Parashat Lekh Lekha

Torah: Gen 12:1-17:27

Haftarah: 40:27-41:16

Brit Chadashah: Rom 4:1-25, Gal 4:21-5:1, Heb 11:8-10

Main Points

God calls Abram

A famine forces Abram and Sarai into Egypt.

Contentions between Abram and Lot force them to separate.

Abram rescues Lot after Sodom is taken.

Abram meets with Melchizedek who blesses him.

God establishes his covenant with Abram.

Sara gives Hagar to Abram to conceive children.

Abram’s name changed to Abraham. God gives him the covenant of circumcision.

Sarai’s name changed to Sarah. God foretells the birth of Isaac.

God called Abraham out of his hometown of Haran. This calling did not seem too glamorous in the beginning. God gave Abraham a simple call, leave Haran and leave his father's house. God did not say how he would make Abraham into a great nation. He just said he would make Abraham a blessing and that he would bless those who blessed him and curse those who dishonored him. Faith, in a nutshell, is to say yes when God calls. Sometimes we feel his leading and when we pursue it, we also bring our yes to the altar in obedience. God spoke to Abraham and the response of his servant was an act of faith. Scripture records that Abraham “went as the LORD told him.”

Abraham's yes was as simple as God's calling. There wasn't any conversation about what would come of his “yes”, only that God would walk with him. But think of what his simple yes produced and what his faith actually meant. Up until this point, scripture seems to skip forward at a relatively fast pace, then stop when Abraham is introduced into the biblical narrative. In Abraham's eyes, he was simply acting on what God told him to be and do. As Abraham's life unfolded, God brought circumstance and his will together and began to weave a redemptive story. Abraham was not told about the war with the Canaanite kings, the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah, or the sacrifice of Isaac. He did not know how far-reaching the covenant with Abimelech and his purchase of Sarah's grave would have on the establishment of his nation. Abraham's simple “yes” also resulted in him being called the friend of God in several places in scripture (II Chronicles 20:7, Isaiah 41:8, and James 2:23).

God's promise to Abraham also pointed to the salvation of the Gentile nations. Galatians 3:7-9, “Know ye therefore that they which are of faith, the same are the children of Abraham. And the scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the heathen through faith, preached before the gospel unto Abraham, saying, In thee shall all nations be blessed. So then they which be of faith are blessed with faithful Abraham”

Abraham's simple “yes” allowed God to lead him into separation. A calling can separate a person from their culture, security, friends, and support. None of these things are necessarily bad, but the calling of God is a calling of separation of purpose. Pursuing God's purpose means that changes will come. Separation is an aspect of holiness. We cannot pursue God without separating ourselves from some old things so that we can embrace new things. Regardless of where God has called us to serve, it is an inevitable part of what we all must pursue.

Abraham's “yes” allowed God to lead him into the area of sanctification. Sanctification is the heart work that is done when the Spirit of God works in us and refines us through the word and our convictions. God often uses our mistakes, weaknesses, and personal problems in the process. As we pursue our calling God calls us to higher and higher levels of sanctification. It is a process that unfolds throughout a person's lifetime. God is constantly refining us, drawing us closer, calling us to prayer, and revealing things in his word that can help us and others. This walk of faith is not just for us. It is also given to us, for those around us. Abraham's godliness was on display for all to see. His example and passion for God is what drove the norms of his camp.

Abraham's “yes” also allowed God to prepare Abraham and the world for what he had ordained. God will establish his purpose. I have seen God accomplish staggering things through simple faith. He can use anyone, man or woman, young or old. When God births his promise in a broken world, the result is that sometimes things appear to get more broken. In another view, things begin to change as God plows up the fallow ground of hearts and souls, tears down the strongholds of the enemy, and builds his will. Stepping out on God's will does not always result in things getting easier. It means that often things are more difficult. Norms are broken and the status quo (good or bad) begins to be challenged. Change is hard but the empowering of grace helps us to make small steps forward and at some point, the momentum begins to change.

What has God called you to do? Has he called you to open up a work somewhere, to be in the ministry, or reach out to a specific part of society? Has he called you to show kindness and compassion to others? When we say yes, there is a whole world of God-ordained purpose available to us. There is pain in the purpose. Change is painful in many ways. There is conflict in the purpose. There is need and provision in the purpose. The purpose of God will stretch you and form you as God calls you into deep waters of dependency and faith. When you say “yes” to God, he takes you seriously. When the “yes” is coupled with action, the narrative of life seems to stop as God steps in and begins to write your story.

Rav Calev

Apostolic Messianic International

Next Feasts:

Hanukkah begins the evening of Dec 14^th and ends nightfall on Dec 22^nd.

Hebrew Words to Know:

Facing Problems- Tsuris; A Yiddish word for problems or when we are facing many problems, we can say that we are af tsuris (on troubles).

Falsehood or lie- Sheker

Family- Mishpacha- A Yiddish term. This can be blood relatives, those we are close to, or the congregation we attend.

Fear- Ayma

Fiancé- Bashert- Yiddish.