- Will be a Blessing
Genesis 12:2 And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing.
This seminal promise given to Abraham sets in motion the rest of salvation history and forms the foundation of our salvation story. The Abrahamic Promise is three-fold: land, offspring, and blessing to the nations. These were fulfilled completely and only in the Messiah Jesus. Jesus brings us into the Kingdom (land) of God, heaven, paradise, the blessed presence of God. Jesus is the offspring, the Seed of the woman, the God entering human flesh to save created humans. Jesus is the blessing to the nations, all the people of the earth who can secure blessing only in the Christ. The unfolding story of God’s salvation begins in Genesis 12 with the call to Abraham.
God promises Abraham that he will become a great nation. The nation is the church, made up all believers in Jesus Christ, just like Abraham, who believed God and it was counted unto him as righteousness. Abraham will have a Great Descendant who will usher believers into the great nation by faith in Christ. It is edifying for us as individuals to realize that each of us is a part of something really big and eternal, even though for now it is spiritual. In order for Abraham to become a great nation he would first have to have a son. God granted a son, Isaac, 25 years later.
God promised Abraham that He will bless him and he will be a blessing. This came true symbolically as God made him materially wealthy and blessed. God blessed him spiritually for He gave him faith to believe God for what seemed impossible. The promise for us is that God promises to bless us with the faith of Abraham. We, too, may believe God for the impossible. We are truly blessed in the Christ, the promised Descendant of Abraham. We enjoy God’s rich blessings every day. Our name will also be great for we have the name of Jesus, the name of God the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, placed upon us and powerfully working within us. Those named by God with God’s name do not bear (carry) the Name in vain.
Then, carrying God’s Name, the promise is that we shall be a blessing. We need to believe this promise since we don’t see how we are a blessing to the people in the world around us. We are a blessing. That’s a promise.