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Source: https://www.sermonindex.net/speakers/jim-beattie/chapters-in-abrahams-life/
I want to read with you from the book of Acts chapter 7. Considering that there are a number of brethren here, I will try to be as brief as possible to give consideration to others. Here we have the answer of Stephen as he is answering to his accusers.
Chapter 7 verse 1, Then said the high priest, Are these things so? And he said, Men, brethren, and fathers, hearken! The God of glory appeared unto our father Abraham when he was in Mesopotamia, before he dwelt in Charon, and said unto him, Get thee out of thy country and from thy kindred, and come into the land which I shall show thee.
Then came he out. Let's go over to Genesis chapter 12. Maybe first of all we'll read in chapter 15 because there are three words that I want to point out from chapter 15 and then chapter 22. The same two, three words are found twice in chapter 22.
Verse 1, Genesis 15 verse 1. Just going to read the three words so that it underscores them. After these things. Turn with me to chapter 22 verse 1. And it came to pass after these things. Verse 20, it came to pass after these things.
Now in the book of Genesis, you have this expression, after these things, found six times. Three times in the life of Abraham and three times in the life of Joseph. I have been looking at the life of Joseph in connection with these words but can't yet come up with the reason that they affect his life.
But in the life of Abraham, this expression divides the life of Abraham into four parts. The interesting thing is in the Hebrew as well as in the English, these words are found six times. The identical expression in Hebrew is found six times in the book of Genesis, not connected with anyone else.
And in the life of Abraham, it divides his life into four parts. Now the reason that I emphasize that is because God intends that your life and mine should have chapters in it. We are intended to grow and it should be that in our experience that the Lord can look down upon your experience and mine and see changes and move us on to new experiences and to be able to put a punctuation at the end of a section of your life and mine and say, good, he, she has learned that so let's move on.
And that's exactly what happens in the life of Abraham. There's a section from chapter 12 and really back into chapter 11 like we read in Acts chapter 7. And from that point, the chapter 14 to the end, Abraham, who's called Abram at that time, has experiences that he succeeds in as God reveals himself to Abraham.
And God puts an end to that with chapter 15 and verse 1 and he says, good, now after these things. And you and I have come to this conference and going back in our thinking to chapter 7, I trust that we have seen the glory of the Lord here and it is going to move us on.
Babylon was an amazing place, very cultured, very beautiful, lots to attract. But Abraham saw the God of glory and when we have seen the God of glory, nothing else seems glorious, everything should seem dim.
That's why we break bread every Lord's day, to bring us back to the glory of the person of the Lord Jesus Christ so that the week ahead everything seems dim but him and his glory. I love that chorus, wish it were in our hymn book somewhere.
It says, concerning the Lord Jesus, that we look upon him, turn your eyes upon Jesus, look full in his wonderful face, and the things of earth will grow strangely dim in the light of his glory and grace.
That's what happened to Abraham. Here he is, Ere of the Chaldees, and everything looked so beautiful, but the God of glory appeared unto him. We don't know how and when he saw that and God says, move on, he was ready to follow.
And it's only when you and I have our eyes upon the Lord that we will have the desire to follow and to move on to other things. So from chapters 12 to 14, we have the first experience of Abraham. Notice with me chapter 12 and we're going to read, well, let's read verse 1.
Now the Lord had said unto Abram, get thee out of thy country and from thy kindred and from thy father's house unto a land that I will show thee and I will make of thee a great nation and I will bless thee and I will make thy name great and thou shalt be a blessing and I will bless them that bless thee and curse him that curseth thee and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed.
I'll just point out something, by the way, when God gives us a command to follow, he always gives us a blessing. We don't come up short. Notice with me, the Lord said to Abraham, get thee out of thy country, number one, from thy kindred, number two, from thy father's house, number three, unto a land, number four.
Notice verse two, and I will make of thee a great nation, number one, I will bless thee, number two, I will make thy name great, number three, and thou shalt be a blessing, number four. Verse three is just an expansion of the last blessing.
So there are four commands and there are four blessings. No one can ever lose out by doing what God asks us to do. You never lose out, but that's not my subject. Go with me down to verse nine. And Abram journeyed journeyed going on still toward the south and there was a famine in the land and Abram went down into Egypt to sojourn there for the famine was grievous in the land and it came to pass when he was come near to enter into Egypt that he said unto Sarai his wife, behold now I know that thou art a fair woman to look upon, therefore it shall come to pass when the Egyptians shall see thee that they shall say, this is his wife and they will kill me, but they will save me alive.
So there was all that rest of that story and Pharaoh finds out in verse 18, Pharaoh called Abram said, what is this that thou hast done unto me? Why didst thou not tell me that she was thy wife? Why saidst thou she is my sister?
So I might have taken her to meet a wife. Now therefore behold thy wife, take her and go thy way. And Pharaoh commanded his men concerning him and they sent him away and his wife and all that he had. Chapter 13 verse one.
And Abram went up out of Egypt, he and his wife and all that he had and lot with him into the south. Now they're actually traveling northward. The word south in chapter 13 verse one has to do with they were coming to the south of the land of Israel.
So he's moving northward into the south and in verse three verse two, Abram was very rich in cattle and silver and gold. Let's go down the chapter to verse five. And lot also which went with him, with Abram had flocks and herds and tents and a lot and the land was not able to bear them that they might dwell together for their substance was great so that they could not dwell together.
And there was a strife between the herdmen of Abram's cattle and the herdmen of Lot's cattle and the Canaanite and the Perizzite dwelt then in the land. And Abram said to Lot, let there be no strife I pray thee between me and thee and between my herdmen and thy herdmen for we be brethren.
Is not the whole land before thee? Separate thyself I pray thee from me. If thou will take the left hand then I will go to the right or if thou depart to the right hand then I will go to the left. And Lot lifted up his eyes and beheld all the plain of Jordan that was well watered everywhere before the Lord destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah even as the garden of the Lord like the land of Egypt as thou comest unto Zoar.
Then Lot chose them all the plain of Jordan and Lot journeyed east and they separated themselves one from the other. Now by the way Abram didn't lose out. Notice what it says in verse 14. The Lord said unto Abram after that Lot was separated from him lift up now thine eyes and look from the place where thou art northward and southward and eastward where Lot was heading and westward for all the land which thou see is to thee will I give it and thy seed forever.
So Abraham as he was called here Abram did not lose out. Go with me to chapter 14. Here we have the battle of the different kings and afterward verse 17 the king of Sodom went out to meet Abram after his return from the slaughter of Kedrleomer and of the kings that were with him at the valley of Sheba which is the king's dale.
And Melchizedek king of Salem brought forth bread and wine and he was the priest of the most high God and he blessed him and said blessed be Abram of the most high God possessor of heaven and earth and blessed be the most high God which has delivered thine enemies into thy hand and he gave him tithes of all and the king of Sodom said unto Abram give me the persons and take the goods to thyself and Abram said to the king of Sodom I have lift up mine hand unto the Lord the most high God the possessor of heaven and earth that I will not take from a thread even to a shoe latchet and that I will not take anything that is thine lest thou should say I've made Abram rich.
Now Abram did not impose that on the young men. They had to make their own decision. Verse 24 save only that which the young men have eaten and the portion of the men which went with me Anna Eskel and Mamre let them take their portion.
He wasn't going to push his conviction on them. But here's the point chapter 12 Abraham he is looking at the famine and he's looking at all that he has and he says I've got to keep it I can't afford to lose it so he goes down in Egypt to keep what he's got.
Chapter 13 there is this strife between Lot and Abram and what happens in chapter 13 he says you pick first. Chapter 14 that we have just read he says I take nothing. Not amazing? Chapter 12 I'm going to keep what I've got.
Chapter 13 you pick first. Chapter 14 I take nothing and God punctuates it with after these things. Abram was growing and that's all God expects from you and me. I've often said I don't doesn't bother me if Christians are carnal it bothers me if they stay carnal because we all have to grow.
And here's Abram wonderful he says I'm going to keep what I got. You pick first. I take nothing and God says wonderful. First section in Abraham's life concerns possessions. Now we don't have time to go into the next long section but let me just point out what happens in chapter 15.
Let me just point out something though in chapter 14. In the life of Abraham you can study it for yourself you will find that the revelation of the names of God are significant every time. What does he find in chapter 14?
Two things. God is the most high God and he is a possessor of heaven and earth. When we recognize God is the possessor of heaven and earth we don't need to take stuff from the enemies of God's people.
Now wonderful that's what he's saying the most high God possessor of heaven and earth. I don't want anything from you. God can give me what I want and if God wants you and me to have something we don't have to fight for it or struggle for it.
God will give it to us in his own time. But chapter 15 what do we have here? Let's go down the chapter a little bit in chapter 15 and let's read down at verse 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.
Notice verse 18. In the same day the Lord made a covenant with Abram. That's all we need to read there. Let's go over to chapter 21. Chapter 21 and reading at verse 27. And Abram took Abraham took sheep and oxen and gave them unto Abimelech and both of them made a covenant.
So this section begins with God making a covenant with Abraham and Abraham is finding that God is trustworthy. It's ending that as Abraham has grown and found as God is trustworthy he has grown to be a trustworthy man himself.
And so the growth is taking place. Let me stop here for a moment. My brother my sister God is looking for chapters in your experience and mine and he wants to be able to look at your life and mine and say well that's where he was but he's not there today.
There is a new chapter in his life and I hope especially after this conference that you and I begin new chapters. We have seen the Lord this weekend and still will before the conference is over and I trust that as we leave we will begin new chapters so that when life is over if we are still here and pass away that the Lord will be able to take the book of my life and say now that's chapter one and there's chapter two and there's chapter three.
We don't want to be stagnant in our Christian experience. I remember when I left Hamilton first in the work of the Lord I had some very strong ideas. I still do have some strong ideas but maybe handle them differently and there was a brother who knew me from way back when I was a teenager and was spouting my convictions and he was in the ministry meeting that night and he shook hands with me afterwards and he said to me you've come a long way baby.
Well that's good. I'm glad for that. I wonder I'm not sure the Lord would use those terms but can he say about us that we've come a long way. That is the goal. The goal is growth in the Christian life.
We beholding in the glass second Corinthians three the glory of the Lord are changed into the same image from glory to glory. We are to go on in the glory of the Lord. Let's go to chapter 20 chapter 22 verse 1.
It came to pass after these things that God did tempt or test Abraham and said unto him Abraham and he said behold here am I. Now we're not going to read this story. If you don't know it I'm going to encourage you to read it.
I think most of us know that this is where Abraham offered up Isaac. Verse 20 it came to pass after these things. So this little short section is a chapter all by itself. Chapter 12 to 14 it is concerning possessions.
Chapter 15 to 21 is concerning his struggles with persons. Chapter 22 there is no struggle and it has to do with promises. In fact it's amazing wonderful thing when you look at verse five it says and Abraham said unto his young man Abigail here with the ass and I and the lad will go yonder and worship and in the Hebrew it is we will come again to you.
He said we're coming back both of us are coming back we will come again to you. It's in the plural we'll worship and we'll come back again to you. He knew he was not going to leave Isaac up there and he had total confidence in God.
Let me stop here for a moment. In your life and in mine things will go wrong according to as we see them. I was reading in Edersheim this morning he has a beautiful book that's free with some of the Bible programs and it's called Old Testament Bible History.
It's really worth reading and I was reading this morning and he was speaking of Joseph and he was saying no good thing the Lord says with will he withhold from them that walk uprightly. But then he makes the comment the problem is we don't know what's good for us.
Isn't that true? And there's a lot of things that if I were running my own life I wouldn't have picked for God to allow to happen but he does know best and I don't say that lightly. I remember being in the hospital in the last two or three years and in the middle of the night lying in the hospital bed every second seemed like a year.
I did not know how I could go on and I have a high tolerance of pain but I remember as the tears were running down my face I was thanking God for the pain because I had never understood pain before and I knew I'd be able to be more sympathetic with God's people in the future.
It would change my heart and that was a blessing and it has been. When I hear people tell me that they're in pain now I don't have any pat answers. And I want to tell you if you have pat answers for God's people just kind of put tape over your mouth and keep them to yourself because that's not what they need.
They need reality. Far better to say I don't know what you're going through if you really don't then say something that will add to their grief and their pain. But here is Abraham and he's working through these things and at this point in time he is able with perfect trust to rise up early in the morning and get the job done.
What a wonderful thing. So what we have in the first three sections of Abraham's life we have faith connected with possessions. Then we have faith connected with persons and then we have faith connected with promise.
Now let's go over to chapter 24. This is the last section and we're reading in a little later but verse 24 verse 1 chapter 24 verse 1. And Abraham was old and well stricken in age and the Lord had blessed Abraham in all things.
And Abraham said unto his eldest servant of his house that ruled over all that he had put I pray thee thy hand under my thigh and I will make thee swear by the Lord the God of heaven and the God of the earth that thou shalt not take a wife unto my son of the daughters of the Canaanites among whom I dwell.
But thou shalt go unto my country and to my kindred and take a wife unto my son Isaac. The servant said unto him peradventure the woman will not be willing to follow me into this land. Must I needs bring thy son again unto the land from whence thou camest?
And Abraham said unto him beware that thou bring that thou bring not my son there thither again. And then he encourages a servant. So the servant goes off and what does he do? Verse 11 he arrives where he wants to be and he made his camels to kneel down without the city by a well of water at the time of the evening even the time that women go out to draw water.
And he said notice what he says oh Lord God of my master Abraham I pray thee send me good speed this day and show kindness unto my master Abraham. This is the eldest servant in his house in the house of Abraham.
He has watched Abraham grow over these years and he is as he has watched him he has gained confidence in this God of Abraham. So that when he prays he says oh Lord God of my master he knows this God can be trusted.
What do we have in this section we'll read a little bit more but what do we have here? When we are older in a Christian life and even along the way but especially when we're older we should have set an example so that others can see and so we have this passing on of faith.
We have faith connected with possessions, persons, promises and then we have it passing on. I can remember my mother saying to me when I was younger you know your grandma she was a believer your grandma used to say and our children they would say dad told me that my mother grandma used to say and my great grandmother used to say what's happening as we move from generation to generation we have convictions to offer to the next generation.
Are we watching out to make sure that we set a good example for the generation to come? I think of believers that I have learned to appreciate. I think of Brother Bernie Foreshoe who lived up in Arnstein Ontario and I asked him if this story was true because you hear stories and one preacher said I heard it or I read it or I made it up so I didn't do any one of those and I got it directly from the lady and then Bernie confirmed it.
She was a single mom with his grandmother with no means of support. She ran out of milk and she got down on her knees and said lord I need milk and I don't know how to get milk for these babies and so she's waiting on the Lord wondering what to do and she hears a cow moving outside her door and she went outside and she was a farm lady and she milked the cow and got her milk she said I not only got milk I got home delivery.
Isn't that wonderful? God can be trusted and when I hear a story like that and I have my struggles I say this God that a generation in the past have trusted I can trust him too. Someone as well said I cannot always trace God's hand but I can always trust God's heart.
God can be trusted and so this servant he says oh Lord God of my master Abraham and the outcome is I'm not going to take time to take up more time about it except for one thing but go down with me to the chapter and to verse 21.
And the man wondering at her held his peace to wit whether the Lord had made his journey prosperous or not. And it came to pass as the camels had done drinking that the man took a golden earring and half a shekel weight and two bracelets for her hands and 10 shekels weight of gold and said whose daughter art thou?
Tell me I pray thee is there room in thy father's house for us to lodge in? And she said unto him I am the daughter of Bethuel the son of Milca which she bear unto Nahor. She said moreover unto him we have both straw and provender enough and room to lodge in.
And the man bowed down his head and worshiped the Lord and said blessed be the Lord God of my master Abraham who hath not left destitute my master of his mercy and of his truth. I being in the way the Lord led me to the house of my master's brethren.
What happens? He now is blessed and actually it says we just read it he bowed out in his head and worshiped. I'm not going to be technical but I want to tell you something very interesting that I think you'll enjoy.
In the Hebrew language the verbs of course you have the root which is the word you have the stems and then you have the conjugations. There are seven basic stems in the Hebrew language but there's an eighth one an eighth stem called the histophele.
Now that stem is causative reflexive. I know I'm giving you a little bit of a grammar lesson but I think you can handle it. Causative means it is caused outside of oneself generally. Reflexive means I cause it.
So in the morning we say I got up and I washed we mean I washed myself that's reflexive. Causative means I cause something to myself. The word worship is only found in the Hebrew in the histophele. In fact by the way if you look at lexicons like Strong's and others you will see that the Hebrew word is sheka and it is not sheka.
They thought it was until about 1925. The word is actually ha just that the sha part is a prefix. That word worship is only found with the histophele and the histophele is only found with that word. It's a marriage of a grammatical structure and a particular Hebrew word never found apart always found together.
You say why does that matter? It means that this man worshiped God himself. You say why does that matter? When I was taking Hebrew the first time the professor came to me privately and he said Jim he said in the church where I serve we have a worship team and we have facilitators of worship and he said when I read the Hebrew I believe we are wrong.
You cannot cause another person to worship. He said I don't think we should have a worship team at all because worship is something that you cause yourself. You know what I think? I wouldn't be dogmatic about it but I'm inclined to think that this man was saved right then and there.
That he actually bowed in worship. It was a self-induced if I can use that term expression of his heart toward God but in any case he became a worshiper. If you and I live for God we who are older now and have lived for God and you who are younger set a standard for your life and live for God you can cause others to turn to God.
They will see the reality in your life and and when life is over won't it be wonderful that God can open the book of my life and your life and say look at this worth reading. We want our lives to be worth reading that others will say well I would like to be like him or her and there'll be chapters and sections and movements in our life.
As we leave this conference I trust that you and I will have new chapters day by day, week by week, month by month in our lives and when life is over we will look back and thank God for his faithfulness bringing us through each new chapter.