Let Goods and Kindred Go (Gen. 12:1-9)

Sylvania College and Career (3/27/2011)

Intro:

We’ve made it through the first eleven chapters. Today we begin studying the call of Abram. Remember what we discussed last week, that Terah, Abram’s father, only got as far as Haran. God deals differently with Abram than He does with his father or brother even though they were all seemed to be heading in the right direction.

[Gen. 12:1-9]

I. Go

What does God tell Abram to go from?

Country – put skin on this. Put yourself in Abram’s place.

Borders, culture, language. Everything he had ever known. His livelihood. Had accumulated possession, people. Obviously some means of gaining wealth. Haran was a city of commerce.

Kindred – Most likely worshipped the city-state god, Nanna, for 75 years.

Polytheism alters your understanding of church and state. Because the gods were hierarchical, gods were worshipped according to your social status.

While state religion focused on gods connected with major temples in the city, most families would feel like they had no access to those gods. Instead, they tended to turn to their family and ancestral gods, who would be more interested in their situation and might take up their cause to the greater gods.

In Mesopotamia, ancestors who died were many time shuffled into the mix with the family gods. There would be a “cult” of ancestors. These gods were looked to for provision of a sound reputation, social success, material prosperity, and, of course, lots of kids.

Father’s house – Imagine being in that scenario. Father had you at 70 and you’re 75.

Terah is an old man. He’s already lost one son “in his presence”. Did Haran die in front of Terah? In their worldview grid, if something evil happened to you, like losing a child, it was because you had offended a god. Your community backed off from you for fear of it rubbing off and having the god angry at them as well.

Abram goes to Terah and tells him that God appeared to him and he is going to leave everything and head toward Canaan. Maybe this happened back in Ur or on the way to Haran. The Text leaves some ambiguity in the phrase “the Lord had said to Abram”. Perhaps in chapter 12 we are reading a reiteration of that call. Stephen indicates that it happened before they got to Haran in Acts 7.

Regardless of when it happened, what’s Terah’s response? Not only will he now lose another son, but the grandchild of the one he lost is going with Abram. He’s effectively lost two sons. I find it peculiar that Terah spent the rest of his days in a city bearing the name of the son who died. I don’t know that there’s much we can attach to that, I just find it curious.

Do you think Abram was wrestling with concern for his father?

II. Land, Babies and a Great Name of Blessing

What does God promise?

The Land – a new country. A better country as it says in Hebrews 11:16.

Great Nation – not merely descendants. Not just, you’ll have lots of kids, grandkids, and great grandkids…a nation of kindred.

I will – I count five “I wills” from God. I will bless you. Make your name great. Because my name is great.

He’s telling Abram that He will protect him, provide him cover, provide him a good reputation. He’s promising the things that a father provides for their child. “Go from your father’s house and cling to me. I stake my name on making your name great.” (Even changes the name Terah gave him).

While I was studying for this, I was reminded of that passage in each of the synoptic Gospels, Matthew, Mark, and Luke, where, after the rich young ruler leaves, Peter humbly says, “Then Peter said in reply, “See, we have left everything and followed you. What then will we have?” (Matthew 19:27; Mark 10:28; Luke 18:28)

Jesus makes this statement in Matthew’s account.

[28] Jesus said to them, “Truly, I say to you, in the new world, when the Son of Man will sit on his glorious throne, you who have followed me will also sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel. [29] And everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or children or lands, for my name's sake, will receive a hundredfold and will inherit eternal life. [30] But many who are first will be last, and the last first. (Matthew 19:28-30)

What is Abram’s response?

It’s worth it. God is worth it. As relayed in the Text, his obedience is striking. There doesn’t seem to be a hint of hesitation. Terah may have tagged along as far as Haran, but Abram is on the way. This is not a young man in a van wanting to see the country. Abram is 75.

III. Spoken Promises

Consider the radical nature of this call.

This is the first recorded contact between God and Abram.

Is there any coaxing here?

Urgent command to leave.

Any indication of a list of rules to follow so that God will be forced to make good on these promises?

Any indication of what it was about Abram that enticed God to make these promises to him and not his father or brother?

This was a spoken promise. In Abram’s culture, the image of the gods represent their presence of the deity in the temple. Here, there is no image. Elsewhere we learn that glory appeared, but we don’t know what that means. I would argue that God’s glory to Abram is that He spoke out of the silence.

The promise was unilateral. Obedience and worship follow. (Gen. 12:8)

IV. If you belong to Christ…

A theme in Scripture is the fulfillment of promises. A promise many times will have multiple instances of fulfillment throughout redemptive history; each one better than the one before.

God promises that childless Abram will be the father of a great nation that will bless the nations of the earth. In v.7, He promises to give Abram’s offspring the land of Canaan.

• Isaac is miraculously born and the nation begins. Takes on steam with Jacob and his twelve sons. But that’s not the end of it.

• Moses and the covenant at Sinai. Not simply Abram’s family, but a nation constituted by God and holy to Him. In Joshua, we see the fulfillment of the land promise, but that’s not the end of it.

• The land and the blessing to the nations promise find fulfillment in Solomon. Nations are blessed by his wisdom and for the first time the entire promised nation is under Israel’s control. There is rest on every side, but that’s not the end of it.

• Paul makes it clear that the true promised offspring of Abram was not Isaac, Jacob, David or Solomon. It was Jesus. (Gal. 3:16) In Christ, all nations are blessed through faith in His finished work on the cross. (Eph. 3:6 “This mystery is that…”) Once again, Abram’s family is homeless, but that’s not the end of it.

• According to Hebrews 4 and Revelation 21-22, the promises of a great nation in the land under God’s blessing and rule find their final fulfillment in a new heaven and a new earth. All of the people of God, Old and New Testament, form one new humanity (Eph. 2:14-22) in God’s perfect new creation.

For the promise to Abraham and his offspring that he would be heir of the world did not come through the law but through the righteousness of faith. (Romans 4:13)

For if Joshua had given them rest, God would not have spoken of another day later on. So then, there remains a Sabbath rest for the people of God, for whoever has entered God's rest has also rested from his works as God did from his. (Hebrews 4:8-10)

What do we do with this tomorrow morning?

And if you are Christ's, then you are Abraham's offspring, heirs according to promise. (Galatians 3:29)

If this is true, it is our family business that through us all the nations of the earth will be blessed. How’s that? God has condescended to use us to bring them Christ.

God called a moon worshipper to bless him. He sent blessed Abram into cursed Canaan to make it holy, to redeem it.

What land, what people will He choose to redeem using you? Are you ready? Are you prepared? Will you go because He is worth it?