God’s covenant with Abraham is pivotal not only for an Old Testament understanding but for a global redemptive plan.  Through Abraham’s faith, God’s plan for salvation is further revealed.

The Call of Abram

• Yahweh calls Abram to leave his home for another country (Gen. 12:1).
• God promises to make a great nation from him (Gen. 12:2).
• He was blessed in order to be a blessing (Gen. 12:2).
• As they begin their sojourning, they arrive in Egypt where Abram shows his cowardice by lying concerning the identity of his wife (Gen. 12:10-20).
• Abram’s nephew, Lot, departs from this company to live in Sodom (Gen. 13:1-13).

God’s Covenant with Abram

• Abram couldn’t grasp a great nation coming from him if he couldn’t even produce one child (Gen. 15:1-6).
• God promised Abram more descendants than the stars in the sky (Gen. 15:5).
• Foundational Old Testament principle: Faith obtains righteousness (Gen. 15:6).

Helping God Out

• Sarai comes up with a plan to “help God out” by allowing her husband freedom to be with her Egyptian servant, Hagar (Gen. 16:1-2).
• Abram listens to and obeys his wife Sarai (Gen. 16:2).  This language is intentionally similar to Adam’s curse (Gen. 3:17).
• As soon as Sarai realizes that Hagar is pregnant, she regrets her decision and persecutes her until Hagar runs away (Gen. 16:6).
• God sends an angel to comfort and provide for Hagar and her son in the womb, Ishmael (Gen. 16:7-16).

Covenant Reminder

• 13 years after Ishmael is born, God reminds Abram of his covenant (Gen. 17:1).
• God changes Abram’s name to Abraham (father is changed into a father of a multitude) [Gen. 17:5].
• God instructs Abraham concerning the covenant of circumcision.
  • This helped with masculine hygiene.
  • This symbolized the importance of the family lineage from Abraham.
  • This was a reminder of God’s covenant in the most intimate of settings.

Issac’s Birth Promised

• God changes Sarai’s name to Sarah (means princess, the change signifies from a local to a global state).
• God names their coming son, “Issac,” due to the laughter at the thought of them getting pregnant (Gen. 17:19).
• God promises to care for Ishmael, but his promise will come through a way that only God can get the credit.  Sarah will have this child herself.

Abraham’s Job

• Yahweh tells Abraham that his primary job will be to teach his children to follow the LORD (Gen. 18:17-19).
• In a moment when God is speaking concerning global redemptive plans, he centers it around one man teaching his one family to follow the LORD.
• Abraham intercedes for Sodom, but even his prayer reveals how sinful the city is.
• Lot’s encounter shows how sinful this city is, and God rescues Lot before he destroys that city (cf. Matt. 10:14-15).

Isaac’s Substitute

• Isaac is born and makes laughter for Sarah (Gen. 21:6).
• When Isaac is older, God calls Abraham to sacrifice his son (Gen. 22:2).
• Once God sees his commitment, he provides a substitute for Isaac.
• This foreshadows another Father who will sacrifice his only son.