Receiving God’s promises entails engaging in God’s plans. Abram had been on a journey of faith in God since he left Ur years before. Genesis 12: 1The Lord had said to Abram, “Leave your native country, your relatives, and your father’s family, and go to the land that I will show you. 2 I will make you into a great nation. I will bless you and make you famous, and you will be a blessing to others. 3 I will bless those who bless you and curse those who treat you with contempt. All the families on earth will be blessed through you.”[1]
He had left Ur at God’s command but paused in Haran until his father died. During that time, God did not speak to him. When Abram arrived in Canaan, God provided him with additional information. Genesis 12: 7 Then the Lord appeared to Abram and said, “I will give this land to your descendants.”[2] Even though Abram heard God’s promises and plans, he had to act on that information for the plans to move ahead.
A New Request
Now, after a sojourn to Egypt and a battle to save Lot, God made a new request. Genesis 15: 7 Then the Lord told him, “I am the Lord who brought you out of Ur of the Chaldeans to give you this land as your possession…” 9 The Lord told him, “Bring me a three-year-old heifer, a three-year-old female goat, a three-year-old ram, a turtledove, and a young pigeon.” 10 So Abram presented all these to him and killed them. Then he cut each animal down the middle and laid the halves side by side; he did not, however, cut the birds in half.[3]
God reminded Abram of what He had done so far and then made a request to cut a covenant with Him. This was a solemn ritual of making a promise. Essentially, if the ones making the agreement failed to keep their word, they deserved the same fate as the animals. Again, we see Abram engaging in God’s plans as he obediently killed the animals and then protected them. Genesis 15: 11 Some vultures swooped down to eat the carcasses, but Abram chased them away. [4]
God’s Plan Involves Our Action
We can’t earn our salvation. Jesus paid the price for our sins and offers salvation as a gift to those who believe. Ephesians 2: 8 God saved you by his grace when you believed. And you can’t take credit for this; it is a gift from God. 9 Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it. 10 For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago.[5]
God did not make us robots and gave us free will. We can refuse to believe God or follow the leading of the Holy Spirit and follow Him. To engage in God’s plan, we must first place our faith in Jesus. Then we begin our faith journey, and like Abram, God will continue to reveal His plans for us. God makes us new creations to fulfill His good plans.
To learn more, listen here:
https://podpoint.com/light-of-christ-church-podcast/faith-in-the-darkness
[1-5] Tyndale House Publishers. (2015). Holy Bible: New Living Translation . Tyndale House Publishers.