God's Renewed Promise

The Gospel Project® for Adults

Leader Guide ESV, Unit 2, Session 4

© 2018 LifeWay Christian Resources, edited by Rev. Lex DeLong, M.A.

Permission granted to reproduce and distribute within the license agreement with purchaser.

God Renews His Promise

When has something not gone as you have expected?

How did that impact your relationship with God? (be prepared to give answers of your own to jump-start the conversation)

Summary and Goal

In previous sessions we saw that God’s plan of providing forgiveness of sin would come through a people of promise—a covenant people.

God made that covenant with Abram (Gen. 12:1-3), and later He renewed that covenant with Abraham’s son, Isaac.

God keeps His promises, but at times He does so in ways we would least expect, which can cause us to question God, that includes through people we least expect, including us.

God keeps His promises through unexpected people, many of whom seem quite unworthy of such a privilege.

Session Outline

God’s promises are kept in unusual ways (Gen. 25:21-26).

++God’s promises are given to unworthy people (Gen. 25:29-34).

++God’s promises are based on His unchanging faithfulness (Gen. 26:1-6).

Session in a Sentence

God’s covenant promises are based on His faithfulness, not ours.

In What ways should the truth of that statement the everyday lives of God’s people?

Christ Connection

God’s faithfulness depends on nothing but the essence of who He is.

God cannot be inconsistent with who He is.

God cannot act in any way that would compromise who He is.

God is God. He always has been, is, and will always be God.

God will direct and execute His eternal and divine decree throughout all history, no matter how long it seems to take in the perspective of the people of His creation.

Since God promised to bless the world through His blessing of His covenant people Israel, and He must and will fulfill all that He promises, then His blessing of all nations will be realized eventually and fully.

God’s covenant promise to bless the world was fully realized when Jesus was born in unusual circumstances and lived and died to save unworthy people from our sin.

Missional Application:

Because we are imperfect and unworthy people whom God uses to accomplish His purposes, we can live boldly and confidently in the love of Christ, even though from our perspective, we do it imperfectly.

Group Time Introduction

The invention of the Post-it® Note by Spencer Silver.

Spencer Silver had a job to do. A 3M® scientist, Silver was working to develop a better, stronger adhesive than anything on the market. In the process, he created an adhesive that stuck to surfaces but did not bond tightly to them. In terms of the task given to him by his company, it was an absolute failure; the exact opposite of what he was working to develop.

But Silver wasn’t willing to give up on his discovery altogether. It may not have been what 3M® was looking for, but the scientist believed it had potential—there had to be a use for it. He shared it with all of his colleagues, but no one could figure out how to use this temporary adhesive.

At that same time, another 3M® scientist named Art Fry had a problem. During his weekly practices with his church choir, Fry would mark the hymns they would sing with small scraps of paper. The problem was that they wouldn’t stay in the hymn book but would often fall out during the week.

And then it struck him. Fry contacted Silver and the pair began developing a new product, something that would soon become far more than merely a bookmark. Using scrap Canary Yellow paper from the lab next door and Silver’s adhesive, Post-it® Notes were born. 1

3M's sticky paper, the “Press ‘n Peel,” was offered in 4 cities around the U.S. in 1978. It received mixed reviews and not a ton of attention. The tables turned, however, when 3M tried a new marketing strategy – the “Boise Blitz.”

This involved changing the name to “Post-it Notes” and offering free samples to focus groups in Boise, Idaho. The response was overwhelmingly positive, and the sampling continued in 11 other states. At the end of the campaign, 90% of consumers were interested in 3M's new product.

By the end of the year, Post-it Notes were sold nationally, earning more than $2 million in sales. Today, the Post-it is available in 27 sizes, 57 colors, and 20 fragrances in more than 150 countries. They offer a total of 4,000 products and continue to grow!

DDG (p. 93)

Did you know that the invention of Post-it® Notes was completely unexpected, a discovery on the journey for a different solution?

We have all experienced times when things have not gone as we might have expected, whether for better or worse.

The question for us as followers of Christ is how does God make sense of those times?

What do we do when God seems to throw us a curve-ball? Is it possible that He had a plan that was simply better than the one we expected?

God keeps His promises, but at times He does so in ways we would least expect, which can cause us to question God.

God keeps His promises through unexpected people, many of whom seem quite unworthy of such a privilege—people just like us.

Point 1: God’s promises are kept in unusual ways (Gen. 25:21-26).

Read Genesis 25:21-26 (DDG p. 94).

21 And Isaac prayed to the Lord for his wife, because she was barren. And the Lord granted his prayer, and Rebekah his wife conceived. 22 The children struggled together within her, and she said, “If it is thus, why is this happening to me?” So she went to inquire of the Lord. 23 And the Lord said to her,

“Two nations are in your womb, and two peoples from within you shall be divided;

the one shall be stronger than the other, the older shall serve the younger.”

24 When her days to give birth were completed, behold, there were twins in her womb. 25 The first came out red, all his body like a hairy cloak, so they called his name Esau. 26 Afterward his brother came out with his hand holding Esau’s heel, so his name was called Jacob. Isaac was sixty years old when she bore them.

Abraham had struggled to trust in God’s promises because of his wife’s infertility, but God had proven Himself faithful.

Now Isaac and his wife faced their own unexpected, heartbreaking trial.

Isaac did not take matters into his own hands. Instead, he turned to God in prayer and left the outcome in the Lord’s hands.

Explain the emotional and theological implications of Rebekah’s infertility.

Emotional: The struggle with fertility was stressful and difficult for them both individually and as a couple. Though Scripture here seems to pass over the issue of infertility quickly, Rebekah was barren for twenty years after marrying Isaac (see Gen. 25:20,26)—twenty years likely filled with heartache, confusion, doubt, and perhaps even anger.

Theological: If Rebekah could not have children, then the line of Abraham would be broken. Isaac was the son of promise; his son would be the next one in that line for the covenant to keep going forward. Without a son through Isaac and Rebekah, how could God fulfill His promises to bless the world?

How long are you willing to wait for God to fulfill His promise?

Remember, God has made it clear that He will do what is best for you and for His glory…He has promised it and what He promises, He fulfills.

Isaac and Rebekah waited 20 years.

DDG (p. 94).

In His grace and faithfulness, the Lord heard Isaac’s prayer, and Rebekah conceived. But Rebekah’s long-desired pregnancy, which surely caused great joy, thankfulness, and celebration, took an unexpected turn.

The twins growing inside of her began to struggle, causing her to seek the Lord.

Once again, God heard and responded. And in yet another unexpected turn in this story, God told Rebekah that her firstborn son would serve the younger.

There were two ways God was working unexpectedly in this situation, demonstrating His supernatural work to bring redemption to humanity.

The first two patriarchs in the line of God’s covenant promises were powerless to have a single son, let alone form a nation of people or provide salvation for sinners. So Rebekah’s barrenness giving way to a miraculous pregnancy, just as with Sarah, reminds us that God was clearly the One fulfilling His promises and working toward salvation for humankind. The Messiah promised by God would indeed come through the line of Abraham, but not through the efforts or merits of Abraham, Isaac, or anyone else. God alone would accomplish this how and through who He decreed.

When God revealed to Rebekah that the older would serve the younger with respect to her twin sons, He showed that He is unafraid to counter our cultural expectations for the purpose of His redemptive plan of salvation. Throughout Scripture we can see other examples of God doing what was startling and even unacceptable from a human lens. Moses, the leader of Israel and spokesman for God, was a man who did not speak well. The prophet Hosea was commanded to take an unfaithful wife. Jesus reached out His hand to touch those with leprosy and shared meals with sinners. Time and time again we see God’s promises not working around the obstacles and violations of social norms but through them.

“Voices from Church History” Clement of Rome quote; (DDG p. 94).

Voices from Church History

“Beloved, how blessed and marvelous are the gifts of God! Life in immortality, splendor in righteousness, truth in boldness, faith in confidence, self-control in holiness; and all these things fall within our understanding. What things are being prepared for those who endure? The Creator and Father of the ages, the All-holy himself, knows their greatness and beauty. Let us then strive to be among those who endure so that we may share in the promised gifts.” 2 –Clement of Rome (c. 30-100)

God’s promised gifts for His people cannot be constrained.

++God does and will give them.

++They do and will accomplish His perfect purpose.

What truths about God can help us live with endurance in the midst of unexpected adversity and unusual circumstances?

++God is always faithful to His promises and His people;

++God is all-knowing, so He is aware of my situation and has a purpose for it in my life;

++God is omnipresent, so He is with me in my struggles;

++God is good, so I can trust Him to take care of me; God is a Father to His children, so He disciplines them, cares for them, and challenges them to grow

God’s promises are kept, at times, in unusual ways

But that is not the only unusual thing about how God keeps His promises. Due to sin, all humanity is unworthy, yet...

Point 2: God’s promises are given to unworthy people (Gen. 25:29-34).

Genesis 25:29-34 (DDG p. 95).

29 Once when Jacob was cooking stew, Esau came in from the field, and he was exhausted. 30 And Esau said to Jacob, “Let me eat some of that red stew, for I am exhausted!” (Therefore his name was called Edom.) 31 Jacob said, “Sell me your birthright now.” 32 Esau said, “I am about to die; of what use is a birthright to me?” 33 Jacob said, “Swear to me now.” So he swore to him and sold his birthright to Jacob. 34 Then Jacob gave Esau bread and lentil stew, and he ate and drank and rose and went his way. Thus Esau despised his birthright.

As Esau and Jacob grew older, they became very different from each other.

Esau became a great hunter

Jacob preferred the quiet life of home.

But on this day, the exhausted hunter became the hunted prey of his calculating brother when Jacob manipulated Esau’s impulsiveness for his own purposes.

Should the focus be more on Jacob taking advantage of his brother, or on Esau’s spite for his birthright and view that his birthright was of less worth than a pot of stew?

Esau was a sensually minded man. He lived for the moment and sought to satisfy his most basic, primal needs, having no appetite for spiritual things. He had such little regard for the things of God that he was willing to give up a most rare and precious gift—the heritage of Abraham through the promises of God—for a bowl of stew.

Jacob wanted to obtain his family’s spiritual birthright for himself, perhaps having heard the Lord’s prophecy given to Rebekah about the older serving the younger. But even if Jacob’s goal seemed nobler than his brother’s, the method he used was anything but noble as he manipulated his brother in his weakened state.

Fill in the blanks: DDG (p. 95)

Esau

Firstborn Son, Older Brother

++Great Hunter, Outdoorsman

++Favored by Isaac

++Impulsive, Unspiritual

++Unworthy Sinner

Jacob

Second Son, Younger Brother

++Quiet [complete] Man, Preferred Home

++Favored by Rebekah

++Calculating, Deceptive

++Unworthy Sinner

Both Esau and Jacob showed themselves to be people unworthy of the promises God made to Abraham, and yet, God still worked through this family to accomplish His plan.

The author of Hebrews (Heb. 12:16-17) used Esau as an example of how not to live in this world, especially as a Christian:

“[See to it] that no one is sexually immoral or unholy like Esau, who sold his birthright for a single meal. For you know that afterward, when he desired to inherit the blessing, he was rejected, for he found no chance to repent, though he sought it with tears.”

With his immoral mind, Esau rationalized that exchanging his birthright for a bowl of lentil stew was a good trade. And so, he despised his birthright as the firstborn of Isaac’s sons.

Regarding Jacob, the Scriptures do not overtly condemn Jacob’s actions here, but neither do they offer approval.

The future tension and conflict between the brothers, however, provides an implicit reminder that God’s promises were not to be obtained this way. 3

Just like his grandfather Abraham before him, Jacob took matters into his own hands instead of trusting in God to fulfill His promises, and the result would be just as costly, as seen in the brother’s life-long tension for a good portion of their lives.

We should learn not to follow in the sinful actions of Esau and Jacob, but we should also recognize that we are no better than them—

We too are people unworthy of God’s promises if it were not for God’s grace and redemption in Christ.

Esau was not worthy of the promises of God, but neither was Jacob.

The elder son of Isaac had no regard for spiritual things; the younger son used manipulation to wrestle the birthright, and later the blessing, from his brother.

Yet God still worked through this dysfunctional family to bring about the promises He had made to Abraham.

We too are unworthy to be recipients of God’s love, grace, and mercy.

We too are unworthy to be used by God as a light in the midst of sin’s darkness.

We also fail to value spiritual blessings;

We give ourselves over to chasing after fleshly things in sinful ways;

We operate from a worldly mind-set rather than a spiritual one.

Yet the Scriptures tell us that God can still work His redemption in and through unworthy and dysfunctional people like us.

How should the faithful, ongoing work of God, even through unworthy sinners, challenge our fears and insecurities about our own ability to live right for God?

God is more than adequate to make up for our shortcomings, so we can trust Him to help us live right

We really have no excuse for fear of disappointing God in faith because He overcomes all by nature of who He is

Success in the Christian life is not a matter of perfection or performance but rather of humble, repentant faith working itself out in our words and lives as a testimony to the world of our Savior, Jesus Christ

You see, the fulfillment of the promises of God in and through us are not dependent upon us, even though they involve us by God’s choosing. Instead...

Point 3: God’s promises are based on His unchanging faithfulness (Gen. 26:1-6).

read: Genesis 26:1-6 (DDG p. 96).

1 Now there was a famine in the land, besides the former famine that was in the days of Abraham. And Isaac went to Gerar to Abimelech king of the Philistines. 2 And the Lord appeared to him and said, “Do not go down to Egypt; dwell in the land of which I shall tell you. 3 Sojourn in this land, and I will be with you and will bless you, for to you and to your offspring I will give all these lands, and I will establish the oath that I swore to Abraham your father. 4 I will multiply your offspring as the stars of heaven and will give to your offspring all these lands. And in your offspring all the nations of the earth shall be blessed, 5 because Abraham obeyed my voice and kept my charge, my commandments, my statutes, and my laws.”

6 So Isaac settled in Gerar.

Conventional wisdom would stand contrary to what God asked of Isaac.

Egypt would have the resources needed to survive the famine, much like later in the days of Joseph. It would make sense to go there to survive, but God promised to care for him and restated His covenant with Isaac to remind him of His promise.

God told Abraham to go to a land He would show him (12:1); God told Isaac to stay in the land (26:2-3). Abraham went, and Isaac stayed.

God promised Isaac land for his descendants (26:3; see 17:8).

God promised offspring as numerous as the stars (26:4; see 15:5). And

God promised that all the nations on earth would be blessed by his offspring (26:4; see 12:2-3).

DDG (p. 96).

God was committed to His promises, but how could He be? Abraham and Isaac failed to obey God completely and their faith in God wavered at times.

We only question because we focus on the wrong person.

Our gaze should not rest on Abraham or Isaac and their flaws but should be fixed on God

Fixed on God Who swore an oath to Abraham.

This God is full of truth, goodness, kindness, and faithfulness, and He is unchanging.

In our present time, we still have the same God who is true to His promises.

He is full of truth, goodness, kindness, and faithfulness, and He is unchanging which means, you can count on Him.

Fill in the blanks: DDG (p. 96).

God Is Unchanging: God’s unchanging nature is good news for Christians, for it guarantees that God does not change His mind or go back on His promises. Christians can find assurance and peace of mind in knowing that the God who brought them out of darkness will carry them through His light, all the way to eternity.

God’s being and attributes, along with the ethical commitments He has given, cannot change.

God is committed to being God and that He is the same yesterday, today, and forever.

God’s unchanging nature is good news for Christians, for it guarantees that God does not change His mind or go back on His promises.

Christians can find assurance and peace of mind in knowing that the God who brought them out of darkness into His marvelous light is the God who will carry them through into eternity.

God shows love and grace to His image bearers even when they don’t deserve it, because He always shows love and grace and they cannot ever be good enough to deserve it.

God alone receives the glory for His blessings to and through us;

DDG (p. 96)

God’s unchanging faithfulness to and through Abraham and his descendants :

Led to the coming of Christ for our salvation.

Though Abraham was an unworthy sinner, he did believe God’s promises, so he listened and obeyed.

The unchanging, faithful God used Abraham, and now He extends that same grace to us.

God does not save us or use us for His redemptive purposes because we are worthy but because Jesus Christ is.

God promised Abraham and Isaac to bless the world through their offspring—

It was Jesus who died on the cross to take away the sin of the world. And now those who have Abraham’s faith, who trust in Jesus, obey God’s commands and joyfully spread the gospel around the world.

Rom. 11:15 Through Israel Reconciliation is brought to the whole world

Romans 11:15 NASB95

For if their rejection is the reconciliation of the world, what will their acceptance be but life from the dead?

Israel’s obedience led to God’s mercy for the Gentiles

Rom. 11:30

Romans 11:30 NASB95

For just as you once were disobedient to God, but now have been shown mercy because of their disobedience,

Through Israel we have salvation

John 4:22

John 4:22 NASB95

“You worship what you do not know; we worship what we know, for salvation is from the Jews.

It was through God’s people Israel that God gave us His word

God has indeed blessed the whole world through Abraham and Isaac, imperfect and dysfunctional as they were, through unusual means, to bring about the fulfillment of His promises through His unfailing, always enacted faithfulness.

My Mission

God extends His promises to us not because of our abilities to follow, love, and obey Him completely.

Instead, He extends His promises to us based on His character and for His glory.

All of God’s promises point us to the ultimate promise He has kept—providing the rescuer, Jesus, who died on a cross to pay the penalty of our sin and rose from the dead to defeat sin and death forever.

God is faithful, and our response to the beauty of God’s unchanging faithfulness should involve humility, gratitude, and awe.

When we listen to God and seek to obey Him, God uses us to bless those around us.

May our obedience be a blessing for generations to come.

Because we are imperfect and unworthy people whom God uses to accomplish His purposes, we boldly share and show the love of Christ with all others, inviting them into God’s kingdom through Jesus.

· As an unworthy sinner, how will you honor the covenant-keeping God who sent His Son to die for our sins?

· What are some steps we can take to help one another confess sin and fight against it?

· Where and with whom will you share about God’s faithfulness, graciousness, and love in Christ?

Remember, God keeps His promises, often through unworthy people, through unusual ways, through His unchanging faithfulness.

Close in prayer:

References

1. Post-it® Brand, “History Timeline: Post-it® Notes,” February 27, 2018, https://www.post-it.com/3M/en_US/post-it/contact-us/about-us.

2. Clement of Rome, 1 Clement 35.1-4, quoted in Inheriting Wisdom, by Everett Ferguson (Peabody, MA: Hendrickson, 2004), 151.

3. Allen P. Ross, Creation and Blessing: A Guide to the Study and Exposition of Genesis(Grand Rapids: Baker, 1998), 451.

4. Robert D. Bergen, “Genesis,” in CSB Study Bible (Nashville: B&H, 2017), 47, n. 25:20-26.

5. T. Desmond Alexander, “Genesis,” in ESV Study Bible (Wheaton: Crossway, 2008), 94, n. 25:22-23.

6. Barnabe Assohoto and Samuel Ngewa, “Genesis,” in Africa Bible Commentary, gen. ed. Tokunboh Adeyemo (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2006), 48.

7. Kenneth O. Gangel and Stephen J. Bramer, Genesis, in Holman Old Testament Commentary (Nashville: B&H, 2009) [WORDsearch].

8. Candi Finch, ed., “Genesis,” in The Study Bible for Women, gen. ed. Dorothy Kelley Patterson (Nashville: B&H, 2014), 33, n. 25:24-34.

9. Kenneth A. Mathews, Genesis, vol. 1b in The New American Commentary (Nashville: B&H, 2006) [WORDsearch].

10. Jesudason Baskar Jeyaraj, “Genesis,” in South Asia Bible Commentary, gen. ed. Brian Wintle (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2015), 44.