Genesis 12:7
Then the Lord appeared to Abram and said, “To your descendants I will give this land.” And there he built an altar to the Lord, who had appeared to him
I don’t know why anyone would be satisfied with just knowing that they are made righteous by faith. I would think they would want to get to know the One who made them righteous. I would think they would want to have an intimate relationship with my Savior!
Abraham was such a man. He was righteous by faith, but he also had a close walk with God and was blessed by God in all things. (Genesis 24:1) His nephew Lot, on the other hand, although righteous too (2 Peter 2:7-8), had no heart for God. He ended up losing a lot when Sodom, the city he lived in, was destroyed along with Gomorrah. He was saved by the skin of his teeth! Do you want to be a Christian like Lot, righteous but always finding yourself in trouble, or do you want to be a righteous-and-blessed Christian like Abraham? Wherever Abraham went he would build an altar to the Lord. And in between altars, he grew very rich! (Genesis 13:2) There is no biblical record, however, of Lot ever building an altar to the Lord.
What is an “altar” in today’s context? It is a place where you know that you have a close relationship with God. As you are driving down the road and the spirit hits you to pray about something, that is an alter. Another alter would be when you go into your room in order to pray, that is an alter. When you read your Bible and respond to a verse with a praise, thank you or prayer, that is also an alter.
When we have have this kind of relationship with God, one full of “altars” that remind us of His love, goodness and faithfulness. Let’s not live the Christian life like Lot, saved by the skin of our teeth. Let’s walk closely with God as Abraham did, and be richly blessed in every area of our lives!
