Advent Day 07: The Promises to Abraham

Today, we light the Green Candle, the Black Candle, and the Blue Candle. The Green Candle represents life and all that Father God created in Christ, Good and Whole. The Black Candle represents the Evil and Corruption of Sin that entered our World through our rebellion. The Blue candle represents the Hope that comes from the Promises of a future Savior and King.

Genesis 12:1–3
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.” (ESV)

After the flood, Noah spoke a word of blessing to his son Shem: “Blessed be the LORD, the God of Shem; and let Canaan be his servant. 9:27 May God enlarge Japheth, and let him dwell in the tents of Shem, …”( Genesis 9:26–27 ESV). The Lord God does “dwell in the tents of Shem” in a special way. The descendants of Shem become the family through whom the Lord blesses all the other families of the earth.

In Genesis 12, God reveals Himself to one of Shem’s descendants—Abram. The Lord instructs Abram to leave his family (the source of all safety and security at this time) and go to The Land that He would show him. Abram listens to the voice of God and does exactly as He instructs him.

In time, the Lord would change Abram’s name to Abraham. Abram means “exalted father” but Abraham means, “father of a multitude.” The Lord gives Abraham his new name at a time when his wife Sarah is not able to have children and Abraham was getting very old. In order for Abraham to become the father of a multitude – many nations – he would have to trust the promises of God Almighty.

In Abraham’s Story (Genesis 12-22) we find about 12 or 13 specific promises that God makes to Abram/Abraham. We could summarize them into three big ideas:

1. God promised Abraham a Seed that would eventually be a great nation (People).

2. God promised to give the Land of Canaan as an “everlasting” possession to Abraham and his “seed.”

3. God promised that He would provide a Blessing to the whole earth through Abraham.

In Genesis 15 the Lord makes a covenant with Abram, taking an oath to fulfill the promises He had given to him, particularly that Abram would be the father of a great family and that his family would possess the Land that the Lord had led him to.

Genesis 17:3–7
“… And God said to Abram, “Behold, my covenant is with you, and you shall be the father of a multitude of nations. No longer shall your name be called Abram, but your name shall be Abraham, for I have made you the father of a multitude of nations. I will make you exceedingly fruitful, and I will make you into nations, and kings shall come from you. And I will establish my covenant between me and you and your seed after you throughout their generations for an everlasting covenant, to be God to you and to your seed after you.”

The story of Abraham is the high point in the early episodes of the Story of Advent. God’s relationship with Abraham stems the tide of cursing and downfall in Genesis 3-11. In fact, in Genesis 12:2-3 the word “bless” shows up five times and this is set against the five “curses” that have come before (3:14, 17; 5:29; 8:21; 9:25).

The LORD’s dealings with Abraham will set the stage for everything that would come after him. In the New Testament, the Apostle Paul says this about God’s promises to Abraham:

Galatians 3:8
And the scripture, foreseeing that God would set the Gentiles/Nations right by faith, proclaimed the gospel to Abraham ahead of time, saying, “All the nations will be blessed in you.”

From Paul’s perspective, these promises to Abraham are part of the “beforehand” foreshadowing and foretelling of the Gospel—the “good news” of God’s redemption of all humanity.

As the Story unfolds, The Seed of the Woman becomes linked with the Seed of Abraham. The Blessings and promises pass from Abraham to his son Isaac and then from Isaac to his son Jacob. The promises of God have been made. The fulfillment is to come…

The family of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob become the family line that will ultimately lead us to Jesus.