Has God ever revealed something he wanted to do and you thought, “that’s crazy, never gonna happen, I can’t do it?”
Have you ever felt like God was doing something but he wasn’t revealing it to you?
Well, let’s think outside the box for a minute, but focus on what’s IN the box too.
Abraham had moved to Mamre in Genesis 13 and built an altar to the Lord there. I could stop right there… build a house where the thing known and remembered is that you Worship God There… Yes
But let me move on… Remember God had a promise that he would turn this childless man, too old for children, into a Father of a Nation that would bless History, All Peoples. Now you flash forward to Genesis 18 and the Lord appears to him, and promises it is time for fulfillment, giving Sarah a son. Now 25 years has passed since the first promise, and Abraham is way too old now.
His wife Sarah overheard the conversation and laughed. And God knows what she has done, and the Lord says, “is anything impossible for God” v14
The Lord is on his way down to Sodom and Gomorrah because of their wickedness and about to impart Just Judgement on them. The Lord wonders with his fellow travelers, “should I hide this thing … from Abraham” v17
This passage has always struck me as where I wanted to be. I want to be so aware and sensitive to the Lord’s movement, that if he is going to do something around me and me not know, he’d have to hide it.
The Lord does reveal his plan to Abraham, and laudably, Abraham intercedes for the wicked town. His nephew Lot and family live there. That concern is profound and worth noting, but the bigger thing for me is the relationship with the Lord that was so close. I have been struck by v17 most of my life, desiring to be such a friend of God that I would know when he is moving.
I may sometimes not know why but want to be aware that he is moving and able to engage with the Lord.
So, here’s where I take a sideways thought today. vv16-19 is a Spiritual Conversation between the Lord and the Heavenly Representatives regarding Justice and God’s Purpose for Abraham.
Abraham is chosen, and his offspring could be affected by the sin in the region, so God, who has been patient, must act. We don’t always know what God is doing, but we can be sure it is always Just and always for bigger purposes. He sees the possible ends and is moving toward the desired end.
Abraham is to become a great and powerful nation, and all the nations of the earth will be blessed through him. 19 For I have chosen him so that he will command his children and his house after him to keep the way of the LORD by doing what is right and just. This is how the LORD will fulfill to Abraham what he promised him.” – Gen18:18-19 (CSB)
Here is my point today… Does God always reveal everything he is doing and why? NO
Is God always Just and Right? YES
Sometimes we might think God is hiding or is not on the right path…
He is always on the right path
If he is hiding / silent – DO the Last thing he told you to do. Act on the Revelation you have.
It’s ok to ask, to intercede, but don’t get stuck there
God just revealed to them that the promise of a child is finally coming… ACT ON THAT.
“Well that’s crazy! I’m not fit for that task, Lord.”
Well, get ready, get fit. Seek God’s provision for the task, not a task you are fit for. Act on the revelation rather than seeking a different revelation.
Abraham was a great man, but a troubled man. So much of his troubles, lying, deception, would have been more easily dealt with if he trusted the revelation he had.
12:3 I will bless those who bless you… curse those who curse you… all the people of the earth will be blessed through you”
15:1 do not be afraid, Abram, I am your shield, your reward will be great
15:5 Look at the sky and count the stars… your offspring will be that numerous. Abram believed and he credited it to him as righteousness
Now in chapter 18 Abraham is struggling to believe because life has made it hard to believe, then we get to chapter 20, and he is fearful again and lied to Abimelech and had to correct the wrongs.
My thought to finish then is if we would spend more time focused on and working on what we DO know, have faith in the revelation we have received, we can then operate without fear of the things we do not know.
There you go, I set that down quickly… Selah – think on these things.
When we read scriptural accounts, it is important to know to whom God is speaking, what he is saying, but always ask, “what is this saying to me?”
We have to recognize that not every promise is automatically for me, nor is every judgment or “curse”. Yet, the God speaking is the same and there are principles to learn that can apply everyone.
In Genesis 22 has an amazing account of a “one-of-a-kind” event. You know it – Abraham was old when God promised a son, a family, offspring and descendants what would bless the world. That promise wasn’t fulfilled for decades, until Abraham was WAY TOO OLD, and yet God did it.
WOW
What joy to receive Isaac… and then Genesis 22 says God tested Abraham?
God called, “Abraham” – and he replied, “Here I am” – that word henneh = behold – He is saying, “look here Lord”.
God says, “take your son… your only son… whom you love… go to Moriah and offer him there as a burnt offering”
We don’t have any interaction / conversation recorded. If they had it, it wasn’t recorded… and that’s something that usually is found in scripture, like Moses, Like Gideon…
But here – it just says, “SO Abraham got up early in the morning… saddled his donkey… split wood for a burnt offering and set out to go…”
This was a Three-Day Journey to the place God directed.
v5 he tells his servants with him … the boy and I will go over there to worship: then we’ll come back to you.”
Let me stop and point out some principles here. Remember now, Abraham has been on this “journey to promise” with God for probably 38 years. He was 75 when God called him in Genesis 12. He was 100 when Isaac was born. Now Isaac is probably 13+ years old.
Abraham had been down the road and learned to trust God, to have faith in God. It has been good and bad, failure and success, but he has learned.
Some principles when God calls, and asks from us:
When God called, Abraham said, “Here I Am”. We don’t need to know the fullness of the plan, nor question our ability, but simply express availability.
He Split wood for the Offering – that means he expected to carry out this difficult task. He may have believed God would provide an alternative way, but he did NOT take a “back up plan”.
God said, “do this… give me back your son as an act of worship, a sacrificial offering.” What did Abraham do? “He got up early and set out”. The very next day he got to it.
He made the journey – 3 days
He was set on worshipping God. And I would add to it, that the moment he set out, he was already worshiping God in action of faith and obedience. I define worship as “an expression of adoration to the object of our affection.” Anything we do, say, believe that is an expression of adoration, is worship. When his heart was set, his mind made up, he started the journey and worship began
He told his servants – “WE Will Come Back”. Abraham believed in the provision of God.
He Took Supplies for Obedient worship. v6 he loaded wood on Isaac’s back for the offering. In his own hands he carried a fire in one hand and the sacrificial knife in the other. I have many knives. I’m sure Isaac had seen this knife many times as his father used it to slaughter the sacrificial lamb.
vv7-8 Isaac asked “Abi (Daddy) where is the lamb for the offering?” Isaac had seen worship with his father before. He knew the tools. Perhaps this teenager was wondering for a couple of days, and maybe even putting 2 and 2 together. Abraham answered, “God himself will provide, my son.” What a beautiful intimate statement. Reassuring words of faith. Then the two walked together… I wonder if Isaac suspected, but I believe he trusted his father, and he trusted God.
Abraham carried out the pre-worship routine – Built the altar – Arranged the wood – Bound His SON (now It’s real) – Placed Isaac ON the Altar – Took his knife to slaughter…
v11 – “BUT… But the Angel of the Lord (that’s Jesus) ‘Abraham, Abraham”…
What does Abraham say? “Here I Am” (hinneh – behold)
Jesus says, do not lay a hand on the boy… For I know that you FEAR GOD, since you have not withheld your only son from me”
Did God not know what Abraham would do? No – I believe God knows all, and he knew… But Abraham needed to know – 1) God is in Charge 2)Everything is His 3)God will provide 4)Obedience is better than sacrifice and often IS the sacrifice 5)and to know that he would go anywhere with God.
Listen to His Voice. Get Up and Go, Make Preparation, and Release Control.
God provided a ram caught in the thicket
Abraham named the place – “The Lord will Provide” – Yahweh Yireh
Then notice v15 – the Angel of the Lord called a Second Time
… “Because you have done this… have not withheld… I will indeed bless you…”
Now there is a lot of blessing mentioned here… it bookends from Genesis 12 – the blessing of obedience for Abraham, the descendants, the blessing of the world through him… Those are specific blessings for Abraham… BUT the PRINCIPLE for Us is this
Do Not Hold Anything Back from the Lord – God blesses Worshipful Release of Rights and Ownership
HE IS OUR BLESSING – There is blessing in Obedience that will extend for generations.
I don’t know what God is asking from you today… but…
Lay it All Down!
Truly knowing God comes in the JOURNEY not in the classroom
The idea of being a “friend of God” is something that I have longed for and striven toward for most of my life.
Do we ever get “jealous” of the attention given Jesus? Of course not – well – not that we would admit. In John 3, John the Baptist has been active on a mission for God, but ever since he baptized Jesus, Jesus is starting to get the attention. v26, his followers say, “that man, who was WITH you on the other side of the Jordan… well, he is baptizing and everyone is going to HIM”.
Such a real and funny incident. They meant well, they wanted the best for John. And John says, “a man can receive only what is given him from Heaven… I am not the Christ (I am) the friend who attends to the bridegroom… waits and listens for him and is full of joy when he hears (his) voice. The joy is mine and is now complete.”
A lot of wonderful truth there. When people forget my name and know and love Jesus, my joy is complete, my job is fulfilled.
John 15:15 – Jesus says, “I no longer call you servants… I have called you friends… I chose you and appointed you to go and bear fruit.” That usage of philos for “friend” is the same word John used. The idea of a friend of the bridegroom. The “groomsman”, if you will, had the job of 1) going to the potential bride and asking for her hand in marriage for the groom 2) to make arrangements for the wedding.
I am a friend of God
Abraham’s relationship with God caught my attention when I was a teenager trying to serve the Lord, Preach, and share Jesus.
In Isaiah 41:8, God calls Abraham his “friend”. In 2 Chronicles 20:7, Jehoshaphat prays, “are you not our God… of Abraham, your friend”
Why? How?
James 2:23 says “Abraham believed God and it was credited to him as righteousness, and he was called, ‘God’s Friend’”. James is explaining that, yes, “legally” our justification is by faith in the work of Christ, but it is shown, it is proven, by our actions. It isn’t either or, Salvation is by Faith, but the Works should follow and prove our faith.
Genesis 15, God had given Abram a promise, more than 20 years earlier of his blessing, a family, a land, blessing the world. But a lot had happened since then, Abram had failed the Lord in many ways, and the promise hadn’t come and Abram thought, “maybe I missed my chance, maybe the deal isn’t still on.” God takes him outside his tent, points to the stars in a cloudless night and says “If you can count the stars, you can count my fulfillment of my promise to you.”
Genesis 15:6 – “Abram believed God and he credited to him as righteousness”
And here, the true friendship begins to take flight. God says “I brought you from Us… to give you the Land” Friendship is in believing God, trusting, and doing what he says. Then in chapter 17 at 99, God changes his name from “exalted Father” Abram – to “Father of a Multitude” Abraham.
In Genesis 18, God reveals that fulfillment is coming for this 100 year old childless Father. And it is this interaction that has inspired me since I was a teenager. God promises the child, which is crazy by the way, he’s 100, wife is 90. But then in v17 The Lord (Jesus) and two angels are there and about to go down to Sodom and destroy it because of it’s wickedness and the three from Heaven have a conversation, “Should I hid this thing I’m about to do from Abraham?”
Abraham was close enough to God that IF God was going to move and he didn’t want Abraham to know, he would have to hide it. My prayer has been, “Lord I want to be close enough to you that if you move near me, you will have to hide it or I will know. My desire is for his desire, my mission for his mission, my passion be his passion.
Knowing God is always then about doing. Abraham was immediately then concerned about the people in Sodom, which to me is evidence of a shared heart of God. Even if God is bringing judgment, he isn’t happy about it, he desires repentance and blessing. Abraham intercedes for any who might be faithful / righteous. He finally gets down to “Lord if there are Ten, will you withhold judgment? The Lord agrees, but as it turns out, only four – Lot, his wife, and two daughters leave, and even his wife looked back.
But I want to be a close, perceptive friend of God.
And so back to John the Baptist in John 3:30. He says that as a friend – “He must increase, I must decrease… The one from above is above all. The one from earth speaks earthly things. The one from God speaks God’s words”. Then v35 “the Father loves the Son and has given all thing into his hands. The one who believes in the Son has eternal life, but the one who rejects the son will not see life, but the wrath of God remains on them
I want to be a friend of God.
A Friend hides IN the Son
A Friend Tells about the Son
A Friend Obeys the Son
A Friend stays close to the Son so he hears the Father, points to the Son, and receives the blessing of the overflow of all that comes to the Son.
I just want to be a Friend of the Son.
Finishing with Abraham – Hebrews 11:8-10 tells us what a Friend does by Faith
when called – obeyed and set out
went through did not know where – Oh the Destination was WITH not Where – not a Place – the Destination is always WITH Jesus
stayed a foreigner – this earth is not my home
was an heir of the promise
looked forward to the fulfillment in Heaven – a Friend of God isn’t a friend of the world – not even in the good sense, this earth is temporary
I want to be a Friend of God – Ultimately I want to just be “That Guy who told me about Jesus – Just a Friend of Jesus.
Do you ever wonder if maybe you heard God wrong? Or maybe you were slow in getting started, or unexpected obstacles arose, or uncontrollable circumstances arose. Maybe you’ve gone too far the wrong way. Now, you feel like perhaps you’ve lost your chance? Well Abram knew that feeling.
God gave him a clear call and a clear promise in Genesis 12: The Lord said to Abram: Go from your land, your relatives, and your father’s house to the land that I will show you 2 “I will make you into a great nation and I will bless you; … 7 The LORD appeared to Abram and said, “To your offspring I will give this land”…
But a lot had happened since then. Abram had been through famine, war, faced Pharaohs and Kings, he had lied and cheated to protect himself. He had worshipped the Lord, had displeased the Lord. 20 years had passed, and Abram wondered, “Is the Deal still on?” “Have I missed my chance”? “Have I Disqualified myself”?
READ Genesis 15:1-7
The Word of the Lord came to Abram in a vision…Do not be afraid, I am your shield, Your reward will be very great.
There are some important truths for us to consider, First:
1. Don’t Settle for Less than the Vision of God
Don’t Be Afraid
Don’t Let Fear make You impatient
Don’t in impatience make your ownway when the promise seems “slow” in coming to pass. God does not delay, he is not slow, that’s what 2 Peter 3:8-9 teaches. God’s clock runs differently from ours, and it also runs PERFECTLY. Fear is often the issue and is manifested in Lack of Trust
God says, “do not be afraid, I am your shield, and great reward“
We talked about fear a few weeks ago. Fear is based on lies we believe:
I’m alone – no one knows
I’m unable – I can’t
I’m uninformed – I don’t know how
I’m unloved – no one cares
Those are lies, but we think they are true… Yet God says: DO NOT BE AFRAID
God says here: “DON’T be Afraid.” How do we fight fear? With FAITH!
Make Sure the Path Leads you to God’s Vision
God had promised him a “great nation” and “offspring”. Abram thinks that he must have “heard God wrong” or “missed his chance”, so he needed to find another way. I don’t think he was mad at God, but just resigned himself to doing things a different way.
You have given me no children… So a servant … will be my heir
He was going to make Eliezer his “son” and heir. Eliezer was a good man, Abram’s most trusted and faithful servant. This was a “good plan”, but Eliezer, good as he was, was no more than a SUBSTITUTE for God’s Best!!
In his book, “Good to Great“, Jim Collins says “Good is the enemy of great.”
“We don’t have great schools, principally because we have good schools. We don’t have great government, principally because we have good government. Few people attain great lives, in large part because it is just so easy to settle for a good life. The vast majority of companies never become great, precisely because the vast majority become quite good — and that is their main problem.” Collins writes, “That good is the enemy of great is not just a business problem. It is a human problem. If we have cracked the code on the question of good to great, good schools might become great schools. Good newspapers might become great newspapers. Good churches might become great churches.”
God’s path is always GREAT
Be Honest About Your Reservations
Sometimes we get Stuck because we won’t be honest about where we are. We say the right thing. Make appearances of doing the right thing, but aren’t honest with God about our reservations, frustrations, fears, anger, with others and even with God.
V2 – Abram says, Lord God, what can you give me, since I am childless… Look, you have given me no offspring, so a slave born in my house will be my heir.
Abram doubts his ability not God’s ability. “Lord I’ve been willing, I left my hometown, I’ve come with you on this journey, but here we are, 20 years later, and we are past the opportunity. You didn’t give it and I can’t do it.”
If you’ve come to the end of your rope… if you’ve tapped out your resources… if you no longer have anything to offer… Then maybe God has your right where he needs you.
2. Take a Second Look at God’s Vision
I Am Your Shield
15:4 now the word of the Lord came to him… this one will not be your heir; instead, one who comes from your own body will be your heir.
When God gives us a word, it may seem impossible, but if it is God’s word, he’s not looking for our help, or a different plan. He’s not looking for our permission to change the process.
If it seems unbelievable, that’s what God does.
Step Outside The Tent
Sometimes it’s hard to see from INSIDE. It’s hard to see past the “reality”.
Abram looked around the tent and all he could see was no children, no blessing, no fulfillment of the vision. Inside the tent, you can only see so far. Inside the tent our view is limited, our imagination is limited. Inside the tent you are blinded from seeing the beauty of the vision.
God took him outside the Tent
An Unimaginable vision of God.
V5 Look at the Sky.
Stop looking at what is NOT and look at what IS. Look at what God has already done, and imagine what he can do.
“Count the Stars“
– you can only get a glimpse, the gist, an idea, but you can’t even understand it. It’s imagined that IF he COULD count the stars visible they would number more than 4000, but in reality the stars in the field of vision would be more than 50,000.
If you are able to count them… your offspring will be that numerous
Abraham’s offspring included those who would be his by family birth. But they also included those spiritually who would follow his way. Those who would become “sons of Abraham”, Paul called them.
If you are able to count them…
You can count the apples in a tree. And you can count the seeds in an apple. But who can count the apples in a seed? Until the story of life is over, you never can count the apples in that one seed.
God’sways truly are higher than ours
Isaiah 55:8–9 (CSB)
8“For my thoughts are not your thoughts, and your ways are not my ways.” This is the Lord’s declaration. 9“For as heaven is higher than earth, so my ways are higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts.
The Vision of God will be glorious and beautiful
His Vision will inspire others who view it displayed in You
3. You Can Believe The Promise of God
Your Reward Will Be Great
The only thing that God required of Abram was
Believe and Walk in the Promise
The “currency” that Heaven recognizes is FAITH
Hebrews 11:1 (CSB)
1Now faith is the reality of what is hoped for, the proof of what is not seen.
Then Hebrews 11, lists the “Hall of Fame of Faith”. It tells the story of those Saints of Old who were faithful to follow God. None of them were perfect, but they were full of Faith. Not full of excellence, not full of strength, not full of talent, or so many things we might list. But they had FAITH.
And then Hebrews 12 continues
Hebrews 12:1–2 (CSB)
1Therefore, since we also have such a large cloud of witnesses surrounding us, let us lay aside every hindrance and the sin that so easily ensnares us. Let us run with endurance the race that lies before us, 2keeping our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of our faith. For the joy that lay before him, he endured the cross, despising the shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.
How do we join the Hall of Fame of Faith? Were they “SUPER-SPIRITUAL”? No, they were real, they struggled, they waivered, they fell down.
“Abraham believed and it was credited to him as righteousness”
believed – means confirm/trust
credited – parallel to a bookkeeping transfer, like an item is moved from one column to another. Abraham’s faith is moved into the column of Righteousness
Romans 4:17–21 (CSB)
17As it is written: I have made you the father of many nations— in the presence of the God in whom he believed, the one who gives life to the dead and calls things into existence that do not exist. 18He believed, hoping against hope, so that he became the father of many nations according to what had been spoken: So will your descendants be. 19He did not weaken in faith when he considered his own body to be already dead (since he was about a hundred years old) and also the deadness of Sarah’s womb. 20He did not waver in unbelief at God’s promise but was strengthened in his faith and gave glory to God, 21because he was fully convinced that what God had promised, he was also able to do.
He believed based on the Power and Faithfulness of the One making the promise
See it as alreadycompleted
Paul speaks of us as believers in Romans 8 and says that those he “foreknew, he predestined, called, justified and glorified” All of those things are in the Past Tense, COMPLETED. Before we ever knew, it was already true in God’s mind.
So…
Live in it untilGod brings it to fulfillment
Abraham so fully believed here; that years later when he was called to Sacrifice Isaac, he carried on without even a doubt because he believed God was going to fulfill his promise, and it wasn’t hinging on Isaac, but on God.
Before Faith flowered, Abraham saw God’s promise based on his own ability, but AFTER Faith was credited as Righteousness, he lived ACCORDING to it, then he knew That the promise wasn’t based on him, it wasn’t on Isaac, the Promise was Based ON GOD the Giver of the Promise.
Faith is what pleases God.
Everything else is a byproduct of the fact that you believe him.
John 6:27–29 (CSB)
27Don’t work for the food that perishes but for the food that lasts for eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you, because God the Father has set his seal of approval on him.” 28“What can we do to perform the works of God?” they asked. 29Jesus replied, “This is the work of God—that you believe in the one he has sent.”
If you’re current situation doesn’t seem to fit the vision, trust the God of the vision in spite of the nature of the circumstance.
Remember what he’s alreadydone for you
Abram had to become a NOBODY before God could work through him.
“I brought you From…”
Oh my don’t forget where you have been, from wince you come
Ur was a place of false worshipers, idol worshipers, it was the area of Nimrods people.
I brought –
You didn’t get to God by anything you have done
I brought you
You didn’t leave because you thought of it
I brought – yatsa = to come, to go forth
I brought you FROM
– The heart of the message of the Gospel is “REPENT” – come FROM where you are …
I the Lord brought you from Ur… TO GIVE you this land to possess
Oh yes, Lord. The call of God is based on HIS Promise, on His Power, Based on his GRACE
To give you this land to POSSESS
Nehemiah 9:7–8 (CSB)
7You, the Lord, are the God who chose Abram and brought him out of Ur of the Chaldeans, and changed his name to Abraham. 8You found his heart faithful in your sight, and made a covenant with him to give the land of the Canaanites…
God says, “I wanted to save you because I had a plan that included YOU
God says, “because of my power I delivered and continue to deliver you”
He didn’t have to do anything, but it was his GRACE, working in Abram’s life that gave him what he didn’t deserve. He brought him to a place of promise and blessed him over and over.
WillyougoOutside the Tent with God?
Jeremiah 31:16–17 (CSB)
16This is what the Lord says: Keep your voice from weeping and your eyes from tears, for the reward for your work will come— this is the Lord’s declaration— and your children will return from the enemy’s land. 17There is hope for your future— this is the Lord’s declaration— and your children will return to their own territory.
Will You Believe?
Walk in Faith?
Don’t Be Afraid – BELIEVE
I Am Your Shield – Rest In Me
Your Reward Will Be Great –– I Have Your Reward – I Am Your Reward – Your Reward is GREAT
Genesis 22:15-19 God says, specifically Jesus, The Angel Of the Lord, says “I have sworn by myself, I will bless you … through your offspring all nations”
Have you prayed the prayer “Lord bless me”? Maybe you didn’t word it that way, but perhaps you have said, “Lord I want to be appreciated, accepted, strengthened, loved, praised”. This word is the Hebrew word Ba-rek. In its simplest form, it means to kneel. The picture then is of a subject kneeling before a Sovereign. A more complete definition of it’s usage is “to fill with strength, praised, adored”
“God bless me, Lord have people appreciate me, recognize me, love me, praise me.” Well if that’s what you want, if you want the praise and approval of people, God might give you that. but when you have that, you have it and there is no more. But I would rather seek The Lord’s Blessing. His praise, strength, adoration is what i seek.
But notice that God told Abraham, “I WILLBless You”. Thereare two noticeable aspects of that sentence grammatically and practically.
1) “I Will” means there IS a certainty of it. Not, “I might” but I WILL. The promises of God are certain, they are sure, they are done, so Yes, I can be sure that GOD will bless me … but
2) “I will” means a future event. Oh certainly, He HAS blessed us and is blessing us. But there is a FUTURE to the blessing. Praise the Lord, the best is yet to come. The greatest filling, greatest blessing, greatest praise WILL come when we see him face to face and he says “well done child … enter in.”
So then, let me expand on this with Three Quick Things I see here in this promise to Abraham of Blessing
1) God’s blessing alone is ENOUGH – We serve, follow, obey, not for the praise and glory of men but for an audience of ONE. If no one else praise me, then the pleasure of God is Enough. If they know HIS name and HE knows my name, then that is ENOUGH for ME, yes Enough, more than enough.
2) God’s promised Blessing to Abraham was more about others than about him. Remember the greatest part of the blessing was that “through your offspring all nations will be blessed” because of Abraham’s obedience and availability. It was about God being obeyed and others being blessed. The greatest blessing is to know that God will bless others through us. To know that God would praise, love, adore, fill with strength other through me is a great blessing in and of itself. So there is a “to do list” for the servant of God: a) praise b) love c) fill with strength d) for God’s glory e) as we obey his commands. And in THAT we are praised, loved, and filled with strength
3) God’s blessing was more of a Legacy than a present experience. Surely every breath from God was a blessing for Abraham. And God blessed him with many things, like a beautiful wife, so beautiful that as an Older Women men were still trying to steal her from Abraham. Abraham was blessed with success and prosperity though he lived his life mostly nomadic in tents. But the Big Promised blessing, Abraham spent his whole life looking TOWARD it, hoping in its fulfillment. His son wasn’t born until he was 100. But the presence of Isacc wasn’t even the fullness of the promised blessing. The promised blessing was a legacy. It would come after he died as Israel became a nation, became a light to the Gentiles, and became the birthplace for the Savior of the world. Our greatest blessings are a legacy, a promised inheritance. My joy is knowing that my physical and spiritual sons will advance the gospel and enlarge the Kingdom beyond my reach. The blessing of God is long term. Oh I like physically healthy days, but those days are just foreshadow of joy divine when I have a body like that of Christ’s resurrected body, no tears, no pain. The blessings of a powerful worship experience with brothers and sisters is but a foretaste of glory divine standing before the throne with every race, tribe, and tongue as we proclaim and praise our worthy lamb slain for our sins. My salvation is a blessing but just a down payment on an eternal blessing of light and life eternal, removed from the penalty, power, and presence of sin.
Bless Me Lord!
Bless me with you and that’s enough for me, today and for eternity, you are all I need!
There is an old hymn by Fredrick Brook: My Goal is God Himself
Pastor Goforth 