Today’s Reading: Genesis 11:27-12:9, Psalm 18

“Leave your native country, your relatives, and your father’s family, and go to the land that I will show you. I will make you into a great nation. I will bless you and make you famous, and you will be a blessing to others. I will bless those who bless you and curse those who treat you with contempt. All the families on earth will be blessed through you.” – Genesis 12:1-3

Leave and go where I show you to go. This first element of God’s promise requires more than just initial obedience, it requires continual obedience and submission — daily following wherever God leads. It is not enough that I followed obediently yesterday; I must continue to follow in obedience today. Abram did this and received confirmation of the promise God had given him.

I will make you into a great nation and bless you. This promise had great significance to Abram because his wife, Sarai, had been unable to become pregnant and they had no children. When God makes a PROMISE, we can trust Him for PROVISION. So if God was promising descendants, Abram simply needed to trust that God would provide children to Abram and Sarai. So accepting God’s promise requires daily obedience and a willingness to follow God wherever He leads, and it requires a huge amount of faith.

You will be a blessing to others…all the families on earth will be blessed through you. This promise was not just about Abram and for the benefit of Abram; it was much larger than that. There were so many other people who would be blessed through this promise, so many others relying on Abram’s faith in God and his decision to obey. Who is relying on our faithful obedience today? Are we living with the realization that our decisions today could affect someone else tomorrow?

Abraham never wavered in believing God’s promise. In fact, his faith grew stronger, and in this he brought glory to God. He was fully convinced that God is able to do whatever He promises. And because of Abraham’s faith, God counted him as righteous. And when God counted him as righteous, it wasn’t just for Abraham’s benefit. It was recorded for our benefit, too, assuring us that God will also count us as righteous if we believe in him, the one who raised Jesus our Lord from the dead. He was handed over to die because of our sins, and he was raised to life to make us right with God. – Romans 4:16b-25

I will bless those who bless you and curse those who treat you with contempt. God promised PROTECTION to Abram, as well as guardianship of His promise.

I love you, Lord; you are my strength. The Lord is my rock, my fortress, and my savior; my God is my rock in whom I find protection. He is my shield, the power that saves me, and my place of safety… God’s way is perfect. All the Lord’s promises prove true. He is a shield to all who look to him for protection. – Psalm 18:1-2,30

Oh Lord, we thank you for your promises. May we respond in obedience to your call on our lives, just as Abram did. May we trust you for our protection and for every blessing in life. Remind us today, oh Lord, of your many promises. Remind us that everything good in our life is not a result of our own effort, but evidence of your PROMISE, your PROTECTION and your PROVISION. Amen.