Genesis 15:7-16 Video Devotional

Posted on Apr 27, 2020 by admin in Video Devotional | Tags: , , , ,

“And he said to him, “I am the Lord who brought you out from Ur of the Chaldeans to give you this land to possess.” But he said, “O Lord God, how am I to know that I shall possess it?” He said to him, “Bring me a heifer three years old, a female goat three years old, a ram three years old, a turtledove, and a young pigeon.” And he brought him all these, cut them in half, and laid each half over against the other. But he did not cut the birds in half. And when birds of prey came down on the carcasses, Abram drove them away. As the sun was going down, a deep sleep fell on Abram. And behold, dreadful and great darkness fell upon him. Then the Lord said to Abram, “Know for certain that your offspring will be sojourners in a land that is not theirs and will be servants there, and they will be afflicted for four hundred years. But I will bring judgment on the nation that they serve, and afterward they shall come out with great possessions. As for you, you shall go to your fathers in peace; you shall be buried in a good old age. And they shall come back here in the fourth generation, for the iniquity of the Amorites is not yet complete.”” (Genesis 15:7-16)

In the olden days, it is often quoted that “your word was your bond”. With the number of times I had to sign my name on mortgage papers, I am guessing that line doesn’t mean as much as it used to. No longer can we say, “take me at my word” or “Let’s shake on it” as those phrases don’t hold meaning anymore.

I’m not sure “your word” counted for too much back in ancient times, either. Take this whole idea of a covenant. When this was made between two people, they would cut the animals in half, then each walk in between them to symbolize that if either of them broke the covenant, then cutting them in half would be the appropriate response.

And it is that fact that makes this passage so powerful as a promise of God. Notice who walks through the covenant promise? God ALONE. Abram was sound asleep – meaning that this was a one-way covenant. It had nothing to do with Abram or his (or anyone else’s) actions. This is an unconditional covenant with all of the responsibility squarely on God. This journey He took Abram on is purely to develop the line of Jesus, while showing that He is all-patient and all-powerful.

Our God is an amazing God! Can you share a time when you saw God act unconditionally on your behalf?


Genesis 3:14-15 Video Devotional

Posted on Apr 22, 2020 by admin in Video Devotional | Tags: , , , ,

The Lord God said to the serpent,
“Because you have done this,
cursed are you above all livestock
and above all beasts of the field;
on your belly you shall go,
and dust you shall eat
all the days of your life.
I will put enmity between you and the woman,
and between your offspring and her offspring;
he shall bruise your head,
and you shall bruise his heel.” (Genesis 3:14-15)

A promise. Whether it is small or large, a promise is one of the key components of trust. Parents are judged by their children on their ability to keep promises. Politicians are judged on their ability to keep promises. When promises are broken, trust begins to erode. When they are upheld, the foundation is secured. People need kept promises. It gives us comfort, confidence, and consistency necessary to step out in faith.

This is important in our relationship with God as well. After all, He created us this way and promised us many things; He’d never flood the earth again (Genesis 9), we are never alone (Hebrews 13), He loves us unconditionally (Romans 8), we are created intentionally and given purpose (Psalm 139), etc… God’s keeping of these promises gives us a consistent Lord that we can trust, rely on and step out to serve in the midst of risk.

With that in mind, this promise in Genesis 3 is quite vital. He tells the serpent how it will all end. Evil (sin) will bite His heel, but He will crush its head. This is the initial promise of Jesus and is laid out perfectly on the cross. Evil thought it ad scored the major victory with Jesus’ lifeless body hanging on that tree. But, on the third day, Jesus crushed its head by rising from the dead and securing forgiveness and eternal life for all who trust in Him.

With this curse handed to the snake, God promised that good would win, evil would be defeated and destroyed, and restoration would come. That’s a pretty amazing promise!


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