ABRAHAM PUT GOD FIRST
Text: Genesis 15:1-6
Scripture Reading: Colossians 3:5-11
INTRODUCTION:
1. Abraham is a remarkable character of faith
2. There are four lessons of faith we get from Abraham’s life:
a. Faith changes people
b. Faith has no age restriction
c. Faith is courageous
d. Faith is a race to the finish
3. Abraham is a wonderful character to learn from regarding faith and its desire to put God first in life
TRANSITION: First of all notice that:
I. Faith can change people
A. It sounds like Moses started out as an idol worshipper
1. Joshua 24:2-3, “And 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. 3 ’Then I took your father Abraham from beyond the River , and led him through all the land of Canaan, and multiplied his descendants and gave him Isaac”
2. Abraham was with his father beyond the river serving other gods
3. God called him out of that and through his faith in God he changed his life and no longer worshipped idols but turned to God
4. He became what some call the “Father of the faithful”
a. In fact he was father of the entire generation that led to the birth of Christ
b. He is promised to have “many descendents” and that through his seed “all would be blessed”
c. We know from Galatians 3:16 that his seed was none other than Jesus Christ, the Savior
d. So in some way the title “Father of the faithful” fits him aptly
5. Faith in God changed Abraham
B. Isn’t that the real power of the Gospel
1. Romans 1:16, “For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek”
2. The Gospel has the power to change people from lost to saved from dark to light
3. Colossians 3:5-11
a. We put off all those worldly things, which means we quit practicing them
b. And we put on the new self through knowledge of Christ
C. That means that we put God first and our own desires second
1. When we put our faith in God first all else in our lives will find their proper priority
2. And our lives will be successful, not necessarily by the world’s measure but by God’s
TRANSITION: On top of changing people we can also see that:
II. Faith has no age restrictions
A. We look at Genesis 17
1. Abram was 99 and Sarai was 89 when they were promised a child of their own
a. I would wager that no one over 50 expects children
b. Most over 40 do not wish for children
2. In fact, science confirms that after age 35 the opportunities for live healthy childbirth decreases yearly
a. At age 40 there is a 5% chance pre month of conceiving a healthy baby
b. So physically, at 89, the chances are as near zero as possible
3. But God is bigger and stronger than the years that wither our bodies and make us feel tired
B. Consider Caleb from Joshua 14
1. He was 40 when Moses sent him to spy the land, another 45 years pass until Caleb stands asking for Hebron as his inheritance
2. He was 85 when he began to take his inheritance
3. He says that he is still strong for war
4. At 85 he took his family in and ran the Anakim out of his land
5. Those Anakim are the ones that made Israel faint when the spies returned which caused them to remain in the wilderness an additional 40 years
6. At age 85 Caleb’s faith in God strengthened him to move in
C. God is stronger than the years on our bodies, faith has no age restrictions, you can still have a positive impact on the world for Christ no matter how old, or young you are
TRANSITION: Another aspect of faith from Abraham’s life is that:
III. Faith is courageous
A. In thinking of Genesis 13
1. God, whom Abram was not very familiar at this time, called him out of his land with his father’s family, even his nephew, Lot
2. He gave him no destination, no time-table
3. Abram had lived in the same place for 75 years and now had to leave that land behind not knowing where he was headed
4. And he went anyway
B. Then in Genesis 22 Abraham waited 100 years for his son
1. He raised him with love and devotion
2. Now God told him to take him on the mountain and offer him as a sacrifice
3. And he willingly obliges God in this too
4. Abraham put God first and made some difficult decision that took courage
a. How often do we put our kids’ ballgames or track meets ahead of worship on Wednesdays or Sunday Bible Class or Evening worship?
b. Abraham valued God even over the very life of his son of promise, knowing that obedience would teach much more than excuses or self-justification
C. Courage is being afraid or uncertain and going anyway
1. We do not know what some in the world may think or say or do
2. But we must go anyway and act and work for Christ
3. Many people took issue when we took a child from a ballgame
4. But we went to worship anyway
5. Some hold a lower opinion of us when they find we are Christians
6. I would rather had God’s favor than man’s and so He gives me courage to face the world and remain faithful
TRANSITION: Finally, from Abraham’s life we learn that:
IV. Faith is a race to the finish
A. From at least 75 years old Abraham was faithful to God
1. He lived to be 175 years old
2. He kept his faith until the end
3. He died satisfied and was gathered to his people
a. “Gathered to his people” is used only six times in the Old Testament
b. It is a reference to eternal life not physical burial, one of the few in the OT
4. Abraham was gathered to his people
5. John 8:56, “Your father Abraham rejoiced to see My day, and he saw it and was glad.”
6. This is an indication that Abraham remained on God’s side until the very end
B. Revelation 2:10, “…Be faithful until death and I will give you the crown of life”
1. We must keep on running the race
2. An older man once said, “I run when I can, walk if I can’t, and crawl if I must but I will always, always move forward for I know that the moment I cease moving forward I begin to die”
3. Keep moving forward, running your race
a. Amidst the struggle, strife and difficulty in life
b. If you run all the way through the finish line God awaits with the victors crown for you, just across Jordan
CONCLUSION:
1. Abraham was a great men with immense faith that was evident because he put God first
2. His faith in God changed him, he was with his father an idolater but when he heard from God his faith in the power and promise of God changed him to a faithful follower who would be called the “father of the faithful”
a. Faith can change you
b. It can turn you from lost to found, from blind to seeing, from hopeless to hopeful
c. Faith that puts God first changes people
3. We learn from Abraham that faith has no age restrictions
a. He was 75 when he began following God
b. He was 100 when he had his son of promise, Isaac
c. He did not let time diminish the power of God in his life
4. We learn from Abraham also that faith is courageous, facing uncertainty he depended on God and acted for Him anyway
a. We do not always know what the immediate results of our actions will be
b. But faith will drive us on toward the prize of the upward calling in Christ Jesus
c. And despite the world’s view of us, and despite the sneers and jeers of jealous Christians, we will continue on doing what is right
d. We will remember that when people do not have the message to attack they will attack the messenger
e. So we will continue with the message of Christ and boldly proclaim His timeless truths
5. And from Abraham we learn that faith is a race to the finish
a. And there is but one finish line, that is the crossing of the River Jordan
b. Used to indicate the end of our life on earth
c. It is clear and apparent in the Bible that we must continue our faithful practices until such time as the Lord calls us home from this earth
d. When the time comes for us to depart this life, faithfulness will be rewarded by the source of every good thing
e. Keep on running, putting God first in your every decision, and He will hand you the victors crown when you cross that finish line
