A Great Name: Part 6

Genesis 17:1-8

“1 When Abram was ninety-nine years old, the Lord appeared to Abram and said to him, “I am God Almighty; walk before me, and be blameless. 2 And I will make my covenant between me and you and will make you exceedingly numerous.” 3 Then Abram fell on his face, and God said to him, 4 “As for me, this is my covenant with you: You shall be the ancestor of a multitude of nations. 5 No longer shall your name be Abram, but your name shall be Abraham, for I have made you the ancestor of a multitude of nations. 6 I will make you exceedingly fruitful, and I will make nations of you, and kings shall come from you. 7 I will establish my covenant between me and you and your offspring after you throughout their generations, for an everlasting covenant, to be God to you and to your offspring after you. 8 And I will give to you and to your offspring after you the land where you are now an alien, all the land of Canaan, for a perpetual holding, and I will be their God.”

God gave Abram a new name.  Abraham means “father of many” and was to be a reminder of God’s promise, of the covenant that existed between Abraham and God.

It was also a reminder that all of the things Abraham had and would have, everything he had accomplished and would accomplish was because of God.  

Abraham’s life was to be a monument to God’s promise, a monument to honor God.

Our lives as Christians are to be a reflection of Christ in the world.  Our monument is not to be a lavish church building, but a humble life of faith, love and obedience to the teachings of Christ.

May the love of Christ be with you,

Rev. Eric Lanier (Retired)