#139 – God's Call of Abram

Yesterday on The Morning Meditation, we did a meditation on the subject of Self Judgment and we saw seven ways of knowing yourself from A.W. Tozer’s book, That Incredible Christian. Today, let’s look at:

GOD’S CALL OF ABRAM AND HIS COVENANT WITH HIM

Genesis 12:1-5 "Now the LORD had said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father's house, unto a land that I will shew thee: And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing: And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed. So Abram departed, as the LORD had spoken unto him; and Lot went with him: and Abram was seventy and five years old when he departed out of Haran. And Abram took Sarai his wife, and Lot his brother's son, and all their substance that they had gathered, and the souls that they had gotten in Haran; and they went forth to go into the land of Canaan; and into the land of Canaan they came."

GOD’S INITIAL CALL OF ABRAM

Our text says, “Now the LORD had said unto Abram. . .” The words “had said” suggest that God’s call of Abram was sometime prior to his actual leaving his homeland.

We too are sometime slow to heed God’s call. We make all kinds of excuses and when we can’t get rid of the burden, we finally say, “yes,” to the Lord.

John Gill said, “It pleased God, who has often been found of them who sought Him not, to reveal Himself to Abraham perhaps by a miracle; and the conversion of Abraham is one of the most remarkable in Bible history.”

All we really know is that God called him and that is enough. This would not be easy for Abram. It is not easy to leave the land of your birth and go into a strange land that you have never seen. But this is the faith that Abram had in God. He believed God. Missionaries do this on a regular basis.

THIS WAS A CALL TO SEPARATION

Genesis 12:1, "Now the LORD had said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father's house, unto a land that I will shew thee:"

This is always true of God’s calls. He may not call us to separate from our homeland, but He will, and does call us to separate ourselves from family and friends if they do not believe in God.

This is brought out in 2 Corinthians 6:14 18, "Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness? And what concord hath Christ with Belial? or what part hath he that believeth with an infidel? And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? for ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you, And will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty."

A weak church blends into the population around them like Lot and his family. I’m afraid that we have that problem today. When we call people to salvation, there is nothing to give up. Even though salvation is a free gift, if we walk with God, we must separate ourselves from the habits of the world around us. We are to be a peculiar people, which means that we are different after we are saved, and that difference is seen as peculiar to those around us.

GOD MAKES A COVENANT WITH ABRAM

Let’s notice the following aspects of that covenant:

1. I will make of thee a great nation.

2. I will bless thee.

3. I will make thy name great.

4. Thou shalt be a blessing.

5. I will bless them that bless thee.

6. I will curse him that curseth thee.

7. In thee shall all families of the earth be blessed (This is the promise of the Messiah).

ABRAM’S OBEDIENCE