READING: Genesis 47-48, Psalm 25, Galatians 3
God’s heart has always been for the nations. Paul showed that truth when he referred to God’s word that Abraham would be a blessing to the nations: “Now the Scripture saw in advance that God would justify the Gentiles by faith and proclaimed the gospel ahead of time to Abraham, saying, ‘All the nations will be blessed through you’” (Gal 3:8). The apostle’s point was broader than this truth—he was speaking of justification by faith rather than by works—but he reminded us that even Gentiles would be saved through faith in Christ. In the words of one writer, “Repeated five times in Genesis alone, this key affirmation is the foundation of biblical mission, inasmuch as it declares the mission of God. The creator God’s mission is nothing less than blessing the nations of humanity. . . . The gospel and mission both begin in Genesis, then, and both are located in the redemptive intention of the Creator to bless the nations.”*
Today, men and women, young and old, Jew or Gentile, rich or poor, etc., can follow Christ. None of us can earn our way to Him, but that’s never been God’s plan. Believers are all one in Christ because God has made us his children through faith.
May we continue the work of getting that truth to the world!
PRAYER: “Thank You, Lord, that my salvation is not dependent on me.”
TOMORROW’S READING: Genesis 49-50, Galatians 4
*Christopher J. H. Wright, “Mission in the Old Testament,” Missiology (p. 46). B&H Publishing Group. Kindle Edition.
