Genesis #50 - The Gospel According to Genesis #2 - "Gospel Principles" (Genesis 12-50)

The Gospel in Genesis 1–11: Who God Is

John chapter 8. John chapter 8 and verse 48. John chapter 8 and verse 48 as we get started this morning in the ministry of God's word. If you grabbed one of the red bibles that we give away that is on page 958.

John chapter 8 beginning in verse 48. And if you're able to do so can I invite you to stand out of respect for God's word as we come to it. John chapter 8 beginning in verse 48. Brothers and sisters these are God's words to us this morning.

The Jews responded to him Jesus aren't we right in saying that you're a Samaritan and have a demon? I do not have a demon Jesus answered. On the contrary I honor my father and you dishonor me. I do not seek my own glory.

There is one who seeks it and judges. Truly I tell you if anyone keeps my word he will never see death. Then the Jew said now we know you have a demon. Abraham died and so did the prophets. You say if anyone keeps my word he will never taste death.

Are you greater than our father Abraham who died? And the prophets died. Who do you claim to be? If I glorify myself Jesus answered my glory is nothing. My father about whom you say he is our God he is the one who glorifies me.

You do not know him but I know him. If I were to say I don't know him I would be a liar like you but I do know him and I keep his word. Your father Abraham rejoiced to see my day. He saw it and was glad.

The Jews replied you aren't 50 years old yet and you've seen Abraham? Jesus said to them truly I tell you before Abraham was I am. So they picked up stones to throw at him but Jesus was hidden and went out from the temple.

The gospel is the flower fades but the word of our God will abide forever. Allow me to pray ask for the Lord's help and we will get to work in the word of God this morning. Let's pray together. Heavenly father we ask that as we open up your word this morning we can finally bring to a close our lengthy study in the book of Genesis.

We pray that the truth of your word will be written on our hearts. Pray that you would help us to rightly handle the word both in speaking and in hearing and we pray that in the midst of all this as we have taken the time to think about your word we trust that your spirit will use this word in our lives for our good and for your glory.

We ask you in Jesus name and for his sake amen. Well we are back in the final part of this short mini series that we began last week thinking about the gospel according to Genesis given it the subtitle gospel reflections on the first book of the Bible.

For those of you who weren't here last week and maybe didn't have a chance to catch the teaching let me give you a very very rapid overview of what we considered last time. As I said we are kind of concluding our study of Genesis with a sort of final flyover of the book and the aim of this flyover is really to do three things.

I will do my best to fly through this real quickly. First of all I want to encourage you to spend more time in this book. Like I said last week just because we are ending our exposition of this book does not mean that your study of it should end.

So I want to encourage you to spend more time in this book. Secondly I want to help you to think through how to handle the Bible responsibly. I want to model in a sense how it is that we handle God's word on its own terms and I also want to show you to model for you how to view not just Genesis but really any book of the Bible through the lens of the overarching purposes of God.

My aim in this overview is not really to look at an overview of all the details of Genesis that's what we have the whole sermon series for. You can go back and listen to that. What I really want to do is to show you how the overarching purpose of God is worked out in the pages of this book and so that's what we've been trying to do and last week we began by thinking about how to view the Old Testament.

Again this is just a review you can get all the detail from last time. We said number one you should read the Old Testament as the word of God. That's what it is because that's what Jesus understood it to be.

That's what the apostles understood it to be. So read the Old Testament as the word of God. Read the Old Testament as a unified revelation that it's not a bunch of disparate or disconnected stories but it is one overarching story regarding the kingdom of God and its king the Lord Jesus and since that's the case number three read the Old Testament as pointing to Christ and his work and so we did that.

We looked at again just by way of review the first 11 chapters of Genesis and I made the case that in Genesis 1 through 11 one of the great insights we get is insight into who God is and so in creation we saw God's power on display.

In the fall we saw God's righteousness on display. In the flood you see God's wrath and grace on display and in Babel you see God's sovereign and global rule on display. Again if you want all of that detail or maybe you want to go back and listen to it it's up on our website you can go catch that in your own time.

This morning we're transitioning to the second half of Genesis because Genesis divides into two uneven halves. You have four key events in Genesis 1 through 11 and then you have four key people in Genesis 12 through 15.

Four key people, four characters, I'm going to argue all four of them from different perspectives point us to what I believe is the central truth of this book. I hope you haven't memorized by now because it's been on the top of every study guide for the last two years.

That despite the failure of God's covenant people God's purposes and plans will come to fulfillment not through the faithfulness of God. I believe that you can learn that in 1 through 11 through who God is and you can also learn that in 12 through 50 and as we see how God works.

So for the rest of our time this morning I want us to consider and I want us to learn four key gospel truths as we take a gospel centered tour of the second half of Genesis and we see how God works in salvation.

So like I said last week this is one sermon in two parts so I gave you point one last week the gospel in Genesis 1 through 11 who God is. This morning I want to consider point number two the gospel in Genesis 12 through 50 how God works.

Abraham and Justification by Faith

We've thought about who God is now we want to think about how God works. Well the first main character that I want us to consider is the first one that comes up in Genesis 12 the man Abraham considered by many to be the father of faith man who's called the friend of God.

I want us to consider the life of Abraham and in the life of Abraham we see uh letter a there in your study guide the life of Abraham we see that God declares sinners to be righteous. God declares sinners to be righteous.

Abraham's life as you see up on screen spans from chapter 11 verse 10 where we get the history of Abraham's family right through to 25 18 when Abraham dies. I'm not going to look at all of that thankfully but I am this morning going to hold in on just one verse in the life of Abraham that I think makes the point that God works by declaring sinners to be righteous.

If you got a copy of God's word Genesis chapter 15 if you will please Genesis chapter 15 like I said I want to hone in on just one verse give you some context as you're turning there. Abraham had heard this word from the Lord that he was going to be the father of nations but this tiny little problem uh Abraham didn't even have a son at this stage.

Abraham didn't have a son at this stage so how is a man who is pretty old going with a wife who has never had children going to be the father of a nation when he doesn't even have a single son and that weighs heavy on Abraham's mind as you come to Genesis chapter 15 pick up with me in verse 1 after these events the word of Yahweh came to Abram in a vision do not be afraid Abram I am your shield your reward will be very great but Abram said Lord Yahweh what can you give me since I am childless and the heir of my house is Eliezer of Damascus.

Abraham continued look you have given me no offspring so a slave born in my house will be my heir. Now the word of Yahweh came to him this one Eliezer of Damascus the slave born in his house this one will not be your heir instead one who comes from your own body will be your heir.

He took him outside and said look at the sky and count the stars if you are able to count them then he said to him your offspring will be that numerous. And here's the verse I want you to focus on verse 6.

Abram believed Yahweh he believed the Lord and it was credited to him as righteousness. Abraham hears God's word and his response is almost deceptively simple in how it's put it says that Abraham believed God simple faith and the text says it was credited to him for righteousness.

That simple description in verse 6 becomes what becomes one of the bible's great illustrations for how believers are saved and how believers walk with God. The fact that Abraham heard the word of God he believed that word and that faith was credited to him for righteousness.

And so the new testament picks up this illustration as the great proof of the fact that salvation is not on the basis of our works are being good enough or earning enough but it is simply on the basis of faith.

So come with me to Romans chapter 4 like I said last week this is going to feel like a bible study at points because we're going to turn to a lot of passages. Romans chapter 4. Romans chapter 4. And look at verse 1 with me.

Romans chapter 4 and verse 1. What then will we say that Abraham our forefather according to the flesh is found. If Abraham was justified declared righteous by works he has something to boast about but not before God.

For what does the scripture say. And here's that verse again. Genesis 15 6. Abraham believed God and it was credited to him for righteousness. Now to the one who works pay is not credited as a gift but as something owed.

But to the one who does not work but believes on him who justifies the ungodly his faith is credited for righteousness. Simple words from Paul. But it's with everything Paul writes. They're pretty weighty.

So for a moment I want to kind of take these apart so that we can kind of get our arms underneath everything Paul is saying here. So I just want to make three observations from Romans chapter 4 about how God declares sinners to be righteous.

So three observations. First of all faith and works are two very different things. Let's just start there. Faith and works are two very different things in Paul's understanding. It's not faith with works through the back door.

It's not even faith expressed in works for Paul when it comes to being declared righteous when it comes to here's the bible term justification. When it comes to justification being declared righteous it is either all faith or all works.

You can't say it's 99 faith with one percent works. The one percent works turns it into all works. So you don't need to turn that. But this is how Paul explained it in Galatians chapter 2 where he's again talking about this same truth of justification.

Galatians 2 15. We are jews by birth and not gentile sinners. And yet we know that a person is not justified declared righteous by works of the law but by faith in Jesus Christ. Even we who even we ourselves have believed in Christ Jesus this was so that we might be justified by faith in Christ and not by works of the law.

Because by the works of the law no human being will be justified. Three times in two verses Paul makes is very clear the only way people are made right with God is by faith and not by works of the law.

Works of the law righteous works those cannot save you. Justification. This act of being declared righteous being justified is a result of simple faith in Jesus. That's the first observation i want you to know from this passage.

The second one i want you to notice from Romans 4 5. And this is going to sound really simple when i say it. But then i'm going to get into the implications. And this is what i'm going to ask you to kind of hold on with me.

Observation number two. God justifies the ungodly. God justifies the ungodly. Like i said that sounds really easy to say. But can i put it to you that it's really easy to mess up what that means. Let me ask you a question to see if this kind of demonstrates where we can get wrong with this.

Do i have to clean myself up before i come to Jesus. You're all turning no. But let me rephrase the question. Do i need to forsake my sin before i come to Jesus. Just got confusing. Didn't it. If i if that seems like a tough question i'm going to pull on our fathers in the faith our reformed heritage and say it really shouldn't be that complicated.

Kofi. I don't know. This sounds like you're about to say that people don't have. People can still sin and be saved. Okay. No. Romans 6 1 is in the Bible Titus 2 11 and 12 that the grace of God that appears that brings salvation teaches us to say no to ungodliness and worldly passion.

Like no. No no no no. You cannot say that you've experienced grace and still sin. That is not what i'm getting at again. That is not what i'm getting. But for a moment i want to quote from a confession of faith from the reformation period.

Well just after the reformation period the 1689 london baptist confession describes repentance like this. This saving repentance. The kind of repentance that saves is a gospel grace in which those who are made aware by the holy spirit of the many evils of their sin by faith in Christ humble themselves for it with godly sorrow hatred of it and self-loathing.

They pray for pardon and strength of grace and determine and endeavor by provisions from the spirit to live before God in a well-pleasing way in everything they think. Okay. Kofi why do you quote that real simple note that our fathers in the faith understood repentance to follow on from someone being brought to faith and being made aware of their sin.

Let me ask the question another way. Can a spiritually dead person stop sinning. No. Only a spiritually alive person is aware that sin is sin and can stop sinning. Can i put it to you. You may think this is playing with words.

I i try my best not to do that. But can i put it to that repentance. Forsaking sin is a fruit of faith not a precondition of it. It is not clean yourself up and then come to Jesus in faith. No. It's come to Jesus in faith be made spiritually alive.

And then you are empowered to repent and to fight against sin. Am i making sense. You're tracking with me. Okay. So that's why Paul can say come back to Romans 4 5 that God justifies the ungodly when they come to him.

They are not the godly. It is not they have abandoned sin and come to. No. It's they've come to Jesus as sinners. But once they've come to him as i said they don't stay that way. The ungodly are ungodly when they're justified they are made more and more like Jesus after Jesus saves them.

Okay. Kofi where are you going with this. Very simple at least for me that means that there are no conditions there's no amount of preparing work that sinners need to do before God declares them to be righteous.

All that God calls the sinner to do is to believe. Oh by the way that faith the Bible tells us that itself is a gift that God gives. And i i labor this point because in our preaching of the gospel to others and i know that many of you do that.

Uh in your preaching of the gospel to others you want to be very careful. I think christians sometimes can do this. You want to be very careful that you don't present the idea that Jesus is for good people with cleaned up lives.

That Jesus is for people who have it all together. No we call people to the believe in the Lord Jesus Christ. He will do the work of cleaning them up. Theirs is simply to believe. Am i making sense of what i'm getting at.

Okay. So faith and works are two very different things in the act of justification. In declaring us righteous God justifies the ungodly. So there's no preconditions. It's not clean yourself up and then you can be saved.

Okay. Um what does that actually mean. Well that's my third observation on it from this passage. Because know what Paul says. But to the one who does not work but believes on him who justifies the ungodly his faith is credited for righteousness.

That's my third observation. A real righteousness is credited to the person who believes. Keyword there. A real righteousness. Faith is easy enough to understand if you choose not to mess it up faith is to believe.

It's not something. Yeah let me not go there that will confuse matters. Faith is easy enough to understand. But this whole thing of righteousness i think we sometimes use this term and we never really think about what it actually means.

So for a moment we need to do some more bible work. When we say a real righteousness is credited to the person who believes. What do we mean. First of all let's start with this. God demands perfect obedience from his creatures.

Leviticus 18 5. Keep my statutes and ordinances. A person will live if he does them. Jesus picks up on this in the new testament. Uh the expert in the law Luke chapter 10 comes to him. Teacher what must i do to inherit eternal life.

What does Jesus say. Well you should love the Lord your God with your heart my soul and strength. And your neighbor as yourself. That's what the teacher in the law excuse me says. And Jesus says you've answered this correctly.

Do this and you will live. Paul says it in Romans 2 13. It's not the hearers of the law that are righteous before God but the doers of the law who will be justified as our fathers in the faith. Put it once again uh God obligated Adam and all his descendants to personal entire exact and perpetual obedience.

God demands perfect obedience from his creatures. Not i did my best. Not i tried so hard. No. God demands perfect obedience 100 over 100 every single time. Which leads to a problem because creatures cannot and have not done that.

Creatures cannot and have not done that. So Ecclesiastes 7 20 says. There is certainly no one righteous on the earth who does good and never sins. Romans 3 23. All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.

God demands perfect obedience from all his creatures. Yet all of his creatures have never done it. Who in this room can say that they've obeyed God perfectly all the time. And remember God's standard is not just i did the right thing God said his thoughts word and deed none of us have.

And here's the problem. Failure to keep God's law doesn't change the standard. God doesn't say well they can't keep it. So i'm gonna grade on a curve you know they can't do it. So i'm gonna relax the standard of the law you know it's i'm not gonna make it quite so strict because after all they can't do it.

No failure to keep the law doesn't change the standard. It only makes us more guilty before God. So now we have a problem because God demands perfect obedience from his creatures. Creatures cannot and have not done that.

But the law needs to be kept. So Christ keeps God's law in perfect obedience. Lots of places you can go to in the new testament that make this point. I think Romans 5 17 might be the one. If by the one man's trespass death reigned through that one man.

How much more will those who receive the overflow of grace and the gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man Jesus Christ. So then as through one trespass there is condemnation for everyone.

So also through one righteous act there is justification leading to life for everyone. For just as through one man's disobedience Romans 5 19. For just as through one man's disobedience the many were made sinners.

So also through the one man's obedience the many will be made righteous. Romans 5 12 to 21 is a passage we could preach a whole sermon on that by itself that there is this parallel made between Jesus and Adam.

And that in Adam all of humanity fell. But in Jesus all those who are in him think to what we're studying in our Sunday school class on union with Christ all who are in him do not suffer the penalty of Adam's sin.

Where the first Adam failed in his obedience to God in the garden the second Adam the Lord Jesus he succeeds. He obeyed from the heart. He obeyed the entirety of the law. He obeyed it to the letter he obeyed fully.

And this is what happens in justification. The righteousness of obeying the law that we were unable to render Jesus does. And lawbreakers like you and me receive that righteousness when we believe again like I said I love the clarity of our fathers in the faith on this issue.

This one I did actually put up on screen so you can read it. They put it like this. God does not impute faith itself the act of believing or any other gospel obedience to them as their righteousness. So God doesn't say well you believed.

So your belief is what qualifies you. Instead he imputes Christ's active obedience to the whole law and passive obedience passive referring to his passion his sufferings in his death as their whole and only righteousness by faith you need a real righteousness.

And in the Lord Jesus you get exactly that a full perfect exact entire and perpetual righteousness not done by you but by Christ. We we really can't start talking about how God saves without getting this right.

And yet so many Christians I encounter get this wrong. We all kind of smuggle works in the back door. Or we'll say yes you're saved by faith but your assurance. Well that's on you. Like there's all kinds of ways we can mess this up.

So because I love you and I don't want you to mess this up in this week's study guide I've given you a ton of resources that touch on this issue one of which I put in red at least I hope it printed in red ink was dying.

I'm not going to wax lyrical about that book. All I'm going to say is I think every Christian should read it. And there's a bunch of places you can get it for free. But we cannot talk about how God saves if we don't get justification right.

There's a reason why I believe it was the reformer Martin Luther who said that justification is the article upon which the church stands or falls. And that message of justification starts all the way back with Abraham we learn from Abraham that God declares sinners to be righteous.

And I've spent a lot of time there because like I said get this wrong you get everything else wrong. But as we pass from Abraham to his son Isaac we learn a second important truth about how God saves.

Covenant Promise in Isaac

So God declares sinners to be righteous. We learn that from Abraham. And when we come to Isaac we learn that God works on the basis of covenant. That God works on the basis of covenant. We won't spend too long here because Abraham's life actually in the grand scheme of Genesis doesn't cover that long a section but the very life of a Isaac excuse me points to the fact that God deals with man on the basis of covenant.

Well what's a covenant. Yeah you need a whole sermon just to explain what that is I suppose. But let me give you my short definition of what covenant is. A covenant is a bond in blood that God sovereignly creates.

That's my very simple definition of what covenant is. It's a bond in blood that God sovereignly creates. It's a bond. It's a joining of two groups. It's in blood. When I say that I don't mean that physical blood is always shed but that it is on pain of death that the parties will keep to this.

And in a covenant God is the one who sovereignly creates it. Last week I talked about the fact the Bible is one unified story about the kingdom of God and its king Jesus Christ. Well if that's the goal of the Bible if that's the story of the Bible the destination of the Bible the means by which God brings that kingdom about is through covenant.

But like I said this is not the message for a complete study of the theme of covenant. I've done that in a few places. If you go to our website you look in our sermon library gives you a little option to search.

If you type in the word covenant you'll see multiple times I've taught on this. All I want you to notice real briefly is that Isaac's identity when you read Genesis is bound up with the covenant itself.

So tell me back to Genesis 17. I just want to show you this a couple of passages. Genesis chapter 17. Genesis 17 beginning in verse 19 Abraham is hearing that God is bringing about this covenant sign of circumcision.

And in this moment Abraham says verse 18. So Abraham said to God if only Ishmael were acceptable to you verse 19. But God said no your wife Sarah will bear you a son and you will name him Isaac laughter.

I will confirm my covenant with him as a permanent covenant for his future offspring Isaac is born. There's a little bit of family conflict that takes place in Genesis chapter 21. In chapter 21 verse 12 uh Sarah basically says look um Ishmael and Hagar can't be here they need to go.

Abraham's distressed because Ishmael is his son. But God speaks verse 12. But God said to Abraham do not be distressed about the boy in about your slave. Whatever Sarah says to you listen to her because your offspring will be traced through Isaac.

Okay you may be wondering like Kofi what does this have to do with anything. Flip over to Galatians chapter 4. The new testament gives us a little bit of inspired commentary on the events of Genesis 21.

Galatians chapter 4. When you get there I'll meet you in verse 28. Galatians chapter 4. Verse 28 as you know Galatians is Paul's uh most brutal letter because he's attacking this message that was basically adding to the gospel and so he pulls no punches because we should pull no punches where the gospel is concerned.

Pick up with me in verse 28 Galatians 4 28 after saying that we are not born to Hagar which is a picture of the law and the covenant of the law but we are born to Jerusalem that is above this picture of the freedom of the gospel.

Verse 28 he says. Now you two brothers and sisters like Isaac are children of promise. But just as then the but just as then the child born as a result of the flesh persecuted the one born as a result of the spirit.

So also now. In other words these false teachers who are trying to put you under the law and are basically assaulting your freedom in Christ. Paul says this is nothing new. The the one who is the result of human effort always wants to attack the one who is the result of the promise.

Verse 30. But what does the scripture say. Drive out the slave and her son. For the son of the slave will never be a co-heir with the son of the free woman. Therefore brothers and sisters verse 31 we are not children of a slave but of a free woman.

Paul's point is very simple. Isaac was a son of the promise. He was not born out of human desire. He was not born out of a human attempt to achieve God's promise. And Paul's point is very simply that if you believe in Jesus you are as much a covenant child as Isaac was.

Maybe not quite as miraculous. Well let me let me let me rewind. Because actually it's kind of a miraculous thing isn't it that you were spiritually dead and you've been brought to spiritual life. You are as much a child of the promise as Isaac was.

Because that's how God works. I wonder if you think about that as often as you should i mean what we say every week when we partake of the Lord's table first Corinthians 11 25 this cup is the new covenant in my blood.

We celebrate the fact that we are covenant people every time we partake of this covenant meal. Why do we do that. Because God in Christ has made you a fully paid up member of the new covenant. You didn't earn your place and you couldn't keep it even if you did earn it.

But Jesus established that covenant in his blood and then he made you a part of it by his spirit. And since God keeps all his promises we can rest assured that our position as covenant children will never be revoked.

So we learned from Isaac that God works on the basis of covenant. We learn from Abraham. God declares sinners to be righteous. God works on the basis of covenant. We learn that from Isaac. What do we learn from Jacob.

Grace That Overcomes Jacob's Failures

Well we learn from Jacob. That God's grace overcomes our worst failures. That God's grace overcomes our worst failures. What can one say about Jacob. For most of his life. He's a scammer. He's a trickster shyster.

He is willing to do whatever it takes to get what he wants. But as you encountered the life of Jacob and those of you who were here when we walked our ways somewhat painstakingly through Jacob's life excuse me the big point you come away with is that God's grace and God's goodness isn't limited by bad moves or even worse motives.

Let's be clear God's grace doesn't excuse bad moves and even worse motives but it does rise well above them. You literally learn from the life of Jacob that grace and grace alone is what makes the difference.

And the moment that I think puts this into focus is right after I would argue Jacob's worst moment. Turn me to Genesis chapter 28. Genesis chapter 28. This is right after he has deceived his father and his brother and he has taken the blessing.

And he's he has to leave. Pick up with me. In verse 10 Jacob left Beersheba which was the home of the clan and went towards Haran. He reached a certain place verse 11 and spent the night there because the sun had set.

And because he took one of the stones from the place put it there at his head and laid down in that place. And he dreamed. A stairway was set on the ground with its top reaching the sky and God's angels were going up and down on it.

Yahweh was standing beside him saying I am Yahweh the God of your father Abraham and the God of Isaac. I will give you and your offspring the land on which you are lying. Your offspring will be like the dust of the earth and you will spread out towards the west the east the north and the south.

All the peoples on earth will be blessed through you and your offspring. Look I am with you and will watch over you wherever you go. I will bring you back to this land. For I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you.

I won't re-preach the sermon that I preached on this passage. You remember if not you can catch on our website grace in the face of spiritual failure. I simply want you to notice that God reaches out in covenant.

In covenant promise after Jacob has messed up royally. Not before. God doesn't say Jacob um I can't with this. I really can't with this guy. Let me just move on and find somebody else. Because this is more hassle than it's worth.

No. God doesn't do that. God draws near to Jacob at his lowest not at his best. Because think about it where man is concerned in the end what else is there. There isn't a best for God to look at where man is concerned.

And the wonderful thing is that God steps in and he doesn't step in with some newfangled up-to-date better than last time message. He reminds Jacob of tried and true truths. He reminds Jacob that he was with him that his promises would come good and that he could be depended on.

And can I put it to you just by way of application that when you are at your lowest it's not a new word that you need. I make this point often because again you hear Christians of varying traditions we'll talk about.

I need a fresh word from the Lord. And they no you don't. Can I put it to you that what you need the most at the worst possible time is the same old time tested message. I can put it in plain terms Christian when you are struggling you need the same old good message of the gospel of Christ.

That good news of God becoming a man. Of that man suffering all the limitations and weaknesses of being truly human of just like we talked about that man's perfect spotless obedience to the law. You need the good news of his all-atoning sacrificial death.

The good news that death couldn't beat him and that he rose victorious over the grave. That that man right now who beat death in the grave is in heaven interceding for you. That's the message you need at the moment of his worst spiritual failure.