God's covenant with Abraham was a covenant of faith and trust. Abraham was asked by God to give up everything - homeland, people, security, and identity - and strike out into the unknown. In exchange for that trust, God would bless him and multiply his descendants, making him the father of a great nation. Because of this faith in God, he is called our father in faith, a relationship we share with Jews and Muslims.

Jesus made a promise, and at first it seems ridiculous. Whoever keeps his words, will not taste death. But Jesus was not talking about physical death. He referred to spiritual death and separation from God. In the argument that follows, Jesus claimed that Abraham was a witness to his mission and rejoiced. Their response was that Abraham died a long time ago - how can you claim to have seen him? His response - before Abraham was, I am - referred to the voice from the burning bush in Exodus. 'I am' is a way of referring to God, and here Jesus claims to have existed long before the world came into being. Let us keep his words and be with him eternally.