Foundations 3

Intro

We are continuing in our series called “Foundations” where we are looking back at the book of Genesis to better understand our foundation as believers!

Two weeks ago we looked at Creation and saw how God always creates with a purpose

Last week John took over and taught us about Genesis 3 where we saw that

“What sin has broken, God will restore”

Well this week we are picking up the story of Genesis there

Sin has entered the world

Satan has caused the world to fall into darkness — evil is running rampant

So much so that the world is fleeing God

We see that:

Cain killed his brother Abel

The earth gets so corrupt that the Lord floods the entire earth — except for Noah and his family

We then get the Tower of Babel where the people on earth are attempting to prove that they are better than God Genesis 11:4 “4 Then they said, “Come, let us build ourselves a city and a tower with its top in the heavens, and let us make a name for ourselves, lest we be dispersed over the face of the whole earth.””

We see that sin is running rampant — destroying people, causing floods, and leading to full arrogance and pride

This is the backdrop that we are going to pick up our story of Genesis with

Abraham

Lord doesn’t abandon His people

Genesis 12:1–4 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.” 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.

In Genesis 12 we are introduced to Abram — the next major character in the Bible

We can infer that Abram was someone who followed the Lord and fled from sin — why?

We know that Abram loved the Lord because:

God came to Him

God made a promise to Him

Abram did what the Lord told him to do!

Think about that — God came to Abram and said — Go to a place you haven’t been too, to a people you don’t know — and from there I will bless you

We see that the Lord is telling Abram to go and that He will be with him — He will make him a great nation — he will bless him

All of the things that God promises Abram are based around God!

Notice that God promised a son to Abram and he is 75 years old

This leads to our first thing tonight:

The Lord never abandons His people

If we are God’s people he never abandons us

Abram stayed faithful to God despite the wickedness that we know is running wild

Because of this the Lord doesn’t leave him

The Lord doesn’t just abandon His people — He is always with them!

The same thing rings true for us today — God doesn’t abandon us if we know Him

Listen to how Paul puts it:

Romans 8:38–39 ESV

38 For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, 39 nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.

If we know the Lord there is nothing that separates us from Him

God never abandons His people and Abram is a prime example of this in our life

Abram was not a perfect guy

On more than one occasion Abram pretends that his wife is his sister and allows her to go with different kings of different lands

Yet despite this evil God stays with Abram

He stays with us too even when we sin

God doesn’t abandon his people

God keeps His promise

But this isn’t the only thing that Abram teaches us

Genesis 15:1–6 ESV

1 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.” 2 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?” 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.

Now at this point Abram is 90 years old and his faith is shaking

15 years in and there is no child

Abram is asking, begging God, pleading with Him — I have no child

You made a promise and you didn’t abandon me, but I don’t see the fruit

So God reaffirms the promise by telling him to look up and see the stars

Then God tells Abram to go and get a calf, a bird, and a pigeon

Abram is then to sacrifice them and spread out the bodies on the ground

Abram did what God told him to do

This is called a blood covenant — people would make these as a way to say “if I don’t keep my part of the bargain you can do to me what happened to the animals”

Essentially kill me if what I say doesn’t happen

It was the most serious thing you could do

Genesis 15:12–17 ESV

12 As the sun was going down, a deep sleep fell on Abram. And behold, dreadful and great darkness fell upon him. 13 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. 14 But I will bring judgment on the nation that they serve, and afterward they shall come out with great possessions. 15 As for you, you shall go to your fathers in peace; you shall be buried in a good old age. 16 And they shall come back here in the fourth generation, for the iniquity of the Amorites is not yet complete.” 17 When the sun had gone down and it was dark, behold, a smoking fire pot and a flaming torch passed between these pieces.

And what happens?

God puts Abram to sleep and goes through it for Him

God is saying “the promise I made to you Abram, I will keep, regardless of what you do”

It is not on Abram, it is on God!

And we see this come true — Abram and Sarah get impatient and Abram has a child with their servant

Yet God is still faithful:

Genesis 21:1–5 ESV

1 The Lord visited Sarah as he had said, and the Lord did to Sarah as he had promised. 2 And Sarah conceived and bore Abraham a son in his old age at the time of which God had spoken to him. 3 Abraham called the name of his son who was born to him, whom Sarah bore him, Isaac. 4 And Abraham circumcised his son Isaac when he was eight days old, as God had commanded him. 5 Abraham was a hundred years old when his son Isaac was born to him.

Abraham and Sarah had a child — Isaac!

Here’s the second thing we see, not only does God not abandon His people:

God always keeps His promises

God kept his promise with Abraham for 25 years

He promised they would have a child that will turn into a nation and after 25 years this child was born when Abraham was 100 and Sarah was advanced in years

God always keeps the promises He makes

He promised Adam and Eve in Genesis 3 to provide a way for sin to be forgiven, he promised Noah would be safe during the flood, and he promised a child

All of these promises came true

This was the start of the promise that God made to Abraham — the child would usher in blessings for all people

God offers salvation

But this isn’t the end of Abrams story

There is one more part that teaches us the most about God

In chapter 22 God calls Abraham to go and offer Isaac as a sacrifice

Abraham without waiver goes where God calls him and prepares to offer up his son as a sacrifice

They bring the wood, fire, and knife

Everything for a sacrifice

Genesis 22:7–8 ESV

7 And Isaac said to his father Abraham, “My father!” And he said, “Here I am, my son.” He said, “Behold, the fire and the wood, but where is the lamb for a burnt offering?” 8 Abraham said, “God will provide for himself the lamb for a burnt offering, my son.” So they went both of them together.

Isaac is asking — where is the lamb?

I see everything else, but where is the lamb father?

Notice what Abraham said?

GOD WILL PROVIDE!

Genesis 22:9–14 ESV

9 When they came to the place of which God had told him, Abraham built the altar there and laid the wood in order and bound Isaac his son and laid him on the altar, on top of the wood. 10 Then Abraham reached out his hand and took the knife to slaughter his son. 11 But the angel of the Lord called to him from heaven and said, “Abraham, Abraham!” And he said, “Here I am.” 12 He said, “Do not lay your hand on the boy or do anything to him, for now I know that you fear God, seeing you have not withheld your son, your only son, from me.” 13 And Abraham lifted up his eyes and looked, and behold, behind him was a ram, caught in a thicket by his horns. And Abraham went and took the ram and offered it up as a burnt offering instead of his son. 14 So Abraham called the name of that place, “The Lord will provide”; as it is said to this day, “On the mount of the Lord it shall be provided.”

God provided a lamb to offered instead of Isaac

Isaac is saved by the Lord

Here’s the last thing we learn:

God offers salvation to His people

God offers a way for salvation for His people

Isaac was meant to die — yet God offered salvation in the form of a lamb caught in a thicket

Gospel tie in

But here is the beauty of this story — the beauty of all of the story of Abraham and the story of Isaac

These truths apply to us

God doesn’t abandon us

God keeps His promises

God offers salvation

See Isaac is a type of Christ

That means that everything that happened in Genesis 22 was God using Abraham and Isaac as an example of what Jesus will come and do — what He came and did

Jesus went up the same mountain as Isaac

Jesus carried the wood for the cross

Jesus didn’t fight back

And Jesus ultimately died in place of mankind

Why?

To offer salvation and forgivness

Because God offers salvation to His people!

HE ALWAYS DOES!

Discussion Questions

How can we be assured that God does not abandon us during times of difficulty or sin?

In what ways have you experienced God's faithfulness in your life similar to Abram's experiences?

What does Abram's response to God teach us about faith and obedience?

How can understanding that God keeps His promises help you in your daily life?

Why is it important to recognize that God offers salvation? How does this change your perspective?