God Speaks
The Lord had said to Abram, “Leave your native country, your relatives, and your father’s family, and go to the land that I will show you. 2 I will make you into a great nation. I will bless you and make you famous, and you will be a blessing to others. 3 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.”
4 So Abram departed as the Lord had instructed, and Lot went with him. Abram was seventy-five years old when he left Haran. 5 He took his wife, Sarai, his nephew Lot, and all his wealth—his livestock and all the people he had taken into his household at Haran—and headed for the land of Canaan. When they arrived in Canaan, 6 Abram traveled through the land as far as Shechem. There he set up camp beside the oak of Moreh. At that time, the area was inhabited by Canaanites.
7 Then the Lord appeared to Abram and said, “I will give this land to your descendants.” And Abram built an altar there and dedicated it to the Lord, who had appeared to him. 8 After that, Abram traveled south and set up camp in the hill country, with Bethel to the west and Ai to the east. There he built another altar and dedicated it to the Lord, and he worshiped the Lord. 9 Then Abram continued traveling south by stages toward the Negev.
10 At that time a severe famine struck the land of Canaan, forcing Abram to go down to Egypt, where he lived as a foreigner. 11 As he was approaching the border of Egypt, Abram said to his wife, Sarai, “Look, you are a very beautiful woman. 12 When the Egyptians see you, they will say, ‘This is his wife. Let’s kill him; then we can have her!’ 13 So please tell them you are my sister. Then they will spare my life and treat me well because of their interest in you.”
14 And sure enough, when Abram arrived in Egypt, everyone noticed Sarai’s beauty. 15 When the palace officials saw her, they sang her praises to Pharaoh, their king, and Sarai was taken into his palace. 16 Then Pharaoh gave Abram many gifts because of her—sheep, goats, cattle, male and female donkeys, male and female servants, and camels.
17 But the Lord sent terrible plagues upon Pharaoh and his household because of Sarai, Abram’s wife. 18 So Pharaoh summoned Abram and accused him sharply. “What have you done to me?” he demanded. “Why didn’t you tell me she was your wife? 19 Why did you say, ‘She is my sister,’ and allow me to take her as my wife? Now then, here is your wife. Take her and get out of here!” 20 Pharaoh ordered some of his men to escort them, and he sent Abram out of the country, along with his wife and all his possessions.
Source: New Living Translation: BibleGateway.com
We Respond
Reflection: In chapter 12, God chooses Abram (later renamed Abraham) as the man and his lineage through whom He will bless all mankind and send the deliverer He promised in chapter 3. The Lord God told Abram that He would make him a great nation, make him famous, and make him a blessing to others. This would happen if Abram would leave his native country, his relatives and his father’s family (in essence his inheritance which is usually tied to the family and land) and go to the land God would show him. If he did that, God would bless those who blessed Abram and curse those mistreated him. This would be true down through the ages. God would use Abram and his descendants to bless all the families on earth. It was through Abram’s lineage that Messiah would come. Obeying God’s directions, Abram gathered all his household and headed for the land of Canaan. All that Abram took included his wife Sarai, his nephew Lot, many flocks and herds, and many servants. When he arrived at a special oak (terebinth) tree in the area of Shechem, he set up camp. There God met with him again and told him, “I will give this land to your descendants.” To commemorate this, Abram built an altar and worshiped the LORD who had appeared to him. He also built an altar and worshiped the LORD when he camped between Bethel and Ai. Abram’s trust and obedience to the LORD was growing; however, his words and actions regarding telling Pharaoh that Sarai was his sister and letting her be taken by him may show that it was not yet mature. After Abram and his entourage returned from their sojourn in Egypt to the area between Bethel and Ai where the altar he had built remained, Abram again worshiped the LORD.
Prayer: Dear Father Creator God, thank You for choosing people to bless and using them to bless others. Thank You for choosing Abram for no apparent reason. Thank You also for choosing me in the same way. Thank You, Jesus, for rescuing everyone who calls on Your name and responds to the Father’s call as Abram did. You may not promise us a nation, a name, and blessing, but You do promise to be with us and guide us with Your loving eye upon us. Praise Your holy name. Help us to be as trusting and obedient as he was. Our walk with You may also be a bit unsteady as his was, but help us to repent of our sins, build altars, and worship You to get back on track as he did as well. May all that I do bring glory to Jesus, for it is in His name I pray. AMEN
Action: (Ask God, the Holy Spirit, if He wants you to work on one of the suggestions below or something else more personal that He points out.)
- I will listen to what God has to say in my spirit, check it against the Bible, the written Word of God, write it down and strive to do it.
- I will study the Bible and write down promises I find so that I can ask God in prayer if they are for me or not.
- I will “build an altar” by selecting an object or drawing/pasting a picture in an album/notebook to help me remember God’s promises to me. I will also thank Him as they are fulfilled.
- I will confess my sins to God in the presence of someone I trust so that they can help me and/or hold me accountable to “turn from my wicked ways.”
Share: I plan to share what I’ve learned with __________.