Genesis 21:1-5 NIVUK
Now the Lord was gracious to Sarah as he had said, and the Lord did for Sarah what he had promised. 2 Sarah became pregnant and bore a son to Abraham in his old age, at the very time God had promised him. 3 Abraham gave the name Isaac to the son Sarah bore him. 4 When his son Isaac was eight days old, Abraham circumcised him, as God commanded him. 5 Abraham was a hundred years old when his son Isaac was born to him.
The nature of the relationship between God and his people is often described as a covenant. Sometimes this is described mistakenly as being a set of rules such as the Ten Commandments, or the rules found in the first five books of the Bible, the Torah. But this is a misunderstanding. These verses give a good illustration of this. Yes Abraham circumcised Isaac as God commanded him, but underlying this is not ‘here is something I must do or I’ll get in trouble…’ rather a relationship of faithfulness shown to each other. Abraham and Sarah are faithful in getting Isaac circumcised because God has been faithful to them through doing what he’d promised, giving them a child. We worship and we seek to follow Jesus’ teaching not because we have to, but because of who he is and what he has done for us.
Take some time at this, the start of the week, to remind yourself what God has done for you. What can you do for him to show your appreciation for this?
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