Fully Convinced - Part 12

Intro

• Today I want to ask for your patience 
• I want to make an important point 
• We are going to have to slog through some biblical history and some technicalities to arrive at that point. 

The Point: 

• God can redeem any circumstance

Romans 3:20-22 - The Gospel

For no one can ever be made right with God by doing what the law commands. The law simply shows us how sinful we are.

21But now God has shown us a way to be made right with him without keeping the requirements of the law, as was promised in the writings of Moses and the prophets long ago. 22We are made right with God by placing our faith in Jesus Christ. And this is true for everyone who believes, no matter who we are.

Romans 4:1-3 - Abraham's Faith

Abraham was, humanly speaking, the founder of our Jewish nation. What did he discover about being made right with God? 2If his good deeds had made him acceptable to God, he would have had something to boast about. But that was not God’s way. 3For the Scriptures tell us, “Abraham believed God, and God counted him as righteous because of his faith.”

Romans 4:9-10 - Another Good Question

Now, is this blessing only for the Jews, or is it also for uncircumcised Gentiles? Well, we have been saying that Abraham was counted as righteous by God because of his faith. 10But how did this happen? Was he counted as righteous only after he was circumcised, or was it before he was circumcised? Clearly, God accepted Abraham before he was circumcised!

Paul is assuming we have some knowledge here. 

What is he talking about? 

Let see for ourselves…

Genesis 15:1-6 - Abraham's Burden

Some time later, the Lord spoke to Abram in a vision and said to him, “Do not be afraid, Abram, for I will protect you, and your reward will be great.”

2But Abram replied, “O Sovereign Lord, what good are all your blessings when I don’t even have a son? Since you’ve given me no children, Eliezer of Damascus, a servant in my household, will inherit all my wealth. 3You have given me no descendants of my own, so one of my servants will be my heir.”

4Then the Lord said to him, “No, your servant will not be your heir, for you will have a son of your own who will be your heir.” 5Then the Lord took Abram outside and said to him, “Look up into the sky and count the stars if you can. That’s how many descendants you will have!”

6And Abram believed the Lord, and the Lord counted him as righteous because of his faith.

• Take note of the timing here

Genesis 15:7-8 - Abraham needed assurance

Then the Lord told him, “I am the Lord who brought you out of Ur of the Chaldeans to give you this land as your possession.”

8But Abram replied, “O Sovereign Lord, how can I be sure that I will actually possess it?”

Genesis 15:9-16 - The covenant

¸9The Lord told him, “Bring me a three-year-old heifer, a three-year-old female goat, a three-year-old ram, a turtledove, and a young pigeon.” 10So Abram presented all these to him and killed them. Then he cut each animal down the middle and laid the halves side by side; he did not, however, cut the birds in half. 

As the sun was going down, Abram fell into a deep sleep, and a terrifying darkness came down over him. 13Then the Lord said to Abram, “You can be sure that your descendants will be strangers in a foreign land, where they will be oppressed as slaves for 400 years. 14But I will punish the nation that enslaves them, and in the end they will come away with great wealth. 15(As for you, you will die in peace and be buried at a ripe old age.) 16After four generations your descendants will return here to this land, for the sins of the Amorites do not yet warrant their destruction.”

Genesis 15:17-18 - God's unconditional promise

After the sun went down and darkness fell, Abram saw a smoking firepot and a flaming torch pass between the halves of the carcasses. 18So the Lord made a covenant with Abram that day and said, “I have given this land to your descendants, 

What just happened? 

• The firepot represents the Father
• The smoke represents the Holy Spirit
• The torch represents Jesus

God was the only one to walk through the animal carcasses. 

Genesis 16 Summary

• Sarah and Abraham decide to help God
• They come up with a plan 
• Abraham will have a baby with their servant Hagar.
• Hagar gets pregnant 
• This situation creates conflict
• Hagar runs away 
• An angel of the Lord comes to her with some promises
• “I will give you more descendants than you can count.” (Verse 10)
• “You are now pregnant and will give birth to a son. You are to name him Ishmael (which means ‘God hears’), for the Lord has heard your cry of distress. 12This son of yours will be a wild man, as untamed as a wild donkey! He will raise his fist against everyone, and everyone will be against him. Yes, he will live in open hostility against all his relatives.”
• Hagar gives birth to Ishmael

Ishmael’s legacy

• Ishmael becomes the father of 12 sons
• These sons are recognized as the founders of the 12 major tribes of the Arab nations. 
• Muhammad claims to be a direct descendant of Ishmael. 
• The Muslim people believe the Promised land belongs to them because they claim the promise God gave to Abraham was for them and not for the Jewish people. 

Abraham’s sin is still front page news today!

• How bad is your sin? 
• Will your sin still be in the news 4000 later?

If god can redeem Abraham, He can redeem anyone!

Genesis 17:1-10 - God's correction

When Abram was ninety-nine years old, the Lord appeared to him and said, “I am El-Shaddai—‘God Almighty.’ Serve me faithfully and live a blameless life. 2I will make a covenant with you, by which I will guarantee to give you countless descendants.”

3At this, Abram fell face down on the ground. Then God said to him, 4“This is my covenant with you: I will make you the father of a multitude of nations! 5What’s more, I am changing your name. It will no longer be Abram. Instead, you will be called Abraham, for you will be the father of many nations. 6I will make you extremely fruitful. Your descendants will become many nations, and kings will be among them!

7“I will confirm my covenant with you and your descendants after you, from generation to generation. This is the everlasting covenant: I will always be your God and the God of your descendants after you. 8And I will give the entire land of Canaan, where you now live as a foreigner, to you and your descendants. It will be their possession forever, and I will be their God.”

9Then God said to Abraham, “Your responsibility is to obey the terms of the covenant. You and all your descendants have this continual responsibility.

10This is the covenant that you and your descendants must keep: Each male among you must be circumcised. …as a sign of the covenant between me and you. 

Romans 4:11-12

(Clearly, God accepted Abraham before he was circumcised!) Circumcision was a sign that Abraham already had faith and that God had already accepted him and declared him to be righteous—even before he was circumcised. So Abraham is the spiritual father of those who have faith but have not been circumcised. They are counted as righteous because of their faith. 12And Abraham is also the spiritual father of those who have been circumcised, but only if they have the same kind of faith Abraham had before he was circumcised.

Romans 4:13-14

Clearly, God’s promise to give the whole earth to Abraham and his descendants was based not on his obedience to God’s law, but on a right relationship with God that comes by faith. 14If God’s promise is only for those who obey the law, then faith is not necessary and the promise is pointless.

The Point: 

• God can redeem any circumstance

I Have Decided…

…to trust God no matter what.