Abraham is called in Scripture "the friend of God" and he received a promise ....
Genesis 15:7-8, “He also said to him, "I am the LORD, who brought you out of Ur
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Prairie View Christian Church Pastor Bill Wenstrom 1st 2 Weeks of December 2003
Abraham: The Friend of God In Hebrews 11:8, Abraham is mentioned as the 4th member in God’s Hall of Fame. Heb 11:8-10, “By faith Abraham, when he was called, obeyed by going out to a place which he was to receive for an inheritance; and he went out, not knowing where he was going. By faith he lived as an alien in the land of promise, as in a foreign land, dwelling in tents with Isaac and Jacob, fellow heirs of the same promise; for he was looking for the city which has foundations, whose architect and builder is God.” Abraham is one of the heroes of faith. Faith means that we trust in the authority of God’s Word by being obedient to the commands and prohibitions (things we are not to do) of God. The great heroes of the Bible have always been individuals who expressed great faith or trust in the Word of God. The Scriptures states that they were approved by God because of their faith or trust in the Word of God. These individuals listed in Hebrews 11 were willing to trust God in the midst of great adversity, both national and personal. Faith for the Christian is trusting in the authority of the Scriptures in order to govern one’s life. In order for the Christian to please God and gain His approval like these Old Testament saints listed in Hebrews 11, the Christian must trust in the authority of the Scriptures to govern his life.
The believer, who does not trust God meaning he does not take Him at His Word, does not gain God’s approval and is therefore disciplined. The opposite of faith is doubt. We are not to doubt God. Doubt is a manifestation of an unbelieving heart. Heb 3:12, “Take care, brethren, that there not be in any one of you an evil, unbelieving heart that falls away from the living God.” Evil is independence from God. Satan is the originator evil. He seeks to gain followers in his rebellion against God. Those who do not trust God’s Word are living in rebellion against God and are following in the footsteps of Satan and his legions of fallen angels. Biblical faith is trusting in the promises of God regardless of the circumstances or consequences and resting in them. True Biblical faith is confident obedience to God’s Word in spite of circumstances and consequences. This principle of faith operates quite simply. God speaks and we hear His Word. We trust His Word and act on it no matter what the circumstances are or what the consequences may be. The circumstances may be impossible, and the consequences frightening and unknown but we obey God’s Word just the same and believe Him to do what is right and what is best. Faith is obedience to God’s commands.
Faith is the positive response to God’s commands and acting upon those directions. Unbelief on the other hand is disobedient. It is the negative response to God’s commands and as a result the failure to act upon God’s commands. The Bible never separates faith from obedience. Romans 16:24-25, “Now to Him who is able to establish you according to my gospel and the preaching of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery which has been kept secret for long ages past, but now is manifested, and by the Scriptures of the prophets, according to the commandment of the eternal God, has been made known to all the nations, leading to obedience of faith.” Now let’s look at Hebrews 11:8 and Abraham. This verse begins the 2nd section of Old Testament heroes. Hebrews 11:4-7 presents the antediluvian (pre-Flood) heroes. Hebrews 11:8-22 presents the patriarchs from Abraham to Joseph. They are all presented as pilgrim-sojourners who “all died in faith, not having received the promises” according to Hebrews 11:13. The emphasis is upon their endurance and confident expectation that God will deliver on His promises to them in spite of the bad circumstances or consequences of being obedient to God. Most appropriately this section begins with Abraham. Romans 4:11 says that Abraham is the “father of all them that believe.” Hebrews 11:8, “By faith Abraham, when he was called, obeyed by going out to a place which he was to receive for an inheritance; and he went out, not knowing where he was going.”
Abraham was born around 2161 B. C. in the land of Ur of the Chaldeans (Gen. 11:31). The land of Ur was located in lower Mesopotamia, more specifically on the Euphrates River in what is now southern Iraq. His name was originally Abram, which means "exalted father," but was changed by God in Gen. 17:5 to Abraham after God had established His covenant with him. The name Abraham means "father of a multitude," and this he was indeed though he and his wife Sarai were childless up until the time that Abraham was hundred years old (Gen. 21:5). His father's name was Terah (Gen. 11:27) and he also was born in Ur. Abraham's family were idols worshippers and this is revealed in the word of God in the book of Joshua 24:2, 14. Joshua 24:2, “Joshua said to all the people, "Thus says the LORD, the God of Israel, "From ancient times your fathers lived beyond the River, namely, Terah, the father of Abraham and the father of Nahor, and they served other gods.” Joshua 24:14, “Now, therefore, fear the LORD and serve Him in sincerity and truth; and put away the gods which your fathers served beyond the River and in Egypt, and serve the LORD.” Now Abraham was a man of faith and this he declared openly several times in his life. Abraham is called in Scripture "the friend of God" and he received a promise from God. James 2:23, “And the Scripture was fulfilled which says, 'and Abraham believed God, and it was reckoned to him as righteousness,’ and he was called the friend of God.”
What was it that Abraham believed God would do for him? He believed that God would give him a son from his own body even though him and his wife were well past the age producing children. Genesis 15:4-6, “Then behold, the word of the Lord came to him, saying, 'This man (Ishmael) will not be your heir; but one who shall come forth from your own body, he (Isaac) shall be your heir.' And He (the preincarnate Christ) took him outside and said, 'Now look toward the heavens, and count the stars, if you are able to count them.' And He said to him, 'so shall your descendants be.' Then he (Abraham) believed in the Lord; and He (the preincarnate Christ) reckoned it to him as righteousness.” Romans 4:19-22, “And without becoming weak in faith he (Abraham) contemplated his own body, now as good as dead since he was about a hundred years old, and the deadness of Sarah's womb; yet, with respect to the promise of God, he did not waver in unbelief, but grew strong in faith, giving glory to God, and being fully assured that what He had promised, He was able also to perform. Therefore also it was reckoned to him as righteousness.” The covenant that God made with Abraham was unconditional. The Abrahamic Covenant was an unconditional covenant meaning that the agreement was based upon the Lord’s faithfulness and not Abraham’s. The Lord was responsible to fulfill the agreement and Abraham’s part was to take God at His Word and accept it by means of faith. The Abrahamic covenant is related to the race of the nation of Israel. It was exclusively to the Jews. Abraham was the 1st Jew in history. He became the 1st of the new racial species as a result of his faith in the Lord.
The church is the new spiritual species, which every believer in the church age becomes as a result of expressing faith alone in Christ alone for salvation. The Abrahamic Covenant contained 7 promises: (1) “I will make from you a great nation” (National Posterity: Gen. 17:20; Spiritual Posterity: Gal. 3:6, 7, 29). (2) “I will bless you” (Temporal: Gen. 13:14-18; 15:18-21; 24:34-35; Spiritual: Gen. 15:6). (3) “And Make Your Name Great” (4) “And You Shall Be A Blessing” (Gal. 3:14). (5) “I Will Bless Them That Bless You” (6) “And Curse Them That Curse You” (7) “In You All the Families of the Earth Will Be Blessed” (Dt. 28:8-14; Is. 60:3-5, 11, 16). This covenant with Abraham was reaffirmed and confirmed after Abraham’s faith was tested (Gen. 22:15-18). This covenant with Abraham became an “everlasting” covenant. Circumcision was the “sign” of this covenant with Abraham and the covenant extends to the end of human history, entailing the New Earth (Gen. 17:1-14). Hebrews 11:8, “By faith Abraham, when he was called, obeyed by going out to a place which he was to receive for an inheritance; and he went out, not knowing where he was going.” As in the case of Abel, Enoch and Noah, Abraham’s faith was demonstrated by His response to the Word of the Lord.
Faith was the means by which Abraham obeyed the call of God to leave his hometown even though he did not know where he was going. Abraham simply obeyed God. A Christian’s faith is based upon trusting in the authority of the Scriptures. The object of the Christian’s faith after salvation is the mind of Christ, which is the Word of God. Faith for the Christian is trusting in the authority of the Scriptures in order to live one’s life. In order for the Christian to please God and gain His approval like these Old Testament saints listed in Hebrews 11, the Christian must trust in the authority of the Scriptures to live his life. Hebrews 11:8, “By faith Abraham, when he was called, obeyed by going out to a place which he was to receive for an inheritance; and he went out, not knowing where he was going.” This verse considers Abraham’s obedience to the call of God as a response to God’s call, which we all should imitate. We should follow Abraham’s example of obedient faith to God’s Word. James 2:23, “and the Scripture was fulfilled which says, "AND ABRAHAM BELIEVED GOD, AND IT WAS RECKONED TO HIM AS RIGHTEOUSNESS," and he was called the friend of God.” The Lord invited Abraham to possess salvation and as a result a relationship with Him. God employs the Gospel message as the invitation to every member of the human race to have an eternal relationship and fellowship with Him. The call of God is God's gracious invitation to all of mankind to believe in Jesus Christ for salvation.
Matt 11:28-30, “Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and YOU WILL FIND REST FOR YOUR SOULS. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.” John 6:37, “All that the Father gives Me will come to Me, and the one who comes to Me I will certainly not cast out.” John 6:44, “No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him; and I will raise him up on the last day.” John 6:65, “And He was saying, ‘For this reason I have said to you, that no one can come to Me unless it has been granted him from the Father.’” John 7:37-39, “Now on the last day, the great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried out, saying, ‘If anyone is thirsty, let him come to Me and drink. He who believes in Me, as the Scripture said, ‘From his innermost being will flow rivers of living water.’ But this He spoke of the Spirit, whom those who believed in Him were to receive; for the Spirit was not yet given, because Jesus was not yet glorified.” The call of God follows Common Grace and precedes Efficacious Grace. The call of God is God’s invitation and privilege to believe in Son Jesus Christ for eternal salvation. Common grace is grace for the entire human race. It is where God the Holy Spirit makes the Gospel understandable so that the unbeliever can make a decision to either accept or reject Jesus Christ as Savior. Efficacious grace is grace where God the Holy Spirit makes our faith in Christ “effective” for salvation. Chronological order of salvation: (1) Common Grace (2) The Call or Invitation from God to man (3) Efficacious Grace.
The Divine invitation is issued by both God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. God the Holy Spirit in Common Grace must first make Gospel information understandable to spiritually dead human beings in order for them to make a decision to either accept or reject the Divine invitation to believe in Jesus Christ. Abraham accepted God’s invitation to salvation when he was 75 years old. He accepted God’s invitation to have fellowship and a relationship with Him. Gen 12:1-3, “Now the LORD said to Abram, "Go forth from your country, and from your relatives and from your father's house, to the land which I will show you; And I will make you a great nation, and I will bless you, and make your name great; and so you shall be a blessing; And I will bless those who bless you, and the one who curses you I will curse. And in you all the families of the earth will be blessed. So Abram went forth as the LORD had spoken to him; and Lot went with him. Now Abram was seventy-five years old when he departed from Haran.” Approximately 2000 B.C. at the age of 75 left with his wife Sarai and his nephew Lot on a more than 300 mile journey to the land of Canaan with all the possessions they had acquired and with the souls, that is, the peopletheir servants and slaves. Since Abram had 318 trained men for combat with him, born in his household according to Genesis 14:14, there may have been about 1000 people in his entourage. Hebrews 11:8, “By faith Abraham, when he was called, obeyed by going out to a place which he was to receive for an inheritance; and he went out, not knowing where he was going.” Now, Abraham’s obedience to God was not perfect. Only the Lord Jesus Christ obedience was perfect.
Abraham failed many times but he did not quit. He persevered and his faith or confidence in God grew as he learned more of what God wanted from him. He was faithful…not perfect. God trained Abraham during the course of his life. In the same way, that parents train up a child. God was training Abraham…he was teaching him obedience. Hebrews 11:8 mentions that beginning of his obedient character. Abraham’s obedience mentioned here in Hebrews 11:8 is found in the book of Genesis. Gen 22:15-18, “The angel of the LORD called to Abraham from heaven a second time 16 and said, "I swear by myself, declares the LORD, that because you have done this and have not withheld your son, your only son, I will surely bless you and make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and as the sand on the seashore. Your descendants will take possession of the cities of their enemies, 18 and through your offspring all nations on earth will be blessed, because you have obeyed me.” Hebrews 11:8, “By faith Abraham, when he was called, obeyed by going out to a place which he was to receive for an inheritance; and he went out, not knowing where he was going.” What is the “inheritance” that is mentioned here in Hebrews 11:8? It refers to the land that God promised Abraham as well as residence in the New Jerusalem. Well, we must look at several passages in the book of Genesis in order to know what God had promised Abraham and his descendants.
Genesis 12:7, “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.” Genesis 13:15-17, “All the land that you see I will give to you and your offspring forever. I will make your offspring like the dust of the earth, so that if anyone could count the dust, then your offspring could be counted. Go, walk through the length and breadth of the land, for I am giving it to you.’ Genesis 15:7-8, “He also said to him, "I am the LORD, who brought you out of Ur of the Chaldeans to give you this land to take possession of it. But Abram said, "O Sovereign LORD, how can I know that I will gain possession of it?” Genesis 17:8, “The whole land of Canaan, where you are now an alien, I will give as an everlasting possession to you and your descendants after you; and I will be their God.” All of these passages refer to what we call in theology, the Palestinian Covenant. The Palestinian Covenant was given to Israel through Moses and was unconditional. The Palestinian covenant is related to the land that the Lord will give the nation of Israel. It will be literally fulfilled during the Millennial reign of Christ. It is the land grant to Israel. The largest Jewish Kingdom was during the reign of David and it was not even 1/20 or 1/30 of the land grant. The land grant was first promised to Abraham in Genesis 13:14-15 and Genesis 15:18.
Gen 13:14-15, “The LORD said to Abram, after Lot had separated from him, "Now lift up your eyes and look from the place where you are, northward and southward and eastward and westward; for all the land which you see, I will give it to you and to your descendants forever.” Gen 15:18, “On that day the LORD made a covenant with Abram, saying, "To your descendants I have given this land, from the river of Egypt as far as the great river, the river Euphrates.” It was confirmed to Isaac (Gen. 26:3-4) and was confirmed to Jacob (Gen. 35:12). It was mentioned to Moses (Ex. 6:2-8). To encourage the Jews to enter the land God confirmed the land grant to Joshua in Joshua 1:2-4. Josh 1:2-4, “Moses My servant is dead; now therefore arise, cross this Jordan, you and all this people, to the land which I am giving to them, to the sons of Israel. Every place on which the sole of your foot treads, I have given it to you, just as I spoke to Moses. From the wilderness and this Lebanon, even as far as the great river, the river Euphrates, all the land of the Hittites, and as far as the Great Sea toward the setting of the sun will be your territory.” Jeremiah and Ezekiel both confirmed the fulfillment of the land grant and related it to the New Covenant with Israel. Moses described the geographical boundaries of the land in Numbers 34:12. The Land Grant under the Palestinian Covenant: (1) Most of the land in Turkey (2) Most of East Africa (3) Saudi Arabia (4) Yemen (5) Oman and Red Sea (6) Syria (7) Iraq (8) Jordan. The land grant has boundaries on the Mediterranean, on Aegean Sea, on Euphrates River and the Nile River.
Moses prophesied of this covenant’s future fulfillment in Deuteronomy 30:1-9. 7 Features of the Palestinian Covenant: (1) The nation will be plucked off the land for its unfaithfulness (Dt. 28:63-68; 30:1-3). (2) There will be a future repentance of Israel (Dt. 28:63-68; 30:1-3). (3) Israel’s Messiah will return (Dt. 30:3-6). (4) Israel will be restored to the land (Dt. 30:5). (5) Israel will be converted as a nation (Dt. 30:4-8; cf. Rm. 11:26-27). (6) Israel’s enemies will be judged (Dt. 30:7). (7) The nation will then receive her full blessing (Dt. 30:9). The prophets of Israel prophesied of the Palestinian Covenant’s literal fulfillment (Isa. 11:11-12; 14:1-3; 27:12-13; 49:8-16; 66:20-22; Jer. 16:1416; 23:3-8; 30:10-11; 31:8, 31-37; Ezek. 11:17-21; 20:33-38; 34:11-16; 39:25-29; Hos. 1:10-11; Joel 3:17-21; Amos 9:11-15; Micah 4:6-7; Zeph. 3:14-20; Zech. 8:4-8). The Tribulation is a period in which God will significantly deal with the nation of Israel to bring it to repentance (meaning change of attitude regarding Christ), thus setting the stage for the fulfillment of the covenanted blessings believers will experience and the establishment of the kingdom after Christ’s 2nd Advent. Hebrews 11:9, “By faith he lived as an alien in the land of promise, as in a foreign land, dwelling in tents with Isaac and Jacob, fellow heirs of the same promise.” Abraham did not get to see the land of Canaan, which the Lord had promised to give to him and his descendants, but he never actually settled there or received title deed to it as his personal possession.
He traveled within its borders as a nomad. He was a foreigner. He was a stranger in a strange land. This fact underlined by his lifestyle. He and his family lived in tents and followed their herds. His son and grandson lived in the same manner. In the light of these facts, it is apparent that all 3 of these patriarchs (Abraham, Isaac and Jacob) died without actually receiving the land, which had been promised to Abraham as part of his inheritance from God. Therefore, all of them were only heirs in prospect, not actual inheritors while they lived on earth. They will receive this inheritance of the land from the Palestinian Covenant at the 2nd Advent of Christ and His subsequent Millennial reign. Abraham and his descendants will receive this inheritance of land given in the Palestinian Covenant during Christ’s millennial reign on planet earth. Hebrews 11:10, “for he was looking for the city which has foundations, whose architect and builder is God.” This city is a reference to the New Jerusalem. Abraham realized that the real prize was not the promise of land but that of being a citizen of the New Jerusalem and dwelling in the city of the King…the Lord Jesus Christ. Heb 12:22-24, “But you have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to myriads of angels, to the general assembly and church of the firstborn who are enrolled in heaven, and to God, the Judge of all, and to the spirits of the righteous
made perfect, and to Jesus, the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood, which speaks better than the blood of Abel.” Rev 21:10-22:1, “And he carried me away in the Spirit to a great and high mountain, and showed me the holy city, Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, having the glory of God. Her brilliance was like a very costly stone, as a stone of crystal-clear jasper. It had a great and high wall, with twelve gates, and at the gates twelve angels; and names were written on them, which are the names of the twelve tribes of the sons of Israel. There were three gates on the east and three gates on the north and three gates on the south and three gates on the west. And the wall of the city had twelve foundation stones, and on them were the twelve names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb. The one who spoke with me had a gold measuring rod to measure the city, and its gates and its wall. The city is laid out as a square, and its length is as great as the width; and he measured the city with the rod, fifteen hundred miles; its length and width and height are equal. And he measured its wall, seventy-two yards, according to human measurements, which are also angelic measurements. The material of the wall was jasper; and the city was pure gold, like clear glass. The foundation stones of the city wall were adorned with every kind of precious stone. The first foundation stone was jasper; the second, sapphire; the third, chalcedony; the fourth, emerald; the fifth, sardonyx; the sixth, sardius; the seventh, chrysolite; the eighth, beryl; the ninth, topaz; the tenth, chrysoprase; the eleventh, jacinth; the twelfth, amethyst. And the twelve gates were twelve pearls; each one of the gates was a single pearl. And the street of the city was pure gold, like transparent glass. I saw no temple in it, for the Lord God the Almighty and the Lamb are its temple. And the city has no need of the sun or of the moon to shine on it, for the glory of God has illumined it, and its lamp is the Lamb. The nations will walk by its light, and the kings of the earth will bring their glory into it. In the daytime (for there will be no night there) its gates will never be closed; and they will bring the glory and the honor of the nations into it; and nothing unclean, and no one who practices abomination and lying, shall ever come into it, but only those whose names are written in the Lamb's book of life.” Review Questions:
1. What is faith? 2. How does one get to be great friends with God? 3. Who was Abraham’s father? 4. What did God promise Abraham? 5. What was the inheritance?
