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Abraham: Genesis 12-21
Abraham was chosen by God to be the one through whom He would carry out His plan for mankind’s salvation. God called Abram to leave his home and go to a land that God would show him. By faith, Abraham did just that (Heb. 11:8). Then God made three great promises to him (Gen. 12:1-7). These promises are the foundation for following the rest of the Bible story. First, God promised Abraham that his descendants would become a great nation. This nation would become known as Israel. Second, God promised that these descendants would be given the land that Abraham had traveled to (vs. 7). Most importantly, it would be through Abraham that “all the families of the earth” would be blessed. This promise is given again in Genesis 22:18. “In your seed all the nations of the earth shall be blessed, because you have obeyed my voice.” This seed would be Jesus Christ, and the blessing is the removal of sins through Him (Acts 3:25-26; Gal. 3:16).
Abraham was a man of great faith. By faith he obeyed God, even when he was asked to do very difficult tasks such as sacrificing his son Isaac. Because of his faith and obedience, he was justified before God: “and the Scripture was fulfilled which says, ‘And Abraham believed God, and it was reckoned to Him as righteousness,’ and he was called the friend of God.’” This is the kind of faith that is held up for all of us to imitate.
Discussion
1. Be able to name and discuss the three great promises given to Abraham. Why are they so important? When were they fulfilled? How do they factor into the rest of the Bible?
2. Read Romans 4 along with James 2:14-26. How does “faith” reconcile with “works”? What type of “works” is Paul speaking of? What does James mean by “works”?
3. Discuss the kind of faith Abraham had. What did he believe? How did he act? Did he believe in a reward?
4. How can we today imitate the faith of Abraham?
5. Discuss the “blessing” promise in more detail. What is it? Why is it important to us? How do we share in it?