Mensa Otabil - The Lord Remembers
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Exodus 3, verse 17: «And I have said, I will bring you up out of the affliction of Egypt to the land of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites; to a land flowing with milk and honey.»
That’s a lot of «I,» but this is the promise that God made to Abraham way back when Abraham left the Ur of the Chaldeans and started walking the land that God promised him. At that time, God said, «This is going to be the land for you and for your descendants.» Now, this is over 600 years later when God spoke to Moses in the burning bush. It was over 600 years after Abraham; 600 years is a very long time. So, at this point, Abraham, who had the first promise, had died over 600 years earlier. Isaac, Abraham’s son, had died. Jacob, who took the descendants of Abraham to Egypt, had died, and all the 12 sons had died. Now, this is over 400 years after they got to Egypt, so that’s a very long time. Everybody that God made the original promise to had died, along with their children, and God comes to Moses and repeats the same promise.
Now, if you looked at the story of Israel in Egypt on the surface, it would seem as if all the encounters that Abraham had made with God and all the promises God made to Abraham had not come to pass-they’ve just failed. This is 600 years, and nothing close had happened. To make matters worse, the descendants of Abraham have even stopped worshiping the God of Abraham; they are worshiping the gods of Egypt. Moreover, where they are in Egypt is almost 10,000 kilometers from the promised land.
So, if you put it all together, it seems an impossibility, and if you were tracking all these stories, you would have said that Abraham was a lunatic. He didn’t hear from God, and he didn’t receive any promise. But 600 years later, God shows up out of nowhere in a burning bush, and He speaks to Moses and says, «I’m going to do what I said I would do 600 years earlier.» We serve a promise- keeping God; He is a faithful God. When He says He will do it, He will do it. People may die, but God never dies. We may not be alive to see everything God says He will do, but God will be there to see everything He says He will do from generation to generation. He’s still the same; His word is sure.
So when we pray to Him, we also have the same guarantee that God never forgets. This God who gave a promise to Abraham, this God who showed up to Moses, is the same God you pray to in the name of Jesus. Anytime you say, «Father, in the name of Jesus,» He is the one you are talking to, and He is the one you are committing your life, your children’s destiny, and your future to-guaranteed. If He could do what He did for Israel after 600 years, show up, and honor His word, He will honor His word to you too, and He will keep the promises He has made to you. Trust Him, depend on Him, rest in Him, and He will bring it to pass.
Let us pray. Say with me: " Heavenly Father, You keep Your promises from generation to generation. I trust You to do what You have promised me. In Jesus' name, amen and amen.»