17:1
We have now moved on about twelve years. Abram has been in the doghouse with Sarai for most of that time! Now things are going to move on a pace. The Lord appears to Abram. Notice that throughout Abram’s life it is God who takes the initiative. Notice also that while there are times of intense and intimate contact between God and Abram, there are long periods of silence. “I am God Almighty”, or El-Shaddai. This is the fundamental fact that Abram needs to know and needs to base his life on, as do we all. “Walk before me and be blameless”. We are to live our lives in God’s presence. We are not just making our own way in the world, doing our own thing. We live before the Lord. “and be blameless”. How are we to take this? We can take it as a command, and it is certainly a good thing to seek to live godly lives. We can also take it as being blameless because of the blood of Jesus, i.e. we do not live under a constant cloud of guilt and shame for our sin. This does not mean that we treat sin lightly, but have been set free from guilt by the cross.
17:2
Why does God want Abram to walk before Him? So that He may make His covenant with Abram and multiply him greatly. Note that it is “His covenant”. The covenant is God’s idea, God’s initiative. It is also His purpose to multiply Abram greatly. We might look at the church in the West and despair. We should not do so. Multiplication does not come from gimmicks or techniques, but from walking before the Lord, blameless.
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