7 Covenants - #3 Abrahamic
This is the third of seven very important covenants in the Bible. Most Christians can only name a couple (before doing my research I have to admit that I could only think of 4), and many other people only focus on one covenant from the Old Testament as being the "ultimate" covenant (actually, the covenant we are studying today is the one that the majority of the Christian community always only seem to focus on).
We will be studying each covenant in detail.
The third covenant is the Abrahamic.
Just to be very clear, we will again begin by defining the word:
Covenant - a solemn, binding agreement established by God with individuals or groups. It involves promises, blessings and stipulations that underscore the relationship between God and His people.
And then let's define two words from the definition of covenant above: solemn & binding.
Solemn- very serious; done with the utmost sincerity
Binding- imposing an obligation
This covenant has three distinctive parts:
1. Abraham will be (is) the father of many nations (this includes a land blessing)
2. The main blessing is through Isaac but because Abraham requested it, Ishmael is also given a blessing
3. The circumcision portion of the covenant
You will notice in the Bible verses below that Abraham had to follow God's instruction and leave his family, friends and property. After doing so Abraham received God's blessing. He became the father of many nations and it is important to note that "ALL PEOPLES" is listed in the passage below:
I believe that "ALL PEOPLES" is referring to God's chosen people, as well as ALL the non-Israelites (Gentiles) who will become heirs through Jesus Christ (through Abraham's bloodline).
Part of the covenant includes a land blessing.
Genesis 15:18-21
“To your descendants I give this land, from the river of Egypt to the great river, the Euphrates— the land of the Kenites, Kenizzites, Kadmonites, Hittites, Perizzites, Rephaites, Amorites, Canaanites, Girgashites and Jebusites.”
God changed Abram and Sarai's names to:
Abraham & Sarah (see both passages below):
And what an amazing miracle when God gave Sarah a child at the age of 90!!!!
Reminder that Abraham's first son was Ishmael and his maternal lineage was through "Hagar" who was an Egyptian slave girl. Since Sarai was unable to have children (at that time anyway), she offered her servant to her husband. It is believed that the current Arabic people are descendant from Ishmael.
The only reason that Ishmael was given a blessing was because Abraham asked God for a blessing for his oldest son. The main blessing (being Jesus Christ) comes through Isaac (whose grandchildren become the 12 Tribes of Israel - click HERE to view "Twelve Tribes of Israel - Jacob/Israel" )
Then, we come to the circumcision portion of the covenant. Notice in the Old Testament verses above that breaking God's covenant can occur by our wrong actions. "Any uncircumcised male will be cut off...."
However, after Jesus Christ that changes. In Romans this exact issue is brought up and both the circumcised & uncircumcised are saved by the Blood of Jesus Christ.
The Abrahamic covenant is important but it is not the only important covenant.
Other Covenant Posts:
Linked to:
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You might be interested in viewing this video:
click HERE to view
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