A LEGACY

 

There is an endearing story of Abraham’s death in the Jewish tradition. Abraham was 175 years old. It was the Feast of Weeks celebration and both Isaac and Ishmael had come to Hebron with their families to celebrate the Feast with their father. During the feast, Abraham praised his creator in thanksgiving and among other things asked that God’s mercy and peace be upon the posterity of his sons ‘that they may be a chosen nation and an inheritance from amongst all the nations of the earth’.

During the feast, Abraham called Jacob,‘the chosen patriarch heir and invoked the blessings of heaven upon him and his seed forever. And this is the tender part of Abraham’s death. Jacob and Abraham laid down together on one bed and ‘Jacob slept in the bosom of Abraham, who kissed him seven times and his heart rejoiced over him and he pronounced another blessing upon his head.

He then ‘blessed the God of gods, and he covered his face, and stretched out his feet and slept the sleep of eternity, and was gathered to his fathers’ (Jubilees 22:26-30, Apocrypha and Pseudepigrapha, 2:47; as quoted in The Blessings of Abraham by E. Douglas Clerk, p 232, 233).

An amazing life to leave behind for your posterity. The greatest legacy Abraham left, however, is the covenant between him and the God of Israel, receiving a promise that all of these blessings would be offered to all of his mortal posterity (Abraham 2:6-11; D&C 132:29-50).

Consider the magnitude of its promises: 1. Prosperity; 2. Property; 3. Posterity; 4. Priesthood; 5. Exaltation.

“All of these promises together are called the ABRAHAMIC COVENANT. This covenant was renewed with Isaac (Genesis 24:60; 26:1-4,24) and again with Jacob (Genesis 28: 35:9-13; 48:3-4). Those portions of it which pertain to personal exaltation and eternal increase are renewed with each member of the House of Israel who enters the order of celestial marriage; through that order the participating parties become inheritors of all the blessings of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob (D&C 132; Romans 9:4; Galatians 3; 4)

-          Bruce R. McConkie, “Mormon Doctrine” p 13)

Because the promises of the covenant were also made to Abraham’s descendants, Jesus made it clear that the covenant is not all fulfilled (3 Nephi 15:8; D&C 132:30-31) and will be fulfilled in the future. This is us. We are the future.

When we look at all the promises we can easily get the impression that the power of the covenant is with Jehovah who made them but in reality, the power of the covenant lies with us. We fulfil or break the covenant. That’s a lot of power for imperfect, weak mortals….As for the God who entered into this covenant, we can be assured of this:

“For the Lord thy God is a merciful God; he will not forsake thee, neither destroy thee, nor forget the covenant of thy fathers which he sware unto them.”  (Deuteronomy 4: 31)

“I will not…break my covenant with them: for I am the Lord their God….but I will for their sakes remember the covenant of their ancestors…” (Leviticus 26:44,45)

That’s the power of a perfect, long-suffering, unchangeable God, Jehovah, the God of Israel…..

- CATHRYNE ALLEN 

(Art: I Am That I Am by John Zamudio)