TW: Infertility
Read Genesis 15
Last time we saw a very ordinary man, Abram, receive an extraordinary promise from God – that all nations of the earth would be blessed through him and his descendants. Except he and his long -suffering wife Sarai had no children, and Sarai is now too old to conceive. God repeats the promise, adding that Abram’s descendants shall be as numerous as the dust, and they wait.
Today we see another reminder of the promise. This time, Abram’s descendants are described as being as numerous as the stars in the sky. Apparently, that’s a number in the region of 200 billion trillion. I have no idea how many zeros that is, but it’s a lot of descendants. And it’s not just the fulfilment of a couple’s long-held, and long wept over dream. It’s also children to care for them in a society where there was no social security, and an end to the shame which would have hung over Sarai, living in a culture when a woman’s value was placed in her ability to bear sons. God sees this and he cares.
So, the promise is repeated again, and Abram believes – partly. The man who didn’t trust God to keep him safe in yesterday’s passage, with disastrous consequences, still wants a concrete sign. God graciously offers him a glimmer of light by entering into a ceremony of the times. A heifer, goat and ram are all gathered and cut in two. The carcasses are laid out with the pieces opposite each other, forming a path between the middle of the animals. The participants in a binding agreement will then walk up this path between the animal carcasses. By doing so, they are each effectively saying ‘Let what we have done to these animals be done to me should I break our agreement.’
Yet when the time comes to walk through the animals, Abram falls into a deep sleep and only God (seen as a smoking pot and blazing torch) passes through the animals. God cements his promise to Abram that he shall have descendants, and also land. In fact, he stakes his very being on it. And Abram? Nothing is required of him. He is simply to be the recipient of an incredible gift.
It has to be that way. If humanity is to know the God of the Bible, it can only be on his terms and by his power. This God is morally perfect, of indescribable beauty, containing unlimited compassion and kindness. He makes no unfair judgements, he never changes the goal posts, and he welcomes all to come to him. There is no way we can reach him on our own. By no metric can we measure up to his perfection. We may only know God by his choosing, if he makes the way and we don’t even have to walk it unaided. And that’s exactly what he does for Abram. While Abram sleeps, God does the heavy lifting. The outcome of the promise rests entirely on his word, not Abram’s belief.
Reflect
Do you need to grieve over infertility or other unfulfilled dreams, for yourself or for others you love?
What does the sign of the animal carcasses say to you about God’s character?
Do you struggle to accept that you cannot reach God on your own merit? Or do you feel relieved to know you don’t have to?
Susie lives in NE Fife and works in ministry. She loves being with friends, feeding people and half finished creative projects.
