Today’s passage: Genesis 12:1-9
Helpful thoughts:
- This is the beginning of the narrative of the life of Abraham.
- It’s also the beginning of the narrative of Israel as a nation (“I will make you a great nation.”)
- It’s also the beginning of the narrative of God’s salvation of his people (“In you, all the families of the earth will be blessed.”)
- To follow the Lord, Abraham had to leave behind his main identifiers; his family and his “home.”
- Abraham’s new identity was in God, rooted in the promises of God.
- Abraham came from north of the Promised Land. After he spent time near Shechem and built an altar to the Lord near Bethel and Ai, he traveled to the Negeb (The southern) region of the land. Abraham spent time looking through the land the Lord promised to his descendants.
Questions to consider:
- How did Abraham evidence his faith in God’s promise? What does the beginning of verse 4 plainly state?
- What did Abraham have to believe that God would do, even from the beginning, concerning Sarai’s barrenness? How would a great nation come from Abraham in this new land? What did Abraham have to trust?
- In what way would the descendants of Abraham (ultimately, A descendant of Abraham) bring blessing to the whole world?