What is the significance of the call of Abram/Abraham?

WHAT DOES THE BIBLE SAY?

After Adam and Eve sinned (Genesis 3:1–7), and before God judged them with corruption and death (Genesis 3:16–19), He gave His first promise of a Redeemer (Genesis 3:15). After the judgment of the flood (Genesis 6:17) and the Tower of Babel (Genesis 11:1–9), it was clear that humanity, alone, was incapable of the righteousness needed for such an individual. God needed to intervene. The call of Abraham is that intervention. Though a pagan, God called Abram to leave his land and go to a land He would show him (Genesis 12:1), promising to bless him greatly (Genesis 12:2). Abram obeyed, taking his family to the land (Genesis 12:4–6). God again promised that his descendants would live there (Genesis 12:7). Abram, whom God later named Abraham because he would be the father of many people (Genesis 17:5), was God’s means for beginning the nation of Israel. He gave birth to Isaac (Genesis 21:1–3), who gave birth to Jacob (Genesis 25:26), whom God named Israel (Genesis 32:28) and through whom the 12 tribes of Israel were born (Genesis 49:1–28). It was through them, in the line of Judah, that God’s promised Redeemer came (Galatians 3:16). Scripture is a meta-narrative, with one overarching theme: redemption made possible through Jesus.

FROM THE OLD TESTAMENT

• When God created humanity, He created them in His image (Genesis 1:26–27) and called them “very good” (Genesis 1:31). Being such, humanity was in relationship with God. However, the first two humans, Adam and Eve, rebelled against Him (Genesis 3:1–7), severing that relationship, resulting in God’s judgment of corruption and death upon all humanity (Genesis 3:16–19; cf. Romans 5:12).
• However, before judging them, God gave a simple promise: “And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her seed; he shall bruise you on the head, and you shall bruise him on the heel” (Genesis 3:15, NASB). This has come to be known as the “proto-evangelion,” the first Gospel. Though subtle, it refers to a “seed” (descendant) coming from the woman who would conquer the seed of the Serpent.
• From the first child of Eve, humanity began looking for that Redeemer (Genesis 4:1). However, because humanity was cursed, the Adam and Eve’s descendants were all corrupted and wicked, leading to God destroying the world with the flood (Genesis 6:17) and then subsequently judging it at the Tower of Babel by confusing their languages to force them to scatter throughout the earth (Genesis 11:1–9). It was clear that humanity, on its own, was incapable of providing the righteous seed needed to overcome unrighteousness.
• While God was already intervening, such as saving Noah (Genesis 6:8), when He called Abram, He was initiating his plan to bring a righteous Redeemer in the line of sinful humanity. Though Abram was a pagan, God chose to call him. The LORD said, “Go from your country and your kindred and your father’s house to the land that I will show you. And I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and him who dishonors you I will curse, and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed” (Genesis 12:1–3).
• Abram heeded this call and, taking his family, he went to the land God said (Genesis 12:4–6). There the LORD repeated, “To your offspring I will give this land” (v 7). Later, God would again remind Abraham of the promise, changing his name, saying, “Behold, my covenant is with you, and you shall be the father of a multitude of nations. No longer shall your name be called Abram, but your name shall be Abraham, for I have made you the father of a multitude of nations” (Genesis 17:4–5).
• God added, “I will establish my covenant between me and you and your offspring after you throughout their generations for an everlasting covenant, to be God to you and to your offspring after you. And I will give to you and to your offspring after you the land of your sojournings, all the land of Canaan, for an everlasting possession, and I will be their God” (Genesis 17:7–8). This promise was not just that he would have many descendants, but that God was making an everlasting covenant with his descendants.
• That was the start of the nation of Israel. Abraham’s son was Isaac (Genesis 21:1–3), who was the father of Jacob (Genesis 25:26), whom God named Israel (Genesis 32:28). Israel had twelve sons who became the heads of the twelve tribes of Israel. Just before Israel died, he blessed his sons (Genesis 49:1–28). In that blessing, Jacob was identified as a royal line (Genesis 49:10). King David would later come from this tribe and receive the promise of an eternal kingdom (2 Samuel 7:12–13).

FROM THE NEW TESTAMENT

• Mathew opens his Gospel showing how Jesus is a descendant of Abraham (Matthew 1: 1–17), and Paul identified Jesus as the promised seed in Abraham’s line, saying, “the promises were made to Abraham and to his offspring. It does not say, ‘And to offsprings,’ referring to many, but referring to one, ‘And to your offspring,’ who is Christ” (Galatians 3:16). He explained that “if you are Christ’s, then you are Abraham’s offspring, heirs according to promise (Galatians 3:29).
• Thus, the promise to Abraham that he would be blessed was fulfilled through his offspring, Jesus, as revealed in the Gospel. He said, “Know then that it is those of faith who are the sons of Abraham. And the Scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, preached the gospel beforehand to Abraham, saying, ‘In you shall all the nations be blessed.’ So then, those who are of faith are blessed along with Abraham, the man of faith” (Galatians 3:7–9; cf. Romans 4:16–25).

IMPLICATIONS FOR TODAY

Even before creation, God’s plan to save humanity through Jesus was already in motion. Scripture tells the story of that redemptive plan unfolding through history: God called Abraham, raised up Israel as His people, established the line of David, and ultimately sent Jesus as the promised King and Savior. Through Jesus, God brought salvation to the world.

We need redemption because we are all sinners. Our sin separates us from a holy God, and we cannot fix that separation on our own. Sin deserves judgment and death, but God, in His love, provided a way of salvation through Jesus.

God sent His Son to become truly human while remaining without sin. Jesus willingly died in our place, taking the punishment our sin deserved. He then rose from the dead and now reigns in heaven, where He awaits His return. Through Him, forgiveness and reconciliation with God are available to anyone who turns from sin, trusts in Jesus, and follows Him as Lord.

Because of God’s work throughout history, you have the opportunity to be part of His redemptive story today. You don’t have to earn your way back to God—Jesus has already made the way. Turn to Him, trust Him, and let your life become part of the greater story God is writing.

UNDERSTAND

• God called Abraham as part of His plan to redeem humanity.
• Abraham became the beginning of God’s covenant people.
• Jesus is the ultimate fulfillment of God’s promise to Abraham.

REFLECT

• How does Abraham's call challenge or encourage you in the way God calls us today—to salvation and His greater purposes?
• How does Abram's act of leaving his country, family, and father's house impact the way you respond to God's call in your own life?
• If you are a believer, how does seeing yourself as an heir of the promise made to Abraham change the way you think about your place in God's redemptive story?

ENGAGE

• What does Abraham’s willingness to leave what was familiar teach us about the relationship between faith and obedience?
• How does God’s use of Abraham, Israel, and ultimately Jesus reveal the way He works through ordinary people to accomplish His greater purposes?
• How does God’s promise of a Redeemer in Genesis 3:15 continuing through Abraham and ultimately leading to Jesus reveal about God and His plan of salvation?