The Abraham Pattern

After Lot had departed from him, the Lord said to Abram, “Lift up now your eyes, and look from the place where you are, northward and southward and eastward and westward. All the land that you see I will give to you and to your descendants forever…. Arise, and walk throughout the land across its length and its width, for I will give it to you.” Genesis 13:14-15, 17 (Modern English Version, MEV)

This is an especially interesting passage of Scripture. It is more than a narrative about how God promised to give the land of Canaan to Abraham and his decendants. It gives us insight on how to receive what God has for us.

First of all, obedience to God’s previous instructions to us is key. Notice that God did not promise Abraham the land until Lot was gone. God’s original instruction to Abraham was to leave his country, his family, and his father’s house (Genesis 12:1). Abraham obeyed, but only partially, for he took his nephew Lot along. Once Abraham and Lot parted company then God could move on Abraham’s behalf because he had finally fully obeyed the Lord’s previous instructions. When we have completed the last instructions God has given us, He is able to take us to the next step.

When God spoke to Abraham, He told him to lift up his eyes and look from the place where he was. God was about to give Abraham a vision for his future, but he had to be willing to look up and see beyond where he was at that time. If all we look at are our current circumstances, we will get stuck and will not be able to see beyond where we are now. The plans of God for our future are never found by looking down- we must look up. God wants to show us the big, wide, wonderful world of possibilities He has for us, but we must look up and away from where we now stand. When we get His vision for our lives, we become energized and inspired to believe it.

Lastly, God gave Abraham an assignment; an action he needed to take to release his faith. The Lord told him to walk throughout the land that He was showing him. Abraham was to put feet to his faith; taking steps of faith to secure what God had promised. God has given each of us a vision, and He wants us to act on His Word to receive it. When we take steps of faith that correspond with what God has shown us, we are setting things in motion for the promise to manifest in our lives. For example, it might be a vision for a healing to manifest in your body. What has God shown you to do in order to receive your healing? Has He told you to have hands laid upon you? has He told you to speak the Word of God over your body? Has He instructed you to take communion? Has He told you to try to do something you could not physically do before? Ask Him for instructions and then act on what He tells you. One act we should always take is to verbally accept what God has shown us. There is authority in the spoken Word and when our words line up with His, we are formally showing we receive the promise by faith.

Abraham is known as the father of faith, but he is not so very different from us. He had his weaknesses and shortcomings. However, He believed God and did what he was told, and that is what produced the blessing in his life. We can follow the same pattern, and we too can have everything The Lord has promised.