August 1

“I will make you into a great nation, and I will bless you; I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing.”—GENESIS 12:2-3

In the above passage, there are two things we need to look for. There are the particulars, which include the personalities, the place, and the purpose. From historical context, there are also principles which extend more widely and deeply that are relevant beyond the immediate context.

Israel was to be a great nation that would receive remarkable blessings from God. But the end purpose of those blessings was that they would bless the people of the world. 

The mistake the descendants of Abraham made was to read only the parts of the promise they rejoiced in. “I will make you into a great nation. I will bless you. I will make your name great.” Rather than being transmitters of the blessing to the world, they saw themselves primarily as the recipients of the blessing, and to such an extent that it became their quest in life.

Throughout the history of the Israelite people, they had adopted an elite sense of being God’s chosen, which they were, but for what purpose? To be a blessing to the world. They had failed to go under the surface and out to the edges of the particulars to look at the much wider and far more enduring principle of becoming a blessing to the world.

The fulfillment of God’s promise was in sending His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, through the line of Abraham, who would become the means of blessing the world. 

Abraham’s calling was not only for his life or for his descendents, but for multiple generations that would follow, including every tongue, every nation, every tribe. Alongside God’s responsibilities, which are His promises and always the greater part to uphold, are the responsibilities of Abraham, which involved obedience. In the Christian life, we have to have both. There is an “in with Christ” and an “out to people”; in for worship and out for witness; in for sustenance and out for service; in for blessing, out for battle; in for resources and out for responsibilities. All these must be kept in good balance together.

If we are serious about doing business with God, we need to get connected to our world; to get interested and active so that we may become a blessing to it. And in turn, God blesses us, but the richness, depth and lifegiving nature of His blessings become greater the more we become a blessing to others.

PRAYER: Dear Lord, lead me into the much wider path of this world and help me to become a blessing to others. Thank You, Lord.

TO REFLECT UPON: Do I look past my own blessings to see how I can turn them into blessings for others?