The first thing the Lord required of Abraham to become the “father of faith” was to leave his home in Ur of the Chaldees, the Babylonians. As we are told in Hebrews 11:8-10:

By faith Abraham, when he was called, obeyed by going out to a place which he was to receive for an inheritance; and he went out, not knowing where he was going.

By faith he lived as an alien in the land of promise, as in a foreign land, dwelling in tents with Isaac and Jacob, fellow heirs of the same promise;

for he was looking for the city which has foundations, whose architect and builder is God.

       Abraham had to leave what seems to have been the greatest city and culture of his time, not to mention his family, everyone, and everything he knew. He was required to leave even when he did not know where he was going. However, he did know what he was looking for—the city God was building to which no city of man could compare. This remains the first step in the life of a true sojourner who is seeking the city of God.

       Leaving behind what may compromise our vision and love for God and His purposes was required of Abraham and is required of all true children in the faith. Leaving all we know is difficult. Therefore, what we are seeing must be greater than what we have known. What Abraham saw in his vision of God’s city was more real to him than anything he saw with his natural eyes. This is a basic characteristic of the sons and daughters of faith; what they see with “the eyes of their heart” is more real to them than what they see with their natural eyes. They see what others cannot see.

       Consider how awesome the cities are today, and all man has accomplished. The accomplishments and buildings of men are now many times greater than what they were in Abraham’s time. Perhaps that is why the greatest promises are given to the overcomers of the church of Laodicea, the church that had everything and all the wealth it needed in the natural. This church, being the last addressed by the Lord in Revelation, represents the church at the end of this age.

       The world may now have more than ever to offer, but all of man’s greatest achievements and earthly treasure cannot compare to the least in God’s kingdom, or His city that is eternal.

        The Chaldeans that Abraham left behind were the stewards of the greatest wonders of the world in that time, but Abraham saw something greater. He saw something greater than his natural family relationships; he saw the city God is building.

        One of the noteworthy statements about the patriarchs is that they lived in tents. This is extraordinary. They were so wealthy they made kings jealous, and they could have built some of the greatest palaces of the time. Why did they live in tents? It was because they had seen God’s city. They knew the greatest works of man were insignificant compared to what God was building, and their hearts were captured by His city.

        The patriarchs also knew this life is but a vapor. They were not living for what they could have in this life, but for eternity. That’s the nature of every true sojourner who has seen the works of God. The temporary grows increasingly dimmer, and the eternal is the reality in which they live.

         That is why Abraham was able to offer his son, Isaac, God’s very promise to him. He had seen the Lord’s Day and knew there would be a resurrection and eternal life. Jesus confirmed this when He said in John 8:56, “Your father Abraham rejoiced to see My day, and he saw it and was glad.”

        Having seen the Lord’s Day, Abraham saw the crucifixion and knew Isaac was a prophetic type of the coming crucifixion of the Messiah. He also saw the resurrection and knew, just as Jesus was raised from the dead, his son Isaac would be raised. This is why Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and Joseph all demanded to be buried at the site Abraham had purchased for burying his wife, Sarah. It was in what would become Hebron, just south of Jerusalem. What happened there when Jesus was crucified?

And Jesus cried out again with a loud voice, and yielded up His spirit.

And behold, the veil of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom; and the earth shook and the rocks were split.

The tombs were opened, and many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised;

and coming out of the tombs after His resurrection they entered the holy city and appeared to many (Matthew 27:50-53).

        Abraham had seen the Lord’s Day, and had either conveyed this to his family, or they had their own vision of it, but they all resolved to be a part of that first resurrection on that day and were. They were living for the resurrection, not this life. We should note that Abraham received from God by faith all that the men of Shinar had vainly sought in their own strength and wisdom—a city, access to heaven, and a seed in the earth that would ultimately gather all men.

         The success of our sojourn will depend on the degree to which we give ourselves to the eternal purposes of God rather than the temporary affairs of this life. That is why the Apostle Paul wrote in Ephesians 1:18-19:

       I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened, so that you will know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints,

       and what is the surpassing greatness of His power toward us who believe.

© 2022 Rick Joyner. All Rights Reserved.