The Promises to Abraham

Abraham’s works fulfilled his faith James 2 Faith was working together with his works & his faith was made perfect by his works And the Scripture was fulfilled which says, "Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness." And he was called the friend of God. (23) Abraham the sinner was justified by faith; Abraham the saint was justified by works – John Thomas (in John Carter’s book on Romans)

The Friend of God 2Chr 20:7 "Are You not our God, who drove out the inhabitants of this land before Your people Israel, and gave it to the descendants of Abraham Your friend forever? Isa 41:8 "But you, Israel, are My servant, Jacob whom I have chosen, the descendants of Abraham My friend. In Gen 18:17, God could not hide the destruction of Sodom from Abraham Hebrew word “friend” is actually “love”, as in “your only son Isaac whom you love” (Gen 22:2)

James 4:1-3 1 Where do wars and fights come from among you? Do they not come from your desires for pleasure that war in your members? 2 You lust and do not have. You murder and covet and cannot obtain. You fight and war. Yet you do not have because you do not ask. 3 You ask and do not receive, because you ask amiss, that you may spend it on your pleasures.

Adulterers and Adulteresses! When we act like worldly people we commit spiritual adultery with God and become an enemy of God Actual Greek is just “adulteresses” Friendship with the world is enmity with God

Whose Friend do we want to be? This world’sOr God’s Friends of God trust Him single- mindedly in all aspects of their lives!

Genesis 12:1-3 1Now the LORD had said to Abram: "Get out of your country, from your family and from your father's house, to a land that I will show you. 2I will make you a great nation; I will bless you and make your name great; and you shall be a blessing. 3I will bless those who bless you, and I will curse him who curses you; and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed."

Genesis 13: And the LORD said to Abram, after Lot had separated from him: "Lift your eyes now and look from the place where you are-- northward, southward, eastward, and westward; 15"for all the land which you see I give to you and your descendants forever. 16"And I will make your descendants as the dust of the earth; so that if a man could number the dust of the earth, then your descendants also could be numbered.

Genesis 15:4-5 4And behold, the word of the LORD came to him, saying, "This one shall not be your heir, but one who will come from your own body shall be your heir." 5Then He brought him outside and said, "Look now toward heaven, and count the stars if you are able to number them." And He said to him, "So shall your descendants be."

Genesis 15: Then He said to Abram: "Know certainly that your descen- dants will be strangers in a land that is not theirs, and will serve them, and they will afflict them four hundred years. 14"And also the nation whom they serve I will judge; afterward they shall come out with great possessions. 15"Now as for you, you shall go to your fathers in peace; you shall be buried at a good old age. 16"But in the fourth generation they shall return here, for the iniquity of the Amorites is not yet complete."

Genesis 15: On the same day the LORD made a covenant with Abram, saying: "To your descendants I have given this land, from the river of Egypt to the great river, the River Euphrates-- 19"the Kenites, the Kenezzites, and the Kadmonites, 20"the Hittites, the Perizzites, and the Rephaim, 21"the Amorites, the Canaanites, the Girgashites, and the Jebusites."

Genesis 17:4-10 4"As for Me, behold, My covenant is with you, and you shall be a father of many nations. 5"No longer shall your name be called Abram, but your name shall be Abraham; for I have made you a father of many nations. 6"I will make you exceedingly fruitful; and I will make nations of you, and kings shall come from you. 7"And I will establish My covenant between Me and you and your descendants after you in their generations, for an everlasting covenant, to be God to you and your descendants after you. 8"Also I give to you and your descendants after you the land in which you are a stranger, all the land of Canaan, as an everlasting possession; and I will be their God." 9And God said to Abraham: "As for you, you shall keep My covenant, you and your descendants after you throughout their generations. 10"This is My covenant which you shall keep, between Me and you and your descendants after you: Every male child among you shall be circumcised

Genesis 22: and said: "By Myself I have sworn (Heb 6:27), says the LORD, because you have done this thing, and have not withheld your son, your only son-- 17"blessing I will bless you, and in multiplying I will multiply your descendants as the stars of the heaven and as the sand which is on the seashore; and your descendants shall possess the gate of their enemies. 18"In your seed all the nations of the earth shall be blessed, because you have obeyed My voice."

National Promises Make you a great nation (Gen 12:2) Bring them out of Egypt after 400 years (Gen 15) Give them the land of Canaan (Gen 15:18- 21; 17:8) Partially fulfilled (Psa 105:42; Acts 7:17)

Promises to the spiritual seed Gen 17 – Abraham will be the father of many nations Gen 22 - multiply descendants as stars & sand Gen 22 – Messiah! In your seed all nations will be blessed Rom 4:13-16 inherit the world – not just Israel! Gal 3:14-18 become sons of God through Faith

Acts 3: "You are sons of the prophets, and of the covenant which God made with our fathers, saying to Abraham, 'And in your seed all the families of the earth shall be blessed.' 26"To you first, God, having raised up His Servant Jesus, sent Him to bless you, in turning away every one of you from your iniquities.” Christ will change your life!

Galatians 3: Now to Abraham and his Seed were the promises made. He does not say, "And to seeds," as of many, but as of one, "And to your Seed," who is Christ. 17And this I say, that the law, which was four hundred and thirty years later, cannot annul the covenant that was confirmed before by God in Christ, that it should make the promise of no effect. 18For if the inheritance is of the law, it is no longer of promise; but God gave it to Abraham by promise.

The 430 and 400 years 400 years Abraham’s descendants to be sojourners (Gen 15:13) 430 years from the Promise to the Law (Gal 3:17)

The Law cannot annul the covenant that was confirmed before by God The Law was only a temporary tutor (shadow) until the reality of Christ had come

Galatians 3: For you are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus. 27For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ. 28There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus. 29And if you are Christ's, then you are Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise.

The promises are Paul’s gospel of Grace (Rom 4:13-16) Therefore it is of faith that it might be according to grace, so that the promise might be sure to all the seed, not only to those who are of the law, but also to those who are of the faith of Abraham, who is the father of us all. (Rom 4:16)

Why do we call it the “promises” to Abraham? So no one can work for salvation and think they earned it (Rom 4:4-5) Not based on a Law - so God can freely give it to to everyone who has faith (Rom 4:16) Totally God’s initiative! He gave it by promise. “I have made you” (Rom 4:17-22)

Who are Abraham’s children? (Jn 8) Jews thought they were Abraham’s descendants (33) Jesus agrees, but says they want to kill him [like Ishmael mocked Isaac] (37) Jesus says they are not Abraham’s children because they don’t do the works of Abraham (39) They claim they were not born of fornication (41) [same problem Isaac faced from Ishmael] Not all of Abraham’s descendents are Abraham’s children (Rom 9:7)

Appreciate your grafting into the Promises to Abraham None of us deserve this No way to earn it Thank God every day for the privilege Walk in the steps of the faith of Abraham to show God we want to be in His family Produce fruit to God

Take Abraham’s Faith home with you!

Jesus said to them, “If you were Abraham's children, you would do the works of Abraham.” (John 8:39) Walk in the steps of the faith which our father Abraham had while still uncircumcised. (Rom 4:12)