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| FULL WRITTEN TRANSCRIPT THE STORY~ Chapter Two: God Builds a Nation INTRODUCTION In chapter one, we got a small glimpse into the majesty and power of God displayed in creation. Imagine the level of power it would take to create a universe! But even greater than His power of creation is His power of love; the universe was just setting the stage It was created for a love scene with humanity; you. Mankind wanted to understand evil, and we ruined the perfect relationship by assimilating evil. But this is where the story really starts- God’s great plan of rescue begins. Adam, Cain, Abel, even to Noah, were all opportunities to restore the relationship; but they all failed, sabotaged by our own human nature. God was allowing us to experience a reality to comprehend it; we cannot do it on our own, the fall is too deep, the gap between us too wide and…
In Chapter 2 of The Story, we move on to a new strategy: The next phase of the plan- God will create a nation of people to be His people, and the whole world will be able to see what it means to be in community with God. The authors of “The Story” talk about the “Upper Story” or the big picture of what God is doing, and the “lower story” our personal place and experience within the “Upper Story.”
INTRODUCING ABRAM The “lower story” starts in 2091 BC for a man named Abram. God gives this man a promise: Genesis 17 6. "I will make you exceedingly fruitful; and I will make nations of you, and kings shall come from you. 7. "And I will establish My covenant between Me and you and your descendants after you in their generations, for an everlasting covenant, to be God to you and your descendants after you.
But who is this guy? He must have been an amazing man. Born in the land of Babylon, (Youth in Ur, moved to Haran) he lived in a culture of multiple pagan gods and yet he believed in the One True God. He would have been completely counter to his culture. What a lesson for us; (What can one man/ one family do in a culture gone dark? Obviously a lot, if they are following God faithfully.)
So in the “Upper Story”, God is raising up a special nation; one that would show the world a culture in community with God. But more than that, he would bring this nation about in such an impossible way that there could be no other explanation for their origin. So he chooses a man proven in his faith, but this man is also seventy five years old! Chapter 12 1 Then the LORD told Abram, "Leave your country, your relatives, and your father's house, and go to the land that I will show you. 2 I will cause you to become the father of a great nation. I will bless you and make you famous, and I will make you a blessing to others. 3 I will bless those who bless you and curse those who curse you. All the families of the earth will be blessed through you." 4 So Abram departed as the LORD had instructed him, and Lot went with him. Abram was seventy-five years old when he left Haran. 5 He took his wife, Sarai, his nephew Lot, and all his wealth—his livestock and all the people who had joined his household at Haran—and finally arrived in Canaan. 6 Traveling through Canaan, they came to a place near Shechem and set up camp beside the oak at Moreh. At that time, the area was inhabited by Canaanites. (Remember those people, cursed for their ancestor, Ham’s insolence? God was preparing for the day that they would degenerate beyond the point of redemption. They didn’t know it, but God knew. God is always preparing for the future that we cannot see.)
This nation of God comes about through a list of impossibilities and the very least, unlikelihoods.
Let’s take a quick look at a few: · Not Likely #1: God chooses a couple beyond the years of change… Let’s be honest, the older we get, the less we like change. Here is a man of sixty-five who is called to extreme change. He is a long way out of his comfort zone, leaving his home and travelling to a strange land. And that was just the beginning of the impossible things yet to come! All of these circumstances and challenges would have far-reaching effect. But Abram didn’t know that. All he knew was; he had been called to go.
· Not Likely #2: God chooses the physically incapable… Abram goes with the promise he will bring about a great nation. That’s the basis for going. But any nation needs one thing for sure; people. Sixty-five and no children; this is definitely a problem. And if offspring are an unlikelihood for Abram, they are a downright impossibility for his wife, Sarai. Yet, another ten years go by; still no children. Which brings us to the next…
· Not Likely #3: God sets up an impossible schedule… Abram is now pushing eighty-five. By our view point, it is ridiculously long! So Abram and Sarai do what we all tend to do. When God isn’t moving at a “reasonable” pace (That is; reasonable to us.) we assume He needs a little help. So for all their remarkable patience, they finally run out and execute their own more “realistic” plan. Their servant Hagar is still of child-bearing age. If Abram has a child with her, at least God’s plan would be half-accomplished. (We can live with half-accomplished, right?)
So Hagar, the Egyptian slave has Ishmael, and it is a disaster. Sarai becomes the green-eyed monster and starts abusing Hagar and her son. And eventually she and her son are thrown out. If it wasn’t for God’s compassion, they would have died. But even at that, the negative consequences reach farther into the future than Abram could ever have imagined. Four thousand years later and the descendants of Ishmael are still a thorn in the side of Sarah’s children, Israel.
Thirteen more years go by and still no child. Then… Genesis 17 1. When Abram was ninety-nine years old, the Lord appeared to Abram and said to him, "I am Almighty God; walk before Me and be blameless. 2. "And I will make My covenant between Me and you, and will multiply you exceedingly.'' 3. Then Abram fell on his face, and God talked with him, saying: 4. "As for Me, behold, My covenant is with you, and you shall be a father of many nations. 5. "No longer shall your name be called Abram, but your name shall be Abraham; for I have made you a father of many nations. 6. "I will make you exceedingly fruitful; and I will make nations of you, and kings shall come from you. 7. "And I will establish My covenant between Me and you and your descendants after you in their generations, for an everlasting covenant, to be God to you and your descendants after you.
Genesis 17 19. Then God said: "…Sarah your wife shall bear you a son, and you shall call his name Isaac; I will establish My covenant with him for an everlasting covenant, and with his descendants after him. … 21. "… My covenant I will establish with Isaac, whom Sarah shall bear to you at this set time next year.''
And of course, for all the impossibility; it happened just as God said.
But the story has not ended for Abraham yet. Genesis 21 5. Now Abraham was one hundred years old when his son Isaac was born to him.
Imagine how precious this son must have been to him. Abraham had tried for nearly a century to have him. …And when that son was finally born, he must have been a symbol of God’s certainty. Isaac was God’s promise in solid form; you could see and touch. He was the tangible reward for staying faithful.
· Unlikelihood #4: God demands an impossible test… Genesis 22 1. Now it came to pass after these things that God tested Abraham, and said to him, "Abraham!'' And he said, "Here I am.'' 2. And He said, "Take now your son, your only son Isaac, whom you love, and go to the land of Moriah, and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains of which I shall tell you.''
Imagine viewing this from the “Lower Story”, the personal, down-here, view. God gives Abraham this incredible gift, only to take it away! And even worse, making Abraham lose it by his own hand! That’s beyond cruel. …Or at least that’s the way it looks from our vantage.
But in the “Upper Story”, the big picture, it was a glimpse into the distant future. It was a hint on how God would really save us. It was proof that everything was under control even when it didn’t seem that way. “Abraham take your son, your only begotten son and sacrifice him on the mountain that you will soon call, “Yahweh Ra’ah”; “The-Lord-Will-Provide.”
Two thousand years later in the unfolding of the “Upper Story” it was written: For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. …And when they had come to a place called Golgotha, that is to say, Place of a Skull…there… they crucified Him…Now when the centurion, who stood opposite Him, saw that He cried out like this and breathed His last, he said, "Truly this Man was the Son of God!''
Two different mountains; the Lord provided on both. On one mountain, he spared the son of a man. On the other, He did not spare THE SON OF MAN; His own… for us.
But Abraham had no idea. He was in the moment. He was simply obeying that “impossible, totally unfair task.” God tested him for the one thing He really cares about: trust.
SO, WHERE DO WE FIT IN THIS CHAPTER OF THE STORY? 1. The story is continuing proof that we cannot save ourselves; but we can do something; we can trust in the One who can 2. We learn that as God unfolds the “Upper Story”, it can seem far from reasonable. It can seem impossible and even unfair from our “Lower Story” perspective, but the big picture is always perfect. 3. We learn that God is always in control, even when it seems otherwise. He doesn’t need our help to do His part. (Which unfortunately, we tend to do: We try accomplishing His part while ignoring our own. What is our own? It is trusting, obeying and following; God’s Will at God’s timing.)
The story of mankind’s rescue continues because of God’s love and will, but the mechanism He uses to make it happen is us. Think about it; God uses people like you and me, if we are willing; to unfold a perfect eternal plan.
That should have you leaving here with a question: What part of this great eternal story will unfold through you and me if we will simply live like Abraham. That is; if we refuse to settle for the world’s lower standard and smaller vision? -If we continue to trust, obey, and follow; …even when things seem impossible? …Do we really want to be part of the big story?
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