Theme: Abraham: Father of Nations
Text: Genesis 12:1--3
Introduction: The Lord is good, and His love endures forever!!
Today, we will meditate on the great personality of the world History, namely Abraham. I titled it as “The Father of Nations”. This passage has three great things: Great nation, great name and great honour. He became the Father of Nations, he is the Father of Faith and he is the Father of Jesus Christ.
1. FATHER OF NATIONS
Abram was a second son of Terah, and an ordinary person in Ur of Mesopotamia. His father was an idol maker and a vendor. His one day asked him to stay on his factory, Abraham broke all the idols. His father asked him and he said that they were fought with each other, and broke one another’s hands and legs. He married twice but had three wives, such as Sarah, Hagar (Genesis 16:1-4), and Keturah (Genesis 25:1-4) and he died in Hebron of Canaan. He lived for 175 years (Genesis 25:7). He had 318 Soldiers at his home.
It is interesting to note, according to Genesis 11:10-26, when Abraham was born, in the year 292 AF (AF = After the Flood), Noah was still alive and would have lived for another 58 years (Noah died in 350 AF, at age 950), Shem died in 502 AF, at the age of 600, but Abraham had already expired at the age of 175, in the year 467 AF. Abraham was survived by his great-great-great-great-great-great-great-grandfather Shem (ref: abarim-publications.com).
Genesis 11 explains how the whole world was trying to create a great name of the them through building a Babel tower. But God decided to make Abraham as great. So, Abraham had transcended from One man to many Nations (Genesis 12:1-2).
Because God told to Abraham: “I have plans to make great people from your descendants” (Voice). “I will give you many descendants, and they will become a great nation” (GNT). ‘I shall magnify thy name’ (Wycliff), ‘make your name famous and distinguished’ (AMPC), cause your reputation to grow so that you will become a blessing and example to others (voice). He is called Avaram in Hebrew.
After the promises, God changed the name from Abram to Abraham (high father to father of a multitude) (Genesis 17:5). The first two letters of his name, ‘Ab’ means ‘father’. Expanding ‘Ab’ into ‘Abram’ means ‘exalted father’. When God changed his name to Abraham, the added syllable increased its meaning to ‘father of a multitude’. When the name was changed his mission was changed, destiny was changed. Names contain identity, character and power.
Abraham has become a lofty mountain peak from which flows three great rivers of earth's populations: Jews, Arabs and Ishmaelite. Then three great religious groups claim him as the founder of their religions - Judaism, Christianity and Islam.
Except the first 10 Chapters of Genesis, rest of the Bible is the story of Abraham and his descendants. The name Abraham is mentioned 313 times in the Bible. New Testament referred his name 74 times. He is first mentioned in Genesis 11:26. The name “Ibrahim” is mentioned 69 times in the Quran, in 25 Surahs, in 63 verses. Prophet Abraham married Hajira (Hagar).
Abram was chosen because he would be a great and powerful nation, he would instruct his children to keep the way of the Lord and do the right and just things (Genesis 18:18-19). According to the Book of Jubilees, Abraham taught all of them ‘the unity of life, covenant of God and the future plan of God.’
Before his death. He divided his properties and land among them. These nations follow the Circumcision and highly treat Abraham as the founder of their religions. Also, we understand that the descendants of Keturah whom Abraham sent to the east to settle down while he was alive, today those nations are found in the African continent. (Genesis 25:6).
Abraham in his last days called his Eight Sons: Ismael, Isaac, Zimran, Jokshan, Medan, Midian, Ishbak and Shuah; and his 14 grandsons of which 12 are of the children of Ismael (Nebaioth, Kedar, Adbeel, Mibsam, Mishma, Dumah, Massa, Hadar) and two of them( Easu and Jacob) are children of Isaac (Genesis 25:1, 12-16, 24-26).
Muhammad-bin-Abdullah was born in 570 A.D. he was son of Kedar (Qaydar) son of Ismail son of Ibrahim.
2. FATHER OF FAITH
Abram might have the influence of his forefather Enosh (Genesis 4:26) in worshipping YHWH and could have desired to be righteous like Abel (Matthew 23:35) and Noah (Genesis 6:9). He was a contemporary of Melchizedek, the Priest. (Genesis 14:18-20).
Paul says in the epistle to Galatians: “Abraham, our father of faith, believed God, and the substance of his faith released God’s righteousness to him. So the true children of Abraham have the same faith as their father! And the Scripture prophesied that on the basis of faith God would declare gentiles to be righteous. God announced the good news ahead of time to Abraham: “Through your example of faith, all the nations will be blessed!” And so the blessing of Abraham’s faith is now our blessing too! (Galatians 3:6-9).”
He became the Father of Faith because he believed God, he obeyed God, and he called on God or worshipped God, and Tithed God. He became a Prophet of God (Genesis 20:7).
Abraham was the first Jew (Acts 16:3, Romans 1:16, 2:17) or a Hebrew (wanders and nomads) and founder of the spiritual nation. We understand through Acts 7:2-4, God promised Abraham to bless him and make him great while he was in Mesopotamia. When the promise came to Abram, he was 75 years old, and his wife Sarai was barren. He had no circumstantial evidence to believe in it.
But Abraham believed God (Genesis 15:6, Hebrews 11:8-9, 18-19, Romans 4:17-23) to become a nation. By that time, there were several nations on the earth. The world has already been thickly populated, and many countries have been established. Romans 4:17-23 describes his unwavering faith in God with Sara and his hope against hopelessness. He was not weakened in faith when he considered his own body, which was already as good as dead.
“Abram believed that the blessing of the Almighty would make up for all he could lose or leave behind, supply all his wants, and answer and exceed all his desires, and knew that nothing but misery would follow disobedience.” (Matthew Henry). Abram became a giant of faith and the father of the believing community (Galatians 3:7). Yet, he did not start as a hero of faith but he grew in faith and obedience.’(Enduring Word).
The name Father of Faith has evidently proved through his Obedience to the call to leave his native place (Genesis 12: 4), his encounter with 14 kings and won the battle (Genesis 14:14), and at Moriah, he offered his only son of the bosom (Genesis 22:1, 18). Faith involves hearing followed by trusting and obeying. It’s never easy to leave the familiar surroundings. It’s even harder to go ahead to a place you have never seen, and harder still when there’s no one waiting for you. But imagine, Abraham had a trip of 800 miles. It began at Ur which is in Iraq.
Abraham obeyed God and kept his requirements, his commands, his decrees and his laws (Genesis 26:5). So, Abraham became a dear friend of God (2 Chronicles 20:7, Nehemiah 9:7, and Psalm 105:6, Isaiah 41:8, James 2:23), a man on whom God trusted, shared the secrets of life on the earth, the future of the world and the universe.
He Called on God as Jehovah Jireh (Genesis 21:14), Creator (Genesis 14:23), Shield (Genesis 15:1), Redeemer (Genesis 15:7), El Shaddai (Genesis 17:1), and Eternal (Genesis 21:33). He built the altars (Genesis 12:6-7 – Oak of Mamreh, 12:8, 13:4- Between Ai & Bethel, symbolic even during comforts and discomforts, 13:8 – Kiriatharpah or Hebron, 21:33 - Beersheba, 22:2 - Moriah).
The conversion of Abram with God became the seed of a new nation called the spiritual nation of chosen people. His conversion had unquestionable obedience, faith, and commitment (Romans 4:3, Hebrews 11:8, 17, James 2:21). He was a mighty man of prayer. His prayer had saved Lot, the estranged cousin, selfish brother, and ungrateful relative (Genesis 18:23-33).
3. FATHER OF JESUS CHRIST
JESUS CHRIST, THE SON OF DAVID, THE SON OF ABRAHAM (Matthew 1:1). Jesus verily took THE SEED OF ABRAHAM (Hebrews 2:16-17) and He was made of THE SEED OF DAVID according to the flesh; and declared to be the Son of God with power, according to the Spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead (Romans 1:3-4).
Isaac prefigured the Lord Jesus carrying the cross, as he carried the wood for the sacrifice and submitted himself unto death. (Genesis 22:2). On Mount Moriah, God swore an oath by Himself to Abraham saying, ‘in blessing I will bless thee, and … in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed’ (Genesis 22. 17-18). Galatians 3:16 explains that the Seed is the Son. God made promises to Abraham and his seed. He said not, and to seeds, as of many; but as of one, and to thy seed, which is Christ.
“I shall bless them that bless thee, and I shall curse them that curse thee, and all kindred of [the] earth shall be blessed in thee (and all the families on the earth shall pray to be blessed as thou art blessed/and through thee I shall bless all the nations of the earth)” (Wycliff).
“Neither shall thy name any more be called Abram, but thy name shall be Abraham; for a father of many nations have I made thee. And I will make thee exceeding fruitful, and I will make nations of thee, and kings shall come out of thee. And I will establish my covenant between me and thee and thy seed after thee in their generations for an everlasting covenant, to be a god unto thee, and to thy seed after thee and I will give unto thee, and to thy seed after thee, the land wherein thou art a stranger, all the land of Canaan, for an everlasting possession; and I will be their God.” (Genesis 17:5-8).
“And God said unto him, Thy name is Jacob: thy name shall not be called any more Jacob, BUT ISRAEL SHALL BE THY NAME: and HE CALLED HIS NAME ISRAEL. And God said unto him, I am God Almighty: be fruitful and multiply; a nation and a company of nations shall be of thee, and kings shall come out of thy loins; and the land which I gave Abraham and Isaac, to thee I will give it, and to thy seed after thee will I give the land.” (Genesis 35:10-12).
“The oath which He swore to our father Abraham, That He would grant unto us, that we being delivered out of the hand of our enemies might serve Him without fear.” (Luke 1:74).
Today, this blessing belongs to everyone who believes in Christ and continues in faith. It is through this One, the Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of Abraham, that those who believe become part of the many nations who through Abraham-like faith, receive the promise. One obedient person becomes the sources of blessings to the nations. Always obedience of one man brought a community of believers. The obedience of the Apostles established churches all over the world. The obedience of missionaries in the 18th and 19th centuries brought gospel all over the world especially in African Eastern Countries including India.
We are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for God’s possession (1 Peter 2:9). We are a new creature, and new things have come (2 Corinthians 5:17). We are children of God (John 1:12). Peter was given the privilege of holding the keys of heaven and hell (Matthew 16:18-19). God has chosen you and me to be channels of mercy and blessings to others.
Conclusion: How is your faith? Are you witnessing for Christ.
