Genesis #12 Ch. 12-13 the Call of Abraham — Chuck Missler

The Transition to Abraham and the Nation

This is the twelfth study in the book of Genesis conducted by Chuck Missler. The subject of this tape, Genesis chapters 12 and 13.

We are tonight going to enter into the next major section of the book of Genesis. And it's going to be, I think, a very, very exciting section, very dramatic, very mysterious, full of lots of suspense, lots of action, real people.

You know, you somehow, Adam and Seth and Cain, tend to be sort of abstractions to us, I think. I'm not sure we really, sort of, we don't know enough about them to relate to them, but Abraham we're going to learn a lot about.

His name occurs seventy-four times in the New Testament alone. So we, sort of, are going to get to know Abraham. I mean, he's going to seem real, I think, certainly more real than some of the other characters that we we know about intellectually.

I mean, we meet them in passing, but Abraham is quite a guy. But, of course, the exercise we're on is not an intellectual exercise or historical exercise or literary exercise. We're here tonight to share a supernatural experience.

And so let's petition the Lord in that regard. Heavenly Father, we just praise you that you have allowed us to gather again together to open your Word and to behold Jesus Christ. We ask you, Father, for the Holy Spirit to just guide us and enlighten us and increase in us a hunger for knowledge of these things.

To the end that we might know more fully, more completely Jesus Christ and what you would have of us. That we might more fully grasp this incredible plan of redemption which you ordained before the foundation of the world was laid.

We thank you, Father, for this opportunity. Ask your blessing to His glory. Amen. The book of Genesis is often divided such that we're entering the third section. Some people take the creation and the sons of Adam as one section.

They take the flood and the sons of Noah as another section. And then they get to Abraham, the call of Abraham in Genesis 12. Other scholars take the first 11 chapters of section 1 and the story of Abraham and his descendants as the next major section.

But they afford themselves the liberty of taking Joseph separately, because so much of the last part of the book is about Joseph. So that's why some, in any case, almost any form of structuring the book elevates chapter 12 to a pinnacle, a fulcrum, a climax, a key point.

And that's where we are. Now, another way to put in perspective something else. Those of you that are driving road cars know what happens when you shift gears. And if you're watching the book of Genesis, you're going to discover we've shifted into a whole different gear when we get to Genesis 12.

To dramatize that another way, the 11 chapters we've read so far cover more than 2 ,000 years of narrative. And Adam and Noah and the sons and all, independent of the chronological problems, it certainly is more than 2 ,000 years, there's only 11 chapters.

The period we're now going to enter into is the period of the nation. It covers a period of only 400 years, and it's going to occupy 39 chapters, okay? So we just entered into a whole new scene. In fact, you can easily make the case that the 11 chapters that we've gone through are simply a preface, not just to the rest of Genesis, but the entire Old Testament.

So we've been dealing with a narrative, a revelation that is extremely condensed up till now. So we draw great inferences from very little. And our conceptions, our visualizations of what we've seen so far, obviously are in jeopardy because of the scarcity of words that describe it.

We jumped to all kinds of strange conclusions. I say strange in the sense that if we really knew what happened, we probably would smile at the quaint view we have of the events of the last 11 chapters, because it's so brief and we tend to infer on it our own experience, which is really from a whole different background.

But now we're getting into Abraham. We'll call him Abram before his name is changed, but you'll probably notice that I am very unscholastic about that. I will slip and call him Abraham. Abraham's an interesting guy.

He is the one man that is elevated in all the major religions on the planet Earth. I say religions, not cults and other groups, but major religions. Certainly the Christians, certainly the Jews, and the Mohammedans, the world of Islam.

And if you take those just in numbers of administrative claim, you have most of humanity, an incredible amount. And they all place Abraham very, very high. Abraham has the unique title in the Bible as the friend of God.

Isn't that a strange title? Would you like to have that title? It's only used to one person of Abraham. Now, we will pick up chapter 12, starting at chapter 11, verse 31. And Terah took Abram, his son, and Lot, the son of Haran, his son's son, and Sarai, his daughter-in-law, his son, Abram's wife.

And they went forth with them from Ur of the Chaldeans to go into the land of Canaan. And they came unto Haran and dwelt there. They left Ur of the Chaldeans. That's near the Persian Gulf, actually. And that's on the eastward side of the River Euphrates.

And they went to Haran, which is still east of the Euphrates, but about halfway in terms of the path that one classic, or the caravan routes classically took to get to the land of Canaan. They didn't get, they went with them from Ur of the Chaldeans to go into the land of Canaan.

That was their intention. But they came into Haran and dwelt there. And the days of Terah were 205 years, and Terah died in Haran, period, end of chapter. And most of us, when we speak of the call of Abraham, think of Genesis chapter 12, verse 1.

Now, the Lord had said unto Abraham, 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. I will bless thee and 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 the families of the earth be blessed. First three verses of chapter 12. Someone talks to you about the call of Abraham, you think of Genesis 12, verses 1 to 3.

Wrong. Now, if you take an exam in a Bible study course, I recommend you put chapter 12, verses 1 to 3 as the call of Abraham, because those grading your paper may not have the insight of another commentary that I will introduce you to in a moment, okay?

We're going to have an experience now to explore a little bit the call of Abraham, an idol-worshiping Gentile who dwelt in the Ur of the Chaldees. That's a fun way to introduce Abraham to a Jewish person.

The Lord is gracious and will forgive me for my mischief, I'm sure. But let's, to get an insight into this, you know, most of us think of Abraham as the example of the faithful. In fact, one of his titles, his valid titles, is he's the father of the faithful.

Lot, his nephew, is going to contrast with him as the father of the compromisers, but that's another, we're getting ahead of ourselves. Abraham is known as the father of the faithful. And indeed, his display of faith is going to be climaxed in a few more chapters, in a way that will leave you breathless before we're through with it.

However, I'm going to suggest to you that Abraham is one of us, subject to the same foibles we are. And one of the interesting testimonies of inspiration of the scripture is the candor and validity and accuracy that the writer demonstrates by including the shortcomings.

We're going to discover that Abraham was not faithful at all. He blew it and blew it badly. The Lord had said unto Abraham, get thee out of thy country. What was his country? Ur of the Chaldees. Fine.

And from thy kindred. Right? That means your relatives, right? You're saying so far, that's neat, right? And from thy father's house. That's a little tougher, when you think about it. And unto a land that I will show thee.

That was his instruction. Where is he living in Genesis 12, chapter 12, verse 1? In Haran, right? Let's turn to, lest you think I'm off on one of these left field junkets, which I'm often guilty of. Lest you think I'm in one of those things.

Let's turn to what is probably the most reliable commentary on the Old Testament. Walter Martin, notwithstanding. And that's called the New Testament. And in the New Testament, we have, sorry, Walter.

Stephen’s Commentary in Acts 7

We have the most interesting commentary on the Old, that I know of. And I'd like to turn to Acts, chapter 7. Acts, chapter 7, is an interesting chapter. It's where Stephen is addressing the Sanhedrin.

Now, Stephen turns out to be quite a scholar. And he's recounting to this august body of scholars, some Old Testament background to make his point. We don't have time tonight to go into the points, all the different points that Stephen was going to make.

However, he makes so many comments in chapter 7, that if you're a diligent student of the Torah, you frequently will find yourself coming back to chapter 7, and you'll discover that Stephen illuminates things that are not obvious from the Old Testament record, as we know it.

And it's just, it's full of that sort of thing. But fortunately, we're just going to take a few verses of this. And it's chapter 7, Acts, chapter 7, verse 2. Stephen says, and he said, Men, brethren, and fathers hearken, the God of glory.

That's an interesting phrase, by the way. Stephen uses an interesting title here, just to give you a little background. That occurs only one other place in the Bible, and it's in Psalm 29 .3. Psalm 29 .3, by the way, can be inferred from verse 10 of that Psalm, that it's millennial.

And this is a millennial title. Jesus himself, Psalm 24, is spoken of as the King of glory, related title. Not quite the same thing as we're saying here. The God of glory appeared unto our father. We're going to discover that the term, the appearance of God to one of the patriarchs occurs first with Abraham.

It is not said of Adam or Noah. Now, maybe a small point, because we know that God walked with Adam and Noah. But it doesn't say he appeared to Adam and Noah. It's a linguistic point, maybe. But if you get into the theology of just who Christ was as a manifestation, so forth, you can jump to the conclusion that the appearance to Abraham may be that person with whom we have to do.

God, our glory, appeared unto our father Abraham, when? When he was in Mesopotamia, before he dwelt in Haran. Stephen gives us a little insight here. When did God appear to Abraham? Before he left the Ur of the Chaldees.

God said to Abram, hey, buddy, I want you out of there. I want you to leave your country. I want you to leave your kindred. I want you to leave your family. And I want you to go to a land that I will show you.

What land was that? Canaan, right. What did Abraham do? He picked up his household, his father, his nephew Lot, and who knows who else. And he moved upriver a bit to a place called Haran. Before you laugh, that's what you and I do.

That's what you and I do. One of the things we're going to discover as we get through the book of Genesis is God's pattern is always the same. There's a call, there's obedience, and then revelation. God reveals himself as a response to your obedience, which is a response to his call.

And one of the things we all do, most of us in this room have heard the call of God. God has spoken to you through some TV pastor, through some tape you heard in your car, or through one of Chuck's sermons, or who knows what.

God has called you to him, okay. And he's called you to do something. He's called you out of the Ur of the Chaldees to the land that he will show you. And you know what most of us have done? I'm with you on this one.

We've moved upriver a little bit, you know. In fact, maybe upriver quite a bit, but haven't crossed over. Okay, we've taken our things with us, you know, all those trappings and so forth. And God could not deal with Abraham until there was a funeral in his life.

In his case, a literal one. It was when his father died that Abraham got his gag together. One of the questions I want to ask you before the evening is over, is there a funeral that's required in your life?

And I don't mean of a person. Might be a thing, an idea, a commitment, an involvement, a trapping, a vestige, an entanglement that God is calling you from. That's a question only you and he can work out, but I suggest it to you.

Anyway, going on, it says in verse 2, Stephen says, The God of glory appeared to our father Abraham when he was in Mesopotamia, that's where the Ur of the Chaldees was, before he dwelt in Iran. And he said unto him, Get thee out of thy country from thy kindred, and come unto the land which I shall show thee.

Now, Stephen skips over the point I'm going to make, and obviously, ultimately, Abraham does do that. He says, Then came he out of the land of the Chaldeans, and dwelt in Iran, and from there, when his father was dead, he removed into this land in which he now dwell, and so forth.

And he goes on to make his point. When did Abraham move? When his father died. You know what Ur means? Flame. Chaldees means destruction. Abraham was called from the flame of destruction, okay, to the land of promise.

He didn't, he moved upriver to Haran. You know what the word Haran means? Parched, desolate, until his father died. What was his father's name? Do you know what Terah means? Delay. It means delay. Look at the margin in your Bible, you may have it.

If it says Terah, you may have a footnote in your margin or wherever. The word Terah means delay. Isn't that interesting? One of the things I want you to do as we go through Genesis is recognize that the Holy Spirit deals in puns.

He does. He does. And he's going to deal in some of the most interesting puns you've ever seen. Some of them will strike us as humorous. Some of us will leave you breathless before we're through the next several chapters of Genesis.

But he deals in puns. The very place names are going to be significant in ways that will just leave you flabbergasted as I show you some of those later on. But even here, I want you to start getting sensitive to that when Abraham pitches his tent facing Bethel with his back to Ai, shortly we'll see.

What does Bethel mean? The house of God. What does Ai mean? Place of ruin. And we'll get into more of that. So let's go back now with the insight that Stephen has given us. We'll see that Terah took Abraham, his son, verse 31 of chapter 11, and Lot, the son of Haran, his son's son, and Sarah, his daughter-in-law, and Abraham's wife.

And they went forth with them from Ur of the Chaldeans to go into the land of Canaan, and they came into Haran and dwelt there. Didn't quite make it. Moved upriver. And that's one of the questions I'm hoping you'll ask yourself as you drive home tonight.

Have you ever been to Haran? Have you just moved upriver? Are you dwelling in Haran tonight? You've heard Chuck's sermon Sunday morning. You've gotten involved in the Bible study or two or three. What have you?

But have you, where are you living? Where are you living? Have you really entered into the land, that rest which he has for you? Or have you, like most of us have, moved upriver a little bit, left one foot in the world?

Got one foot in Ur of the Chaldeans. Haven't really severed. You're still on the caravan route. You're up there by Haran. Haven't actually crossed over the river yet, even. Gone quite a ways. Moved upriver.

Left Ur of the Chaldeans. But you're sort of between two opinions, as Elijah would say. Where are you living? Are you in Haran or are you entering the land? Verse 32, In the days of Terah were 205 years, and Terah died in Haran.

Now the Lord had said, is what your Bible probably translates. Some of the versions are different. The Hebrew grammar allow either translation to take place of the structure. Either one's permissible.

From the inside of other inputs, most translators will translate this. Now, the Lord had said. Flew perfect, I think it's called. Unto Abraham, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father's house, unto a land that I will show thee.

Abraham is reminded, if you will, of his promise. Or his commitment. His calling. To leave his country completely. Not just park in Haran for a while. And from his kindred. And from his father's house.

And he doesn't cut it until his father dies. Now, most commentators and scholars may be a little hard on Abraham. Because many of the ones that dig into this a little bit will bring this point up. Others point out that this might have been an interim thing.

Where maybe Terah was old and ill and what have you. And Abraham resided there until Terah died. They were there about five or six years from a lot of interpolation we make. So it's not a trivial period of time.

And yet it's not a monumental period of time. In any case, it's certainly clear that the five or six years were delay. They were when Abraham was intended to leave. There's another insight that you should probably have.

And I'd like to get you this insight from the scripture. Let's turn to Joshua 24. Most of us like to think that Abraham was somehow part of the faithful strain. We had Shem, right? And Shem had a faithful seed, right?

And all this was going to be neat. As we go through the line, we think good thoughts, right? Let's find out just exactly what insight we can about his religious upbringing. Joshua, some years later, in conquering the land.

Abraham’s Idolatrous Background and God’s Sovereign Call

Joshua chapter 24, verse 2. Joshua said unto all the people, Thus saith the Lord God of Israel. Now, Joshua's quoting from the Lord here, right? Your fathers dwelt on the other side of the river of old, even Terah the father of Abraham and the father of Nacor.

And they served whom? Other gods. As a matter of fact, Ur of Chaldeas is famous for worshiping the moon god they called Sin. It's just a little interesting observation. Verse 3, and God says, I took your father Abraham from the other side of the river and led him throughout all the land of Canaan and multiplied a seed and gave him Isaac.

And I gave unto Isaac and Jacob and Esau and so forth. And you'll discover the word I occurs 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 17. Thank you. 17 times. Interesting. Anyway, we developed this on the Joshua tapes.

Those of you that want a badge of the firefighters for Christ or something can get the Joshua tapes for that. Anyway, it's interesting. The point is we're on sound scriptural ground when we see Abraham's household.

And we have no reason not to believe that Abraham wasn't part of that cultural background, that he worshiped idols. And God called him. And as a matter of fact, to sort of give you a peek ahead, pose your finger here, we'll turn to Romans chapter 8.

Romans chapter 8. The last half of Romans 8 is something that, in fact, the whole chapter, I guess. But that's a precious chapter. If you're ever blue or down or... I don't know if anything can happen where if you as a refuge, you get by yourself and read Romans 8.

And the first thing to do is to check verse 28 to make sure it's still there. Okay? Every once in a while, we act like we figure someone's gotten, you know, erased it or gotten rid of it. But I check every once in a while and I find it's still there.

We know that all things work together for good to them that love God. To them who are the called. To them who are the called, according to his purpose. For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren.

Moreover, whom he did predestinate, them he also called. Whom he called, them he also justified. And whom he justified, them he also glorified. And I'll fight hard not to go on. It's very difficult to stop here and not just indulge the sweep of this chapter as it goes on.

And I'll let you do that on your own. But the thing I want you to notice here, you notice these interesting things. Whom he did predestinate, them he also called. Whom he called, them he justified. Whom he justified, them he also glorified.

Right? Predestinate, predestination, calling, justification, glorification. Four levels. We can make an outline, right? You know what Paul is doing here for you? He's outlining the book of Genesis. Abraham was predestined to become the father of the faithful.

Later on we're going to discover, I think it's verse 28, or chapter, excuse me, chapter 26. We're going to discover, in Isaac shall his seed be called. We get to Jacob, I think it's about chapter 28. Jacob, if God can justify Jacob, he can justify anyone and take comfort in that.

The fact that he might justify Abraham, you figure, hey, he's a pretty good guy. Okay? When you're through reading about Jacob, you'll breathe a sigh of relief, because if God can justify Jacob into the kingdom, we all have a chance.

And finally, the story of Joseph, this incredible story of Joseph, speaking of his glory. Predestination, calling, justification, and glorification. The four steps that Paul talks about here become the outline of the patriarchs, of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and Joseph.

So be alert to that as we go. I just thought we'd throw that in for fun. But Joshua also emphasizes that God says, I took Abraham. Didn't say allow or helped. The verb implies he grabbed him by the scruff of the neck and dragged him out of there.

And it wasn't easy, because he clung to Haran for quite a little while, until there was a funeral in his life. I have nothing against Tara, but that wasn't what God wanted Abraham to leave behind. Okay, now, you know, one interesting thing, you might turn to Hebrews chapter 11.

Faith, Obedience, and the Pilgrim Life

Hebrews chapter 11. The book of 11th chapter of Hebrews, of course, is this famous hall of faith, this chronicle of the major milestones in God's record of the faithful. And of course, it is no surprise to find, we've drawn on this already, of course, earlier, but with no one, what have you.

But let's take a look at Abraham, starting at verse 8. By faith, Abraham, when he was called to go out into a place which he should, which he should after receive foreign inheritance, obeyed. And he went out not knowing where he went.

Do you notice something there? It says that he was called and he obeyed. Is that true? Well, it is eventually. You notice that his delay or his disobedience or his lack of obedience is not mentioned. Do you know why?

What does he promise to do? Remember your sins no more. His sins are blotted out. Isn't that neat? He does, doesn't he? You didn't know all this stuff about Abraham, except inferentially, right? Interesting, isn't it?

By faith, he sojourned in the land of promises in a foreign country, dwelling in tents with Isaac and Jacob, the heirs with him of the same promise. For he looked for a city which hath foundations, whose builder and maker is God.

Very interesting. There are two brothers, Nahor and Abraham. Nahor went and built a city. The world, I'm sure, considered him a success. He founded a whole city. Terrific. How many of you knew about Nahor?

You have to really dig for that. It's in Genesis 20, I think, or someplace. Wherever it's mentioned, I've forgotten now. I've got up my notes here. Abraham dwelt in tents. Ne 'er do well wanderer, never had a place of his own.

Two interesting things about Abraham. One is he dwelt in tents. He was a nomad. He was a pilgrim. Why? Because he looked for a different city. The only thing he built was what? Every place he went. Altars.

Altars. The altars were permanent. His dwelling was temporary. Isn't that interesting? I think that's kind of neat. Okay. There's another idea that we might grab onto before we charge into the narrative, and that's to turn to Romans chapter 1.

The Call of Abraham Amid Human Idolatry

We have a lot of trouble with the whole problem, the so-called heathen problem. And it's talking about verse 20. Paul says, for the invisible things of him, that is of God, from the creation of the world, are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse.

Who? The heathen are without excuse. Because, verse 21, when they knew God, and they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful, but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened.

Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools, and changed the glory of the incorruptible God into an image made like corruptible man, and birds, and four-footed beasts, and creeping things. Wherefore, God also gave them up to uncleanness, through the lusts of their own hearts, to dishonor their own bodies between themselves.

Who exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served the creature more than the creator, who is blessed forever. Amen. Now, Paul is talking here about the unbelieving heathen, generically.

The whole chapter one is a very useful chapter, if that's your problem and you want to get into it. But specifically, historically, what does Paul have in mind here? I submit to you, Babel. The age that God gives them up, and calls Abraham to continue his plan of redemption.

Because they knew not God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful, nor became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened. Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools, and changed the glory of the incorruptible God into an image made in the whole idolatry thing.

And we have the final depravity that God then gives them up. God gave them up to uncleanness through the lust of their own hearts. But he's never without a witness. So what does he call about that time, or just after that?

He arbitrarily, in the sovereignty of his own choice, selects an idol-worshipping Gentile down in Ur of the Chaldees, called Abraham. And calls him to leave everything behind, his family, his house, and to go to someplace, he doesn't even tell much about it.

He doesn't have the benefit that some of the others have, when the land of milk and honey and so forth. Hey, just someplace I'm going to show you. Come on, fella. And Abraham does, sort of. And of course, ultimately does.

So chapter 12, verse 1, where Abraham is, his father's died. Now Abraham, and the Lord had said to Abraham, get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father's house into a land that I will show thee.

And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great, and thou shalt be a blessing, period. On whose performance does Abraham's blessing depend? Any guesses? God's conduct entirely.

God's conduct entirely. Suppose Abraham turns out to be a liar. We find that happens before the chapter is over. What does God say about that? He says, I will bless thee. Suppose Jacob, his son, becomes a crook and a cheat and a scoundrel.

What does God say about that? He says, I'll bless thee. Suppose David becomes the king that comes later, becomes an adulterer or a murderer. What does God say about that? He says, I will bless thee. Suppose the nation becomes so evil that it has to be scattered among the nations for centuries.

What does God say about that? I will bless thee. So the question you have to ask yourself, can man's sin make God a liar? Heavens, no. On whose faithfulness does our redemption depend? On his. Even to the point where this idea of blessing the sons of Abraham occurs in Matthew 25, where Jesus says that, well, let's turn to Matthew 25, verse 40.

Matthew chapter 25, verse 31, When the Son of Man shall come in his glory and all the holy angels with him, then shall he sit upon the throne of his glory. And this is Jesus Christ sitting not on his father's throne, but on his throne of glory, his throne.

And before him shall be gathered all the what? Nations. And he shall separate them one from another. People or nations? Nations. Strange idea. This is the judgment of the nations. As a shepherd divided his sheep from the goats, he shall set the sheep on his right hand, but the goats on the left.

This is also recounted in Ezekiel 34, but let me just go on. Then shall the king say unto them, Come ye, blessed of my father, and have the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me food, and I was thirsty and you gave me drink, and I was a stranger and you took me in naked and you clothed me, and I was sick and you visited me.

I was in prison and you came unto me. Then shall the righteous answer him saying, Lord, when saw we thee hungry and fed thee or thirsty and gave thee drink? They're surprised. They don't say, boy, I'm glad you noticed we worked hard on that.

You know, we organized the care packages and we really turned to you, Lord. Boy, we came out on that Saturday, you know, and the gals made coffee, but boy, we worked. No, that's not the same. They're stunned.

What are you talking about, Lord? When did all that happen? When saw we thee hungry and fed thee and thirsty and gave thee drink? When saw we thee a stranger and took thee in or naked and clothed thee?

Or when saw we thee sick or in prison or came unto thee? And the king shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done unto me.

Who are his brethren? A lot of views about this, but I'm going to suggest to you there are three groups of people before that throne of judgment. The sheep nations, the goat nations, and his brethren and their nations.

Who are his brethren? Jews. And if the Jews are being judged by their dispersion, that's God's problem, not ours. Then shall I say also unto them that are left hand, Depart from me ye cursed in the everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels.

For I was hungry and ye gave me no food, and I was thirsty and ye gave me no drink. And I was a stranger and ye took me not in, naked and ye clothed me not, sick and in prison and visited me not. And shall they also say unto him, When shall we be hungry, a thirst, a stranger, and so forth?

And he says in verse 45, Verily I say unto you, inasmuch as ye have done it not unto one of the least of these, ye did it not unto me. And it's a pretty hairy thing, and I'll let you chew on that one a little bit.

Going back though, the whole idea that's climaxed in Matthew 25 has its root in Genesis 12. I'll make thee of a great nation, I will bless thee and make thy name great, and thou shalt be a blessing. Verse 3,.

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. You know, if some one of us dies, the doctors come and they have a death certificate, and they can talk a cause of death, right?

They do their pathology and they decide, have there been nations that died? What's their cause of death? Well, the sons of Ham rebelled against Shem, and he reduced them to minor tribes, Egypt, Canaan, and the Hittites.

There's a whole study on that. The Greeks totally overran Palestine, and were on the success climax, until they desecrated the temple in Jerusalem, Antiochus Epiphanes, and all of that. What happened?

The Romans took over, Greeks fell. The Romans were on their growth thing, until they killed Paul, and the four divisions under Titus Vespasian leveled the city of Jerusalem. Rome fell. Spain, who ruled a major part of the known world, became a fifth-rate power after the Inquisition of the Jews.

Germany, through their orgies of anti-Semitism, obviously fell. Britain declined after she broke faith with Israel. There are authors that have done a very eloquent job of trying to recount the history of man, and the rise and fall of nations, and can make a case.

You have to judge the validity of the case yourself by digging into that. I'm just mentioning it as an aside, but you can see, you can chronicle the rise and fall of the major nations in recorded history, in terms of the way they treated the Jews.

And so, I'll be very candid with you. When I find out that the Jews are being mistreated, and the promises are broken in Soviet Russia, I'm upset on their behalf, but in an aggregated sense, I breathe a sigh of relief, because Russia's going to get hers.

And I grieve for this country, if she breaks her faith with Israel. I think she will. Because I think Israel, when the Russian forces move from Iran into Israel, I think Israel stands alone. Scripture implies that, which means that we ain't there.