Genesis 12:1-13:4
As Christians we are to live a life of faith. 2 Corinthians
5:7 say’s that we walk by faith and not sight.
In fact 4 times in God’s word reference is made that the just live by
faith. Let’s take a quick look at these references.
Habakkuk 2:4 the latter part of the verse say’s, “but the just shall live by his faith.”
Notice the personal pronoun his faith.
This makes faith a personal matter.
This makes faith a personal matter. You and I cannot make this journey of
faith on someone else’s faith. We must have posses our own personal faith in
God. Later in this study we will look at Lot who was trying to live off of
Abraham’s faith.
The other three references are Romans 1:17, Galatians 3:11
and Hebrews 10:38. In each of these scriptures it simply say’s that, “The
just shall live by faith.” So
as Christians we are to live a life of faith the leads to a life of obedience. Hebrews
11:8 8By faith Abraham, when he was called to go out into a place
which he should after receive for an inheritance, obeyed; and he went out, not
knowing whither he went. I want to point out two very important points from
this passage of scripture.
I don’t know many
people that like the idea of moving out into the unknown. When we talk about
going places that we have never been before or doing something that we have
never done before fear comes to the forefront and stops us. To Move Into The Unknown we have to take a step of faith and
leave our comfort zone and the security of our surroundings. As Christians we
have been called to journey of faith through this life shinning the light
of Jesus as we go bringing as many as we can to the saving knowledge of the Lord
Jesus Christ. As a church and as Christian we are to bring healing to a hurting
world. A journey into the unknown
can bring fear to the heart of any person. However Christians have the light of
God’s word to light the way for us. But even then the enemy will try to bring
fear into our lives to cripple and paralyze our walk of faith. Faith and fear
cannot co-exist in the same house… one or the other has to go.
When fear try’s to invade our lives we need to recognize its source.
2
Tim.1:7 For God hat not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love,
and of a sound mind.
Second
Timothy 1:7 implies that Satan seeks to give us the spirit of fear. Fear must
come from him since it does not come from God. God’s goal is to give us a
spirit of power, love and a sound mind. Satan seeks to bring fear into our lives
because it is the opposite of faith. Satan does not want us to live by faith
because he knows the result that faith will bring in our lives and for God’s
kingdom.
If
God is not the source of our fear then what is He the source of? 2 Timothy 1:7
tells us that God is the Source of our Power, Love and a Sound Mind.
Let’s look at the three things that God gives us.
·
Love = The Greek word for love is
agape. It is a self giving and self sacrificing love for others for the cause of
Christ. It is unconditional in nature simply meaning I love you regardless of
who you are and what you have done. Sometimes you may have people within the
church or outside the church that
are hard to deal with or get along with. They may have done something to hurt
you but we are to still love these individuals. This requires a love that God
puts within our hearts.
The Journey of faith begins with:
Hebrews 11:8 8By faith Abraham, when he was
called to go out into a place which he should after receive for an inheritance,
obeyed; and he went out, not knowing whither he went.
Genesis 12:1 1Now the LORD had said unto
Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy
father’s house, unto a land that I will shew thee
Notice the time
of Abraham’s call. Verse 4 say’s that Abraham was seventy-five years
old when he departed out of Haran. The point that I want you to get is that it
is never to late to start your Journey of Faith. Many people are missing out on
God’s blessings simply because they think that they have waited to long to
answer God’s call. There are many teachers and preachers that have not yet
answered God’s call because they think it’s to late. If you happen to be one
of those people I want to encourage you to answer God’s call on your life
tonight, it’s not to late.
Our Journey of Faith begins the same way that Abraham’s
begin; with a Call from God.
2And I will make of thee a great nation, and I
will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing: 3And
I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee
shall all families of the earth be blessed.
While
the covenant with Abraham is not made and confirmed until the Gen. 15 the
covenant blessings are stated in Gen. 12:2-3. The word Covenant is the Hebrew
word beriyth (ber-eeth). It means a cutting, compact (or pact) because it is
made by passing between the pieces of flesh of the sacrificed animal.
The word covenant also means: (1) To eat with, this suggest fellowship and
agreement; (2) To bind or fetter, this means commitment; (3) To
allot, this is sharing. All together it means that when God makes a
covenant, He enters into an agreement in which He commits Himself to give us
what He promised. This is an act of His Mercy and Grace.
I want you to notice the elements of this Covenant.
·
The
Element Of God’s Promise:
Verse 3 God tells Abraham, “ I will make
of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; (Compare
this with Gen. 11:4 they said, “ let us make a name for ourselves). Most
people are more concerned about what they can make of themselves rather than
what God can make them.
God promised Abraham some rewards for his step of faith
into the unknown. He would make a great nation of him, bless him and make his
name great.
Let’s apply this to ourselves. God’s promise
was a promise to the nation of Israel, but we can also see a spiritual
application here. If we live by faith we will be a part of a spiritual seed (the
church), God’s blessing for our obedience.
2 Corinthians 1:20 20For
all the promises of God in him are yea, and in him Amen, unto the glory
of God by us.
If God has given you a promise then you can bank on it.
I’m talking about the promises in His words not what someone may conjure up in
their mind.
·
The
Element Of God’s Purpose
The end of verse 2 say’s “ And thou shalt be a
blessing ” look at the end of
verse 3, “ In thee shall all the families of thee earth be blessed ”!!
This a life that is to make a positive impact on the lives of others for
both time and eternity. God wants to bless the world through our lives and our
church. God did not put us here to take up time and space. He put us here to
bless and help others.
·
The
Element Of God’s Protection
Verse 3 God tell’s Abraham, “ I will bless them that
bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee:
God promised His divine protection to Abraham and his
seed (He would bless those who blessed them and curse those who cursed them).
God would look after His people. This does not mean God could not use heathen
nations to chasten His people or temporarily cut them off because of their sin
and/or unbelief (Romans 11:13-25). God also promised to use Abraham’s seed to
bless all of the families of the earth; this was a promise referring to the
coming Messiah. From this we learn we need not fear the faith life for it is the
safest life in this world; for we abide under God’s watch-care. It is also the
most satisfying life because we can bring the most good to the most people
through our godly influence even after we are dead.
4So
Abram departed, as the LORD had spoken unto him; and Lot went with him: and
Abram was seventy and five years old when he departed out of Haran. 5And
Abram took Sarai his wife, and Lot his brother’s son, and all their substance
that they had gathered, and the souls that they had gotten in Haran; and they
went forth to go into the land of Canaan; and into the land of Canaan they came.
Verse 9 9And Abram
journeyed, going on still toward the south.
·
Faith
Brings us out.
(Gen. 12:4 Abraham’s departure)
When Abraham left Ur and turned his back on everything he
knew up to this point he was leaving his comfort zone. This meant that change
for Abraham. In order for Abraham to face and accept change he had to have faith
that God would help him through this process. He had to have faith that God
would direct him through this stage in his life. Abraham had a faith that was
willing to accept and embrace God’s Call on his life with commitment and
obedience. Abraham had already lived 75 years and surely this change would be
hard. Because it meant a change in directions. He would have to begin life with
you directions from God.
While change is hard it is not impossible. Most people
say they can’t change. When in reality most people are unwilling to change.
Living by faith will always require us to make changes in our lives. We are
never too old to make the changes faith requires, only too unwilling.
·
Faith
Brings Us In.
(Gen. 12:5 Abraham’s entrance)
Deuteronomy 6:23 23And
he brought us out from thence, that he might bring us in, to give us the land
which he sware unto our fathers.
This was Abraham’s land by promise, If Abraham had
never left Haran he would have never entered into the land that God had promised
him. I am convinced that many
Christians never enjoy the blessing of a deeper walk with God because they never
take the first step into the unknown. They are not committed to following God
into something new. But, If you and I will make a Commitment Of Faith to go With
God regardless of were He leads then we to can enter into a new level of living.
·
Faith
Brings Us On.
(Gen. 12:9 Abraham’s continued journey)
The life of faith never stand’s still; (if you feet are
going then your faith is growing.)
Notice the action words used to describe Abraham; He
departed (12:4), He went forth (12:5), He passed through (12:6), He removed
(12:8), And he journeyed (12:9)
Abraham’s life is an example of the life of faith that
we are to live. We are never to stop growing and going. For us to reach our God
given potential and be all that we can be, we must press on toward the mark, for
the prize of the high calling of God in Jesus Christ We must reach forth unto
those things which are before us (Phil. 3:13-14)
6And
Abram passed through the land unto the place of Sichem, unto the plain of Moreh.
And the Canaanite was then in the land. 7And the LORD appeared
unto Abram, and said, Unto thy seed will I give this land: and there builded he
an altar unto the LORD, who appeared unto him.
The
Canaanites still possessed the land. These people may have posed a threat to Abraham’s
faith and commitment. Therefore God appeared to Abraham to confirm what He had
already promised him. Perhaps when Abraham saw the Canaanites in the land, he
thought maybe I missed God, I just thought I heard from God. Maybe I took a
wrong turn somewhere and got off track. Remember that Abraham had no idea of
where He was Going he was simply following God. The word Sichem means shoulder
and suggest to us strength. I believe that God strategically chose this time
location to confirm Abraham’s faith. I believe God was saying to Abraham, “
Abraham I will bear the burden of your weakness upon my shoulder and give you
strength to possess this land in spite of the enemy that now possess it.
Sometimes
God tell’s us to go and do without giving us all the details. He does this so
that we will trust Him with our lives. God want’s us to learn to live by faith
and not by sight. We need to learn to serve God without having every detail of
our lives drawn out for us before we go.
I
believe that God will only confirm what He has said when we conform to what He
has said.
This
confirmation only came after Abraham had obeyed and moved out in faith. Abraham
built an altar there. When God confirms His word to us it will cause us to do to
things.
· We will worship God. Abraham built an alter in honor of God. The alter is a place of worship. The alter is the place were our lives are altered. I believe that while Abraham was worshipping God his life was altered because of the experience. Every time that we encounter God’s presence it should bring about a response of worship that alters the way we think and live. It is at the place of worship that we receive strength to continue on in our Journey of Faith.
·
We
will be a witness For God. The
scripture said that the Canaanites were in the land. Abraham built his alter and
worshipped God in the presence of the Canaanites. Abraham was not ashamed to
announce to these people that He was a worshipper of the true and Living God.
When we worship God we should do so to draw attention to God and not ourselves.
Most people pretend to worship in order to draw attention to themselves. True
worshippers worship in order to get God’s attention and when that happens it
becomes a witness to the world around us. God is seeking for true worshippers.
What is a true worshipper?
John 4:19-24 19The
woman saith unto him, Sir, I perceive that thou art a prophet. 20Our
fathers worshipped in this mountain; and ye say, that in Jerusalem is the place
where men ought to worship. 21Jesus saith unto her, Woman, believe
me, the hour cometh, when ye shall neither in this mountain, nor yet at
Jerusalem, worship the Father. 22Ye worship ye know not what: we know
what we worship: for salvation is of the Jews. 23But the hour cometh,
and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in
truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him. 24God is a
Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in
truth.
These scriptures are full of information about
worship. However I just want to point out 2 or 3 things in closing as it relates
to us in our Journey of Faith. The first 2 are the time and the location of
worship. This woman of Samaria was concerned about the time and location of
worship. She made said that the Samaritans worshipped in this mountain and the
Jews worship at Jerusalem. Jesus corrected her by telling her that it was not
about the time or the place of worship but the quality of worship. Jesus said
“the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the
Father in spirit and in truth:” In other words it will be worship that
comes from the depth of our spirit with a true and sincere heart as we are led
by the Holy Spirit. True worship can take place any time at any place as long as
it comes from an honest and sincere heart that brings honor and glory to God.
Conclusion:
The Journey of Faith starts with the Call of Faith. As God calls we
follow in faith and obedience. In this Journey of Faith God enters into a
Covenant with us to give us what we need to make it. There will be times during
our Journey of Faith that God will confirm His word to us to worship Him and be
a witness for Him. It will take a commitment of faith from us to make this
Journey. A commitment of faith that
will bring us out, bring us in and bring us on to the completion of our Journey
of Faith. There is no time for standing still. Let’s take a Journey of Faith
together.