"study The Scripture"

[Citizen of the Kingdom]

God of Glory appearing. Abraham's life illustrates the 1st aspect of God's calling.

Abraham= father of faith. W/O God he was just another unbeleiver. God had to appear to him over and over again. His only hope was in that continued application of God on his life.

His appearing was a great attraction for Abram (father of nations) to go forward. God's appearing to us in the Word should be our #1 motivator to continue with Jesus.

Our background may be so hard for us to come away at His calling. He speaks to us and tells us of our poverty. He said "Follow Me". 2 Cor 3:16 "Whenever the heart is turned to the Lord the veil is taken away" Our first love, Song of Solomon, says come away with Me. Abraham's heart was turned to the Lord. #2 Motivator.

God's promise is whatever God speaks to us. For Him to command Abram to get out was a promise of His supply. His promise to make him a great nation was a guarentee of His carrying it out, which we are witnesses to the fulfillment. God promises all of what He has to His children,(the spiritual sons of Abraham) #3 Motivator.

We have three reasons, excellent motivators, why God should be followed in spirit, truth and faithfulness. We need His repeated callings on our lives to spark the love of His promises. Read the Word, Jesus is calling!!

Hope your all having a great weekend!!

 

[Citizen of the Kingdom]

Study 10 Gen 15
God's Covenant With Abram

1) How are God's Word's in verse 1 exactly related to Abram's circumstances and condition?

2) In utterly hopeless circumstances (see Gen. 11:30; 15:3) How did Abram obtain hope of having descendents? What else did he gain by such a response? What priciple of the gospel of Christ does this represent? Cf. Rom. 4:2-5; 13-25.

3) What grounds for his faith did God give to Abram? Why did God also make a covenent with Abram? Note the use of a visible token and pledge.

Note.
Verses 9,10,17 describes an ancient ritual used to seal a contract. Cf. Jer. 34:18-19. The smoking pot and flaming torch represent the Lord passing between the divided carcasses, and thus radifying the covenant.

 

[Rut]

Study 9 Genesis 13:5-14:24
Abram and Lot Separate
Abram Rescues Lot

1) Put yourself in Lot's place when Abram's offer was made to him. What was the motive that decided his choice, and how did it end? What did Abram lose by letting Lot chose first? Cf. Matt. 16:25.

Lot saw that country was rich on water and green = rich on matter.In that country live evil people and that was unpeace in that country so to the end Lot became a warprisoner and he lost everything

2) What fresh light do the events of chp. 14 throw on Abram's character?

He care about his family

 

[Rut]

2) What fresh light do the events of chp. 14 throw on Abram's character?

I forget to say that he have a strong faith on God too because he gave thanks to God and he don`t care about to be rich.He is sacrificed to live a simply life

 

[Citizen of the Kingdom]

Study 9 Genesis 13:5-14:24
Abram and Lot Separate
Abram Rescues Lot

1) Put yourself in Lot's place when Abram's offer was made to him. What was the motive that decided his choice, and how did it end? What did Abram lose by letting Lot chose first? Cf. Matt. 16:25.

Lot saw that country was rich on water and green = rich on matter.In that country live evil people and that was unpeace in that country so to the end Lot became a warprisoner and he lost everything

2) What fresh light do the events of chp. 14 throw on Abram's character?

He care about his family

Happy monday morning Rut. We're on study 10. # 9 was posted on Thursday.
You must have missed the post #225 and #1 which states If you fall behind just do it at home and skip to the next one.
For the sake of the topic on hand it's just easier to stick with today's topic, please..
I remember posting with you when I 1st started and if I remember correctly your a stickler for rules too so I know you'll understand. Thanks

 

[Citizen of the Kingdom]

The covenent is such an important topic that I've taken word for word what Witness Lee had to say on it (but I changed what he calls the churchlife to the body b/c I think that defines it more) BTW I like Witness Lee's teachings but I have some different veiws. but somethings no one can say it better!
Many people believe the covenent to be their ticket to what God is forced to hold Himself to, but what is a covenant?
An agreement where both sides have promised to conform to prior conditions (ie: divorce pending if certain conditions aren't met)? OR God saying His plans will go into effect regardless? I'll let you decide...

In the last study we saw that whatever Abraham experienced prior to Genesis 15 was a matter of God's blessing for his existence. But God's calling of Abraham was not merely that Abraham should exist; it was that God's eternal purpose might be fulfilled through him. Beginning with chapter fifteen, God came in to show Abraham that he needed grace for the fulfillment of God's eternal purpose. Abraham not only needed outward blessings in his environment but also grace in his life. If we read Genesis 15 through 22 carefully, we shall see that in these chapters God was dealing with Abraham in order to bring him to the realization that he needed His grace in order to fulfill His eternal purpose. So God came in not simply to bless Abraham outwardly but to work Himself into him as grace in order that Abraham might have something substantial for the carrying out of God's eternal purpose.
Two things were needed for Abraham to fulfill God's purpose—the seed and the land. If you read Genesis 15 again, you will see that these two things, the seed and the land, are mentioned repeatedly. Both the seed and the land (the rest) are representative of Christ. Firstly, the seed is the individual, personal Christ, and eventually it is the corporate Christ. Galatians 3:16 reveals that Christ is the seed of Abraham. Initially the seed was the individual Christ, but ultimately it has become the corporate Christ—the Christ who is the Head with all of us as His Body. This is the seed that is needed for the fulfillment of God's purpose.
Christ is also the land. The concept that Christ is the land may seem rather new or strange because in the past many of us were told that the good land of Canaan was a type, a symbol, of heaven. This concept is held by many Christians, but if we return to the pure Word, we can see that the land actually symbolizes Christ. In type, the land is the place where God's people have rest and where God can defeat all of His enemies and establish His kingdom with His habitation for His expression and representation. Please remember the following points regarding the land: that it is the place where God's people may have rest; that it is the place where all of God's enemies can be slaughtered; and that it is the place where God establishes His kingdom and builds up His habitation that He may be expressed and represented on this rebellious earth. What is qualified to be such a land? Nothing other than Christ. In Christ, we have rest and we slaughter the enemies. In Christ, God establishes His kingdom and builds His habitation, the church, for His expression and representation. Have you seen that both the seed and the land are Christ? The seed that God promised Abraham is today the corporate Christ, and the land that God promised him is the wonderful resurrected and elevated Christ in whom we rest and slaughter our enemies and in whom God establishes His kingdom and builds up His habitation that He might be expressed and represented.
When God promised Abraham that he would have a seed, Abraham believed God for this immediately (15:6). When Abraham believed in God for the promise concerning the seed, his faith, which was so precious to God, was counted as righteousness to him by God. At that time, Abraham was justified by faith, by the faith that believed that God would give him the seed to accomplish God's eternal purpose. When Abraham believed in God for that, God was happy with him. After this, however, when God also promised Abraham that He would give him the land, Abraham fell short, saying to the Lord, "Lord God, whereby shall I know that I shall inherit it?" (v. 8). Although he was able to believe in God for the promise concerning the seed, he could not believe in Him for the promise concerning the land.
The principle is the same today. To believe that Christ is the seed is easy, but to believe that Christ is the land is difficult. It is easier to believe that Christ is our life than it is to believe that Christ can be our (corperate)(church) body life. Many Christians believe in God for Christ's being their life, but when they come to the matter of the body life, the good land where we can rest, slaughter the enemies, and afford God the ground to establish His kingdom and build up His habitation, they say that it is impossible for us to have this today. Many Christians seem to be saying, "It is possible for us to live by Christ, but it is impossible to have the body life." It is easier for them to believe that Christ can be their life than that the body can be their living. They cannot believe that it is possible to have the body life today. Once again we see that we are the same as Abraham, finding it easy to believe in God for the seed but finding it difficult to believe in Him for the land. Do you have Christ as the seed? Do you also have Him as the land? It is not such a simple matter to have Christ as the land for us to live in so that we may have the body life and that God may have His kingdom with His habitation for His expression and representation.

TBContinued

 

[Citizen of the Kingdom]

3) God Confirming His Promise by Making a Covenant
with Abraham through Christ
Because Abraham found it difficult to believe in God regarding the
promise of the land, God was forced to make a covenant with him. In
15:9-21 we see that God confirmed His promise by making a
covenant with Abraham through Christ. The way in which God made
this covenant with Abraham was very peculiar. This portion of the
Word is difficult for people to understand. We need to see that God
was forced to make this covenant with Abraham. As far as God was
concerned, there was no need for Him to do this. If Abraham had
immediately believed in God for the promise of the land, Genesis 15
would have been much shorter than it is now. There would have been
no need for many things that are mentioned there: the dividing of
the heifer, the she-goat, and the ram; the offering of the turtledove
and the young pigeon; the deep sleep that fell upon Abraham; the
horror of great darkness that came upon him; God's passing through
the pieces as a smoking furnace and as a torch of fire; and the
mention of the four hundred years. It seems that nothing was
pleasant. It was not the time of sunrise but of sunset, and God did
not come in a lovely way but as a smoking furnace and a flaming
torch. If we had witnessed such a scene, we probably would have
been frightened to death, being unable to withstand it and finding it
altogether a terrifying thing. This scene, however, has a very sweet
flavor because in it God made a covenant with His dear called one; He
had no intention of terrifying him.
This incident in Genesis 15 is the consummation of a covenant, the record of God's enacting of a covenant. The first covenant that God made was with Noah (9:8-17), a covenant that had a rainbow as its sign. Here, in Genesis 15, is the second covenant made by God with man. We need to keep this fact firmly in mind.
(a) Three Cattle Signifying the Crucified Christ
In making His covenant with Abraham, God told him to take a heifer,
a she-goat, a ram, a turtledove, and a young pigeon (v. 9). The three
cattle, all of which were three years of age, were divided in half, but
the two birds were not; they were kept alive. It was through these
that God made His covenant with Abraham, implying that it was in
this way that Abraham could fulfill God's eternal purpose.
We need to see the significance of the three cattle and the two birds.
In typology, all things offered to God by man are a type of Christ.
Based upon this principle, each of these five things undoubtedly is a
type of Christ. Christ is firstly the crucified Christ, the cut Christ,
and secondly He is the resurrected, living Christ. If we see this, then
we can immediately understand that the three cattle, which were cut
and killed, are types of the crucified Christ. The crucified Christ was
the One who became flesh, living on earth in His humanity. John
chapter one says that the Word who was God became flesh (v. 14).
Then it speaks of this One as the Lamb of God (v. 29). The Lamb of
God was the One who was the Word of God becoming flesh. Thus, the
three cattle in Genesis 15 should signify Christ in His humanity
being crucified for us.
If we read Genesis 15 along with the book of Leviticus, we can see
that the female heifer was for a peace offering (Lev. 3:1). Why does
the peace offering come first? Because when God was making a
covenant with His called one, there was the need of peace. In making
a covenant or any agreement between two parties there is the need of
peace. In order for God to make a covenant with His called one, there
was firstly the need of a peace offering. And Christ was that peace
offering. The she-goat was a type of Christ as our sin offering (Lev.
4:28; 5:6). Regardless of how good we may be as God's called ones,
we are still sinful. Thus, following the peace offering we need the sin
offering. Hallelujah, the problem of sin has been settled! It has been
taken away by Christ as our she-goat, as our sin offering. Following
this there was the need of the burnt offering, the offering which
signifies that everything must be for God (Lev. 1:10). After the peace
offering, there was the sin offering, and after the sin offering, there
was the burnt offering. Christ was all of the offerings that God passed
through in making a covenant with His called one.
Why were the three cattle all three years old? Because Christ was not
killed in death but in resurrection. He was not offered in death but in
resurrection. Referring to His crucifixion, the Lord told the Jews,
"Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up" (John 2:19).
The Lord was killed when He was "three years old," meaning that He
was killed in resurrection. Even before He was killed He was already
in resurrection because He was always in resurrection (John 11:25).
Therefore, when He was killed, He was killed in resurrection, and
this was why He could be resurrected. Christ offered Himself to God
in resurrection. He was nailed to the cross in resurrection.
Regardless of how strong you may be, if you were to be killed, you
would be killed in death, not in resurrection. But the Lord Jesus was
killed in resurrection.

TBC

 

[Citizen of the Kingdom]

(b) Two Birds Signifying the Resurrected Christ
The two birds, neither of which was killed, signify the resurrected,
living Christ (Lev. 14:6-7). This resurrected Christ is mainly in His
divinity because, according to the Bible, a dove in typology signifies
the Holy Spirit (John 1:32). Therefore, while the cattle typify Christ
in His humanity, the birds typify Him in His divinity. So the birds in
Genesis 15 signify the heavenly Christ, the Christ who came from
and who still is in heaven (John 3:13), the Christ who was and who
still is living. Christ has been crucified, yet He lives. He was killed in
His humanity, but He lives in His divinity. He was killed as a man
who walked on this earth, but now He is living as the heavenly One
soaring in the heavens. While His humanity was good for Him to be
all the sacrifices, His divinity is good for Him to be the living One. He
was sacrificed for us in His humanity, and He is living for us in His
divinity.
In typology, the turtledove signifies a suffering life and the young
pigeon signifies a believing life, a life of faith. While He was living on
earth, the Lord Jesus was always suffering and believing. In His
suffering life He was the turtledove and in His believing life He was
the young pigeon.
There were two birds, and the number two means testimony, bearing
witness (Acts 5:32). The two living birds bear testimony of Christ as
the resurrected One living in us and for us (John 14:19-20; Gal.
2:20). The living Jesus is the testimony, the One who constantly
bears witness. In Revelation 1 the Lord Jesus said, "I am..the living
One, and I became dead, and behold, I am living forever and ever" (v.
18). His living forever is His testimony, for the testimony of Jesus is
always related to the matter of being living. If a local church is not
living, it does not have the testimony of Jesus. The more living we
are, the more we are the testimony of the living Jesus.
There were three cattle and two birds, making a total of five items.
The number five is the number of responsibility, indicating here that
Christ as the crucified and living One is now bearing all the
responsibility for the fulfillment of God's eternal purpose.
(c) As Fowl from the Air, Satan and His Angels Coming
to Make Christ of None Effect
When the sacrifices were made ready, the fowl from the air came
down trying to eat them (v. 11). This signifies that Satan and his
angels come to make Christ of none effect for the church life (Gal.
5:2, 4). Today Satan and his angels (2 Cor. 11:13-15) are doing their
best to rob Christians of the enjoyment of Christ for the church life
(Col. 2:8). As Abraham drove the fowl away, so we must drive Satan
and his angels away from what Christ is to us for the church life.
(d) The Covenanting God Passing between
the Pieces of the Sacrifices
It was through the sacrifices as types of Christ that God passed to
make a covenant with Abraham (vv. 17-18; cf. Jer. 34:18-19). After
Abraham divided the cattle and arranged all the sacrifices, "when the
sun was going down, a deep sleep fell upon Abram; and, lo, an horror
of great darkness fell upon him" (vv. 11-12). When Abraham was in
this kind of situation, God came in. Verse 17 says, "And it came to
pass, that, when the sun went down, and it was dark, behold a
smoking furnace, and a torch of fire that passed between those
pieces" (v. 18, Heb.). God did not come in a very lovely way but as a
smoking furnace and as a flaming torch. A furnace is for refining, and
a torch is for enlightening. In the midst of a dark situation God came
in to refine and to enlighten. This happens quite often in the church
life. Suddenly the sunrise becomes the sunset, a dark night
descends upon us, many saints are sleepy and out of function, and
there is suffering on every side. During such a time of affliction, we
may begin to doubt, saying, "What is this? Is something wrong with
us?" At such a time God will always come in as a furnace to refine us,
to burn us out, and also as a torch to enlighten us. People often say
of those in the church life, "How can you people have so much light?
What light there is among you! How the torch is flaming!" The light
mainly comes from the sufferings. Look at Abraham's situation: the
sun went down, night came, Abraham was sleeping, and God came
in, not as a comforter but as a furnace to burn and as a torch to
enlighten. On the one hand God is burning us and we are suffering;
on the other hand He is enlightening us and we are under the light.
At such a time, even if we are in a dark night, we shall be so clear.
It was in this kind of a situation that God passed between the pieces
of the sacrifices, and that was the enacting of God's covenant. God
made a covenant with Abraham in the way of passing through all of
the sacrifices as a smoking furnace and a torch of fire. It was in this
way that God confirmed His promise to Abraham by making a
covenant with him for the fulfillment of His eternal purpose.

TBC

 

[Citizen of the Kingdom]

e) The Called One Identified with Christ
by Offering Him to God
Whenever people offered something to God in the Old Testament,
they laid their hand upon the sacrifice, signifying their union or
identification with it. God's asking Abraham to offer the cattle and
birds to Him implied that Abraham had to be one with all of the
things that he offered to God. God seemed to be saying to him,
"Abraham, you must be in union with all of the things that you offer
to Me. You must be identified with the cattle and the birds." This
indicates that we also have to be cut in Christ's being cut and
crucified in His crucifixion. Our natural man, our flesh, and our self
must be cut and crucified. As we are identified with Him in His
crucifixion, we are also identified with Him in His resurrection. We
are dead in His death (Rom. 6:5a, 8a) and we are living in His
resurrection (Rom. 6:5b, 8b) to fulfill God's purpose. We were
terminated in His crucifixion and we were germinated in His
resurrection. It is in this way that we are enabled to fulfill God's
eternal purpose.
It is impossible for the natural man to have the body life. Among us
we have many different kinds of brothers and sisters. Humanly
speaking, it is impossible for us to be one. Nevertheless, in the
body we are truly one by the crucified and resurrected Christ. We
are so one in Him that even the Devil has to admit that we are one.
Our old man was terminated in Christ's crucifixion. Whenever my
terminated old man comes out of the grave, I immediately rebuke
him, saying, "What are you doing here? You have been terminated
already. It is wrong for you to come here." We all have been
terminated in Christ's crucifixion and germinated in His
resurrection. In His resurrection we all are living, not living by
ourselves but by the resurrected Christ who lives within us and who
enables us to have the church life.
Now we see how God can have such a wonderful seed and land as the
people and the sphere in and with which He can establish His
kingdom and build up His habitation for His expression and
representation. How can God do this? Only by Christ's being
crucified as our peace offering, sin offering, and burnt offering and
being resurrected to be our life. Now we, the called ones, those who
offer Christ to God and are identified with Him, are one with Christ.
When Christ was crucified and resurrected, we also were crucified
and resurrected with Him. We were crucified in His crucifixion and
resurrected in His resurrection. Now we can all declare, "It is no
longer I who live, but Christ lives in me" (Gal. 2:20). It is by this fact
that we can be living today in order to have the body life. In the
body life we have Christ within as the seed and Christ without as
the land. How can we get into such a land, into such a body life?
Only through the crucified and resurrected Christ, through the
heifer, she-goat, ram, turtledove, and pigeon. On the one hand, we
all have been crucified; on the other hand, we all are living. So here
God can have the seed and the land for the fulfillment of His eternal
purpose. Hallelujah for such a Christ as the seed for us to live by and
as the land for us to live in!
(4) The Affliction of the Promised Seed
(a) Signified by the Great Darkness
Verses 12 through 16 speak of the affliction of the promised seed.
This affliction was signified by the great darkness that fell upon
Abraham. As the sun was going down, Abraham fell into a deep
sleep, and a horror of a great darkness came upon him. In that
darkness God prophesied concerning Abraham's seed, saying, "Know
of a surety that thy seed shall be a stranger in a land that is not
theirs, and shall serve them; and they shall afflict them four hundred
years..but in the fourth generation they shall come hither again" (vv.
13, 16). God seemed to be telling Abraham, "Abraham, you should
not doubt that I will give you the land. Your seed will inherit the
land. But your descendants are going to suffer affliction for four
hundred years." The Lord's prophecy here is very meaningful. In the
church life today, at a certain point the sun will go down, the dark
night will come, and most of the people will be sleeping, that is, they
will be out of function and no longer useful. Such a time is a time of
affliction. Here with Abraham we see three things: that the sun was
going down, that a deep sleep fell upon Abraham, and that a horror
of a great darkness fell upon him. It is during such a time that God's
called people are under suffering. God told Abraham that his seed
would be suffering like that for four hundred years. Those four
hundred years were to be one long night, a dark age when all the
children of Israel would be sleeping, out of function, and suffering
affliction. Abraham's sleep signified that the four hundred years were
to the children of Israel a dark night through which they passed.

All this is copy/paste from lsm.org (living stream ministry)

 

[Rut]

Study 10 Gen 15
God's Covenant With Abram

1) How are God's Word's in verse 1 exactly related to Abram's circumstances and condition?

He shouldn`t be afraid for nothing.If something happen God shall help him

2) In utterly hopeless circumstances (see Gen. 11:30; 15:3) How did Abram obtain hope of having descendents? What else did he gain by such a response? What priciple of the gospel of Christ does this represent? Cf. Rom. 4:2-5; 13-25.

He had a women slave that could give him child.God thought about him to have a good heart

3) What grounds for his faith did God give to Abram? Why did God also make a covenent with Abram? Note the use of a visible token and pledge.

God showed him the stars on the heaven and said that so big shall you family become.God saw that he had a good heart

Note.
Verses 9,10,17 describes an ancient ritual used to seal a contract. Cf. Jer. 34:18-19. The smoking pot and flaming torch represent the Lord passing between the divided carcasses, and thus radifying the covenant

 

[Citizen of the Kingdom]

 

[Citizen of the Kingdom]

Study 10 Gen 15
God's Covenant With Abram
1) How are God's Word's in verse 1 exactly related to Abram's circumstances and condition? He was afraid and needed protection.
2) In utterly hopeless circumstances (see Gen. 11:30; 15:3)
He had such a great wealth and no one to leave it to. He thought he'd have to leave it to a servant's child. What else did he gain by such a response? God responded to him by promising him an heir of his own.
What principle of the gospel of Christ does this represent? Cf. Rom. 4:2-5; 13-25.
Justified by faith and not by works. 25He was delivered over to death for our sins and was raised to life for our justification.

3) What grounds for his faith did God give to Abram? 6 Abram believed the LORD, and he credited it to him as righteousness. Why did God also make a covenent with Abram? Because he questioned the Lord.

 

[pilgrimage]

Jer 34:18 The men who have violated my covenant and have not fulfilled the terms of the covenant they made before me, I will treat like the calf they cut in two and then walked between its pieces. 19 The leaders of Judah and Jerusalem, the court officials, the priests and all the people of the land who walked between the pieces of the calf,
Signifies the covenant was made individually with everyone and that God has terms to be fulfilled or they'll be cut off.
The covenant refered to in Jer was in regard to the Jubilee.
Jer 34:8 The word came to Jeremiah from the LORD after King Zedekiah had made a covenant with all the people in Jerusalem to proclaim freedom for the slaves. 9 Everyone was to free his Hebrew slaves, both male and female; no one was to hold a fellow Jew in bondage. 10 So all the officials and people who entered into this covenant agreed that they would free their male and female slaves and no longer hold them in bondage. They agreed, and set them free. 11 But afterward they changed their minds and took back the slaves they had freed and enslaved them again.
The judgement God proclaimed on them.
17 "Therefore, this is what the LORD says: You have not obeyed me; you have not proclaimed freedom for your fellow countrymen. So I now proclaim 'freedom' for you, declares the LORD -'freedom' to fall by the sword, plague and famine. I will make you abhorrent to all the kingdoms of the earth.
Terms of God's covenasnt with Abram.
I don't see any.

 

[abigale]

His flaming path

 

[Citizen of the Kingdom]

Study 11 Genesis 16-17
Hagar and Ishmael
The Covenant of Circumcision

1) Gen. 16:1-6. In what ways did Abram act wrongly in having a son by Hagar? How was he misled? Was Sarah right to blame Abram for the wrong that had been done to her? What ought Abram to have thought, said and done in the face of such a situation?

2) Gen. 17. Note the characteristics of covenant-making which are mentioned here. What are the blessings of which Abram was thereby assured? What did Abraham have to do to embrace the assurance which the covenant afforded?

3) Gen. 16:&-15; 17:18-21. What do we learn here of God's character and purposes from His dealings with Hagar and Ishmeal? What Christian truths are here prefigured?

Notes.
1) 16:13. Hagar not only realized that God is One by whose all seeing eye none are unseen or overlooked; but also that He had personally manifested Himself to her, and that she had seen God w/o dying. Mention of the "angel of the Lord" (verse 7) occurs here for the first time in the bible. In verse 13 he is described as "the Lord who spoke to her". This suggests an anticipation of the incarnation, an appearance in person of God the Son.

2)Chapter 17. The covenant was pledged by God in His Name. In witness of the benifits which they were to recieve under it, Abram and Sarai were both given significant new names. Abraham and every male of his house was to be circumcised as "a sign of the covenant" between him and God.

3) 17:18-21. Note that Abraham's suggestion that Ishmael might be accepted by God, as the son concerning whom God's special covenant promises were made, was not accepted by God.

 

[Citizen of the Kingdom]

Study 11 Genesis 16-17
Hagar and Ishmael
The Covenant of Circumcision
1) Gen. 16:1-6. In what ways did Abram act wrongly in having a son by Hagar? How was he misled? Was Sarah right to blame Abram for the wrong that had been done to her? What ought Abram to have thought, said and done in the face of such a situation?
The only comment I have on this is to point out that Sarah was the one in control of the home. God backed her on that.
2) Gen. 17. Note the characteristics of covenant-making which are mentioned here. What are the blessings of which Abram was thereby assured? What did Abraham have to do to embrace the assurance which the covenant afforded?
covenant makers:
1) walk before me and be blameless.
2) 9 Then God said to Abraham, "As for you, you must keep my covenant, you and your descendants after you for the generations to come. 10 This is my covenant with you and your descendants after you, the covenant you are to keep: Every male among you shall be circumcised.
(hmn, no mention of females) (does this have special significance in having to do with the bride?) (where does the female stand in the covenant then?)
3)My covenant in your flesh is to be an everlasting covenant. 14 Any uncircumcised male, who has not been circumcised in the flesh, will be cut off from his people; he has broken my covenant."
4) 15 God also said to Abraham, "As for Sarai your wife, you are no longer to call her Sarai; her name will be Sarah. 16 I will bless her and will surely give you a son by her. I will bless her so that she will be the mother of nations; kings of peoples will come from her."
( At which Abraham laughed...eheh)
5) your wife Sarah will bear you a son, and you will call him Isaac. [h] I will establish my covenant with him as an everlasting covenant for his descendants after him.
3) Gen. 16:7-15; 17:18-21. What do we learn here of God's character and purposes from His dealings with Hagar and Ishmeal? What Christian truths are here prefigured?
The covenant is only thru the chosen Son.
Notes.
1) 16:13. Hagar not only realized that God is One by whose all seeing eye none are unseen or overlooked; but also that He had personally manifested Himself to her, and that she had seen God w/o dying. Mention of the "angel of the Lord" (verse 7) occurs here for the first time in the bible. In verse 13 he is described as "the Lord who spoke to her". This suggests an anticipation of the incarnation, an appearance in person of God the Son.
2)Chapter 17. The covenant was pledged by God in His Name. In witness of the benifits which they were to recieve under it, Abram and Sarai were both given significant new names. Abraham and every male of his house was to be circumcised as "a sign of the covenant" between him and God.
3) 17:18-21. Note that Abraham's suggestion that Ishmael might be accepted by God, as the son concerning whom God's special covenant promises were made, was not accepted by God.

 

[yeshuaslavejeff]

......

 

[Citizen of the Kingdom]

Genesis 18:2

Genesis 18:10

Study 12 Genesis 18
The Three Visitors
Abraham Pleads for Sodom

1) Let us learn from Abrahem's example how it is possible to recieve the Lord as our guest, to enjoy fellowship with Him, to become those whom He calls His friends. Cf. Heb 13:2; Rev. 3:20; Ja. 2:23; Jn. 15:13-15. What were the fruits of this fellowship in Abraham's experience? What enrichment, in consequence, did Abraham gain for himself, and was able to bring to others?

2) Verses 22-23. What are the chief characteristics of Abraham's intercession? Make a list of those who should also mark our praying. Note the effect of Abraham's intercession. Cf. Gen. 19:29

Note.
Verses 23-25. Note that in praying for Lot and for Sodom Abraham appealed not to God's special covenant mercy or faithfulness, but to His universal rihjteous judgement.

 

[yeshuaslavejeff]

simple

 

[Citizen of the Kingdom]

Wow ^^

How it is possible to recieve the Lord as our guest, to enjoy fellowship with Him, to become those whom He calls His friends?
a)By not dismissing from my mind and forgetting to take into consideration views from anyone who does not belong in my accustomed environment. Hebrews 13:2
b) By recieving His Word into my heart, not just recieve it but ingesting the Word, digesting the Truth and eliminate the false techings I am holding within. Revelation 3:20
c) Believe in my heart what He is saying is the best for me not just good for me, by not being a fair weather friend to Him but as a true friend. James 2:23
d) Be willing to give my life to Him by doing what He commands and learning from Him. John 15:13-15

What were the fruits of this fellowship in Abraham's experience? What enrichment, in consequence, did Abraham gain for himself, and was able to bring to others?
God took Abraham into His confidence and told him of what was to come. And He listened to Abraham's pleas, and took them into consideration, going as far as to say basically "if all those good men exist, Abby, I won't destroy the city" Unfortunately all He saved was the family of the man that Abraham had been told to leave behind in the first place.

Jesus has laid down His life for us and now we hold the knowledge of the Father's business b/c of it.
When we entertain His people we learn about the things He has told them of as well. The whole knowledge is out there but no one person holds it all, just like each scientist has the little piece of the pie but we need the whole to see the big picture.


God came to Abraham directly, just as Enoch walked with God, God speaks to His people directly. For those who don't want such an intimate relationship I think He has the angels watching over them.

Abraham could not have appealed to covenant mercy or faithfulness b/c Lot was not of the promise, so instead he appealed to universal righteous judgement, but that didn't even seem to work, so it is in the final analises that God is in control. (but at least we are taken into His line of reasoning with Him)