Welcome to Bible Study online. I've been unable to post for awhile due to a heavy schedule, but it's good to be back. I hope you will grab your Bible as we follow Abraham's progress in his faith.
ABRAHAM – THE COVENANT RITUAL
When we last left Abram, he was 86 years old and Ishmael had been born, though not by Sarai. Rather, Abram and Sarai had taken the matter of posterity into their own hands and had used a surrogate mother. Therefore, Ishmael is not the son of the promise, although he is Abram’s offspring. Thirteen years have passed since his birth and God appears to Abram again with another extension of the covenant.
Genesis 17:1-2 says,
“When Abram was ninety-nine years old the LORD appeared to Abram and said to him, ‘I am God Almighty (El Shaddai); walk before Me, and be blameless, that I may make My covenant between Me and you, and may multiply you greatly.’”
This is now the fourth time that God has appeared to Abram. He first appeared in chapter 12, promising to make Abram into a great nation and commanding him to leave his homeland and go to the land of Canaan. God appeared again in chapter 13 and promised to multiply Abram’s descendants and give the land of Canaan to them and Abram responded by building an altar, publicly proclaiming the Lord as his God in the land of Canaan. The third appearance occurred in chapter 15 where God made His formal covenant with Abram, passing through the slaughtered animals in the well-known covenant ritual of that time. He commanded Abram not to fear and Abram believed God and was reckoned righteous by God because of his faith.
The Lord has now made His fourth appearance to Abram and He introduces Himself to Abram by a new name. Let’s take a look at the names we have seen so far. The name that we see translated LORD in all capital letters is the actual covenant name by which Israel knew God. God identified Himself first by this name to Moses at the burning bush, and although Moses will not be born until 400 years have passed, he is the one who wrote the first five books of the Bible, so it is Moses who is using the name LORD in verse one. The English translation of LORD is used when the Hebrew word YHWH appears in the text. This is sometimes transliterated into English as Yahweh or Jehovah (the Hebrew, incidentally, don’t use vowels, so it is a bit of a guess as to how to spell and pronounce the word). The literal meaning of YHWH is “I AM THAT I AM” and what it really denotes is the self-existence of God. We exist because He has existed always and forever. He was never created and never “sprang into being.” He has always been, and we were created by Him, for Him, and through Him. Everything that exists does so because He exists. Now that is not easy for us to wrap our brains around because we can’t conceive of a Being who has no beginning, but this is what the Bible says, and this is what the name LORD indicates.
God says, “I am El Shaddai (translated God Almighty).” Although there is some scholarly debate on the exact meaning of the word, the meaning that seems to make the most sense is the one coming from the root word “shad” which means “breasted” and refers to a woman’s breast. Andrew Jukes, author of Names of God, is quoted as follows:
“Shaddai, one of the Divine titles, meaning The Pourer or Shedder Forth, that is, of blessings, temporal and spiritual.”
For a child, the mother’s breast literally has the power of life as well as comfort. This name pictures God, therefore, as the All Powerful Nurturer, the One from whom all blessings flow. The blessing of the promised son will come from El Shaddai.
God comes to Abram this fourth time with another command—walk before Me and be blameless. The phrase “walk before Me” indicates a daily way of life. As Abram goes about his life day by day, he is to do so with God in mind. God is not a one day per week God, but an every day of our lives God. “Be blameless” means, I believe, to live with one’s eyes focused on God. One simply can’t do evil if he is looking at God. So God is basically calling Abram to live a holy life—one that acknowledges God on a daily basis. This type of blamelessness is not sinlessness because we sin in many ways that we are not yet aware of. However, as we grow spiritually and we recognize more of what God wants, we are expected to change our behavior accordingly. We are to “work out in our lives what God has worked in through Christ.”
After this command, He restates His covenant promise of multiplied descendants. This is where Abram really needs to understand that God is El Shaddai, the Almighty Source of every blessing, because he is almost 100 years old and Sarai is almost 90, and they are absolutely incapable of having a child together if God doesn’t make it possible Himself. If Sarai is going to become a nurturing mother, she must have the help of the Almighty Nurturer—El Shaddai.
COVENANT BENEFITS
In the following verses, God lists the benefits that Abram and his descendants will receive as participants in this covenant with God.
“Then Abram fell on his face. And God said to him, ‘Behold, my covenant is with you, and you shall be the father of a multitude of nations. No longer shall your name be called Abram, but your name shall be Abraham, for I have made you the father of a multitude of nations. I will make you exceedingly fruitful, and I will make you into nations, and kings shall come from you. And I will establish My covenant between Me and you and your offspring after you throughout their generations for an everlasting covenant, to be God to you and to your offspring after you. And I will give to you and to your offspring after you the land of your sojournings, all the land of Canaan, for an everlasting possession, and I will be their God.”
The first benefit is that Abram will be the father of a multitude of nations, and so God changes his name from Abram (Exalted Father) to Abraham (Father of Many). He also changes Sarai’s name to Sarah, thus including her in the covenant and indicating that she will have a son by Abram. Notice that He has included now in each new name the sound “ah”, which is a part of His own name Yahweh. It is a covenant custom for the weaker party to take on the name of the stronger party, and we practice this in our culture by changing the woman’s surname upon her marriage. To be a father was a most honored position in this culture because it denotes leadership and influence. Notice that God says, “I have made you the father of a multitude of nations,” indicating that in God’s perspective this is already a done deal. God exists outside of time and space, and therefore, He has already seen what will happen.
OBSERVATION: God knew you before you were ever born and before He ever even made the world.
The second benefit we see is that kings will come from him, and we know that one King in particular will come from him. His descendants will not be obscure or unimportant, but will be recognized leaders and rulers. How many inventions and discoveries have come to us through the hands of the Jewish people? Too many to count.
This covenant extends beyond Abraham to his descendants throughout their generations. Most covenants end at the death of one of the parties, but this covenant will not end at Abraham’s death. It will continue on to his descendants. At this point, God uses the term “everlasting” and this is an important covenant concept. Covenants are permanent in the eyes of God, and the term “everlasting” denotes this. This covenant is everlasting, not just throughout Abraham’s life, but throughout the lives of his descendants.
Notice that God’s covenant with the descendants of Abraham is that He will be God to them—not one of a pantheon of gods such as the heathen have, but the One God. As a token of this promise, He gives them the land of Canaan, not as a temporary possession, but as an everlasting possession. The dispersion of the Israelite people in the days of Rome was only a temporary dispersion in the eyes of God—the land still belonged to them and He was planning to bring them back to it when the time was right. This occurred in 1948, and it is important to realize that it is now time for the Jewish people to be in their land. They are perfectly willing to live peaceably with others who want to live there also, but their right to inhabit the land as their own possession, given to them by God Himself, is beyond question for those who believe in the true God of Abraham.
THE RITE OF CIRCUMCISION
God has further instructions for Abraham to help him see the uniqueness of his situation and to show what the condition of his heart must be. Verses 9-14 say,
“And God said to Abraham, ‘As for you, you shall keep My covenant, you and your offspring after you throughout their generations. This is My covenant, which you shall keep between Me and you and your offspring after you: Every male among you shall be circumcised. You shall be circumcised in the flesh of your foreskins, and it shall be a sign of the covenant between Me and you. He who is eight days old among you shall be circumcised. Every male throughout your generations, whether born in your house or bought with your money from any foreigner who is not of your offspring, both he who is born in your house and he who is bought with your money, shall surely be circumcised. So shall My covenant be in your flesh an everlasting covenant. Any uncircumcised male who is not circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin shall be cut off from his people; he has broken My covenant.”
This is an all inclusive commandment in that it includes every male from the newborn on up. It also includes all foreigners who are bought as slaves. God refers to this as an everlasting covenant—well, circumcision is pretty permanent!
Circumcision is one of those things we just don’t talk about often, but let’s make a few notes:
1. Circumcision is done in the flesh. In this context where God is promising many offspring for whom He will be their God, I think it symbolizes a dedication of those offspring to God. Part of the flesh in the area of reproduction is being cut off as a sign of humility and dedication of the seed to God.
2. Paul speaks of a circumcision of the heart in Romans 2:29. Although the physical circumcision was done on infants, heart circumcision, which is basically repentance toward God, can only be done by persons of an accountable age.
3. Women cannot be physically circumcised, but are included in the Abrahamic covenant because they are the ones who will bear the promised offspring. Dedicating one’s seed to God is useless without a wife to give birth. Also, the wife was considered to be one flesh with the husband, so if his flesh is circumcised, hers is considered to be circumcised as well. This point is reiterated in the name change for Sarah.
4. Circumcision has some correlation with baptism, in that both are signs of covenants and both are done physically and in a spiritual sense, as well.
SARAH’S PLACE IN THE COVENANT
Verses 15-16 confirm that Sarai is to be the mother of the promised heir.
“And God said to Abraham, ‘As for Sarai your wife, you shall not call her name Sarai, but Sarah shall be her name. I will bless her, and moreover, I will give you a son by her. I will bless her, and she shall become nations; kings of peoples shall come from her.’”
Just as God changed Abram’s name as part of the covenant promise, He is also changing Sarai’s name to Sarah, including her and all women in the covenant. Observe that the promises made to Abraham are repeated for Sarah. She will be blessed and will become the mother of nations and of kings. She may be 90 years old, but His name is El Shaddai, from Whom the mightiest blessings flow.
ABRAHAM’S RESPONSE
Verses 17-18 say,
“Then Abraham fell on his face and laughed and said to himself, ‘Shall a child be born to a man who is a hundred years old? Shall Sarah, who is ninety years old, bear a child?’ And Abraham said to God, ‘Oh that Ishmael might live before You!’”
The promise that Sarah will have a baby causes Abraham to laugh, and it is hard to say at this point if he is laughing with joy, or if it is because the whole thing seems impossible to him. I rather think that it is joy, because Abraham is talking to God Himself, and he has fallen on his face, a position of humility, not disbelief. He must have hurt for Sarah over the years as he watched her live with the grief and misery of childlessness. Now he is hearing from God that she will yet have a son, and the wonder just seems too much.
But notice his other concern. “Oh that Ishmael might live before you.” Ishmael was a work of the flesh—Hagar had no difficulties conceiving a child, but Abraham loves him quite naturally because he is his own son. He is just not the son of God’s promise, but Abraham does not want this son whom he loves to be left out of God’s great plan and promise.
WHAT ABOUT ISHMAEL?
God hears Abraham’s concern and knows of his love for his son and He responds thus,
“God said, ‘No, but Sarah your wife shall bear you a son, and you shall call his name Isaac. I will establish my covenant with him as an everlasting covenant for his offspring after him. As for Ishmael, I have heard you; behold, I have blessed him and will make him fruitful and multiply him greatly. He shall father twelve princes, and I will make him into a great nation. But I will establish My covenant with Isaac, whom Sarah shall bear to you at this time next year.’ When He had finished talking with him, God went up from Abraham.”
OBSERVATION: The flesh (Ishmael) can receive God’s blessings, but only under certain conditions which we will see in a later lesson. Too often we make the mistake of thinking that our flesh is what God wants to use for His glory, so we try to dedicate our natural talents and energy to accomplish His work. But the Lord has said in Zechariah 4:6, “Not by might, nor by power, but by My Spirit.” Generally, our natural abilities only get in the way and draw attention to ourselves, not to God. They can be blessed, however, when kept in the proper circumstances, and we will see this later in the relationship between the true heir and Ishmael.
ABRAHAM’S RESPONSE
Abraham responds to God’s visitation immediately with the obedience of faith and thus becomes the spiritual father of multitudes who will echo his obedient faith over the years.
“When He had finished talking with him, God went up from Abraham. Then Abraham took Ishmael his son and all those born in his house or bought with his money, every male among the men of Abraham’s house, and he circumcised the flesh of their foreskins that very day, as God had said to him. Abraham was ninety-nine years old when he was circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin. That very day Abraham and his son Ishmael were circumcised. And all the men of his house, those born in the house and those bought with money from a foreigner, were circumcised with him.”
There are several interesting points to note from the concluding verses of Genesis 17. First, Abraham’s obedience was immediate and complete. He doesn’t “sleep on it” nor does he consult with anybody else. No votes are taken and no focus groups or polling data are consulted. As the undisputed leader of the house, even though he is one hundred years old, Abraham is obeyed and he demonstrates his own obedience to God that very day. Second, nobody is left out. All the males, including foreigners, are included in this. Third, there is a lot more required here than merely a sharp knife. Humility, trust, and courage are necessary to submit to this command. Likewise, circumcision of the heart requires humility, trust, and a courageous faith that surrenders the will and heart to God. Fourth, there is a willingness to suffer in order to obey. Fortunately, this will heal in about three day's time, but there is also a certain amount of suffering in connection with the circumcision of repentance. It too heals gradually as pride is overcome. Finally, the entire camp is trusting in God through this experience. Abraham doesn’t gradually circumcise the men over a period of weeks so as to keep a force capable of fighting. Rather, he circumcises all the males on a single day, and his entire camp is vulnerable to attack for three days until the men are healed. In a land where marauding kings unite periodically to attack whom they will, this requires faith among all the people. It illustrates the drastic nature that characterizes true repentance. “If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.” (II Corinthians 5:17)
Abraham continues to progress in his faith, and the same is expected of his spiritual children. As we move through life, we find that God is leading us ever upward. We don’t do it perfectly, just as Abraham made mistakes, but we know that God did not give up on Abraham and He will likewise carry us through because He is faithful to His covenants. The next lesson will focus on intercession in the life of Abraham. Thanks for joining me!
Tuesday, April 27, 2010
Thursday, February 18, 2010
ABRAHAM - IS GOD EVER LATE?
ABRAHAM – IS GOD EVER LATE?
Do you ever pray for someone or for a specific situation and then feel like God is taking forever to answer? Do you ever wonder if you are supposed to “do something” about it yourself? The early believers in Christ expected that He would return to them in their lifetime, and as time dragged on they became discouraged. The apostles had to remind them that God is never slow or late in keeping His promises, but is very patient. (II Peter 3:9) Two thousand years later, we are observing specific end time prophecies being fulfilled and the whole world ought to be excited and preparing themselves for the Lord’s coming, but there is apathy, unbelief, and a tremendous increase in worldliness, persecution of righteousness, and even a spirit of war against God Himself. How should we handle ourselves when God seems slow to act? Should we “do something” to help Him along? Let’s look at Abram’s life and glean some lessons.
THE PROBLEM
Genesis 16:1-4 says,
“Now Sarai, Abram’s wife, had borne him no children. She had a female Egyptian servant whose name was Hagar. And Sarai said to Abram, ‘Behold now, the LORD has prevented me from bearing children. Go in to my servant; it may be that I shall obtain children by her.’ And Abram listened to the voice of Sarai. So, after Abram had lived ten years in the land of Canaan, Sarai, Abram’s wife, took Hagar the Egyptian, her servant, and gave her to Abram her husband as a wife. And he went in to Hagar, and she conceived. And when she saw that she had conceived, she looked with contempt on her mistress.”
So what is the situation here that they are dealing with? First, God has specifically promised Abram that he would have more offspring than could be counted, but so far, he has none and he is 85 years old. Sarai is about 75 years old and they have been living in the land of Canaan for 10 years. At that time, infertility was always blamed on the woman, and it was considered grounds for divorce. Second, Sarai correctly recognizes that it is God who is in control of conception and infertility. Perhaps she decides that it is not she, after all, who will bear the son of God’s promise to Abram, and she must own up to it and make a huge personal sacrifice. Or, it might be that she just becomes desperate and gives up waiting for God and does what the rest of the world does. At that time surrogacy was often the solution to infertility, so Sarai is not dreaming up a new plan that nobody has thought of before—she is doing what everybody else does. Third, the phrase “Abram listened to the voice of Sarai” carries with it the idea of obedience. Abram is not being a leader in this situation, and he apparently does not consult with God about this decision, but he obeys his wife. This is not a proper husband/wife role and it reminds me of Adam and Eve in the garden. Adam listened to Eve when he should have been the leader. (Genesis 3:17) Hagar, a slave, becomes Abram’s second wife at this point. She is not, however, on the same legal or social par as Sarai because she is still a slave, but her new position apparently goes to her head pretty quickly because when she becomes pregnant, she immediately despises Sarai.
OBSERVATION: Multiple marriages were never intended by God. When God created mankind, he made one female for the one male. He did not remove half a dozen ribs from Adam and produce an entire harem for him. Jesus’ teaching on marriage indicates that marriage is for life and that divorce and remarriage constitutes adultery. In virtually every incidence in the Old Testament where there are multiple wives in the household, there are serious problems. Similarly, divorce and remarriage, especially where children are involved, results in tensions that go on for years with potentially disastrous results for the children.
OBSERVATION: Hagar was basically used as a baby incubator—reducing her to the level of a thing, rather than a person. Abram did not take her as a wife because he loved her, but because he and Sarai wanted something from her. She had no choice in her situation either because she was a slave.
A TYPE TO LEARN FROM
This episode provides some typology (visual portrayals in life of spiritual truths) from which we can learn. The Apostle Paul explains this in Galatians 4 when he says that Sarai represents the people of faith, i.e. the church, while Hagar represents the world. Sarai is destined to become the mother of the son of promise, and thereby the forebear of the Messiah Himself, while Hagar is destined to bear fleshly children.
NOTE: The world will always provide you with an alternative to God’s way and it will seem to work so well! “There is a way that seems right to a man, but the end thereof is death.” (Proverbs 14:12)
What can we learn from the type? First we see that faith waits on God, but the flesh wants results now and is not willing to wait. Sarai and Abram gave in to the fleshly desire to obtain children and used the flesh to get what they wanted. Second, we see that the flesh has no problem getting results. Hagar conceived a child immediately. Third, the flesh is rooted in pride. Most likely it was Sarai’s pride that led to her desperate plan, and now that Hagar is pregnant, her pride is exalted and she reacts by despising Sarai’s apparent weakness.
OBSERVATION: Initially, it will almost always appear, especially to the worldly-minded, that the flesh is strong and faith is weak. Communism teaches that religion is the opiate of the people and humanism teaches that faith is only a crutch for the weak to help them get through life. It is not until the end that faith is shown to be the real strength while the flesh is actually decaying and dying from its earliest moments. Jesus said that the pure in heart will see God (Matthew 5:8). I don’t think He meant only after death, but that they would be able to see God at work on earth during their lives, so only faith can perceive that it is stronger than the flesh.
QUESTION: How does this lesson from typology apply to us? I think it has direct application to the church, because the church has always, and especially in the last 120 years, been susceptible to the temptation to use the flesh to fill the pews. We are always looking for some way to draw a crowd. We call it evangelism, but it is really rooted in pride and unbelief, in my opinion. We look at the dwindling crowd and conclude that God is not sufficient to fill His church, so we come up with some flashy thing to get people’s attention and interest. Flashy things are really fleshy things and they work for a short time. It looks like a success, but it is really Hagar, mocking the mother of the promised one. The more we depend on the flesh, the more the Spirit will be quenched in His work.
A FLESHY SOLUTION TO A FLESHY MESS
In verses 5-6, we read how Sarai deals with the “Hagar Problem.”
“And Sarai said to Abram, ‘May the wrong done to me be on you! I gave my servant to your embrace, and when she saw that she had conceived, she looked on me with contempt. May the LORD judge between you and me!’ But Abram said to Sarai, ‘Behold, your servant is in your power; do to her as you please.’ Then Sarai dealt harshly with her, and she fled from her.”
At this point, we can see that even the best of people who walked with the Lord and received His promises and lived by faith also had their bad moments. Sarai’s pride and wrath are aroused when this upstart slave girl looks down on her because of her barrenness. She takes her anger out first on Abram. According to the commentators, her words to Abram at this point are as close to cursing as a saintly woman allows herself, and she is speaking to her own husband! Her situation is intensely bitter, as Hagar’s “success” is being rubbed like vinegar on an open sore. I know that I myself tend to react to pain with anger and Sarai is turned the same way. In giving Hagar to Abram for such an intimate purpose, Sarai was displaying trust both in Abram and in Hagar. That trust has now been violated, so Sarai is doubly hurt and angry.
With Abram’s reaction, we see that he is still not in the leadership over this issue. First, he obeyed Sarai and slept with her maid. Now that it has caused a problem, he basically washes his hands of the whole mess by saying, “She’s your maid! Do whatever you want with her! I’m just along for the ride!” Abram never loved Hagar anyway, so what happens to her is not a real concern to him. Knowing that Sarai is in a state of wrath, he does nothing to alleviate the situation, but steps out of the way and lets Sarai do her worst. The result is that Hagar runs away, taking Abram’s baby with her.
OBSERVATION: Jesus said in Matthew 5, “Blessed are the peacemakers.” This is a low point for Abram because he fails to do anything meaningful to make peace between the women in his own house.
GOD CLEANS UP THE FLESHY MESS
The story picks up with Hagar in verses 7-9:
“The angel of the LORD found her by a spring of water in the wilderness, the spring on the way to Shur. And he said, ‘Hagar, servant of Sarai, where have you come from and where are you going?’ She said, ‘I am fleeing from my mistress Sarai.’ The angel of the LORD said to her, ‘Return to your mistress and submit to her.’”
COMMENTARY: In the Old Testament, the angel of the LORD is a rather mysterious figure and there is considerable debate on the subject. Some believe that he represents a pre-incarnate Christ while others believe that it is an angelic being who is given the word of God to speak. Either way, the LORD is talking to Hagar.
The location of this spring indicates that Hagar is probably on her way back to Egypt. That was her home, and she was probably given to Sarai by Pharaoh during their sojourn in Egypt when Sarai was taken into Pharaoh’s harem. She is in a wilderness, which could easily demonstrate symbolically her literal situation. She is at a wilderness in life with no future and no hope, yet within her is a life, as symbolized by the spring.
The Lord asks, “Where have you come from and where are you going?” When Adam and Eve sinned in the Garden of Eden and hid themselves from God, God asked the same sort of question, “Adam, where are you?” This is not a question asking for a physical location, but rather a life question. Adam was running away, trying to hide from God and likewise, Hagar is running away, trying to hide from the wrath of Sarai. Both Adam and Hagar had done wrong and were running from the consequences, rather than facing up to the consequences and making required changes.
To Hagar’s credit, she answers a little more forthrightly than Adam did. Adam blamed everything on Eve, but Hagar tells the truth—she is running away from her mistress. With this statement, she acknowledges that Sarai is her mistress and has every right to expect obedience and respect from Hagar. Hagar’s attitude, at least for the moment, appears to be repentant. But later verses will show us that it is not a godly repentance. She is not sorry for what she did, but for the situation in which she now finds herself, which most likely is life-threatening, not only for herself, but also for her child.
QUESTION: Most anyone will be sorry when he hears he is headed for hell, but is he sorry for the pride and rebellion against God that has put him on that road to begin with?
God then gives Hagar a specific command—return to Sarai and submit yourself to her. Sarai, the spiritual mother, is to rule over Hagar, the fleshly mother. Likewise, in our lives as believers, the spiritual is to rule over the flesh in every situation. This is not an easy road because the flesh by nature wants to dominate, its chief characteristic being pride. As long as we are alive, the fleshly nature will be with us; however, the new nature of the Spirit of Christ must be nurtured and allowed to grow strong enough to dominate the fleshly nature and hold it under control. (Galatians 5:16-18)
THE PROMISE
In verses 10-12, God makes a special promise to Hagar.
“The angel of the LORD also said to her, ‘I will surely multiply your offspring so that they cannot be numbered for multitude.’ And the angel of the LORD said to her, ‘Behold, you are pregnant and shall bear a son. You shall call his name Ishmael, because the LORD has listened to your affliction. He shall be a wild donkey of a man, his hand against everyone and everyone’s hand against him, and he shall dwell over against all his kinsmen.’”
First we see that God promises to multiply her offspring just as he has promised to multiply Abram’s offspring. God doesn’t give any particular reason why Hagar’s offspring are to be multiplied. Before, He had promised to multiply Abram’s offspring because Abram believed God and obeyed Him. Perhaps He is multiplying Hagar’s offspring because they are the physical children of Abram. Perhaps He is multiplying them for reasons of His own. We are not told about this, and we must be humble enough to let God keep His own counsel.
NOTE: Beware of people who have to be able to explain everything. God doesn’t tell us everything, and it is pride that feels it must be able to answer every question.
Secondly, Hagar is told that the child will be a son and that his name is to be Ishmael. The name Ishmael actually means, “God hears,” and this name is significant for Hagar, and it will later be very significant for Ishmael himself. God is reassuring her that He has seen and heard all about her situation. She has been used and mistreated, but she has also been prideful and rebellious against a woman who trusted her. Isn’t that a picture of all of us? Haven’t we all in many ways felt used as things and then possibly later thrown out or mistreated? Haven’t we reacted pridefully towards others, perhaps those who trusted us and loved us, such as family members? Haven’t we experienced the desire to rebel against authority when that authority is misused? Haven’t we all from time to time tried to run away from the consequences of our own wrong attitudes? God has seen and heard it all. He knows all about it, and He says to return, both to Him and to whatever situation needs to be faced up to.
Finally, Hagar is told what her son’s character and future will be. He will be like a “wild donkey” unsettled and on the move—nomadic. Also, he will often be at war against everyone else. However, his people will endure. This is interesting because at that time there were many Canaanite peoples, but the only ones that have survived the millennia are the Jews, descended from Abram through Sarai, and the Arabs, descended from Abram through Hagar.
ALL IS WELL THAT ENDS WELL….NOT NECESSARILY
The story concludes as follows:
“So she called the name of the LORD who spoke to her, ‘You are a God of seeing,” for she said, ‘Truly here I have seen him who looks after me.’ Therefore the well was called Beer-lahai-roi; it lies between Kadesh and Bered. And Hagar bore Abram a son, and Abram called the name of his son, whom Hagar bore, Ishmael. Abram was eighty-six years old when Hagar bore Ishmael to Abram.”
This is the first time in the Scriptures that God has appeared to someone as El Roi, the God Who Sees. Hagar was not lost in the wilderness because God saw her, came to her, and healed her situation. It wasn’t all sunshine and roses with everybody living happily ever after, but there was a time of peace. Wherever we are, wherever our loved ones are, God sees them. He is perfectly capable of moving in our situations to bring about His will for us. It won’t be all sunshine and roses, but we can have peace if we will acknowledge our sin and follow His commands and trust Him as the God Who sees us always.
Hagar repented and was comforted and returned to Abram, the father of her child, and to Sarai, her mistress. In due time, the child was born, and Abram called him Ishmael, acknowledging that he was his son. However, nothing can change the fact that he is a son according to the flesh, not the son of promise, and the stage is set for future conflict, because the Spirit will always war against the flesh, and the flesh will mock the Spirit. We see this principle played out in our daily lives and also in the contention that continues between Israel and her Arab neighbors.
KEY IDEAS FROM THIS EPISODE
• The flesh is impatient and wants to be always doing; faith waits patiently for God to show the way.
• It is possible to be always busy doing things, but accomplish nothing. Jesus said in John 15:5, “Apart from Me, you can do nothing.”
• God sees what is done to you, as well as what you do to others. His eye is always on you and He wants to create peace in your life.
• When God finds you running away and hiding, be honest and repent and then do whatever He commands.
• Submit to authority. This is a tough one for us freedom-loving, independence-minded Americans. As we navigate the next three years under our current President, let us be mindful that God has placed him there for a reason. Pray for him and respect his office while exercising your right to vote and communicate respectfully with all your elected representatives. And ponder what God may be trying to tell us through this situation.
I hope as you meditate on this episode in Abram’s life you will find more key points to remember and practice. Thanks for joining us!
Do you ever pray for someone or for a specific situation and then feel like God is taking forever to answer? Do you ever wonder if you are supposed to “do something” about it yourself? The early believers in Christ expected that He would return to them in their lifetime, and as time dragged on they became discouraged. The apostles had to remind them that God is never slow or late in keeping His promises, but is very patient. (II Peter 3:9) Two thousand years later, we are observing specific end time prophecies being fulfilled and the whole world ought to be excited and preparing themselves for the Lord’s coming, but there is apathy, unbelief, and a tremendous increase in worldliness, persecution of righteousness, and even a spirit of war against God Himself. How should we handle ourselves when God seems slow to act? Should we “do something” to help Him along? Let’s look at Abram’s life and glean some lessons.
THE PROBLEM
Genesis 16:1-4 says,
“Now Sarai, Abram’s wife, had borne him no children. She had a female Egyptian servant whose name was Hagar. And Sarai said to Abram, ‘Behold now, the LORD has prevented me from bearing children. Go in to my servant; it may be that I shall obtain children by her.’ And Abram listened to the voice of Sarai. So, after Abram had lived ten years in the land of Canaan, Sarai, Abram’s wife, took Hagar the Egyptian, her servant, and gave her to Abram her husband as a wife. And he went in to Hagar, and she conceived. And when she saw that she had conceived, she looked with contempt on her mistress.”
So what is the situation here that they are dealing with? First, God has specifically promised Abram that he would have more offspring than could be counted, but so far, he has none and he is 85 years old. Sarai is about 75 years old and they have been living in the land of Canaan for 10 years. At that time, infertility was always blamed on the woman, and it was considered grounds for divorce. Second, Sarai correctly recognizes that it is God who is in control of conception and infertility. Perhaps she decides that it is not she, after all, who will bear the son of God’s promise to Abram, and she must own up to it and make a huge personal sacrifice. Or, it might be that she just becomes desperate and gives up waiting for God and does what the rest of the world does. At that time surrogacy was often the solution to infertility, so Sarai is not dreaming up a new plan that nobody has thought of before—she is doing what everybody else does. Third, the phrase “Abram listened to the voice of Sarai” carries with it the idea of obedience. Abram is not being a leader in this situation, and he apparently does not consult with God about this decision, but he obeys his wife. This is not a proper husband/wife role and it reminds me of Adam and Eve in the garden. Adam listened to Eve when he should have been the leader. (Genesis 3:17) Hagar, a slave, becomes Abram’s second wife at this point. She is not, however, on the same legal or social par as Sarai because she is still a slave, but her new position apparently goes to her head pretty quickly because when she becomes pregnant, she immediately despises Sarai.
OBSERVATION: Multiple marriages were never intended by God. When God created mankind, he made one female for the one male. He did not remove half a dozen ribs from Adam and produce an entire harem for him. Jesus’ teaching on marriage indicates that marriage is for life and that divorce and remarriage constitutes adultery. In virtually every incidence in the Old Testament where there are multiple wives in the household, there are serious problems. Similarly, divorce and remarriage, especially where children are involved, results in tensions that go on for years with potentially disastrous results for the children.
OBSERVATION: Hagar was basically used as a baby incubator—reducing her to the level of a thing, rather than a person. Abram did not take her as a wife because he loved her, but because he and Sarai wanted something from her. She had no choice in her situation either because she was a slave.
A TYPE TO LEARN FROM
This episode provides some typology (visual portrayals in life of spiritual truths) from which we can learn. The Apostle Paul explains this in Galatians 4 when he says that Sarai represents the people of faith, i.e. the church, while Hagar represents the world. Sarai is destined to become the mother of the son of promise, and thereby the forebear of the Messiah Himself, while Hagar is destined to bear fleshly children.
NOTE: The world will always provide you with an alternative to God’s way and it will seem to work so well! “There is a way that seems right to a man, but the end thereof is death.” (Proverbs 14:12)
What can we learn from the type? First we see that faith waits on God, but the flesh wants results now and is not willing to wait. Sarai and Abram gave in to the fleshly desire to obtain children and used the flesh to get what they wanted. Second, we see that the flesh has no problem getting results. Hagar conceived a child immediately. Third, the flesh is rooted in pride. Most likely it was Sarai’s pride that led to her desperate plan, and now that Hagar is pregnant, her pride is exalted and she reacts by despising Sarai’s apparent weakness.
OBSERVATION: Initially, it will almost always appear, especially to the worldly-minded, that the flesh is strong and faith is weak. Communism teaches that religion is the opiate of the people and humanism teaches that faith is only a crutch for the weak to help them get through life. It is not until the end that faith is shown to be the real strength while the flesh is actually decaying and dying from its earliest moments. Jesus said that the pure in heart will see God (Matthew 5:8). I don’t think He meant only after death, but that they would be able to see God at work on earth during their lives, so only faith can perceive that it is stronger than the flesh.
QUESTION: How does this lesson from typology apply to us? I think it has direct application to the church, because the church has always, and especially in the last 120 years, been susceptible to the temptation to use the flesh to fill the pews. We are always looking for some way to draw a crowd. We call it evangelism, but it is really rooted in pride and unbelief, in my opinion. We look at the dwindling crowd and conclude that God is not sufficient to fill His church, so we come up with some flashy thing to get people’s attention and interest. Flashy things are really fleshy things and they work for a short time. It looks like a success, but it is really Hagar, mocking the mother of the promised one. The more we depend on the flesh, the more the Spirit will be quenched in His work.
A FLESHY SOLUTION TO A FLESHY MESS
In verses 5-6, we read how Sarai deals with the “Hagar Problem.”
“And Sarai said to Abram, ‘May the wrong done to me be on you! I gave my servant to your embrace, and when she saw that she had conceived, she looked on me with contempt. May the LORD judge between you and me!’ But Abram said to Sarai, ‘Behold, your servant is in your power; do to her as you please.’ Then Sarai dealt harshly with her, and she fled from her.”
At this point, we can see that even the best of people who walked with the Lord and received His promises and lived by faith also had their bad moments. Sarai’s pride and wrath are aroused when this upstart slave girl looks down on her because of her barrenness. She takes her anger out first on Abram. According to the commentators, her words to Abram at this point are as close to cursing as a saintly woman allows herself, and she is speaking to her own husband! Her situation is intensely bitter, as Hagar’s “success” is being rubbed like vinegar on an open sore. I know that I myself tend to react to pain with anger and Sarai is turned the same way. In giving Hagar to Abram for such an intimate purpose, Sarai was displaying trust both in Abram and in Hagar. That trust has now been violated, so Sarai is doubly hurt and angry.
With Abram’s reaction, we see that he is still not in the leadership over this issue. First, he obeyed Sarai and slept with her maid. Now that it has caused a problem, he basically washes his hands of the whole mess by saying, “She’s your maid! Do whatever you want with her! I’m just along for the ride!” Abram never loved Hagar anyway, so what happens to her is not a real concern to him. Knowing that Sarai is in a state of wrath, he does nothing to alleviate the situation, but steps out of the way and lets Sarai do her worst. The result is that Hagar runs away, taking Abram’s baby with her.
OBSERVATION: Jesus said in Matthew 5, “Blessed are the peacemakers.” This is a low point for Abram because he fails to do anything meaningful to make peace between the women in his own house.
GOD CLEANS UP THE FLESHY MESS
The story picks up with Hagar in verses 7-9:
“The angel of the LORD found her by a spring of water in the wilderness, the spring on the way to Shur. And he said, ‘Hagar, servant of Sarai, where have you come from and where are you going?’ She said, ‘I am fleeing from my mistress Sarai.’ The angel of the LORD said to her, ‘Return to your mistress and submit to her.’”
COMMENTARY: In the Old Testament, the angel of the LORD is a rather mysterious figure and there is considerable debate on the subject. Some believe that he represents a pre-incarnate Christ while others believe that it is an angelic being who is given the word of God to speak. Either way, the LORD is talking to Hagar.
The location of this spring indicates that Hagar is probably on her way back to Egypt. That was her home, and she was probably given to Sarai by Pharaoh during their sojourn in Egypt when Sarai was taken into Pharaoh’s harem. She is in a wilderness, which could easily demonstrate symbolically her literal situation. She is at a wilderness in life with no future and no hope, yet within her is a life, as symbolized by the spring.
The Lord asks, “Where have you come from and where are you going?” When Adam and Eve sinned in the Garden of Eden and hid themselves from God, God asked the same sort of question, “Adam, where are you?” This is not a question asking for a physical location, but rather a life question. Adam was running away, trying to hide from God and likewise, Hagar is running away, trying to hide from the wrath of Sarai. Both Adam and Hagar had done wrong and were running from the consequences, rather than facing up to the consequences and making required changes.
To Hagar’s credit, she answers a little more forthrightly than Adam did. Adam blamed everything on Eve, but Hagar tells the truth—she is running away from her mistress. With this statement, she acknowledges that Sarai is her mistress and has every right to expect obedience and respect from Hagar. Hagar’s attitude, at least for the moment, appears to be repentant. But later verses will show us that it is not a godly repentance. She is not sorry for what she did, but for the situation in which she now finds herself, which most likely is life-threatening, not only for herself, but also for her child.
QUESTION: Most anyone will be sorry when he hears he is headed for hell, but is he sorry for the pride and rebellion against God that has put him on that road to begin with?
God then gives Hagar a specific command—return to Sarai and submit yourself to her. Sarai, the spiritual mother, is to rule over Hagar, the fleshly mother. Likewise, in our lives as believers, the spiritual is to rule over the flesh in every situation. This is not an easy road because the flesh by nature wants to dominate, its chief characteristic being pride. As long as we are alive, the fleshly nature will be with us; however, the new nature of the Spirit of Christ must be nurtured and allowed to grow strong enough to dominate the fleshly nature and hold it under control. (Galatians 5:16-18)
THE PROMISE
In verses 10-12, God makes a special promise to Hagar.
“The angel of the LORD also said to her, ‘I will surely multiply your offspring so that they cannot be numbered for multitude.’ And the angel of the LORD said to her, ‘Behold, you are pregnant and shall bear a son. You shall call his name Ishmael, because the LORD has listened to your affliction. He shall be a wild donkey of a man, his hand against everyone and everyone’s hand against him, and he shall dwell over against all his kinsmen.’”
First we see that God promises to multiply her offspring just as he has promised to multiply Abram’s offspring. God doesn’t give any particular reason why Hagar’s offspring are to be multiplied. Before, He had promised to multiply Abram’s offspring because Abram believed God and obeyed Him. Perhaps He is multiplying Hagar’s offspring because they are the physical children of Abram. Perhaps He is multiplying them for reasons of His own. We are not told about this, and we must be humble enough to let God keep His own counsel.
NOTE: Beware of people who have to be able to explain everything. God doesn’t tell us everything, and it is pride that feels it must be able to answer every question.
Secondly, Hagar is told that the child will be a son and that his name is to be Ishmael. The name Ishmael actually means, “God hears,” and this name is significant for Hagar, and it will later be very significant for Ishmael himself. God is reassuring her that He has seen and heard all about her situation. She has been used and mistreated, but she has also been prideful and rebellious against a woman who trusted her. Isn’t that a picture of all of us? Haven’t we all in many ways felt used as things and then possibly later thrown out or mistreated? Haven’t we reacted pridefully towards others, perhaps those who trusted us and loved us, such as family members? Haven’t we experienced the desire to rebel against authority when that authority is misused? Haven’t we all from time to time tried to run away from the consequences of our own wrong attitudes? God has seen and heard it all. He knows all about it, and He says to return, both to Him and to whatever situation needs to be faced up to.
Finally, Hagar is told what her son’s character and future will be. He will be like a “wild donkey” unsettled and on the move—nomadic. Also, he will often be at war against everyone else. However, his people will endure. This is interesting because at that time there were many Canaanite peoples, but the only ones that have survived the millennia are the Jews, descended from Abram through Sarai, and the Arabs, descended from Abram through Hagar.
ALL IS WELL THAT ENDS WELL….NOT NECESSARILY
The story concludes as follows:
“So she called the name of the LORD who spoke to her, ‘You are a God of seeing,” for she said, ‘Truly here I have seen him who looks after me.’ Therefore the well was called Beer-lahai-roi; it lies between Kadesh and Bered. And Hagar bore Abram a son, and Abram called the name of his son, whom Hagar bore, Ishmael. Abram was eighty-six years old when Hagar bore Ishmael to Abram.”
This is the first time in the Scriptures that God has appeared to someone as El Roi, the God Who Sees. Hagar was not lost in the wilderness because God saw her, came to her, and healed her situation. It wasn’t all sunshine and roses with everybody living happily ever after, but there was a time of peace. Wherever we are, wherever our loved ones are, God sees them. He is perfectly capable of moving in our situations to bring about His will for us. It won’t be all sunshine and roses, but we can have peace if we will acknowledge our sin and follow His commands and trust Him as the God Who sees us always.
Hagar repented and was comforted and returned to Abram, the father of her child, and to Sarai, her mistress. In due time, the child was born, and Abram called him Ishmael, acknowledging that he was his son. However, nothing can change the fact that he is a son according to the flesh, not the son of promise, and the stage is set for future conflict, because the Spirit will always war against the flesh, and the flesh will mock the Spirit. We see this principle played out in our daily lives and also in the contention that continues between Israel and her Arab neighbors.
KEY IDEAS FROM THIS EPISODE
• The flesh is impatient and wants to be always doing; faith waits patiently for God to show the way.
• It is possible to be always busy doing things, but accomplish nothing. Jesus said in John 15:5, “Apart from Me, you can do nothing.”
• God sees what is done to you, as well as what you do to others. His eye is always on you and He wants to create peace in your life.
• When God finds you running away and hiding, be honest and repent and then do whatever He commands.
• Submit to authority. This is a tough one for us freedom-loving, independence-minded Americans. As we navigate the next three years under our current President, let us be mindful that God has placed him there for a reason. Pray for him and respect his office while exercising your right to vote and communicate respectfully with all your elected representatives. And ponder what God may be trying to tell us through this situation.
I hope as you meditate on this episode in Abram’s life you will find more key points to remember and practice. Thanks for joining us!
Thursday, January 21, 2010
ABRAHAM - THE COVENANT
Welcome to Bible study online! We are still following the amazing journey of Abraham in his life of faith. Grab your Bible and let's get going!
ABRAHAM – THE COVENANT
Covenant is an important concept that recurs throughout the Bible. I believe that it is the idea of God Himself because He makes use of it in dealing with people. After Noah came off the ark, God made a covenant with mankind; God made a covenant with King David regarding the throne of Israel; God made a covenant with the people of Israel when they came out of Egypt; and the most recent covenant is that made with the Church through the blood of Jesus Christ. Although the idea is almost foreign to the modern world because we have replaced the ideas surrounding covenant with legal contracts that are often broken, human relations throughout most of history were often governed by this idea of covenant. We have arrived now at the place in Abram’s life where God makes a covenant with Abram that will affect the history of the world from then on. Let’s take a look.
A VISION OF GOD
Genesis 15:1 says,
“After these things the word of the LORD came to Abram in a vision: ‘Fear not, Abram, I am your Shield; your reward shall be very great.’”
Hebrews 1:1 tells us that all throughout the past God has spoken to people in various ways. He chose to speak to Abram through visions in which He actually appeared to Abram. This verse marks the third time that God has appeared to him. He first appeared in Chapter 12 when Abram entered the Promised Land as commanded by God. God’s second appearance to Abram was in chapter 13 after he had separated himself from Lot and allowed Lot to choose for himself the land in which he would settle. Both times, God appeared after Abram acted in faith. Now God appears a third time to Abram after his encounter with Melchizedek and the king of Sodom during which he showed his total allegiance to God by giving a tenth of the spoils of war to Melchizedek but refusing to have anything to do with the king of Sodom because of his wickedness.
The first thing that God says is quite interesting in light of the context of this event in Abram’s life. He has just defeated the armies of four invading kings. These armies had completely routed the armies of five local kings and yet Abram and his forces had utterly defeated them and recaptured all the captives and the plunder. Yet God says, “Fear Not.” Of what is Abram afraid? He has already demonstrated that he is not afraid of death by rushing into battle to rescue Lot. But God apparently knows that Abram is afraid of something even worse than death, so He says, “Fear not, Abram.” Then He identifies Himself as Abram’s Shield. Only a warrior needed a shield—farmers, and smiths, and merchants never needed them. So I think at this point that God is addressing Abram as the Worshiping Warrior. He has just returned from a literal, physical battle, but in taking moral and spiritual possession of the Promised Land, Abram is engaged in spiritual battles. He is fearlessly proclaiming the name of the LORD among idolatrous pagans and he has bluntly refused to associate with the wickedness of the king of Sodom, so he apparently is not afraid of man. Yet he needs a shield.
One interesting sideline note about shields is found in Ephesians 6:16:
“In all circumstances take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming darts of the evil one.”
In this passage, Christians are told to take up the shield of faith, but in Genesis, the shield is identified as God Himself. I think that this is an important distinction. Too often we can have faith in ourselves, faith in our creeds, faith in our faith, or faith in others, but the faith that Paul is talking about in Ephesians is faith in God. God is the real shield and we take up that shield when we have faith in God and God alone. Abram is a man of faith and God is his shield, but the only way a shield will work is if the warrior picks it up and stays behind it.
QUESTION: How often do we want to run around doing our thing and forget about the shield until trouble shows itself? The Christian is a spiritual warrior, and no warrior would ever think of being without his shield. How often do we try to run ahead of God instead of waiting for Him to lead? A shield can’t protect a warrior if he won’t stay behind it.
Whatever is causing Abram’s fear, God is able to be his Shield. God also assures Abram that his reward will be very great. Now he is already incredibly wealthy and prominent in the Promised Land. What is the reward that God is describing? A number of translators translate that last part of verse one, “I am your very great reward.” I think that this is the understanding that God is communicating. Yes, Abram is wealthy in an earthly sense, but this is not his reward. God Himself is the reward of Abram because of His faith. Romans 6:23 tells us that the gift of God is eternal life in His Son Jesus Christ and Jesus Himself said that He is the Way, the Truth, and the Life. So we see that the reward of which God is speaking is Himself. Jesus told the Samaritan woman at the well that if she would ask, God would give her living water, i.e., everlasting life—Himself.
OBSERVATION: As people of faith, our reward is not a mansion in heaven in the sweet by and by, it is God Himself, right here, now and forever. The mansion, like Abram’s earthly wealth, is incidental to the true wealth of knowing God in Christ.
ABRAM’S FEAR
Verses 2-3 of Chapter 15 give us insight into Abram’s concern.
“But Abram said, ‘O Lord God, what will you give me, for I continue childless, and the heir of my house is Eliezer of Damascus?” And Abram said, ‘Behold, you have given me no offspring, and a member of my household will be my heir.’”
Now we see the source of Abram’s distress. God had promised him in Chapter 12 that Abram would become a great nation that would bless all the nations of the earth. In Chapter 13, he was promised that his offspring would be as numerous as the dust. But he is an old man now, probably about 90 years old, and Sarai his wife is an old woman, past the age of childbearing. As yet, there is no fulfillment of this promise, and if this promise goes unfulfilled, what is the point of this sojourning in the Promised Land? Abram is not afraid of dying; he is afraid of dying childless. This was a major concern for all the ancients and childlessness was worse than death to them because it was the end of their name and family line.
QUESTION: Have you ever reached a point in your spiritual life where it seemed like God wasn’t clearly leading any more? Perhaps things just didn’t add up or make “common sense”? Have you ever felt like a fool in the eyes of the world for the sake of Christ because His way seems to leave you standing on the sideline waiting? Those little fears are spiritual darts that require the shield of faith. There are different forms of spiritual exercise just like there are different forms of physical exercise. Running moves your physical body from place to place, but sit-ups keep you in the same spot. I think waiting patiently for God is like doing spiritual sit-ups; you don’t seem to be making forward progress, but you are gaining strength where it counts.
Regarding Abram’s reference to Eliezer, it was common in those days that if a person died without a natural heir, another member of the household would inherit the possessions. Sometimes it was a blood relation and sometimes it might be a slave who managed the household. This is the only mention of Eliezer, and since Lot was a blood relative, but was not the heir of Abram’s house, I think Eliezer was probably a trusted slave who managed Abram’s house.
SPIRITUAL DEBITS AND CREDITS
Chapter 15:4-6 says, “And behold, the word of the LORD came to him: ‘This man shall not be your heir; your very own son shall be your heir.’ And he brought him outside and said, ‘Look toward heaven, and number the stars, if you are able to number them.’ Then he said to him, ‘So shall your offspring be.’ And he believed the LORD, and he counted it to him as righteousness.”
God reiterates His promises to Abram—he will have offspring of his own body. God is greater than the forces of age and barrenness. There will be a son who will be Abram’s heir. To emphasize the promise, God takes Abram outside and shows him the stars. We said at the start of this lesson that God speaks to people in different ways, and one of the ways that He speaks is through His creation. The teaching of Jesus was filled with illustrations drawn from nature—wind, birds, trees, seasons, weather, etc. When Abram looked at the stars, he believed God’s promise, and verse 6 says that when he believed the LORD, he was counted righteous. The verb translated as “counted” (chashab in the Hebrew) is an accounting term. Because we are all born with a sin nature, we have accumulated a lot of debits in our spiritual bank account. Most everybody who has a checking account understands that debits are subtractions. Spiritually, we are grossly overdrawn. However, this verse tells us that when Abram believed God (trusted in His promise enough to live by it) that was a huge deposit in his spiritual account, so that he was counted as righteous, not spiritually overdrawn.
Romans 4 is a great chapter that explains the faith of Abram and how it was reckoned to him as righteousness and the importance that faith plays in our lives as believers and therefore “children of Abraham.” Verses 16-25 say,
“That is why it depends on faith, in order that the promise may rest on grace and be guaranteed to all his offspring—not only to the adherent of the law but also to the one who shares the faith of Abraham, who is the father of us all, as it is written, ‘I have made you the father of many nations’—in the presence of the God in whom he believed, who gives life to the dead and calls into existence the things that do not exist. In hope he believed against hope, that he should become the father of many nations, as he had been told, ‘So shall your offspring be.’ He did not weaken in faith when he considered his own body, which was as good as dead (since he was about a hundred years old), or when he considered the barrenness of Sarah’s womb. No distrust made him waver concerning the promise of God, but he grew strong in his faith as he gave glory to God, fully convinced that God was able to do what he had promised. That is why his faith was counted to him as righteousness. But the words ’it was counted to him’ were not written for his sake alone, but for ours also. It will be counted to us who believe in him who raised from the dead Jesus our Lord, who was delivered up for our trespasses and raised for our justification.”
It must have appeared very foolish to anyone who knew that Abram, at this advanced age, was trusting in God to give him an heir and make of him a great nation. But how about Job? He was most likely a contemporary of Abram. God allowed all his great possessions to be taken away, his children all killed, and his body tormented with painful boils. On top of it all, his three “friends” insisted that, according to their creed, Job must be the wickedest man on the planet because, of course, God always blesses the righteous and curses the wicked, and Job seemed under a terrible curse. But what does Job say to them? “Though He slay me, yet will I hope in Him.” (Job 13:15) Even though it seems that I am totally wiped out and have no reason to hope, I will still trust that God is redeeming love. Mmmmmm….faith does look a bit foolish sometimes.
OBSERVATION: Common sense is a gift from God that helps us steer through the physical life. However, faith is a much greater gift and it allows us to steer through the spiritual life. Common sense and faith are often at odds. Those who are focused on the physical life will follow common sense and those who are focused on the spiritual life will follow faith.
GOD CUTS COVENANT
Now we arrive at the actual making of a covenant—something that we can hardly relate to at all, but the ancients would have understood perfectly. Although we would translate it as “making a covenant,” the actual Hebrew word “berith” means “to cut” so it is actually cutting a covenant. The reason why will become apparent as we read the following passage. Verses 7-11 say,
“And he said to him, ‘I am the LORD who brought you out from Ur of the Chaldeans to give you this land to possess.’ But he said, ‘O Lord God, how am I to know that I shall possess it?’ He said to him, ‘Bring me a heifer three years old, a female goat three years old, a ram three years old, a turtledove, and a young pigeon.’ And he brought him all these, cut them in half, and laid each half over against the other. But he did not cut the birds in half. And when birds of prey came down on the carcasses, Abram drove them away.”
God again identifies Himself in a way that will strengthen Abram’s faith by way of reminder. He is the One who called Abram out of his homeland in order to give him another land. God understands our need for reminders. I Samuel 7:12 tells how, after God had given the Israelites a great victory over their Philistine enemies, the prophet Samuel set up a stone and called it “Ebenezer.” This name means “thus far the Lord has brought us.” The stone was meant to be a reminder to the Israelites in future days that the Lord had brought them along. So God reminds Abram of who He is and what He has done in Abram’s life.
Abram then asks a question, “How will I know?” This is not meant to express doubt, but rather he is asking for some token in confirmation of this promise of an heir. When a man asks a woman to marry him and she agrees, he customarily gives her an engagement ring. The ring is a token of his pledge to marry her, and her acceptance and wearing of the ring is a token of her pledge to marry him. Abram is asking for a token of God’s promise. God then prepares to enter into a covenant with Abram. For a full lesson on covenant and its many symbols, there is a lesson in the archives of this blog. In these verses, we see that Abram, the lesser party in the covenant, brings the required blood, for covenant is a blood oath. He cuts these animals in two, except for the birds, and lays them on the ground with the two halves opposite each other. In covenant, because the Bible says that life is in the blood, the weaker party offers blood for a symbolic joining of his life with the life of the stronger party. Abram is offering his life to merge with God in covenant.
A dramatic stage is now set, and then a curious verse comes into play—birds of prey came down on the carcasses while Abram was waiting for God to come and cut the covenant, but Abram drove them away. These birds have come to feast on the sacrificial animals, but these slaughtered animals have a holy purpose, so Abram runs them off. In Matthew 13:1-9, Jesus told a parable about a sower who went out scattering his seed. At that time, the farmers broadcast their seed but did not cover it up. The seed fell on different types of ground, and the seed that fell on rocky ground was eaten by the birds. Jesus explained that this type of ground represented a person who received the word of God joyfully, but had no real root (faith) and when trouble or persecution came, he fell away and the seed was not productive. Song of Solomon 2:15 expresses the same idea when it says, “Catch the foxes for us, the little foxes that spoil the vineyards, for our vineyards are in blossom.” I think the message about the birds of prey are that we must not let troubles, persecution, or worldly cares eat the holy sacrifice in our lives. Romans 12:1-2 says that we ourselves are the holy sacrifice given to God. It is up to us to drive off the things that would rob God of any part of the sacrifice of ourselves.
QUESTION: What things “eat at us” in a spiritual sense?
Let’s finish up the story, beginning with verse 12.
“As the sun was going down, a deep sleep fell on Abram. And behold, dreadful and great darkness fell upon him. Then the LORD said to Abram, “Know for certain that your offspring will be sojourners in a land that is not theirs and will be servants there, and they will be afflicted for four hundred years. But I will bring judgment on the nation that they serve, and afterward they shall come out with great possessions. As for yourself, you shall go to your fathers in peace; you shall be buried in a good old age. And they shall come back here in the fourth generation, for the iniquity of the Amorites is not yet complete.’ When the sun had gone down and it was dark, behold, a smoking fire pot and a flaming torch passed between these pieces. On that day the LORD made a covenant with Abram, saying, ‘To your offspring I give this land, from the river of Egypt to the great river, the river Euphrates; the land of the Kenites, the Kenizzites, the Kadmonites, the Hittites, the Perizzites, the Rephaim, the Amorites, the Canaanites, the Girgashites and the Jebusites.”
First, this apparently is not the exact same day as verses 1-6 because they occur after dark (Abram goes out to count the stars) and verse 12 refers to the setting of the sun. I think, however, we can assume that these events are chronologically close together. It says that Abram fell into a deep sleep and it appears that this was a trance-like state. As God prepares to enter the scene, Abram is filled with dread and the darkness is great. Isaiah 6:1-7 describes the feeling that filled the prophet when he actually saw the Lord seated on the throne of His temple. In verse 5, Isaiah cries out “Woe is me! For I am lost; for I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips for my eyes have seen the King, the LORD of hosts!” The presence of God to a sinner is woeful because the weight of sin is fully realized. Thankfully, God provided in verses 6-7 release from sin for the prophet, and He has likewise reckoned Abram righteous by his faith.
Second, God foretells that Abram’s offspring will be slaves in another land for four hundred years, but that He will provide deliverance for them and bring them back to the Promised Land in the fourth generation. At the end of Genesis, Abram’s great grandson Joseph, ruler of Egypt, gives instructions that the Israelites are to take his bones with them when they leave Egypt and bury him in the Promised Land, so we know that Abram told his son of God’s promises regarding his offspring. Why did God allow Israel to be held as slaves for so long? He tells Abram here that He is waiting until the wickedness of the people in the Promised Land has reached an intolerable zenith. God is always patient and will wait a long time for people to repent. These pagans have had the preaching of Abram and the presence of Melchizedek as a witness to them, but they will not repent. Eventually, God will judge and punish them using the children of Israel, Abram’s seed, as His instrument of judgment.
Next is the dramatic death walk of the covenant. In covenant, the weaker party brought blood, and the stronger party made a death walk, walking between the slaughtered pieces, affirming that if he broke faith with the weaker party, he would be deserving of death. In this walk, the stronger party is agreeing to take the life of the weaker party and merge it with his own life to become one. Amazingly, God is willing to make this commitment to Abram and his offspring, for God descends in the form of a smoking oven and a flaming torch and passes between the pieces of the animals. It is interesting that God assumed these two forms before Abram as He made His covenant with him. A flaming torch is always used for light, and Jesus proclaimed Himself the Light of the World (John 8:12). A smoking fire pot could be used for heat or for cooking. The Seed of Abraham (Jesus) became the Bread of Life for men in the oven of temptation and suffering.
Finally, the promise of God to Abram is that his offspring, the children of the promise, would have the land from the boundary of Egypt all the way to the Euphrates River. This land was created by God and it is His to bestow upon whomever He wishes, and He gives it to the descendants of Abram—the Israelites. No one has the right to insist that they bargain away one sacred acre.
Let’s conclude today with a Psalm that seemed especially appropriate.
PSALM 97
The LORD reigns, let the earth rejoice;
Let the many coastlands be glad!
Clouds and thick darkness are all around Him;
Righteousness and justice are the foundation of His throne.
Fire goes before Him
And burns up His adversaries all around.
His lightnings light up the world;
The earth sees and trembles.
The mountains melt like wax before the LORD,
Before the Lord of all the earth.
The heavens proclaim His righteousness,
And all the peoples see His glory.
All worshipers of images are put to shame,
Who make their boast in worthless idols;
Worship Him, all you gods!
Zion hears and is glad,
And the daughters of Judah rejoice,
Because of Your judgments, O LORD.
For You, O LORD, are most high over all the earth;
You are exalted far above all gods.
O you who love the LORD, hate evil!
He preserves the lives of His saints;
He delivers them from the hands of the wicked.
Light is sown for the righteous,
And joy for the upright in heart.
Rejoice in the LORD, O you righteous,
And give thanks to His holy name!
Thanks for following along! The next lesson will document a momentous decision of Abram's that has drastically affected the course of history. I hope you will be blessed.
ABRAHAM – THE COVENANT
Covenant is an important concept that recurs throughout the Bible. I believe that it is the idea of God Himself because He makes use of it in dealing with people. After Noah came off the ark, God made a covenant with mankind; God made a covenant with King David regarding the throne of Israel; God made a covenant with the people of Israel when they came out of Egypt; and the most recent covenant is that made with the Church through the blood of Jesus Christ. Although the idea is almost foreign to the modern world because we have replaced the ideas surrounding covenant with legal contracts that are often broken, human relations throughout most of history were often governed by this idea of covenant. We have arrived now at the place in Abram’s life where God makes a covenant with Abram that will affect the history of the world from then on. Let’s take a look.
A VISION OF GOD
Genesis 15:1 says,
“After these things the word of the LORD came to Abram in a vision: ‘Fear not, Abram, I am your Shield; your reward shall be very great.’”
Hebrews 1:1 tells us that all throughout the past God has spoken to people in various ways. He chose to speak to Abram through visions in which He actually appeared to Abram. This verse marks the third time that God has appeared to him. He first appeared in Chapter 12 when Abram entered the Promised Land as commanded by God. God’s second appearance to Abram was in chapter 13 after he had separated himself from Lot and allowed Lot to choose for himself the land in which he would settle. Both times, God appeared after Abram acted in faith. Now God appears a third time to Abram after his encounter with Melchizedek and the king of Sodom during which he showed his total allegiance to God by giving a tenth of the spoils of war to Melchizedek but refusing to have anything to do with the king of Sodom because of his wickedness.
The first thing that God says is quite interesting in light of the context of this event in Abram’s life. He has just defeated the armies of four invading kings. These armies had completely routed the armies of five local kings and yet Abram and his forces had utterly defeated them and recaptured all the captives and the plunder. Yet God says, “Fear Not.” Of what is Abram afraid? He has already demonstrated that he is not afraid of death by rushing into battle to rescue Lot. But God apparently knows that Abram is afraid of something even worse than death, so He says, “Fear not, Abram.” Then He identifies Himself as Abram’s Shield. Only a warrior needed a shield—farmers, and smiths, and merchants never needed them. So I think at this point that God is addressing Abram as the Worshiping Warrior. He has just returned from a literal, physical battle, but in taking moral and spiritual possession of the Promised Land, Abram is engaged in spiritual battles. He is fearlessly proclaiming the name of the LORD among idolatrous pagans and he has bluntly refused to associate with the wickedness of the king of Sodom, so he apparently is not afraid of man. Yet he needs a shield.
One interesting sideline note about shields is found in Ephesians 6:16:
“In all circumstances take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming darts of the evil one.”
In this passage, Christians are told to take up the shield of faith, but in Genesis, the shield is identified as God Himself. I think that this is an important distinction. Too often we can have faith in ourselves, faith in our creeds, faith in our faith, or faith in others, but the faith that Paul is talking about in Ephesians is faith in God. God is the real shield and we take up that shield when we have faith in God and God alone. Abram is a man of faith and God is his shield, but the only way a shield will work is if the warrior picks it up and stays behind it.
QUESTION: How often do we want to run around doing our thing and forget about the shield until trouble shows itself? The Christian is a spiritual warrior, and no warrior would ever think of being without his shield. How often do we try to run ahead of God instead of waiting for Him to lead? A shield can’t protect a warrior if he won’t stay behind it.
Whatever is causing Abram’s fear, God is able to be his Shield. God also assures Abram that his reward will be very great. Now he is already incredibly wealthy and prominent in the Promised Land. What is the reward that God is describing? A number of translators translate that last part of verse one, “I am your very great reward.” I think that this is the understanding that God is communicating. Yes, Abram is wealthy in an earthly sense, but this is not his reward. God Himself is the reward of Abram because of His faith. Romans 6:23 tells us that the gift of God is eternal life in His Son Jesus Christ and Jesus Himself said that He is the Way, the Truth, and the Life. So we see that the reward of which God is speaking is Himself. Jesus told the Samaritan woman at the well that if she would ask, God would give her living water, i.e., everlasting life—Himself.
OBSERVATION: As people of faith, our reward is not a mansion in heaven in the sweet by and by, it is God Himself, right here, now and forever. The mansion, like Abram’s earthly wealth, is incidental to the true wealth of knowing God in Christ.
ABRAM’S FEAR
Verses 2-3 of Chapter 15 give us insight into Abram’s concern.
“But Abram said, ‘O Lord God, what will you give me, for I continue childless, and the heir of my house is Eliezer of Damascus?” And Abram said, ‘Behold, you have given me no offspring, and a member of my household will be my heir.’”
Now we see the source of Abram’s distress. God had promised him in Chapter 12 that Abram would become a great nation that would bless all the nations of the earth. In Chapter 13, he was promised that his offspring would be as numerous as the dust. But he is an old man now, probably about 90 years old, and Sarai his wife is an old woman, past the age of childbearing. As yet, there is no fulfillment of this promise, and if this promise goes unfulfilled, what is the point of this sojourning in the Promised Land? Abram is not afraid of dying; he is afraid of dying childless. This was a major concern for all the ancients and childlessness was worse than death to them because it was the end of their name and family line.
QUESTION: Have you ever reached a point in your spiritual life where it seemed like God wasn’t clearly leading any more? Perhaps things just didn’t add up or make “common sense”? Have you ever felt like a fool in the eyes of the world for the sake of Christ because His way seems to leave you standing on the sideline waiting? Those little fears are spiritual darts that require the shield of faith. There are different forms of spiritual exercise just like there are different forms of physical exercise. Running moves your physical body from place to place, but sit-ups keep you in the same spot. I think waiting patiently for God is like doing spiritual sit-ups; you don’t seem to be making forward progress, but you are gaining strength where it counts.
Regarding Abram’s reference to Eliezer, it was common in those days that if a person died without a natural heir, another member of the household would inherit the possessions. Sometimes it was a blood relation and sometimes it might be a slave who managed the household. This is the only mention of Eliezer, and since Lot was a blood relative, but was not the heir of Abram’s house, I think Eliezer was probably a trusted slave who managed Abram’s house.
SPIRITUAL DEBITS AND CREDITS
Chapter 15:4-6 says, “And behold, the word of the LORD came to him: ‘This man shall not be your heir; your very own son shall be your heir.’ And he brought him outside and said, ‘Look toward heaven, and number the stars, if you are able to number them.’ Then he said to him, ‘So shall your offspring be.’ And he believed the LORD, and he counted it to him as righteousness.”
God reiterates His promises to Abram—he will have offspring of his own body. God is greater than the forces of age and barrenness. There will be a son who will be Abram’s heir. To emphasize the promise, God takes Abram outside and shows him the stars. We said at the start of this lesson that God speaks to people in different ways, and one of the ways that He speaks is through His creation. The teaching of Jesus was filled with illustrations drawn from nature—wind, birds, trees, seasons, weather, etc. When Abram looked at the stars, he believed God’s promise, and verse 6 says that when he believed the LORD, he was counted righteous. The verb translated as “counted” (chashab in the Hebrew) is an accounting term. Because we are all born with a sin nature, we have accumulated a lot of debits in our spiritual bank account. Most everybody who has a checking account understands that debits are subtractions. Spiritually, we are grossly overdrawn. However, this verse tells us that when Abram believed God (trusted in His promise enough to live by it) that was a huge deposit in his spiritual account, so that he was counted as righteous, not spiritually overdrawn.
Romans 4 is a great chapter that explains the faith of Abram and how it was reckoned to him as righteousness and the importance that faith plays in our lives as believers and therefore “children of Abraham.” Verses 16-25 say,
“That is why it depends on faith, in order that the promise may rest on grace and be guaranteed to all his offspring—not only to the adherent of the law but also to the one who shares the faith of Abraham, who is the father of us all, as it is written, ‘I have made you the father of many nations’—in the presence of the God in whom he believed, who gives life to the dead and calls into existence the things that do not exist. In hope he believed against hope, that he should become the father of many nations, as he had been told, ‘So shall your offspring be.’ He did not weaken in faith when he considered his own body, which was as good as dead (since he was about a hundred years old), or when he considered the barrenness of Sarah’s womb. No distrust made him waver concerning the promise of God, but he grew strong in his faith as he gave glory to God, fully convinced that God was able to do what he had promised. That is why his faith was counted to him as righteousness. But the words ’it was counted to him’ were not written for his sake alone, but for ours also. It will be counted to us who believe in him who raised from the dead Jesus our Lord, who was delivered up for our trespasses and raised for our justification.”
It must have appeared very foolish to anyone who knew that Abram, at this advanced age, was trusting in God to give him an heir and make of him a great nation. But how about Job? He was most likely a contemporary of Abram. God allowed all his great possessions to be taken away, his children all killed, and his body tormented with painful boils. On top of it all, his three “friends” insisted that, according to their creed, Job must be the wickedest man on the planet because, of course, God always blesses the righteous and curses the wicked, and Job seemed under a terrible curse. But what does Job say to them? “Though He slay me, yet will I hope in Him.” (Job 13:15) Even though it seems that I am totally wiped out and have no reason to hope, I will still trust that God is redeeming love. Mmmmmm….faith does look a bit foolish sometimes.
OBSERVATION: Common sense is a gift from God that helps us steer through the physical life. However, faith is a much greater gift and it allows us to steer through the spiritual life. Common sense and faith are often at odds. Those who are focused on the physical life will follow common sense and those who are focused on the spiritual life will follow faith.
GOD CUTS COVENANT
Now we arrive at the actual making of a covenant—something that we can hardly relate to at all, but the ancients would have understood perfectly. Although we would translate it as “making a covenant,” the actual Hebrew word “berith” means “to cut” so it is actually cutting a covenant. The reason why will become apparent as we read the following passage. Verses 7-11 say,
“And he said to him, ‘I am the LORD who brought you out from Ur of the Chaldeans to give you this land to possess.’ But he said, ‘O Lord God, how am I to know that I shall possess it?’ He said to him, ‘Bring me a heifer three years old, a female goat three years old, a ram three years old, a turtledove, and a young pigeon.’ And he brought him all these, cut them in half, and laid each half over against the other. But he did not cut the birds in half. And when birds of prey came down on the carcasses, Abram drove them away.”
God again identifies Himself in a way that will strengthen Abram’s faith by way of reminder. He is the One who called Abram out of his homeland in order to give him another land. God understands our need for reminders. I Samuel 7:12 tells how, after God had given the Israelites a great victory over their Philistine enemies, the prophet Samuel set up a stone and called it “Ebenezer.” This name means “thus far the Lord has brought us.” The stone was meant to be a reminder to the Israelites in future days that the Lord had brought them along. So God reminds Abram of who He is and what He has done in Abram’s life.
Abram then asks a question, “How will I know?” This is not meant to express doubt, but rather he is asking for some token in confirmation of this promise of an heir. When a man asks a woman to marry him and she agrees, he customarily gives her an engagement ring. The ring is a token of his pledge to marry her, and her acceptance and wearing of the ring is a token of her pledge to marry him. Abram is asking for a token of God’s promise. God then prepares to enter into a covenant with Abram. For a full lesson on covenant and its many symbols, there is a lesson in the archives of this blog. In these verses, we see that Abram, the lesser party in the covenant, brings the required blood, for covenant is a blood oath. He cuts these animals in two, except for the birds, and lays them on the ground with the two halves opposite each other. In covenant, because the Bible says that life is in the blood, the weaker party offers blood for a symbolic joining of his life with the life of the stronger party. Abram is offering his life to merge with God in covenant.
A dramatic stage is now set, and then a curious verse comes into play—birds of prey came down on the carcasses while Abram was waiting for God to come and cut the covenant, but Abram drove them away. These birds have come to feast on the sacrificial animals, but these slaughtered animals have a holy purpose, so Abram runs them off. In Matthew 13:1-9, Jesus told a parable about a sower who went out scattering his seed. At that time, the farmers broadcast their seed but did not cover it up. The seed fell on different types of ground, and the seed that fell on rocky ground was eaten by the birds. Jesus explained that this type of ground represented a person who received the word of God joyfully, but had no real root (faith) and when trouble or persecution came, he fell away and the seed was not productive. Song of Solomon 2:15 expresses the same idea when it says, “Catch the foxes for us, the little foxes that spoil the vineyards, for our vineyards are in blossom.” I think the message about the birds of prey are that we must not let troubles, persecution, or worldly cares eat the holy sacrifice in our lives. Romans 12:1-2 says that we ourselves are the holy sacrifice given to God. It is up to us to drive off the things that would rob God of any part of the sacrifice of ourselves.
QUESTION: What things “eat at us” in a spiritual sense?
Let’s finish up the story, beginning with verse 12.
“As the sun was going down, a deep sleep fell on Abram. And behold, dreadful and great darkness fell upon him. Then the LORD said to Abram, “Know for certain that your offspring will be sojourners in a land that is not theirs and will be servants there, and they will be afflicted for four hundred years. But I will bring judgment on the nation that they serve, and afterward they shall come out with great possessions. As for yourself, you shall go to your fathers in peace; you shall be buried in a good old age. And they shall come back here in the fourth generation, for the iniquity of the Amorites is not yet complete.’ When the sun had gone down and it was dark, behold, a smoking fire pot and a flaming torch passed between these pieces. On that day the LORD made a covenant with Abram, saying, ‘To your offspring I give this land, from the river of Egypt to the great river, the river Euphrates; the land of the Kenites, the Kenizzites, the Kadmonites, the Hittites, the Perizzites, the Rephaim, the Amorites, the Canaanites, the Girgashites and the Jebusites.”
First, this apparently is not the exact same day as verses 1-6 because they occur after dark (Abram goes out to count the stars) and verse 12 refers to the setting of the sun. I think, however, we can assume that these events are chronologically close together. It says that Abram fell into a deep sleep and it appears that this was a trance-like state. As God prepares to enter the scene, Abram is filled with dread and the darkness is great. Isaiah 6:1-7 describes the feeling that filled the prophet when he actually saw the Lord seated on the throne of His temple. In verse 5, Isaiah cries out “Woe is me! For I am lost; for I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips for my eyes have seen the King, the LORD of hosts!” The presence of God to a sinner is woeful because the weight of sin is fully realized. Thankfully, God provided in verses 6-7 release from sin for the prophet, and He has likewise reckoned Abram righteous by his faith.
Second, God foretells that Abram’s offspring will be slaves in another land for four hundred years, but that He will provide deliverance for them and bring them back to the Promised Land in the fourth generation. At the end of Genesis, Abram’s great grandson Joseph, ruler of Egypt, gives instructions that the Israelites are to take his bones with them when they leave Egypt and bury him in the Promised Land, so we know that Abram told his son of God’s promises regarding his offspring. Why did God allow Israel to be held as slaves for so long? He tells Abram here that He is waiting until the wickedness of the people in the Promised Land has reached an intolerable zenith. God is always patient and will wait a long time for people to repent. These pagans have had the preaching of Abram and the presence of Melchizedek as a witness to them, but they will not repent. Eventually, God will judge and punish them using the children of Israel, Abram’s seed, as His instrument of judgment.
Next is the dramatic death walk of the covenant. In covenant, the weaker party brought blood, and the stronger party made a death walk, walking between the slaughtered pieces, affirming that if he broke faith with the weaker party, he would be deserving of death. In this walk, the stronger party is agreeing to take the life of the weaker party and merge it with his own life to become one. Amazingly, God is willing to make this commitment to Abram and his offspring, for God descends in the form of a smoking oven and a flaming torch and passes between the pieces of the animals. It is interesting that God assumed these two forms before Abram as He made His covenant with him. A flaming torch is always used for light, and Jesus proclaimed Himself the Light of the World (John 8:12). A smoking fire pot could be used for heat or for cooking. The Seed of Abraham (Jesus) became the Bread of Life for men in the oven of temptation and suffering.
Finally, the promise of God to Abram is that his offspring, the children of the promise, would have the land from the boundary of Egypt all the way to the Euphrates River. This land was created by God and it is His to bestow upon whomever He wishes, and He gives it to the descendants of Abram—the Israelites. No one has the right to insist that they bargain away one sacred acre.
Let’s conclude today with a Psalm that seemed especially appropriate.
PSALM 97
The LORD reigns, let the earth rejoice;
Let the many coastlands be glad!
Clouds and thick darkness are all around Him;
Righteousness and justice are the foundation of His throne.
Fire goes before Him
And burns up His adversaries all around.
His lightnings light up the world;
The earth sees and trembles.
The mountains melt like wax before the LORD,
Before the Lord of all the earth.
The heavens proclaim His righteousness,
And all the peoples see His glory.
All worshipers of images are put to shame,
Who make their boast in worthless idols;
Worship Him, all you gods!
Zion hears and is glad,
And the daughters of Judah rejoice,
Because of Your judgments, O LORD.
For You, O LORD, are most high over all the earth;
You are exalted far above all gods.
O you who love the LORD, hate evil!
He preserves the lives of His saints;
He delivers them from the hands of the wicked.
Light is sown for the righteous,
And joy for the upright in heart.
Rejoice in the LORD, O you righteous,
And give thanks to His holy name!
Thanks for following along! The next lesson will document a momentous decision of Abram's that has drastically affected the course of history. I hope you will be blessed.
Friday, January 1, 2010
ABRAHAM -- THE TWO KINGS
Welcome to Bible study online! Today we will meet a most mysterious individual in the Old Testament, so grab your Bible and thanks for joining us!
ABRAHAM – THE TWO KINGS
When we last left Abram, he had chased the armies of four kings down with his own relatively small band of warriors and defeated them in order to rescue his nephew Lot who had been captured. When he returned to the King’s Valley, east of Jerusalem, the king of Sodom, who had been unable to repel the invading kings, went out to meet him.
A CONFERENCE OF KINGS
But another king also came out to meet Abram that day as we see in Genesis 14:18.
“And Melchizedek king of Salem brought out bread and wine. He was priest of God Most High.”
Melchizedek, though he is mentioned only briefly at this point, is an important, if mysterious, figure in the Old Testament because he is a type of Christ. By type, I mean that we can see in him and his life attributes that will correspond directly to Jesus Christ. I used to explain Old Testament typology when I taught children by comparing it to the game, “Where’s Waldo.” The purpose of the game was to find a small picture of the boy Waldo hidden in a much larger picture. In Old Testament typology, we look for “pictures” of Jesus hidden within the story line of the Old Testament. It is somewhat like a preview or shadow of what is to come. Let’s notice the facts given us about Melchizedek:
*The name “Melchizedek” actually means, “My King is Righteous”
*He is the King of Salem (this is a shortened form of the name “Jerusalem”)
*He is Priest of God Most High
*He brings bread and wine to share with Abram after his victory
*It is quite unusual for an important figure to have no mention of lineage or length of life, but neither is given for Melchizedek
These few facts open up a lot of interesting ideas, particularly considering that the land of Canaan at this time was populated by pagans. His name would seem to indicate that he himself serves a righteous King, which could only be God. It would follow naturally that if he serves a righteous King, he himself must be a righteous man and ruler. This is also the first mention of Jerusalem, the city selected by God for Himself. The word “salem” is related to “shalom” which means “peace.” An interesting little side note here is the “Tale of Two Cities” which is found throughout the Bible, the two cities being Jerusalem and Babylon. They are mentioned throughout the Bible and are always in sharp contrast. Babylon is the city of man’s pride, rebellion, and worldliness while Jerusalem is the city of God. In Jerusalem, not only was Melchizedek the righteous king, but also a priest to the Most High God. This is the first time we see a priest mentioned in the Bible and he is serving God in Jerusalem. Keep in mind that this was centuries before the children of Abraham became a nation and entered the Promised Land to live, and long before Solomon built a temple or before Moses instructed the Israelite people to build the tabernacle. How did this righteous man come to be there at that time ruling over the city that was to become the city of God on earth? I think it is only fair to assume that the people who inhabited that city followed the Most High God since their king was His priest. The Bible doesn’t give us any answers as to how this happened. It is a mystery about which we can only speculate, but this much is obvious—God has always had people somewhere in the earth that worshiped and followed Him. The fact that no lineage or any other personal information such as his birth or death are given deepens the mystery, but it also works to complete the type of Christ, as we shall see in a moment.
WHAT IS A PRIEST?
Before we look further at the mystery of Melchizedek, let’s go over the history of the priests of Israel. After Moses led the children of Israel out of Egypt (about 600 years after Abram’s time), the Lord made a covenant with the Israelite people and in that covenant He designated Aaron, the brother of Moses, to be the High Priest of Israel. Aaron’s sons were designated to be priests also and only their descendants could serve as priests on behalf of the nation of Israel. The tribe that they descended from, Levi, was designated to serve the needs of the tabernacle, the original worship site of the people. Now what is the job of a priest? A priest is one who is designated to represent others before God. Why did the people need a priest? The Bible makes it plain that people cannot go to God because they are sinful and He is holy. If there is to be any reconciliation between God and man, there must be a go-between—a priest. The priests that descended from Aaron, however, had a problem—they were just as sinful as the people. They had to first offer sacrifices for themselves before they could ever offer sacrifices on behalf of the people. So the service of the line of Aaron was instituted temporarily until something Perfect could be ushered in.
Let’s take a look at Psalm 110:
“The LORD says to my Lord: ‘Sit at my right hand, until I make your enemies your footstool.’ The LORD sends forth from Zion your mighty scepter. Rule in the midst of your enemies! Your people will offer themselves freely on the day of your power, in holy garments; from the womb of the morning, the dew of your youth will be yours. The LORD has sworn and will not change his mind, ‘You are a priest forever after the order of Melchizedek.’”
This psalm is a Messianic psalm that points to the coming King who will rule the world. But notice that this king will also be a priest, not after the order of Aaron, but after the order of Melchizedek. Zechariah also saw this same Priest/King connection in a vision that is recorded in Zechariah 6:9-15. In this vision, Zechariah was instructed to fashion a crown and place it on the head of the High Priest, signifying that the coming King would build the temple and rule as King and Priest. Now, under the order of the Old Covenant, this could not be possible because the kings came from the line of David, of the tribe of Judah, and the priests came from the line of Aaron, of the tribe of Levi. So what is clearly being prophesied is a New Covenant.
A NEW LINE OF PRIESTS
The book of Hebrews in the New Testament explains this a bit more closely. As we read, keep in mind that this book was written to people who were born Israelites and reared on the Law of Moses. After Jesus came, however, they believed in Him for salvation. But it is very hard to change from what you were taught over and over as a child and accept something new and different. Even if you know it is right, the old ways pull at you. This is what happened to the people in the book of Hebrews, and so this was written to them to strengthen their understanding and keep them from drifting away from the New Covenant in Christ. Hebrews 7:11-25 says,
“Now if perfection had been attainable through the Levitical priesthood (for under it the people received the law), what further need would there have been for another priest to arise after the order of Melchizedek, rather than one named after the order of Aaron? For when there is a change in the priesthood, there is necessarily a change in the law as well. For the one of whom these things are spoken belonged to another tribe, from which no one has ever served at the altar. For it is evident that our Lord was descended from Judah, and in connection with that tribe Moses said nothing about priests. This becomes even more evident when another priest arises in the likeness of Melchizedek, who has become a priest, not on the basis of a legal requirement concerning bodily descent, but by the power of an indestructible life. For it is witnessed of Him, ‘You are a priest forever, after the order of Melchizedek.’ For on the one hand, a former commandment is set aside because of its weakness and uselessness (for the law made nothing perfect); but on the other hand, a better hope is introduced, through which we draw near to God. And it was not without an oath. For those who formerly became priests were made such without an oath, but this one was made a priest with an oath by the One who said to Him: ‘The Lord has sworn and will not change His mind, “You are a priest forever.”’ This makes Jesus the guarantor of a better covenant. The former priests were many in number, because they were prevented by death from continuing in office, but He holds His priesthood permanently, because He continues forever. Consequently, He is able to save to the uttermost those who draw near to God through Him, since He always lives to make intercession for them.”
This is a long passage, but it helps us see the connection between Melchizedek and Jesus. Melchizedek was a righteous king who ruled Jerusalem. Likewise, Jesus is Righteousness incarnate and is destined to rule the world from the city of Jerusalem. Melchizedek was also a priest of the Most High God, and Jesus likewise is a priest forever to the Most High God. Why is this important? The priests of Aaron’s line all died because they were sinners along with everybody else. But death could not keep Jesus captive because He never sinned, and so He lives forever as a priest. He always represents us before God and there will never be any need for any other. The Old Covenant was not able to make even its priests perfect, but the New Covenant in Jesus’ blood is able to save absolutely and completely anyone, Jew or Gentile, who will trust in Jesus for salvation from sin. The fact that there is no lineage mentioned for Melchizedek foreshadows the fact that Jesus will be the Son of God, having no earthly father. The fact that Melchizedek's birth and death are not mentioned foreshadows the eternal nature of Christ.
THE PRIEST OFFICIATES
Let’s go back to Abram in Genesis 14:19-20.
“And he (Melchizedek) blessed him and said, ‘Blessed be Abram by God Most High, Possessor of heaven and earth; and blessed be God Most High, Who has delivered your enemies into your hand!’ And Abram gave him a tenth of everything.”
OBSERVATION: What we say is so important. Most people’s minds are daily assaulted with temptations, fleeting thoughts and impressions of evil, and so forth. These thoughts often come from the evil one and must be rejected as such, but the words that we say should be the true attitude of our will and spirit, and we are therefore completely accountable for what we say.
Melchizedek blesses Abram in the name of God Most High. It is worth noting here that he acknowledges God as the Possessor, i.e. controller, of heaven and earth. Then he also blesses God and acknowledges further that as ruler of heaven and earth, He has chosen to give Abram an astonishing victory over a far superior fighting force.
QUESTION: Do we still believe that God is the Possessor of heaven and earth, meaning that He has absolute control over the events that occur in heaven and in earth? Or do we believe that He is uninvolved with events on earth because we cannot seem to answer the question, “If God is love, why do bad things happen to good people, and why do the innocent suffer?” Job, a righteous man, suffered agonies and cried out “why?”, and in the end God responded to him out of a whirlwind. God did not explain why, but basically said, “I AM,” and that was enough to comfort Job. We are too small to understand the ways of God, but He controls all. Even though terrible things happen, God is still Perfect Goodness. Can an ant comprehend a mountain?
Abram responds by giving Melchizedek, God’s representative, a tenth of all the spoils from the battle. This is Abram’s way of affirming his belief that God had truly given him victory. He was not puffed up with any sense of his own greatness or genius or bravery. He was a warrior, but not one who battled in his own strength. Notice that Melchizedek completes the type of Jesus by bringing wine and bread to celebrate the victory. At the Last Supper, Jesus took wine and bread to symbolize His coming victory over sin and death on behalf of the human race. He brings blessing from God to man and from man to God as men acknowledge His right to rule and turn to Him in faith.
A CONTRAST BETWEEN LIGHT AND DARK
While all of this has taken place, the king of Sodom has been standing there watching. No doubt, he feels rather small and humiliated as he watches Abram give a tenth of the spoils to Melchizedek, another king. Genesis 14:21-24 says,
“And the king of Sodom said to Abram, ‘Give me the persons, but take the goods for yourself.’ But Abram said to the king of Sodom, ‘I have lifted my hand to the LORD, God Most High, Possessor of heaven and earth, that I would not take a thread or a sandal strap or anything that is yours, lest you should say, “I have made Abram rich.” I will take nothing but what the young men have eaten, and the share of the men who went with me. Let Aner, Eshcol, and Mamre take their share.”
Does the king of Sodom bless Abram? No. Does the king of Sodom thank Abram for risking everything to go after these enemies and break their hold on the kings of the Jordan cities? No. He makes a surly request for the people that Abram has rescued, and then tries to look magnanimous by telling Abram that he may keep the rest of the booty for himself.
OBSERVATION: Pride has a problem with gratitude. If one has a hard time expressing gratitude when the occasion obviously deserves such an expression, pride is probably the reason. Pride is definitely a weed that pops up everywhere!
How does Abram respond to the king of Sodom’s “gesture?” Remember that the city of Sodom was inhabited by wicked men. Abram will sit down and eat and celebrate with Melchizedek, the king of righteousness and peace, but he won’t take a thing from the king of Sodom. Contrast this attitude with Lot, who moved into the city and lived among wickedness. But Abram does not attempt to answer for anyone but himself. He will not take anything from Sodom, but he allows his allies to choose for themselves, just as Lot chose for himself.
OBSERVATION: Each person must choose for himself. We cannot do it for them and it would be arrogant to try. Being a good example is the best we can do.
Just a couple of chapters back in Genesis, we saw Pharaoh, king of Egypt, ignominiously tossing Abram out of his land because of Abram's deceit. He had stepped outside of God's plan and failed in his faith. Now we see a great victory followed by a blessing from a great man. Our lives in the faith are also marked from time to time with ignominious failure. But God is a God of second chances and He longs for us to grow in our faith. Often it takes failure to point out where we are weak and in need of change and growth.
Thanks for following along. The next lesson will cover a major milestone in Abram's life as he encounters God and is declared righteous.
ABRAHAM – THE TWO KINGS
When we last left Abram, he had chased the armies of four kings down with his own relatively small band of warriors and defeated them in order to rescue his nephew Lot who had been captured. When he returned to the King’s Valley, east of Jerusalem, the king of Sodom, who had been unable to repel the invading kings, went out to meet him.
A CONFERENCE OF KINGS
But another king also came out to meet Abram that day as we see in Genesis 14:18.
“And Melchizedek king of Salem brought out bread and wine. He was priest of God Most High.”
Melchizedek, though he is mentioned only briefly at this point, is an important, if mysterious, figure in the Old Testament because he is a type of Christ. By type, I mean that we can see in him and his life attributes that will correspond directly to Jesus Christ. I used to explain Old Testament typology when I taught children by comparing it to the game, “Where’s Waldo.” The purpose of the game was to find a small picture of the boy Waldo hidden in a much larger picture. In Old Testament typology, we look for “pictures” of Jesus hidden within the story line of the Old Testament. It is somewhat like a preview or shadow of what is to come. Let’s notice the facts given us about Melchizedek:
*The name “Melchizedek” actually means, “My King is Righteous”
*He is the King of Salem (this is a shortened form of the name “Jerusalem”)
*He is Priest of God Most High
*He brings bread and wine to share with Abram after his victory
*It is quite unusual for an important figure to have no mention of lineage or length of life, but neither is given for Melchizedek
These few facts open up a lot of interesting ideas, particularly considering that the land of Canaan at this time was populated by pagans. His name would seem to indicate that he himself serves a righteous King, which could only be God. It would follow naturally that if he serves a righteous King, he himself must be a righteous man and ruler. This is also the first mention of Jerusalem, the city selected by God for Himself. The word “salem” is related to “shalom” which means “peace.” An interesting little side note here is the “Tale of Two Cities” which is found throughout the Bible, the two cities being Jerusalem and Babylon. They are mentioned throughout the Bible and are always in sharp contrast. Babylon is the city of man’s pride, rebellion, and worldliness while Jerusalem is the city of God. In Jerusalem, not only was Melchizedek the righteous king, but also a priest to the Most High God. This is the first time we see a priest mentioned in the Bible and he is serving God in Jerusalem. Keep in mind that this was centuries before the children of Abraham became a nation and entered the Promised Land to live, and long before Solomon built a temple or before Moses instructed the Israelite people to build the tabernacle. How did this righteous man come to be there at that time ruling over the city that was to become the city of God on earth? I think it is only fair to assume that the people who inhabited that city followed the Most High God since their king was His priest. The Bible doesn’t give us any answers as to how this happened. It is a mystery about which we can only speculate, but this much is obvious—God has always had people somewhere in the earth that worshiped and followed Him. The fact that no lineage or any other personal information such as his birth or death are given deepens the mystery, but it also works to complete the type of Christ, as we shall see in a moment.
WHAT IS A PRIEST?
Before we look further at the mystery of Melchizedek, let’s go over the history of the priests of Israel. After Moses led the children of Israel out of Egypt (about 600 years after Abram’s time), the Lord made a covenant with the Israelite people and in that covenant He designated Aaron, the brother of Moses, to be the High Priest of Israel. Aaron’s sons were designated to be priests also and only their descendants could serve as priests on behalf of the nation of Israel. The tribe that they descended from, Levi, was designated to serve the needs of the tabernacle, the original worship site of the people. Now what is the job of a priest? A priest is one who is designated to represent others before God. Why did the people need a priest? The Bible makes it plain that people cannot go to God because they are sinful and He is holy. If there is to be any reconciliation between God and man, there must be a go-between—a priest. The priests that descended from Aaron, however, had a problem—they were just as sinful as the people. They had to first offer sacrifices for themselves before they could ever offer sacrifices on behalf of the people. So the service of the line of Aaron was instituted temporarily until something Perfect could be ushered in.
Let’s take a look at Psalm 110:
“The LORD says to my Lord: ‘Sit at my right hand, until I make your enemies your footstool.’ The LORD sends forth from Zion your mighty scepter. Rule in the midst of your enemies! Your people will offer themselves freely on the day of your power, in holy garments; from the womb of the morning, the dew of your youth will be yours. The LORD has sworn and will not change his mind, ‘You are a priest forever after the order of Melchizedek.’”
This psalm is a Messianic psalm that points to the coming King who will rule the world. But notice that this king will also be a priest, not after the order of Aaron, but after the order of Melchizedek. Zechariah also saw this same Priest/King connection in a vision that is recorded in Zechariah 6:9-15. In this vision, Zechariah was instructed to fashion a crown and place it on the head of the High Priest, signifying that the coming King would build the temple and rule as King and Priest. Now, under the order of the Old Covenant, this could not be possible because the kings came from the line of David, of the tribe of Judah, and the priests came from the line of Aaron, of the tribe of Levi. So what is clearly being prophesied is a New Covenant.
A NEW LINE OF PRIESTS
The book of Hebrews in the New Testament explains this a bit more closely. As we read, keep in mind that this book was written to people who were born Israelites and reared on the Law of Moses. After Jesus came, however, they believed in Him for salvation. But it is very hard to change from what you were taught over and over as a child and accept something new and different. Even if you know it is right, the old ways pull at you. This is what happened to the people in the book of Hebrews, and so this was written to them to strengthen their understanding and keep them from drifting away from the New Covenant in Christ. Hebrews 7:11-25 says,
“Now if perfection had been attainable through the Levitical priesthood (for under it the people received the law), what further need would there have been for another priest to arise after the order of Melchizedek, rather than one named after the order of Aaron? For when there is a change in the priesthood, there is necessarily a change in the law as well. For the one of whom these things are spoken belonged to another tribe, from which no one has ever served at the altar. For it is evident that our Lord was descended from Judah, and in connection with that tribe Moses said nothing about priests. This becomes even more evident when another priest arises in the likeness of Melchizedek, who has become a priest, not on the basis of a legal requirement concerning bodily descent, but by the power of an indestructible life. For it is witnessed of Him, ‘You are a priest forever, after the order of Melchizedek.’ For on the one hand, a former commandment is set aside because of its weakness and uselessness (for the law made nothing perfect); but on the other hand, a better hope is introduced, through which we draw near to God. And it was not without an oath. For those who formerly became priests were made such without an oath, but this one was made a priest with an oath by the One who said to Him: ‘The Lord has sworn and will not change His mind, “You are a priest forever.”’ This makes Jesus the guarantor of a better covenant. The former priests were many in number, because they were prevented by death from continuing in office, but He holds His priesthood permanently, because He continues forever. Consequently, He is able to save to the uttermost those who draw near to God through Him, since He always lives to make intercession for them.”
This is a long passage, but it helps us see the connection between Melchizedek and Jesus. Melchizedek was a righteous king who ruled Jerusalem. Likewise, Jesus is Righteousness incarnate and is destined to rule the world from the city of Jerusalem. Melchizedek was also a priest of the Most High God, and Jesus likewise is a priest forever to the Most High God. Why is this important? The priests of Aaron’s line all died because they were sinners along with everybody else. But death could not keep Jesus captive because He never sinned, and so He lives forever as a priest. He always represents us before God and there will never be any need for any other. The Old Covenant was not able to make even its priests perfect, but the New Covenant in Jesus’ blood is able to save absolutely and completely anyone, Jew or Gentile, who will trust in Jesus for salvation from sin. The fact that there is no lineage mentioned for Melchizedek foreshadows the fact that Jesus will be the Son of God, having no earthly father. The fact that Melchizedek's birth and death are not mentioned foreshadows the eternal nature of Christ.
THE PRIEST OFFICIATES
Let’s go back to Abram in Genesis 14:19-20.
“And he (Melchizedek) blessed him and said, ‘Blessed be Abram by God Most High, Possessor of heaven and earth; and blessed be God Most High, Who has delivered your enemies into your hand!’ And Abram gave him a tenth of everything.”
OBSERVATION: What we say is so important. Most people’s minds are daily assaulted with temptations, fleeting thoughts and impressions of evil, and so forth. These thoughts often come from the evil one and must be rejected as such, but the words that we say should be the true attitude of our will and spirit, and we are therefore completely accountable for what we say.
Melchizedek blesses Abram in the name of God Most High. It is worth noting here that he acknowledges God as the Possessor, i.e. controller, of heaven and earth. Then he also blesses God and acknowledges further that as ruler of heaven and earth, He has chosen to give Abram an astonishing victory over a far superior fighting force.
QUESTION: Do we still believe that God is the Possessor of heaven and earth, meaning that He has absolute control over the events that occur in heaven and in earth? Or do we believe that He is uninvolved with events on earth because we cannot seem to answer the question, “If God is love, why do bad things happen to good people, and why do the innocent suffer?” Job, a righteous man, suffered agonies and cried out “why?”, and in the end God responded to him out of a whirlwind. God did not explain why, but basically said, “I AM,” and that was enough to comfort Job. We are too small to understand the ways of God, but He controls all. Even though terrible things happen, God is still Perfect Goodness. Can an ant comprehend a mountain?
Abram responds by giving Melchizedek, God’s representative, a tenth of all the spoils from the battle. This is Abram’s way of affirming his belief that God had truly given him victory. He was not puffed up with any sense of his own greatness or genius or bravery. He was a warrior, but not one who battled in his own strength. Notice that Melchizedek completes the type of Jesus by bringing wine and bread to celebrate the victory. At the Last Supper, Jesus took wine and bread to symbolize His coming victory over sin and death on behalf of the human race. He brings blessing from God to man and from man to God as men acknowledge His right to rule and turn to Him in faith.
A CONTRAST BETWEEN LIGHT AND DARK
While all of this has taken place, the king of Sodom has been standing there watching. No doubt, he feels rather small and humiliated as he watches Abram give a tenth of the spoils to Melchizedek, another king. Genesis 14:21-24 says,
“And the king of Sodom said to Abram, ‘Give me the persons, but take the goods for yourself.’ But Abram said to the king of Sodom, ‘I have lifted my hand to the LORD, God Most High, Possessor of heaven and earth, that I would not take a thread or a sandal strap or anything that is yours, lest you should say, “I have made Abram rich.” I will take nothing but what the young men have eaten, and the share of the men who went with me. Let Aner, Eshcol, and Mamre take their share.”
Does the king of Sodom bless Abram? No. Does the king of Sodom thank Abram for risking everything to go after these enemies and break their hold on the kings of the Jordan cities? No. He makes a surly request for the people that Abram has rescued, and then tries to look magnanimous by telling Abram that he may keep the rest of the booty for himself.
OBSERVATION: Pride has a problem with gratitude. If one has a hard time expressing gratitude when the occasion obviously deserves such an expression, pride is probably the reason. Pride is definitely a weed that pops up everywhere!
How does Abram respond to the king of Sodom’s “gesture?” Remember that the city of Sodom was inhabited by wicked men. Abram will sit down and eat and celebrate with Melchizedek, the king of righteousness and peace, but he won’t take a thing from the king of Sodom. Contrast this attitude with Lot, who moved into the city and lived among wickedness. But Abram does not attempt to answer for anyone but himself. He will not take anything from Sodom, but he allows his allies to choose for themselves, just as Lot chose for himself.
OBSERVATION: Each person must choose for himself. We cannot do it for them and it would be arrogant to try. Being a good example is the best we can do.
Just a couple of chapters back in Genesis, we saw Pharaoh, king of Egypt, ignominiously tossing Abram out of his land because of Abram's deceit. He had stepped outside of God's plan and failed in his faith. Now we see a great victory followed by a blessing from a great man. Our lives in the faith are also marked from time to time with ignominious failure. But God is a God of second chances and He longs for us to grow in our faith. Often it takes failure to point out where we are weak and in need of change and growth.
Thanks for following along. The next lesson will cover a major milestone in Abram's life as he encounters God and is declared righteous.
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