Bible Talks: Abraham the man of faith- Gen. 12:2-7

Narrator: Chris Genthree
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“By faith Abraham, when he was called to go out into a place which he should after receive for an inheritance, obeyed; and he went out, not knowing whither he went.” Heb. 11:88By faith Abraham, when he was called to go out into a place which he should after receive for an inheritance, obeyed; and he went out, not knowing whither he went. (Hebrews 11:8).
Abram, whose delay in Haran had postponed his viewing and searching out the land of promise, now goes forth in confidence toward Canaan. “He went out, not knowing whither he went,” but in the assurance that the message from God was certain. Haran had been a prosperous place to him, but he left it because of a compelling promise: “I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee,... and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed.” vv. 2,3.
Yet he did not fully respond to God’s instructions, “Get thee out... from thy father’s house,” for Lot, his nephew, went along also, and he proved to be a trial to Abram. Nonetheless, “they went forth to go into the land of Canaan; and into the land of Canaan they came.” vs. 5. The long trip from Haran to Canaan —some 500 miles or more—is passed over in silence. Such was Abram’s faith and such were the promises of God to him, that this long journey was counted only as a connecting link between the call of God and the land where His promises would be realized.
Well it is for us if we who are God’s children can say the same of our heavenly journey. We too have a sure promise from God, who “according to His abundant mercy hath begotten us again unto a lively living) hope... to an inheritance incorruptible, and undefiled, and that fadeth not away, reserved in heaven for you, who are kept by the power of God.” 1 Peter 1:3-53Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to his abundant mercy hath begotten us again unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, 4To an inheritance incorruptible, and undefiled, and that fadeth not away, reserved in heaven for you, 5Who are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. (1 Peter 1:3‑5). May we not permit the things of this world to interfere with the brightness of our heavenly calling. The child of faith can go on in spirit and in the comfort of the scripture: “though our outward man perish, yet the inward man is renewed day by day. For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory.” 2 Cor. 4:16-1816For which cause we faint not; but though our outward man perish, yet the inward man is renewed day by day. 17For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory; 18While we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen: for the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal. (2 Corinthians 4:16‑18). Furthermore, that which characterized Abraham on that long wilderness journey was that he looked “not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen: for the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal.” Surely this should characterize more the Lord’s people in this day also.
When Abram paused in the plain of Moreh he found “the Canaanite was then in the land.” It might have disturbed him to find the land of promise already occupied. But if any doubts arose he was given renewed encouragement: “the LORD appeared unto Abram, and said, Unto thy seed will I give this land.” vs. 7. This pledge lifted Abram’s thoughts upward and accordingly he built an altar there unto the LORD, “who appeared unto him.” This is the first reference to an altar in his life, but from this point on his walk was marked by both his tent and his altar —he lived by faith and he worshipped by faith. He was a true pilgrim and a stranger. We are told in Hebrews 11:9,109By faith he sojourned in the land of promise, as in a strange country, dwelling in tabernacles with Isaac and Jacob, the heirs with him of the same promise: 10For he looked for a city which hath foundations, whose builder and maker is God. (Hebrews 11:9‑10): “By faith he sojourned in the land of promise, as in a strange country, dwelling in tabernacles (tents).. For he looked for a city which hath foundations, whose builder and maker is God.”
ML 01/31/1965