Stepping Out In Faith

Genesis 12:1-8

How would you feel if you woke up one day, and you heard the Lord distinctly tell you to pack up, leave your family, and move to another country, just like that?  For some people, not knowing exactly where they are heading, and not having a sure home and job ready and waiting for them when they get there, is an exciting adventure.  But for others, like myself, this would be a very stressful.  This was just what Abraham was called upon to do.  At the close of the previous chapter in Genesis, we see that Abraham’s father, Terah, had taken his family from the city of Ur (near the mouth of the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers), and moved northwest to the smaller city of Haran, over 575 miles.

After Terah died, the Lord spoke to Abraham, and told him to leave his family and his home, and go to a land He will tell him of.  Abraham was about 75 years old at this time, definitely a senior citizen.  With no maps, no realtor waiting with a nice home or condo for him to move into, no friends or relatives to greet him, Abraham took his wife and nephew, packed up his belongings, and set off for an unknown land, another almost 500 miles.  That took faith and trust, leaving everything he knew behind, and leave, not knowing where he was going, as God had not stated a specific destination.  This is the first of many times where we see that Abraham was a man of strong faith.  The Bible hadn’t been written yet, so he couldn’t look up favorite Scripture passages to boost his faith, like we can do.  According to Joshua 24:2, his father, Terah, had worshipped idols and false gods, so there was no faith tradition or support from the family.  Abraham and his wife, Sarah, were alone in following God.  Yet he stepped out in obedience and faith, trusting God to take care of him.

When God saw that Abraham obeyed, and that he trusted Him, He gave His first of several pronouncements of the Abrahamic Covenant (vs 2-3).  Because of Abraham’s faith and obedience, God promised him descendants who would become a great nation, that the world would be blessed through him, and that God would bless those who bless him, and curse those who curse him.  The blessings and cursings don’t fall just upon Abraham himself, but also upon his spiritual descendants as well, those who have placed their faith and trust in the Lord Jesus Christ (Galatians 3:7-9).

Abraham showed his faith and trust in God when he stepped out in faith, not knowing where he was going, but believed that if God said it, He would perform it and carry it through.  The reward of blessings always follows obedience.  God speaks, we obey, then He blesses, in that order.  When God first promised Abraham here that He would make of him a great nation, that implied that he would have descendants.  At his and Sarah’s great age?!  Abraham believed, though.  He focused not on the obstacle of their great ages, but instead focused on God’s promise.

When we are faced with some scary change in our life, something equally as momentous as being told to pack up and leave everything we’ve known, like Abraham was told, we should neither panic, nor trust in our own strength or wisdom to get us through.  Instead, like Abraham did, we need to obey, and set our faith and trust on the only thing that is truly sure - the Lord God and His promises.  He alone can turn a difficult change into something good, like He did for Abraham, but only if we step out in faith and trust.  We can trust Him, as He’s never gone back on His Word