The first prophetic revelation between Hashem and Avraham Avinu began with the words לך לך which is interpreted to mean according to Rashi go for your benefit. Literally however, it translates go to you. What message does this convey to the founder and first Yid of Am Yisrael? On the passuk אלה תולדות השמים והארץ בהבראם (Bereishis 2,4) these are the products of the heavens and earth when they were created. Chazal see in the word בהבראם the name of Avraham .באברהם Now the line reads thus, that the heavens and earth were created with Avraham in mind. This can be interpreted in two ways. One is the world was created with the middah of Avraham which is chesed עולם חסד יבנה(Tehillim 89,3). Hashem's desire in creating the universe is to bestow kindness to Man who by choosing a moral and pious way of life will be rewarded in Olam Habah with the revelation of Hashem. A second interpretation can be that the world was created for Avraham the founder of Am Yisrael. This mission purpose is alluded to in the first word of the Torah בראשית upon which Rashi comments the בשביל ישראל שנקראו ראשית the world was created only for Yisrael who are called ראשית. Avraham Avinu is the ראשית of the ראשית.
Chazal say Sanhedrin 37 חייב אדם לומר בשבילי נברא העולם one is obligated to say that the world was created for me. Besides Adam who was the first human created on planet earth, Avraham was the first human born ראשית דראשית which manifested the purpose and end goal of creation. The word נברא is gematriah אברהם including the five letters of his name. Even though every Yid must say the world was created for me, Avraham alone is alluded to specifically in the above passuk that supports this concept.
Just like in a circle the point of reishis comes in contact with the אחרית at the end of the journey of attaining shelaimus. Furthermore, the raishis which is compared to a seed possesses in it the potential of the entire full grown tree. Therefore we find that Avraham during his lifetime came in contact with the Four Galiyos and Moshiach. As the Medrash says that that the war that he fought with the Four Kings which he defeated, corresponded to the Four future Exiles. By defeating them he achieved that Yisrael will be able to spiritually survive the darkness of the Galus מעשה אבות סימן לבנים. Chazal also say that hidden in Lot his nephew lay the neshama of Dovid Hamelech through his daughter and the nation of Moav from which came Rus מצאתי דוד עבדי בסדם ( Tehillim 89,21 ב"ר מא,ד). In fact the commentators say that is why Avraham took a special interest to save Lot in order to protect the neshamah of Dovid and Moshiach in order it should not fall into the possession of the Kelipos and evil forces. Avraham was actively involved in the beginning of Am Yisrael and was busy with the end of Klal Yisrael protecting neshama of Moshiach – a full circle already in the making in the seed stage of Yisrael.
The avoda of the Avos Hakdoshim throughout their lives consisted of making themselves a Merkavah, a chariot, for the Shechinah. A chariot is nullified to its rider as it has no choice of its own. צמאה לך נפשי כמה לך בשרי (Tehillim 62,5) Dovid Hamelech writes my nefesh thirsts for you, my flesh כמה has a deep taavah for you. The meforshim say that this word כמה is only found in Tanach here in this passuk. Therefore they are not 100% sure of its exact definition. To me this inability to compare it to another word demonstrates that the madragah כמה is beyond human comprehension and off the charts. We suggest that in the word מרכבה itself which was the madraigah of the Avos Hakedoshim is hinted this level. The letters spell בר כמה which translates as someone whose spiritual identity is כמה which is gematriah היכל. The בשר flesh and body of the Avos were like the היכל of the Beis Hamikdash sanctified and elevated totally to Hashem serving as a resting place for Hashem's Shechina. The Avos were כמה people which the Malbim writes means תאב similar to the word תאוה. Note that תאבו which means that they had an extreme thirst to connect to Hashem spells .אבות Their thirst for deveikus in Hashem was so intense that the Sefer Chassidim writes siman 165
למה אוהב הקב"ה האבות כי היו כ"ד שעות בסדר אחד שלא היה לבם פונה מחפצי שמים אפילו בחלום
That even in their dreams there were no other contents besides Hashem.
The total years of life of the Avos was 502 Avraham 175, Yitzchak 180, and Yaakov 147. Their total lives were gematriah בשר living a life of being a merkavah כמה לך בשרי . How does one even come close to being a Merkavah like the Avos? We suggest the following. There are four levels in creation. The lowest is דומם inanimate such as water earth etc. The next level is צומח vegetative, the third is חי living creatures such as an animal, and the highest is מדבר which is Man who alone was gifted with neshama and the power of speech. On a simple level the elevation process in creation is that water gives life to vegetation which is eaten by the animal and shechted by Man who makes a beracha on it when he eats it. Thereby he elevates all three prior levels. It is up to Man to view everything in creation as an opportunity to dedicate it and return it back to Hashem.
If one takes the gematria of these four levels דומם צומח חי מדבר including in the count plus four more for the words, it will come to 502 the years of the Avos. Their lifetime drive to totally unite with Hashem covered all the bases not leaving out even one drop of water or a blade of grass. לה' הארץ ומלאה everything on earth is Hashem's even Me. כל עצמותי תאמרנה ה' מי כמוך.
Hashem tells Avraham לך לך go unto yourself for you are the seed of the universe which contains the entire universe בהבראם. You are the first cause and the last cause of creation. You are my Beloved and so too are all your future generations that will come from you.
The Sfas Emes בראשית תרסא writes concerning the madraiga of Avraham Avinu that Avraham was bigger than Adam Harishon.
ואברהם אבינו ע"ה שכתיב בו (כו כד) בעבור אברהם עבדי נתעלה מבחינת עבד לבן ונתעלה יותר מאדם הראשון כמו שאמרו חז"ל (ב"ר יד ו) האדם הגדול בענקים (יהושע יד טו) שהיה אברהם אבינו עליו השלום גדול מאדם הראשון. ובודאי מה שהניח הקדוש ברוך הוא את האדם בגן ואחר כך גירשו משום שהיו כלולין בו זרע ישראל שהם בני עולם הבא וגן עדן. ומצד תערובות הרשעים שהיו בו אחר החטא נתגרש מגן עדן.
Avraham Avinu never ceased ascending to higher levels. First he was called an eved to Hashem and later a son. He ascended to the point that he was called the greatest Man amongst the giants. This is a testimony referring to Adam Harishon that Avraham was greater than Adam Harishon. I am sure that the only reason why Adam was placed in Gan Eden by Hashem is because he contained all the neshamos of Am Yisrael who will be dwellers in Olam Haba and Gan Eden. The only reason why he banned from Gan Eden was because after the chait the souls of the goyim entered his being and therefore Adam was forced to leave for they have no place in Olam Habah or Gan Eden.
לך לך go and ascend to your greatness Avraham. You will become greater than Adam Harishon. This is what enables you to repair his chait of the Aitz Hadaas because you will be האדם הגדול בענקים. After he failed, his stature and dimensions were diminished one hundred amos. Within you Avraham lies the tikkun of those 100 lost amos. לך לך is gematriah 100. We as Bnei Yisrael Avraham's descendants have inherited Avraham's mission to achieve this destiny. So let us start picking up the pieces and repair the world.