Today's reading opens with God's promise to Abram that he will have a
child from his own flesh and blood, who in turn will have descendants
as numerous as the stars. God then assures Abram with a covenant, that
his descendants will inherit the land of Canaan (present day Israel).
The covenant (contract/deal) was a common practice in these times and
often involved some form of ritual like what we see in chapter 15
verses 9-18; Abram sacrifices the animals and cuts them into pieces
(except the birds). In such a ritual, it would be common for both of
the participants in the deal to pass through the cut pieces together
symbolizing their commitment to one another to uphold their respective
ends of the bargain. By God walking through the cut pieces (as
manifested in the smoking firepot and blazing torch) alone, God was
saying that He would uphold both ends (God's and Abram's) of the deal,
requiring nothing more of Abram. Abram just had to believe. I love
this foreshadowing of how Christ would eventually walk the path for
our sin and uphold righteousness for mankind with His own blood; and
just like Abram, all we have to do is believe. We worship a gracious
God people. He paid the price for our sin and all he asks in return is
that we believe in Him.
In chapter 16, it is evident that while Abram believes he will have an
heir of his own body, he is unsure whether God's plans include his
wife Sarai. Sarai's barrenness makes her uncertain as well so she
selflessly asks Abram to sleep with her Egyptian maidservant Hagar,
who conceives Ishmael. I think it is remarkable that Abram and Sarai,
some of the bible's most righteous people, possess flaws like
impatience and fear. This just provides credibility to the fact that
we all fall short of the glory of God.
In chapter 17, God explains to Abram that his heir will be conceived
through Sarai and his name will be Isaac. Since God plans to multiply
Abram's descendants through his eventual son Isaac, he changes Abram's
name to Abraham, which means "father of many." God also changes
Sarai's name to Sarah for she is to be a "princess" that will mother
many. God then establishes the covenant of circumcision with Abraham.
God asks Abraham to circumcise everyone in his household and to keep
the covenant of circumcision with Abraham's descendant's as a
testimony to God's promises. What I believe is most compelling is that
God initially extends the covenant of circumcision to everyone in
Abraham's household, including those not of his blood relation. What a
foretelling of God's promise to bless "all peoples on earth." It's
certainly easy for me to understand God blessing Abraham's purity of
lineage since he would eventually bless the entire world through
Abraham's direct descendant Jesus Christ.
I encourage you all to live in the belief and promises of Christ Jesus today.
Be Blessed,
Anthony
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