The last time I shopped for a baseball glove, it took me all summer to find what I wanted. Why? Because I wanted a particular brand, a Mizuno, which is made in Japan. But since I was in the States that summer I had a hard time finding Mizuno equipment. Wilsons and Rawlings were everywhere, but no Mizunos. My dad suggested I just get a glove made by one of the other companies, but no, I wanted a Mizuno—a brand I had come to trust. Perhaps you feel that way about the kind of phone you buy, or the car you drive. Not just any make and model will do, only the brand you have come to trust. In our Abraham sermon series today we’re going to learn why, on our journey of faith, we also will want to go with a name we can trust.
In our sermon last week we heard how Abraham and Sarah tried taking a shortcut and made a mess of things when they tried to help God fulfill his promise of giving them a child. Sarah suggested that Abraham sleep with her servant Hagar and that they adopt the child that was conceived. But as soon as Hagar realized she was pregnant, she started to despise her mistress and was run out of the house as a result. It was only after the Angel of the Lord appeared to Hagar that she returned to her rightful place as Sarah’s servant. In time, Hagar gave birth to Ishmael.
13 years passed before we get to the events of our text. It seems that by this time Abraham believed that Ishmael and his descendants would be the ones to inherit the Promised Land, not a son born to his wife Sarah. But when Abraham turned 99 years old, God appeared to set matters straight. He said to Abraham: “I am God Almighty; walk before me faithfully and be blameless. 2 Then I will make my covenant between me and you and will greatly increase your numbers” (Genesis 17:1, 2).
Although it might not be clear in the English translation, you were just introduced to another name for God. Last week we heard Hagar call God, El Roi, which means “the God who sees me.” Now God called himself El Shaddai, which means “God Almighty.” Why do you suppose God shared that name with Abraham at this time? Because God was about to do something inconceivable. He was about to implement the plan he had devised when he first called Abraham—a plan to give the aged Abraham and Sarah a child. It didn’t matter, as the Apostle Paul put it that “[Abraham’s] body was as good as dead—since he was about a hundred years old—and that Sarah’s womb was also dead” (Romans 4:19). The God who can do anything, the God who had made whole galaxies simply by speaking them into existence would have no problem giving Abraham and Sarah a child.
What kind of comfort does the name El Shaddai bring you this morning? Are you praying that a loved one recover from a serious illness? Are you asking that God stretch the paycheck this month? God can do that and more. So why doesn’t he always? Sometimes he “delays” in answering our prayers because he wants to train us to keep turning to him. Take Abraham and Sarah for example. How long did they have to wait for children? They would have to wait 25 years from the time God first gave the promise. It was a constant reminder to them that they were not the masters of their fate. God was and in time he kept his promise.
But what about the prayers that God answers with a no—like when loved ones don’t get better? This is not evidence that God doesn’t care or was unable to help; it’s evidence that we live in a fallen world. God’s original plan was that we live forever with him. But when Adam and Eve sinned, a poison was introduced into this world that is slowly killing each one of us. So why doesn’t God do something about it? He did! He sent Jesus to absorb the poison of our sin into his own body. And although we will still die someday, that death releases us forever from the effects of this poison. So while we can pray that God heal our loved ones, it’s important that we also witness faithfully to them so that our loved ones come to confess faith in Jesus. Only then will they forever escape the sting of sin and death.
Let me get back to Abraham and our text. To lock himself into the promise that Abraham and Sarah would have a child, God told Abram, as I really should have calling him up until now, that his name would become Abraham. Abram meant “exalted father,” while Abraham meant “father of many.” Do you suppose Abraham immediately altered his business cards? What would his friends and business associates think when he said, “Don’t call me Abram anymore. I am now Abraham because God said I would be the father of many nations!” But at this point yet the old couple didn’t have any children! Was Abram losing it? Was he like one of those rookies you hear about who gets license plates that say “MVP” before he’s played a game in the league? Guys like that just make themselves a target for ridicule, especially when they fail to deliver on their promise. Was Abraham in danger of facing that kind of ridicule with his name change? No. Because the one who had promised it was El Shaddai, a name you can trust. El Shaddai is the true God who can do anything, really! In fact the Apostle Paul says that he can do more than we could ever imagine! (Ephesians 3:20) And as if to up the ante, God went on to change Abraham’s wife’s name too. She went from Sarai to Sarah. While both names seem to mean “princess” the change in the spelling would have at least reminded the old couple how God added that not only were they going to have many descendants, kings would be among them—including the greatest king, Jesus!
How did Abraham react to the news? Well first he put his nose in the dust before the Lord. Abraham showed humility. He knew he didn’t deserve this kind of attention from God. And then he laughed to himself: “Will a son be born to a man a hundred years old? Will Sarah bear a child at the age of ninety?” (Genesis 17:17) This was not a scornful laughter, but a laughter of delight—like when you unexpectedly find a $20 bill in your pocket. God seemed to enjoy Abraham’s reaction because he added that the child to be born should be called Isaac, which means...“laughter.”
God still wasn’t done with Abraham. He now said: “You are to undergo circumcision, and it will be the sign of the covenant between me and you. 12 For the generations to come every male among you who is eight days old must be circumcised… My covenant in your flesh is to be an everlasting covenant” (Genesis 17:12, 13). While important papers today are not just signed before lawyers but may also include a raised seal to show that the document is indeed authentic, God wanted Abraham to receive a visual reminder of the promises he had given to the patriarch. Only this seal wouldn’t crinkle a piece of paper, it would mark Abraham’s body, a tattoo of sorts that very few people would ever see. Why did God choose circumcision to seal his promise? The Bible never really explains the reason, but perhaps it was God’s way of saying, “It’s time to cut away any faith in yourself, Abraham, and rely solely on my promise to bring salvation to this world through your family line.” And it wasn’t just Abraham who was to undergo circumcision, this seal was for every male in Abraham’s household, including baby boys who were eight days old. To reject circumcision was to reject God’s gracious promises and say that you didn’t want to be a part of his family (Genesis 17:14).
God has replaced circumcision with another seal of his grace: baptism. Baptism is an outward sign that God has done and is doing inside work in our hearts. Through baptism he cleanses us from our sins and brings us into his family. To reject baptism is to reject entrance into God’s family, just as surely as throwing away a ticket will get you barred from entry into a concert. And just as babies were expected to be circumcised, so we also gladly bring our infants to baptism because through that sacrament, God has promised to work in their hearts too.
You could also say that in baptism we’ve received a name change. No longer are we enemies of God, we are his children. But do we live up to that new name? Don’t we often revert back to our old way of doing things? We’re grumpy with each other. We speak poorly of others. We long for the riches of this world more than the glories of heaven. And then we excuse these sins by saying, “Well, that’s just the way I am—a sinner.” True, you’ll never stop sinning until you get to heaven, but you are baptized, and because of that you’re a saint, God is your father, and heaven is your home. Wouldn’t it make a difference if you reminded yourself of that truth every day? Because you are a saint (and that’s not just someone who has forgiveness but someone who has the power to live like saint) you don’t have to lose your cool when someone mistreats you. You have the virtue of patience. How am I so certain? Because we don’t travel this journey of faith alone. We are walking with El Shaddai, God Almighty, a name you can trust. So even if you can’t trust yourself to be kind, caring and forgiving, you can trust your God to work these virtues in you as he has promised to do and as baptism marks he has done.
After the Lord finished speaking to Abraham, the 99 year old had himself and every male in his household circumcised that very day. I love Abraham’s immediate and complete obedience. Wouldn’t it have been easy for him to put off the whole circumcision thing? I mean was it really a good idea to have every male undergo that minor surgical procedure on the same day? Who would watch the sheep while they recovered? Who would protect the camp from raiders? But Abraham didn’t worry about any of that because he knew he was travelling his journey of faith with a name he could trust. El Shaddai would certainly protect them.
How does your response of faith compare to Abraham’s? Are you as quick and complete to obey as he was? Or are there people you have been putting off confessing your sins to? Others from whom you have withheld forgiveness, and have withdrawn your friendship? Do not make excuses for your sins. Rather, with God’s help, right the wrongs. Do this because God has already forgiven your sins by placing them on Jesus. And that doesn’t just give you forgiveness, it empowers you to walk in God’s ways, just as it’s easier to hike up a mountain when someone else is shouldering your pack for you.
I still have that glove I purchased 30 years ago. A Mizuno really is a name you can trust when it comes to baseball equipment. Still, my glove isn’t perfect. It’s an infielder’s glove made for hardball so it’s really too small to use well for softball, though I try. Likewise the new iPhone 7 might be great, but it’s not perfect. The same can be said about any kind of car you can buy. Thankfully there is one name we can trust above all others: El Shaddai, the Almighty who can not only do anything, but delights to do so for your sake if it will bring you closer to him and the goal of your journey of faith. Keep travelling with him. Amen.
SERMON NOTES
(2 questions) Last week we were introduced to God as El Roi. This week we hear him called El Shaddai. What does each name mean? Why was it critical at this point in Abraham’s life to know that his Lord was El Shaddai?
(2 questions) Abram and Sarai also received name changes. They were now to be called Abraham and Sarah. What does each name mean? Why was it bold for God to give them these names at this time?
(2 questions) What name change have you received? How?
(2 questions) What was the purpose of circumcision? What’s the New Testament equivalent of circumcision?
(2 questions) Abraham’s obedience in regard to circumcision was immediate and complete. In what areas of your life have you failed to give God immediate and complete obedience?
How can remembering that you are baptized help you rectify the situation?
