Waiting For The Promise

Genesis 15:1-18

How many of you ever had a promise made to you, perhaps by a parent, a spouse, or a good friend, yet you didn’t see that promise being kept?  Your faith or trust in that person might diminish after that. In our Scripture passage today from the Book of Genesis, we read about Abram (whose name was later changed to Abraham) and the promise that God made to him.  Though it took many years before he saw that promise come to pass, Abram never slacked in his faith in God.

Abram and his wife Sarai (later renamed Sarah) were an elderly couple who never had any children.  A couple of chapters prior to our passage for today, God had promised Abram that he would have a child, and that he would be the father of a nation (Genesis 12:2-3). Abram was 75 and his wife 65 at that time. Now he was well into his 80’s, and still no child. After rescuing his wayward nephew Lot, who was held hostage in the middle of a battle between several kings, the Lord appeared to Abram in a vision, promising that He would always be his shield and reward (vs. 1).  God would always protect him and bless him. Abram thought on this, and though the Lord had abundantly blessed him financially, as he was an extremely wealthy man, he was still childless. Abram knew that God had promised him descendents, but that was about ten years ago, and at this time his heir was his chief steward, Eliezer, a servant.  Abram loved God, and had a strong enough relationship with Him that he felt free to remind God of this fact (vs. 2-3).

God did not get angry at Abram for bringing up the fact that after many years, the promise He made to him is still unfulfilled.  God takes Abram outside and shows him the myriad of stars in the night sky, and promises that his descendants will be as many as all the stars in the sky (vs. 4-5).  Here is Abram, now in his mid-eighties, and his wife, Sarai, is in her mid-seventies, both well beyond any natural expectation of having any children. Yet God is renewing His promise of children to this elderly couple.  This is seemingly beyond credibility, yet what does Abram do? In verse 6 we read that Abram believed the Lord. He had faith. He took God at His word, even though he and his wife were well past child-bearing age.

Verse 6 continues, saying that because Abram believed Him, God counted it to him for righteousness.  It was Abram’s belief in, trust in, and faith in God that made him right with Him. It wasn’t any actions or works that did this.  Abram didn’t need to give any huge offering or go on any pilgrimage. He didn’t need to start a homeless shelter or any other good work.  Abram’s right relationship with God is based on faith - believing that God is who He says He is, and does what He says He will do. Even when Abram did not see how God would fulfill His promise for an heir, he trusted the Lord anyway.

This is the same way that we get saved.  It is not any good works that we do that makes us righteous in God’s eyes.  It is through belief and faith in God (Titus 3:5; Romans 4:6). When we have faith, like Abram did, God saves us and we are brought in to His family.

To show that He was assuring this promise to Abram, God made a suzerain covenant, which is a treaty between two unequal parties, one party being a superior (such as a king or lord), to the other party (such as a subject) (vs. 9-17).  In ancient Biblical times with this type of covenant the animals would be brought for a sacrifice, and they would be cut in half and placed in two rows. The superior would walk between the sacrifice, publicly declaring he would keep the covenant.  If he failed to, he would become like the slain animals. God performed this to guarantee His promises to Abram. Centuries later, God made a covenant with mankind when His only begotten Son, Jesus Christ, became the sacrifice for us when He shed His Blood and gave His life on the cross of Calvary.

God’s timetable and ours are often different.  We want things right away. We do not like to wait.  God does not share our urgency for having something immediately.  He often makes us wait for answers to our prayers. Like Abram, we need to practice faith and trust.  He had waited about ten years already, and it would be another fifteen before the promised son, Isaac would be born.  Like faithful, trusting Abram, let’s trust and believe.