Do It Yourself Sermon

Do it yourself sermon

August 25, 2002

Genesis 11:27 - Genesis 16:16

(Gen 11:27 NIV) This is the account of Terah. Terah became the father of Abram, Nahor and Haran. And Haran became the father of Lot.

(Gen 11:28 NIV) While his father Terah was still alive, Haran died in Ur of the Chaldeans, in the land of his birth.

(Gen 11:29 NIV) Abram and Nahor both married. The name of Abram’s wife was Sarai, and the name of Nahor’s wife was Milcah; she was the daughter of Haran, the father of both Milcah and Iscah.

(Gen 11:30 NIV) Now Sarai was barren; she had no children.

(Gen 11:31 NIV) Terah took his son Abram, his grandson Lot son of Haran, and his daughter-in-law Sarai, the wife of his son Abram, and together they set out from Ur of the Chaldeans to go to Canaan. But when they came to Haran, they settled there.

(Gen 11:32 NIV) Terah lived 205 years, and he died in Haran.

Let’s look at the things that were against Abram:

1) His younger brother died

2) Everyone in his family had kids but him

3) The whole family set out for Canaan -- what was to be the promised land -- but they settled dwon before they got there -- meaning they settled for less than what God had for them

4) Lost his father -- of course his dad was 205 -- but still it was a loss of the patriarch of the family -- the man with the plan.

The point is -- you may think everything in life is against you and you’re the only one who has to go through things --

Do It Yourself principle:

A: But I want you to understand that everyone goes through tragedy and heartache.

Everyone --

Yours seems bigger because it involves you.

It’s like they say the difference between minor surgery and major surgery is simple --

If they’re operating on you it is minor surgery -- if they’re operating on me it is major surgery.

Abram -- later to be renamed Abraham -- did not live a charmed, simple life.

He endured hardships, loss, heart aches, the pain of starting over, and family problems just like everyone else.

Let’s keep reading begining at chapter 12, verse 1:

(Gen 12:1 NIV) The LORD had said to Abram, "Leave your country, your people and your father’s household and go to the land I will show you.

(Gen 12:2 NIV) "I will make you into a great nation and I will bless you; I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing.

(Gen 12:3 NIV) I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse; and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you."

Now let’s fill in the part that lists the blessings that God promised:

1) God would make of him a great nation

2) God would make his name great in all the world

3) God promised that Abram would be a blessing

4) God promised that Abram would be blessed himself

side note here -- please note -- God said First - Abram would bless others, then he would be blessed.

This is a do it yourself sermon so you fill in the rest.

B. But your greatest blessings will not happen until you are a blessing to others.

5) God promised to bless those who blessed Abram and curse those who cursed Abram

6) God promised that the whole earth would be blessed through Abram.

7) God promised the land of canaan as a reward and a homeland.

Seven things God said he would do for Abram.

Let’s go back to the scripture:

(Gen 12:4 NIV) So Abram left, as the LORD had told him; and Lot went with him. Abram was seventy-five years old when he set out from Haran.

(Gen 12:5 NIV) He took his wife Sarai, his nephew Lot, all the possessions they had accumulated and the people they had acquired in Haran, and they set out for the land of Canaan, and they arrived there.

Now wait -- Look at verse # 1 -- Leave your country, your people and your father’s household and go to the land I will show you.

Here’s the first thing Abram did wrong:

1) Took his father’s family when God told him to leave his father’s family behind.

Let’s read on:

(Gen 12:6 NIV) Abram traveled through the land as far as the site of the great tree of Moreh at Shechem. At that time the Canaanites were in the land.

(Gen 12:7 NIV) The LORD appeared to Abram and said, "To your offspring I will give this land." So he built an altar there to the LORD, who had appeared to him.