Moving to the next level – Part 3

“And the Lord visited Sarah as He had said, and the Lord did for Sarah as He had spoken. For Sarah conceived and bore Abraham a son in his old age, at the set time of which God had spoken to him. And Abraham called the name of his son who was born to him — whom Sarah bore to him — Isaac,” (Genesis 21:1-3 NKJV).

There are times when a physical manifestation of a promise may indicate our movement to the next level of God’s plan for our lives. This is what the above text implies about Sarah and Abraham. Abram was 75 years old when he left Haran (Genesis 12:4). He was 86 years old when the son, Ishmael, was born of Hagar (Genesis 16:15-16). He had waited some 25 years for the fulfillment of God’s promise to give a son through Sarai (Genesis 12:4; 17:4-7, 17-29; 21:1-5).

In between those years, he lived by faith trusting God to confirm His promises. At times, it takes time for God to move us to the next level of his plans for us. However, nothing can stop God’s plans when the time has come.

The birth of Isaac was a very important milestone in the life of Abraham. It all started with a promise from God that Sarah would be a mother of nations and that God would give her a son called Isaac. Abraham did not believe God when this promise was made to him. It sounded ridiculous that he would have a son at that age. He fell on his face and had a hearty laugh. He doubted God’s ability to make his promise. In disbelief, Abraham said to God: “Oh, that Ishmael might live before you!” But God was committed to giving Abraham a son as a fulfillment of His covenant with Abraham. Though, Abraham was willing to settle for Ishmael, yet God had a better plan in mind; He was determined to fulfill his promise to Abraham.

To encourage Abram’s faith in the promise of descendants through Sarai, God changed Abram’s name from Abram (father of many) to Abraham (father of many nations). David Guzik comments on God’s action this way: “There was, no doubt, a sense in which Abram, “father of many,” was a hard name to bear for a man who was the father of none, … Now, God went a step further and made his name “father of many nations.” It was almost crazy for a childless man to have such a name. Think of when Abraham announced his name change to others. They must have thought he wanted to escape the burden of his name. Instead, he increased the burden. There are many wonderful name changes in the Bible, such as when God changed Jacob’s name to Israel (Genesis 32:28), and when He changed Simon’s name to Peter (Mark 3:16). God promises a wonderful new name to every overcomer in Him (Revelation 2:17). God gives us many names in faith (saint, righteous, chosen, royal priesthood, sons of God, and so forth), and He knows He will accomplish the meaning of the name in us — even if it seems somewhat crazy.”

A covenant with God empowers you to get to the next level of life. Abraham was in a covenant relationship with God. When Isaac was born, he also became a party in the same covenant relationship with God. Jacob also was a part of the same covenant with God. Not surprisingly, God took each of them to the next level of their lives.

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