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Daily Readings: March 12th

#DailyDevotion Do God’s Signs Make You Blameless?

2nd Sunday in Lent

Read Gen 16:1–9, 15—17:22

Gen 17:1-2  When Abram was ninety-nine years old the LORD appeared to Abram and said to him, “I am God Almighty; walk before me, and be blameless,  (2)  that I may make my covenant between me and you, and may multiply you greatly.”

Gen 17:10-11  This is my covenant, which you shall keep, between me and you and your offspring after you: Every male among you shall be circumcised.  (11)  You shall be circumcised in the flesh of your foreskins, and it shall be a sign of the covenant between me and you.

 

Abraham and his wife Sarah were as good as dead at this age. Abraham has gotten a son through his wife’s made and he probably thought that was pretty good. But God called Abraham and his wife and made a covenant with them. The man and the woman are one.  So God, once again reaffirms his covenant with Abraham and adds a sign.

Now our translation (ESV) ends verse 2 with blameless. Many translations take the Hebrew word here and translate it perfect, blameless or upright. But the word here carries with it the meaning of completeness. To be complete before God is walk before him in faith, i.e. trusting God’s promises. Such faith calls us to holy lives. But it is faith that completes a man.

 

The Lord God gives Abraham a sign to believe God’s promise of him being the father of many nations with kings coming from his loins. The Lord gives it to him and all male descendents so their faith may be kindled regularly throughout the day.  Their wives shall see it regularly too so their trust in the Lord’s promise may be regularly kindled. That sign is circumcision. Every time Abraham’s descendents went to the bathroom throughout the day, they could remember the Lord’s promise to them and their faith could be rekindled.

 

Now the Lord has fulfilled that covenant in Jesus, we have new signs of the new covenant. We are baptized and whenever we clean ourselves or take a drink of water we can remember the Lord no longer counts our trespasses against us. We have the Lord’s Supper so every time we gather for his meal we can remember God has promised us everlasting life in a new heavens and a new earth with resurrected bodies. Every time we see a tree or intersecting lines we can remember on the tree, the cross, our Lord Jesus Christ has won salvation for us and the world.

Heavenly Father, you made promises to Abraham and gave him and his descendents a sign that they may be strengthened in their faith. You also have made promises to us and given us the sacraments as signs that give and strengthen our faith. May we look upon them and have our faith regularly kindled that we may walk before you blameless until the coming our Lord Jesus Christ. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.

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Rev. Guillaume J. S. Williams, Sr.

The Reverend Guillaume Williams is the Pastor of Hope Lutheran Chapel of Osage Beach, Missouri. His pastoral ministry with Hope began in 2005 where he preaches the Christ crucified.

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