Ok, so you may have noticed that I did not post anything yesterday. I did not do my reading, I must admit. I spent the whole morning at church though, doing a 5K run/walk to help support missions. I walked. I could not run the whole course! Especially those hills! Anywho, we had a blast! Now on to chapter 12.
Genesis 12:1 The Lord had said to Abram, “Go from your country, your people and your father’s household to the land I will show you.
2 “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.
3 I will bless those who bless you,
and whoever curses you I will curse;
and all peoples on earth
will be blessed through you.”
God gave Abram a promise. I will bless you and make you a great nation. That great nation was to be Israel. This passage also points to Christ. "and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you." Through Abram would come the Christ. Jesus was Abram's descendant.
Genesis 12:4 So Abram went, as the Lord had told him; and Lot went with him. Abram was seventy-five years old when he set out from Harran. 5 He took his wife Sarai, his nephew Lot, all the possessions they had accumulated and the people they had acquired in Harran, and they set out for the land of Canaan, and they arrived there.
Abram, like Noah, did as the Lord told him.
Genesis 12:6 Abram traveled through the land as far as the site of the great tree of Moreh at Shechem. At that time the Canaanites were in the land. 7 The Lord appeared to Abram and said, “To your offspring I will give this land.” So he built an altar there to the Lord, who had appeared to him.
God gave Abram another promise here. His descendants would get control of the Land of Canaan. This promise is fulfilled upon Moses's death when Joshua takes the people into the "Promised Land" of Canaan.
Genesis 12:8 From there he went on toward the hills east of Bethel and 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 Then Abram set out and continued toward the Negev.
Abram called on the name of the Lord. What did this mean for Abram? I've gotten curious about digging into this section and knowing what it really means. I understand the meaning in the New Testament but in the Old Testament I've always thought of it as worship.
In the New Testament, we read:
Romans 10:13 “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”
Now, most of the time this verse is taken out of context and people want to say all I have to do is say a prayer and call on his name and I will go to heaven. Well, it isn't that easy.
This verse must be put in context:
Romans 10:12 For there is no difference between Jew and Gentile—the same Lord is Lord of all and richly blesses all who call on him, 13 for, “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”
14 How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them?
The "Everyone" here seems to indicate that Paul was stating that any person can be saved, no matter is he is Jew or Gentile. However he goes on to say you cannot just merely pray and be saved. This verse says you must also hear the gospel and BELIEVE it. If you do not believe it, then you are not saved.
1 Corinthians 1:2 To the church of God in Corinth, to those sanctified in Christ Jesus and called to be his holy people, together with all those everywhere who call on the name of our Lord Jesus Christ
Here in Corinthians, we see that those who call on the name of the Lord are members of the church, those who are sanctified in Jesus. You must be saved in order to call on his name. But you may think, but Paul said in Romans you must call to be saved. Not so. You are called by God. No one is saved on their own. God must call them first and then they will call on him. You will not call on God of your own accord. God much choose you first. Now God can choose anyone he wants. That means anyone can "call on the name of the Lord" as long and God calls him first:
Romans 9:14 What then shall we say? Is God unjust? Not at all! 15 For he says to Moses,
“I will have mercy on whom I have mercy,
and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion.”
16 It does not, therefore, depend on human desire or effort, but on God’s mercy.
So, simply saying a prayer cannot save you. God must first call you and then you can call on God.
Now all this does not address how "calling on the name of the Lord" is used in the Old Testament. So far we've seen Noah and Abram both call on the name of the Lord. What does this mean? I mentioned before that I have always seen this as an act of worship. Merely praising God. My husband led me to this passage in Psalms to help me further understand the meaning.
Psalms 145:13 Your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom,
and your dominion endures through all generations.
The Lord is trustworthy in all he promises
and faithful in all he does.
14 The Lord upholds all who fall
and lifts up all who are bowed down.
15 The eyes of all look to you,
and you give them their food at the proper time.
16 You open your hand
and satisfy the desires of every living thing.
17 The Lord is righteous in all his ways
and faithful in all he does.
18 The Lord is near to all who call on him,
to all who call on him in truth.
19 He fulfills the desires of those who fear him;
he hears their cry and saves them.
20 The Lord watches over all who love him,
but all the wicked he will destroy.
21 My mouth will speak in praise of the Lord.
Let every creature praise his holy name
for ever and ever.
Here David called on the name of the Lord in praise. He also shows how calling on the name of the Lord seeking the Lord to provide nourishment and protection.
Well, my time is up for the little one is up from her nap and is calling on my name for her nourishment!
No comments:
Post a Comment