“To your offspring I will give this land.”
How should I respond when God tells me to do something? How can I be sure His promises are true? Will I look like a fool if I walk in faith and have nothing to show for it?
Replica of Noah's Ark
I have thought about these questions many times in my life, especially when God has told me to do something rather out of the box. In the Bible, out of the box commands are quite commonplace with God. Take, for example, God’s command to Noah that he build an ark. Incidentally, it took Noah around 100 years to build it, meaning he probably underwent one hundred years of ridicule from his friends and neighbors. Noah, why are you building an ark for a flood when there is no sign of rain?!
As I struggle through such faith-related issues, I find strength from Abraham’s walk with God. Before Abraham, there were great men like Adam and Noah. Yet, we find that it is starting with Abraham that God becomes more intimately known to a great multitude of people. Imagine how close Abraham must have been to his Maker for God to become known as the ‘God of Abraham.’
Genesis12:1-3 records God giving an important command to Abraham: “Leave your country, your people and your father’s household and go to the land I will show you. I will make you into a great nation and I will bless you; I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse; and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you.”
I wonder if it was easy for Abraham to pack his bags, leave his community, and begin walking towards a land about which he knew nothing. How easy would it be for you to leave your air-conditioned home, television programs, Internet access, favorite movies, and sports, and walk into the wilderness?
Abraham trusted God and obeyed His command. I consider this no small act of faith. Abraham was from the city of Ur in Babylonia. He was a city boy. Yet, he was willing to leave his place of comfort and assume a nomadic lifestyle. For the first several years of his journey, all Abraham had was a promise and nothing to show for it.
While we revere Abraham today as a man who received a great blessing from God, the truth is, he and his wife had to go through fire – a difficult test of faith – before they received what was promised. In Genesis 12:7, God said to Abraham, “To your offspring I will give this land.” The only problem with this promise was that, up to this point, Abraham and Sarah had been unable to produce any offspring.
Abraham was only human and so he tried to make the promise come true through his own hands. He decided to birth a son (Ishmael) through his maidservant Hagar. It was a mistake that would have profound implications.
Abraham experienced a great deal in his lifetime. As a source of tragedy, he saw the death and destruction of the city of Sodom. As a source of joy, he finally experienced the birth of his son Isaac through his wife Sarah.
But then came Abraham’s toughest test of all. God commanded him to sacrifice Isaac. I am not even sure how Abraham gathered the courage to obey God in this regard. It was a test to his very limits.
The story has a satisfying ending. Just as Abraham was about to obey the command, God stopped him and provided another sacrifice. I love this conclusion as it daily reminds me that I serve a God who is merciful and kind.
Dome of the Rock atop the Temple Mount in Jerusalem
Mount Moriah is where the near sacrifice of Isaac took place (Genesis 22:1-3). This is also where Solomon built the Temple of God (2 Chronicles 3:1-2) and where Jesus was crucified. The place was then called ‘Golgotha’. Today, it is popularly called the Temple Mount in Jerusalem. The Dome of The Rock, a famous Muslim site, currently sits on top of it.
I find it rather interesting that Abraham was neither a Jew nor an Arab, yet Jews look at Isaac and Arabs look at Ishmael as the beginning of their ancestries. The words of Genesis 12:7 have come true: “God said to Abraham, ‘To your offspring I will give this land.’”
I am not sure if I will ever have as much faith as Abraham did. Yet I do know that when God tells me to do something, I must do it. His promises are true, and God continues to be merciful and kind to all of us. May we experience Him in the most wonderful ways that Abraham did.
I completely agree with Amitabh and his write up wherein he cites Genesis 12:7 as the basis of God’s blessing to Abraham and his offspring. I also find it rather interesting that Abraham was neither a Jew nor an Arab, yet Jews look at Isaac and Arabs look at Ishmael as the beginning of their ancestries. The words of Genesis 12:7 have come true: “God said to Abraham, ‘To your offspring I will give this land.’”
About 4,000 years ago the ancestors of the Hebrews were wandering nomads.
The words of Genesis 12:7 have come true: “God said to Abraham, ‘To your offspring I will give this land.’”Biblical tradition says that Abraham, the founder of the line, came from Ur, but we cannot be sure that this was the Ur located in Mesopotamia. There are no records of these people except for the traditions laid down in the Bible many centuries later. The story says that Abraham entered Canaan briefly, and God promised him that his descendents would inherit the land.
This is the earliest mention of a claim which was to prove controversial right down to the present day. It is the religious basis of the tradition that Israel belongs to the Jewish people because it was promised to them by God. Of course a long string of other inhabitants, from the Canaanites and Philistines to the modern Arabs who call themselves “Palestinians,” have disagreed. This era, up to the entry into Egypt, is known as the era of the Patriarchs (fathers): people like Abraham, Isaac, and Joseph.
Thank you Raj for your valuable feedback.
We want to have faith and obey what God says. But many a times, we fail. It is not an easy task to have faith because we have to rely on things that we cannot see. Hearing the voice of God is not as difficult as it is to know His will. And knowing His will is not as difficult as it is to act accordingly (obey).
Sometimes it is hard to decide what our response should be towards a promise of God. We don’t know how to do our part. Many Christians keep reminding each other that God will fulfill His promises, but we have to do our part. For example, praying for a job and sitting at home will not yield any result. One has to apply for jobs also. Else we cannot expect God to provide us a job by sending some business head to come searching for us and invite us to go and work in his company. I think that was Abraham’s intention when he decided/agreed to have a child with Hagar. He must have thought that he also had a part to do. I think if I was a friend of Abraham and he consulted me on this matter, even I would have told him to do the same. I would have said “Of course you cannot expect God to fulfill His promise unless you do your part and have a child. So go in with Hagar”.
I agree that it was a mistake with serious implications in the future, but that was not really an act done with the intention to disobey God or being impatient with Him. It is just that Abraham probably did not know “how” God would fulfill His promise.
The might and the ways of the infinite God are way too high for any finite man to comprehend in a full manner. We can only strive to draw/walk closer and closer with Him and continue to grow in His wisdom and understanding, so that we are able to constantly reduce the nuber and the seriousness of the mistakes we commit and avert their consequences.
Enjoy reading your post “To your offspring I will give this land.” Awesome! Truly Inspiring!! Walking with God is immensely interesting and exciting. We walk with Him, not just by sight; but by faith. It’s truly adventurous.
Thank you Augustin for following the blog. It is always nice to hear from you. Please convey my regards to your family. Appreciate your friendship.
Excellent article which underpins the importance of having faith and putting it to action no matter what the world thinks. Thank you for the reminder.
Thank you Rajiv for following my blogs. Trust you are doing well.
‘Are Arabs the Desendants of Ishmael” ?
It was prophesied in Torah that Ishmael and his family would ” live to the east of all of his brothers ( Gen16:12) The desendants of Ishmael were scattered in Northern Arabia from the wilderness of Shur to the ancient city of Havilah ,abroad section of desert east of Egypt as one goes towards Assyria ( Gen 15:18) .They intermarried with the local population in North Arabia and produced several nomadic tribes known as the ‘ Ishmaelites”
The Ishmaelites are mentioned as a distinct tribe in the Assyrian record. They later intermarried with and were absorbed by the Midianites and other local tribes.In Gen37:25-28,39:1 the Ishmalites are called Midianites and in Judges 8;22-24 the Midianites are called the Ishmalites .The identification cannot be made any stronger .
Now Arabia was aalready populated by the desendants of Cush and Shem long before Abraham or Ishmael were born ( Gen10:7) Their cities and temples have been well documented by archelogists.The Arab people existed before ,during and after Ishmael started roaming the wilderness in North Africa.
There is no historical or archeological evidence that Ishmael went south of Mecca and became the’ Father’
There is no historical or archeological evidence that Ishmael became the ‘Father ‘ of the Arab race .Some modern Arab scholars admit that before Muhammad, Qahtan was said to be the “Father” of the Arab people ,not Ishmael.
The Abrahamic Covenant was given only to Issac and to his decsendants.Ishmael and the others sons of Abraham were explicitly excluded by God fromhaving anypart of the covenant made with Abraham ( Gen 18:18-21) Isaac was the only son of Abraham chosen by God to be the heir of the covenant.
According to Gen22:3 is was Isaac who Abraham took to Mt Moriah to be offered up to God as a sacrifice ….But the Quaran in the scripture of Islam,states that Ishmael was the son Abraham offered to God .
Never argue with a Muslim.Instead ,gently take him through the Ten Commandments .In doing so ,you will circumnvent the intellect ( the place of argument) and speak directly to his conscience( the place of conviction) It is not our job to reveal the deity of Christ to him .That the job of the God ( Matt 16:170..
i myself have been confused over Ishmael and therefore made a indept study please refer to the Evidence Bible KJV By Ray Comfort .
Encyclopedia Britannica says: “Arabian literature has its own version of prehistoric times, but it is entirely legendary”. The Arab genealogies was written over 2000 years after the birth of Ishmael, and they did not have reliable genealogies past Muhammad’s forefather Adnan. To your statement ‘There is no historical or archeological evidence that Ishmael became the ‘Father ‘ of the Arab race’, I would say I don’t know beyond what I have stated in my blog.
These past two months i have been going through a mixed emotional time,but last week when i prayed in my devotion God gave me verses abt Abraham and his faith the same thing u spoke about. He has even told me to follow some commands which i was confused abt @ like u mentioned if i will receive what i keep my faith @ Gods plan for me.But after reading this passage i know GOD will give me the strength to keep pressing on @ I WILL receive his promises@ cant wait to see for his blessin.however thank u so much Amitabh bhai it was so encouraging.Pls keep me in ur prayers.love @ blessings.
Thank you Sarita for taking the time to share. I will be keeping you in my prayers and wish you the very best for the future. Appreciate your thoughts and staying in touch.