Genesis 12-18: The Man Named Abraham

"Now the LORD said to Abram, 'Go from your country and your kindred and your father's house to the land that I will show you. And I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and him who dishonors you I will curse, and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.'" Genesis 12:1-3

"Father Abraham had many sons. Many sons had Faaather Abraham. I am one of them, and so are you. So let's just praise the Lord. Right arm..." We've all heard the song (or at least I hope you have), but really, who is this Abraham guy, and what does his story teach us about God? Well, continue reading, and we'll find out together.

In Genesis 12, we find the beginning of the story of Abraham. Seemingly out of nowhere and for no apparent reason, God comes to Abraham and promises him a great covenant (see scripture above). Scripture tells us that the Lord came to Abram (which was Abraham's original name) and told him that he would be the inheritor of four awesome things: a great nation, a great land, a great favor, and a great seed (cf. Genesis 17:2-7). This covenant, which we now call the Abrahamic Covenant, was so important that it was promised here in Genesis 12, actually made (or Hebrew "cut") in Genesis 15, and reaffirmed in Genesis 17.* In other words, this covenant is extremely important, because it has come up three times in these short chapters and will continue coming up in all of scripture, even until Revelation 20 (which we will see). Therefore, let us make sure we understand this covenant. Once again, God comes to Abraham and promises him a great nation, land, favor, and seed (or offspring). Don't forget those! They are very important.

Nevertheless, amidst these three covenant installments, we find other stories weaving their way between the mess, two of which seem to be going out of their way to show us Abram's imperfections. Although Abram did respond in great faith to the Lord after God came to him to establish the covenant (see 12:4-9), he's not perfect. When he enters into the land of Egypt, he lies in order to protect him and his wife (12:10-20), and furthermore, in 16:1-15, we find him and his wife Sarai taking matters into their own hands by attempting to conceive their promised child through one of Sarai's maidservants rather than through herself. Amidst these stories, we find Abram's unrighteousness.

However, we also see Abram's faithfulness to the Lord as well in these chapters. After Abram and his nephew Lot separate, we find Abraham rescuing Lot from danger (Genesis 13-14). Furthermore, we see Abraham interceding for the righteous in the city of Sodom (where Lot lives), as he desires that no righteous men should perish (18:22-33). In these stories, we see Abram's faithfulness to the Lord.

Thus, what we find in these seven chapters this morning is a man by the name of Abram who is sometimes righteous, and sometimes not. But lest we miss the big point of the passage, let us remember that scripture is not all about Abraham, it's all about God. What we see in these chapters is, yes, a man who is following after the Lord yet often stumbles. However, what we ultimately find is a gracious God who is working his redemptive plan even through broken people like Abraham. Although Abraham was imperfect, the Lord still had mercy upon him, and even used him in his restoration work. Did the Lord need Abraham? Certainly not. Yet in the Lord's own grace, he called Abraham unto his own plan, and promised him something that he surely did not deserve.

In summary, we could say that these chapters are all about what Hagar (Sarai's maidservant) spoke of after she was kicked out of her own household. Although she was imperfect as well (16:4), we find that the Lord still "saw" her, "for she said, 'truly here I have seen him who looks after me'" (12:13b). In other words, just like Abraham was imperfect, so was Hagar, yet, the Lord looks after his people. He sees us, and he is working all things for our good (Rom. 8:28).

So, how can you take comfort through the story of Abraham? Although we certainly have a far way to go in his story, we found today that amidst Abraham's unrighteousness, the Lord had grace upon him and looked after him in his situation. Take comfort, knowing that you are no less the Lord's chosen child than Abraham was, that is, if you have repented and believed in God (Mark 1:15). If you are God's child, he sees you, and he is working all things for good, even as he was for Abraham. In his own grace, he has seen both you and your failures, yet through Christ he has made a way for you to be saved and blessed forevermore. Praise God for his grace! Amen.