God calls us to do something we think is impossible. What is your response? Is it disbelief? Is it offering God another option? Genesis 17 looks into the covenant God made with Abram. We see the fight of faith, mixed with the invitation and call of God to walk with Him. Our main idea is this: God establishes His covenant with us by His power and calls us to be obedient through His strength.
TENSION
Abraham laughed at God. Not out of scorn, but out of disbelief. At ninety-nine years old, with Sarah not far behind, the promise of a son sounded impossible. In that moment, Abraham did what many of us do: he offered God a more “reasonable” plan. “If only Ishmael might live under your blessing!”
That’s the tension of Genesis 17. God promises the impossible. Abraham struggles to believe. And yet, beneath the sign of circumcision and the change of names, this chapter is not about ritual or human logic, but about covenant.
God establishes His covenant by His power, and He calls His people to walk with Him in obedience through His strength. The question we are left with is: Why do we doubt God’s power and struggle to obey Him today?
TEXT
Abram again meets with God. This is a holy encounter. God initiates a covenant with Abram and his offspring. God sets the terms and promises to bring it about. Abram is asked to be faithful through God’s abiding power and presence.
“I am God Almighty.” The foundation of the covenant that God made to Abram was based on who God is. He is ‘Almighty’; therefore, there is nothing that He cannot accomplish. This covenant was not based on anything Abram could do. It is a foundation on the rock of God’s power. Therefore, not even disobedience could bring it down.
“Live in My Presence.” The heart of the covenant was to walk with God. This is an invitation to a relationship. This was different than all other gods in the region. Those so-called gods demanded that their people serve them out of fear and distance. However, God was calling Abram into His presence. This is a hand extended for Abram to take and walk alongside God.
“And be blameless.” The invitation had a call. This was a call to obedience. Walking with God is walking in obedience to Him. Based on what we have already read, we know that Abram cannot be completely blameless. He is sometimes faithful, sometimes not. This blamelessness would have to be attempted by Abram, but upheld and empowered by God. This is a simple call to obedience.
Then God does something amazing. Abram will no longer go by Abram. No, God gave him a new name because of what God was about to do. Abram was changed to Abraham. And Sarai was changed to Sarah. Why? God promised them that through their son, many nations would come. There was only one problem. Abraham was nearing 100 years old and Sarah 90.
In this covenant and promise of many nations was God’s promise to give Abraham’s offspring land. There was also a reminder that God will be their God and He will be with them. God would make them a mighty nation.
They would all bear the outward mark of circumcision as a sign of this promise. What an overwhelming promise. As God unfolded layer after layer of promises about Abraham’s line, Abraham’s heart began to sink a little.
He laughed. Not the response many would have expected. I wonder if Abraham thought God had forgotten his and his wife’s age. These promises are amazing, but how will they be? Abraham knew how age worked. He knew he and Sarah were too old. What he didn’t fully grasp was who he was talking to.
Abraham, well-meaning, offers God a way for His promises to be fulfilled. He already has Ishmael. What was happening in our story? Abraham was doubting that God had the power and ability to do what He promised. This is a lack of faith. Abraham was trying to offer God what he saw as a more reasonable plan.
Watch God’s grace. God doesn’t condemn Abraham; he redirects him. God reaffirms that His promise is for Abraham and Sarah. His permanent covenant is with Isaac and his descendants. However, through God’s goodness, He promises to bless Ishmael too, though His covenant will not extend to him.
Abraham then does what God commanded. He circumcises all that are in his household as a sign of obedience and covenant. Abraham, though struggling with faithfulness, was able to walk in obedience through God’s power and grace.
TAKE AWAY
Like Abraham, we sometimes scoff at God’s promises, not always out loud, but in our hearts. We doubt His timing, we offer Him our “better options,” and we wrestle with walking blamelessly before Him. But Genesis 17 reminds us that God’s covenant rests not on our strength, but on His.
In Christ, we have the new covenant sealed with His blood and guaranteed by His resurrection. Our “circumcision” is of the heart, a life set apart for God by the Spirit’s power. And just as God kept His word to Abraham and Sarah, He will keep His word to us.
So as we walk with God this week, let us rely on His power to fulfill His purposes. When a situation seems impossible, let us look back at what God has done and trust what He will do, even if we can’t see it or believe it.
Also, as we seek to live in obedience to God’s word, let us do so through the strength provided by God’s hand. This means asking God to illuminate parts of our lives that we struggle with and asking for His strength in those areas.
So today, let us walk in His presence. Let us lean on the Spirit when obedience feels impossible. And let us trust the God who always fulfills His promises, even the ones that seem impossible.