Showed the Land

Showed the Land

Genesis 12: ⁷ Then the Lord appeared to Abram and said, “To your descendants I will give this land.” And there he built an altar to the Lord, who had appeared to him. ⁸ And he moved from there to the mountain east of Bethel, and he pitched his tent with Bethel on the west and Ai on the east; there he built an altar to the Lord and called on the name of the Lord. ⁹ So Abram journeyed, going on still toward the South.

 

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After months of travel, the LORD appeared to Abram. They must have made many stops, wondering “is this the place?” But when they arrived at a certain place, the LORD appeared.

 

My Observations:

• Abram had to travel for weeks or even months without knowing where GOD was going to appear.
• Abram had to have faith to keep walking, even though people may have had questions about where they were going.
• Abram was probably relieved when the LORD appeared, so he built an altar to mark the location of their conversation.

 

Even though the LORD said HE would “give this land” to Abram, he kept walking. Abram already believed the promise GOD made with him regarding the land. But there seemed like there was more to do. He probably told everyone “This is the place” but went to possibly see who surrounded him.

 

Raised with some of the Chaldean knowledge, Abram may have wanted to see what could happen or what resources were available. He accepted that he and his descendants would one day live on the land shown by the LORD.

 

Challenge

• Why do you think the LORD did not tell Abram about the location in the first place?
• Has GOD ever told you to do something without giving you all the details?
• Can you walk by faith in GOD today, even though you may not have all the details?