Genesis 15: God’s Covenant with Abram. 1. Gen 15:1 God is comforting Abram through protection and reward. God is our protection. God is our highest treasure; highest reward 2. Gen 15:2,3 Abram’ complaint: Abram was 85yrs old and after 10 years’ obedience, he still had no child. Abram said, his servant would be his heir. this was the custom at that time. 3. Gen 15:4-6 1> God’s promise: A son coming from your own body will be your heir. Look up at the heavens and count the stars if indeed you can count them. So shall your offspring be. 2> Abram believed the LORD, and he credited it to him as righteousness. This is the origin of the doctrine of Justification by Faith He trusted in God and hoped in a God’s promise. Trust in God results in justification Content of faith seem different in the OT. But the object of faith is always God. 4. Gen 15:7-21 1> The Content of God’s covenant with Abram. Your descendants will be strangers in a country. They will be enslaved and mistreated 400 years. In 4th generation, your descendants will come back here. For the sin of the Amorites has not yet reached its full measure. 2> Characters of God’s Covenant with Abraham Unilateral; dependent only on God: Only God passed between the pieces (15:17) Different from God’s covenant with Adam: both are responsible. 3> Abrahamic covenant (Gen 15:18) Covenant promised as passed to Isaac and again passed to Jacob (Gen 26,35) The continuance of this covenant with Ab is a major theme in OT. There is a debate about the fulfillment of the this covenant. Because obtaining the Promised Land was not fulfilled.
Genesis 16: Hagar and Ishmael. Sarai misunderstood what God promised Abram ‘from your own body’ She thought it was from Abram’s body. She did not think her body and Abram’s body are one. She thought using her servant; she could get an Abram’s son. (16:2) It was a custom at that time when you have no child. Worldly custom could make us to ignore God’s promises and disobey him. Hagar bore Abram a son Ishmael. (16:15) Abram was 86 years old when he had a son Ishmael. (16:16)
Genesis 17: the Covenant of Circumcision. 1. Gen 17:1-3 1> God did not show up to Abram for 13years. Now, Abram was 99years old. 2> God’s rebuke; I am God Almighty. El Shaddai: God who keeps His promises/words 100%. Abram did not believe that God could keep His promises. God is telling Him that He keeps promises 100% In Ch. 15, Abram Believed God for His promises. But for 13years, He did not believe what God promised him. 3> Walk before me and be blameless. If you believe what I told you, walk before me as you believe. Live before me showing your faith.
2. Gen 17:4-8; As for Me; this is what I will do. God’s Covenant with Abraham (Abrahamic covenant; Gen 17:7) 3. Gen 17:9-14: As for you; this is what you should do. What Abraham and his descendants should do was a circumcision. Abraham obeyed God and showed his trust in Him. (Gen 17:23-27) 4. Gen 17:15-16. As for her; this is what she should do. Her name will be Sarah. I will give you a son by her. She will be the mother of nations. Kings of people will come from her. This is God’s promise for Sarah and Sarah need to trust God and His promises. |