The apostle Paul wrote that the promises God made to Abraham are now the legitimate inheritance of all who have the faith of Abraham, all who believe in Jesus. That bears some looking into, don’t you think? Today’s excerpt from The Joy and Rejoicing of My Heart is found on pages 36 and 37:
“God made six specific promises to Abraham (Abram), although we should probably see that all these promises are simply temporal expressions of the one overarching promise of life and peace with God.
“God said He would make Abraham a great nation – many people, extending through many generations. He promised to bless them and thus establish them in a right relationship with Himself. God intended to give this people a great name, that is, to make them influential in the earth, and thus a people who would exercise dominion in certain important ways. He promised to make them a blessing to other people, a channel through which others would come to know the covenant privileges of God, and He further promised to protect and provide for them at all times. Finally, God pointed Abraham down the long roadway of time, and promised to bless all families of the earth, both those of the present and those to come, through the relationship He was entering with the patriarch.
“These precious and very great promises became a cornerstone for Israel’s experience throughout the period of the Old Covenant. Even into the New Testament, we find the Jews clinging to their descent from Abraham as the defining element of their national identity and hopes. God was promising life and peace to Abraham, as He had done with Adam and Eve and Noah, but He was doing so in terms that were more compelling and more far-reaching than what either of Abraham’s forebears might have imagined. God was again adjusting His unchanging covenant to suit the demands of the roadway from Abraham forward.”
For reflection or discussion
1. Of those six promises, made to Abraham and inherited by us, which to you are the most precious?
2. Of which of these promises would you like to know and possess more?
We all live by promises of one kind or another. God understands that, and so He gives us promises that are so great and compelling that they cause us to look to Him in faith. That is, if we’re hearing His Word and promises as He intends. Share today’s podcast with a friend, then get together to discuss it. Your copy of The Joy and Rejoicing of My Heart is waiting for you in The Ailbe Bookstore.
T. M. Moore
