February 24, 2002 Genesis 12:1-8
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.
2 “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.
3 I will bless those who bless you,
and whoever curses you I will curse;
and all peoples on earth
will be blessed through you.”
4 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. 5 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.
6 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. 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.
8 From there he went on toward the hills east of Bethel and pitched his tent, with Bethel on the west and Ai on the east. There he built an altar to the LORD and called on the name of the LORD.
During the winter, a father once walked through the snow with his son lagging behind - trying to follow in his father’s steps. But the steps were so big and so wide, that the son found himself facing an impossible task. He just couldn’t do it. His feet were too small and his legs weren’t wide enough. The term they use for that is “he’s got big shoes to fill.” It happens in the work place, on the sports team, and within the home - where we are compared with those who have gone before us. Sometimes we always have to live in the shadow of some perceivably great person, and when we don’t compare it makes us angry. Instead, we say, we should just be the best WE can be and not worry about comparisons.
Yet when Paul was collecting an offering for some poor Jews in Jerusalem, he told the Corinthians that the Macedonians gave even MORE than they were able. And then he went on to say, I want to test the sincerity of your love by comparing it with the earnestness of others. He told Timothy that he was to be an EXAMPLE to the believers in speech, in life, in love and in purity. They were to COMPARE themself with him when it came to their lives. So comparisons can be good. God does this so he can make his principles and concepts alive and kicking in our lives by seeing a living and acting example. Today, God paints the portrait of Abraham - the Father of all believers’ - life. What I want to do today sounds daunting - a little scary - but -
I Dare You to Compare Yourself to Abram
I. The background
Several weeks ago the Lydia Society shared with each other the different ways that they had met their spouses. It was really interesting to me to hear the background of the relationships that each of them had. Some met on a blind date while others met in church. When you compare backgrounds of people - especially in today’s society - you will get a wide variety of them.
It was really interesting for me to explore the background of Abraham in preparation for today’s sermon. He actually didn’t live too long after the flood, as it turns out. If you remember, there were three main descendants of Noah - Shem, Ham, and Japheth. Abraham was first said to be living in Ur of the Chaldeans. If you look at a Bible map, you can see that Ur is over in the land of Babylonia, which is now modern day Iran. How he ended up there is kind of a mystery. Japheth is thought to have inhabited the far reaching regions of Asia Minor and Europe. Ham was thought to go to Babylon and Assyria, with his descendant Canaan taking over modern day Israel. And Shem is thought to have inherited regions interspersed around Egypt and up to Babylon as well.
But what’s sad to see is that the spiritual heritage of these three men, who should have been VERY close to the Lord after the flood, went down hill. The promise of the Savior stayed alive through Shem’s offspring Arphaxad. But for the most part - the other two families of Japheth and Ham really didn’t turn out too well. Genesis 10 says of Nimrod, a descendant of Ham - that he who grew to be a mighty warrior on the earth. 9 He was a mighty hunter before the LORD; that is why it is said, “Like Nimrod, a mighty hunter before the LORD.” 10 The first centers of his kingdom were Babylon. . . 11 From that land he went to Assyria, where he built Nineveh. In the eyes of the world Ham would have been the successful one. Maybe this is what drew Abraham’s father Terah to live in Ur - the land of Nimrod and Ham - the physical prosperity.
But notice that Moses mentions nothing about Nimrod’s spiritual life. However, Joshua fills us in on it, when he mentions Abraham’s background in chapter 24. ‘Long ago your forefathers, including Terah the father of Abraham and Nahor, lived beyond the River and worshiped other gods. I don’t know if I just forgot about this, but it was an amazing rediscovery for me - that Abraham and his father were nothing but flat out idolaters - worshiping other gods - when God called Abraham. He had no special moral qualities that drew God to him. He was just like the majority of the world at that time - living in a denial of the true God and in unbelief. What is even more interesting was that at that time there were descendants of Shem who were believers and worshipers of the true God living in Canaan. (Cf. Genesis 14) God could have easily chosen them. But instead, while Abram was just a heathen living among heathens, 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.
Doesn’t this give you a deep sigh of relief? When comparing your background to Abram, you also don’t have any royal heritage. God says that you were nothing that a “filthy sinner,” only “inclined to evil from youth.” If Abraham had some sort of royal heritage or great moral virtue that drew God to him, we would then feel an immediate pressure to be something special in God’s sight. We would wonder to ourselves, “how good do I have to be for God to choose me?” But God rules out any worthiness by choosing Abraham - the idol worshiping descendant of Shem to be the Father of Believers. And look at WHEN God chose Abram - before he had taken one step to Israel - before he had issued one prayer to the true God. When I compare my background to Abraham’s I know that my salvation has nothing with where I was born or who my ancestors are. For all I know I may be a direct descendant of Nimrod! (Although I doubt it since I am not a very good hunter, ha.) But it just doesn’t matter. God’s choice of Abraham shows that God is a Savior of sinners - that his love is purely a gift of His grace! Ephesians 1:4 says he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. God He chose me before I did one work - good or bad - long before I was ever born. It rules out any boasting on our part.
II. The call
The second thing I find interesting in this text is the WAY in which God called Abraham. Notice there were no threats leveled at Abraham. There were no challenges, “I challenge you to go to the Promised Land.” There were no emotional dramas or high pressure tactics. All you see are promises, promises, and more promises. “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. 3 I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse; and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you.” Abraham’s name would be known from rising of the sun to sailing of the sea. He would bring blessings on many people - with the LORD’S hand being with him wherever he went. And if these physical promises were not enough, God promised that ALL people on earth will be blessed through you. Right here Abraham would have known that God must have been talking about more than just himself. There’s no way that he could be a source of blessing for all people. This was an obvious repeat of the promise to Eve - that a Savior would be born through his offspring who save the world from sin.
It was through these PROMISES then, that God converted Abram from a heathen idol worshiper into a believer in the Christ to come. He changed Abram’s heart from thinking of god as a lifeless piece of stone who only demanded blood and sacrifice into a living God who wanted to GIVE Abram his best! Imagine, for instance, if Bill Gates came up to today and said, “I’ll give you fifty million a year to be the CEO of my company. You’ll get weekends off, get a new car, a perfect health plan and a great pension. Who wouldn’t want to join the company? In the same way, when the living and powerful LORD appeared to Abram and said, “your wife will have a child, your name will be great, you will be a blessing to everyone you run into, and the Savior will come through your offspring,” what else could he do - say, “no thanks - I’d rather worship this stone over here.” With these promises God was able to change Abram’s heart. He didn’t have to offer any threats.
Again, I find this so interesting because it illustrates so perfectly the Bible passage that says, “God is not a man, that he should lie, nor a son of man, that he should change his mind.” God has used the same method throughout the ages. Think of the jailer at Philippi. Here this scoundrel had locked the apostles up in the inner cell and fastened their feet in stocks. But what did the disciples do? Sang praises to God! And when the inmates were set free through an earthquake, and the jailer came in quaking in his boots - what did the disciples do for him? They said, “believe in the Lord Jesus Christ and you will be saved, you and your household!” They laid no demands upon this poor shaken man. They simply gave him the good news that Jesus Christ had died for his sins. And it was this sweet message of the gospel that converted him. How could he not love such a God who had forgiven him and died for him?
And that’s the way God worked with you. He didn’t get you in a headlock, give you a nuggy and say, “you better become a Christian or I’m gonna beat you up!” No. He took the gentle and cleansing waters of baptism, and poured them over your head. And through that gospel promise of forgiveness and cleansing God changed your heart from heathen to holy in the flash of a second. When you found yourself rebelling against what God had made you in your younger years, God made no demands of you. Instead, he held out his hands and said, “I died for you. I want you back.” It’s that eternal promise of universal and complete forgiveness that keeps us coming back to worship him. When you hear the absolution spoken by the pastor, “by the command of our Lord I forgive you in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit,” or when you hear the blessing at the end of the service, nothing could sound sweeter. It’s those promises that keep us coming back again and again after all of our failures throughout the week.
Imagine what a terrible religion we would have without this kind of a conversion. Whenever anyone loses the gospel, they almost have to go by force. The Inquisition by the Catholic Church hundreds of years ago is a glaring example. The Mohammedan conquest had to try and force converts by the sword. Jehovah’s Witnesses and Mormons constantly have the pressure of knocking on doors and being baptized for the dead - tirelessly working to try and earn their salvation. We would think that we have to coerce people into salvation or convince them to accept Christ with emotional pleas. That’s where we would be without this wonderful truth that God converts by promises, not by power. When we compare our conversion to Abraham’s then, we take comfort in the fact that God used the same means to convert us as he did Abram.
III. The response
The final thing we will dare to compare is the response. How did the “father of faith respond?”
So Abram left, as the LORD had told him. It’s a rather simple statement. But it’s that simplicity that really strikes us. So Abram left. He didn’t think to himself, “hold on here Lord, I’m 75 for crying out loud. Why don’t you just establish me here? You want me to move all of my family - all of my cattle - all of my servants - hundreds of miles to a land I’ve never been before?” None of that. All it says is, “Abram left, as the LORD had told him.”
Think about what Abram did in modern day terms. You know what it’s like to go on vacation - just for a week - what a pain in the neck it is. And you know what a pain in the neck it is to move - especially when you accumulate a lot of STUFF. Imagine, if you would, owning a farm of a hundred cattle, and having to relocate - not just to Nebraska or Iowa, but down to southern Mexico. Abram had to go through different countries! And think of his age - he was no spring chicken - at 75. But he just did it. No questions. He believed that God would take care of him. He believed that he would have a child. The LORD didn’t just create faith in Abram. He created an INCREDIBLE faith. And let’s not forget the fact that Sarai - his 65 year old wife also supported him in his decision and went along, along with his nephew and slaves and their families as well.
What happened once Abram got there? 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. 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. 8 From there he went on toward the hills east of Bethel and pitched his tent, with Bethel on the west and Ai on the east. There he built an altar to the LORD and called on the name of the LORD. There were Canaanites living there! It reminds me of a conference I once went to with an elder of the congregation I was at. I was looking forward to having a nice and peaceful night of sleep without any kids. But once we arrived at the hotel he told me, “oh, by the way pastor, I tend to snore.” After I came by to the room that night, sure enough, he was sawing some serious logs. I felt like I was going to vibrate right off of the bed. You would think that Abram would have been disheartened at this point. On top of this, God said, “by the way, I’m going to give this land to your OFFSPRING - not to YOU.” If I would have been Abram I would have said, “I’m going back to Ur - forget this!” But what did Abram do? He went ahead and built an altar to the LORD, who appeared to him. And after he left from there, he once again built an altar in between Bethel and Ai. This never hindered his faith. Instead, he continued to take comfort in the fact that his offspring would own this land and he would still have a Savior. No wonder he is called the “father of believers.”
How do you compare to Abram? Here’s where we fall so short, don’t we. Even though we have similar backgrounds and were called in the same way, our response doesn’t match up to Abram. How many Christians feel it is too difficult to just journey across town in a heated or air conditioned car because it is “their only day to rest or their only day to get housework done.” Isn’t that a sad response? How many of us - instead of calling on the name of the LORD during set backs, complain to him. We go on the journey of marriage. But we have set backs when we don’t get along with our spouse or we don’t have the same spending habits. So instead of setting up our altar and calling on God, we go back to Ur. We say to God, this is too tough, I want out. When our children start to disobey - when they start to take up more time than we want - we decide to become busy with other “duties” and send them off to daycare whenever possible. Instead of setting up an altar to God and offering prayers to help us take on our duties, we sacrifice our children to their peers and their teams. Instead of praising God, we complain to him about where he has put us in life. This is where it is scary to do the comparison, isn’t it? Instead of comparing to the father of believers, we look like the children of Thomas. We haven’t come close to following in his steps.
But the comforting aspect in this whole thing is that our LORD is still the same. The same LORD who promised Abram salvation through his Offspring is the same LORD who offers us salvation through that offspring. As God says so clearly in Romans 4, It was not through law that Abraham and his offspring received the promise that he would be heir of the world, but through the righteousness that comes by faith. God’s forgiveness isn’t based on how we respond to his grace. It’s based on the promise of grace and forgiveness through the sacrifice of Christ. It’s works just like a ten dollar bill. It doesn’t matter who’s holding it, me, you, our children - it’s still worth ten dollars. The value of the dollar isn’t based on who’s holding it - it has nothing to do with that. In the same way, our holiness, righteousness, and salvation - is not based on our reaction to God’s grace. It’s based on God’s grace through Christ. So I look just as holy as Abram did, because I am covered with the same righteousness as He - through faith in the same Savior. Likewise with you. Now we only pray that we could respond as wonderfully as Abram.
Just recently Lynn Swann, wide receiver for the Pittsburgh Steelers was inducted into the Hall of Fame. In his speech he said, "Every year, when the call came telling me that I hadn’t made it into the Hall, it was a humbling experience." He had been eligible for consideration since 1987 and been a 14-time finalist. "But getting into the Hall of Fame, now being a part of this and seeing the caliber of person that you have to be for induction, that’s even more humbling.” Jackie Slater, who also made it at the same time later on said, “You don’t really appreciate the meaning of it all, being a part of a team that can never release you or trade you, until you’re here for yourself.” It was a humbling experience for these men to be compared to the late greats in the football game. But they really appreciated being mentioned in the same breath as them.
In a similar way, God promises you that YOU are going to heaven - to the greatest hall of fame - to be recognized by Christ as one of HIS children - just like Abraham. It’s hard for us to comprehend this - standing side by side with Abraham, Moses, Noah, Peter, Paul - so many great saints. It’s humbling for us to think that we will be singing praises side by side with Abram and these others. When we compare ourselves to Abram, we realize that we don’t deserve to be in heaven by him. But when we also compare what he was and how he got to be the father of believers, it gives us comfort. Abram didn’t “deserve” it either. That’s not why God chose him. It’s all a gift of God’s grace through Christ. So today, as we have dared to compare ourselves to Abram, it has been a humbling, but a rewarding experience - to know that we too - by faith in the same Savior - and through the righteousness of the same Savior - will end up in heaven with all the saints. Amen.
