The Story of Abraham, Part 2 (Genesis 12-13)

Abraham had to travel about 1,000 miles to reach the land God promised him. It was a long and slow journey because he took more than just his family. He also took his flocks of sheep and herds of cattle, and there were many of them. When they were over half way to their new home, they stopped for quite a while in a land called Haran. The rest was probably necessary, especially for all the sheep and cattle, but the sad thing is that Abraham’s father died while they were in Haran. His name was Terah. I think another sad thing for Abraham was that his brother, Nahor, decided to stay in Haran rather than continue the journey; but Abraham obeyed God and pressed on to the land of promise. The land was a special gift from God to Abraham and his descendents forever. It was first called the land of Canaan because the Canaanites lived there. It was later called the land of Israel because Israel was the name of the great nation God promised to make of Abraham. Today this same land is called the Holy Land because Jesus lived and walked there when he came to earth. Do you remember the promise God made to Abraham that through him all the nations of the earth would be blessed? Well, Jesus was a descendent of Abraham and of the people of Israel. God’s promise that Abraham’s family would be a blessing to all people was fulfilled in Jesus for he is the Savior of the world. In tomorrow’s story, Abraham will explore the Land of Canaan.