Called, Blessed & Increased

Called, Blessed & Increased

Is.51:2, ‘Look to Abraham your father, And to Sarah who bore you; For I called him alone, And blessed him and increased him.”’

Abraham was called as the ‘father of nations’. The Lord often reminded the Israelites about Abraham through different prophets. After thousands of years, even today we need to look back at this honorable personality and learn lessons from him. He was called, blessed and increased by the Lord.

Gen.12:1, ‘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.’  Abraham, Terah’s son was called by the Lord. In the verses of Gen.11:28-32, we see a lot of negative things happening in Terah’s family. In V 28, Haran, Abraham’s brother died before his  father. V 30 speaks of Sarah’s barrenness. In V 31, we see this family missing their targeted destination of Canaan and dwelling in Haran instead. And in V 32, Terah died. All these i.e the untimely death, barrenness, deviation from targeted destination and death again have been noted in a continuous series, which surely does not speak of ‘blessedness’. In such a background, God called Abraham. By calling Abraham to leave his country, family and father’s house, he was being called to leave all that were hindering his blessings which he might have been seeking from the Lord. Abraham’s call  was then directly linked to his final destination of a promised land. Rom.8:30, ‘³⁰ Moreover whom He predestined, these He also called;…..’  We have been called to leave all that would hinder our destination of eternal life in Christ Jesus. Abraham began leaving all that the Lord asked him to leave & it continued till the mount of Moriah in Gen.22. As he began leaving, God showed him the next thing which needed to be left. In Gen.12:4, he departed from his country and his family. In Gen.13, he departed from his nephew , Lot and the choice for the best in the eyes of man. As he continued to leave, he was being blessed by the Lord. And the greatest blessing Abraham received was the ability to hear from the Lord, so much so that he became God’s friend.

Abraham was blessed by the Lord. His long awaited blessing of having the promised child came finally in Gen.18:1, ‘ Then the Lord appeared to him by ^[a]the terebinth trees of Mamre, as he was sitting in the tent door in the heat of the day.’ This appearance of the Lord was different. This time, it was to bless 99 years old Abraham and his aged wife, Sarah. Let’s ponder on three terms from this verse.

1. The terebinth trees of Mamre : This place was not the best place in the sight of a worldly person like Lot. But Abraham dwelt in this place gladly. This was the left over land after Lot’s choice of the best piece. But this left over land became the Lord’s chosen place for Abraham. It became the place of worship for him. 13:17-18, ‘Arise, walk in the land through its length and its width, for I give it to you.”¹⁸ Then Abram moved his tent, and went and dwelt by ^[d]the terebinth trees of Mamre, which are in Hebron, and built an altar there to the Lord.’  Abraham was blessed in the Lord’s chosen place. We are blessed when we are in His chosen place. Our lives become a worship when we dwell in Christ, His chosen place
2. In the tent door : Abraham was now in Mamre, the place which the Lord had given him and his seed forever. Yet he lived in tents. He could have built a strong house for himself, but his attitude towards life was different. 11:9, ‘ By faith he dwelt in the land of promise as in a foreign country, dwelling in tents with Isaac and Jacob, the heirs with him of the same promise;…’ He lived as if he was in a foreign country. This shows his longingness to be in the city built by God. (Hebr. 11: 10). His eagerness to be with the Lord was more than inheriting the blessings of this world. Abraham was not only in the place of God’s choice, but also with the attitude of God’s choice. We receive our blessings when we put on Christ Jesus, thus reflecting His glory through divine attitude towards our lives.
3. In the heat of the day : This represents the hottest time of the day. This also represents the toughest time of trials of life. Yet Abraham’s hope in the Lord was still strong and stable. His trust in the Lord was complete even in the most hopeless  . Abraham was 99 years old, a time when the world and his body gave no hope at all. The time of waiting seemed to go endless beyond all human limitations. But God had something different to speak. Gen.18:10, ‘’ And He said, “I will certainly return to you according to the time of life, and behold, Sarah your wife shall have a son.”’ Abraham and Sarah believed against all hope & were blessed just as the Lord spoke (Gen.21:2). Blessings come through in our lives when  the hope in the Lord’s word is complete, stable and growing, irrespective of our situations.

Abraham was increased by the Lord. His faith was tested on the mount of Moriah, where he took Isaac to be offered as a sacrifice. Gen.22:15-17,’ Then the Angel of the Lord called to Abraham a second time out of heaven, ¹⁶ and said: “By Myself I have sworn, says the Lord, because you have done this thing, and have not withheld your son, your only son— ¹⁷ blessing I will bless you, and multiplying I will multiply your descendants as the stars of the heaven.’  Angel of the Lord called to Abraham a 2^nd time. The heaven could not remain silent before such a submission. God spoke about two things about Abraham. He feared the Lord and did not withhold his only son from the Lord. He gave the Lord all that he had and all that he was. Withholding nothing from the Lord is the only way to express the completeness of divine love for the Lord. Such submissions  cause increase of God’s blessings. Abraham gave his only son to the Lord. God not only blessed Abraham, but also increased and multiplied him as stars in the sky as per His promise (Gen.22:15-18). This increase started from his own house. Gen.22:20, ‘Now it came to pass after these things that it was told Abraham, saying, “Indeed Milcah also has borne children to your brother Nahor:…’  Milcah, Abraham’s sister in law who was also barren,  was now blessed with children. The increase of divine blessings is first seen in the house and then in others around. Abraham increased in such a way that his  increase formed an entire nation of Israel and he himself became a blessing to all nations. Christ, the saviour of mankind came through the blessed family of Abraham.

We are called, blessed and increased by the Lord. But the latter depends on our response to our calling. Abraham responded to his calling well through complete submission and growing hope in the Lord. As we focus on our calling, the Lord finishes the good work He began in us. Abraham focused on his calling and all the promises followed him. We have been called to leave all that hinders our destination of heavenly home. Thus can we  dwell in Christ, His chosen place with His attitude always to see our calling being manifested in us. And as we continue to submit to our calling, we see others being blessed through us. God makes us channels of blessings. As God reminded Israelites through prophet Isaiah, let us also be reminded of Abraham, whom God called alone, blessed and increased.

God bless us all