As for me, this is my covenant with you: You will be the father of many nations. No longer will you be called Abram; your name will be Abraham, for I have made you a father of many nations. I will make you very fruitful; I will make nations of you, and kings will come from you. I will establish my covenant as an everlasting covenant between me and you and your descendants after you for the generations to come, to be your God and the God of your descendants after you.
Genesis 17:4-7
The Lord promised Abraham in Genesis 17 that he would be the father of many nations. We see the fulfillment of that promise beginning in Genesis 21 with the birth of Isaac. It required faith on the part of Abraham and Sarah to believe that the Lord would fulfill His promise to them. In fact,
Abraham and Sarah initially laughed when they heard that two people their age would have a child. Sarah even tried to fulfill the promise herself by giving her servant Hagar to Abraham to produce the promised child.
Followers of Christ enter into a covenant with God to obey His Word and to enter into His promises. Often we struggle believing these promises.
We try to control situations rather than choosing to trust the Lord and allow Him to fulfill His promises. Joseph learned in a dream that He would be a man of influence and that even his brothers would one day bow down to him. God had promised him that his life would be one of influence and power. But he ended up in prison. I imagine he wondered if God’s promise was really true or if it was just his active imagination.
Has God spoken a promise to you and now you wonder if it was just your wishful thinking? He has promised that He is faithful to His Word and that His purposes will stand the test of time. God’s timing is often not our timing and His ways are not our ways, which causes us trouble as we wait on His promises to be fulfilled.
Peter writes that God has given us everything that we need through our knowledge of Him. (2 Peter 1:3) As we grow in our understanding of the character of God, we will be better equipped to hold onto His promises. As we learn that He is faithful, consistent, full of compassion, and understanding, we will be able to trust Him. He wants what is best for us, and all of His promises are for our good.
Are you discouraged as you wait on the fulfillment of His promise? Seek to know God, and He will disclose His Word to you. Wait on His promises. He never fails.
Heavenly Father, Lord, I knock and keep on asking for doors to open in my life. Forgive me where I have spent more time seeking those things than searching for You. Help me trust You and know that Your timing is perfect. In Jesus’ name, Amen
