Unveiled: Calls and Covenants - Week One

INTRO

Good morning Church who is excited to be in the house of the lord this morning?! AMEN AMEN AMEN

Im Jed Church

and I am not only excited to be in the house of the lord but I am also excited to b bringing the word this morning

Welcome To New Anthem

Address in-person and livestream

Comment New online

PREFACE

Today we are starting the second part of our Unveiled series: “Calls and Covenants “

and as we are starting this part of our series i think its important to establish what a covenant is.

So what is a covenant?

The theologian Wayne Grudem defines it as — A covenant is an unchangeable, divinely imposed legal agreement between God and man that stipulates the conditions of their relationship.

so what is a covenant?

To simplify that — think of a covenant as an unbreakable contract set by God, laying out the rules for how, us and him relate to each other. It's a promised agreement that has lasting, unchangeable terms.

There are seven covenants between man and God in the Bible

What was the first covenant (The Adamic Covenant):

It was with Adam and Eve in the garden Eden

The terms were based on obedience, with God instructing Adam and Eve not to eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.

Pastor john talked about that last week.

Go back and watch that message if you missed it last week

The Noahic Covenant

The next major covenant we see is between God and Noah

After the Great Flood, God made a covenant with Noah, pledging to never destroy the world with a flood again.

The sign of this covenant was the rainbow, serving as a reminder of God's promise and a symbol of hope.

This covenant emphasized God's mercy and a renewed relationship with humanity, providing reassurance after the catastrophic flood.

The covenant we are focusing on this week is In Genesis 12-17,

God calls and makes a covenant with Abraham.

This is called the Abrahamic covenant

God promised to make Abraham a great nation, all the land from Egypt to the Euphrates, and that Abraham would become the father of many nations; all his male descendants were to be circumcised to seal this covenant.

SET UP SCRIPTURE

These chapters highlight the journey of Abraham, his faith, and the establishment of the covenant that forms the basis for God's relationship with the descendants of Abraham.

We are going to read all of the key scriptures from chapter 12-17 together so we can have a full understanding of the Abrahamic Covenant and then we will take a deeper look into each passage.

READ SCRIPTURE

God's Call to Abram (Genesis 12:1-4): (pronounced HAIR-IN)

Genesis 12:1–4 ESV

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. 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. 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.” 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.

This is were God talking to Abram and establishing the covenant.

God's Covenant with Abram (Genesis 15:3-6):

God reaffirms His promise to Abram, and he believes God's word

English Standard Version Chapter 15

3 And Abram said, “Behold, you have given me no offspring, and a member of my household will be my heir.” 4 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.” 5 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.” 6 And he believed the LORD, and he counted it to him as righteousness.

Birth of Ishmael (Genesis 16):

Sarai, unable to bear children, gives her maidservant Hagar to Abram, leading to the birth of Ishmael.

Renaming and Covenant of Circumcision (Genesis 17):

God renames Abram to Abraham and Sarai to Sarah. As God is further establishing the covenant

Genesis 17:4–5 ESV

“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.

PRAY

For service and application of sermon to our lives this week

bless the reading of the word.

CONTEXT

Now its also important for us to know there are two types of covenants in the Bible.

Conditional Covenants:

These covenants are based on specific conditions or terms that the parties involved must fulfill.

The blessings or consequences are dependent on whether the stipulations are met.

An example is the Mosaic Covenant in the Old Testament, where God makes a covenant with the people of Israel through Moses. The covenant outlines laws and commandments, and the people's well-being is contingent on their obedience to these laws.

Unconditional Covenants:

Unconditional covenants are not dependent on the actions or responses of the parties involved.

God unilaterally commits to fulfill His promises regardless of or faithfulness or obedience.

The Abrahamic Covenant is a significant example.

God promises Abraham that he will be the father of many nations, and the covenant is established without any explicit conditions attached.

God's commitment to fulfilling the covenant is based on His own faithfulness and sovereign will.

These distinctions help in understanding the nature of God's interactions with us throughout the biblical narrative.

While conditional covenants highlight the importance of our responsibility and obedience.

Unconditional covenants show God's unwavering commitment to His promises, regardless of our sinful human actions.

Abram waiting - 1

Luckily for them this was an unconditional covenant.

We begin at the start of chapter 12

God Promises Abram that he make a great nation out of him through his decedents.

Abram listens to God and it says

Genesis 12:4 ESV

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.

He was 75 years old and Sarai would have been around 65 and they have but unable to have kids this whole time.

They are both well past the age of having Kids

Yet still they have faith in God and trust his promise.

despite the math, science or what any one would have said they believed their God was bigger than all of that AMEN?

and who knows God is just as big today as we has back then

And then 11 years pass by with no kids

At that point all of us would have our doubts

I don’t care how spiritual and “close to God” any of us think we are, after 11 years we will start to wonder whats up and If we missed something. or if God is actually going to do it.

WAITING FUNNY STORY

Have you ever had to wait a long something in your life? I know some of you have waited even longer 11 years.

If you’re a Lions fan, you waited 57 years for them to make it too, let alone win the super bowl. But God willing the wait will only be 4 months more. Just keep praying.

Some of you cant wait to retire. I bet there is some of us who have looked forward to retirement since your first day on the job.

You’ve prayed for your spouse or your child or friend to come to faith in Christ for years and years, decade after decade. And you’re still praying for that, still waiting.

Our lives are full of waiting;

And each and every day it is so important that we remember to

POINT ONE — We must wait on the Lord

Ecclesiastes 3:11 says this:

Ecclesiastes 3:11 ESV

He has made everything beautiful in its time. Also, he has put eternity into man’s heart, yet so that he cannot find out what God has done from the beginning to the end.

Every thing is as God made it; not as it appears to us.

We have the world so much in our hearts that we are so full with thoughts and cares of worldly things

that we loose sight of God’s hand in them.

The world has not only gained possession of the heart, but has formed thoughts against the beauty of God’s works.

In other words when we are focused on the things of the world we stop seeing the things of God

hear about new thing and you see it all the time

Abram waiting - 2

This is were we need to learn from Abram and Sarai’s mistakes.

They gave up on doing it Gods way, they gave up on believing his promise.

And in chapter 16 they try and figure it out on there own

Genesis 16:2–4 ESV

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.

They lost sight of Gods promise and convinced themselves God was working against them

saying he has prevented me from bearing children

God went from the blessing, providing, promise keeper, Good guy in their lives, to the enemy

PAUSE

and do you know who love it when we place God as the enemy.

satan, the real enemy.

And once we make God the bad guy and satan the good guy, all of his “solutions” “ideas” “answers” seem like really great Idea.

like telling my husband to be with another woman

After the birth of Ishmael it takes another 13 years before Abram and Sarai have a child of their own.

As we read all the way in Genesis 21

Which we will look further into next week

Genesis 21:1–5 ESV

The Lord visited Sarah as he had said, and the Lord did to Sarah as he had promised. And Sarah conceived and bore Abraham a son in his old age at the time of which God had spoken to him. Abraham called the name of his son who was born to him, whom Sarah bore him, Isaac. And Abraham circumcised his son Isaac when he was eight days old, as God had commanded him. Abraham was a hundred years old when his son Isaac was born to him.

100 years old

25 years of waiting.

BUT GODD WAS STILL FAITHFUL

I don’t know ow much waiting you have But God is faithful to you

What is so beautiful and amazing about the verse is

Regardless of the waiting, and even their disobedience God still came through on his promise.

And we need to remember that

POINT TWO — Gods Promises are unfailing

God assures Abram of become the father of many nations, receiving blessings, and being a source of blessing to others.

This covenant demonstrates God's faithfulness in fulfilling His word.

Today we can take comfort in the fact that God's promises are still just as sure and reliable.

Psalm 145:13 ESV

Your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and your dominion endures throughout all generations. The Lord is faithful in all his words and kind in all his works.

This verse continues to show us who God really is

It reassures us of His trustworthiness and faithfulness.

It's a declaration of His reliability in keeping His promises

The psalmist's invites us to place their trust in God, relying on His promises.

It encourages us to remember assurance we have in, and be confident in God's character.

The verse should be a source of comfort during challenging times, reminding us that God is steadfast and faithful in all circumstances.

lastly this morning we must remember this

POINT THREE — We are also in a covenant with God

Abram's journey is marked by faith and obedience,

This serves as a powerful example for us.

Despite uncertainties and challenges, Abram trusted God and followed His lead.

He wasn’t afraid to talk to God, and to ask for Gods guidance.

And who knows our story looks a lot like that

I wis my whole story was just faithfulness and obedience but I know that a lot of it isn’t

add more and add transition

Matthew 26:26–28 ESV

Now as they were eating, Jesus took bread, and after blessing it broke it and gave it to the disciples, and said, “Take, eat; this is my body.” And he took a cup, and when he had given thanks he gave it to them, saying, “Drink of it, all of you, for this is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.

The New Covenant, was established through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ.

It grants us the forgiveness of our sins,

Internal transformation through the Holy Spirit,

and an intimate relationship with God.

It is a covenant of grace and redemption through faith in Jesus Christ.

CLOSING

Landing the plane and wrap up

Recap of the Abrahamic Covenant's key points

Encouragement to trust in God's promises and walk in faith

_________

Pray

Command and own the prayer at end

Benediction closing