Gods Faithfulness- Abraham
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I was looking at the most trusted brands top ten list for 2024 the other day and three brands that were on the top ten list were Band Aid, Cheerios and the weather channel. I was thinking about he Band Aid brand and how reliable they are. Have you all ever used a band aid? Every once and a while one of my kids will get a cut or a scratch in an area that's covered like on their foot or on their knee or something like that. So they will come up to me and say “dad, I need a band-aid”. So sometimes I would say oh you don't need a band-aid for that, “rub some dirt on it”. Then they would go to their mom and she would pamper them and put a band-aid on it. Other times I would say yes you do need a band-aid and I would clean the area and place the band-aid.
Well, band-aid's are supposed to protect a hurt area and stick to your body until the area has healed or at least scabbed over. How many of you have placed a band-aid over a cut only to do something active and find that the band-aid came off or was missing? Yes that happens to us often as well, and my kids would often come back to me saying “dad, I need another band-aid” because the first one came off. So although band-aids are on the top ten trusted brands list, we cannot put our full faith and trust in band-aid's to stay on every time.
How many of you have eaten cheerios? How many of you have eaten a bowl of cheerios and found that you were still hungry or that you needed something else along with the cheerios to complete the meal, even if its just milk? Although cheerios is on the most reliable products list we cannot rely on it to meet all of our nutritional needs alone.
who here is familiar with the weather channel? Well the weather channel is also one of the top ten brands on this list. The weather channel is a very good tool to help us to predict what the weather will be like in the near future and it is fairly accurate. However, every once in a while the weather channel predicts the wrong thing. So although the weather channel is reliable most of the time, it is not completely and perfectly accurate. We cannot put our full faith and confidence in the weather channel.
All three of these brands, Band Aid, Cheerios and the weather channel are known for their high reliability. However none of them are 100% reliable. Today we will talk about the only one who is 100% completely reliable, and that is God. We will see the faithfulness of God through Abraham.
Big Idea- God is faithful and his word is true.
Big Idea- God is faithful and his word is true.
Take Aways
*Called to be used by God.
*Empowered by God.
*Its all for Jesus.
Now the Lord had said to Abram: “Get out of your country, From your family And from your father’s house, To a land that I will show you.
In Abraham’s culture the father was the head of the house and the father was over his sons and their families as well as his unmarried daughters. When the patriarch died then the inheritance was split between the sons and the sons would continue on to head their households. When God called Abraham away from his family He called him away from his inheritance and away from the culture and lifestyle that was contrary to the Lord since Abrahams father and ancestors served false gods. We know this because it says it in Joshua 24:2
And Joshua said to all the people, “Thus says the Lord God of Israel: ‘Your fathers, including Terah, the father of Abraham and the father of Nahor, dwelt on the other side of the River in old times; and they served other gods.
So God called Abraham out of the land of his family away from his false Gods and from his inheritance and God promised to give an inheritance in the land that He would show Abraham. God called Abraham out to be set apart and used for His purposes.
Just as God called Abraham away from his past environment to a new purpose. God also calls believers out of their lives of sin and opposition towards Him and His ways, and he calls them to live for Him working for the Kingdom of heaven doing the will of God.
How many of you remember the show that use to come on MTV called Pimp my ride? This was a show where the host xzibit would show some raggedy vehicles that were in poor condition and they would fix the car up making it like a whole new vehicle. These vehicles would go from rust to Chrome! For example they would take an old big body car that is falling apart and redo the interior adding state of the art sound systems, TV’s, woofers ect. They would also repair the outer body, repaint and make any other necessary repairs resulting in what seemed like a whole different vehicle.
When God draws us to Him with his Spirit and we become followers of Christ, God Does a transformation in us. He changes us and we are no longer the way we were previously. Just like those pimped rides, we go through a transformation except even more thoroughly and continuously through our lives.
Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.
This transformation changes us from being slaves to sin working for and seeking to do whatever our fleshly selfish desires want to do, our desire to accomplish our own will and to be lord of ourselves. He changes us to desire what God desires wanting to please Him and do His will. This transformation in the life of a believer can be seen in Galatians 5:19-25
Now the works of the flesh are evident, which are: adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lewdness,
idolatry, sorcery, hatred, contentions, jealousies, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, dissensions, heresies,
envy, murders, drunkenness, revelries, and the like; of which I tell you beforehand, just as I also told you in time past, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,
gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law.
And those who are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.
If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.
If you are a believer, you have been called away from your sinful past to be set apart for the work that God has for you, in building His Kingdom. So if you are a professing believer however you are living just as you did before Christ living a life of sin working to gratify the flesh and please yourself instead of God, then you will want to reflect ensuring that you have truly committed your life to Christ placing Him as Lord of your life.
Just as Abraham was called out of his land and called to be used by God, we also were called out of sin and called to a purpose in Christ.
Back to our main text. Genesis12:2
I will make you a great nation; I will bless you And make your name great; And you shall be a blessing.
So here we see that God not only calls Abraham out from his place of comfort and security, and away from his inheritance, and to a land that he would show Abraham. But in verse 2 God also promises that He will make Abraham a great nation, and that he would be blessed and his name would be made great, and he would be a blessing.
Here when it says his name would be made great it is referring to making Abraham’s influence and notability widespread across the world and even across generations, we see the result of this in the fact that we are talking about Abraham now.
Michael Johnson golden spikes slide
Back in 1996 in the Olympic games there were some Golden shoes that won the 200 and 400 meter dash Gold medals. These golden shoes did something that was never done before, they won both the 200 and 400 meter dash races in the same Olympic games, these shoes also broke the 200 and 400 Olympic records at the time.
Because of this these golden shoes were iconic.
Did these shoes do these amazing feats on their own strength?
No, the one who wore the shoes was Michael Johnson who had the speed and power to make it happen. Without Michael Johnson these Golden shoes would not have even been designed let alone moved on their own. These tools were a tool that Michael Johnson used to perform feats of greatness during the 1996 Olympic games. Because he used these shoes they are known by those who witnessed the performance.
Just like these Shoes were unable to do anything apart from Michael Johnson. Abraham would not accomplish anything without the power of God.
All of the events promised by God that Abraham would do and become is done through Gods grace,mercy,and Power, God called Abraham out to use Him, to do His will, and to accomplish His work through Him.
Just as God used Abraham to do His will, he uses us to do His will also. When God calls us to Himself and changes us with His spirit he calls us to do His will and empowers us to be able to do it with the Holy Spirit.
For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.
We exhibit the fruit of the spirit because of Gods power and not our own, even the desire to serve Him comes from the power of God. Philippians 2:13
for it is God who works in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure.
So what is this purpose God has called Abraham to? and what is the purpose we are called to?
God called Abraham out from his people to be set apart, to follow God and place his faith in Him. He also called Abraham out to be the Patriarch and the father of the Israelites who are Gods chosen people. God used Abraham to carry the promised seed that He promised Adam and Eve that this promised seed would come and give salvation to mankind. Ensuring that the promised seed came shows the faithfulness of God. Jesus came through Abraham’s line and through the Israelites.
What are we called to?
God also called us to be set apart and to love and serve Him above all else. He called us to go out and spread the good news of salvation through Jesus Christ and to teach others how to follow Him. Our call is shown in Matthew 28:19-20
Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,
teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Amen.
Now although we were all called to spread the Gospel and to make disciples, we will do it different based on the gifts that God has Given us. But this is our purpose, to build the Kingdom of God Growing His reign and rule looking forward to the return of our Lord.
Back to our main text Genesis 12:3
I will bless those who bless you, And I will curse him who curses you; And in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.”
When it says I will bless those who bless you and curse him who curses you we see this play out throughout Abraham’s life and the instance where those who cursed Abraham were cursed is shown in Genesis 12 and again in Genesis 20. In both cases Abraham lied to the king in each of those countries that he was passing through, saying that his wife was his sister and omitting that she was his wife.
He did this because he thought they would kill him and take his wife to be theirs because of her beauty. In both cases because the kings unknowingly wronged Abraham by taking his wife, God cursed them for this, once they found out why they were cursed they returned Abraham’s wife.
In Genesis 14 the king of Salem blesses Abraham and Abraham gave him a tithe of all the possessions that he had been given by God blessing the king of Salem.
The fulfillment of this promise shown in Abraham’s lifetime highlights Gods faithfulness and the fact that he will do all that He said He will do. This truth is also true of God today.
How many of you have ever been to a birthday celebration, like a milestone birthday celebration that is a large event? Well usually these events have one or more people who work together to plan the event. Some people make the food that is to be eaten, some make the desserts and the birthday cake. Others come up and talk about the birthday person and others come to the celebration with gifts to to honor the birthday person. Although there are many different jobs and responsibilities to get this event on, this event is for one person, the birthday person.
This passage talks about Abraham and we follow him in his life as shown in Genesis. However this story is not really about Abraham, the entire narrative of the story of the Bible points to Christ from the beginning to the end. Its all about Jesus.
In the beginning, in Genesis 3:15 God promised Adam and Eve that the promised seed would come and God called Abraham to play an important role in the story, helping to bring the promised seed forth. This shows Gods faithfulness through accomplishing his promise through Abraham and His Descendants.
In the main text in verse 3 where it says in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed it is talking about Jesus bringing salvation to all, both to the Jew and the non-Jew. It is because of Jesus that we can become sons of God and have fellowship with Him dwelling with God forever.
This salvation is given to us as a free gift, meaning there is nothing that we can do to earn salvation, but through His grace and mercy God has provided a way for us to be saved from His wrath through His Son Jesus.
being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus,
Because Jesus, who is the promised seed that came through Abrahams line died on the cross paying the penalty of our sins we are now seen as not guilty and are saved from the wrath of God.
that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.
What this means is that if you allow Jesus to be the Lord of your life submitting to Him as your sovereign ruler and not yourself, and if you believe the Gospel that Jesus died for your sins and rose again then you shall be saved.
Commit yourself to Christ. If you have not given your life to Christ, it can be done at any time anywhere.
Take Aways
*Called to be used by God. We were called for His purposes.
*Empowered by God. We can do nothing without Him.
*Its all for Jesus. Jesus is the main character, no one else.
