Walking through His Word Bible Study: June 2018

Hello, welcome back to our study in Genesis. We have a lot to consider in this lesson, so lets get right to.

Gen. 17

God Establishes His Covenant

When we finished up chapter 16, it was with the birth of Ishmael. It has now been 13 years since then. And once again, we find God speaking with Abram. Notice how God introduces himself: I am the God Almighty. This is the first time we are introduced to God by this name. Why would God start off His conversation this way? Because He is fixing to declare what would seem impossible.

Remember that Abram was 75 years old when God commanded him to leave his home. He was 86 when Ishmael was born. Now he is 99 years old.

As we read chapter 17, there is a key phrase repeated several times, “I will establish my covenant…” God then goes on to declare what HE WILL DO. In fact, look at verse 4, He says, “as for Me…” notice at this point, it is all God, He has yet to say what Abram’s role is to be.

The phrase “I will establish…” God is the one determining what He wants to do, so since He is the one declaring it, He will also be the one to bring it to pass.

Look up Isa. 46:10-11 and write down the key points that reflect what He is saying here in Gen. 17.
Now look up Ps. 138:8. What does it say?

In verse 5 of Gen. 17, God makes a statement that would seem contrary… “I have made you…” Notice He did not say, “I WILL make you…” God spoke as if He already had.

How can He state this? Because He is God and sees the end from the beginning. He is all-knowing, and because He is, He can declare what is to be as if it already were.

Read Isa. 49:8 with me: Thus says the Lord, “In a favorable time I have answered you, and in a day of salvation, I have helped you.

Again, here we see God speaking of something He will do in the future as if He already has accomplished it. And since He has spoken it, His Word will not come back void (as it says in Isa.55).

In verse 19 of Gen. 17, God tells Abraham that his to be son shall be called Isaac. Again, speaking as if the child were already born.

How does Abraham respond? He laughed (in his heart) as if to say, “yeah right” and then went on to suggest that God’s promise be brought about through Ishmael. Why would Abraham suggest this? Maybe because he looked at how old he was now and was to tired to let his hopes get up again for something that would seem impossible.

So, what was God’s response? God didn’t take offense, instead, He reassured Abraham that He would indeed have a son, and what is more, is that the child will be from his wife (Sarah). Hence starting out His conversation with the “I am the Almighty God”

El Shaddai: This name of God means exactly what it says. He is the Almighty One, the Powerful One, or Mighty One. Some think this name also means that He is the All-Sufficient One.

After declaring what He Himself would do, God goes on to say “And as for you (Abram)…”

He told Abram to walk before Him and be blameless, in other words to live as God would have him live. This was not to say that he had not been doing this, but it was a command from God to keep on living as he should.

God then began to speak of covenant again. He then changed Abram’s name to “Abraham.”

And what was the promise behind this name? God promised that nations and kings would come from Abraham.

NOTE: In Genesis 12:2, it says that God told Abram He would make him a great nation. Here God said He would make him the father of a multitude of nations. The great nation promised in Genesis 12 was the nation of Israel that came out of Egypt in very large number.

What else did He promise? God said that His covenant with Abraham and his descendants would be an everlasting covenant and that the land will be theirs forever. In fact, He stated twice that He will be their God.

In Verses 9-14 God talks about the circumcision.

Abraham and his descendants were to keep this as a condition of the covenant.

Why did God declare a circumcision and not something else as the sign? What about women? And, isn’t circumcision part of the Law?

The physical location of circumcision is the place closest to the seed that God told Abraham would come forth from his own body. It was a sign of the promise God made to Abraham for descendants. Also, since the lineage is through the men (and not the women), the sign of the covenant was unnecessary for the women.

NOTE: The circumcision was instituted as a sign of the Abrahamic Covenant, not of the Law as sometimes is assumed. It was given by God many years earlier than the Law was given.

What did Abraham do? He believed God and put action to his faith. He didn’t mole it over, he didn’t think about it for a few days… No ON THE VERY SAME DAY Abraham took and active step of faith.

What is faith? The ability to trust that something is true before you see it manifested.

Look up James 1:22-24 and write it down.

And then of course read and write down Heb. 11:6

God also made a promise concerning Sarai, and changed her name to Sarah, meaning “princess.”

God made a promise concerning Ishmael as well. God said that he would be fruitful and multiply and be the father of twelve princes and a great nation. But the covenant promises would go to Isaac whom Sarah would bear to Abraham at the same season the next year.

GENESIS 18

The Time has Come

The Lord appeared to Abraham again by the oaks of Mamre in Hebron (which is where Abraham had built an alter to the Lord in Gen. 13.

So how did the Lord appear to Abraham this time? He was one of three men.

Something to consider while reading chapter 18; God could have given His message to Abraham through a vision, or an angel. But He didn’t. Instead, God came down in person (this is the second time we see Jesus manifested in the Old Testament). Not only did God make it personal, but Jesus ate a meal with Abraham (thus having fellowship with him).

Where was Sarah during all this? Inside the tent listening to their conversation. What was her reaction about the timing? She laughed. But there must have been some bitterness in her laugh, or something, because when Abraham laughed at the idea in Gen. 17, God didn’t say anything. But here, where we see Sarah laugh, one might almost think it was more of a scoffed laugh. The reason being is Jesus’ response.

The Lord who asked Abraham why Sarah laughed, which she quickly denied. However, God being all-knowing, knew better. And His reply? Is there anything to difficult for God?

We have to keep in mind, that so far, we haven’t seen God do the impossible yet.

What did the Lord tell Abraham in verses 9-10? At that time the next year, Sarah would have a son (look back at the timing to Genesis 17:21). So apparently Genesis 17 and 18 were very close in time.

Look up Romans 4:18-21. Even though he knew that there was no physical way that Sarah and he could produce a child, he believed what the Lord told him. He wasn’t weak in faith. In fact, he was fully assured / convinced that what God promised, He was able to perform.

He came to a decision to believe that nothing was too difficult / hard for the Lord.

Look at the last part of Gen. 18. God didn’t hide from Abraham what He was going to do, because in him all nations of the earth will be blessed. God chose him so that he could command all those nations who would come from him to do right according to the Lord’s ways.

What does Amos 3:7 say?

Because God considered Abraham a friend, He confided in him what He (God) was going to do.

Look up Isa. 41:8
Look up Ps. 25:14
And finally look up John 15:13-16 and summarize it.

My friend, only a friend would feel comfortable enough to “nose in” and ask questions the way Abraham dared to do.

Why do you think Abraham kept dwindling the numbers down?

Who do you think Abraham was thinking about when he asked if God would spare the city for 10 people? I will give you a hint… Abraham called him family.

One last thought about this lesson: God said from generation to generation. So, what are we to do to ensure that generations after knows God’s ways? We are to teach them.

Look up Ps. 78:1-8 and summarize what you read.

My friend, that is all for this lesson, I hope you are encouraged and will take God’s message to heart.

Kassie

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