God made a global changing promise to Abraham, that “all peoples on earth” would be “blessed through him” (Genesis 12:3). Is there any evidence, therefore, that God began that process through Abraham – and that he’s continuing it today?
God provided at least four points of evidence: the first that he’d make Abraham into “a great nation” (12:2) fathering many nations and kings (17:4-6); the second, that despite being childless into his old age Abraham would have a child and a family of his own (15:2, 4); the third that he’d have so many descendants it would be hard to count them all (15:5, 16:10); and the fourth a promise of “an everlasting possession of land” in which he and his descendants would live and God would be with them (15:18-21, 17:8).
And there’s plenty of evidence in the Old Testament that God fulfilled those promises in Abraham’s personal life and in the nation of Israel that grew from him. But if all those promises are meant for today as well, as continuing evidence of God blessing the whole world, where is the family God promised Abraham now? And where is the great nation fathering many nations? Who and where are all Abraham’s uncountable descendants too? And what land are they in where God is present with them?
It’s Paul in the New Testament who sets about answering all those questions for us, and in so doing he confirms that all those blessings God promised Abraham are for today as well. Like the first question about Abraham being promised a family and where that family is today. Paul answers that in Romans 4:16, that all those with faith like Abraham’s are “Abraham’s offspring” too.
In the original promise, Isaac was Abraham’s offspring, but from Paul we find out that God extended that promise into our day, and expanded it hugely too, to give Abraham many offspring. It’s why Paul describes Abraham as “the father of us all” in verse 16. Because it’s through Abraham that God got things started, and through Abraham’s growing family that he’s continuing to fulfill his global blessing promise in those who believe as Abraham did.
Abraham’s belief, therefore, not only got him a physical son, it got him a whole raft of offspring piling up in the future as well, as proof that God really is being true to his promise of blessing the whole world through him.
But being Abraham’s offspring is just one of the four promises God made to Abraham. To the next blog, then: “Are all God’s promises to Abraham continuing today?”
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