January 2 TREKKING WITH ABRAHAM “ You are the Lord, the God Who chose Abram and brought him out of Ur of the Chaldees and gave him the name Abraham.”

Nehemiah 9:7

I have been asked querying my assertion that as a Christian, God’s dealings with Abraham and the promises God made to him, and his response to them is a vital key to some deep faith building concepts for us New Testament Christians. “Abraham was a Jew! What has Jewish faith got to do with us as Christians?” asks one person in particular. As a quick answer I would throw out the one liner that at the start of Genesis 12 Abraham (or Abram as he was then) was as gentile as any non Jewish person is today. As a long answer I could simply ask the questioner to read the 366 readings that this blog presents about Abraham. But that would be perverse. Let me make a few statements, statements which to me are self evident, but obviously not to all.

I declare unequivocally and as unambiguously as I can that God’s promises to Abraham affect us in the here and now. The Bible teaches us that any promise that God ever made is “Yes and Amen in Christ Jesus ” (2 Corinthians 1 verses 20 and 21). This tells us that faith can make the promises of God a reality, bringing wonderful dreamlike promises of health, strength, achievement, family reconciliation and even prosperity out of the invisible, bringing these promises into the here and now, into our “time space world”. So when we get to grips with, and have a firm hold on what God promised Abraham, it can only deepen our grasp of God’s salvation. The promises to Abraham belong to him and “his seed”. Who are they? There are Abraham’s physical seed – that is the ethnic Jewish people . Then there is the seed “singular” as Paul says in Galatians, which refers to Christ . Finally there are Abraham’s spiritual seed, who are those that enter into the same faith – Galatians tells us that we are children of Abraham through the faith we enter in Christ.

These promises, and seeking to understand them, must give us broader insights into the importance of the Old Testament. God’s promises to Abraham enable us, for instance, to see the purpose of the book of Genesis. They impact our belief system about life after death. They help us to understand about the reign of Christ on earth – when and how it will come. They help our understanding about the place and time of reward for people of faith. They feed our appreciation of the future role of Jesus Christ as King of Kings. The promises enable us to see God’s purposes for the nation of Israel. They give us insights into an understanding of God’s ultimate plan for this earth. So, understanding and believing in the promises of God to Abraham has a profound and positive effect upon the whole structure of our faith. And if one looks at the map of the middle east whilst reading the Old Testament, and by checking history we cannot help but notice that the promises about Israel occupying the land were not fulfilled by Jewish occupation of the Holy Land in Old Testament times, and neither have they been fulfilled since. In other words, fulfilment still has to come. Now there is something to challenge our faith and our general understanding of scripture.





Abraham is therefore a very important New Testament figure, even though he lived before any of the Old Testament was written. He is mentioned in the New Testament no less than 74 times – a good deal more than most of the apostles. James 2:23, 2 Chronicles 20:7 and Isaiah 41:8 call Abraham the “friend of God”. I would say, whilst verging on sarcasm, that makes him rather important. Romans 4:11 and 16 tells us Abraham is the father of all who believe. Romans 4:13 states Abraham is the heir of the world. We are constantly encouraged to see him as a role model of faith.

The New Testament enlarges upon God’s promises to Abraham. Hebrews 6:12-19 tells us how t he unchangeableness of God’s word was confirmed by His promise being combined with His oath (Genesis 22:16) immediately after he had sacrificed Isaac up on Moriah. Hebrews 11:8, 9 and 13 tell us Abraham died in faith without receiving the promises, but that he saw them “afar off” (See also Acts 7:4-5) Hebrews 11:17-19. Abraham believed that God was able to raise Isaac from the dead in Hebrews 11:39 and 40. All the Old Testament worthies mentioned in the 11th chapter died in faith without receiving the promises “that they should not be made perfect apart from us”. They all await the return of Christ to the earth and the resurrection before they can receive those promises.



Romans 4:1-3 tells us Abraham’s belief was counted by God as righteousness. Romans 4:13 and16 explains that t he benefit of the promises is for all who share Abraham’s faith. Romans 4:20-25 indicates that Abraham took God at His word (understanding that resurrection would need to precede his reward). God will regard us as righteous, as He did Abraham, if we believe in Him as the one who raised Christ from death. So! Yes! In answer to my friends who ask; Abraham is important.



Galatians 3:6-9 speaks to us telling us that t hose who have the faith of Abraham will share Abraham’s reward. The gospel was first preached to Abraham (3:8). Galatians 3:14,22 states that t he blessings of Abraham extend to all (Jew or Gentile) who believe in Christ. 3:16,17. The singular “Seed” (Genesis 22:17) is Christ. The promises were not superseded by the Law of Moses which came 430 years later, as Galatians 3:26-29 informs us. Those baptised into Christ become Abraham’s seed and heirs of the promises. The place of reward for faithful people is therefore on the earth, not in heaven.