Wednesday, April 28
Not only did God promise Abraham that in him would all the families of the earth be blessed; the Lord said that He would make of him a “great and mighty nation” (Genesis 18:18; see also Genesis 12:2, Genesis 46:3) — quite a promise to a man married to a woman past child-bearing age. Thus, when Abraham was without descendants, much less a son, God promised him both.
Yet, this promise was not completely fulfilled while Abraham was alive. Neither did Isaac nor Jacob see it come to pass. God repeated it to Jacob, with the added information that the promise would be fulfilled in Egypt (Genesis 46:3), though Jacob really did not see it, either. Eventually, of course, that promise was fulfilled.
Why did the Lord want to make a special nation out of Abraham’s seed? Did the Lord just want another country of certain ethnic origin? What purposes was this nation to fulfill? Read Exodus 19:5-6; Isaiah 60:1-3; and Deuteronomy 4:6-8; and on the lines below, write out your answer:
It seems evident from Scripture that God purposed to attract the nations of the world to Himself through the witness of Israel, which would be, under His blessing, a happy, healthy, and holy people. Such a nation would demonstrate the blessing that attends obedience to the will of the Creator. The multitudes of earth would be drawn to worship the true God (Isaiah 56:7). Thus, the attention of humanity would be drawn toward Israel, their God, and the Messiah, who was to appear in their midst, the Savior of the world.
“The children of Israel were to occupy all the territory which God appointed them. Those nations that rejected the worship and service of the true God were to be dispossessed. But it was God’s purpose that by the revelation of His character through Israel men should be drawn unto Him. To all the world the gospel invitation was to be given. Through the teaching of the sacrificial service Christ was to be uplifted before the nations, and all who would look unto Him should live.” — Ellen G. White, Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 290.
Can you see any parallels between what the Lord wanted to do through Israel and what He wants to do through our church? If so, what are those parallels? Read 1 Peter 2:9.
