DWDP - Gen 12: 4-8 Abram Calls on the Lord

Faith sounds inspiring until God asks you to move before you know the address. We open Genesis 12:4–8 and trace Abram’s obedience as he leaves Haran at 75 years old with Sarai, Lot, servants, and substantial possessions, traveling hundreds of miles toward Canaan. That long road becomes a picture of what real trust looks like: stepping forward with God’s word while the details remain unclear. 

Then the story pivots on a single moment. The Lord appears to Abram and promises, “To your descendants I will give this land.” We explore why this appearance matters, how it connects to the idea of a theophany, and why the Gospel of John says Jesus uniquely makes the Father known. If you care about Bible study, Christian theology, and seeing Christ across the Old Testament, this devotion ties the promise to Abram to the bigger story of redemption. 

Abram’s response is not debate or delay, but worship. He builds an altar, a sign of devotion and sacrifice, and we talk about how that altar foreshadows Jesus as our Passover Lamb. We also break down what it truly means to “call upon the name of the Lord” through three simple anchors: humility, an offering that rests only on Jesus’ blood, and God’s promise in Jeremiah 33:3 to answer and show “great and mighty things.” Subscribe, share with a friend, and leave a review. What would it look like for you to call on the Lord with that kind of faith today?

Transcript

Welcome And Scripture Setting

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Welcome to More Than Medic, where Jesus is more than enough for the ills that plague our culture and our country. Hosted by author and physician, Dr. Robert Jackson.

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Papa, can you tell me a story? Do you really want me to tell you a story? Well, you go get your brother and your sisters, and I will tell you a story. Welcome to Devotions with Dr. Papa. Gather around, grab your Bibles, and let us look into the written word which reveals to us the living word, who is our Lord Jesus

Abram Obeys And Leaves Haran

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Christ. Today we're in Genesis chapter twelve and we're going to read verses four through eight. So Abram went forth as the Lord had spoken to him, and Lot went with him. Now Abram was seventy five years old when he departed from Huron. Abram took Sarai, his wife, and Lot his nephew, and all their possessions, which they had accumulated, and the persons which they had acquired in Haran, and they set out for the land of Canaan. Thus they came to the land of Canaan. Abram passed through the land as far as the side of Shechem, to the Oak of More. Now the Canaanite was then in the land. The Lord appeared to Abram and said To your descendants I will give this land. So he built an altar there to the Lord, who had appeared to him. Then he proceeded from there to the mountain on the east of Bethel, and pitched his tent with Bethel on the west and Ai on the east, and there he built an altar to the Lord, and called upon the name of the Lord. May the Lord add his blessing to the reading of his word. So Abram obeys God. He leaves Haran with Sarai, Lot, his nephew, his servants and possessions. He was seventy five years old, and thus far he and Sarai had no children. They traveled four hundred miles from Haran to Shechem in the land of Canaan. Eventually Abraham had become a fairly successful farmer slash rancher in Haran because he had a sizable company with him when he left Haran. Hebrews chapter eleven and verse eight tells us that by faith Abraham, when he was called to go out into a place which he should afterwards receive for an inheritance, obeyed, and he went out not knowing whither he went. Abram knew where he was going in general, but not where he would settle in particular. It was obvious that he had some measure of wealth, because not only did he have his family, but he had servants, and he had significant possessions. The Bible tells us that Abram took all of his people and all of his possessions from Haran, traveled to Canaan, and came to Shechem, specifically to the oak of More. The Bible specifically tells us that the Canaanite was then in the land.

God Appears And Makes A Promise

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Then in verse seven, the Lord appears to Abram, and then everything changes. God says to your descendants I will give this land. Number one, this is the first time in Scripture where God actually appears to a man. God had walked and spoken with Adam and Enoch and Noah, and perhaps he had been visible to them in some way, but Scripture doesn't plainly say so. But here there seems to be an actual visible manifestation of God Himself, what the theologians call a theophony, a pre incarnate appearance of Christ Himself. If you recall, John the Baptist told us in John chapter one and verse eighteen that no one has seen God at any time, the only begotten God who is in the bosom of the Father. He has explained him. Who's he talking about? Well, he's talking about Jesus. Jesus is the only begotten God who was and is in the bosom of the Father, and Jesus has explained him. Jesus is the personification of everything that God would say to you and me. He is the word who became flesh and dwelt among us. Jesus is the only begotten of the Father. He is the Lord made flesh that fully explains to us all that God would say to you and me. And that Jesus appears to Abram, telling him this land I will give to your descendants.

Altars As Devotion And Sacrifice

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In response, Abram built an altar. He built an altar to the Lord. Now why would he do that? An altar is for sacrifice. It speaks of devotion, it speaks of commitment and willingness to pay a price for that devotion. Abram already understood that God had provided a substitute, the seed of the woman, promised all the way back in Genesis chapter three and verse fifteen. The seed of the woman that would be handed down through the line of Shem, his forefather, and now through his descendants. In fact he was told through you all the families of the earth will be blessed. So the sacrifice on Abram's altar was a picture of that future sacrifice, a foreshadowing of Jesus on the cross, even though he couldn't see that picture clearly as you and I do now. Then in verse eight, Abram travels to Bethel on the west, and Ai, nope, make sure I tell you that correctly now. He traveled to Bethel on the west and Ai on the east, yeah, that's correct. You will recall that years later Bethel is where Jacob will wrestle with an all night with an angel of the Lord. And Ai is the is where the children of Israel will suffer a terrible defeat after leaving Egypt, crossing the Jordan River, defeating Jericho, and then because of quote sin in the camp, it was Achan's sin, when he kept the forbidden gold and idols, and then he hid them in the floor of his tent, and the soldiers are defeated at where? At A. So Abram camps between Bethel and Ai, building another altar, once again another altar, and he calls upon the name of the

Calling On The Lord Explained

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Lord. So let me ask you a question. What exactly does it mean to call upon the name of the Lord? Well three things. Number one, there's an attitude. There's an attitude of humility that's required when Abram calls on the name of the Lord, when you and I call on the name of the Lord. The Bible tells us to humble thyself in the sight of the Lord, and he will lift you up. The Bible tells us that God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble. If you and I are going to seek the Lord, I promise you we must have a heart attitude of humility. When we call upon the Lord, in your heart and my heart there must be an attitude of humility. And then number two, there's an offering. Abram built an altar. Why? To offer a sacrifice. He came to God, he came to call upon the name of the Lord in the name of Jesus our Passover, our sacrificial lamb. We place the blood of Jesus as our only merit. We plead the blood of Jesus as our only merit for approaching the great throne of holy God. Our hope is built on nothing less than Jesus' blood and righteousness. I dare not trust the sweetest frame, but wholly lean on Jesus' name, on Christ the solid rock I stand. All other ground is sinking sand. All other ground is sinking sand. So there is an offering that Abram brought, and trust me, when you and I call upon the name of the Lord, we must bring a sacrifice. But what do I have to bring? I don't have anything to bring. I have no merit of my own. I can only plead the blood of Jesus. And then thirdly, there's a promise. In Jeremiah thirty three in verse three, which by the way is God's phone number, J E R three three three. He says, Call upon me and I will answer you. Call upon me and I will answer you. What an awesome promise. And he says, I will show you great and mighty things that you know not of. That's the promise of God, and he is the great promise keeper. You and I might be unfaithful, but the Bible tells us that God is always faithful. Abram called upon the name of the Lord, and so can you, so can I call on the name of the Lord God almighty, and he gave you his phone number. Call in humility. Call with clean hands and a clean heart. Call in the name of Jesus our Passover, and He will answer and show you great and mighty things that you know not of. Blessed, blessed be the name of the Lord.

Humility Offering Promise And Closing

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You're listening to Devotions with Dr. Papa. If you like what you hear, follow, like and share. Share it with your friends. And we'll be back again next week to continue to follow the life of Abram, who eventually will be named Abraham. And until then, remember, Jesus loves you, your doctor loves you. And until then, I pray that the Lord will bless you real good.

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Thank you for listening to this edition of Morton Medicine. For more information about the Jackson Family Medicine or to schedule a speaking engagement, go to their Facebook page, Instagram, or web page at Jackson Family Medicine dot com.