Lessons From Stephen's Speech | Abraham & Lot - Live By Faith And Not By Sight

 

This message was preached by  Asha Matthew via zoom  Word of Grace Church, on August  30th 2020. For the audio please click here.  

We are looking at the life of Abram. 

Today what we are going to see is Abram is tested again and how he is going to respond to that. 

-Two roads diverged in a wood...Poem

These are words by Robert Frost in his poem The Road Less Traveled.

- In Genesis 13,  we have two men and a fork in the road. Where before these two men had travelled together and they now choose to take separate and different paths. One ends up losing his possessions and family. The other gains blessing and honour. The two men are Abram and his nephew Lot.

- Context:  Abram and Lot are returning with their families from Egypt to the land of Canaan.  In chapter 12 we can see an Abram who  cares about himself and who is willing to send his wife to Pharoh to save himself, but in chapter 13 we see him as a person who cares about others more than anything. How did Abram get his priorities right?

1)Worship realigns our priorities :

-This chapter begins and ends with Abram praying at an altar he built.

-  The location of Abram’s altar in Bethel is later the location where Jacob met the Lord in a dream (Gen. 28:10-22), and later built an altar to the Lord (Gen. 35:1).

- Abram goes back to where he last left off his worship. In a land of idol worshippers, he is worshipping a true and living God.

-Alter means a place of surrender. In spite of his mistakes, God is treating him well. He blessed Abram even in Egypt. And at the beginning of 13, Abram is seeking God's presence and is worshipping him. 

-God is faithful and his grace is always there for us. We must always go back to the altar, we have to seek his presence. Worship restores our relationship with the Lord.

- Abram makes better decisions when his worship is right with the Lord. It is never how bad or how often you fall in your life, but it is all about but how fast you return to the Lord.

- A good sign of how you know you are growing in grace is how fast you return to the Lord. When we worship, rather than focusing on our faults we need to focus on His goodness. Worship puts life back in order!

-  We need to seek his presence daily. When the first things are put first, the priorities align and the rest will fall into place. Worship is to say that God is first. 

-  Worship is being in his presence abiding in him. In the GYM groups we are learning about Abiding in his presence and last week we learned that Being in his presence is more important than doing. And our fruitfulness in life is all about the degree to which we are abiding.

-When we set our priorities right we start making the right choices. 

 

2)Our  Choices reveal our Character:

-Verse 5-14 Their possessions were soo much that the land could not support them.  There is a strife between the herdsmen of Abram and Lot. Abram is taking the initiative to resolve this issue. 

- How Abram responded when conflict and disagreement arose in his family. Abram lets  Lot take the decision. 

-Abraham is elder and the Lord promised the land to Abraham, not to Lot.

-  Abram is a peacemaker.  Being a peacemaker means you have to place others’ interests above our own.

 -Lot lifted up his eyes and selects the Jordan valley.  And for his physical eyes, that was satisfying. On the other hand, Abram saw the promised land and he makes a choice to go there.

- Lot looked in self-sufficiency; Abram looked in perfect trust. Both of them make their choices and separates them from each other. 

-Lot's choices had a lot of consequences. His choice would prove disastrous because over time it would draw him into Sodom’s ways. 

-In verse 12 we see that Lot pitched his tent near Sodom and in Chapter 14: 12 we can see that Lot is a resident of Sodom. 

- Lot saw things with his natural eyes and disregarded the fact that his choice is dangerous. 

 All choices have implications beyond the moment.

- Sin always begins with compromise and ends up costing us way more than we wanted to pay and take us further way far than we ever expected to go and keep us way longer than we expected to stay. 

In Genesis chapter 19 we can see that Lot is a businessman in Sodom.

- Learning from  Lot's Life -  Life is full of choices and the decision we make decides our destiny. We must learn to make wise choices. 

- We have choices to make in life may be regarding our career, or regarding our job or about marriage, or about our children. Some choices may look good but they may be spirituality bad. Especially about marriage-  we need to choose the person according to the  Word not according to the World. ( 2 Corinthians 6:14)

-  Lot's story gives us a warning about the choices we make. 

- Be separated from anyone or anything that hinders our being right with Jesus, especially we need to be separated from Sin.2 Corin7:1.

- God will bless a separated life.

- Abram and Lot now choose to take separate and different paths.

3) Rest in God's promises and in  his provision

Verse 14-18

-The Lord’s restate his promises. He is not only reassuring Abram about his promises He is expanding his promises.  

- Hebrews 11:10.Abram was looking at the Promise-giver more than the promises.

-  Lord is saying to Abram,   lift up your eyes, arise, walk through the land and Abram obeys the voice of the Lord. The look of faith leads to the walk of faith.

- The Lord’s restatement of the Promise in chapter 13 indicates that despite Abram’s failure in chapter 12, God’s grace continues through His Covenant.

- Abram pitched his tent near Mamre close to Hebron. Mamre means "Fatness" and Hebron means "Fellowship". There again he builds an altar to the Lord. Abram has settled down in a place of blessing and closeness to the Lord. He is living a life of close fellowship.

- God has promised us a life of glory through his son Jesus. Joy unspeakable and peace that passes human understanding.The supply of all your needs.Wisdom and guidance of His Spirit. (Philippines 4:7, Philippines 4:19, Ephesians 1: 13-14, Ephesians 3:12, 1Peter 1: 8)

- God’s promises for his children aren’t yours until you personally possess them, apply them to your life.

 -  We are called to worship Him, and to choose what is right and reveal his nature to others and to rest in his promises and provision.

-   Do we trust God as our provider?  Where are we in our relationship and walk with God this morning? Are we as close as we should be?  Is worship the number one priority in y

our life? Do we trust his promises over our life? 

- Examine our heart and pray that like Abram, our life and choices will be characterized by our faith and by our obedience to the voice of God. Let's decide that from today like Abram, above everything and every circumstance we will walk and live by faith not by sight.

Word of Grace is an Evangelical (Born Again),  Spirit-filled (Charismatic), Reformed, English speaking church in Pune that upholds the Bible as God's inspired Word for life. We are a church community that has people from every part of India and parts of the world. We are here to put the Great Command and the Great Commission into practice by equipping and releasing every member into works of service.  Word of Grace is a part of a wider international family of Churches called RegionsBeyond.To know more about us please log onto www.wordofgracechurch.org. 

Lessons from Stephens Speech Part 3 | A Godly Response To Conflict

 

This message was preached by Shoma Peter via zoom  Word of Grace Church, on August  30th 2020. For the audio please click here.  

a godly response to a conflict

We face different kinds of conflict in our life. As a Christian how are we supposed to respond to these conflicts? In today’s scripture, we will see how Abraham got into a conflict situation with Lot and how Abraham and Lot responded to this conflict. Let us thereby learn from Abraham’s godly response and mistakes of Lot.

 Scripture for today - Genesis 13:1-18.

A. RESPONSE OF ABRAHAM

1. Abraham pursued peace

Genesis 13:8

So, Abram said to Lot, “Let’s not have any quarrelling between you and me, or between your herders and mine, for we are close relatives. 

Abraham was blessed by God abundantly, but those possessions didn’t possess him. Being the eldest and having a promise from God concerning the land, Abraham could have taken the decision of throwing out Lot and his herdsmen from the land. However, he chose to pursue peace over prosperity.

Hebrew 12:14

Make every effort to live in peace with everyone and to be holy; without holiness no one will see the Lord. 

 

Whenever we are in a strife always, pursue peace.

 

2. Abraham trusted in the Lord  

Genesis 13:9

Is not the whole land before you? Let’s part company. If you go to the left, I’ll go to the right; if you go to the right, I’ll go to the left.”

 Abraham knew that the source of his blessing is God and not the land where he dwells. He walked by faith and not by sight. He believed God can bless him anywhere.

Proverbs 3:5-6

          5 Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding;

         6 in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight.

 Always trust in the Lord in every circumstance.

 

BLESSINGS

Abraham already had a promise from God. But after Lot left, God reaffirmed His promise to Abraham in detail.

Genesis 13: 14-17

14 The Lord said to Abram after Lot had parted from him, “Look around from where you are, to the north and south, to the east and west. 15 All the land that you see I will give to you and your offspring forever. 16 I will make your offspring like the dust of the earth, so that if anyone could count the dust, then your offspring could be counted. 17 Go, walk through the length and breadth of the land, for I am giving it to you.

B. RESPONSE OF LOT

It is good to learn from the godly responses of our spiritual fathers. But it is also good to learn from the mistakes of others. Let us look into the mistakes that Lot did.

                                                                  

1.Lot walked by sight and not by faith.

Genesis 13:10-11

10 Lot looked around and saw that the whole plain of the Jordan toward Zoar was well watered, like the garden of the Lord, like the land of Egypt. (This was before the Lord destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah.) 11 So Lot chose for himself the whole plain of the Jordan and set out toward the east. The two men parted company.

 Lot chose what he saw with his physical eyes instead of humbling himself and asking his uncle to have the first choice. Abraham was there for him when his father died and took care of him all this while. Lot immediately grabbed the opportunity to take the land that looked green and well-watered, for himself. He could only see the financial blessing he would get by choosing that green land. If he had walked by faith trusting in the Lord, God would have given him a better place.

We should always trust in God and walk by faith in every situation.

2. Lot chose to dwell near the ungodly

Genesis 13:12-13

12 Abram lived in the land of Canaan, while Lot lived among the cities of the plain and pitched his tents near Sodom. 13 Now the people of Sodom were wicked and were sinning greatly against the Lord.

 Lot pursued prosperity and he pitched his tent near the ungodly. There is nothing wrong in talking to the ungodly. In fact, we should always seek for an opportunity to share the gospel with them. The way we got saved, others should also be saved. But the bible says we should not dwell in the company of ungodly. Lot had a choice but he chose to settle in Sodom, as it would lead him to financial growth. In Genesis 19, we read that Lot, later on, got settled in Sodom with the wicked people. He only saw the financial blessing from that place but never thought how bad it could impact his family spiritually. He compromised his spiritual well-being for prosperity.

 

DOWNFALL

 

The end result of this response was a downfall. Sodom was destroyed due to their great sin and Lot while running away from that place lost his wife and had to hide in cave with his daughters.

 

What do we learn from this message?

 In a conflict situation we should always

 Pursue peace.

·        Trust God.

·        Never compromise spiritual well-being.

Word of Grace is an Evangelical (Born Again),  Spirit-filled (Charismatic), Reformed, English speaking church in Pune that upholds the Bible as God's inspired Word for life. We are a church community that has people from every part of India and parts of the world. We are here to put the Great Command and the Great Commission into practice by equipping and releasing every member into works of service.  Word of Grace is a part of a wider international family of Churches called RegionsBeyond.To know more about us please log onto www.wordofgracechurch.org. 

Faith And Failure Of Abraham

 

This message was preached by Colin D'Cruz via zoom  Word of Grace Church, on August  23rd 2020. For the audio please click here.  For the worship please click here

Faith and Failure of Abraham

All through the Bible, we see mainly 2 themes -

1. What has gone wrong
2. How God would put it right

The book of Genesis is the fundamental book. All the other truths in the rest of the Bible are found in Genesis. If we didn't have the book of Genesis, will Exodus and then the other books make any sense? Across the Bible, we see many narratives. We may think they are just stories. But God conveyed truths through these stories/narratives.

Let's look at Genesis chapter 12.

1. God's favour was on Abraham

Abraham's family was in Ur near Harran. Ur is a city in the region of Mesopotamia.
It was an excellent city which was well developed. God calls Abram and asks him to leave this city of Ur which means to leave a life of security, family, wealth and go to a place chosen by God. The Lord had said to Abram, “Go from your country, your people and your father’s household to the land I will show you. - Genesis 12:1 NIV

Why did God choose Abram?
God chooses people not because of the good in them but because His mercy, Grace and favor.

We see that the Bible reveals not just the successes but also the failures.

A great blessing was promised to Abraham by God -

“I will make you into a great nation, and I will bless you; I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing.  I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse, and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you.” - Genesis 12:2-3 NIV

The Lord appeared to Abram and said, “To your offspring, I will give this land.” So he built an altar there to the Lord, who had appeared to him. - Genesis 12:7 NIV

We may think what does it have to do with me?

Let's look at Galatians 3:14

He redeemed us in order that the blessing given to Abraham might come to the Gentiles through Christ Jesus so that by faith we might receive the promise of the Spirit. - Galatians 3:14 NIV

This is the link now! Some thousands of years ago a promise was given to Abraham.

Jesus Christ came to this world, sacrifices His life, redeemed us in order that the blessing was given to Abraham some thousands of years ago would come to us through Christ himself.

This is a huge blessing!

* I will make you a great Nation

Thought Abraham and Sarah didn't have children and while they were old and Sarah was barren, God gave this promise to Abraham.

We may think how does this apply to me?
This is how bit applies - We are a part of that promised Nation.

* I will bless you

We see that there were temporal blessings and spiritual blessings.

For us, today, we can also receive that blessing.

And my God will meet all your needs according to the riches of his glory in Christ Jesus. - Philippians 4:19 NIV

... I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full. - John 10:10 NIV

* I will make your name great

Even after thousands of years, the Jews, Muslims and Christians know Abraham and honor him. If he had stayed in Ur, Harran, nobody would've heard his name.

* I will bless those who bless you and whoever curses you I will curse

This is a precious promise!

All the people on earth will be blessed through Abraham. Yes, we are blessed through Abraham.

  

2. Abraham's faith in God

Moving to the Land God called him to was not an easy thing to do.
But Abraham was -

* Quick to obey
As he obeyed God and went, he encountered God

* True worshipper
Abraham moved to Canaan and among all the Canaanites, Abraham was the only true worshipper of God

The Lord appeared to Abram and said, “To your offspring I will give this land.” So he built an altar there to the Lord , who had appeared to him. - Genesis 12:7 NIV

From there he went on toward the hills east of Bethel and pitched his tent, with Bethel on the west and Ai on the east. There he built an altar to the Lord and called on the name of the Lord . - Genesis 12:8 NIV

 

3. Abraham's failure and God's grace

What we see throughout the Bible is that whenever we obey God, we see trials and testing. We see the same happen to Abraham.

Now there was a famine in the land, and Abram went down to Egypt to live there for a while because the famine was severe. As he was about to enter Egypt, he said to his wife Sarai, “I know what a beautiful woman you are. -Genesis 12:10-11 NIV

There was a famine and Abraham went down to Egypt to live there for a while.

Abraham could have trusted in God and stayed in Canaan. But it looks like he didn't wait to hear from God and moved to Egypt.

After reaching Egypt he told Sarah to lie about their relationship. He asked her to tell everyone that Abraham was her brother so that he would be treated well.

The amazing thing about Bible is that Abraham's weaknesses and shortcomings are narrated too.

When we fail, we will fall. But God's grace is always there.

This is how God showed His grace to Abraham.

He treated Abram well for her sake, and Abram acquired sheep and cattle, male and female donkeys, male and female servants, and camels. - Genesis 12:16 NIV

God provided Abraham with everything that was needed and much more.
Though Abraham failed, God showed Grace and provided for him.

God, yet again showed Grace.

But the Lord inflicted serious diseases on Pharaoh and his household because of Abram’s wife Sarai. So Pharaoh summoned Abram. “What have you done to me?” he said. “Why didn’t you tell me she was your wife? Why did you say, ‘She is my sister,’ so that I took her to be my wife? Now then, here is your wife. Take her and go!” Then Pharaoh gave orders about Abram to his men, and they sent him on his way, with his wife and everything he had. - Genesis 12:17-20 NIV

Not just provided but God also rescued them. In the midst of failure and sin, God was faithful to His promise and delivered them out of that difficult situation.

Let's think -

What is God asking us to let go off or do something?

In what areas have we failed?

Let's come to God so that He will give the power to change our ways of living.

Word of Grace is an Evangelical (Born Again),  Spirit-filled (Charismatic), Reformed, English speaking church in Pune that upholds the Bible as God's inspired Word for life. We are a church community that has people from every part of India and parts of the world. We are here to put the Great Command and the Great Commission into practice by equipping and releasing every member into works of service.  Word of Grace is a part of a wider international family of Churches called RegionsBeyond.To know more about us please log onto www.wordofgracechurch.org. 

 

Lessons From Stephen's Speech. Part 1- Our Father Abraham

 

This message was preached by Debbie Vartak via zoom  Word of Grace Church, on August 9 2020. For the audio please click here. 

STEPHENS AMAZING OUTREACH OPERATION

- AN ATTEMPT TO WIN THE COUNCIL TO JESUS

A STUDY ON THE CALL OF ABRAHAM

 

As we heard Colin quote vs 60 of Acts 7: Lord lay not this sin to their charge….. was it just I, or did you also see a replica or a draw a parallel to an incident that had but recently occurred… the death of Jesus and the events leading up to this were so similar  - that finding no fault in Jesus they accused him falsely and crucified him. Blasphemy, as Colin said, was a crime worthy of death…. Jealousy and envy stand out most,  but more importantly, they could not withstand the Spirit of Wisdom that was upon Jesus and now upon Stephen

Acts 6: 10 supports this and so they chose to accuse Stephen of blasphemy – He spoke against the Temple and the Law of Moses.  Who were they?

 

1.      It is said that Caiaphas who officiated as high priest at the time of Jesus’ trial was officiating as high priest of the council that Stephen was now brought before. He was a Judge.

 

2.      The people accused Stephen of blasphemy – Acts 6 : 13

 

3.      They seized him and brought him before the council

 

4.      False witnesses were raised to speak and  to accuse him of this blasphemy

 

5.      “He speaks continuously against the holy temple and the Law of Moses.

 

Steven’s face shone like an angel, God himself was present and Stephen sensed the presence of God.

 

1.      He did not get angry

2.      He did not counter the accusation

3.      He did not defend himself.

4.      He used their common history – sacred and holy to them to introduce to Caiaphas and the council that the NEW MUST TAKE CENTRE STAGE AS THE OLD HAS COMPLETED ITS ROLE. Not on this mountain and not in Jerusalem, Jesus had said to the Samaritan but in spirit and truth true worshipper will worship me.

 

And so in Chp 7 of Acts, to the Question of Caiaphas, “Are these things true?” Stephen sets out to answer his question. He finds a place of commonness and common ground from which to preach the gospel to a bunch of really hard-hearted Jewish leaders.

The God of Glory….. not just any visitation, but one brilliant manifestation of God himself, in HIS appearance to our Father Abraham called to Abraham.. Abraham was visited by one beyond whom there is no one bigger, mightier or comparable. My question to you is was Abraham in the Temple when it happened?  No it was not built. And both Caiaphas and the Council knew this to be true.

God appeared to your father and mine – Abraham. God did not stand in Jerusalem or on Mount Zion and roar his message out to Abraham, He visited Abraham. He is not restricted to this temple. This temple is temporal and so is the Law of Moses and must be replaced with the Wind of change blowing. He visited Abraham in Mesopotamia…. A heathen idolatrous land. It was not Israel, it was not Jerusalem, it was the Ur of the Chaldees.

So who was Abraham ?

We have to go back in history to trace the line from which Abraham came and to know who he was.

 

Abraham has been mentioned 299 times in theBible and he was and is known as the Father of Nations, the pursuer of righteousness, the Friend of God, the Confidante of God with whom God shared his secrets, Father of the Faithful, Carrier of Blessings, and a haggler, he even bargained with God.

                             

At the time of the Flood, Noah and his family were the only humans who God saved – Noah and his wife, his three sons and three daughters-in-law – 8 humans only. When the floods receded and life began again on earth, Japheth went to the North west to Europe and Asia, Ham went to the south, to Africa and Shem to the East – to modern day Iraq to Mesopotamia.

                 

It was 10 generations from Shem to Abraham. Terah was Abraham’s father. Terah at age 70 fathered Nahor the eldest of 3 sons – Abraham was the youngest and Haran who was second had died leaving behind his son Lot. Where were they living …. IN MESOPOTAMIA (The Ur of the Chaldees)

“Meso” means in the middle or in between and “potamia” means rivers. Between these two very large rivers was this land  - 1) The Euphrates and The river Tigris. Today, it is Iraq, Kuwait, Turkey, Syria.

 Mesopotamia had highly developed and complex societies. People developed technology like metalworking, glass making, textile weaving, gem setting, food control, water storage and irrigation. Strong in Math and Astronomy, they belonged to the Bronze Age.

 2000 BC is when Abraham lived and Abraham and his family occupied the luscious and green pastures in Ur, the capital of Chaldea. In contrast to the arid plateau of Mesopotamia stretched the rich, alluvial plain of Chaldea formed by the deposits of the river Euphrates and Tigris. It was located near the Persian Gulf on the coast where these 2 rivers poured its waters into the Ocean – luxurious – a long green strip of grazing land, suitable for a shepherd tribe like Abraham which required these pasture lands to graze their many many animals.

 However this country was an idolatrous nation. (Josh 24: 15 .. the fathers of the children of Israel who dwelt beyond the flood of the Euphrates served other Gods)  They were impacted by the Hamites, (Gen 9:25 God cursed Ham for exposing Noah’s nakedness, the descendants of Ham) who had stretched to the south-east and lived in Ur. They practised horrible and unnatural idolatrous practices and crimes and amidst these people Abraham lived and grew up. Abraham who disliked these practices, (How do I know this? The scriptures says, for those he foreknew, he also predestined) and God separated Abraham for himself. There has always been that ONE man …..whom God had when he was about to do something earth-shaking…. Noah, Abraham, Lot…  Gen 9: 26 blessed is Shem ….the lives of this shepherd tribe were sweeter and purer than the other people.

 

Today we are studying Abraham and the Call of Abraham…God saw Abraham and his ways.  Abraham was 70 years when God appeared to him. He becomes the confidant of God, the carrier of great blessings so that we are called the sons of Abraham, the sons of righteousness and faith and grace. Moses writing the Torah sketches the life and character of Abraham and this is one portrait the scriptures draw with great detail.

Genesis 12: 1 and Acts 7: 3 In great splendour, with an outward manifestation that gave him the unmistakable basis for belief even in the worst circumstances, the God of glory appeared to Abraham. What an experience !!!!! And said to him :

Very specifically, God spoke:      Get thee out of  THY COUNTRY

                                                Get thee out of THY PEOPLE

                                                Get thee out of THY FAMILY

Jesus said, If any man wishes to follow me, let him DENY HIMSELF, TAKE UP HIS CROSS AND FOLLOW ME.

To a land that I will SHOW YOU…. 700 miles from Ur to Haran, 700 Miles from Haran to Syria, 800 miles from Syria to Egypt. It was a long long journey.

                   

The Call was specific, it was intangible (involving faith and obedience) and it accompanied great blessing, it called for a lonely walk with only God as his companion, it called for separation and singlemindedness.         

A clear, uncompromising call that now explained the perks, the advantages of making a the decision to hearken to the call.

I will MAKE YOU A GREAT NATION

I WILL BLESS YOU

I WILL MAKE YOUR NAME GREAT

You shall BE A BLESSING…. ( To those who bless you I will bless, to those who dishonour you, I will curse … e.g. as the lives of Pharaoh, his concubine's,  entire court and country were at risk, their lives threatened by a lie…. God would keep His word… He is the word.

All the families of the earth will be blessed in you.

 

I will SHOW YOU A LAND - Not give you…. Not one you will own…. No.. only show him… not a foot of the land did he promise Abraham.

I will MAKE YOU A GREAT NATION - I am 70 years and have no heir…. If we take a look

At Genesis 11, oddly enough for each of the generations before Abraham and Terah, all the ancestors between the ages of 29 and 32 had their first child, Terah had his first son at 70 and here was Abraham – 70 years but with no signs of having an heir…. And God is saying I will make you a GREAT NATION….. But the “I” was so great and glorious and the voice behind the promise so faith instilling, that Abraham arose…

 

So Abraham hears the CALL AND OBEYS….. The call was definitely not easy and he starts correctly by leaving the Ur of the Chaldees,

Part one … leave country …complete.

Part two …leave people… He disobeyed the call,

Part three…. leave family…he disobeyed the call.

Take a look at Genesis 12 which says Abraham departed, yes he obeyed but how – he took with him vs 4 Lot and Terah.  At age 75 after 5 years of staying in Haran ….. not Canaan…. He almost forgot his call, because he compromised … we need to beware of the Terahs and Lots in our lives, who bring compromise instead of obedience in our lives. They come in comfort, covered packages.

vs 5 Abraham, Lot and all the souls that they had gotten in Haran, they went forth after Terah had died. 

 

My POINT IS THAT ABRAHAM WAS NOT PERFECT. But Abraham lived in the dispensation of Grace and not law, for under the law, for this lack of obedience he would have paid heavily, even with his life….that was the law… The obedience to the Call of God was mingled with partial obedience and for 5 years neglected…. BUT GOD LEFT THE DOOR OPEN FOR HIM TO ENTER….. THAT IS GRACE….and so if anyone feels, I didn’t obey when the call was given… don’t live in regret, the door is open ….. and God’s gracious hand still beckons us. A partial failure holds great lessons for us DON’T COMPROMISE.

When Terah died partial obedience and idolatry were out of the way. Terah worshipped Idols.

Once this happened, “From I will show you the land” …. It turned to “I will give your offspring the land” Gen 17:8.

As we proceed, I want to dwell on the CALL OF GOD, the latter part in particular.

IF YOU OBEY

THE PROMISE: I will make you a GREAT NATION

1.      Today Israel is a contender amongst the big economies of the world, silent, strong, impenetrable, backed by the worlds biggest economy.

2.      You and I are the sons of Abraham …. God promised…. Many, many children

At Bethel …. As the dust of the earth

At Mamre …. Uncountable stars in the sky

Gen 17: 2…. I will multiply thee EXCEEDINGLY.

3.      Gal 3 : 7, 29…. If you are Christs then you are Abraham’s Offspring…. Included in that golden circle by faith.

4.      Gen 17:8 I will give ….. for an everlasting possession… This is yet to be fulfilled… forever…..  A GREAT NATION

But how ???? I don’t have a son ….. no CHILDREN… I am 70 years and NO SIGN of a child.

Abraham was to learn with THE PROMISE COMES PROVISION.

 

THE PROVISION ( Provision does not mean to be provided…. BUT ALREADY MADE READY AND AVAILABLE… THAT IS WHAT PROVISION MEANS)

So don’t ever forget…. If you are given a PROMISE ….. PROVISION IS ALREADY MADE … KEPT READY IN ADVANCE …. NOT AN AFTERTHOUGHT.

 

So what did GOD PROVIDE ???

I WILL BLESS YOU ….. THE ANSWER – EVERYTHING….. YES EVERYTHING

A.     In you is a SEED

B.     Gen 13: 2 – Abraham was very rich with livestock, gold and silver……

C.     Gen 15: I will be your SHIELD …. WOW …. From the sun, from the enemy, from the pestilence, from the famine…. And on and on and on.

D.    Gen 15: I will be YOUR EXCEEDING GREAT REWARD ……

E.     Gen 13: 17 WALKTHROUGH THE LENGTH AND BREADTH OF THE LAND for I WILL GIVE IT TO YOU.

F.      Abraham was not just a Shepherd, He was a Chieftain, He was an Army Chief… He had a brain for strategy… He was successful…. Not one died when he went to war to rescue Lot. All the women and the possessions of Lot, he brought back….. He was wise… He knew that the architect and founder was God himself and he lived like a pilgrim in spite of all the wealth and wisdom and possessions.

 

WITH OBEDIENCE COMES PROMOTION

 

PROMOTION:  I will make YOUR NAME GREAT

Was God saying I will see how you do and promote you ……NO NO NO….

I HAVE ALREADY PLANNED YOUR PROMOTION ….. I have faith in you….. I created you…. You were made in my likeness and image.

 

HOW MUCH GREATER CAN A MAN GET ???? AND HOW MUCH GREATER CAN A MAN’S NAME BE when for the last 3000  years, the nation of Israel and the Jews call ABRAHAM their PATRIARCH, FATHER OF THE NATION.

 

THIS COULD ONLY BE GOD… This is his faithfulness, This is Him fulfilling HIS word…. He is the word…. So If you are going through a bad season…. Don’t fret…. Promotion is NOT FAR…..

 

WHO SAID THAT BECAUSE GOD HAD PROMISE, PROVISION AND PROMOTION IN MIND THAT we should NOT FACE DIFFICULTIES ????

 

It is SO THAT YOU, Abraham, you… (put your name)  MAYBE A BLESSING

 

God said to Abraham: YOU WILL BE A BLESSING

GOD’S PRESENCE BRINGS BLESSINGS AND PROTECTION….. Healing, Deliverance, Manifestations of great miracles and signs.

WHOEVER BLESSES YOU …. I will bless

WHOEVER DISHONOUR YOU … I will curse

I got your back…. I am with you… I will watch over you, I will punish and bless

AND ALL FAMILIES OF THE EARTH THROUGH YOU WILL BE BLESSED.

 

TALK ABOUT BLESSINGS ……. THIS WAS THE EPITOME…… UNFATHOMABLE.

Word of Grace is an Evangelical (Born Again),  Spirit-filled (Charismatic), Reformed, English speaking church in Pune that upholds the Bible as God's inspired Word for life. We are a church community that has people from every part of India and parts of the world. We are here to put the Great Command and the Great Commission into practice by equipping and releasing every member into works of service.  Word of Grace is a part of a wider international family of Churches called RegionsBeyond.To know more about us please log onto www.wordofgracechurch.org.