#5~Heb.11:8-10~pt.1~ ABRAHAM 5-10-14
Today we'll continue with our study of Heb. 11: referred to by some as "the hall of faith chapter" and by others as "the catalog of the faithful".
~ Today we'll think on & talk about Abraham; he is referred to as the father of many nations.
- Listen as I read today's text;
Heb.11:8 -10 By 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.
9By faith he sojourned in the land of promise, as in a strange country, dwelling in
tabernacles with Isaac and Jacob, the heirs with him of the same promise:
10 For he looked for a city which hath foundations, whose builder and maker is God.
- Listen, even we as believers in Christ today are the children of Abraham.
Gal. 3: 6-9 Even as Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for
righteousness.
7Know ye therefore that they which are of faith, the same are the children of Abraham.
8And the scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the heathen through faith, preached before the gospel unto Abraham, saying, in thee shall all nations be blessed. -9 So then they which be of faith are blessed with faithful Abraham.
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- The linage of our Lord Jesus goes all the way back to Abraham.
>Matt. 1: I The book of the generation of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham.
~ Abraham is called "father Abraham" by many nations, not only the Israeli's, indeed his seed is as the sands of the sea. -- Gen.12:
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~ Abraham's two wives bore him 7 sons. - Sarah and Keturah, - Daughters were born also, though they are not named in the Bible. -- Abraham's sons married these daughters & also the daughters of Nahor Abraham's brother. -- The dissidence of Abraham has increased into an innumerable number, and still does with each passing day.
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Genesis 25:1 Then again Abraham took a wife. And her name was Keturah. 2And she bare him Zimran, and Jokshan, and Medan, and Midian. And Ishbak, and Shuah.
~ So Keturah bare him six sons, the daughters are not named.
Then verses 3-4 tell us of the sons that came from these 6 sons.
~ We notice here in Gen.25: 1 that Keturah is called Abrahams wife, but in 1 Chronicles 1:32 she is called his concubine. -- is this a contradiction? - Not at all.
1st. Chronicles 1:32 Now the sons of Keturah, Abraham's concubine: she bare Zimran, and Jokshan, and Medan, and Midian, and Ishbak, and Shuah.
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~ Listen, it is possible that Keturah was Abraham's "concubine" in the beginning, and then became his "wife" at a later time, perhaps after Sarah's death.
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-The fact that she was Abraham's concubine suggests that Sarah was alive when Abraham first took her. -=- we'll have something to say about CONCUBINES a little later.
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- Isaac, son of Sarah, was set apart from all of Abraham's other sons, which were born to him by his concubines.
~ The promised seed would come through Isaac, son of Abraham and Sarah.
THE "PROMISED SEED" is ultimately referring the Lord Jesus. - He, as "the Promised seed" is first mentioned in,
>Gen. 3: 15 And I will put enmity between thee (Satan) and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel.
~ Sara realized she was old and God had not given her a son, so she gets ahead of God.
Gen. 16:1-12 Now Sarai Abram's wife bare him no children: and she had an handmaid, an Egyptian, whose name was Hagar.
2And Sarai said unto Abram, Behold now, the LORD hath restrained me from bearing: I pray thee, go in unto my maid; it may be that I may obtain children by her. And Abram hearkened to the voice of Sarai.
3And Sarai Abram's wife took Hagar her maid the Egyptian, after Abram had dwelt ten years in the land of Canaan, and gave her to her husband Abram to be his wife.
4And he went in unto Hagdr, and she conceived: and when she saw (Sarai) that she had conceived, her mistress was despised in her eyes.
5And Sarai said unto Abram, "My wrong be upon thee: I have given my maid into thy bosom: and when she saw (Hagar) that she had conceived, I was despised in her eyes; the LORD judge between me and thee.
6But Abram said unto Saroi. "Behold, thy maid is in thy hand: do to her as it pleaseth thee."
And when Sarai dealt hardly with her, she fled from her face.
7And the angel of the LORD--
The angel of the Lord appears here for the first time in Scripture, but many times afterwards.
The appearance of the Angel of the Lord is, in fact, a pre-incarnate appearance of Christ.
Their called, "the-ophanies" but were actually "Christ-ophanies" (temporary visible appearances of Christ in the O.T.)
7And the angel of the LORD found her by a fountain of water in the wilderness, by the fountain in the way to Shur.
8And he said, "Hagar, Sarai's maid, whence earnest thou? and whither wilt thou go?" And she said, "I flee from the face of my mistress Sarai."
9And the angel of the LORD said unto her, "Return to thy mistress, and submit thyself under her hands."
10 And the angel of the LORD said unto her. LISTEN --"I will multiply thy seed exceedingly,
~ This lets us know for sure that it was Jesus and not an ordinary angel, angels do not have the power to increase any ones seed.
10And the angel of the LORD said unto her, "I will multiply thy seed exceedingly, that it shall not be numbered for multitude."
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11 And the angel of the LORD said unto her, "Behold, thou art with child, and shalt bear a son, and shalt call his name Ishmael; because the LORD hath heard thy affliction.
~ Ishmael means, "God will hear" it is also the name of 5 other men in the O.T.
Listen, - 12And he will be a wild man; his hand will be against every man, and every man's hand against him; and he shall dwell in the presence of all his brethren.
~ Ishmael's dissidence are a major part of the trouble in that part of the world and even here, his dissidence are walking and living among the others that descended from Abraham, and nothing or no-body will ever be able to control these trouble makers, if they can't kill the Israelis and the Americans or the Britt's, they'll kill one another, it's in them to do these things. ~~~ God said so.
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>Gen.16:12 And he will be a wild man: his hand will be against every man, and every man's hand against him; and he shall dwell in the presence of all his brethren.
- Did God make these people this way? - Of coarse not, but let us never forget dear heart, God is Omniscient, that is. He knows all things.
He knows the end from the beginning. -- God is today allowing world events to happen as they will. -- God knew Adam would fall but He didn't cause him to fall.
-- In God's set time He allowed Abraham and Sarah to have their son, Isaac.
Gen. 17:15-21 And God said unto Abraham, As for Sarai thy wife, thou shall not call her name Sarai, but Sarah (princess) shall her name be.
16And I will bless her, and give thee a son also of her: yea, I will bless her, and she shall be a mother of nations; kings of people shall be of her.
I7 Then Abraham fell upon his face, and laughed, and said in his heart. Shall a child be born unto him that is an hundred years old? and shall Sarah, that is ninety years old, bear?
18And Abraham said unto God, 0 that Ishmael might live before thee!
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~ Abraham loved Ishmael; and rightly so, he had been with them for 13 years at this time.
19And God said, Sarah thy wife shall bear thee a son indeed; and thou shall call his name Isaac: (I want us to notice that God Is the One that named him Isaac, not Abraham and Sarah. - So was the case with Jesus, also with John the Baptist and others as well.)
--- and I will establish my covenant with him for an everlasting covenant, and with his seed after him.
"his seed after him" is Jacob, and Jacobs 12 sons, that make up the 12 tribes of Israel.
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Jacobs's twin brother Esau sold his birth right to Jacob for a bowl of soup. - He 'despised his birthright; he either considered the responsibilities and honors unimportant, or he was totally uninterested in them.
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Genesis 25: 29- 34 And Jacob sod pottage: and Esau come from the field, and he was faint: -- 30And Esau said to Jacob, Feed me, I pray thee, with that same red pottage: for I am faint: therefore was his name called Edom.
Esau means red.
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31 And Jacob said, Sell me this day thy birthright. -- 32And Esau said. Behold, I am al the polnt to die: and what profit shall this birthright do to me?
33And Jacob said, Swear to me this day; and he sware unto him: and he sold his birthright unto Jacob. 34Then Jacob gave Esau bread and pottage of lentles; and he did eat and drink, and rose up, and went his way; thus Esau despised his birthright.
Esau had six wives all were Canaanites, because of the large clan that came from these wives, Esau moved south and east of the Dead Sea to the area of Mount Seir. -Esau s descendants through these wives became known as the Edomites.
The ancestry of the promised Seed must come from the right linage.
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Genesis 36: 2 Esau took his wives of the daughters of Canaan; - this was also outside of Gods plan.
~Esau was the ancestor of the Edomites. (Gen. 25:24-28; Deul. 2:4-8).
Most of the biblical narratives about Esau draw a great contrast between him and his brother. Jacob.
Esau was a hunter and outdoorsman who was favored by his father Isaac, while Jacob was not an outdoors type and was favored by his mother Rebekah. --- Gen. 25:27-28
-And even though he was o twin, Esau was considered the oldest son because he was first born.
~ By Old Testament custom, he would have inherited most of his father's property and the right to succeed him as family patriarch, but in a foolish, impulsive moment, he sold his Birthright to Jacob in exchange for a meal.
(Gen. 25:29-34).
This determined that Jacob would carry on the family name in a direct line of descant from Abraham and Isaac, his grandfather and father.
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- Listen, the EDOMITES, descendants of Edom, also called Esau--was an ancient
people who were enemies of the Israelites.
~ During the days of Abraham, the region which later become the home of the Edomltes was occupied by more than one tribe of non-Israelite peoples.
-Listen, Jacob deceived his blind father Isaac by disguising himself as Esau in order to receive his father's highest blessing.
Esau was therefore the recipient of a less blessing (Gen. 27:25-29, 38-40; Heb.11:20]
~ Esau became so enraged by Jacob's actions that he determined to kill him once his father Isaac died.
- So Jacob fled to his uncle Laban in Harem and remained there for 20 years.
Upon Jacob's return to Canaan, Esau forgave him and set aside their old feuds. -- Gen. 32:1-33:17).
Years later, the two brothers together buried their father Isaac in the cave at
Moch-pelah, without a trace of their old hostilities.
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Jacob married his uncle Labans daughters, (Leah & Rachel) he did not marry a gentile, he had to work an addition 7 years for Rachel the youngest of the two, who was his choice, but Laban, another schemer like his nephew Jacob, tricked Jacob into marrying Leah first.
~ As the old saying goes, "the old cow has come home." --
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But God blessed Jacob and Leah's marriage, Leah gave Jacob six sons, the Lord Jesus was a dissident of the 4th son, Judah.
> Heb. 7:14 For it is evident that our Lord sprang out of Juda: of which tribe Moses spake nothing concerning priesthood.
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>Gen. 35: 22 Now the sons of Jacob were twelve: __ 23 The sons of Leah; Reuben, Jacob's firstborn, and Simeon, and Levi, and Judah, and Issachar, and Zebulun: --
24The sons of Rachel: Joseph, and Benjamin:
25And the sons of Bilhah, Rachel's handmaid; Dan, and Naphtali:
26And the sons of Zilpah, Leah's handmaid; Gad, and Asher: these ore the sons or Jacob, which were born to him in Padanaram.
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~ Listen I want to read Gen.17:19 again;
19And God said, Sarah thy wife shall bear thee a son indeed; and thou shall call his name Isaac: -- and I will establish my covenant with him for an everlasting covenant, and with his seed after him.
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~ Now dear heart, it matters not what the other dissidence of Abraham think about it, it's settled for all time and eternity.
20And as for Ishmael, I have heard thee: Behold, I have blessed him, and will make him fruitful, and will multiply him exceedingly; twelve princes shall he beget, and 1 will make him a great nation. -- So we see that Ishmael would have 12 sons, and they would become a great nation.
21 But my covenant will I establish with Isaac, which Sarah shall bear unto thee at this set time in the next year.
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- Lets be sure and notice that God said, at this set time in the next year.
- All of that tells us that God had set a time for their son to be born, Sarah and Abraham thought they was going to help God out, they didn't wait for the set time, and my - my at the troubles and problems that has come because of it.
~ Sarah was afraid that she was too old lo have children, she and Abraham as well, jumped ahead of God, she told Abraham to take her Egyptian hand maid Hager and have a son by her, and that son would become her son. --
Much of the trouble we see over there today can be traced backed to this.
We'll probably talk some more about Abraham next time, so be listening If you can.
