Abraham – The Friend of God
In the Old Testament, the first mention to Abraham as the friend of God is recorded in 2 Chronicles 20:7. Then, we have another reference in Isaiah 41:8. And in the New testament, the apostle James confirmed that Abraham was truly “the friend of God” (James 2:23).
It was Abraham’s faith that entitled him to be called the friend of God. His walk started when the Lord called him when he was 75 years of age to get out of his home land saying, “Leave your country, your people and your father’s household and go to the land I will show you. I will make you into a great nation and I will bless you; I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse; and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you’” (Genesis 12:1-3).
The Lord made a covenant with His servant in Genesis 15 and ratified it in Genesis 17. What makes this person a remarkable man is that he obeyed the Lord without hesitation (Genesis 12:4). The author of Hebrews uses this man as an example of faith. “By faith Abraham, when called to go to a place he would later receive as his inheritance, obeyed and went, even though he did not know where he was going” (Hebrews 11:8).
The Bible gives us another great illustration of the man’s great faith in the story of the birth of his son, Isaac. He and Sarah were childless yet the Lord promised that they would have a son (Genesis 15:4). This son would be the heir of the covenant promise. The faithful man believed the Lord’s promise, and his faith was credited to him as righteousness (Genesis 15:6). The Lord reiterated His promise to His servant (Genesis 17), and his faith was rewarded (Genesis 21) with the gift of Isaac as a son.
But the Lord tested His faithful servant by asking him to sacrifice Isaac on the top of Mount Moriah (Genesis 22). Again, the prophet faithfully obeyed the Lord (Genesis 15:1). He believed that the Lord was able to bring his son back from the dead (Hebrews 11:17-19). Seeing that he passed the test, the Lord asked Abraham not to hurt Isaac and to sacrifice an animal instead. Although this was a very hard test, the servant’s unwavering trust in His Maker prevailed over his love for his own son (Genesis 22:3).
For his steadfast faith, the Lord rewarded Abraham saying, “By Myself I have sworn, says the LORD, because you have done this thing, and have not withheld your son, your only son— blessing I will bless you, and multiplying I will multiply your descendants as the stars of the heaven and as the sand which is on the seashore; and your descendants shall possess the gate of their enemies. In your seed all the nations of the earth shall be blessed, because you have obeyed My voice” (Genesis 22:16-18).
The transparent genuineness of Abraham’s unwavering trust in the Lord honored him to be the friend of God (2 Chronicles 2:7). His faith is an example that all should aspire to emulate.
In His service,
BibleAsk Team
