eluded to Abram that he would have an offspring. In chapter 12:7 The LORD appeared to Abram and said, “To your offspring I will give this land.” Abram still waiting for this particular promise feels like precious time is slipping away from him, and his heart longs for a child of his own. After an incredibly lucrative rescue victory of his nephew Lot and an encounter with Melchizedek the pre-incarnate Christ (Jesus before he was born on earth), Abram gives all of his worship (not to mention the treasure) to God (chapter 14).
Chapter 15: In a vision, God speaks to Abram and tells him not to worry, He will protect him, and God is his great reward. Abram is an enormously wealthy man. Rewards mean nothing to him at this point, because he has nobody to leave them to. He subtly reminds God (as if God didn’t know) that he “Still” has no heir of his own; and when he dies, all of his inheritance will go to servant who is not a blood relative.
God instructs Abram to look up into the night sky and count the stars. He reminds Abram of His promise (10 years earlier) that his descendants will exceed the stars. A light bulb went off in Abram’s head and fell down to his heart; Abram believed God! Amazingly, Abram’s status went from an unrighteous man to being reckoned as righteous. It has been said that there is no longer distance for man than the distance between his head and his heart. This is just what God needed in order to make a (Covenant) formal agreement with Abram.
God sends Abram to collect the necessary animals for the covenant sacrifices and to make ready the alter and preparations for the ceremony to officiate the contract. A bull, ram, goat, dove, and pigeon must be cut in two and laid out opposite each other with room enough for two people to walk between as the vow is made. Abram, waiting for the presence of God to show up to finish up the contract, falls asleep and sees the future of his descendants: slavery under the Egyptians for four hundred years and finally they will possess the land where Abram is living. As for the man himself, he will die peacefully at a ripe old age and be buried in the land.
A groggy Abram, seeing through blurry eyes, looks upon the severed animals in the middle of the night to see God in the form of a smoking pot and burning torch walking between the sacrifices. God has promised Abram an offspring, descendants, land, blessing for himself, cursing of enemies, and that through Abram the entire world would be blessed. These promises were so gigantic that God left Abram’s name off of the covenant. By walking between the sacrifice Himself, we are assured that these promises will be fulfilled. God doesn’t make promises that don’t come true!
It was through the blood line of Abram that Jesus came, a blessing to all who “Believe.” There are many promises given to us in the Bible, the greatest being in the book of John 3:16. When we believe, we have a life everlasting in heaven with God and Jesus, a life in true paradise. A wonderful thing happens when our heart “Believes” this truth: our status increases from our own unrighteousness to that of Jesus’ righteousness. That is, somehow when God looks at us, he doesn’t see our junk. He knows about it of course, but chooses to overlook it. He sees us like He sees Jesus: His one and only Son.
October 11th, 2008 at 9:37 am
God doesn’t make promises that don’t come true, is a true story!