Quote from Forum Archives on May 21, 2002, 7:28 pm

Posted by: balderman <balderman@...>

"LESSONS FROM THE LIFE OF ABRAHAM—ALL BY GRACE"

GENESIS 11:31-32; 12:1-2

INTRO: Grace, we know it by this definition "The unmerited favor of God," and

that is true. The only problem with that definition is that it does not

carry it quite far enough. Grace is all that God has ever done, is doing

now, or ever shall do for His people. And this grace certainly is not

merited or earned or deserved in any way. Charles Spurgeon said,

"Observer the rain which drops from heaven. It falls on the desert as

well as on the fertile field. It drops on the rock that will refuse its

fertilizing moisture as well as the soil that opens its gaping mouth to

drink it in with gratitude. It falls on the streets of the city, where it is

not required, and where men will even curse it for coming, and it falls

not more freely where the sweet flowers have been panting for it and

the withering leaves have been rustling forth their prayers. Such is

the grace of God. It does not visit us because we ask for it, much less

because we deserve it, but as God wills it (1). God’s grace is amazing!

When a person works an eight-hour day and receives a fair day's pay

for his time, that is a wage. When a person competes with an

opponent and receives a trophy for his performance, that is a prize.

When a person receives appropriate recognition for his long service or

high achievements, that is an award. But when a person is not

capable of earning a wage, can win no prize, and deserves no award—

yet receives such a gift anyway--that is a good picture of God's

unmerited favor. This is what we mean when we talk about the grace

of God. G.W. Knight, Clip-Art Features for Church Newsletters, p. 53.

God’s grace saves us, secures us, sustains us and will see us safely to

Glory. A little boy was eagerly looking forward to the birthday party of

a friend who lived only a few blocks away. When the day finally

arrived, a blizzard made the sidewalks and roads nearly impassable.

The lad's father, sensing the danger, hesitated to let his son go. The

youngster reacted tearfully. "But Dad," he pleaded, "all the other kids

will be there. Their parents are letting them go." The father thought

for a moment, then replied softly, "All right, you may go." Surprised

but overjoyed, the boy bundled up and plunged into the raging storm.

The driving snow made visibility almost impossible, and it took him

more than half an hour to trudge the short distance to the party. As

he rang the doorbell, he turned briefly to look out into the storm. His

eye caught the shadow of a retreating figure. It was his father. He had

followed his son's every step to make sure he arrived safely. That’s a

wonderful picture of the Grace of God. God is with us every step of

the way.

Today we begin a series of messages on the life of Abraham. The life

of Abraham demonstrates beautifully the Amazing Grace of God.

There are many lessons we can learn to enrich our Christian lives as

we study the life of this man who was called, "the Friend of God." Let

us consider:

(1) HIS CONDITION

A. By The World’s Standards. Genesis 12:5 tells us, "And Abram

took Sarai his wife, and Lot his brother’s son, and all their substance

that they had gathered, and the souls they had gotten in Haran; and

they went forth to go into the land of Canaan; and into the land of

Canaan they came." Genesis 13:2 tells us, "And Abram was rich in

cattle, in silver, and in gold." All these things Abraham had before God

called him. IN this world’s eyes Abram had it made. He was wealthy

and he came from a good family. He had all the advantages that a man

would love to have and enjoy. But this was before his conversion. His

condition without God was most deplorable and desperate as far as

spiritual matters are concerned.

• He may have been prosperous and wealthy.
• He may have been well educated and probably was so.
• He may have been very popular.

But the sad truth is that he did not know God until God called him.

This world views wealth, wisdom, and popularity as signs of greatness

but God sees things differently. 1 Timothy 6:17 says, "charge them that

are rich in this world, that they be not high-minded, nor trust in

uncertain riches, but in the living God, who giveth us richly all things to

enjoy."

B. By God’s Standards. Whatever great accomplishments may have been

been bestowed upon him, and regardless of his worth in this world, he

was a spiritual pauper, and a nobody in the sight of God. It is not my

wealth, my wisdom, nor my worldly accomplishments which makes me

great in the sight of God. Here was my state before the Lord saved me:

• I was dead spiritually (Ephesians 2:1).
• I was blind (2 Corinthians 4:3-4).
• I had no righteousness (Isaiah 64:6).
• I had no desire for spiritual things (Ephesians 2:3).
• I was helpless, hopeless, and hellbound (Ephesians 2:12; John 3:18, 36).

What I am, what I can become, and all I ever hope to be I owe to the

Grace of almighty God! I can say with Paul, "By the grace of God I am

what I am…" (1 Corinthians 15:10a). Abraham was a spiritual

pauper, a nobody, but God through His Grace made of him a great

nation.

(2) HIS CHOOSING

GENESIS 12:1-2—"Now the LORD had said unto Abram, Get thee

out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy

father’s house, unto a land that I will shew thee; And I will

make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make

thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing."

A. God’s wisdom in choosing Abraham. We may wonder why God chose

Abraham in preference to all others of that day. Warren Wiersbe said,

"We must emphasize again that God did not call Abraham because of

his own merits. He had none. He was a citizen of an idolatrous city,

Ur of the Chaldees. Had not God revealed Himself to him, he would

have died an unbeliever. From a human point of view, God’s choice of

Abraham and Sarah—who had no children—was a foolish one. But

ultimately it brought great glory to God and great blessing to the world"

(2). Who are we to question God about His choosing and callings? I

am so glad God in His Word tells us, "For my thoughts are not your

thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the LORD. For as the

heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your

ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts" (Isaiah 55:8-9).

B. God’s mercy in choosing Abraham. Arthur Pink, in his book,

Gleanings in Genesis, said, "There was nothing whatever in the object

of His choice which commended him to God. There was nothing

whatever in Abram which merited God’s esteem." What was it then in

the wisdom of God which moved God to choose Abraham above all

others? Was it not mercy that moved the heart of God in His choice?

God says in Romans 9:15, "…I will have mercy on whom I will have

mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion."

We must realize that God is sovereign; He works for our good in

everything; He is trustworthy; He will save all who believe in Him.

When we understand these qualities of God, we know His choices are

good even if we don’t understand all His reasons (3).

Paul said in 1 Corinthians 1:18, 21, 25-29—"For the preaching of the

cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us which are saved it

is the power of God. For after that in the wisdom of God the world by

wisdom knew not God, it pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to

save them that believe. Because the foolishness of God is wiser than

men; and the weakness of God stronger than men. For ye see your

calling, brethren, how that not many wise men after the flesh, not many

noble, are called: But God hath chosen the foolish things of this world to

confound the wise: and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to

confound the things which are mighty; And the base things of the world,

and the things which are despised, hath God chosen, yea, and things

that which are not, to bring to nought things that are: That no flesh

should glory in His presence."

God chose Abraham out of His wisdom and mercy. God saved us because of His great mercy also, as Ephesians 2:4-5 tells us, "But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us, Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved.)" Is it any wonder then, that the song "Amazing Grace," is preferred and loved by so many?

(3) HIS CALLING

GENESIS 12:1—"Now the LORD has said unto Abram, Get thee out

of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father’s

house, unto a land I will shew thee."

A. God spoke to Abraham. "Now the LORD had said to Abram…" We don't know just how God spoke to him. It may have been audibly, or

perhaps by a dream, or maybe simply by an impression on his mind.

The circumstances of this call [we learn] from Stephen's speech,

Act_7:2, where we are told, That the God of glory appeared to him to

give him this call, appeared in such displays of his glory as left Abram

no room to doubt. God spake to him after in divers manners: but this

first time, when the correspondence was to be settled, he appeared to

him as the God of glory, and spake to him. That this call was given him

in Mesopotamia, before he dwelt in Charran, and in obedience to this

call, he came out of the land of the Chaldeans, and dwelt in Charran or

Haran about five years, and from thence, when his father was dead, by

a fresh command, he removed him into the land of Canaan (Wesley’s

Explanatory Notes). The important thing we need to remember is that

God did call him and he did get the message. The flood had destoyed a

corrupt civilization, but another sinful society soon took its place. God

called one man to begin the fulfillment of His promise in Gen. 3:15, to

send a Savior to the world. This man was of the line of Shem (Gen.

11:10ff) and was the father of the Jewish nation. From this one man,

God was to bless the whole world (4).

B. God still speaks today. Hebrews 1:1-2 tells us, "GOD, who are

sundry times and in divers manners spake in times past unto the

fathers by the prophets, Hath in these days spoken unto us by his

Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made

the worlds." God spake to his ancient people at sundry times, through

successive generations, and in divers manners, as he thought proper;

sometimes by personal directions, sometimes by dreams, sometimes

by visions, sometimes by Divine influences on the minds of the

prophets. The gospel revelation is excellent above the former; in that it

is a revelation which God has made by his Son (Matthew Henry’s

Concise Commentary). Jesus is the fulfillment and culmination of

God’s many revelations through the centuries (5). And Just as God

called Abraham, God still calls and speaks to His own today:

• He calls by His Word (Jeremiah 20:9).
• He calls by the Gospel (Romans 1:16).
• He calls by His Spirit (John 6:44, 63).
• He calls through circumstances. Things just don’t happen.

ILLUS: A business man got on a plane with only one seat available and it was next to a preacher. The preacher

witnessed to him and the man was saved. The man

said afterwards, "God had set me up."

• He calls sometimes through sorrows and tragedies. The tragedies which occurred September 11^th served as a wake-up call for many spiritually.

God called and Abraham got the message. How do we know? Because Genesis 12:4 says, "So Abram departed…" Friend, God may be calling you by His Word, His Spirit, the Gospel, His Spirit, through circumstances, or through sorrows and tragedies; will you get the message? Will you respond in faith?

(4) HIS CONVERSION

GENESIS 12:4—"So Abram departed, as the LORD had spoken

unto him; and Lot went with him; and Abram was seventy

and five years old when he departed out of Haran."

*It pleased God, who has often been found of them who sought Him not, to

reveal Himself to Abraham perhaps by a miracle; and the conversion of

Abraham is one of the most remarkable in Bible history (Jamieson, Fausset

& Brown Commentary). God called Abraham in Ur of the Chaldees..This

call was completely of grace and the blessings of the covenant wholly from

the Lord’s goodness (6). Notice what God’s grace did in the life of Abraham:

A. The change it brought. So Abram departed - He was not disobedient to

the heavenly vision. His obedience was speedy and without delay,

submissive and without dispute (Wesley’s Explanatory Notes). This was

the beginning of a new life for Abraham. Things changed in His life:

• He changed kingdoms. 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 he knew that nothing but misery would follow disobedience (Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary). When we get saved we also change kingdoms. Colossians 1:13 says, [God] "Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of His dear son."
• He changed fathers. His father was Terah, of whom it is said, Jos_24:2, that he served other gods on the other side the flood; so early did idolatry gain footing in the world (Wesley’s Explanatory Notes). Terah, Abraham’s father had died before he left Haran. Now Abraham had a new Father, God. When we come to Christ, we have a new father also. It tells us in John 8:44 that before our conversion, "Ye are of your father, the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do." But when we by faith receive Christ, God becomes our Father, as Romans 8:14-17a—"For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God. For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but ye have received the spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father. The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God: And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ.."
• He changed lifestyles. Abraham was a citizen of Ur of the Chaldees. This city was a very idolatrous city. No doubt before his conversion, Abraham served idols also. We know His father did (Joshua 24:2). When a person is truly saved, his life will change too. 2 Corinthians 5:17 says, "..If any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new." Christians are brand new people on the inside. The Holy Spirit gives them new life, and they are not the same any more. We are not reformed, rehabilitated, or reeducated—we are new creations, living in vital union with Christ (Colossians 2:6-7). We are not merely turning over a new leaf; we are beginning a new life under a new master (7). He changed destinies. If God had not, out of mercy and grace, called Abraham, he would have remained an idolater and an unbeliever and died in his sins. But it was more than God’s call, Abraham responded in faith to God’s call. Thus, this man who once was lost and headed for hell is now saved and headed for heaven! The same can be said of everyone here today who has by faith responded to the call of God and asked God to save them. We were once hopeless, helpless, and hellbound, but now was are Saved, secure, and "looking for a city ..whose builder and maker is God"!

B. The confession it wrought. It was time for Abraham to make his

profession public; letting others know where he stood, and move out for

God. Verse 4 says, "So Abram departed, as the LORD had spoken unto

him…" Verses 7-8 says, "and the LORD appeared unto Abram, and

said, Unto thy seed will I give this land: and there builded he an altar

unto the LORD, who appeared unto him. And he removed hence unto a

mountain on the east side of Beth-el, and pitched his tent, having Beth-el

on the west, and Hai on the east: and there he builded an altar unto the

LORD, and called upon the name of the LORD." Abraham did not

hesitate to confess his faith before the heathen in the land. Wherever

he went, he pitched his tent and built an altar (8). When we are saved

by the wonderful grace of God, we will be a living testimony to the

change God’s grace has wrought in our lives (Psalms 107:2; Phils. 2:

15-16a).

C. The consecration it brought. From the day of his departure, Abraham dedicated his life to the Lord’s will. He sought not his own

will, but the will of God. The old life was put behind him and now his

desire was to please God and follow Him. That is why it is said of

Abraham in James 2:23—"..Abraham believed God, and it was imputed

unto him for righteousness, and he was called the Friend of God."

Friend, if you belong to Him, your desire should be to live a life

dedicated to the will of God. Romans 12:1-2 exhorts us, "I beseech

you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your

bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your

reasonable service. And be not conformed to this world: but be ye

transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is

that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God." God wants our all,

we must not hold anything back, nor give Him less than what is right-

fully His!

ILLUS: During the Korean War, a group of believers were in a little

chapel when communist soldiers barged in with machine guns.

One of the soldiers said, "All right everybody, get up!" So they

got off their knees. He said, "Line up against the wall!" They

did what the soldier said to do. Then that soldier ripped the

picture of Christ off the wall and threw it down on the floor.

He said, "All right, one by one, I want you to come by here,

spit on this picture, and curse His name." The first three in

line were men of the church, they did what the soldier said to

do. They spit on the picture and they cursed the name of

Christ. The fourth one in line was a high school girl. She came

up before the picture and she dropped to her knees. She

wiped the spittle off with her skirt, and she said, "Go ahead

and kill me. I cannot curse His name." The soldier said, "Get

up!" They blindfolded that girl and the three men, and

marched them out behind the chapel. The people inside heard

three shots. The soldiers came back in with the girl -- alive.

The soldier said, "Anyone who gives up what they believe that

easily is not fit to be a communist." And they marched out. –

Ron Blue

Our Lord said some similar words In Luke 9:62, "No man, having put

his hand to the plough, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God."

Friend, it is by Grace you are saved, it is by grace you are sustained;

it is ALL BY GRACE! Will you consecrate yourself to God’s will for your

life? or Will you continue to life for sin and self?

CLOSING: The life of Abraham is ablaze with the amazing grace of God. All

that Abraham was he owed to the grace of God. Friend, if you are

saved, all that you are, all that you ever hope to be; all that you

have; all that you have accomplished or ever hope to accomplish is

because of God’s marvelous grace.

NOTES: 1. Charles H. Spurgeon. 2200 Quotations from the Writings of

Charles H. Spurgeon. pp. 86-87.

1. Warren W. Wiersbe. Wiersbe’s Expository Outlines on the Old

Testament. p. 38.

2. Living Letters from the Life Application Bible. p. 31.
3. Wiersbe. p. 38.
4. Living Letters. p. 206.
5. Wiersbe. p. 38.
6. Living Letters. p. 88.
7. Wiersbe. p. 39.