Lesson 6 – God’s Covenant with Abram

God chose Abram (later called Abraham) and gave him faith to trust His promises to save His people. God gives us faith in Jesus, our Savior.

Opening

In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.

This lesson will use the Bible. Also paper and pencil will be needed.

God wants all people to be saved and know His truth (1 Timothy 2:3-4). He offers everyone the same gift, yet some reject Him.

What reasons have you heard people give for not believing?

Why do you think God doesn't just make everyone believe in Him? God doesn't want people to love Him because they have to.

So why do you think some people believe in God while others reject Him? The Holy Spirit works through God's Word and Sacraments to make Christians when and where He pleases. God’s Word sounds foolish to unbelievers (1 Corinthians 2:4). Over time, hearts may become hardened to God's grace.

You can't tell if a person believes by just looking at the person. People can live an outwardly decent life, but only the Holy Spirit gives new life and a new heart (John 3:5).

 Prayer:  God our Father, open our hearts to hear and believe Your Word, to trust

 You in all things, and to know that You are the giver of all good gifts. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen.

God Speaks

This lesson is about Abram, a idolater God called to follow Him (Joshua 24:2).

Read Genesis 12:1-7.

The Lord made Abram seven promises:

• I will show you the land, where to go (v. 1).
• I will make you a great nation (v. 2).
• I will bless you and make your name great (v. 2).
• I will bless those who bless you (v. 3).
• I will curse those who dishonor you (v. 3)
• In you, all families of the earth will be blessed (v. 3).
• To your offspring I will give this land (v. 7).

The name of God used here, "LORD, Written in small caps or all caps, indicates the Hebrew word Yahweh, which is the personal name of God.

What does this tell us? God personally, intimately connected with Abram.  

Abram was a childless seventy-five-year-old when God called and led him to Canaan. Ten years after God promised to make Abram a great nation, Abram still had no children and God made a formal covenant with him.  The Student Page at the end of the lesson includes a description of a covenant.

Read Genesis 15:1-6.

Ask Whom was the covenant between? Abram and the Lord

What was Abram's concern? He had no child or heir except Eliezer, his servant.

What promises did the Lord give Abram? God would shield him and give him a great reward.. Eliezer would not be his heir; God would give him a son. God showed him the stars, and promised to give him as many offspring as them.

Later in the chapter, God promised to give the land of Canaan to Abram's offspring, and Abraham offered a sacrifice that the Lord accepted. It confirmed the covenant.

How did Abram respond to God's promises? He believed the Lord, who counted it to him as righteousness.

What is righteousness?  Righteousness means "proved right" or "in good order". It describes a right relationship with God that trusts His salvation and promises.

God counts those who believe in Jesus as righteous. This is God's free gift to us by grace through faith in Christ, who died for our sins and rose from the dead. Abram looked forward to the promised Savior, Jesus. We look back and believe in Jesus, our Savior and Lord.

Righteousness is not based on our behavior or actions, as Abram and Sarai showed when they tried to help God keep His promise of a son. Sarai gave Abram her Egyptian servant Hagar as a concubine; Hagar gave birth to a son, lshmael, when Abram was eighty-six years old.

Was this right or wrong? It was against God's moral law to take more than one wife. Their actions also showed a lack of trust in God to keep His promises.

God graciously reserved punishment for their sins and kept His promise. He does the same for us as we struggle to trust Him.

Read the directions under Great God, great promises on the Student Page. Then read Genesis 17 and answer the questions.

Thirteen more years passed after Ishmael’s birth, but God still did not give Abram and Sarai a son. Lord came to establish a covenant.

Whom was it between? The Lord and Abraham (covenant part 1)

In this covenant, what did God ask from Abram? For Abram to walk before Him and be

What did God promise to do for Abram? Multiply him greatly (covenant part 2)

What did Abram's action show? Falling on his face showed respect, fear humility, and awe in the presence of God (covenant part 3).

Abram means "exalted father." Abraham means "father of many" .

Who was changing Abram's name a sign of God's promises? God would make Abram  the father of a multitude of nations (covenant parts 2 and 3).

What other promises did God make? God promised to make Abraham fruitful; nations and kings would come from him; the covenant would transfer to Abrahams offspring for everlasting;

He would be God of Abram and his offspring;  the land of Canaan would become an everlasting possession (covenant part 2).

Who else was included in the covenant? Abraham’s offspring (covenant part 1)

What did God tell Abraham and his offspring to do as a sign to remember the covenant? Circumcise every male, eight days or older.

Circumcision, the surgical removal of the foreskin on the penis, a common practice in the world even today (covenant 3).

What kinds of rituals or reminders do we use to remember and keep promises? We might pinky swear or cross our heart to confirm promises. An engagement ring seals a promise. Some people wear jewelry or get tattoos to remind them of a person, a promise, a Bible verse, or something they value. Seeing the item reminds them of this every day (covenant part 3).

God told Abraham to change Sarai's name to Sarah, which means "princess.

How was this new name a sign of God's promises to her? God would bless Sarah; He would give her a child with Abraham; nations and kings would come from her lineage (covenant parts 2 and 3).

How did Abraham react to the news that Sarah and he would yet have a baby? Why? Abraham fell on his face again, but this time he laughed. He wondered how old people like them could have a baby.

What alternative plan did Abraham offer? Abraham asked God just to count Ishmael as the promised son.

What promises did God offer in response? God did not chastise Abraham for laughing or offering lshmael, but He refused the offer. Sarah would have a baby and name him Isaac. God would establish an everlasting covenant with Isaac and his offspring. God promised to make Ishmael fruitful, multiply his family, and make him the father of twelve princes and a great nation (covenant part 2).

When did the Lord say Sarah would bear lsaac? This time, next yea.

What did Abraham do to keep his part of the covenant right away? He, lshmael, and all the males in his household were circumcised.

We Live

Jesus fulfilled Abraham's covenant. He is the promised offspring, the King of kings who gives Abraham more descendants than the stars.

Jesus gave a new covenant in the Lord's Supper. He confirmed the covenant a few hours later with action in His sacrificial death and resurrection.

Read on the Student Page, A new covenant including listed Scriptures.

Parties involved: Jesus and His disciples (including us)

Oaths or promises: forgiveness of sins; remember

Signs or actions that confirm the covenant: We eat bread/His body, drink wine/His blood

Watch the   video, "New Covenant (Yeshua) Joshua Aaron”

What does the video say about Jesus? Jesus (Yeshua, a Hebrew version of the name) offers a new covenant (1 Corinthians 11:25) that fulfills Old Testament prophets (Jeremiah 31:31-34; Isaiah 49:6).

How can our Baptism remind us every day that God made a new covenant with us in Christ Jesus that promises forgiveness of sins and eternal life? We use our hand to draw an invisible cross over our heart and forehead to remember we received "the sign of the holy cross both upon our forehead and upon our heart to mark us as one redeemed by Christ the crucified". When we confess our sins in church or personally each day, we remember that God forgives our sins for the sake of Christ and began this work in us at Baptism.

Sometimes, Abram doubted before he believed. As believers in Christ, that happens to us too. Sin severely impairs our hearing and believing.  Even in those times, God's Word and promises are still ours through our Baptism. However great our sin, He delivers forgiveness, life, and salvation.

Closing

Pray the Lord's Prayer at the bottom of the Student Page.