LESSON 4 abraham God Calls a People To understand that the call of Abraham starts a new turn in the story of redemption as God begins to deal primarily with Abraham and his descendants, the Jews, and we learn that God plans to bless all nations through Abraham s lineage. Abraham s calling and the promises God made to Abraham represent an astonishing new chapter in God s Unfolding Story. Immeasurable grace is promised to Israel, and through Israel, to all nations. That students understand that God planned to bless all the nations through Abraham and that this ultimate blessing has come through Jesus, a son of Abraham. Background Passage: scripture Passage: Memory Verses: GENESIS 1 1 : 2 7-1 2 : 2 0 ; 1 5-1 7 GEN ESIS 1 2 : 1-3 G AL AT IAN S 3 : 6-8 God called Abram to leave his country and go to the land that God designated. God promised to bless Abram and make him into a great nation. God called Abram (and his descendants) to be a blessing to others and that all peoples on earth will be blessed through them. page 34 abraham Just as Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him for righteousness, then understand that those who have faith are Abraham s sons. Now the Scripture saw in advance that God would justify the Gentiles by faith and told the good news ahead of time to Abraham, saying, All the nations will be blessed through you.
PREPARING TO TEACH Since the debacle of Genesis 3 when the couple rebelled against God, the storyline gets even worse with murder (Gen. 4), the flood as judgment against evil (Gen. 6-8), and defiance against the Creator (Gen. 11). Genesis 12 is a turning point in the history of salvation as God called Abraham to form a nation through whom God would work out His redemptive plan. Work through this lesson in the Venture In Travelogue carefully, completing all activities and reading all Scripture passages several times. Strive to grasp how each section flows into the next. This teaching plan provides suggested transition statements to help you guide learners to follow that flow. Enlist two participants who consistently prepare in advance and demonstrate a gift of biblical understanding and teaching to be prepared to share their responses to the bolded activities under Wait, There s More! (Travelogue, p. 40). The number of Scripture passages and memory verses for this lesson are extensive. Have high expectations of what your LIFE group members can do with God s Word studying, understanding, living, and memorizing it. Challenge them to meet those expectations with your own example memorize Galatians 3:6-9 this week. Prepare to quote that passage during the session to prove it can be done. Label a poster board Blessed to Be a Blessing. Obtain a world map or print out copies of one from www.eduplace.com/ss/maps/pdf/world_country.pdf. Pray God will open eyes so adults will joyfully accept that they have been given the same promises and challenges as Abraham. WAIT, THERE S MORE! Greet adults as they arrive. Request they skim Genesis 4-11 in their Bibles and note major occurrences in the storyline. Call for responses. Declare Genesis 12 is a major turning point in Scripture and foundational to understanding the rest of God s Unfolding Story. Read these remarks from the Reformation Study Bible about Genesis 12:1-3: These verses mark a pivotal point in Genesis and in the history of redemption as God begins to establish a covenant people for Himself. The progress of God s redemptive page 3 5 abraham
plan is evident in His setting Abraham apart (v. 1) and making Israel into a great nation (v. 2; 46:3). It climaxes in Jesus Christ, the true Seed of Abraham (Gal. 3:16), who brings salvation to the world (v. 3). 1 Request the volunteers previously enlisted to summarize promises God made to Abraham (Travelogue, p. 40). Discern how those promises give the impression God was continually saying, Wait, there s more! Invite those same volunteers to share their responses to the Travelogue questions (p. 40): What is your impression of Abram/ Abraham? Are you offended by or drawn to him in his weakness? Guide the class to discuss: Why do you suppose God has a penchant for choosing and using such weak vessels in His story? Teaching Option Ask adults to identify major turning points in history. Compare responses to answers given on http://www.quora.com/what-aresome-of-the-major-turning-points-in-world-history. Be certain the call of Abraham is mentioned as a major turning point. LAND, SEED, AND BLESSING Invite a volunteer to read Genesis 12:1-3. Analyze what pattern seen in Adam s relationship with God is evident in this interaction with Abraham. (God takes the initiative to seek people.) Invite someone to read the paragraph beginning: First, notice how Abram s calling (Travelogue, p. 41). Discuss the activity following that paragraph that calls adults to read 1 Corinthians 1:26-31 and evaluate what is humbling and freeing about that passage. Teacher Helps To access a summary of Abraham s life and maps of his travels, go to www.mystudybible.com. Click the Library tab, scroll down to Diction- page 3 6 abraham
aries, and select Holman Illustrated Bible Dictionary. Enter Abraham in the search bar. THREE PROMISES THAT CANNOT BE BROKEN Ask what one word command God gave Abraham in Genesis 12:1. Inquire: From what was Abraham to go? What might that say to us about receiving the more God desires to give us and accomplish through us? Read and discuss this study note from the HCSB Study Bible: Obedience to God often means leaving one thing in order to receive something else even better. 2 Request adults identify the three promises the Travelogue writer said God made to Abraham (pp. 42-43). Determine phrases in the passage that indicate promises of land, seed, and blessing. Request adults circle every occurrence of I in Genesis 12:1-3. Read those verses in unison, emphasizing the circled words. Determine what that says about God. Ask: What insights do you gain into God from His promises to Abraham? BLESSED TO BE A BLESSING Ask: What insights do you gain into God s desires for each human life from His promises to Abraham? Invite a volunteer to read the Travelogue paragraph (p. 43) beginning: Jesus also taught us that God s love. Ask what feelings adults have when they consider God blesses them to be a blessing to others. Guide the class to determine specific ways they can bless others where they live, work, and play. List responses on the Blessed poster. _ Teaching Option Organize the class into smaller teams. Have teams read Ephesians 1:3-14, list blessings they have in Christ, and determine ways to use those blessings to bless others. _ page 3 7 abraham
Complete the Travelogue activity (p. 43): Respond to this sentence: The gospel isn t a replacement story, but a restoration story. What do you hear in those words? Why is this important to grasp? Point out God s Unfolding Story is not a chronicle of God replacing what He created, but restoring His original design to something even greater. That restoration, based upon the themes of land, seed, and blessings, continues to gain momentum and grandeur in God s Unfolding Story (Travelogue, p. 43). LAND: THE GEOGRAPHY OF GRACE Display a world map or distribute map printouts. Request adults identify the location of the Holy Land. Invite responses to the writer s statement: the whole earth is Holy Land, not just one small part of the Middle East (Travelogue, p. 44). Evaluate the role of Canaan, or Israel, in God s Unfolding Story. Explain we, like Abraham, must always be ready to move when God directs us, accepting His mandate to fill the earth with God s glory. Ask how Christ s followers specifically fulfill that mandate. Read Acts 1:8. Acknowledge fulfilling that mandate is not easy. That s when believers can, like Abraham, look toward a better place a heavenly one (Heb. 11:16). For a brief glimpse into that better place of God s restored creation invite someone to read Revelation 21:1-3. Ask if adults are beginning to grasp that God s promise of land to Abraham in Genesis 12 was far more than a place for one man to pitch a tent. God has so much more to do for us, in us, and through us, and that is apparent in His promises of seed and blessing. SEED AND BLESSING: THE MATHEMATICS OF MERCY Invite adults to identify the one couple from whom God would build His chosen nation (Travelogue, p. 45). Ask what major barrier hindered Abraham and Sarah s being ancestors of a great nation (Gen. 11:30). Read Genesis 22:17; ask: How did God give Abraham page 3 8 abraham
another Wait, there s more! promise? Invite a volunteer to tell how God overcame the barrier. Brainstorm barriers Christians might think prevent the gospel from spreading across the world. Ask what God can do with those barriers. Declare consistent, believing prayer is one weapon God gives believers to break down such barriers. Guide a time of prayer, inviting volunteers to pray aloud if they d like, using prayer suggestions on Travelogue page 45: Take a few moments to worship God for being such a generous Redeemer. Pray with joy for those laboring to take the gospel to the nations. Pray with hope for a few of your nonbelieving friends and neighbors. (Option: save this prayer time for the session s conclusion.) THE DESCENDANTS OF ABRAHAM Ask: Have you been hearing Jesus name whispered or shouted in God s promises to Abraham in Genesis 12:1-3? Explain. Invite someone to read Galatians 3:6-9. Ask: Now whose name is being whispered? (Anyone who has trusted in Jesus.) Invite responses to the question: How do you feel when you realize that you are a part of Abraham s family? (Travelogue, p. 46). Note Galatians 3:6-8 are this lesson s memory verses. Quote the passage from memory. Encourage the class to memorize the passage this week, sharing memory strategies you used. Evaluate why this is a valuable passage for believers to memorize. TWO IRRECONCILABLE VIEWS OF SALVATION Request participants recall the fourfold plotline of God s Unfolding Story (see Travelogue, pp. 21-22). Point out God did not establish Israel as an end in itself but as a means for progressing His story of redemption and restoration, which can only occur when people are saved from their sin. Ask someone to read Galatians 3:10-13. Determine how people try to achieve salvation from their cursed state. Evaluate why that is impossible. Identify the sinner s only hope of salvation. Point out Paul wrote Galatians to Jews who were depending on their Abrahamic lineage and adherence to the law to make them right with God. Paul emphasized true descendants of Abraham are Jews or Gentiles who demonstrate Abraham s faith and rely on God rather than self for salvation. page 3 9 abraham
ABRAHAM S SEED AND BLESSING Note that in Galatians 3 Paul continued to emphasize God s purpose in calling and blessing Abraham. Read Galatians 3:14-16. Explore how Abraham s blessing is every believer s blessing. Emphasize: Abraham s challenge is also our challenge to go when God says go, to believe in God despite seemingly insurmountable barriers, to bless others with the blessings He s given us, and to extend the gospel so all peoples have the opportunity to enjoy life in God s ultimate promised land. CONCLUSION Ask: When are you most tempted to give up on caring and sharing the gospel? How does God say Wait, there s more! and encourage you keep on believing and being a blessing? Encourage participants to silently finish this sentence (Travelogue, p. 41): If God used Abraham, then I can trust Him to use me to Close in prayer, thanking God for fulfilling all His promises through Christ. FOLLOW THROUGH With your group leaders, use the ideas recorded on the Blessed poster to plan specific ways to lead members to love others, be involved in the church and community, and engage the world with the gospel. Text participants one verse a day from the memory passage; invite them to text the verses back to you. 1 Reformation Study Bible Genesis 12:1-3 on biblegateway.com https://www.biblegateway.com/resources/reformation-study-bible/gen.12.1-gen.12.3 2 HCSB Study Bible note on Genesis 12:1-3, page 30. Or on mystudybible.com page 4 0 abraham