Genesis 15-18:15 - God's Covenant with Abraham

What's in a name? Why are our names important; or maybe today in our culture, why are our nicknames important?

Well, speaking from childhood experience, our names and nicknames mean that people love us and want to know us other than "hey you!" For instance, one of my best friends has a nickname for me: Briguy. I have no idea why I like it; but it's his term for me and I always smile when I hear it from him. Likewise, my brother is always known as "Steve" to all of his friends because it took a life on its own and it labelled their relationship with him (though we as his family could ever only call him "Stephen"... kind of annoying since I wanted to be cool like his friends...).

What names or nicknames are you known by?

In the Hebrew culture, a name was more than just a name (did you know I was named Brian just because it sounded good?). A name was a definition of who you are and who you would be. 'Adam' meant 'earth' because he was formed from the earth (Genesis 2:7). 'Eve' meant 'mother of all the living' (Genesis 3:20). 'Isaac' means 'laughter' (Genesis 21:6). And later on, 'Esau' means 'red' (Genesis 25:25) and 'Jacob' means 'deceiver.'

Since Jewish names and destinies are so intertwined, do you see why God changing Abram's name is so incredibly important now? God is not simply changing Abram's name. It's not simply adding an additional 'ha' between the a and the m. God is changing the destiny of Abram. He is changing Abram - 'exalted father' - to Abraham - 'father of many nations' (LSB Study Notes, Genesis 17:5). This was a sign of God's pledge to keep the covenant with Abraham that He had made many years ago. As CPH's People's Bible Commentary says: "If God would fail to keep his covenant promise, the name Abraham would constantly testify against him" (p. 151).

Did Abraham do anything to deserve this covenant? Nope! Let's see... he tried to get away with Pharaoh taking Sarai as one of his wives... he listened to Sarai when she suggested that he try to have a son with her servant... and he laughed when God again reiterated His promise to him (Genesis 17:17).

Likewise, do we do anything to deserve God's new covenant through his son, Jesus Christ? The very thought is laughable! We sin daily in thought, word and deed; by doing things we know are wrong and leaving righteous things undone. Yet, God continues to call us and beckon us through his Holy Spirit; and in doing so, changes our very destiny. We go from sinners to being saints; guilty to righteous; from being condemned to being saved. As John says, "See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are!" (1 John 3:1). And it is through this destiny as children of God that we can see again and see who we are meant to be.

Other questions to think about (and that I didn't have time or space to write about):
- Are you catching the beginnings of some family dysfunction here? That's definitely going to be a theme going forward in the next chapters of Genesis (some we'll read, and some we won't).

- Have you ever thought "why circumcision as a sign of the covenant rather than a less... er... invasive sign of the covenant?"

- Ever wonder became of Ishmael? Make sure to ask an Arab or a Muslim :)