The Promise of Blessing
The Promises of God • Sermon • Submitted
0 ratings
· 32 viewsNotes
Transcript
Announcements
PG Church Council will meet this evening at 7:00 PM.
Another Gospel? book club will meet tomorrow evening at 7:00 PM via Zoom
Bailey Church Council will meet Sunday, March 14th at 7:00 PM.
Opening Prayer
Lord of presence and power, be with us on this second step of our Lenten journey to the Cross. Help us to make a commitment of our lives, our spirits, our hearts to ministry in your name. AMEN.
Opening Music
“I Am Free,” “Diamonds”
Pastoral Prayer
You stop us in our tracks, O Lord, with your reminder that discipleship is not a “sometime” thing. We are called to place our whole lives in your care; to follow you; to serve you by caring for others, not just once in a while, but always. We admit that we’re not always ready to do this. The demand is great; the need is great; our energies are limited. Help us to place our trust and our lives in your care. You will give us the strength and courage that we will need for this step on the journey. Be with us. Help us to remember that your love is poured out for all your people; you are never far away. It is in Jesus’ Name, we pray. AMEN.
Song of Praise
“Jesus Messiah”
1 When Abram was ninety-nine years old the Lord appeared to Abram and said to him, “I am God Almighty; walk before me, and be blameless, 2 that I may make my covenant between me and you, and may multiply you greatly.” 3 Then Abram fell on his face. And God said to him, 4 “Behold, my covenant is with you, and you shall be the father of a multitude of nations. 5 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. 6 I will make you exceedingly fruitful, and I will make you into nations, and kings shall come from you. 7 And I will establish my covenant between me and you and your offspring after you throughout their generations for an everlasting covenant, to be God to you and to your offspring after you.
15 And God said to Abraham, “As for Sarai your wife, you shall not call her name Sarai, but Sarah shall be her name. 16 I will bless her, and moreover, I will give you a son by her. I will bless her, and she shall become nations; kings of peoples shall come from her.”
The Promise of Blessing
The Promise of Blessing
When we are blessed by God, God is giving us divine favor. It brings prosperity and life to us. This is how God operates in the believer. We are a blessed people because of all that God has done on our behalf.
When we look at the life of Abraham, we see an abundance of blessing that has come to him. What was the source of that blessing? It was Abraham’s faith. Let’s go back to see how things transpired for him.
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.”
The first time God comes to Abram there is a promise of land given. God will bless the world through him.
The second time we see God with Abram is in Genesis 15.
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.
15 And God said to Abraham, “As for Sarai your wife, you shall not call her name Sarai, but Sarah shall be her name. 16 I will bless her, and moreover, I will give you a son by her. I will bless her, and she shall become nations; kings of peoples shall come from her.” 17 Then Abraham fell on his face and laughed and said to himself, “Shall a child be born to a man who is a hundred years old? Shall Sarah, who is ninety years old, bear a child?” 18 And Abraham said to God, “Oh that Ishmael might live before you!”
First, verse 6 says, "And he believed the Lord; and the Lord reckoned it to him as righteousness." Paul uses this quote in his argument that faith comes before the law in our relationship with God. It is by faith we are made righteous not the law that we do. This scene comes before the giving of the law at Mt. Sinai by four hundred years. It also comes 13 years before the sign of the covenant in circumcision. So, what we have here is a declaration that it is through faith that salvation is possible not by anything that we do. It is a gift and work of God, not us.
The second part that stands out here is verses 17-18. When the covenant is actually made, Abram has sacrificed animals and cut them in half and laid them a few feet apart from one another. Once it is dark, a smoking fire pot and a flaming torch passes between the pieces. What does this mean? The flame, symbolizing God, passes between the two pieces of the animal symbolizing that God himself will bear the penalty if the covenant is broken. Ultimately, Christ bears the penalty for our disobedience. It is only by faith in him that the penalty we deserve is washed away and remembered no more.
This scene is extremely important as we look forward in scripture to what God will do through Jesus. The people of Israel will break God's covenant with them over and over again. We break covenant by our disobedience to the law as well. It is only through faith in Jesus Christ that his righteousness is imputed (given freely) to us, and we are reconciled to God.
1. Blessing comes after a time of waiting. (vs. 1-2)
1. Blessing comes after a time of waiting. (vs. 1-2)
1 When Abram was ninety-nine years old the Lord appeared to Abram and said to him, “I am God Almighty; walk before me, and be blameless, 2 that I may make my covenant between me and you, and may multiply you greatly.”
16 Abram was eighty-six years old when Hagar bore Ishmael to Abram.
14 Wait for the Lord; be strong, and let your heart take courage; wait for the Lord!
2. Blessing comes through worship. (vs. 3)
2. Blessing comes through worship. (vs. 3)
3 Then Abram fell on his face. And God said to him,
27 All the ends of the earth shall remember and turn to the Lord, and all the families of the nations shall worship before you.
3. Blessing is a gift from God. (vs. 4-7, 15-16)
3. Blessing is a gift from God. (vs. 4-7, 15-16)
4 “Behold, my covenant is with you, and you shall be the father of a multitude of nations. 5 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. 6 I will make you exceedingly fruitful, and I will make you into nations, and kings shall come from you. 7 And I will establish my covenant between me and you and your offspring after you throughout their generations for an everlasting covenant, to be God to you and to your offspring after you.
15 And God said to Abraham, “As for Sarai your wife, you shall not call her name Sarai, but Sarah shall be her name. 16 I will bless her, and moreover, I will give you a son by her. I will bless her, and she shall become nations; kings of peoples shall come from her.”
13 For the promise to Abraham and his offspring that he would be heir of the world did not come through the law but through the righteousness of faith.
In Romans 4, Paul uses Abraham as an example of what it means to be reconciled to God through faith. Abraham trusted that God would do what he promised he would do: Abraham would have a multitude of descendants and land. Even when Abraham tried to do it on his own in Genesis 16, God still never disavowed Abraham. Through faith, Abraham was reckoned as righteous. This means the penalty of sin was taken away through faith. How could this be? It is because the cleansing action of the cross is not something that is just for those after the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus. It is for all time past, present, and future. So because of the faith that Abraham showed, he was still covered by the blood of Jesus even though Jesus would not be crucified for thousands of years. Time is no obstacle for God. God just is - no end or beginning. So the work of Jesus extends all the way back to the beginning in the Garden of Eden to the very last person who accepts Christ as Lord and Savior before he returns. This is the power of the cross.
Closing Song
“Standing on the Promises”
Benediction
The step of discipleship requires commitment and faith. Go now in peace, bringing the good news of Jesus’ love to all people. Do not be afraid. God is with you. AMEN.