Sermon by Rev. Richard Jones

 rec0827-112201

Sermon Series: The Story of Abraham

HILL OF PROVISION

Genesis, Chapter 22:1-19

A SURPRISE OF DEVOTION

Genesis 22:1-2 (ESV)
¹  After these things God tested Abraham and said to him, “Abraham!” And he said, “Here I am.”
²  He said, “Take your son, your only son Isaac, whom you love, and go to the land of Moriah, and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains of which I shall tell you.”

A STRUGGLE OF BELIEVING

Genesis 22:3-6 (ESV)
³  So Abraham rose early in the morning, saddled his donkey, and took two of his young men with him, and his son Isaac. And he cut the wood for the burnt offering and arose and went to the place of which God had told him.
⁴  On the third day Abraham lifted up his eyes and saw the place from afar.
⁵  Then Abraham said to his young men, “Stay here with the donkey; I and the boy will go over there and worship and come again to you.”
⁶  And Abraham took the wood of the burnt offering and laid it on Isaac his son. And he took in his hand the fire and the knife. So they went both of them together.

Hebrews 11:17-19 (ESV)
¹⁷  By faith Abraham, when he was tested, offered up Isaac, and he who had received the promises was in the act of offering up his only son,
¹⁸  of whom it was said, “Through Isaac shall your offspring be named.”
¹⁹  He considered that God was able even to raise him from the dead, from which, figuratively speaking, he did receive him back.

A SACRIFICE OF TRUSTING

Genesis 22:7-10 (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.
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.

A SUBSTITUTE OF PROVISION

Genesis 22:11-14 (ESV)
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.”

This is the first time in the Bible where the concept of “substitutionary atonement” is presented.

1 Peter 3:18 (ESV)
¹⁸  For Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh but made alive in the spirit,

The place is the point!

A STATEMENT OF COMMITMENT

Genesis 22:15-19 (ESV)
¹⁵  And the angel of the LORD called to Abraham a second time from heaven
¹⁶  and said, “By myself I have sworn, declares the LORD, because you have done this and have not withheld your son, your only son,
¹⁷  I will surely bless you, and I will surely multiply your offspring as the stars of heaven and as the sand that is on the seashore. And your offspring shall possess the gate of his enemies,
¹⁸  and in your offspring shall all the nations of the earth be blessed, because you have obeyed my voice.”
¹⁹  So Abraham returned to his young men, and they arose and went together to Beersheba. And Abraham lived at Beersheba.

The theme of this story is substitutionary atonement.

The where of this story is Mt. Calvary.

The illustration of this story is the idea of need.

Hebrews 4:16 (ESV)
¹⁶  Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.

Sermon by Rev. Richard Jones

rec0820-112227

Sermon Series: The Story of Abraham

FAILURE AND FUTURE

Genesis, Chapters 20 & 21:1-21

DECEPTION AND A DREAM

Genesis 20:1-7 (ESV)
¹  From there Abraham journeyed toward the territory of the Negeb and lived between Kadesh and Shur; and he sojourned in Gerar.
²  And Abraham said of Sarah his wife, “She is my sister.” And Abimelech king of Gerar sent and took Sarah.
³  But God came to Abimelech in a dream by night and said to him, “Behold, you are a dead man because of the woman whom you have taken, for she is a man”™s wife.”
⁴  Now Abimelech had not approached her. So he said, “Lord, will you kill an innocent people?
⁵  Did he not himself say to me, ”˜She is my sister”™? And she herself said, ”˜He is my brother.”™ In the integrity of my heart and the innocence of my hands I have done this.”
⁶  Then God said to him in the dream, “Yes, I know that you have done this in the integrity of your heart, and it was I who kept you from sinning against me. Therefore I did not let you touch her.
⁷  Now then, return the man”™s wife, for he is a prophet, so that he will pray for you, and you shall live. But if you do not return her, know that you shall surely die, you and all who are yours.”

REBUKE FOR THE RUSE

Genesis 20:8-18 (ESV)
⁸  So Abimelech rose early in the morning and called all his servants and told them all these things. And the men were very much afraid.
⁹  Then Abimelech called Abraham and said to him, “What have you done to us? And how have I sinned against you, that you have brought on me and my kingdom a great sin? You have done to me things that ought not to be done.”
¹⁰  And Abimelech said to Abraham, “What did you see, that you did this thing?”
¹¹  Abraham said, “I did it because I thought, ”˜There is no fear of God at all in this place, and they will kill me because of my wife.”™
¹²  Besides, she is indeed my sister, the daughter of my father though not the daughter of my mother, and she became my wife.
¹³  And when God caused me to wander from my father”™s house, I said to her, ”˜This is the kindness you must do me: at every place to which we come, say of me, “He is my brother.””™”
¹⁴  Then Abimelech took sheep and oxen, and male servants and female servants, and gave them to Abraham, and returned Sarah his wife to him.
¹⁵  And Abimelech said, “Behold, my land is before you; dwell where it pleases you.”
¹⁶  To Sarah he said, “Behold, I have given your brother a thousand pieces of silver. It is a sign of your innocence in the eyes of all who are with you, and before everyone you are vindicated.”
¹⁷  Then Abraham prayed to God, and God healed Abimelech, and also healed his wife and female slaves so that they bore children.
¹⁸  For the LORD had closed all the wombs of the house of Abimelech because of Sarah, Abraham”™s wife.

Proverbs 29:25 (ESV)
²⁵  The fear of man lays a snare, but whoever trusts in the LORD is safe.

Proverbs 28:13 (ESV)
¹³  Whoever conceals his transgressions will not prosper, but he who confesses and forsakes them will obtain mercy.

 THE BIRTH OF BLESSING

Genesis 21:1-7 (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.
⁶  And Sarah said, “God has made laughter for me; everyone who hears will laugh over me.”
⁷  And she said, “Who would have said to Abraham that Sarah would nurse children? Yet I have borne him a son in his old age.”

Hebrews 6:10-12 (ESV)
¹⁰  For God is not unjust so as to overlook your work and the love that you have shown for his name in serving the saints, as you still do.
¹¹  And we desire each one of you to show the same earnestness to have the full assurance of hope until the end,
¹²  so that you may not be sluggish, but imitators of those who through faith and patience inherit the promises.

SEPARATE THE SONS

Genesis 21:8-14 (ESV)
⁸  And the child grew and was weaned. And Abraham made a great feast on the day that Isaac was weaned.
⁹  But Sarah saw the son of Hagar the Egyptian, whom she had borne to Abraham, laughing.
¹⁰  So she said to Abraham, “Cast out this slave woman with her son, for the son of this slave woman shall not be heir with my son Isaac.”
¹¹  And the thing was very displeasing to Abraham on account of his son.
¹²  But God said to Abraham, “Be not displeased because of the boy and because of your slave woman. Whatever Sarah says to you, do as she tells you, for through Isaac shall your offspring be named.
¹³  And I will make a nation of the son of the slave woman also, because he is your offspring.”
¹⁴  So Abraham rose early in the morning and took bread and a skin of water and gave it to Hagar, putting it on her shoulder, along with the child, and sent her away. And she departed and wandered in the wilderness of Beersheba.

Galatians 4:21-31 (ESV)
²¹  Tell me, you who desire to be under the law, do you not listen to the law?
²²  For it is written that Abraham had two sons, one by a slave woman and one by a free woman.
²³  But the son of the slave was born according to the flesh, while the son of the free woman was born through promise.
²⁴  Now this may be interpreted allegorically: these women are two covenants. One is from Mount Sinai, bearing children for slavery; she is Hagar.
²⁵  Now Hagar is Mount Sinai in Arabia; she corresponds to the present Jerusalem, for she is in slavery with her children.
²⁶  But the Jerusalem above is free, and she is our mother.
²⁷  For it is written, “Rejoice, O barren one who does not bear; break forth and cry aloud, you who are not in labor! For the children of the desolate one will be more than those of the one who has a husband.”
²⁸  Now you, brothers, like Isaac, are children of promise.
²⁹  But just as at that time he who was born according to the flesh persecuted him who was born according to the Spirit, so also it is now.
³⁰  But what does the Scripture say? “Cast out the slave woman and her son, for the son of the slave woman shall not inherit with the son of the free woman.”
³¹  So, brothers, we are not children of the slave but of the free woman.

HEARING FROM HEAVEN

Genesis 21:15-21 (ESV)
¹⁵  When the water in the skin was gone, she put the child under one of the bushes.
¹⁶  Then she went and sat down opposite him a good way off, about the distance of a bowshot, for she said, “Let me not look on the death of the child.” And as she sat opposite him, she lifted up her voice and wept.
¹⁷  And God heard the voice of the boy, and the angel of God called to Hagar from heaven and said to her, “What troubles you, Hagar? Fear not, for God has heard the voice of the boy where he is.
¹⁸  Up! Lift up the boy, and hold him fast with your hand, for I will make him into a great nation.”
¹⁹  Then God opened her eyes, and she saw a well of water. And she went and filled the skin with water and gave the boy a drink.
²⁰  And God was with the boy, and he grew up. He lived in the wilderness and became an expert with the bow.
²¹  He lived in the wilderness of Paran, and his mother took a wife for him from the land of Egypt.

Applications:

1. God loves us even in our mistakes.

2. Sin has an impact beyond ourselves.

3. What God has promised He will deliver.

4. The flesh and the Spirit can never live in peace.

Ephesians 3:14-19 (ESV)
¹⁴  For this reason I bow my knees before the Father,
¹⁵  from whom every family in heaven and on earth is named,
¹⁶  that according to the riches of his glory he may grant you to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in your inner being,
¹⁷  so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith””that you, being rooted and grounded in love,
¹⁸  may have strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth,
¹⁹  and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.

Sermon by Rev. Richard Jones

rec0813-112455

Sermon Series: The Story of Abraham

QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS

Genesis, Chapters 18 & 19:23-29

Chapter 18

A VISIT FROM GOD

Genesis 18:1-8 (ESV)
¹  And the LORD appeared to him by the oaks of Mamre, as he sat at the door of his tent in the heat of the day.
²  He lifted up his eyes and looked, and behold, three men were standing in front of him. When he saw them, he ran from the tent door to meet them and bowed himself to the earth
³  and said, “O Lord, if I have found favor in your sight, do not pass by your servant.
⁴  Let a little water be brought, and wash your feet, and rest yourselves under the tree,
⁵  while I bring a morsel of bread, that you may refresh yourselves, and after that you may pass on””since you have come to your servant.” So they said, “Do as you have said.”
⁶  And Abraham went quickly into the tent to Sarah and said, “Quick! Three seahs of fine flour! Knead it, and make cakes.”
⁷  And Abraham ran to the herd and took a calf, tender and good, and gave it to a young man, who prepared it quickly.
⁸  Then he took curds and milk and the calf that he had prepared, and set it before them. And he stood by them under the tree while they ate.

Hebrews 13:1-2 (ESV)
¹  Let brotherly love continue.
²  Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers, for thereby some have entertained angels unawares.

1 Peter 4:9-10 (ESV)
⁹  Show hospitality to one another without grumbling.
¹⁰  As each has received a gift, use it to serve one another, as good stewards of God”™s varied grace:

Matthew 25:34-40 (ESV)
³⁴  Then the King will say to those on his right, ”˜Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.
³⁵  For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me,
³⁶  I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me.”™
³⁷  Then the righteous will answer him, saying, ”˜Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink?
³⁸  And when did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe you?
³⁹  And when did we see you sick or in prison and visit you?”™
⁴⁰  And the King will answer them, ”˜Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.”™

A QUESTION FROM GOD

Genesis 18:9-15 (ESV)
⁹  They said to him, “Where is Sarah your wife?” And he said, “She is in the tent.”
¹⁰  The LORD said, “I will surely return to you about this time next year, and Sarah your wife shall have a son.” And Sarah was listening at the tent door behind him.
¹¹  Now Abraham and Sarah were old, advanced in years. The way of women had ceased to be with Sarah.
¹²  So Sarah laughed to herself, saying, “After I am worn out, and my lord is old, shall I have pleasure?”
¹³  The LORD said to Abraham, “Why did Sarah laugh and say, ”˜Shall I indeed bear a child, now that I am old?”™
¹⁴  Is anything too hard for the LORD? At the appointed time I will return to you, about this time next year, and Sarah shall have a son.”
¹⁵  But Sarah denied it, saying, “I did not laugh,” for she was afraid. He said, “No, but you did laugh.”

Jeremiah 32:17 (ESV)
¹⁷  ”˜Ah, Lord GOD! It is you who have made the heavens and the earth by your great power and by your outstretched arm! Nothing is too hard for you.

Job 42:2 (ESV)
²  “I know that you can do all things, and that no purpose of yours can be thwarted.

Ephesians 3:20 (ESV)
²⁰  Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us,

Luke 1:37 (ESV)
³⁷  For nothing will be impossible with God.”

A PURPOSE OF GOD

Genesis 18:16-21 (ESV)
¹⁶  Then the men set out from there, and they looked down toward Sodom. And Abraham went with them to set them on their way.
¹⁷  The LORD said, “Shall I hide from Abraham what I am about to do,
¹⁸  seeing that Abraham shall surely become a great and mighty nation, and all the nations of the earth shall be blessed in him?
¹⁹  For I have chosen him, that he may command his children and his household after him to keep the way of the LORD by doing righteousness and justice, so that the LORD may bring to Abraham what he has promised him.”
²⁰  Then the LORD said, “Because the outcry against Sodom and Gomorrah is great and their sin is very grave,
²¹  I will go down to see whether they have done altogether according to the outcry that has come to me. And if not, I will know.”

Romans 1:27 (ESV)
²⁷  and the men likewise gave up natural relations with women and were consumed with passion for one another, men committing shameless acts with men and receiving in themselves the due penalty for their error.

Jude 1:7 (ESV)
⁷  just as Sodom and Gomorrah and the surrounding cities, which likewise indulged in sexual immorality and pursued unnatural desire, serve as an example by undergoing a punishment of eternal fire.

Isaiah 3:9 (ESV)
⁹  For the look on their faces bears witness against them; they proclaim their sin like Sodom; they do not hide it. Woe to them! For they have brought evil on themselves.

A DIALOGUE WITH GOD

Genesis 18:22-33 (ESV)
²²  So the men turned from there and went toward Sodom, but Abraham still stood before the LORD.
²³  Then Abraham drew near and said, “Will you indeed sweep away the righteous with the wicked?
²⁴  Suppose there are fifty righteous within the city. Will you then sweep away the place and not spare it for the fifty righteous who are in it?
²⁵  Far be it from you to do such a thing, to put the righteous to death with the wicked, so that the righteous fare as the wicked! Far be that from you! Shall not the Judge of all the earth do what is just?”
²⁶  And the LORD said, “If I find at Sodom fifty righteous in the city, I will spare the whole place for their sake.”
²⁷  Abraham answered and said, “Behold, I have undertaken to speak to the Lord, I who am but dust and ashes.
²⁸  Suppose five of the fifty righteous are lacking. Will you destroy the whole city for lack of five?” And he said, “I will not destroy it if I find forty-five there.”
²⁹  Again he spoke to him and said, “Suppose forty are found there.” He answered, “For the sake of forty I will not do it.”
³⁰  Then he said, “Oh let not the Lord be angry, and I will speak. Suppose thirty are found there.” He answered, “I will not do it, if I find thirty there.”
³¹  He said, “Behold, I have undertaken to speak to the Lord. Suppose twenty are found there.” He answered, “For the sake of twenty I will not destroy it.”
³²  Then he said, “Oh let not the Lord be angry, and I will speak again but this once. Suppose ten are found there.” He answered, “For the sake of ten I will not destroy it.”
³³  And the LORD went his way, when he had finished speaking to Abraham, and Abraham returned to his place.

Chapter 19

A JUDGEMENT FROM GOD

Genesis 19:23-29 (ESV)
²³  The sun had risen on the earth when Lot came to Zoar.
²⁴  Then the LORD rained on Sodom and Gomorrah sulfur and fire from the LORD out of heaven.
²⁵  And he overthrew those cities, and all the valley, and all the inhabitants of the cities, and what grew on the ground.
²⁶  But Lot”™s wife, behind him, looked back, and she became a pillar of salt.
²⁷  And Abraham went early in the morning to the place where he had stood before the LORD.
²⁸  And he looked down toward Sodom and Gomorrah and toward all the land of the valley, and he looked and, behold, the smoke of the land went up like the smoke of a furnace.
²⁹  So it was that, when God destroyed the cities of the valley, God remembered Abraham and sent Lot out of the midst of the overthrow when he overthrew the cities in which Lot had lived.

GOD IS HOLY

Are we going to be like Abraham, a friend of God?

Or, are we going to live like Lot, a friend of the world?

Sermon by Rev. Richard Jones

rec0806-111713

Sermon Series: The Story of Abraham

SCHEMING VS. WAITING

Genesis, Chapters 16 & 17

SON BY A SERVANT

Genesis 16:1-6 (ESV)
¹  Now Sarai, Abram”™s wife, had borne him no children. She had a female Egyptian servant whose name was Hagar.
²  And Sarai said to Abram, “Behold now, the LORD has prevented me from bearing children. Go in to my servant; it may be that I shall obtain children by her.” And Abram listened to the voice of Sarai.
³  So, after Abram had lived ten years in the land of Canaan, Sarai, Abram”™s wife, took Hagar the Egyptian, her servant, and gave her to Abram her husband as a wife.
⁴  And he went in to Hagar, and she conceived. And when she saw that she had conceived, she looked with contempt on her mistress.
⁵  And Sarai said to Abram, “May the wrong done to me be on you! I gave my servant to your embrace, and when she saw that she had conceived, she looked on me with contempt. May the LORD judge between you and me!”
⁶  But Abram said to Sarai, “Behold, your servant is in your power; do to her as you please.” Then Sarai dealt harshly with her, and she fled from her.

SEEN BY THE SOVEREIGN

Genesis 16:7-16 (ESV)
⁷  The angel of the LORD found her by a spring of water in the wilderness, the spring on the way to Shur.
⁸  And he said, “Hagar, servant of Sarai, where have you come from and where are you going?” She said, “I am fleeing from my mistress Sarai.”
⁹  The angel of the LORD said to her, “Return to your mistress and submit to her.”
¹⁰  The angel of the LORD also said to her, “I will surely multiply your offspring so that they cannot be numbered for multitude.”
¹¹  And the angel of the LORD said to her, “Behold, you are pregnant and shall bear a son. You shall call his name Ishmael, because the LORD has listened to your affliction.
¹²  He shall be a wild donkey of a man, his hand against everyone and everyone”™s hand against him, and he shall dwell over against all his kinsmen.”
¹³  So she called the name of the LORD who spoke to her, “You are a God of seeing,” for she said, “Truly here I have seen him who looks after me.”
¹⁴  Therefore the well was called Beer-lahai-roi; it lies between Kadesh and Bered.
¹⁵  And Hagar bore Abram a son, and Abram called the name of his son, whom Hagar bore, Ishmael.
¹⁶  Abram was eighty-six years old when Hagar bore Ishmael to Abram.

SHOW BY YOUR ACTIONS

Genesis 17:1-8 (ESV)
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.
⁸  And I will give to you and to your offspring after you the land of your sojournings, all the land of Canaan, for an everlasting possession, and I will be their God.”

SIGN OF THE COVENANT

Genesis 17:9-14 (ESV)
⁹  And God said to Abraham, “As for you, you shall keep my covenant, you and your offspring after you throughout their generations.
¹⁰  This is my covenant, which you shall keep, between me and you and your offspring after you: Every male among you shall be circumcised.
¹¹  You shall be circumcised in the flesh of your foreskins, and it shall be a sign of the covenant between me and you.
¹²  He who is eight days old among you shall be circumcised. Every male throughout your generations, whether born in your house or bought with your money from any foreigner who is not of your offspring,
¹³  both he who is born in your house and he who is bought with your money, shall surely be circumcised. So shall my covenant be in your flesh an everlasting covenant.
¹⁴  Any uncircumcised male who is not circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin shall be cut off from his people; he has broken my covenant.”

Colossians 2:11-12 (ESV)
¹¹  In him also you were circumcised with a circumcision made without hands, by putting off the body of the flesh, by the circumcision of Christ,
¹²  having been buried with him in baptism, in which you were also raised with him through faith in the powerful working of God, who raised him from the dead.

SURE TO HIS PROMISE

Genesis 17:15-22 (ESV)
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!”
¹⁹  God said, “No, but Sarah your wife shall bear you a son, and you shall call his name Isaac. I will establish my covenant with him as an everlasting covenant for his offspring after him.
²⁰  As for Ishmael, I have heard you; behold, I have blessed him and will make him fruitful and multiply him greatly. He shall father twelve princes, and I will make him into a great nation.
²¹  But I will establish my covenant with Isaac, whom Sarah shall bear to you at this time next year.”
²²  When he had finished talking with him, God went up from Abraham.

SEAL OF OBEDIENCE

Genesis 17:23-27 (ESV)
²³  Then Abraham took Ishmael his son and all those born in his house or bought with his money, every male among the men of Abraham”™s house, and he circumcised the flesh of their foreskins that very day, as God had said to him.
²⁴  Abraham was ninety-nine years old when he was circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin.
²⁵  And Ishmael his son was thirteen years old when he was circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin.
²⁶  That very day Abraham and his son Ishmael were circumcised.
²⁷  And all the men of his house, those born in the house and those bought with money from a foreigner, were circumcised with him.

What can we gain from these two chapters?

1. Do things God’s way and wait for God’s voice.

2. When God does speak, obey Him immediately.

3. Signs matter.

Sermon by Rev. Richard Jones

rec0730-112250

Sermon Series: The Story of Abraham

COVENANT OF GRACE

Genesis, Chapter 15

COUNTING THE STARS

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.

Romans 4:1-8 (ESV)
¹  What then shall we say was gained by Abraham, our forefather according to the flesh?
²  For if Abraham was justified by works, he has something to boast about, but not before God.
³  For what does the Scripture say? “Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness.”
⁴  Now to the one who works, his wages are not counted as a gift but as his due.
⁵  And to the one who does not work but believes in him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is counted as righteousness,
⁶  just as David also speaks of the blessing of the one to whom God counts righteousness apart from works:
⁷  “Blessed are those whose lawless deeds are forgiven, and whose sins are covered;
⁸  blessed is the man against whom the Lord will not count his sin.”

Three Points:

1. Everyone who has ever been saved has been saved by faith.

2. All people who have ever been saved have been saved by the blood of Jesus.

3. Christians are not only forgiven by the blood of Jesus but are justified by the righteousness of Jesus.

2 Corinthians 5:21 (ESV)
²¹  For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.

CUTTING THE ANIMALS

Genesis 15:7-11 (ESV)
⁷  And he said to him, “I am the LORD who brought you out from Ur of the Chaldeans to give you this land to possess.”
⁸  But he said, “O Lord GOD, how am I to know that I shall possess it?”
⁹  He said to him, “Bring me a heifer three years old, a female goat three years old, a ram three years old, a turtledove, and a young pigeon.”
¹⁰  And he brought him all these, cut them in half, and laid each half over against the other. But he did not cut the birds in half.
¹¹  And when birds of prey came down on the carcasses, Abram drove them away.

 CONFIRMING THE FUTURE

Genesis 15:12-16 (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.”

CRAFTING THE COVENANT

Genesis 15:17-21 (ESV)
¹⁷  When the sun had gone down and it was dark, behold, a smoking fire pot and a flaming torch passed between these pieces.
¹⁸  On that day the LORD made a covenant with Abram, saying, “To your offspring I give this land, from the river of Egypt to the great river, the river Euphrates,
¹⁹  the land of the Kenites, the Kenizzites, the Kadmonites,
²⁰  the Hittites, the Perizzites, the Rephaim,
²¹  the Amorites, the Canaanites, the Girgashites and the Jebusites.”

Sermon Application:

1. Our covenant is also unconditional.

2. God is still honored when we trust Him.

Sermon by Rev. Richard Jones

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(Note: Partial recording due to technical problems.)

(For remainder of sermon, see transcript below.)

 Sermon Series: The Story of Abraham

VICTORY OVER KINGS

Genesis, Chapter 14

INTRODUCTION TO WAR

Genesis 14:1-3 (ESV)
¹  In the days of Amraphel king of Shinar, Arioch king of Ellasar, Chedorlaomer king of Elam, and Tidal king of Goiim,
²  these kings made war with Bera king of Sodom, Birsha king of Gomorrah, Shinab king of Admah, Shemeber king of Zeboiim, and the king of Bela (that is, Zoar).
³  And all these joined forces in the Valley of Siddim (that is, the Salt Sea).

 RISKY REBELLION

Genesis 14:4-7 (ESV)
⁴  Twelve years they had served Chedorlaomer, but in the thirteenth year they rebelled.
⁵  In the fourteenth year Chedorlaomer and the kings who were with him came and defeated the Rephaim in Ashteroth-karnaim, the Zuzim in Ham, the Emim in Shaveh-kiriathaim,
⁶  and the Horites in their hill country of Seir as far as El-paran on the border of the wilderness.
⁷  Then they turned back and came to En-mishpat (that is, Kadesh) and defeated all the country of the Amalekites, and also the Amorites who were dwelling in Hazazon-tamar.

BIG BATTLE

Genesis 14:8-12 (ESV)
⁸  Then the king of Sodom, the king of Gomorrah, the king of Admah, the king of Zeboiim, and the king of Bela (that is, Zoar) went out, and they joined battle in the Valley of Siddim
⁹  with Chedorlaomer king of Elam, Tidal king of Goiim, Amraphel king of Shinar, and Arioch king of Ellasar, four kings against five.
¹⁰  Now the Valley of Siddim was full of bitumen pits, and as the kings of Sodom and Gomorrah fled, some fell into them, and the rest fled to the hill country.
¹¹  So the enemy took all the possessions of Sodom and Gomorrah, and all their provisions, and went their way.
¹²  They also took Lot, the son of Abram”™s brother, who was dwelling in Sodom, and his possessions, and went their way.

RESCUE BY THE FEW

Genesis 14:13-16 (ESV)
¹³  Then one who had escaped came and told Abram the Hebrew, who was living by the oaks of Mamre the Amorite, brother of Eshcol and of Aner. These were allies of Abram.
¹⁴  When Abram heard that his kinsman had been taken captive, he led forth his trained men, born in his house, 318 of them, and went in pursuit as far as Dan.
¹⁵  And he divided his forces against them by night, he and his servants, and defeated them and pursued them to Hobah, north of Damascus.
¹⁶  Then he brought back all the possessions, and also brought back his kinsman Lot with his possessions, and the women and the people.

Psalm 144:1 (ESV)
¹  Blessed be the LORD, my rock, who trains my hands for war, and my fingers for battle;

Deuteronomy 20:1-4 (ESV)
¹  “When you go out to war against your enemies, and see horses and chariots and an army larger than your own, you shall not be afraid of them, for the LORD your God is with you, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt.
²  And when you draw near to the battle, the priest shall come forward and speak to the people
³  and shall say to them, ”˜Hear, O Israel, today you are drawing near for battle against your enemies: let not your heart faint. Do not fear or panic or be in dread of them,
⁴  for the LORD your God is he who goes with you to fight for you against your enemies, to give you the victory.”™

“And the story turns again…”

TWO KINDS OF KINGS

Genesis 14:17-20 (ESV)
¹⁷  After his return from the defeat of Chedorlaomer and the kings who were with him, the king of Sodom went out to meet him at the Valley of Shaveh (that is, the King”™s Valley).
¹⁸  And Melchizedek king of Salem brought out bread and wine. (He was priest of God Most High.)
¹⁹  And he blessed him and said, “Blessed be Abram by God Most High, Possessor of heaven and earth;
²⁰  and blessed be God Most High, who has delivered your enemies into your hand!” And Abram gave him a tenth of everything.

“The king of Sodom shows up again, and praises Abram.”

“Melchizedek appears. He is described as the Priest-King of Salem. He brings out refreshments for Abram and his troops. ‘Melchizedek’ means ‘king of righteousness’ and ‘Salem’ means ‘peace.’ He is a GOD WORSHIPER. Abram is not alone.”

“The writer of Hebrews uses this man to illustrate the Priesthood of Jesus: Voluntary Priesthood (no inheritance), a Righteous Priesthood (pure devotion to the true God, El Elyon), a Timeless Priesthood (no genealogy), and a Superior Priesthood (long before Aaron).”

“The Priest of God blessed Abram and praised God. This was the right acknowledgement of who had given the victory. And Abram responded to the blessing in a proper way.”

ABRAM’S TRIBUTE

Genesis 14:20b (ESV)
²⁰ And Abram gave him a tenth of everything.

“Abram honored God by honoring this Priest of God, his only opportunity.”

“This is the first mention of the Tithe in the Bible. Note that it is presented as a tribute from Abram. It was voluntary, and it was a tribute to recognize that it was God who gave the victory. Later in history, Abram’s grandson, Jacob, would promise God a tithe based upon the example of his grandfather.”

“I believe that the Bible describes the tithe in two ways. First there is what I call the MANDATE OF MOSES. That order from God was for two purposes, two reasons. First, it was commanded so as to teach the people to Fear the Lord. Secondly, it was the practical method of providing for the people who worked at the Tabernacle and later the Temple.”

“What I call the TRIBUTE OF ABRAHAM was not that much different. It was voluntary. But it was also to Honor the Lord. It is presented in the Bible as a principle. God inspired Abram to give that amount.”

“It is my belief that Christians are not under the mandate of Moses. We are not commanded to tithe as an obligation. It is not a requirement that we must do no matter what. However, the principle of tithing still applies. It is still the percentage which God ordained from the start. It is His choice, not our imagination. This is the percentage which honors God, because it is the percentage which He inspired Abraham to give, and which He commanded His Old Testament people to present. It is, and always has been, the right thing to do. The principle still applies.”

“God speaks in…

1 Samuel 2:30 (ESV)
³⁰  …those who honor me I will honor, and those who despise me shall be lightly esteemed.

“That statement also applies to tithing. Those who honor God will be honored. It may be in a financial way, or it may be something else. But God will honor those who honor Him.”

“Now why should Christians tithe? For the same two reasons as before. First, just as before, it is the way to demonstrate God’s Lordship in the Christian’s life. In point of fact, 100% of what we have belongs to God. Secondly, it is still the practical method of financing God’s work in this world. The Gospel is free, but it takes money to get it to the people.”

“Let me make four quick observations about tithing, then I will move on with our story.

1. Set your heart to tithe.

2. Practice tithing and expect unexpected blessings.

3. Give beyond the tithe. The Jews did that.

4. Your tithe belongs to your local church.

Abram honored God in this way, and he is our example.”

“We conclude the story with what I call…

TURNED AWAY TREASURE

Genesis 14:21-24 (ESV)
²¹  And the king of Sodom said to Abram, “Give me the persons, but take the goods for yourself.”
²²  But Abram said to the king of Sodom, “I have lifted my hand to the LORD, God Most High, Possessor of heaven and earth,
²³  that I would not take a thread or a sandal strap or anything that is yours, lest you should say, ”˜I have made Abram rich.”™
²⁴  I will take nothing but what the young men have eaten, and the share of the men who went with me. Let Aner, Eshcol, and Mamre take their share.”

“The king of Sodom said, ‘Let’s make a deal.’ It was the custom for the winner to take the spoils. But Abram said, ‘I will not take your stuff. I will not compromise!’ (Like taking money from pornography).”

“Abram would live by the blessing of the Lord not the bribery of the world. He had learned his lesson from Egypt.  Yet he did not impose his personal convictions on others. He was an example, but only that. He had achieved his mission of freeing his family. The chapter closes with a victory from God. And that’s where we leave him in the story today. The story of Abraham, a man who was learning what it means to become a faithful follower of God Most High. Sometimes that even leads to VICTORY OVER KINGS.”

‘

Sermon by Rev. Richard Jones

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 Sermon Series: The Story of Abraham

BACK TO BETHEL

Genesis 12:10 – 13:18

FAILURE HUSBAND

Genesis 12:10-16 (ESV)
¹⁰  Now there was a famine in the land. So Abram went down to Egypt to sojourn there, for the famine was severe in the land.
¹¹  When he was about to enter Egypt, he said to Sarai his wife, “I know that you are a woman beautiful in appearance,
¹²  and when the Egyptians see you, they will say, ”˜This is his wife.”™ Then they will kill me, but they will let you live.
¹³  Say you are my sister, that it may go well with me because of you, and that my life may be spared for your sake.”
¹⁴  When Abram entered Egypt, the Egyptians saw that the woman was very beautiful.
¹⁵  And when the princes of Pharaoh saw her, they praised her to Pharaoh. And the woman was taken into Pharaoh”™s house.
¹⁶  And for her sake he dealt well with Abram; and he had sheep, oxen, male donkeys, male servants, female servants, female donkeys, and camels.

FURIOUS KING

Genesis 12:17-20 (ESV)
¹⁷  But the LORD afflicted Pharaoh and his house with great plagues because of Sarai, Abram”™s wife.
¹⁸  So Pharaoh called Abram and said, “What is this you have done to me? Why did you not tell me that she was your wife?
¹⁹  Why did you say, ”˜She is my sister,”™ so that I took her for my wife? Now then, here is your wife; take her, and go.”
²⁰  And Pharaoh gave men orders concerning him, and they sent him away with his wife and all that he had.

FIRST DEVOTON

Genesis 13:1-4 (ESV)
¹  So Abram went up from Egypt, he and his wife and all that he had, and Lot with him, into the Negeb.
²  Now Abram was very rich in livestock, in silver, and in gold.
³  And he journeyed on from the Negeb as far as Bethel to the place where his tent had been at the beginning, between Bethel and Ai,
⁴  to the place where he had made an altar at the first. And there Abram called upon the name of the LORD.

Isaiah 66:2 (ESV)
²  All these things my hand has made, and so all these things came to be, declares the LORD. But this is the one to whom I will look: he who is humble and contrite in spirit and trembles at my word.

FIGHTING HERDSMAN

Genesis 13:5-7 (ESV)
⁵  And Lot, who went with Abram, also had flocks and herds and tents,
⁶  so that the land could not support both of them dwelling together; for their possessions were so great that they could not dwell together,
⁷  and there was strife between the herdsmen of Abram”™s livestock and the herdsmen of Lot”™s livestock. At that time the Canaanites and the Perizzites were dwelling in the land.

FAVORED DIRECTION

Genesis 13:8-13 (ESV)
⁸  Then Abram said to Lot, “Let there be no strife between you and me, and between your herdsmen and my herdsmen, for we are kinsmen.
⁹  Is not the whole land before you? Separate yourself from me. If you take the left hand, then I will go to the right, or if you take the right hand, then I will go to the left.”
¹⁰  And Lot lifted up his eyes and saw that the Jordan Valley was well watered everywhere like the garden of the LORD, like the land of Egypt, in the direction of Zoar. (This was before the LORD destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah.)
¹¹  So Lot chose for himself all the Jordan Valley, and Lot journeyed east. Thus they separated from each other.
¹²  Abram settled in the land of Canaan, while Lot settled among the cities of the valley and moved his tent as far as Sodom.
¹³  Now the men of Sodom were wicked, great sinners against the LORD.

Psalm 1:1 (ESV)
¹  Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers;

FUTURE PROMISE

Genesis 13:14-18 (ESV)
¹⁴  The LORD said to Abram, after Lot had separated from him, “Lift up your eyes and look from the place where you are, northward and southward and eastward and westward,
¹⁵  for all the land that you see I will give to you and to your offspring forever.
¹⁶  I will make your offspring as the dust of the earth, so that if one can count the dust of the earth, your offspring also can be counted.
¹⁷  Arise, walk through the length and the breadth of the land, for I will give it to you.”
¹⁸  So Abram moved his tent and came and settled by the oaks of Mamre, which are at Hebron, and there he built an altar to the LORD.

FIVE POINTS:

1. Problems will come in a believer’s life.

2. Pray for guidance.

3. Humility is the path of power.

4. Trust God’s Word even when life seems ridiculous.

5. It’s never too late to go back to Bethel.

Sermon by Rev. Richard Jones

rec0709-113313

 Sermon Series: The Story of Abraham

CALL TO PROMISE

Genesis 12:1-9

A NEW BEGINNING

Genesis 12:1 (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.

A DIVINE COVENANT

Genesis 12:2-3 (ESV)
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.”

A TOTAL JOURNEY

Genesis 12:4-6 (ESV)
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.
⁵  And Abram took Sarai his wife, and Lot his brother”™s son, and all their possessions that they had gathered, and the people that they had acquired in Haran, and they set out to go to the land of Canaan. When they came to the land of Canaan,
⁶  Abram passed through the land to the place at Shechem, to the oak of Moreh. At that time the Canaanites were in the land.

A GRAND PROMISE

Genesis 12:7-8 (ESV)
⁷  Then the LORD appeared to Abram and said, “To your offspring I will give this land.” So he built there an altar to the LORD, who had appeared to him.
⁸  From there he moved to the hill country on the east of Bethel and pitched his tent, with Bethel on the west and Ai on the east. And there he built an altar to the LORD and called upon the name of the LORD.

A FRESH WALK

Genesis 12:8-9 (ESV)
⁸  From there he moved to the hill country on the east of Bethel and pitched his tent, with Bethel on the west and Ai on the east. And there he built an altar to the LORD and called upon the name of the LORD.
⁹  And Abram journeyed on, still going toward the Negeb.

John 15:4-5 (ESV)
⁴  Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me.
⁵  I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.