SUNDAY SCHOOL LESSON 09 November 7, 2004

The Covenant
Theme: A Journey with Abraham

Theme Verse: "By faith Abraham, when called to go to a place he would later receive as his inheritance, obeyed and went, even though he did not know where he was going." Hebrews 11:8, NIV
Readings: Genesis 15: 8-21
Optional Readings: Psalm 105: 7-11
Memory Verse: 1 Chronicles 16: 15-16 "He remembers his covenant forever, the word he commanded for a thousand generations, the covenant he made with Abraham, the oath he swore to Isaac."

      Abram, as noted in Genesis 15:6 "believed the LORD, and he credited it to him as righteousness." Abram took God at His word. In Verse 7, God reminds Abram of his leading. He is saying to Abram- "I AM your benefactor, your protector, your provider, the one who has been with you and led you from Ur of the Chaldeans. Abram had followed God, left his family behind, and not at a young age either! He acknowledged the one true God. It was as if Abram responded by saying "Amen!" (It is so!) to God's work.

      Today's lesson completes the covenant experience of Abram described to us in Chapter 15. God has lead Abram by promises. God reveals a bigger plan to Abram. God leads us by promises, which he confirms as we go in what he does for us and through us. WORD RECEIVED: I AM known by what I have done, I AM to be made known by what I have done and by what I will yet do. I want you to know me personally by what I have done in your life."

      Faith means knowing God, and the strength of our faith is in the depth of our knowledge of God. The better we know him, the more we are enabled to live by faith. We know God by what he has done in our lives and in the lives of others. He works in us as we trust him. (Ephesians 2: 8-9) Abram trusted God. He trusted him enough to question him. These are very strange promises- a child for an old man? A land that for his descendants, who after 400 years of sojourning and brutal servitude will come in to the land?

      Note how Abram could comprehend having a son, yet could not understand how he might possess a foreign land. He needed clarification. This is the same type of faithful questioning that Mary placed before the angel. (Luke 1:54) and Thomas to Jesus (John 14: 5-6).

      Note also how Abram was asking in the context of allowing God to accomplish his purposes through Abram. Abram remained willing. He remained steadfast before the LORD. What questions do you bring before God? How can we KNOW that the Promise is true? Two people at Mark's work currently have family members suffering from cancer. They are asking- Why?? Is this the same type of question that Abram asked? WORD RECEIVED: As we look to the LORD, he will bring us from what we do not understand to understanding.


      Our understanding from God is tied to our obedience to his commands. It is OK to ask the LORD so that you will understand. But be alert to how he brings about that understanding. Look at how God responded to Abram's request- he commanded Abram to participate in a covenant oath ceremony. Abram obeyed. John says in his first letter- "This is love for God: to obey his commands."

      By providing the ceremony as a response to Abram's question, God assured Abram in ways Abram could easily understand, and yet in an abiding and meaningful way. God's provision at this point was also not conditional to Abram's character or behavior.

      Such a ceremony was very common in the culture of Abram's time. It was a powerful means for people during Abram's time to pledge to one another by solemn oath. It was a way of making a promise to someone, signaling to them that you would stand by your promise, no matter what; that you meant it. Typically, in the custom of the time the two parties of the covenant would walk in the row between the divided animals. By doing so they were proclaiming the oath, that may they be torn in two if they violated the covenant. The difference here was the infusion of God's presence. It was a way of God saying to Abram- "I AM with you always, even to the end of the earth." Matthew 28:20 In what ways has God assured you? Recall James' words from his letter- "Draw near to God and he will draw near to you." God alone, as symbolized by the pot and the torch, walked the row between the divided animals. Read Hebrews 6: 13- 19a.

      Do we trust God in this loving relationship, as Abram had learned to draw near to God? WORDS RECEIVED: When you need assurance, I will be there. Call on me. Trust in me.

"The LORD wants to reassure us; to make us know that his promises are real and his plans for us good." What do we, or can we, bring to God, as a way, like Abram, of participating in his promise to us? Abram did what God asked him to do. (Read 1 Samuel 15:22, Romans 12:1; Phil 2: 12-13 and 3: 7-11) We have to work to protect our obedience, just as Abram had to keep the birds of prey away. Ask God to guard your heart. Read Galatians 3:14. Call on God. Take time now to pray to God, to call on him. Trust in him. The blessing given to Abram has come to us through Jesus Christ. Do you believe? God provides an answer to Abram, but no details. Abram still had to believe, and he did.

Notes:

A "smoking firepot" was earthenware, usually of various sizes, used for baking, especially for baking grain offerings. (Lev 2:4)

A "torch" obviously provided light during darkness and night time, but was commonly applied for military functions, and to God's judgment. (Zech 12:6)