We are as the Stars
As part of the covenant made between God and Abraham in Genesis 15 v 5, God asks Abraham to go outside and look at the stars.
Genesis 15 v 5
He took him outside and said, “Look up at the sky and count the stars—if indeed you can count them.” Then he said to him, “So shall your offspring be.”
God promises to make Abraham’s descendents to be like the stars. The straight forward reading of this text is to assume that God is saying that Abraham will have numerous descendents.
However, an alternative reading could suggest that the children of Abraham would act like stars.
Stars in the ancient world were far more important than they are today. The stars helped the ancients understand the times of the year. When to celebrate festivals. When to plant crops and when to harvest. They helped them to navigate across large distances. The stars were incredibly important to our ancient ancestors.
The members of the Body of Christ, the Church, are descendents of Abraham.
In the promise to Abraham, God is talking about Christians. His expectation is that they will be like stars. His expectation is that we will shine like a light for all the world to see.
Jesus said ‘you are light of the world.’
Matthew 5 v 14-16
“You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.”
As Christians, our role is to give the light of Christ to the lost, speak His wisdom to the confused and show them the way to Cross.
There is more to this idea of being a star, but I will leave that for another time.