Abraham's Call

Genesis 12:1-3 The Lord had said to Abram, “Go from your country, your people and your father’s household to the land I will show you.

² “I will make you into a great nation, and I will bless you; I will make your name great,
and you will be a blessing. ³ I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse; and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you.”

Abraham and his entire family left Ur in Chapter 11. This included his father, Terah, his nephew, Lot and his wife Sarah. After journeying about 600 miles they reached Harran and Terah decided to settle there. But Harran was also filled with idolatry. The call in verses 1 – 3 is a second call to Abraham. He was now to leave his father’s household.

Notice Abraham had to give up something to go with God. But he was also called TO something. God wanted to give him something better! Abraham was one person starting out and God made him a great nation. Israel wasn’t great because of its size. It was great because of God’s revelation of Himself to her and in His choice of Israel to preserve that revelation for the world. When this promise was made, Abraham was 75 years old and didn’t have a son.

Where God said “I will bless you,” He blessed Abraham personally from the day Abraham believed God’s word and committed himself to a life of faith in obedience. God revealed Himself increasingly to Abraham in a person-to-person relationship as the One who loved Abraham and took responsibility for his welfare.

God blesses individual Christians in a person-to-person relationship in Christ.

Next God told Abraham He would make his name great. And He did! God told him he would be a blessing. And as I said earlier we are to be a blessing to others. We are saved to serve and blessed to bless!

Then God tells him that He will bless those who bless him. God promised that Abraham should be so identified with Him that for anyone to be kind or generous to Abraham would be considered as being kind or generous toward God. Jesus said the same thing in Matthew 25:40 Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.

“And whoever curses you I will curse.” We see in history that whenever nations unjustly afflicted the Jews, they have invariable suffered. And certainly will in end times!

“All peoples on earth will be blessed through you.”  The world was blessed by the Old Testament scriptures. And of course Jesus, Abraham’s greatest son. And that’s the basic meaning of this promise. This is considered a “messianic prophecy”.

Abraham’s call is a transition from the universal history of mankind to the particular history of Israel. Yet, the scope of God’s blessing is to every nation.

Genesis 12:4-5 So Abram went, as the Lord had told him; and Lot went with him. Abram was seventy-five years old when he set out from Harran. ⁵ He took his wife Sarai, his nephew Lot, all the possessions they had accumulated and the people they had acquired in Harran, and they set out for the land of Canaan, and they arrived there.

There are 3 ways Abraham’s first steps of faith are clearly seen.

1. Obedience and immediate action. The Bible doesn’t say he hashed this over with the family. Researched where he might be going. Studied his finances to see if now was a good time. Didn’t say he was too old. It just says he went as the Lord had told him.
2. He went out in faith. AFTER he obeyed the command, he began to see in experience. But he had to take that first step.
3. He went out in total commitment. He burned his bridges behind him. Everything he had went with him. No taking a weekend camping trip to see if he liked living in the desert.