Abraham in Canaan, Genesis 12:4—9

The Bible is silent as to why Terah, Abraham’s father, wanted to remain in Haran. Perhaps he found life in Haran easy or to his liking. God has a difficult time using people like that because they are concerned only with themselves. People that are half committed can never possess the Promised Land because they will never cross over the river. Those who live on the border will never inherit the fullness of the land.

1. Moving Forward

Verse nine says Abraham “set out.” The life of faith is always “setting out,” it is always moving forward.

1. The beginning. Abraham set out. From what? Abraham left behind the life he knew; a life of sin and failure, a life full of worldly passions. He left all he knew on the promise from the Lord.
2. The journey. Abram’s journey would take him through the Syrian Desert. The way to God’s blessing may be difficult and trying. A life of obedience may not always be an easy life. Christ’s life culminated in the Cross and the months prior to His crucifixion were difficult, yet He was doing the Lord’s will to the letter. It seems that the entrance into the fullness of God’s richest blessing is always through the barren of self-despair.
3. The end. They ended up in Canaan. Those who go out in faith won’t stay in despair for long. A life of faith is a life of expectation; a life of forever looking forward. There are two causes of failure in the Christian life:

1. • First, stopping short of the purpose and promise of God;
   • Second, going without God’s promise. Going ahead in your strength and energy, having to special call of God to lean on. And so, when the heat of temptation comes, as it must, people like this wither for they have no root.

2. Problems, and more problems

Abram made it the Promised Land only to find the Canaanites living there. The Lord didn’t tell him about them! Canaan is not a picture of heaven, as some of our hymns may suggest, because there are no enemies in heaven. Canaan Land is typical of the new relationships into which believers enter after they commit themselves to Christ and decide to follow His will. Here we have trial and warfare, as travelers in life needing continual faith. It is impossible to serve the Lord faithfully on your own; you need faith. Being in the place of warfare, believers are right where God can bless them. That is His promise! Abram received no blessing from the Lord while he remained comfortably with His family back home. It is when he, and when we, step out in faith into a dangerous world, fraught with peril, that we wrestle against spiritual enemies, Ephesians 6:12. And God promises help and deliverance.

3. God’s unfailing assurance.

In verse 7, God gives Abram great assurance in exchange for obedience: God promises to give Abram and his descendants “this land.” Of note is when God gave this assurance to Abram; it was when he had reached the center of the land! When, by faith, we take our stand on the Word of God, only then do we see His promises coming to fruition in our lives. The center of God’s promised blessing rests in Christ. 2 Corinthians 1:20 tells us that all the promises of God are in Christ. All believers need to live and move and have their being IN Christ. In Him you will find the all-sufficient grace for living. The anxious, depressed, or frustrated soul must get to this center before the assurance of God’s salvation and His blessing can be realized.

4. A powerful testimony.

When Abram got to where he was going, he immediately built an altar to the Lord, verse 8. Abram, whether he knew it or not, was witnessing for God in this new land because his altar was there for all to see. It was a public testimony. To this end every single Christian is called, Acts 1:8. By pitching a tent Abram declared to all that he was a pilgrim and a stranger, looking for a city (Hebrews 11:10); by his altar he testified to—

1. His faith in the reality of God. Imagine what went through the minds of the local Canaanites as they watched Abram building the altar to his God. Surely they were convinced that Abram knew, believed in, and had faith that his God would hear his prayer.
2. His belief in the holiness of God. An altar speaks of sacrifice. God is holy and can only be approached through atoning blood. Do our lives bear this testimony? Do we, by our acts, condemn the world? (Hebrews 11:7)
3. His confidence in the faithfulness of God. Abram was not afraid or ashamed to build his altar inform of unbelievers and strangers. By building his altar, he was declaring his expectation of the fulfillment of God’s purposes in his life. How often are we afraid to risk something for God? How often do we stop short in our testimony to God because we are afraid of what other people might think?
4. His total dedication and commitment to God and His purpose. Building an altar is symbolic of complete surrender to God’s will, plan and purpose. It is an outward sign of an inward commitment to be obedient to Him.

May our lives be lived in the light of the altar of Calvary, where Christ yielded all to His Father on our behalf.