A STUDY IN GENESIS
Today we talk about an issue that has been the focal point in human discussions ranging for thousands of years. It is the longest real-estate argument, the cause of wars, and countless deaths. Today, we look at who truly owns the land of Israel.
Abram is living his life and suddenly, it changes.
Genesis 12:1-7 “Now the LORD had said to Abram: “Get out of your country, From your family And from your father’s house, To a land that I will show you. 2 I will make you a great nation; I will bless you And make your name great; And you shall be a blessing. 3 I will bless those who bless you, And I will curse him who curses you; And in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.” 4 So Abram departed as the LORD had spoken to him, and Lot went with him. And Abram [was] seventy-five years old when he departed from Haran. 5 Then Abram took Sarai his wife and Lot his brother’s son, and all their possessions that they had gathered, and the people whom they had acquired in Haran, and they departed to go to the land of Canaan. So they came to the land of Canaan. 6 Abram passed through the land to the place of Shechem, as far as the terebinth tree of Moreh. And the Canaanites [were] then in the land. 7 Then the LORD appeared to Abram and said, “To your descendants I will give this land.” And there he built an altar to the LORD, who had appeared to him.”
There are several points we need to look at. First, that the Lord is calling Abram to the land. He is not taking it over, but rather being told to go to the land. Abram was content at staying where he was, and yet the Lord had other plans. Second, we see that the Lord has good intentions with Abram. These good intentions are to orchestrate the very rescue of our souls! God is putting into place the very foundation for the nation of Israel and the coming Massiah. Without the faithfulness of Abram and Sarai, we would be doomed. What does this mean for you and I today? It means if God tells us to go and do something we should be about it. While Abram and Sarai did not see the end result, we can see the treasure of their faith.
We next see that God is setting up the international diplomatic norm that is clearly established forever. He will bless those who bless Him and He will curse those who curse Him. This promise is still active today. There is scholarly work that has been published examining the relationship with how the Jewish people are treated and what happens in the nation. This does not mean we give acceptance to everything that the Israeli government does, but rather we support and help the Jewish people. For those who disagree with this statement, I would ask them if they recognize the verse just before, “I will make you a great nation; I will bless you And make your name great; And you shall be a blessing.” We are quick to recognize God’s literal ancestral birth line, but fail to follow up with the next verse and recognize the rules of how the gentile world will interact with them. Many today say Israel does not belong in the land, however this is God’s land that He gave to Abram and his descendents. Those who claim Israel should not be there are ignorant of God’s call on the land. Next week we will dig more into this declaration and see just how powerful God’s eternal word really is!
Hold until relieved, our Blessed Hope is coming,
JL