New schools? Check. Place to live? Check. A Christ-centered church? Check. The big three in moving.
My husband’s business career gave our family a grand tour of the United States — from Colorado’s majestic mountains in the West to the region of our country’s founding in the East to snowy winters in the North and the old-fashioned charm of the South. Along the way I learned the big three in moving: schools in which our children could thrive, a community in which our family might flourish, and a Christ-centered church to worship God and grow our faith. These three became intricately intertwined.
So he [Abram] built an altar there to the LORD, who had appeared to him. (Genesis 12:7)
The Scriptures do not record much about Abram’s early years. Born in Ur, a Chaldean city located in Mesopotamia (modern-day Iraq), his father was Terah, his two brothers Nahor and Haran. His wife was Sarai and his nephew was Lot.
Archaeological and historical facts identify the area of Abram’s birth as the cradle of civilization, a thriving place, bustling with culture, commerce, learning, and pagan worship of mythical gods ruled by Sin, the moon god. It was from this place, this life that Stephen (the first Christian martyr) tells us God called Abram (Acts 7).
Scripture does not speak specifically about Abram’s beliefs prior to his encounter with God; although he likely worshiped idols and accepted mythology as truth, as did his family and neighbors (Joshua 24:2). Once called by God, however, Abram went without knowing where he was going (Hebrews 11:8).
Moving in the general direction of Canaan, Abram got stalled when he came to the city of Haran. Three main trade routes converged there offering an abundance of materials. Did Abram get sidetracked by the appeal of building his fortune? Was it the lure of Haran’s “house of rejoicing” sanctuary devoted to the worship of Sin? Maybe Terah, a lifelong devotee of the moon god, lingered and Abram couldn’t say good-bye to his father.
We don’t know how long it took, but at the age of 75, following the death of his father, Abram sets out again for the land of Canaan.
This time something different happens: Abram traveled through the land as far as the site of the great tree of Moreh at Shechem … So he built an altar there to the LORD. (Genesis 12:6-7) Abram then went on toward Bethel and There he built an altar to the LORD and called on the name of the LORD. (Genesis 12:8)
The altar is a symbol of a two-fold purpose: worship, an active response to God whereby we declare His worth. And cleansing, the foundation of true worship found in the blood of Christ shed on the cross. Bible teacher Ray Stedman writes, “When we come before the cross and rightly judge the reality of our lives, acknowledging and confessing our sins to God, He cleanses us.”
As a pilgrim in the Christian life I need a daily altar experience with God. I need to connect with Jesus my Savior. Certainly in the privacy of my home. But, oh! Add in a community of fellow believers and the benefits are incomparable.
The Church, over which Jesus rules, is a calling together of all God’s people. Its purpose is to glorify God, to ascribe to Him supreme worth for He alone is worthy. To meet in a local church with fellow believers — everyday folks, like me, with broken lives — we come for worship, for encouragement, for instruction, for expression, for support. To receive forgiveness, grace and mercy to live out a God-given role that will never be matched or surpassed on earth. A Christ-centered church. An unrivaled big three!
Just as I am, without one plea
But that Thy blood was shed for me
And that Thou bid’st me come to Thee
O Lamb of God I come, I come.