Daily Devotions
Genesis
"Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all His benefits." Psalm 103:2
Text: Genesis 12:1-20
A CLOSER LOOK AT THE PROMISE OF BLESSING
Let us take an even more careful look at the blessing that God promised Abram. There are actually a number of blessings. They are distinguishable one from another, and yet they are also closely related. Let us examine these four blessings carefully.
“I will bless you…
And You shall be a blessing…
I will bless those who bless you…
And in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed…”GENESIS 12:2-3
1. A Personal Blessing
There was a personal blessing in store for Abraham. God would make his name great. He would become a father of a nation! This is a great personal blessing indeed!
2. A Channel of Blessing
Abram would become a special channel of blessing to others! God would use him as a special source of blessing to many others, and not just his immediate family.
3. A Catalyst-Source of blessing
This is a most interesting concept. Two aspects may be singled out for special observation.
a) There would be those who would bless Abram
These would be his friends and allies. Those who befriended Abram would be blessed because of their relationship with him.
b) There would be those who would curse Abram
This must not be unexpected. In life there would always be those who would stand in opposition! Those who cursed Abram because they hate him would find that they have made an enemy of God Himself.
4. A Prophetic Promise of Blessing
The prophetic element must not be missed! The Apostle Paul expounded on this concept in the following text.
“And the Scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the Gentiles
By faith, preached the gospel to Abraham beforehand, saying,
‘In you all the nations shall be blessed.’ So then those who
are of faith are blessed with believing Abraham.”GALATIANS 3:8-9
TREMENDOUS DEPTH IN GOD’S WORD
How we must be humbled each time we read God’s Word! Seemingly simple words contain such rich treasures! Let us never take God’s Word lightly. The Psalmist was right when he wrote, “Your thoughts are very deep” (Cf. Psalm 92:5b).