Gods Eternal Purpose
The story of Abraham starts after the events of the tower of babel. It is clear that the problem of sin persists in the earth. God has sent the flood to destroy all flesh on the earth because the problem of sin. But Noah knew the ways of God and was counted righteous because of His focus on God which can equated to eating of the fruit of the tree of life. Now Noah and His family is preserved. Abraham also is a descendant of Shem. His father Terah started the journey out of the land of UR of the Chaldees into the land of Canaan. This is in the dispensation of the patriarchs and therefore, means that God could have spoken to Terah. However, Terah did not heed to the voice of God because he stopped in Haran and not Canaan. If we explore the meaning of the name Terah we find that it means ‘delay’ and this means that it explains that Terah could have delayed in taking heed of the voice of God and as a result he dilly dallied.
The eternal purpose of God in this case is associated with the need to deal with the problem of sin and the establishment of His Kingdom on earth. God needed a patriarch to establish part of His kingdom and through this patriarch would the opportunity for the lineage of the Christ be established. Abraham hears the voice of God and goes to Canaan which is God’s will. Obedience here is key because obedience to the voice of God demonstrates the eating of the fruit from the tree of life. This places Abraham as a patriarch which places him as the administrator of the kingdom of God on the earth at the time.
The Problem of Sin
The problem of sin started in the garden of Eden where Adam and Eve chose to take the words of the serpent rather than the word of God. Sin is still a problem because man now has a sinful nature. Abraham stands out because He obeys the voice of God and this provides an opportunity for God to establish His kingdom on earth through Abraham. The word of God to Abraham specifies that Abraham has to leave his family and God to the land of Canaan. Abraham heeds but partially because he carries lot with him despite this being an opportunity for him to be isolated and for God to start working on him and his character to make him better suited as an administrator of His Kingdom as a patriarch.
This brings us to the first aspect of the character of Abraham. At this point he hears God and takes action but not in entirety. Whenever we partake of the fruit of the knowledge of good and evil which can be equated with obeying self rather than God there are always consequences. The consequences are that Abraham and Lot face problems living together that ultimately leads them to separate from one another. But it was clear from the word go that Abraham needed to separate from his kindred.
Disobedience is just one of them. there are many other instances that show that Abraham was not a perfect man and still carried the sinful nature that God wanted to deal with permanently. Abraham lied about his wife to pharaoh while in Egypt. Abraham lied to Abimelech about his wife also. Abraham also took Hagar after heed to his wife and all these had adverse consequences. For the case of Hagar, God had already made a promise to Abraham but he heeded to his wife instead of focusing of God’s promise that he will have seed. As a result, Hagar had a son, a seed of Abraham in the flesh whom God would establish as a great nation. Despite actions not having consequences right away, they always do in future. This shows us how important it is to always partake of the fruit of the tree of life which is the word of God because His will in our lives is good. Now the consequences of Abrahams dealing with Hagar would have generational effects.
The problem of sin therefore, exists even in Abraham and His household, but Abraham’s focus remains on God and not on his own will and God takes more time to build Abraham’s character. It shows the importance of submitting to the will of God and allowing Him to develop sons in us. Character development is a very important aspect in our relationship with God. It allows God to mold, cultivate and nurture us into the image of His son Jesus for the establishment of His Kingdom on the earth.
Sons of God (People that worship the Lord)
The question of sons of God goes back to the time of eve after the death of Abel. Eve bore a son called Seth and his lineage began men people that called upon the name of the Lord. Calling on the name of the Lord represents worshiping God. Abraham built multiple alters and through them, he worshiped God. Abraham was a son of God in this regard because he incorporated a technology that is clearly described in the story of Cain and Abel. The technology of the alter is not based on man’s idea but based on Gods instruction. Abel’s sacrifice was acceptable because it was based on God’s instructions. Abraham therefore, became a son of God in this regard because through the alter he could call on the name of the name of the Lord and worship Him in different places. The alter therefore represents, a tool, equipment or technology that allowed a fallen man like Abraham to access God and for God to use a fallen man like him to establish His Kingdom on the earth.
Sonship of Abraham
Abraham as a son of God explores different aspects of the character development. Abraham was still a fallen man but God would still use him to establish His purposes on the earth which includes the redemption of the world from sin, death and the devil. For Abraham to be a suitable administrator of God’s Kingdom, he has developed in terms of his character for God to use him. We can look at some of the mistakes that Abraham made.
- The first one is that despite heeding to the voice of God to leave Haran and go to Canaan, Abraham ignored the specific instruction which included leaving all family behind and this is because he allowed lot to follow him. This is a clear situation of an occurrence where Abraham listens to God but incorporates his own ideas of what is good.
- The second situation involves a situation before Abraham and his family goes into Egypt because of a famine. He asks Sarah to say she is his sister because of the fear that if she says that she is his wife he will be killed. This is after God had made a promise to Abraham that Abraham’s seed will be blessed and He would make him a great nation. This was a guarantee of the preservation of Abraham’s life yet while in Egypt, Abraham did not believe and instead used a lie to preserve his own life. God however, was faithful to His promise and preserved their lives.
- Abraham had already lived 10 years in Canaan and had no seed. Sarah also felt the pressure of barrenness and pushed her husband into laying with her maidservant Hagar.
- Abraham yet again entered a new territory in Gerar whose King was Abimelech and had to lie to him that Sarah was his sister.
It is clear that Abraham did not live a perfect life. He was still a fallen man and that despite his association with God, the problem of sin was not uprooted. But it is also important to note that Abraham heeded the voice of God and through a system of sin covering made available by the technology of the alter, Abraham had the chance to commune with God and work with Him. As a result, God could establish His kingdom on the earth with Abraham as the administrator. Abraham and his family because the conduit through which the plans and purposes of God could be established including His eternal purposes and it is for this reason that the forbearance and longsuffering characteristics of God were demonstrated. God also used time to build the character of Abraham and teach him of His ways.
God used time to build Abraham’s character and Abrahams focus on God led to positive results that catapulted him to glory, honor and blessing.
- Abraham was a son of God became like the sons of Seth who called on the name of the Lord, Abraham did so. After arriving in Canaan and receiving the first promise from God, Abraham built an alter and called on the name of the Lord. This forms the basis of the relationship between God and Abraham and represents a strong foundation of intimacy and friendship. In this case we see a very important technology which is the alter. This is a technology that enables intimacy between God and fallen man. After the fall of man, the connection between God and man was lost, but with the alter, there was an opportunity. The alter also represents God’s mercy for man and also demonstrates and sheds light on Gods plans for the future where the reconnection between God and man would require blood. Just like Abel whose sacrifice was acceptable unto God because it was based on God’s instruction for which we later find out that Abel was a prophet, so was Abraham. Abraham called upon the name of the Lord after setting up an alter and this means that he worshiped the Lord and for this reason, a basis for friendship and intimacy could be established after sin was covered using the blood of the animal sacrificed on the alter. But the sin nature was not removed.
- Abraham also heeded the voice of God which means that he received instruction and acted them out in faith. This set him apart from others including his father Terrah who failed to reach Canaan and instead delayed in Haran. Even after falling short and making multiple mistakes, Abraham listened to the Lord and went back to Him. This is an important aspect because it is a demonstration of faith in God which allowed him to run back to God. It also showed that Abraham dwelt in the shadow of the almighty which means that his actions and decisions were influenced by God. The consequence of this association, friendship and intimacy is that Abraham’s knowledge of God increased.
- Abraham’s knowledge of God progressively as their friendship evolves. A case in point is in the time of the judgement of Sodom and Gomorrah. Abraham immediate perceives that the Lord has passed by and based on their interactions and communication, it is evident that they have a friendship. In the same case we see a situation where Abraham considers himself as dust and ash. Abraham had an understanding of his own nature as a man born of sin fashioned after the devil who was a sinner. The judgement on Lucifer after sinning in heaven was that he would go down and become ash and dust which means that his position was lowered to the lowest level position possible. By Adam and Eve disobeying God and obeying the words of the serpent, they took on the nature of the devil Romans 6: 16 “Know ye not, that to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants ye are to whom ye obey”. Abraham’s understanding of the problem of sin nature is evident in this situation and it shows that he is not ignorant of the reality of the world he lives in and therefore, becomes easier for him to obey God and walk with Him.
Priesthood of Abraham
The priesthood of Abraham is made evident by different elements that range from his knowledge of the technology of the alter and his continued friendship with God. Abraham raises alters in different locations, providing him places to sacrifice to God, to cover for his sins and to be able to stand before God and allow God to establish His Kingdom on the earth at that particular time. It is for this reason that Abraham is one of the important patriarchs and God uses him to establish a covenant through which Jesus Christ would come and give the world access to eternal life.
It is through Abraham’s priesthood that his faith in God grows and God’s confidence in him also grows.
Kingship of Abraham
After a long time of character development, Abraham continued to grow his priesthood for God and this ultimately increased his capacity to rule and administer the kingdom of God at his time. There are several instances of Adams ruler ship and the first one is during the wars of the different kings and the taking of Lot. Abraham gains victory, recovers Lot and property and lives taken from Sodom. In this situation we see Abraham’s capacity to rule and head as well as God’s protection and blessing upon his life that granted him success. Melchizedek, who is also a priest of the highest God but of a different order bears witness of the blessing of God upon Abraham. Abraham gave tithes of all and this is an indication of the continued growth in the knowledge of God.
Another example involves Abimelech. These two were aquatinted with one another and Abimelech knew that Abraham was a blessed man by God. He allows Abraham to dwell in his land and later on joins a peace treaty with Abraham. Abraham was wealthy, blessed of God and therefore, highly influential in the region and this drew people towards his side because of the backing of God.
The Character of God in the Story of Abraham
The Patience of God
The story of the flood has ended and the problem of sin continues. Men continue to sin and God’s longsuffering is demonstrated as He continues to establish His kingdom on the earth step by step. Abraham becomes a person that God choses to establish His Kingdom. However, God has to build Abraham’s character and time becomes the most important resource to allow Abraham to learn the ways of God and also to walk in them.
Abraham is also a man with a sinful nature and stumbles from time to time. But his faith is important for God for through it, God establishes an everlasting covenant with Him.
The Faithfulness of God
We see God making multiple promises to Abraham and honors them. Abraham becomes a patriarch which means that he is a man through which God would establish His Kingdom on the earth. God enters a covenant with Abraham to establish his role as a patriarch. Because of this, God is obliged to protect and to bless Abraham. Abraham becomes a great name in the region and the rules of the land learn more about God through him. He becomes the persona that represents the name, character and glory of God on the earth. He therefore, establishes aspects such as the justice of God, the fear of God and many other attributes because he is the representative of God on the earth at the time.
The Meekness and Gentleness of God
Three men visit Abraham and the Lord is among them. this scenario sheds light on a very important attribute of God which is His humility. God visits Abraham, a mortal and fallen man whose nature is that of the devil. Abraham acknowledges this aspect in a conversation by describing himself as a dust and ash which is the nature of the devil after he fell from heaven onto the earth. Despite this issues, God considers Abraham a friend, accepts a meal from Him, shares His plans of destroying Sodom and Gomorrah, and also allows Abraham to intercede for the nations on behalf of Lot his nephew. This scenario is amazing because we see how God is not quick to Judge, how God is patient and how God is humble.
There are so many things to Learn about God from the story of Abraham. It only shows that this Bible is truly inspired of God, who wanted to reveal Himself to use. I bless the Lord for this opportunity to dig deeper and learn more about Him and His purposes in the world.
The most important thing is that God’s main concern is the establishment of His Kingdom on the earth. May His will on earth be as it is in Heaven
Amen
