You see, people often see a stark division between the Old and New Testament. Some will suggest that there is a God of the Old and a different God in the New. They see very little continuity between the Testaments or the way that God acts. But we as Christians know that this is not the case. There is one covenant-making God. He might have made different covenants at different times and set different terms, but he is the same God.
The Dog ReturnsWe made through the tough sections of Genesis 19. We saw some things that are disturbing and make us uncomfortable, but that’s the Bible. Hopefully, you also saw that chapter 19 is a bold statement on sin and sexuality. The fall of Sodom and Gomorrah and the disgrace of Lot stand as a…
The section we have before us today describes why Abram and his family left Ur and were headed for Canaan. It was the call of God.
And now we arrive again at one of those moments in Abram’s life where his feet almost slip. And why? It’s not because his enemies are gathering around him. It’s not because he is an enemy of God. It’s because of his own doing. Let’s look at what happens and as we do I want…
Why do we fear and why is it that when God speaks in the Old Testament or Jesus in the New, many times the first phrase is, “fear not,”? Let’s look at Abram here and see if we can’t find answers to those questions and maybe we’ll find a cure for our fear.
Many of the stories we read in Genesis are about the choices humans make. God providentially brings about a crossroads and those involved have to decide which way they will take. Will they follow God and goodness or will they choose their own path and evil?
We saw in the previous chapter that Abraham had moved his household to Gerar. Abimelech, the king of that area, took Sarah into his household because he believed that Sarah was an unmarried woman. Why did he think that? Because Abraham and Sarah used the line that they had come up with in Ur; Sarah…