Royal Promise
Scripture Reading — Genesis 17:1-8, 15-16
“I will make you very fruitful; I will make nations of you, and kings will come from you.”
Our story begins with humans called to reflect the rule and reign of God (Genesis 1:26-29). But people turned away, seeking to build their own kingdoms. This quickly turned to violence and oppression, and now humanity lives in rebellion rather than in harmony with God’s rule (Genesis 3-11).
Even so, God called Abraham and Sarah. He came into their lives to make covenant promises, to reestablish them as a people living in harmony with God as King.
Abraham and Sarah were an old and childless couple. The new start God made with them didn’t look very promising. But God makes promises in unpromising situations. God promised to be their God, to bless them, and to make them a blessing on the earth.
Then, tucked in with this packet of promises came a powerful little seed. God said to Abraham, “Kings will come from you,” and God said about Sarah, “Kings of peoples will come from her.” What would that have been like—to hear God say that your descendants would be kings and queens on the earth?
God is in the business of reestablishing right kingship on the earth. His promises to Abraham and Sarah would, in time, bear good fruit for their descendants and for the whole earth.
Lord God, thank you for your promises. Fill us with your Spirit so that your kingdom may come and your will may be done in us this day. Amen.
About the author — Darrin Compagner
Darrin Compagner serves as a pastor at Blythefield Christian Reformed Church in Rockford, Michigan. He lives there with his wife and four children, all of whom identify with the kings and queens in C.S. Lewis’s Chronicles of Narnia.
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