A Promise to Abraham Issues - Essay Example

? A promise to Abraham Identification of the passage Abraham was a very great man who God showed himself to, God made manypromises to Abraham and appeared to him several times. In the book of Genesis 15 verse 1-18, the Bible introduces us to the way God fulfilled the promises he made to Abraham. The Bible says that Abraham saw the word of the lord in a vision. Abraham heard the word telling him not be afraid in any situation as the lord God was with him and was his shield. Abraham then went forward and presented his grievances to the almighty. He complained to god that he was childless and asked god who would be his heir after his death. Then the lord answered Abraham that no one will be his heir apart from the one who will come from the body of Abraham. In addition, God went further and directed Abraham outside at night. Then he told him to count all the stars that he saw above the sky. God told he would bore as many children as those stars in the sky1. Abraham had great believed in God, and he accounted it to him for righteousness. The lord then told him that he was the lord who brought him out of the land of Ur of the Chaldeans, then gave the land that he was dwelling in at that moment to inherit it. Consequently, Abraham wanted to if he would inherit that piece of land2. Following this question posted to the lord, Abraham was ordered to bring with him a heifer, female goat and an old ram all three years in age, turtledove and a young pigeon. Abraham then brought all these to the lord, divided them into two equal parts, and placed each peace opposite the other, but he did not divide the birds into two. In addition, whenever the vultures tried to interfere with the staff Abraham drove them away3. The time was going, and darkness was approaching as the sun was going down. Abraham felt a deep sleep, he was in slumber land, and beheld darkness accompanied by terror felt to Abraham. Then the lord appeared to him and told him that since his off springs would be strangers in a ground that was not theirs, they would serve them and afflict them for four hundred years. This came to succeed the sunsets and it was dark, and instantly came a smoking oven and a combusting torch, which passed against those meet pieces. On this same day, the lord God made a covenant with Abraham and informed him that he had landed his descendants land to dwell in starting from river Egypt to the great river Euphrates of Euphrates. Then Abraham gave thanks to God and headed to his missions4. Analysis of the literary style and the characteristics of the passage Following the first scene (Gen 1-5), the chief is Abraham’s seed. God seeks to encourage Abraham in his fear by affirming that his reward would be very great (15: 1). Abraham responds by questioning him about the validity of the reward since he is childless. The lord assures Abraham that his ‘’seed will be more numerous than the stars in the heavens (Gen 4-5). He promises Abraham again what he is going to do in the near future, the ‘seed’ promise is as certain as the reliability of God5. Genesis 15:6 breaks the narrative pattern, Mosses affirms that Abraham responded to God’s promise of innumerable seed with faith. Based on Abraham’s faith, the lord reckons him as righteous. He recognizes Abraham as his loyal servant with whom he will enter into covenant. Genesis 15:7-18 recounts God’s making of covenant with Abraham. The stress in this part shifts to land promised by the lord to Abraham. He encourages Abraham with the fact that he had removed him out of Ur to lend him the land of Canaan as his heredity. (15:7). Therefore, the inheritance to be given to Abraham’s ‘’seeds’’ refers primarily to the land (15-8). In response to Abraham’s question, God gives assurance by entering into a covenant with him6. The covenant ceremony begins with the familiar pattern of the lord’s command and Abraham’s faithful obedience. The lord commands Abraham to take him certain animals. Abraham obediently comply cutting and laying some of the animals opposite each other and protecting all the dead animals from the scavengers. (Gen 15-9-11). The text implies that Abraham knew the ritual to that would occur because God does not swiftly say what to do with the animals. He only commands Abraham to take, but Abraham went ahead, cut them into two, and laid them. (Gen 15:10). Abraham seems to understand what the animals signify; the lord assuring Abraham that he will come through a correlation where both God and Abraham would agree to fulfill specific obligations to every individual, recognizing that death would be certain consequence of their failure to accomplish their binding commitment faithfully7. However, this particular covenant is not a mutually binding obligation. A deep sleep falls upon Abraham and only the lord, represented by a smoking oven and a flaming torch, passes between the animals (Gen 15:12, 17). He binds himself through the covenant to give Abraham the ‘seed’ the ‘land’ described by its general borders and present occupants. (Gen 15: 18). However, this land grant will only take place after Abraham’s ‘seed’ has endured oppression in another land and the lord has judged that nation. Then he will lend Abraham’s ‘seed’ the ‘land’ he has promised, and now covenanted, to give. His promise is certain since he cannot lie, His covenant is certain because He cannot die. He answers Abraham’s question about the seed and the inheritance8. A detailed and a thoughtful application of the appropriate exegetical approach In Genesis Chapter 15:1, it tells us the first instance we are told exactly how God spoke to Abram. Even here, it is indistinct. We do not know if these words are perceptible, although that would be probable; and we do not know if they are incorporeal. What is Abram in reality seeing in this vision? It also appears as nevertheless this begins as a dream, but continues in realism. That is, Abram goes into some kind of trance, and then God, while ongoing to communicate with him, brings him out of the trance and back into the real world. God indicates that what he did was correct. God tells Abram that He is his great reward. Abram does not need to depend upon man for blessing furthermore reward. In the next verse of this chapter, Abram, though blessed in approximately every way, is over-thinking on his descendants. God has specially promised him that his seed will be like the powder of the earth and has indicated, by delightfully superseding to recover Sarai from the Egyptians that Sarai will tolerate the child, which will result in offspring galore9. God has just led him into fight, has made Abram victorious; God has blessed Abram in each way; God be Abram's shield and his reward. Furthermore, it is not that Abram needs just one more thing, which God has not given him; God has promised Abram a son. Abram will have descendants. God, who has done everything else for Abram, has by now promised a kid to Abram, so Abram does not necessitate whining about being unproductive. God is mindful of that and God has a plan for Abram's life, and a teenager will be born to Abram in God's time, not Abram's because God's timing is ideal10. In the next verse of this episode, Abraham is complaining to God that he has no sibling. Have you ever noted that there are several people, who obviously think that you are unintelligent, so they say the like thing twice in flippantly dissimilar ways so that you are able to get the point? This is what Abram was doing to God; he states the same thing twice: I am childless since God did not give me a kid, and, therefore, excellent that I have got as an heir is some person born in my household. Oh, and, by the way, God, did you know that I am childless because God did not give me a baby, and therefore, the best that I have got as an inheritor is some person born in my household. Abram says this as if God does not know attendance and desires to be told twice what to do11. In Genesis chapter 15:4 God makes it as noticeable as possible to Abram; his son, his heir, is going to come from his own loins; he will be Abram's real, in the flesh-begotten son. God has already told Abram about the number of descendants that he will have, but since Abram repeated himself, in addition to God understood his, anxiety the first time, God will replicate Himself since Abram obviously was not listening the first time. Consequently, the next verse talks of Abraham counting stars, prior to the advent of air pollution, man could look up into the sky and see an uncountable number of stars. God does not suggest that Abram look up in the sky sometime and count the stars, but he takes Abram outside that evening, tells him to look up at the stars and then to count them12. In Genesis chapter 15:6 Abraham believed in Yahweh and imputed it to it as righteous. That is, what God said to Abram caused Abram to believe God. At hand are diverse stages of growth in our Christian life. When we initially consider in Jesus Christ righteousness, is imputed to us positional. That is, regardless of our behavior, sins, and failures, past present and future, God sees us as righteous. Abram was a believer long before this point in time; however, he finally supposed God when it came to God's promises. When we believe God, our life has pragmatic righteousness13. This verse 7 of this chapter talks of the issues of the ground. Sometimes for, us to get a grip on our reason, God has got to back up and show us the big depiction. Abram is going to possess the land and God is departing to give him sufficient offspring to rival the stars in pure numbers. The land is no good with no descendants; or else, what good is it to Abram to own ground as far as his eye can see in all four orders and to be the only individual, other than his wife and servants, to exist in it. God had a reason for Abram; he had to divide from his father and his instantaneous family; he then had to separate from Lot and God took him all the way from Ur to this particular land14. Going to the eighth verse Abraham wants to know if indeed will possess the land. God has told him at least twice that his descendants would be innumerable. Abram finally believed God with reference to this issue. Now he is concerned about the land. The preceding verse explains on the animals offered. We know that it was Abram's custom to offer sacrifices to Yahweh every time he clogged, and this passage seems to point to that there was a technique that did not have to be spelled out for Abram. He cuts the animals in two and leaves the birds as they are. The age of the animals possibly corresponds to the young adult stage of the animals' life, just as our Lord was sacrificed in His young adult life. In Genesis 15:11 Abraham is driving the birds of prey. It is possible that God has not given him orders when it comes to this bulky of a give up. Abram is not confused by what is occurring; he does not think that the birds of prey are messengers from God sent down to take the meat into paradise. He protects them since the sacrifices have to be burned with fire, which is judgment. Verses 12 give us a better idea of the daze like situation that Abrams falls into when chatting with God. God speaks to us through His Word and not through ideas, visions, or trances15. Genesis chapter 15 verses 13 foresee that the Israelites will be beneath slavery for four hundred years. God here tells Abram about the Exodus imprisonment and goes even extra into the prospect in subsequent verses. This is a particularly nasty prickle to those individuals, who do not have a belief in the divine inspiration of the Bible. The only way to explain it is to remove the prediction or to set all prophetical statement after the events, which they describe. Verse 15 tells Abraham what will happen to him16. What is said indicates that there was known to exist a life after death of a number of and that there would be some kind of companionship between Abram and those believers who preceded him into heaven. Finally, in Genesis 15: 16-18, we see that it is God’s which burns the sacrifices, as it is God's judgment which is laid upon God the Son. In this very elaborate sacrifice, God comes and speaks to Abram, who is not yet fully mature, but he is moving in the right direction. We would guess that Abram observed this fire passing through the midst of his sacrifices since he records it and perhaps this is the sign that God gave him that he would possess the land17. Relevance and application of the passage According to the passage, it teaches the general Christians on many issues related to the modern world. Primarily is the fact that God told Abraham that he would be his shield. God, being Abrahams shield reveals to us that the lord delivers his servants from their enemies. Fear can make us fail to listen to God’s word and be poor disciples of Jesus. Nonetheless, the lord restrains the fear that comes to those individuals who acknowledge him as an awesome and glorious God. Our lord comes unto us, as someone who cares for us As with Abraham, God was the one who protected and provided for his requirements. He in addition, thought Abraham to be satisfied with what himself and what he had18. Abraham’s life also shows us the blessing of easy compliance. When asked to depart from his relatives, Abraham left. When asked to give a sacrifice of his own son, Abraham “rose up untimely the next morning” to do what was expected of him. From what we can distinguish from the biblical narrative, there was no certainty in Abraham’s obedience. Abraham, just like any other person, may have tormented over these decisions, but when it was an occasion to act, he did. When we think of a real calling from the lord, or we read His rules in His Word, we must act. Obedience is not electives when God commands something19. Abraham’s lapses of confidence, particularly in regards to the state of affairs with Hagar and Ishmael, show us the foolishness of trying to deal with situations in our own hands. God made a promise of a kid to both parents. However, in their intolerance, their plan to offer an heir to Abraham backfires. First, conflict flanked by Sarah and Hagar arises, and later on disagreement flanked by Ishmael and Isaac. Ishmael’s offspring end up becoming astringent enemies of the citizens of God, as we later study in the Old Testament narrative, and so it continue to this day in the conflict connecting Israel and its Arab neighbors. We cannot accomplish the will of God in our own power; our efforts ultimately end up creating more issues than solving. This lesson has extensive applications in our daily living. If God has promised to do something, we have to be realistic and tolerant and wait for Him to achieve it in His own timing20. Finally, what other obsession we learn from Abraham’s life is that confidence is not inherited. On three disconnect occasions in the Gospels; we get to know that it is not sufficient to be imagery arises from Abraham to be saved from Abraham. The request for us is that hardly rare to be brought up in a Christian background, we cannot ride into heaven based on somebody's believe. God is not justified to save us since we have a faultless Christian pedigree. Paul uses Abraham to show this in that he speaks of not all who came from Abraham was designated unto deliverance (Romans 9:7). Deity dominion chooses those who will receive deliverance, but that salvation comes through the similar faith that Abraham exercised in his existence21. References Buddy, Selman. Because God Made a Promise to Abraham: But Who Is the True God. New York, NY: AuthorHouse, 2011. Erwin, Fahlbusch, and Geoffrey, William. The encyclopedia of Christianity, Volume 4. New York. Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing, 2005. John, Barnett. Miracle Israel: Approaching Hoof Beats of the Apocalypse Earth's Darkest Days Dead Ahead. USA, NJ: BFM Books, 2003. Michael, Wyschogrod. Abraham's promise: Judaism and Jewish-Christian relations. USA, NJ: SCM Press, 2006. Ronald, Fung. The Epistle to the Galatians. USA, NJ: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing, 2001. Read More