#17: Abram's Call

Genesis 12:1-4

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

“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
 I will bless those who bless you,
    and whoever curses you I will curse;
and all peoples on earth
    will be blessed through you.”

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.

Comments

Adam had been innocent as life began, but all too soon succumbed to temptation and brought evil into his life and world.

Noah had been righteous, a blameless man in an evil world, but even as he became the father of a new humanity after the flood, God realized every inclination of his heart was toward evil.

With Abram a new chapter in God’s story began, yet Abram had neither Adam’s innocence nor Noah’s righteousness to qualify him as the central character in this story. The main thing we know about Abram is that he was old and childless, not much of a qualification for one who would be the father of a great nation.

Actually, there is something else we know about Abram: he trusted in God’s promise and followed where God led. That set the stage for the blessings that were to come to him and through him.

Reflections

The message that came to Abram from God was intimate and specific, though perhaps no louder than a whisper. Do you ever listen for that quiet voice of God?

Other than a willingness to believe and follow, there was nothing remarkable about Abram’s life. Do you feel you need to be special in some way in order to be blessed by God and to be a blessing to others?

Prayer

Blessed are you, O Lord our God, King of the universe, who gives promises and blessings even to those of us who feel we have so little to offer in return.