Coachlight Bible
Study – Genesis Lesson XXVIII
The Covenant Central
To All Scripture
Ephesians 2:8 For by
grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of
God:
Ephesians 2:9 Not of
works, lest any man should boast.
Ephesians 2:10 For we
are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath
before ordained that we should walk in them.
Hebrews 13:8 Jesus
Christ the same yesterday, and to day, and for ever.
We can not separate, although many try to separate, God
from His Word. Genesis chapter 15 is the
first mention in the Bible of the “Word of God” Scripture demonstrates again
and again that God’s Word is eternal.
Genesis
15:1 After these things the word of the LORD came unto Abram in a vision,
saying, Fear not, Abram: I am thy shield, and thy exceeding great reward.
Isn’t it interesting that the first mention of the word
“Word” is the Word of God not of men?
Man is distinguished from animals primarily by the ability
to communicate ideas. Of course God
created man with this unique ability, because God loved man and wants to
communicate with him. God’s purpose in
giving man the ability to understand, formulate and communicate words was for
God to be able to communicate with man; and man could respond to Him with
praise.
This should tell us that God’s Word to man is very
important, in fact, the most important Words man will ever know or experience. God gives us a glimpse of how important God’s
Word is:
Psalm
138:2 I will worship toward thy holy temple, and praise thy name for thy
lovingkindness and for thy truth: for thou hast magnified thy word above all
thy name.
The concept of the Word of God includes both the written (Scripture)
and living Word (Son of God). In fact as
will be demonstrated below, Christ is the sum of all that can be
communicated. The word “word” in Hebrew
is dabar and in Greek is logos.
The difference between the Hebrew people and the Greek is
interesting. Both looked for the truth,
but to the Hebrew, ultimate truth came by experiencing; and to the Greek, ultimate
truth came by thinking. This is why the beginning
Passage of John’s Gospel is so intriguing:
John
1:1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was
God.
John
1:2 The same was in the beginning with God.
John
1:3 All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that
was made.
By using the word logos, this Passage appealed to the Greek
using their word for ultimate reality, and appealed to the Jew because it
explained that we experienced the ultimate Truth in person.
I.
First Mention Of “I Am”
Genesis
15:1 After these things the word of the LORD came unto Abram in a vision,
saying, Fear not, Abram: I am thy shield, and thy exceeding great reward.
A. After the Word died and rose again, He proclaimed I Am
the Alpha & Omega
1. Alpha & Omega is the first and last letters of the
Greek alphabet
2. This makes Christ the sum of all that can be
communicated
B. Many of Christ’s great procalamations begin with “I AM”
1. I am the Light of the world
2. I am the Way the Truth & the Life
3. I am the Door
4. I am the Alpha & Omega
5. I am the root and offspring of David, the bright and
morning Star.
6. His very name: I
Am that I AM – Exodus 3:14
7. Before Abraham was I AM – John 8:56-58
II.
The first mention of “Fear Not”
A. Not however the first mention of fear
Genesis
3:10 And he said, I heard thy voice in
the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked; and I hid myself.
B. Striking contrast between Adam & Abraham
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Adam |
Abraham |
|
Adam
is the “father of all men” |
Abraham
is the “father of all that believe” |
|
Adam
had a fig leaf |
Abraham
had a shield |
|
Adam
received a curse |
Abraham
received a reward |
C.
Christ was everything to Abram – Christ is saying today – “Fear Not”
1. He is our Shield of Faith – in fact the whole amour of
God – Ephesians 6:10-11
2. No need to be enriched by the Kings of the East –
Ephesians 3:20
3. We can have the Lord be our fear – Isaiah 8:12-13
III. The Great Encouragement- (Genesis
15:1-6)
There were nine successive manifestations of God to
Abraham, this being the fifth. This revelation seems to have been in the form
of a vision, not by a dream. A. The Revelation
1. When did it come? - “After these things…”- obviously referring to directly after the events of chapter 14.
a. After the saving of
b. God’s revelations are always connected with His people’s
needs.
2. Why did it come? – “Fear not, Abram…” Then Abraham must have had some
fear. This could have been caused by recent events. A
maxim: “Fear before
battle is the mark of a coward, but fear after battle is
the characteristic of a hero.”
First mention of “fear not.”
3. What was it? – “I am thy shield and thy exceeding great reward.” God’s
revelation was what was needed.
a. God as a shield against all foes.
b. God as a reward after victory. Abraham had refused the
spoils of
exceeding great reward.
B. Abram’s Response
(verses. 2&3)
1. He is despondent – “What wilt thou give me?” – After his long waiting,
Abraham is almost complaining.
2. He is disappointed – “Seeing I go childless…” – Ten years had gone by
since his entrance into
was no sign of fulfillment.
3. His discouraging prospect – “One born in my house is min
heir.” – Abraham
seems to have almost lost hope and was taking on conviction
that his servant
would be his heir.
C. God’s Assurance – (verses 4&5) – Now we are going to
see how God dealt
faithfully with His tried and troubled servant.
1. His faith was corrected. – “This shalt not be thine
heir.” God of course,
had not forgotten to be gracious. God remembers His
promises.
2. His faith was instructed. “He that shall come… shall be
thine heir.” – God
instructed in a way that He had not dome before. God taught
His servant by
giving him new ground for trust.
3. His faith was encouraged. – “Tell the stars, if thou be
able to number them… so
shall thy seed be.
D. The Acceptance – (verse 6) – Quick response – “Abraham
believed.”
1. Abraham had faith before, but now it was a stronger,
fuller, clearer
and more prominent trust in God.
a. Hebrew word for “believed” comes from a root where we
derive our “Amen.”
b. So we could paraphrase it something like, “And Abraham
said ‘Amen’ to the
Lord.” (Amen never means a petition, but always refers to
‘May it be so’ or ‘So
be it.’ A strong assertion of faith.)
c. Faith is the only response to god’s revelations.
2. God’s Rejoinder – “And He counted it to him for righteousness. This means
the state or condition of being right with God. This is the
first mention of the
word righteousness that is such an important doctrine in
both the Old and New
Testaments. Abraham was originally destitute of
righteousness and is now
reckoned as righteous, through faith in God.
Three parts to this righteousness:
a. God is the Object of our faith.
b. The Word of God is the base of our faith.
c. Righteousness is the
result.
IV. The Confirmation Of Faith – (Genesis 15:7-21) – In response to Abraham’s faith
(verse 6), God entered into a solemn covenant with him, assuring him of the
certainty while revealing still more of the meaning of the divine promises
concerning him and his seed. Covenant is the key word.
A. The Foundation Of The Covenant – (verse 7) – The basis of the covenant was
God’s character and revelation to Abraham. On this foundation everything else
rested.
1. How was it introduced? – By the announcement of the divine name: “I
am Jehovah.” – This is the all of all. God’s unchanging
presence and
character.
2. Then came the reminder of what God had already done for Abraham
– “That
brought thee out of the Caldees.”
3. Then came the renewal of the divine purpose. “To give this land, to
inherit it.” God again reminds Abraham of His divine purpose.
B. The Desire For
The Covenant – (verse 8) – Abraham met this new assurance of
God with an earnest desire for a proof.
1. Abraham sought for knowledge and assurance. “Whereby shall I know?” He
desired an outward guarantee.
2. But he did not require an outward sign in order to
believe,
a. Because he believed, he had a desire for
confirmation.
b. He believed God’s Word, but wondered how and when it
could be fulfilled.
c. To illustrate this, we can go to the New Testament and
see two accounts of revelation, both with almost the same words, but a contrast
in faith.
1. First of all, let’s go to the account of Zacharias, as
the angel was revealed to Zacharias that his wife, Elizabeth would have a
child:
Luke
2. Notice the words are almost
identical to the words of Abraham. Now, let’s look at the account of the virgin Mary.
Luke
3. Now let’s notice the
attitudes behind these similar words:
a. Mary: “Be it unto me according to Thy Word.” (Luke 1:38)
b. Zacharias: “And behold, thou shalt be dumb, and not able to speak…
because thou believest not
My Words… “ (Luke 1:20)
c. Abraham: “And He counted it to him for righteousness.” (Genesis
15:6)
Seeking God For A Sign
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Person |
Revelation |
Statement |
God’s
Answer |
Mary |
And, behold, thou shalt
conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call his name JESUS.
(Luke 1:31) |
“…How shall this be,
seeing I know not a man?” (Luke 1:34) “…be it unto me according
to thy word. And the angel departed from her.” (Luke 1:38) |
And the angel answered
and said unto her, The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the
Highest shall overshadow thee: therefore also that holy thing which shall be
born of thee shall be called the Son of God. (Luke 1:35) |
|
Zacharias |
“…and thy wife Elisabeth shall bear thee a son, and thou shalt call his name John. (Luke 1:12-17) |
“…Zacharias saw him, he
was troubled, and fear fell upon him. (Luke 1:12) “…Whereby shall I know
this? for I am an old man, and my wife well stricken in years. (Luke 1:18) |
“And behold, thou shalt
be dumb, and not able to speak… because thou believest
not My Words… “ (Luke 1:20) |
|
Abraham |
Abrahamic Covenant |
Lord GOD, what wilt thou
give me, seeing I go childless, and the steward of my house is this Eliezer
of Damascus? And Abram said, Behold,
to me thou hast given no seed: and, lo, one born in my house is mine heir. (Genesis 15:2-3) |
“And he believed in the
LORD; And He counted it to him for righteousness” (Genesis 15:6) |
C. The Preparation Of The
Blood Covenant – (verses. 9&10) –
Divine instructions
are given, “Take for Me an
heifer…” Abraham then proceeded to fulfill the
requirements of a covenant.
“Took… divided.” – (Leviticus 1:6). Having divided
the animals, he places the
pieces opposite each other, and one bird opposite to the other, leaving a
passage between.
1. This was the customary
form of agreement or contract. Two parties
walking in procession,
signifying their agreement. (Jeremiah 34:18).
2. Underlying idea –
covenant by means of sacrifice.
3. The blood covenant
was a well known method in Abraham’s time
for
making an agreement.
D. The Readiness Of The
Covenant – (verses 11&12) - Faithfulness
– Abraham did all that he was instructed. (The attitude to receive from
God).
1. Kept watch.
2. Kept away the birds of
prey.
E. The Message Of The
Covenant – (verses13-16) – A revelation of
four parts
now is given to Abraham
telling him of events to come – things his seed
will experience.
1. His seed to
experience persecution – (verse 13) –
Three elements in this
was: 1. Exile, 2. Bondage,
3. Affliction. Remember Abraham is a type of
the consecrated believer.
2. His seed to witness
great power. God was going to show all of those in
3. Abraham himself is to
experience great peace – (verse 15).
Romans 5:1 “Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ…”
4. He is called to exercise
patience. (vs. 16).
Romans
will comes the divine
assurance in the form of a covenant.
1. Symbolic actions –
(verse 17) –
a. A cylindrical firepot and a fiery torch to symbolize the presence of God. (Exodus
19). (
b. The symbol of God passing between the animals
ratifying the covenant.
2. Divine Assurance. (verse. 18-20) – God now reveals the precise
limits of the land promised to Abraham.
a. It seems pretty clear
that the two rivers referred to are the
the
never yet been realized.
b. God’s promises still await
their fulfillment will be realized during the Millennium
IV. Applications – The
study of the Divine covenants of the Bible is very profound, and truly holds
the student’s interest. Of the covenants with Noah, Abraham, Moses,
1. The Divine
Action – God only, passed
through the pieces and not Abraham. This points out that a divine covenant is
not a mutual agreement on equal terms between parties, but a divine promise
assured and ratified by means of a visible pledge of its fulfillment. This of
course, takes the divine covenant out of the category of all similar human agreements.
2. The Human Attitude –
What then is man’s part in the covenant? - a recipient. God gives – Abraham
takes. The believer, which is the antitype of Abraham should,
a. Like Abraham, respond to the covenant by believing God’s Word,
weather it makes sense or not. We
believe it because it was God Who said it;
b. Like Abraham, seek God’s guidance through testing, believing
Him through the sanctifying stage, So that we are justified, and bear fruit
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Eternal Covenants of God with |
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Abrahamic Covenant |
Expansion Covenants |
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Promise of A (Land) Genesis 12:1; 13:14-15 & 17 |
Palestinian Covenant – gave Israel assurance of final, permanent restoration to the land forever Deuteronomy 30:3-5; Ezekiel
20:33-37, 42-44 |
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Promise of Redemption – National
and Universal – (Blessing) Genesis 12:3; |
New Covenant – Jeremiah 31:31-40; Hebrews 8:6-13 |
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Promise of Numerous Descendants – A Great Nation (Seed) Genesis 12:3; |
Davidic Covenant – Dynasty, Nation, Throne forever II Samuel 7:11, 13, 16 Jeremiah 33:20 & 21; 31:35-37 |
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Christ
and the Gentiles – Based not on birth but rather rebirth Galatians 3:6 Even as
Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness.
{accounted: or, imputed} Galatians 3:7 Know ye
therefore that they which are of faith, the same are the children of Abraham. Galatians 3:8 And the
scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the heathen through faith,
preached before the gospel unto Abraham, saying, In thee shall all nations be
blessed. Galatians 3:9 So then
they which be of faith are blessed with faithful Abraham. Galatians |
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