Read Genesis 12:1-8
And the LORD appeared unto Abram, and said, Unto thy seed will I give this land: and there builded he an altar unto the LORD, who appeared unto him. And he removed from thence unto a mountain on the east of Bethel, and pitched his tent, having Bethel on the west, and Hai on the east: and there he builded an altar unto the LORD, and called upon the name of the LORD. Genesis 12:7-8 KJV
Genesis 3 tells us of God walking in the Garden in the cool of the day calling out to Adam and Eve, but here, for the first time, we are told God appeared to a man. Such a privilege was to become fairly common in Abraham’s life, so much so, he is called the Friend of God on three occasions (2 Chronicles 20:7; Isaiah 41:8; James 2:23). God promised him and his seed the land he stood on, a promise that was never rescinded. As we might imagine, the meeting had a profound affect on Abraham, he built an altar and continued to do so everywhere he traveled in the land. The altar commemorated God’s appearance and proclaimed his faith in God’s promise. Every altar he built did the same. Verse 8 says he also called upon the name of the Lord. This was not private, but bold public prayer. The altars and prayers staked out God’s promise for all to see and hear.
Lord, what a difference you made in Abraham’s life. You first called his name with the affect he called upon your name for the rest of his sojourning in the Land of Promise. I do understand what it must have been like for him; you have so profoundly changed my life too. I want my life to be marked as Abraham’s was with worship and prayer.
A question to ponder: Abraham built altars and called upon the name of the Lord, what can I do to leave a testimony of my faith in God?
