“Before Abraham Was, I AM:” “Yeshua, the Promise to Abraham, and the Restoration of All Things
Torah: Genesis 12:1–17:27
Prophets: Isaiah 40:27–41:16
Gospel: John 8:51–58
Central Scriptures: Acts 3:21 and John 8:58
The Story of Abraham Is Bigger Than Abraham
When we open Genesis 12, we meet a man named Abram, living in a world still suffering from the consequences of Adam’s disobedience. Humanity has been driven from Eden. Cain has murdered Abel. Violence has filled the earth. The Flood has come and gone. At Babel, humanity has been scattered across the earth. Yet Yahweh has not abandoned His creation. Instead, He begins something remarkable. He calls one man, Abram, and promises to bless him. But the blessing is not intended to stop with Abram or even with his descendants. Yahweh declares, “And in you all the families of the earth will be blessed” (Genesis 12:3).
There is the remarkable beginning of a promise that reaches far beyond one man, one family, or one nation. When we read this Torah portion through Acts 3:21, which speaks of the “restoration of all things,” we begin to recognize that Yahweh’s call to Abraham belongs to a much larger story. Yahweh is working through one family toward a blessing intended for all the families of the earth. And when we read it through John 8:58, where Yeshua declares, “Before Abraham was born, I am,” we discover that the One who ultimately fulfills Abraham’s promise was already present before Abraham ever existed.
Yahweh Calls One Man With All the Families of the Earth in View
Genesis 12:1–3 records Yahweh’s extraordinary promise to Abram. He tells him to leave his country, his relatives, and his father’s household and go to a land Yahweh will show him. Yahweh promises to make him a great nation, bless him, make his name great, and make him a blessing. Then comes the part we should never overlook: “And in you all the families of the earth will be blessed.”
Why would Yahweh choose one man if His ultimate concern extended to all humanity? Perhaps the answer is that choosing one person was never intended to mean abandoning everyone else. Yahweh chose Abraham as the beginning of a mission through which His blessing would reach the nations. Think of a farmer planting a single seed. The farmer does not plant that seed because he loves only the seed. He plants it because he intends a harvest. In a similar way, Yahweh’s election of Abraham begins a covenant story whose blessings are intended to spread far beyond Abraham himself.
This does not mean Genesis 12 explicitly teaches that every individual will ultimately be saved. It does mean that the scope of Yahweh’s announced blessing is universal: all the families of the earth. That is an important foundation for understanding the Christian universalist hope.
Abraham Believes a Promise He Cannot Yet See
Genesis 12:4 tells us that Abram departed as Yahweh had spoken to him. He was seventy-five years old. Consider what that meant. Abram was leaving familiar surroundings for a destination he had never seen. Yahweh promised him descendants, but he and Sarai had no child. Yahweh promised him land, but Abram did not yet possess it. He was being asked to trust the One who made the promise.
This is one of the great lessons of Abraham’s life. Faith does not mean possessing everything Yahweh has promised. Faith means trusting Yahweh while the promise is still unfolding. That same principle will appear throughout Scripture. Israel must trust Yahweh in the wilderness. Joshua must trust Him at the Jordan. The disciples must trust the risen Yeshua after His ascension. And we are called to trust Yahweh’s promises even when the world around us seems far removed from the restoration He has announced.
Abraham Builds Altars Along the Way
As Abram journeys through Canaan, Yahweh appears to him and promises the land to his descendants. Abram responds by building an altar. He later builds another altar between Bethel and Ai and calls upon Yahweh’s name. These altars remind us that Abraham’s journey was not merely a search for property. It was a relationship with the living Creator.
Abraham’s faith was not perfect, as the following chapters will demonstrate. But he was learning to walk with Yahweh, to hear His voice, and to respond to His promises. And that brings us to an important question: Who was this Yahweh who spoke to Abraham?
“Before Abraham Was Born, I AM”
In John 8:58, Yeshua makes one of the most extraordinary declarations recorded in the Gospels: “Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was born, I am.” Notice what Yeshua does not say. He does not merely say, “Before Abraham was born, I was.” Instead, He uses the expression “I am.”
The Greek text reads prin Abraam genesthai, egō eimi—literally, “Before Abraham came into being, I am.” The contrast is striking. Abraham came into existence at a particular point in history. Yeshua speaks of His own existence in terms that transcend Abraham’s beginning. Many Christians understand this declaration as an expression of Yeshua’s divine identity, recalling Yahweh’s self-revelation in Exodus 3:14 and the divine “I am” declarations in Isaiah.
We should be careful not to claim that the wording alone settles every question about the relationship between Yeshua and Yahweh. Nevertheless, John’s Gospel presents Yeshua as far more than a prophet who appeared centuries after Abraham. He is the eternal Word through whom all things came into being (John 1:1–3). The One who fulfills Abraham’s promise existed before Abraham received it.
Did Abraham Encounter Yeshua?
This naturally raises a fascinating question. When Yahweh appeared to Abram, was Abraham encountering the One later revealed as Yeshua? Christians have long understood certain Old Testament appearances of Yahweh as possible manifestations of the preincarnate Son. These appearances are sometimes called Christophanies.
John 8:58 certainly establishes, within John’s presentation of Yeshua, that His existence precedes Abraham. John 1:18 also describes the Son as the One who makes the unseen Father known. However, Genesis does not explicitly identify every appearance of Yahweh to Abraham as an appearance of the preincarnate Yeshua. We should therefore distinguish between what Scripture directly states and what Christian theology reasonably infers.
What we can say confidently is that Abraham’s covenant belongs to the saving purpose ultimately revealed and fulfilled through Yeshua. And that purpose was not an emergency plan devised after humanity fell into sin. It belongs to Yahweh’s eternal intention.
Abraham Goes Down to Egypt—and His Faith Falters
Genesis 12 contains a surprising account. A famine drives Abram into Egypt. Afraid that the Egyptians will kill him because of Sarai’s beauty, Abram tells her to say she is his sister. Pharaoh takes Sarai into his household, and Yahweh afflicts Pharaoh’s house with severe plagues.
Abram’s conduct reveals a troubling failure of faith. The man who trusted Yahweh enough to leave his homeland now acts out of fear. Yet Yahweh preserves Sarai and protects the future of the covenant. This is important because the promise does not depend upon Abraham’s flawless performance. Yahweh’s faithfulness is greater than Abraham’s weakness. That does not excuse Abraham’s deception. It demonstrates that Yahweh’s purpose is not easily defeated by human failure.
If the restoration of all things depended upon perfect human cooperation, what hope would there be? But Scripture repeatedly presents Yahweh as the One who remains faithful even when His people stumble.
Lot Chooses by Sight, but Abraham Lives by Promise
Genesis 13 records the separation of Abram and Lot. Their possessions have become too great for them to remain together, and disputes arise between their herdsmen. Lot chooses the well-watered Jordan Valley, which appears attractive and prosperous. Abram remains in Canaan, trusting Yahweh’s promise.
The contrast is instructive. Lot chooses according to what he can see. Abram must continue trusting what Yahweh has said. After Lot departs, Yahweh tells Abram to look north, south, east, and west. He promises the land to Abram’s descendants and declares that they will become as numerous as the dust of the earth. The promise grows larger, even though its fulfillment still seems distant. Yahweh is teaching Abraham that His purposes cannot be measured merely by present circumstances.
Abraham Rescues Lot—and Meets Melchizedek
Genesis 14 tells of a conflict among kings that results in Lot’s capture. Abram gathers his trained men, pursues the captors, defeats them, and rescues Lot. Afterward, he encounters Melchizedek, king of Salem and priest of God Most High. Melchizedek brings out bread and wine and blesses Abram.
This mysterious figure becomes particularly important in the New Testament. Hebrews 7 presents Melchizedek as a pattern of the priesthood fulfilled in Yeshua. Yeshua’s priesthood is not based upon descent from Aaron. He is a priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek.
Here, long before Moses and the Levitical priesthood, we encounter a priest-king who anticipates something greater. The writer of Hebrews uses Melchizedek to help explain the superiority and permanence of Yeshua’s priesthood. And that matters for restoration. The One through whom Yahweh intends to reconcile His creation is not merely a temporary priest offering temporary sacrifices. Hebrews presents Yeshua as the living High Priest whose priesthood continues forever.
Abraham Believes Yahweh, and It Is Counted as Righteousness
Genesis 15 contains one of the most important statements in the Torah. Yahweh takes Abram outside and tells him to look toward the heavens and count the stars, if he can. Then He declares, “So shall your descendants be.” Genesis 15:6 says, “Then he believed in Yahweh; and He credited it to him as righteousness.”
Abram still has no child through Sarai. The promise remains humanly improbable. Yet he believes Yahweh. Paul will later build upon this passage in Romans 4 and Galatians 3 to explain righteousness by faith. Abraham’s relationship with Yahweh rests upon trusting the Promise-Maker. That is especially significant when we remember that Abraham lived centuries before Moses received the Law at Sinai. The Gospel’s emphasis upon faith is not a New Testament invention. It reaches back to Abraham.
The Covenant Is Established by Yahweh’s Faithfulness
Genesis 15 also describes a remarkable covenant ceremony. Abram prepares animals according to Yahweh’s instructions. But when the decisive moment comes, Abram is in a deep sleep. A smoking oven and a flaming torch pass between the pieces.
The symbolism is striking. Yahweh takes the initiative in establishing His covenant. The promise rests upon His commitment. Abraham certainly has responsibilities, and later chapters make that clear. But Genesis 15 emphasizes that the covenant originates in Yahweh’s mercy, grace and faithfulness.
From a restorative perspective, this is tremendously encouraging. The future of Yahweh’s creation does not ultimately rest upon humanity’s ability to rescue itself. It rests upon the faithfulness of the Creator.
Hagar and Ishmael: Does Yahweh Care for Those Outside the Chosen Line?
Genesis 16 introduces one of the saddest episodes in Abraham’s household. Sarai, still childless, gives her Egyptian servant Hagar to Abram in the hope of obtaining a child through her. The arrangement produces conflict and suffering. Hagar becomes pregnant, tensions rise, and Sarai treats her harshly. Hagar flees into the wilderness.
But something wonderful happens. Yahweh finds her. The angel of Yahweh meets Hagar beside a spring of water and speaks to her about her future and her unborn son. Hagar responds by calling Yahweh El Roi, commonly understood as “the God who sees me.”
Think about that. Hagar is Egyptian. She is enslaved. She is vulnerable. She has been mistreated within the household of the very man Yahweh has chosen. Yet Yahweh sees her. The covenant promise runs through Abraham’s family, but Yahweh’s compassion is not restricted to the privileged members of that family.
This is one of the most beautiful indications in Genesis that divine election does not imply divine indifference toward everyone else.
Yahweh Hears Ishmael
The angel tells Hagar that she will bear a son and name him Ishmael, a name associated with the declaration that Yahweh hears. Although Ishmael will not be the son through whom the particular covenant promise is established, Yahweh does not ignore him.
Later, in Genesis 17:20, Yahweh tells Abraham, “As for Ishmael, I have heard you.” Yahweh promises to bless Ishmael, make him fruitful, and multiply his descendants greatly.
Notice the distinction. Isaac will carry the particular covenant line. But Ishmael is not forgotten. Yahweh can choose one person for a particular purpose without ceasing to care for another. That is a principle worth remembering whenever we discuss election, salvation, and the scope of Yahweh’s love.
Abram Becomes Abraham: A Father of Many Nations
In Genesis 17, Yahweh changes Abram’s name to Abraham. He explains the significance: “For I have made you the father of a multitude of nations” (Genesis 17:5). Not merely the father of one tribe. Not merely the father of one nation. A multitude of nations.
The promise is expanding. Yahweh also changes Sarai’s name to Sarah and promises that she will bear a son. The covenant will continue through Isaac, but its ultimate significance reaches far beyond Isaac’s immediate descendants.
Paul later draws upon Abraham’s promise to explain how Gentiles become participants in the blessing through faith in Yeshua (Galatians 3:8–9, 14). The Gospel is therefore not a departure from Abraham’s covenant. It is the unfolding of its worldwide purpose.
Circumcision: The Sign of a Covenant
Genesis 17 establishes circumcision as the sign of Yahweh’s covenant with Abraham and his household. The covenant has a visible sign, and Abraham is commanded to obey. But the sign is not the whole purpose. The deeper issue is belonging to Yahweh and trusting His promise.
Later Scripture will speak of the circumcision of the heart (Deuteronomy 30:6), and Paul will explain that physical circumcision is not the basis upon which Gentiles receive the blessing promised through Abraham. This reminds us that outward signs serve Yahweh’s larger covenant purpose. They are not substitutes for faithfulness, trust, and transformed hearts.
Isaiah Asks Whether Yahweh Has Forgotten His People
Our prophetic reading begins in Isaiah 40:27 with a complaint from Israel: “My way is hidden from Yahweh, and the justice due me escapes the notice of my God.”
Israel feels forgotten. Have you ever noticed how often that question appears in Scripture? Adam hides from Yahweh. Hagar flees into the wilderness. Abraham waits for a promised child. Israel suffers in exile. Again and again, people wonder whether Yahweh sees their circumstances.
But Isaiah answers with a magnificent declaration. Yahweh is the everlasting Creator of the ends of the earth. He does not become weary or tired. His understanding is beyond searching out. The Creator has not forgotten His creation.
Those Who Wait for Yahweh Will Renew Their Strength
Isaiah 40:29–31 tells us that Yahweh gives strength to the weary and increases the power of those who lack might. Then comes the familiar promise: “Yet those who wait for Yahweh will gain new strength; they will mount up with wings like eagles.”
This is a wonderful companion to Abraham’s story. Abraham waited. Sarah waited. Hagar waited in the wilderness. Israel waited for deliverance. Waiting is one of the great disciplines of faith.
But biblical waiting is not hopeless resignation. It is confidence that Yahweh will accomplish what He has promised. And Acts 3:21 reminds us that the prophetic story reaches toward the restoration of all things.
Isaiah Reminds Us That Yahweh Rules the Nations
Isaiah 41 begins with Yahweh summoning the distant lands and nations before Him. He asks who has stirred up a conqueror from the east and directed the course of history. Within Isaiah’s historical setting, the passage speaks of Yahweh’s sovereignty over rulers and nations, with the figure from the east often understood in connection with the rise of Cyrus.
The larger theological point is unmistakable. Yahweh is not merely a tribal deity whose influence ends at Israel’s borders. He is the Creator and Lord of history. He calls generations into existence. He governs nations. He accomplishes His purposes.
This fits beautifully with Genesis 12. The One who promises to bless all the families of the earth is also the One who rules over all the families of the earth.
“Abraham My Friend”
Isaiah 41:8 contains a particularly beautiful connection with our Torah portion: “But you, Israel, My servant, Jacob whom I have chosen, descendant of Abraham My friend.”
What a description! Abraham, My friend. The man who left his homeland, struggled with fear, waited for a child, rescued Lot, and pleaded for Ishmael is remembered as Yahweh’s friend.
Abraham was not perfect. But he trusted Yahweh. And Yahweh remained faithful to him. The language of friendship reveals something important about Yahweh’s character. He does not merely issue commands from a distance. He enters into covenant relationships with human beings.
“Do Not Fear, for I Am With You”
Isaiah 41:10 declares: “Do not fear, for I am with you; do not be afraid, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, I will also help you, I will also uphold you with My righteous right hand.”
Notice how closely this resembles Yahweh’s dealings with Abraham. Abraham faces uncertainty, danger, and impossible circumstances. Yet Yahweh repeatedly reassures him.
The promise is not that Abraham will never experience trouble. The promise is that Yahweh will remain faithful. And when Isaiah speaks of Yahweh’s righteous right hand, we are reminded that divine righteousness is not merely about punishing wrongdoing. It also includes Yahweh’s faithfulness to His promises and His commitment to rescue His people.
The Worm Jacob Becomes a Threshing Sledge
Isaiah 41:14–16 contains a striking transformation. Yahweh addresses Israel as “worm Jacob,” emphasizing the nation’s weakness and vulnerability. But then He promises to make Israel into a new, sharp threshing sledge.
The weak will be strengthened. The helpless will be empowered. The frightened will rejoice in Yahweh. This imagery includes severe judgment upon hostile powers, so we should not pretend it is simply a peaceful picture of reconciliation.
Nevertheless, it demonstrates a recurring biblical pattern: Yahweh takes what is weak and transforms it. He does not abandon His people because they are powerless. He acts to restore their strength.
Yeshua Says Abraham Rejoiced to See His Day
Now we arrive at the Gospel reading. In John 8:56, Yeshua tells His opponents: “Your father Abraham was overjoyed that he would see My day, and he saw it and rejoiced.”
What an extraordinary statement! Yeshua places Himself at the center of Abraham’s hope. Abraham received promises concerning descendants, land, covenant, and blessing. Yet Yeshua says Abraham rejoiced to see His day.
John does not specify precisely how Abraham saw that day. Christians have proposed several explanations, including Abraham’s prophetic faith in Yahweh’s promises and particular experiences recorded in Genesis. We should avoid claiming more certainty than the passage provides.
But its central message is clear. Abraham’s hope was ultimately connected to Yeshua. The covenant was moving toward Him.
“Before Abraham Was Born, I AM”
The religious leaders respond by questioning how Yeshua, who is not yet fifty years old, could have seen Abraham. Yeshua answers: “Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was born, I am” (John 8:58).
The reaction is immediate. They pick up stones to throw at Him. They understand that Yeshua has made an extraordinary claim.
John’s Gospel presents Him not simply as Abraham’s descendant but as the One whose existence precedes Abraham. And this brings our three readings together. Genesis shows Yahweh establishing a promise through Abraham. Isaiah shows Yahweh faithfully sustaining Abraham’s descendants and governing the nations. John reveals Yeshua as the eternal One in whom Abraham’s hope finds its fulfillment.
The story is not about three unrelated divine purposes. It is one unfolding purpose.
“If Anyone Keeps My Word, He Will Never See Death”
We should also consider John 8:51: “Truly, truly, I say to you, if anyone follows My word, he will never see death.”
The statement puzzles Yeshua’s opponents because Abraham died, and the prophets died. How can Yeshua promise life beyond death? The Gospel of John repeatedly connects life with believing in Yeshua. In John 11:25, Yeshua declares: “I am the resurrection and the life; the one who believes in Me will live, even if he dies.”
Physical death remains a reality, but it is not the ultimate limit of Yeshua’s life-giving power. This connects directly with the restoration of all things. The curse of death entered humanity’s experience through Adam. Yeshua comes as the One who overcomes death. Paul later writes that the last enemy to be abolished is death (1 Corinthians 15:26). The promise to Abraham ultimately reaches beyond land and descendants to resurrection life.
Acts 3:21: The Restoration of All Things
Peter speaks in Acts 3:21 of the restoration of all things, which Yahweh announced through His holy prophets. But we should read the next verses as well. In Acts 3:25, Peter reminds his listeners of Yahweh’s promise to Abraham: “And in your seed all the families of the earth shall be blessed.”
Then Acts 3:26 explains that Yahweh sent His Servant to bless them by turning them from their wicked ways. This is a particularly important connection. The same sermon that announces the restoration of all things also recalls the promise that all the families of the earth will be blessed through Abraham’s seed.
These are not unrelated ideas. Peter places the Abrahamic promise within the unfolding mission of Yeshua. The blessing is not simply material prosperity. It includes deliverance from wickedness. Yahweh’s purpose is not to leave humanity in its rebellion. It is to turn people away from the very sins that destroy them.
What Does It Mean to Bless All the Families of the Earth?
This question deserves careful consideration. Some understand the Abrahamic promise as fulfilled through the worldwide proclamation of the Gospel and the salvation of those who believe. Christian universalists agree that faith and repentance matter, but they ask whether Yahweh’s promise ultimately reaches further.
If Yahweh promised blessing to all the families of the earth, and if Peter connects that promise with the restoration of all things, might the final scope of Yahweh’s saving purpose be as extensive as the original promise? That is a serious theological question.
Genesis 12 does not explicitly tell us that every individual will ultimately be reconciled to Yahweh. Nor does Acts 3:21, by itself, settle every question about the final judgment. But these passages provide substantial biblical reasons for considering the possibility that Yahweh’s restorative purpose ultimately embraces all humanity.
Other passages strengthen that hope. Romans 5:18 compares Adam’s act of condemnation with Yeshua’s act of righteousness. First Corinthians 15:22 declares: “For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ all will be made alive.” Colossians 1:20 speaks of Yahweh reconciling all things through the blood of Yeshua’s cross.
Together, these passages form an important part of the scriptural foundation for Christian universalism.
Election Is for Blessing, Not Merely Privilege
One of the most important lessons in this Torah portion concerns the purpose of election. Why Abraham? Why Isaac rather than Ishmael as the covenant heir? Why Israel? Why did Yahweh establish a particular covenant people?
The biblical answer includes a mission. Through Abraham’s descendants, Yahweh would reveal His character, establish His covenant, bring forth the Messiah, and extend His blessing to the nations. Election therefore involves responsibility as well as privilege.
It is not simply a declaration that Yahweh loves one group and despises everyone else. Hagar’s experience reminds us that Yahweh sees those outside the chosen line. Ishmael’s blessing reminds us that Yahweh hears those outside the chosen line. And the promise to Abraham reminds us that the chosen line exists within a purpose directed toward all the families of the earth.
Judgment and Restoration Are Not Opposites
A Christian universalist reading should never pretend that judgment is absent from these passages. Pharaoh’s household experiences plagues. The kings who capture Lot are defeated. Isaiah describes judgment against hostile nations. John 8 contains a sharp confrontation between Yeshua and those who reject His words.
Yahweh takes evil seriously. But judgment does not necessarily mean that Yahweh has abandoned His larger purpose. The biblical question is not whether Yahweh judges. He does.
The deeper question is whether judgment is the final destination of His creation or whether judgment serves the ultimate triumph of His righteousness, mercy, and restorative purpose. Christian universalism argues for the latter. It understands Yahweh’s judgments within the larger promise that evil, sin, and death will finally be overcome.
From Abraham’s Tent to the Restoration of All Things
Imagine Abraham standing outside his tent beneath the stars. He has no son through Sarah. He possesses no great kingdom. He cannot count the stars, much less imagine all the generations that will follow him. Yet Yahweh tells him that his descendants will be numerous and that all the families of the earth will be blessed through him.
Centuries later, Isaiah speaks to Abraham’s descendants when they feel forgotten. Yahweh assures them that He is the everlasting Creator, that He does not grow weary, and that He will uphold them.
Then Yeshua appears and declares that Abraham rejoiced to see His day. Finally, Peter announces the restoration of all things and explicitly recalls Abraham’s promise.
Do you see the progression? Abraham receives the promise. Isaiah declares the faithfulness of the Promise-Maker. Yeshua reveals Himself as the One who existed before Abraham and fulfills his hope. Peter announces the restoration toward which the prophetic promises point.
One promise. One faithful Creator. One unfolding purpose.
The One Who Was Before Abraham Will Finish What He Began
There is something wonderfully reassuring about Yeshua’s words, “Before Abraham was born, I am.” The promise to Abraham was not entrusted to someone whose existence began at Bethlehem. The One through whom the promise would be fulfilled was already present before Abraham was born.
He was there before the covenant. He was there before Israel. He was there before Moses. And according to John 1, He was there in the beginning.
The eternal Word through whom creation came into existence is the One through whom Yahweh’s saving purpose is accomplished. That means the restoration of all things is not an afterthought. It belongs to the purpose of the One who was present before all things.
From One Man to All the Families of the Earth
Genesis 12 begins with one man leaving his homeland. Genesis 17 promises that he will become the father of many nations. Isaiah reminds Abraham’s descendants that Yahweh is the Creator of the ends of the earth. John reveals that Yeshua existed before Abraham and that Abraham rejoiced to see His day. Acts 3 announces the restoration of all things and recalls the promise of blessing to all the families of the earth.
The movement is unmistakable. From one man to one family. From one family to a nation. From that nation to the Messiah. And through the Messiah, the Gospel goes to the nations.
Christian universalism sees in that progression the promise of something even greater: the eventual reconciliation of creation to its Creator. Not because sin is unimportant. Not because repentance is unnecessary. Not because judgment is imaginary. But because Yahweh’s faithfulness is greater than human unfaithfulness, and His saving purpose is greater than the rebellion that opposes it.
The Promise Is Bigger Than Abraham
Perhaps the greatest mistake we could make when reading Genesis 12–17 would be to think the story is only about Abraham. It is about Abraham, certainly. But it is also about Hagar, whom Yahweh sees. It is about Ishmael, whom Yahweh hears. It is about Isaac, through whom the covenant continues. It is about Israel, whom Yahweh promises to uphold. It is about the nations, whom Yahweh intends to bless. And above all, it is about Yeshua, who declares: “Before Abraham was born, I am.”
Abraham could not see the full scope of Yahweh’s plan. Neither can we. But Abraham believed the One who made the promise. And perhaps that is the great lesson of this week’s Torah portion. We are not asked to understand every detail of how Yahweh will accomplish His purpose. We are called to trust the One who promised.
The One who called Abraham is faithful. The One who saw Hagar is faithful. The One who heard Ishmael is faithful. The One who strengthened Israel is faithful. The One who was before Abraham is faithful. And the One who promised the restoration of all things has not abandoned His creation.
Yahweh began with one man, but His promise embraced all the families of the earth. And through Yeshua—the One who was before Abraham—His purpose continues toward the restoration of all things.
Brother Roger
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