Sermon Tone Analysis

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Introduction

Illustration: Breakfast with Mark and Deb Borland

Former missionaries in Columbia

Now work work with Wycliff translating bibles

Dealing with health concerns, Wycliff structure changes, a hurricane...

3 yo granddaughter looks at damage and they’re getting a new roof

She says, “That’s okay.

We’ll get used to it.”

That has become the slogan around the Wycliff office

When it comes to change, the attitude is, “That’s okay, we’ll get used to it.”

That’s a good thing (of course, this only counts change that isn’t sinful)

New series: Abraham - in book of Genesis

YouVersion: Standing on the Promises of God

In Genesis 12:1-20

Just to let you know, Abraham begins as Abram

I guarantee I’m going to forget - but I know he starts as Abram

That’s one of many changes he saw during the latter part of his life

Today as we see the start of Abrams story, I encourage you to reflect on change

What do we do when change comes?

How do we respond when we don’t like it?

How can we trust God when plans look like they might fall apart?

Let’s jump in...

Genesis 12:1–3 (ESV)

1 Now the Lord said to Abram, “Go from your country and your kindred and your father’s house to the land that I will show you. 2 And I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing.

3 I will bless those who bless you, and him who dishonors you I will curse, and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.”

This chunk sets up everything for Abraham’s story

God sets up a covenant with him that still stands

It has a huge impact on us today

If you were counting, God said, “I will” 5 times

Those things establish God’s promises to Abraham

Abrahamic Covenant:

Land that I will show you

Kinda 2 promises here:

1. God promises Abram some land

2. God promises to guide him there

God could say, you know, over there by the Mediterranean and the Dead Sea, take a walk...

But God says He will show him - that’s important

I will make of you a great nation

That means people!

Genesis 22 says, “as numerous as the stars” - hence the background

He will have descendents, that means he must first have children of his own...

Quite a task for a guy in his 70’s

I will bless you and make your name great

This is certainly true

All Jews, Christians and Muslims still honor him to this day

That still makes up more than half the world’s population (55.5%)

Imagine how many people have honored him over the last 4,200 years or so...

Who else even gets mentioned 100 years after, not to mention 4,200!!

I will bless those who bless you

I will curse those who curse you

This promise still stands today and seems to have been true throughout history

Donald Barnhouse: “When the Greeks overran Palestine and desecrated the altar in the Jewish temple, they were soon conquered by Rome.

When Rome killed Paul and many others, and destroyed Jerusalem under Titus, Rome soon fell.

Spain was reduced to a fifth-rate nation after the Inquisition against the Jews; Poland fell after the pogroms; Hitler’s Germany went down after its orgies of anti-Semitism; Britain lost her empire when she broke her faith with Israel.”

So there you go, 5 promises for Abram

Land, descendents, blessings for Israel, blessings for those who bless Israel, curses for those who curse

But there’s one more promise included in there...

All the families of the earth shall be blessed

This is a hint to God’s ultimate purpose - salvation

This isn’t just a promise to Abram, but for the world

Galatians 3:28–29 (ESV)

28 There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is no male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.

29 And if you are Christ’s, then you are Abraham’s offspring, heirs according to promise.

So don’t think we’re learning about something completely separate from us

So let’s see God fulfill His promises:

Genesis 12:4–6 (ESV)

4 So Abram went, as the Lord had told him, and Lot went with him.

Abram was seventy-five years old when he departed from Haran. 5 And Abram took Sarai his wife, and Lot his brother’s son, and all their possessions that they had gathered, and the people that they had acquired in Haran, and they set out to go to the land of Canaan.

When they came to the land of Canaan, 6 Abram passed through the land to the place at Shechem, to the oak of Moreh.

At that time the Canaanites were in the land.

I definitely see myself in Abraham’s story

God says, Abraham, go out away from your land and family

And the first thing Abraham does is bring his nephew...

Lot would be a source of hardship for Abraham the entire time

Lot’s people argue with Abraham’s people

They split and Abraham has to rescue him from captors

Then he lives in Sodom and Abraham has to plead with God...

It’s funny how often we do something similar

Be disobey God, and then when we’re trying to be righteous we wonder why things aren’t going well

I see this a lot with people who have kids before they’re married

Then they break up, one starts going to church, etc...

I’m trying to do the right thing but it’s so hard

I don’t even know what the right thing is!

Of course it’s hard!

If you do everything in a way different from God’s design

Once sin enters the picture, the “right thing” can get convoluted quickly

Here’s the thing, just like with Abraham, when we mess up God is still faithful

That doesn’t mean we don’t face consequences, but God can always work through it

We can always turn back to Him after we make mistakes - it’s never too late

God is faithful, even when we make mistakes

For Abraham, he starts off not quite following God’s instructions

Although there are repercussions, God is still faithful to Abraham

Show map

Abraham leaves Ur, traveling north around the desert

Lands in Haran and stays for awhile

Acquires possession and people - whether servants or family

Heads south towards the promised land (Canaan at the time)

Gets to Shechem (she-kem) - an important place

Jacob lived here