Genesis 17:1-2(NLT) tells us that when Abram was 99 years old, God came to him and said, “I am El-Shaddai—‘God Almighty.’ Serve me faithfully and live a blameless life. I will make a covenant with you, by which I will guarantee to give you countless descendants.” One of the important aspects of the Book of Genesis is its emphasis on relationships. God reveals wisdom, instruction, and requirements concerning His relationship with creation, His relationship with us, and our relationships with one another. In His conversation with Abram, we witness God’s interest and desire for a meaningful friendship. The foundation of this friendship is a partnership that is established on God’s promise and Abram’s commitment to be faithful to believe and trust it.
God made this promise to Abram years before the record in Genesis 17. During the interim, Abram walked in fellowship with Heavenly Father, but it isn’t hard to imagine that Abram might have thought God forgot about the promise He had made 13 years prior. We must take note that God never forgets, and His timing is always perfect. It was Abram’s destiny to become a man of great faith, and God took the time to mature Abram’s faith and establish the kind of relationship He wanted with Abram. Heavenly Father was giving Abram the blessed opportunity to know Him better and better with each passing day. He does the same thing with each of us.
Although it had been many years since the initial promise, Abram’s response was one of humility. This was a choice that demonstrated faith, gratitude, and willingness. Genesis 17:3(NLT) says, “At this, Abram fell face down on the ground.” To fall face down as Abram did is to assume a posture of reverence and submission. Our Heavenly Father took notice and said to him in Genesis 17:4(NLT), “This is my covenant with you: I will make you the father of a multitude of nations!” It would be a mistake if we did not consume and digest every detail of these four verses, because they are extremely beneficial to our relationship with God and our journey forward and upward in Christ.
The first thing that God did in this exchange is identify Himself as ‘El-Shaddai—‘God Almighty’. This is a profound detail that reeks of intimacy. God is God all by Himself. He is the “Great I Am.” In less time than a blink of an eye, God could make us and everything we know disappear, and He can do so to such a degree that it would be as if we and the entire universe never existed. All power belongs to God, yet, in the splendor of His superior majesty and humility, He made Himself known to a mere mortal like Abram.
In Genesis 17:1-4, we can ascertain the Will of God very clearly. It was to establish a friendly and intimate relationship where God and man work together according to His Will and Plan. And in this partnership, Heavenly Father makes the terms very precise; it will be a partnership where He is the Rewarder and Abram is the recipient.
Through His covenant with Abram, God demonstrates His love and caring, and He also reveals how highly He values and esteems those who honor Him. Our Heavenly Father obligates Himself to those who love and reverence Him. This is a truth that is almost too overwhelming to conceive. He owes us nothing, but Romans 8:32 affirms that He has freely given us all things in Jesus Christ, His only begotten Son. God didn’t have to identify Himself to Abram, nor did He have to tell Abram what He was going to do. He could have done whatever He pleased with or without Abram’s cooperation. So, the question you and I must ask is why? Why did God take such time and care to share with Abram the way He did?
The answer to this question can be summed up in one word, relationship. God is love! It pleases Him to partner with us in love, and it pleases Him to work in, by, with, and through us to achieve His Will and purpose. Even though He has all power, He will not overstep the free-will that He’s given us. He constrains Himself by His love, and His love is governed by order and truth.
As a symbol of their partnership, God told Abram in Genesis 17:5(NLT), “What’s more, I am changing your name. It will no longer be Abram. Instead, you will be called Abraham, for you will be the father of many nations.” It’s important that we comprehend the time that God put into His relationship with Abraham, and the time it took for Abram to transition to Abraham. It allows us to see that we don’t become the men and women we were destined to be overnight. Our relationship with God must be walked out over time, and this is all due to His amazing mercy and grace. He doesn’t rush us, nor did He make things in such a way that we automatically become perfectly obedient and humbled before Him. It’s a process and this is the way He orchestrated His relationship with us to flow.
God works with us, and He is always the One to initiate first, because He’s the One that makes the promises to us in His Word for our provision, protection, and care. God’s relationship and partnership with Abraham teaches us that our acknowledgement and gratitude for who God is and what He’s done for us through Jesus Christ is required. There must be a response from us that solidifies we understand who God is and we understand the promises He’s made to us. Many believers forget this very necessary practice.
Our responsibility as God’s children is to read and study God’s Word, pray continually for ourselves and others, meditate on God’s Word and goodness, be a blessing to others by sharing and caring, and most importantly spend quality time with God through His precious Holy Spirit. These things are not laborious. They are not work. They are responses of gratitude and worship towards God for all that He has done for us through Jesus Christ. Everything we do for God’s Kingdom acknowledges our level of reverence for our relationship with God. As we walk in diligence, patience, and faith in Him, like He did with Abraham, God will continue to help us grow and be the men and women of great faith that He wants us to be. ■
Scripture quotations marked (NLT) are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. All rights reserved.
“A Partnership Built on Great Faith” written by Reverend Fran Mack, edited by Kim Times, for Sundie Morning Sistas ©2022. All rights reserved. All done to the glory of God through Jesus Christ, our Lord!