Posted on by Abe Austin

Spiritual Analysis- Genesis 18:16-21

16 And the men rose up from thence, and looked toward Sodom: and Abraham went with them to bring them on the way.

17 And the Lord said, Shall I hide from Abraham that thing which I 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 know him, that he will command his children and his household after him, and they shall keep the way of the Lord, to do justice and judgment; that the Lord may bring upon Abraham that which he hath spoken of him.

20 And the Lord said, Because the cry of Sodom and Gomorrah is great, and because their sin is very grievous;

21 I will go down now, and see whether they have done altogether according to the cry of it, which is come unto me; and if not, I will know.

I’m not sure if there are any other passages in the Bible that give as clear a picture into the mind of the Lord as this one does. We see how He weighs the quality of Abraham before telling Him that He will destroy Sodom and Gomorrah.

And this marks an important shift in the relationship between Abraham and God. This is God opening up to Abraham about His private plans, plans that deal with other people and not just Abraham. He is inviting Abraham to give Him his opinion, to counsel with Him, to be a partner and not just a servant. Jesus called out this exact sort of shift in relationship in John 15:15: “Henceforth I call you not servants; for the servant knoweth not what his lord doeth: but I have called you friends.”

And, as we will see tomorrow, Abraham does have counsel to offer. He will make a case to God, and God will take it very seriously because He respects Abraham’s opinion.

Posted on by Abe Austin

Scriptural Analysis- Genesis 18:1-8

1 And the Lord appeared unto him in the plains of Mamre: and he sat in the tent door in the heat of the day;

2 And he lift up his eyes and looked, and, lo, three men stood by him: and when he saw them, he ran to meet them from the tent door, and bowed himself toward the ground,

3 And said, My Lord, if now I have found favour in thy sight, pass not away, I pray thee, from thy servant:

4 Let a little water, I pray you, be fetched, and wash your feet, and rest yourselves under the tree:

5 And I will fetch a morsel of bread, and comfort ye your hearts; after that ye shall pass on: for therefore are ye come to your servant. And they said, So do, as thou hast said.

6 And Abraham hastened into the tent unto Sarah, and said, Make ready quickly three measures of fine meal, knead it, and make cakes upon the hearth.

7 And Abraham ran unto the herd, and fetcht a calf tender and good, and gave it unto a young man; and he hasted to dress it.

8 And he took butter, and milk, and the calf which he had dressed, and set it before them; and he stood by them under the tree, and they did eat.

I decided to include all eight above verses because I wanted to stress how Abraham went above and beyond when caring for the Lord and His companions. He ran to meet the Lord and His companions where they were, he bowed before them, he offered food, he had their feet washed, he went beyond the promised “morsel of bread” to fresh cakes, veal, milk, and butter, and he gave them this sudden feast under the pleasant shade of a tree, standing attentively by while they ate.

Is there any question how Abraham views his relation to the Lord? Is there any doubt of the immense respect that he has to Him? Abraham reveres the Lord. He knows that he is God’s servant, and he insists upon serving Him to the utmost of his capabilities. And as I read this passage I am swept with a feeling of “I wish I were a servant like that.”

Posted on by Abe Austin

Scriptural Analysis- Genesis 17:23, 26

23 And Abraham took Ishmael his son, and all that were born in his house, and all that were bought with his money, every male among the men of Abraham’s house; and circumcised the flesh of their foreskin in the selfsame day, as God had said unto him.

26 In the selfsame day was Abraham circumcised, and Ishmael his son.

When the Lord said that every male in Abraham’s house needed to be circumcised to become a part of the covenant, Abraham did not hesitate to follow. Notice that verses 23 and 26 both stress that Abraham followed through on these instructions in the selfsame day.

There have been times where I have received spiritual guidance and decided to “get to work on that…soon.” Which of course meant not doing anything to follow it right away, just sort of letting it stew around in the back of my mind until I forgot about it and never followed through. And it wasn’t that I meant to disobey, but I wasn’t prioritizing it, which proved to be a very slippery slope.

Procrastination is often the first step towards disobedience, and promptness the first towards faithfulness.

Posted on by Abe Austin

Scriptural Analysis- Genesis 17:17-21

17 Then Abraham fell upon his face, and laughed, and said in his heart, Shall a child be born unto him that is an hundred years old? and shall Sarah, that is ninety years old, bear?

18 And Abraham said unto God, O that Ishmael might live before thee!

19 And God said, Sarah thy wife shall bear thee a son indeed; and thou shalt call his name Isaac: and I will establish my covenant with him for an everlasting covenant, and with his seed after him.

20 And as for Ishmael, I have heard thee: Behold, I have blessed him, and will make him fruitful, and will multiply him exceedingly; twelve princes shall he beget, and I will make him a great nation.

21 But my covenant will I establish with Isaac, which Sarah shall bear unto thee at this set time in the next year.

Abraham was incredulous when God pronounced that he and Sarah would have a child in their old age, and he suggested that God establish His covenants with Ishmael instead. God acknowledges the request, explaining that he has a separate covenant made for Ishmael, but He also stresses that Sarah will indeed bear a son. He even gives a very precise deadline for the event, foretelling that Isaac will be born at this same time one year from now.

Many times we hold out hope for God’s promises, and then feel crushed when we perceive them as being unfulfillable. In our natural lives things expire, what was possible becomes impossible, and that which is not accomplished in the right season won’t be accomplished at all. Abraham had heard before this promise that he and Sarah would have a son, but he had perceived that opportunity as being expired, due to their old age.

But God does not operate under the same constraints as the rest of us. At times it might seem “too late,” or “physically impossible” for Him to fulfill His promises to us. But no matter, He’ll do it anyway!

Posted on by Abe Austin

Scriptural Analysis- Genesis 17:15-16

15 And God said unto Abraham, As for Sarai thy wife, thou shalt not call her name Sarai, but Sarah shall her name be.

16 And I will bless her, and give thee a son also of her: yea, I will bless her, and she shall be a mother of nations; kings of people shall be of her.

Earlier Abram received his new name and became Abraham. Now it is Sarai’s turn, and her new name, Sarah, means “Princess,” which is explained in the statement “kings of people shall be of her.” Abraham’s new name signified that he would be the patriarch of many nations, Sarah’s new name signified that those nations would be populated with heroes and royalty, figures both mighty and important.

Just consider a few examples of the progeny that would come through this “princess:” Joseph the prince of Egypt, Moses the liberator, Joshua the conqueror, Gideon the miracle fighter, Samuel the counselor to kings, David the warrior-poet, Solomon the wise monarch, Samson the strong, Daniel the faithful, Elijah the caller-down of fire, Esther the bold queen, and of course Jesus the savior of the world.

Abraham and Sarah were going to be the foundation for something great and powerful, and now they had names to reflect that. I do wonder what sort of insight they might have had as to the caliber of their future family. Did they ever have visions of the mighty sons and daughters that would look back and revere them?

Posted on by Abe Austin

Scriptural Analysis- Genesis 17:7, 9-11, 14

7 And I will establish my covenant between me and thee and thy seed after thee in their generations for an everlasting covenant, to be a God unto thee, and to thy seed after thee.

9 And God said unto Abraham, Thou shalt keep my covenant therefore, thou, and thy seed after thee in their generations.

10 This is my covenant, which ye shall keep, between me and you and thy seed after thee; Every man child among you shall be circumcised.

11 And ye shall circumcise the flesh of your foreskin; and it shall be a token of the covenant betwixt me and you.

14 And the uncircumcised man child whose flesh of his foreskin is not circumcised, that soul shall be cut off from his people; he hath broken my covenant.

The promises that God had for Abraham were not for Abraham only. In order for the promises to come true, they would need to be reiterated to all of Abraham’s willing descendants. Abraham wasn’t going to have a nation of children immediately in the next generation, so his children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren, and beyond would all have to be included in the promise of raising a great nation and possessing the land of Canaan.

This is a very special sort of perpetual blessing. Usually when I think of a promise from God what comes to mind is a personal thing. I receive my promises from God and you receive yours, and just because God gives one person one thing does not mean He is likely to give the same thing to someone else. But, evidently, sometimes a promise from God is made to a group, or even to an entire line of posterity.

And this is a foreshadowing of the New Testament covenants that Jesus would later introduce. Covenants that would be offered even more liberally, to the entire human race instead of just one family line!

Though not necessarily all of Abraham’s descendants were going to be part of his covenant, and not necessarily all of humanity will be part of the New Testament covenants either. All of Abraham’s descendants could be, but it would depend upon them showing God a specific sign, which was being circumcised, and following a specific law. And the New Testament covenants are also fully entered into by showing God certain signs, such as baptism, and by following Jesus’s higher law.

Posted on by Abe Austin

Scriptural Analysis- Genesis 17:1-6

1 And when Abram was ninety years old and nine, the Lord appeared to Abram, and said unto him, I am the Almighty God; walk before me, and be thou perfect. 

2 And I will make my covenant between me and thee, and will multiply thee exceedingly. 

3 And Abram fell on his face: and God talked with him, saying, 

4 As for me, behold, my covenant is with thee, and thou shalt be a father of many nations. 

5 Neither shall thy name any more be called Abram, but thy name shall be Abraham; for a father of many nations have I made thee. 

6 And I will make thee exceeding fruitful, and I will make nations of thee, and kings shall come out of thee.

It has really stood out to me in this study just how many times God reiterates His promises to Abram, and each time He does so it seems to be more earnest and intimate, drawing Abram closer and closer. The last time He led him through a solemn ritual covenant, and this time He is giving Abram a new name.

Receiving a new name is a very significant and privately sacred event. Each of us is assigned a name when we are born. Sometimes this is a reference to someone that our parents respect, but who may not be anything like us. We might receive a nickname from friends later in life, based off of a single character trait or a memorable event, but this also falls short of defining who we really are. But what if we could be given a name by someone who understood us perfectly, someone who had made us, and knew the very purpose for which He had done so?

Receiving a new name from God is a sign of His fatherhood over us, a way that He claims us as His own. A few years ago I was introduced to the idea of asking God what names or titles He has for me, and if you’ve never done this yourself, I recommend trying it and seeing what happens. Just be sure you avoid the temptation of speaking for Him, though. It will only be a significant experience if it truly comes from God and not your own imagination.

In Abram’s case, there were many qualities that God could have singled out while giving him his new name. Abram had fought the armies of Elam, but God did not call him Abram the Warrior. Abram would become known for digging wells later in his life, but God did not call him Abram the Well-Digger. No, God knew that the primary defining trait of his son would be that of a patriarch, a father of many nations, a revered and respected head of a tremendous family. And so his name became Abraham.

Posted on by Abe Austin

Scriptural Analysis- Genesis 11:26-31

26 And Terah lived seventy years, and begat Abram, Nahor, and Haran.

27 Now these are the generations of Terah: Terah begat Abram, Nahor, and Haran; and Haran begat Lot.

28 And Haran died before his father Terah in the land of his nativity, in Ur of the Chaldees.

29 And Abram and Nahor took them wives: the name of Abram’s wife was Sarai; and the name of Nahor’s wife, Milcah, the daughter of Haran, the father of Milcah, and the father of Iscah.

30 But Sarai was barren; she had no child.

31 And Terah took Abram his son, and Lot the son of Haran his son’s son, and Sarai his daughter in law, his son Abram’s wife; and they went forth with them from Ur of the Chaldees, to go into the land of Canaan; and they came unto Haran, and dwelt there.

The genealogical verses aren’t the most exciting passages of scripture to me, and I usually skim past them to get to the actual stories. But this time I at least paid attention to the relationships around Abraham, and it was fascinating to gain some context for his story.

Here we meet Terah, who has three sons: Abram (later Abraham), Nahor, and Haran. Haran died earlier than the rest, but he had a son named Lot, who became a sort of stand-in for his father. Throughout the rest of the record we hear about him as if he was the third brother: Abram, Nahor, and Lot.

Haran also had a daughter before he died, named Milcah, who married Abram’s other brother, Nahor. Nahor and Milcah later had a grand-daughter named Rebekah, who would become the wife of Abram’s son Isaac. In later chapters we will also have revealed to us that Sarai was actually Abram’s half-sister, the daughter of his father Terah, but not of his mother.

I’ve never before given so much consideration to Abram’s family before. I didn’t reflect on the fact that he was a son and a brother, and that those ties affected him throughout the rest of his tale. In fact, his story begins as that family splits up. Terah, the father, leaves for Canaan with Abram and Lot, but Nahor stays behind.

At this point a place called Canaan may not sound very significant, but we’ll be hearing a lot about it later on. It is to be the home of the Israelite kingdom after they flee Egypt, and the majority of the Biblical narrative takes place there. For now, though, the family doesn’t quite make it to Canaan. They stop instead at the nearby city of Haran, which has the same name as Abram’s deceased brother, but I don’t know whether the two are connected.

Posted on by Abe Austin

Free Will vs God’s Control- Genesis 22:1-2, 10-12

And it came to pass after these things, that God did tempt Abraham, and said unto him, Abraham: and he said, Behold, here I am.
And he said, Take now thy son, thine only son Isaac, whom thou lovest, and get thee into the land of Moriah; and offer him there for a burnt offering upon one of the mountains which I will tell thee of.
And Abraham stretched forth his hand, and took the knife to slay his son.
And the angel of the Lord called unto him out of heaven, and said, Abraham, Abraham: and he said, Here am I.
And he said, Lay not thine hand upon the lad, neither do thou any thing unto him: for now I know that thou fearest God, seeing thou hast not withheld thy son, thine only son from me.

COMMENTARY

And Abraham stretched forth his hand, and took the knife to slay his son
Lay not thine hand upon the lad, neither do thou any thing unto him
Evidently, Abraham was not going to sacrifice his son, no matter whether he chose to follow God’s direction or not. God was going to intervene, and thus funnel Abraham’s life back to the other branch regardless.
But would we say that Abraham did not have any agency in this matter? Did he not still make a decision, and in so doing permanently change something within himself? Though the outcome was the same either way, the exercise still mattered, if only on an internal level.
It is true that foreknowledge would destroy free will, but only if it were held in the same being that was making the choices. If that foreknowledge belongs to a separate being, such as God, than the other may still choose freely.
Consider the example of a game show. Does the fact that the game’s creators already know which prize is behind which door negate the player’s choice between them? Certainly not.

Posted on by Abe Austin

Personal Promises- Galatians 3:26-27, 29; Mark 10:39, Matthew 3:16-17

For ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus.
For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ.
And if ye be Christ’s, then are ye Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.

And Jesus said unto them, Ye shall indeed drink of the cup that I drink of; and with the baptism that I am baptized withal shall ye be baptized:

And Jesus, when he was baptized, went up straightway out of the water: and, lo, the heavens were opened unto him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove, and lighting upon him:
And lo a voice from heaven, saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.

COMMENTARY

And if ye be Christ’s, then are ye Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise
We have spent some time examining the covenant blessings, which we noted were given through Abraham to all his generations. To inherit eternal life we must come through that same covenant lineage, which is made possible to all of us by being adopted through Jesus Christ.

For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ
Being adopted through Jesus Christ requires being baptized into him. Thus all that have this baptism will, by default, inherit the blessings of Abraham.

And Jesus said unto them, Ye shall indeed drink of the cup that I drink of; and with the baptism that I am baptized withal shall ye be baptized:
Note that this is not just any baptism, though. Language like “baptized into Christ” and “the baptism that I am baptized with” seem to suggest that we are supposed to have the same experience with our baptism that he did. And what exactly was that baptism experience?

And the heavens were opened unto him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove, and lighting upon him: And lo a voice from heaven, saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.
Jesus, it turns out, was a direct descendant of Abraham. Therefore he already had all of the same covenant promises by default. But God is not a God of “by default.” When Jesus was baptized it was accompanied by a personal declaration of divine approval.
This is the baptism experience Jesus intends for us. Not some impersonal wetting and an assumption of blessings received, but rather a direct and personal affirmation from God Himself.
If you have already been baptized and it lacked this sort of grandeur, don’t feel bad. That was my situation as well, but I learned that this moment of affirmation will still come. It will come, but only when you are ready and the time is right.