Do You Trust the Lord's Promises? Gen. 15:1-6;
16:1-3; 17:1-2, 17-19 Jan. 27, 08
1. Trust The Lord In Matters Of . . Rewards. 15:1-3
A.
The . . Greatness Of Rewards From The Lord. 15:1
15 After these events, the word of the Lord came to Abram in a vision:
Do not be afraid, Abram. I am
your shield; your reward will be very great.
B.
The . . Giving Of Rewards From The Lord. 15:2-3
2 But Abram said, "Lord God, what can You give me, since I am childless
and the heir of my house is
Eliezer of Damascus?" 3 Abram continued, "Look, You have given me no
offspring, so a slave born in
my house will be my heir."
After your salvation experience do you believe the Lord gave you a
specific promise for some personal
blessing from Him in your life? The Lord may promise great reward to
you like He promised to Abram. You
must trust Him to give in the manner and time He chooses. Did you
notice the straightforward communication
Abram expressed to the Lord? If we do that we need to be respectful,
and walking in obedient trust.
2. Trust The Lord In Matters Of . . Righteousness. 15:4-6
A.
Righteousness According To His . . Plan. 15:4-5
4 Now the word of the Lord came to him: "This one will not be
your heir; instead, one who
comes from your own body will be your heir." 5 He took him outside and
said, "Look at the sky
and count the stars, if you are able to count them." Then He said to
him, "Your offspring will be
that numerous."
B.
Righteousness According To His . . Provision. 15:6
6 Abram believed the Lord, and He credited it to him as righteousness.
HCSB
It is interesting to notice how many ways mankind
tries to gain righteousness. All the names given for the
attempts toward righteousness really boil down to only two. They are
"works," or "grace." The grace way is
God's plan, and all the attempts of mankind are "works" and do not
reach their desired goal. The proper plan
has been provided by the Lord and we must place our trust in the grace
of that plan. The text clearly states,
"Abram believed the Lord, and He credited it to him as righteousness."
3. Trust The Lord In Matters Of . . Refusals. 16:1-3
A.
Refusals Of . . Alternate Plans. 16:1-2
1 Abram's wife Sarai had not borne him children. She owned an Egyptian
slave named Hagar.
2 Sarai said to Abram, "Since the Lord has prevented me from bearing
children, go to my slave;
perhaps I can have children by her." And Abram agreed to what Sarai
said.
B.
Refusals Of . . Alienating Plans. 16:3
3 So Abram's wife Sarai took Hagar, her Egyptian slave, and gave her to
her husband Abram as a wife
for him. This happened after Abram had lived in the land of Canaan 10
years. HCSB
1. This Plan
Immediately. . Amended God's Plan.
2. This Plan Eventually . . Angered Sarai.
3. This Plan Eventually . . Separated Abram From Hagar.
4. This Plan Eventually . . Alienated Jews From Arabs.
What would Abram's accomplishments be if he had
refused Sarai's plan for an heir? Of course we do not
know, but the problems of Israel today might be very different. At
times in life we may find it tempting to
involve ourselves with an alternate plan than the one God has offered.
Trusting God may very well involve
some refusals of other alternate plans that may alienate us from the
blessing God promised. Sarai's plan
amended God's plan, eventually angered Sarai, and separated her and
Abram from Hagar. In the following
years her plan affected an alienation of the Jews from the Arabs.
Trusting God may very well lead to a refusal
of plans that alter His plan.
4. Trust The Lord In Matters Of . . Reverence. 17:1-2
A.
Reverence Toward The . . Presence Of God. 17:1
1 When Abram was 99 years old, the Lord appeared to him, saying, "I am
God Almighty.
Live in My
presence and be devout.
B. Reverence Toward The
. . Plan Of God. 17:2
2 I will establish My covenant between Me and you, and I will multiply
you greatly." HCSB
Does the Lord give second chances? Yes! God came to
Abram and encouraged him to live in His
presence, and once again follow the plan to walk before Him with
blameless devotion. In several ways Abram
became a man with a worthy example, and God promised to multiplied his
seed.
5. Trust The Lord In Matters Of . . Revelation. 17:17-19
A.
Abraham . . Scorned The Revelation Of God. 17:17-18
17 Abraham fell to the ground, laughed, and thought in his heart, "Can
a child be born to a
hundred-year-old man? Can Sarah, a ninety-year-old woman, give birth?"
18 So Abraham said
to God, "If only Ishmael could live in Your presence!"
B.
God . . Stated Anew His Revelation. 17:19
19 But God said, "No. Your wife Sarah will bear you a son, and you will
name him Isaac. I will
confirm My covenant with him as an everlasting covenant for his
offspring after him. HCSB
Can you walk close to God and still have moments of
unbelief? Yes! Abraham scorned the announcement
from God, because it seemed impossible. Abraham questioned an elderly
couple producing a male child. We
need to learn from this event that if God reveals His will and purposes
to His children we must trust Him to do
exactly as He stated. The world may ask us, Do You Trust
the Lord's Promises?
Amen? Amen!