THROUGH THE BIBLE IN THREE YEARS
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Pastor to Caddy: "I wonder if it would help my golf game if I prayed before teeing off?"
Caddy, "Only if you keep your head down!"
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Gen 15:7-18
7 And he said unto him, I am the LORD that brought thee out of Ur of the Chaldees, to give thee this land to inherit it.
8 And he said, Lord GOD, whereby shall I know that I shall inherit it?
9 And he said unto him, Take me an heifer of three years old, and a she goat of three years old, and a ram of three years old, and a turtledove, and a young pigeon.
10 And he took unto him all these, and divided them in the midst, and laid each piece one against another: but the birds divided he not.
11 And when the fowls came down upon the carcases, Abram drove them away.
12 And when the sun was going down, a deep sleep fell upon Abram; and, lo, an horror of great darkness fell upon him.
13 And he said unto Abram, Know of a surety that thy seed shall be a stranger in a land that is not theirs, and shall serve them; and they shall afflict them four hundred years;
14 And also that nation, whom they shall serve, will I judge: and afterward shall they come out with great substance.
15 And thou shalt go to thy fathers in peace; thou shalt be buried in a good old age.
16 But in the fourth generation they shall come hither again: for the iniquity of the Amorites is not yet full.
17 And it came to pass, that, when the sun went down, and it was dark, behold a smoking furnace, and a burning lamp that passed between those pieces.
18 In the same day the LORD made a covenant with Abram,.....
KJV
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God told Abram that he and his descendents would inherit this "promised land." Abram, like a child, asked God for a "sign" that it was so. In other words, Abram wants a "down payment" on the property he will receive. So God defines what Abram can do to receive the "sign" or "down payment."
PAY CLOSE ATTENTION NOW!!
God tells Abram to make a sacrifice. That entailed killing an animal and dividing it into four peaces. This was the form of making a "treaty" in those days. A man would make a treaty with another by killing an animal and dividing the pieces. Then the two men would walk between the pieces of the dead animal in circular form, making the sign of infinity (a figure 8 lying down).
This symbolized that if one did not hold up his end of the treaty, the other had the right to divide HIM in half!!
So Abram performs the first half of the treaty sacrifice. Abram fought off the crows and the buzzards. He would do all he could to keep HIS end of the bargain. That which he offered to God was HOLY. And Abram wanted to KEEP it holy. BUT Abram became tired and weary. Jesus said, "..the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak." (Matt. 26:41) The TRUTH is, Abram could NOT keep his part of the treaty!
ARE YOU STILL PAYING ATTENTION? We cannot keep our bargain with God to "believe!" Like the man who had the demon-possessed child, we must cry out, "LORD, I believe: help Thou mine unbelief!"(Mark 9:24)
THEN God gives us FAITH!! Faith is the ability to keep clinging to God's promise, even though we are weak because of temptation, sin, and trouble! The Bible says, "For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast." (Eph. 2:8-9)
When Abram was weak, tired, sleepy, unable - THAT'S when God showed up!! Note that God appeared in a "smoking furnace," a "burning lamp." Later, God would reveal Himself to Moses and Israel as a "pillar of cloud by day, and a pillar of fire by night." (Exodus 13:21)
This is the awesome PRESENCE of God! He comes to provide that which Abram does not have: FAITH!
Oh! Friend, we are not saved by faith. We are saved by grace through faith! It is the amazing, unearned, unmerited, undeserved grace of God which provides us FAITH! Then we EXERCISE that faith which God gives us!
And when we are unable, tired, weary, weak - THEN God's Holy Spirit comes and strengthens us and helps us! PRAISE GOD!
WASN'T THAT WORTH PAYING ATTENTION?!
Love ya,
Bruce