The story of God’s relationship with God’s people is a story of promises fulfilled. We hear about God’s covenant with Sarah and Abraham in today’s Genesis reading and about its fulfillment in the New Testament texts. As Paul reminds us in Romans, we are the multitude of nations that were promised to Abraham; we are his descendants in faith. “Kings of peoples” (Gen. 17:16) descended from Sarah’s offspring; Jesus Christ, the King of kings, is Lord of all through his death and resurrection.
From generation to generation, God is steadfast. No matter how many ages pass or how often we turn away, God remains faithful. This is the great hope of our faith—no matter how often we stray or how great our sin, God persists in loving us. Jesus Christ binds us to God through our baptism into his death. In worship—especially through confession, affirmation of baptism, and communion—we continually remember the lengths to which God goes to keep covenant with us. The promise of salvation extends even into the future, as the psalmist reminds us: Our children and our children’s children will proclaim God’s salvation to generations yet unborn.