today's meditation (Gn.17) Obedience Demonstrates Faith

(Dear Lord Jesus, give me insight into Your word, and help me stay focused...)

(Genesis 17:1-27)  Now when Abram was ninety-nine years old, the Lord appeared to Abram and said to him,

“I am God Almighty;

Walk before Me, and be blameless.
2 “I will establish My covenant between Me and you,
And I will multiply you exceedingly.”

3 Abram fell on his face, and God talked with him, saying,

4 “As for Me, behold, My covenant is with you,
And you will be the father of a multitude of nations.

5 “No longer shall your name be called Abram,

But your name shall be Abraham;
For I have made you the father of a multitude of nations.

6 I will make you exceedingly fruitful, and I will make nations of you, and kings will come forth from you. 7 I will establish My covenant between Me and you and your descendants after you throughout their generations for an everlasting covenant, to be God to you and to your descendants after you. 8 I will give to you and to your descendants after you, the land of your sojournings, all the land of Canaan, for an everlasting possession; and I will be their God.”

9 God said further to Abraham, “Now as for you, you shall keep My covenant, you and your descendants after you throughout their generations. 10 This is My covenant, which you shall keep, between Me and you and your descendants after you: every male among you shall be circumcised. 11 And you shall be circumcised in the flesh of your foreskin, and it shall be the sign of the covenant between Me and you. 12 And every male among you who is eight days old shall be circumcised throughout your generations, a servant who is born in the house or who is bought with money from any foreigner, who is not of your descendants. 13 A servant who is born in your house or who is bought with your money shall surely be circumcised; thus shall My covenant be in your flesh for an everlasting covenant. 14 But an uncircumcised male who is not circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin, that person shall be cut off from his people; he has broken My covenant.”

15 Then God said to Abraham, “As for Sarai your wife, you shall not call her name Sarai, but Sarah shall be her name. 16 I will bless her, and indeed I will give you a son by her. Then I will bless her, and she shall be a mother of nations; kings of peoples will come from her.” 17 Then Abraham fell on his face and laughed, and said in his heart, “Will a child be born to a man one hundred years old? And will Sarah, who is ninety years old, bear a child?” 18 And Abraham said to God, “Oh that Ishmael might live before You!” 19 But God said, “No, but Sarah your wife will bear you a son, and you shall call his name Isaac; and I will establish My covenant with him for an everlasting covenant for his descendants after him. 20 As for Ishmael, I have heard you; behold, I will bless him, and will make him fruitful and will multiply him exceedingly. He shall become the father of twelve princes, and I will make him a great nation. 21 But My covenant I will establish with Isaac, whom Sarah will bear to you at this season next year.” 22 When He finished talking with him, God went up from Abraham.

23 Then Abraham took Ishmael his son, and all the servants who were born in his house and all who were bought with his money, every male among the men of Abraham’s household, and circumcised the flesh of their foreskin in the very same day, as God had said to him. 24 Now Abraham was ninety-nine years old when he was circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin. 25 And Ishmael his son was thirteen years old when he was circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin. 26 In the very same day Abraham was circumcised, and Ishmael his son. 27 All the men of his household, who were born in the house or bought with money from a foreigner, were circumcised with him.

TODAY'S THOUGHTS AND MEDITATION:

Once Abram "became a believer" - his faith being reckoned as righteousness - God changed Abram's name to Abraham, and Sarai's name to Sarah.  With this came a reminder of God's everlasting covenant regarding land, seed and blessing, where God promised that Abraham and his descendants would have the promised land, they would be exceedingly fruitful, and they would multiply exceedingly - with kings among his descendants.  It was here that God added this new bit of information.

King David would be a man after God's own heart... and the last king who would come through Abraham's people was Jesus - the righteous King of kings and Lord of lords!  God Almighty Himself came to earth in flesh to make salvation, and the covenant below, possible.  Because the Jews rejected Jesus their Messiah and King when He first came, the Abrahamic covenant will be completely fulfilled in the millennial kingdom.  Until then...

There is so much in these verses, it's actually mind-blowing!!!

We see that God asks Abraham to be obedient and keep the covenant.  God knows that we are not perfect, and we cannot be perfect without accepting and believing in Jesus' work on the cross, which allows for forgiveness of all sins... which is accepting and taking on His righteousness and His grace.  This requires our heart's decision to be humble, removing "self" and accepting Christ as our Savior... a circumcision of the heart.  (see Romans 2:29)

It seems harsh that God gave the instructions that if anyone was not going to be circumcised they were to be cut off from the people of Abraham.  God desired all of them to be of one mind, in obedience.  Just as God desires all people to become believers, and have Christ's righteousness.  Anyone who does not have a circumcised heart, will not enter heaven.

Also notice that God included servants who were born into Abraham's house.  This very clearly demonstrates that God is not harsh or discriminatory.  It is another parallel in the bigger picture:  ANYONE who believes in Jesus, becomes a child of God!

And here is yet another parallel in the bigger picture!  As Abraham was "a believer" - God expected Abraham to trust Him and be obedient - which would lead to blessings and being fruitful.  Just as for believers today:  the outward proof of our faith in Christ - is obedience - which will lead to fruit of the Spirit.  A question we can ask ourselves is - how evident is our faith to those around us???...

today's meditation (Gn.16) Trust God to Sort Things Out

(Dear Lord Jesus, thank You for the wisdom which You give us through Your word...)

(Genesis 16:1-16)  Now Sarai, Abram’s wife had borne him no children, and she had an Egyptian maid whose name was Hagar. 2 So Sarai said to Abram, “Now behold, the Lord has prevented me from bearing children. Please go in to my maid; perhaps I will obtain children through her.” And Abram listened to the voice of Sarai. 3 After Abram had lived ten years in the land of Canaan, Abram’s wife Sarai took Hagar the Egyptian, her maid, and gave her to her husband Abram as his wife. 4 He went in to Hagar, and she conceived; and when she saw that she had conceived, her mistress was despised in her sight. 5 And Sarai said to Abram, “May the wrong done me be upon you. I gave my maid into your arms, but when she saw that she had conceived, I was despised in her sight. May the Lord judge between you and me.” 6 But Abram said to Sarai, “Behold, your maid is in your power; do to her what is good in your sight.” So Sarai treated her harshly, and she fled from her presence.

7 Now the angel of the Lord found her by a spring of water in the wilderness, by the spring on the way to Shur. 8 He said, “Hagar, Sarai’s maid, where have you come from and where are you going?” And she said, “I am fleeing from the presence of my mistress Sarai.” 9 Then the angel of the Lord said to her, “Return to your mistress, and submit yourself to her authority.” 10 Moreover, the angel of the Lord said to her, “I will greatly multiply your descendants so that they will be too many to count.” 11 The angel of the Lord said to her further,

“Behold, you are with child,
And you will bear a son;
And you shall call his name Ishmael,
Because the Lord has given heed to your affliction.
12 “He will be a wild donkey of a man,
His hand will be against everyone,
And everyone’s hand will be against him;
And he will live to the east of all his brothers.”

13 Then she called the name of the Lord who spoke to her, “You are a God who sees”; for she said, “Have I even remained alive here after seeing Him?” 14 Therefore the well was called Beer-lahai-roi; behold, it is between Kadesh and Bered.

15 So Hagar bore Abram a son; and Abram called the name of his son, whom Hagar bore, Ishmael. 16 Abram was eighty-six years old when Hagar bore Ishmael to him.

TODAY'S THOUGHTS AND MEDITATION:

This is the classic example of how we take matters into our own hands, and only make the "issue" worse.  Abram and Sarai didn't really have an issue, they just became very impatient, and thus they created an issue.

Even after God promised Abram that he would have a son, Abram and Sarai didn't trust God to work that out.  Up until this point, Abram only had one wife, which is God's will.  But their idea of doing God's job for Him was to "take another wife" and have a son that way.  Yes, it was Sarai's idea to commit this sin, but Abram agreed with the plan and followed through on it.

Then when Sarai pointed out the tensions between her and Hagar, Abram refused to deal with it.  I'm thinking that they both should have gone to the Lord to seek forgiveness and guidance!  Instead, Abram encouraged Sarai to manage the situation as she saw fit, which was to abuse Hagar.  ALSO NOT God's will.

The consequence of these sins was and still is HUGE.  The descendants of Hagar's son, Ishmael, are all the Muslim nations we see today.  And these remain as Israel's enemies, because the Muslims believe they are the rightful heirs of Abraham... Since Abraham's firstborn son really was Ishmael... they believe the promised land belongs rightfully to them.  And this tension will only be resolved at the end of the Tribulation, at Jesus' second coming.

It is interesting that God - as THE angel of the Lord - appeared to Hagar.  This is the first time we see this in the Bible, and it is to a woman who is not from Abram's people.  God had seen her affliction and came to her rescue.  The angel of the Lord (Jesus pre-incarnate) appeared to her in the desert, to give her news that her child would have many descendants.  She was also given instructions.  Hagar not only recognized Him as God, but she did obey the Lord's command to return and submit to Sarai.  Whether she became a believer or not, we don't know.

We do know that the Islamic religion has many similarities to Christianity... but both the Jews and the Muslims miss the most important fact - that Jesus is the Messiah (Christ the Lord) - and He is the only way to get to heaven!  We need to not only recognize that, but we need to make Jesus our Lord and Savior.

My takeaway for today is that - if we have made Jesus our Lord and Savior, trusting in Him for our eternal salvation, do we also trust in Him to help us sort out all our issues, big and small - or do we try taking matters into our own hands???...

today's mediation (Gn.15) Trusting Without Doubt

(Dear Lord Jesus, help me wake up and see what I need to see today...)

(Genesis 15:1-21)  After these things the word of the Lord came to Abram in a vision, saying,

“Do not fear, Abram,
I am a shield to you;
Your reward shall be very great.”

2 Abram said, “O Lord God, what will You give me, since I am childless, and the heir of my house is Eliezer of Damascus?” 3 And Abram said, “Since You have given no offspring to me, one born in my house is my heir.” 4 Then behold, the word of the Lord came to him, saying, “This man will not be your heir; but one who will come forth from your own body, he shall be your heir.” 5 And He took him outside and said, “Now look toward the heavens, and count the stars, if you are able to count them.” And He said to him, “So shall your descendants be.” 6 Then he believed in the Lord; and He reckoned it to him as righteousness. 7 And He said to him, “I am the Lord who brought you out of Ur of the Chaldeans, to give you this land to possess it.” 8 He said, “O Lord God, how may I know that I will possess it?” 9 So He said to him, “Bring Me a three year old heifer, and a three year old female goat, and a three year old ram, and a turtledove, and a young pigeon.” 10 Then he brought all these to Him and cut them in two, and laid each half opposite the other; but he did not cut the birds. 11 The birds of prey came down upon the carcasses, and Abram drove them away.

12 Now when the sun was going down, a deep sleep fell upon Abram; and behold, terror and great darkness fell upon him. 13 God said to Abram, “Know for certain that your descendants will be strangers in a land that is not theirs, where they will be enslaved and oppressed four hundred years. 14 But I will also judge the nation whom they will serve, and afterward they will come out with many possessions. 15 As for you, you shall go to your fathers in peace; you will be buried at a good old age. 16 Then in the fourth generation they will return here, for the iniquity of the Amorite is not yet complete.”

17 It came about when the sun had set, that it was very dark, and behold, there appeared a smoking oven and a flaming torch which passed between these pieces. 18 On that day the Lord made a covenant with Abram, saying,

“To your descendants I have given this land,
From the river of Egypt as far as the great river, the river Euphrates:

19 the Kenite and the Kenizzite and the Kadmonite 20 and the Hittite and the Perizzite and the Rephaim 21 and the Amorite and the Canaanite and the Girgashite and the Jebusite.”

TODAY'S THOUGHTS AND MEDITATION:

God's message of protection and blessing came to Abram right after he turned down the loot as a reward from the king of Sodom.  I guess Abram didn't totally trust God's plan and promise to him about having many, many descendants - because Abram pointed out the fact that he and Sarai still didn't have a son.  But, if God promised him descendants, he should have realized that God would definitely provide him with at least one son!

I suppose up until that point, Abram believed that there was a God, and that God was powerful and helpful, etc.  But then in verse 6, Abram finally became a true believer, putting his faith IN God and became a "Christian"... as several places in the new testament use this term that God "reckoned it to him as righteousness" (as Jesus' work on the cross was retroactive, see Galatians 3:6, James 2:23).

Even though God gave Abram a promise of land, seed and blessings, and even though Abram now believed IN God, Abram still wanted to see or have a guarantee.  So God made a covenant (a contract) with Abram in the way that society did back in those days.  But instead of both walking through the animal halves, God put Abram to sleep and went through the animal halves alone.

People would typically walk between the animals halves together, which implied that if anyone broke the agreement, they would end up like the dead animals.  Knowing that there was no way Abram or his descendants could keep the covenant, God secured the promise by walking through it alone.  The land would always belong to the Israelites... but they would not always be in possession of it.  THAT would depend on their level of obedience.

In verses 13 and 14, we see a prophesy that the Israelites would end up in Egypt, n slavery, for 400 years.  Then, not only would God bring them out, they were going to exit with many possessions.  God also gave Abram a prophesy about the Israelites not entering the promised land right away!  We know that was going to happen because of the descendants' disobedience.

But now I'm curious, was the slavery and oppression going to happen because Abram asked for a guarantee, since there may have been a trace of doubt there???

Like, for example, after reading about how God promises to guide us in strength and wisdom, but we ask Him for signs, or we have doubt - does God allow a few more lessons and challenges to come our way?  In that way - if and when we trust in Him throughout these tests and trials - we can see Him work things out for good.

I'm not talking about the times when we make mistakes and then expect God to fix everything for us.  I'm just talking about the times we doubt that God's "got this".  Now, the prophesied slavery may not have been a consequence to Abram's request for proof.  We can only speculate... so no matter the reasons, I believe that being allowed to go through challenges is usually the only way we CAN grow in our faith. as well as be an effective testimony to those around us.  How else could we ever say that God is always there for us - if we never go through anything?...

today's meditation (Gn.14) Dare to Bless Other Believers

(Dear Lord Jesus, please give me Your insights for today...)

(Genesis 14:1-24)  And it came about in the days of Amraphel king of Shinar, Arioch king of Ellasar, Chedorlaomer king of Elam, and Tidal king of Goiim, 2 that they made war with Bera king of Sodom, and with Birsha king of Gomorrah, Shinab king of Admah, and Shemeber king of Zeboiim, and the king of Bela (that is, Zoar). 3 All these came as allies to the valley of Siddim (that is, the Salt Sea). 4 Twelve years they had served Chedorlaomer, but the thirteenth year they rebelled. 5 In the fourteenth year Chedorlaomer and the kings that were with him, came and defeated the Rephaim in Ashteroth-karnaim and the Zuzim in Ham and the Emim in Shaveh-kiriathaim, 6 and the Horites in their Mount Seir, as far as El-paran, which is by the wilderness. 7 Then they turned back and came to En-mishpat (that is, Kadesh), and conquered all the country of the Amalekites, and also the Amorites, who lived in Hazazon-tamar. 8 And the king of Sodom and the king of Gomorrah and the king of Admah and the king of Zeboiim and the king of Bela (that is, Zoar) came out; and they arrayed for battle against them in the valley of Siddim, 9 against Chedorlaomer king of Elam and Tidal king of Goiim and Amraphel king of Shinar and Arioch king of Ellasar—four kings against five. 10 Now the valley of Siddim was full of tar pits; and the kings of Sodom and Gomorrah fled, and they fell into them. But those who survived fled to the hill country. 11 Then they took all the goods of Sodom and Gomorrah and all their food supply, and departed. 12 They also took Lot, Abram’s nephew, and his possessions and departed, for he was living in Sodom.

13 Then a fugitive came and told Abram the Hebrew. Now he was living by the oaks of Mamre the Amorite, brother of Eshcol and brother of Aner, and these were allies with Abram. 14 When Abram heard that his relative had been taken captive, he led out his trained men, born in his house, three hundred and eighteen, and went in pursuit as far as Dan. 15 He divided his forces against them by night, he and his servants, and defeated them, and pursued them as far as Hobah, which is north of Damascus. 16 He brought back all the goods, and also brought back his relative Lot with his possessions, and also the women, and the people.

17 Then after his return from the defeat of Chedorlaomer and the kings who were with him, the king of Sodom went out to meet him at the valley of Shaveh (that is, the King’s Valley). 18 And Melchizedek king of Salem brought out bread and wine; now he was a priest of God Most High. 19 He blessed him and said,

“Blessed be Abram of God Most High,
Possessor of heaven and earth;
20 And blessed be God Most High,
Who has delivered your enemies into your hand.”

He gave him a tenth of all. 21 The king of Sodom said to Abram, “Give the people to me and take the goods for yourself.” 22 Abram said to the king of Sodom, “I have sworn to the Lord God Most High, possessor of heaven and earth, 23 that I will not take a thread or a sandal thong or anything that is yours, for fear you would say, ‘I have made Abram rich.’ 24 I will take nothing except what the young men have eaten, and the share of the men who went with me, Aner, Eshcol, and Mamre; let them take their share.”

TODAY'S THOUGHTS AND MEDITATION:

Amidst all the political drama in that area, Abram stayed out of the fray, until he heard that his nephew, Lot, had been taken into captivity.  Obviously, not all of Abram's dialogues with God are recorded, but after rescuing Lot and bringing all stolen goods back to the king of Sodom, Abram mentioned the promise he had made to the Lord.

Because of his promise to God, Abram refused to take any sort of reward from the king of Sodom.  This demonstrated two things to the surrounding nations:  that Abram was not going to ally or appear to ally with or receive any benefits from any of the evil, warring kingdoms;  and that Abram gave all the credit for his success to the Lord God Most High.  The blessing given by Melchizedek, another man of God, would have also been a strong witness for the Lord to these nations.

The obvious takeaway is that we should be challenged to depend on the Lord to take care of us in every aspect of our life.  But the unique thing that is standing out for me, here today, is that Melchizedek just came out of nowhere to bless, support and have a type of communion with Abram and his men.  How encouraging and refreshing would that have been - to know that you are not the only believer around!

How likely are we to step out of our comfort zone to do that for another Christian, who has just dared to stand up for Christ in a hostile environment?  I remember a time in college, when a young man dared to speak up for God, and was immediately shot down by the professor who was a militant atheist.  I just sat there, stunned.  I do regret not saying anything.  If a similar situation were ever to happen again, I would hope that I'd step up in support of my fellow believer, in some encouraging way, all in God's wisdom and strength!...