Abraham
Listen to today’s reading:
Genesis 17:1-8
When Abram was ninety-nine years old, the Lord appeared to him and said, “I am God Almighty; walk before me faithfully and be blameless. Then I will make my covenant between me and you and will greatly increase your numbers.”
Abram fell facedown, and God said to him, “As for me, this is my covenant with you: You will be the father of many nations. No longer will you be called Abram; your name will be Abraham, for I have made you a father of many nations. I will make you very fruitful; I will make nations of you, and kings will come from you. I will establish my covenant as an everlasting covenant between me and you and your descendants after you for the generations to come, to be your God and the God of your descendants after you. The whole land of Canaan, where you now reside as a foreigner, I will give as an everlasting possession to you and your descendants after you; and I will be their God.”
Psalm 105:8
He remembers his covenant forever,
the promise he made, for a thousand generations,
Philippians 1:4-6
In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now, being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.
Today’s Reading:
In 2019, Bryce Harper secured a record breaking contract with the Phillies. It was the biggest contract in Major League history to date. Not only was it the biggest in baseball, it was actually the largest in all four major North American sports – baseball, football, basketball, and hockey. For 13 years, Bryce locked in $330 million dollars for his talents on the diamond, while fulfilling obligations as a player under conditions laid out in his contract day to day and year to year. A contract and a covenant is much the same. Two parties exchange provisions under terms. It was a little different in ancient days how they did contracts (more often called covenants). In the old world, no one signed on the dotted line or even shook hands. One way was gruesome to our standards. Making a serious covenant with someone involved killing animals and walking through their body parts together – essentially saying, “If I break this covenant, you can do to me as we have done to these animals.” God called out Abram (later renamed Abraham by God) to make a covenant with him to make him the father of many nations and promise him the land occupied by various people groups. Abram brought God the animals needed for the bloody covenant they were about to make together. Then, something happened that no one would have guessed. A form of God passed through the pieces of the animals while Abram was fast asleep. What did that mean for Abram? That meant that no matter what, God would fulfill the covenant without any action from Abram. In fact, God made a one-sided covenant with Abram and his family that day. How amazing! How many times have we violated our relationship with God? We all do every day. Sin rests deep in all our bones. The thing is, God doesn’t want us to make contracts or covenants with him today. Yes, he does want committed, faithful sons and daughters, but he hates our empty promises. He wants us to grow in our trust in him and to believe the faithful promises that he has already given us as he accomplishes his redemptive plan in and through us. Earlier in Genesis 15 scripture says, “Abram believed the Lord, and he credited it to him as righteousness.” This is what he wants from us too. Be encouraged though if you are struggling today. Written in Philippians, scripture says, “he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.” He will continue to fulfill his side of the deal despite what we do. He chases after us as we are still sinning! Through our belief in Jesus and our walk together, God is changing us from offenders to ambassadors. The covenant blood of Christ is also a one-sided deal. We didn’t do anything! God did it all. Our provision through this promise is totally undeserved and overflowing in his goodness. We can only be thankful. How awesome is our God! Thank you, Jesus!
Today’s Prayer Guide:
Praise – Praise God that he is a perfect promise and covenant keeper.
Confession – Confess that you violate your relationship with him in your sin.
Ask – A difficult prayer, but necessary prayer, may be to ask God to help you to speed up the sanctification process in you, so that you can be a better ambassador for him.