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God of the Universe

Follow Day 4 Entering The Extraordinary: Digging Deeper

January 7, 2021 by Melodye Reeves Leave a Comment

Digging Deeper Days

Finding the original intent of Scripture and making good application to our everyday lives as we become equipped to correctly handle the Word of Truth!

Yesterday’s Journey Study connects with today’s!
Check out Entering The Extraordinary!

The Questions

1) In studying the Bible, repetition is significant. Abram is mentioned 9 times in this passage, the most of anyone. What is significant about him?

2) Who called Abram?

3) What was Abram called from? What was he called to?

*Note: In Genesis 17, Abram’s name was changed to Abraham. Both names will be used in this study.

Genesis 11:24-12:4

11:24 Nahor lived 29 years and fathered Terah. 25 After he fathered Terah, Nahor lived 119 years and fathered other sons and daughters. 26 Terah lived 70 years and fathered Abram, Nahor, and Haran. 27 These are the family records of Terah. Terah fathered Abram, Nahor, and Haran, and Haran fathered Lot. 28 Haran died in his native land, in Ur of the Chaldeans, during his father Terah’s lifetime. 29 Abram and Nahor took wives: Abram’s wife was named Sarai, and Nahor’s wife was named Milcah. She was the daughter of Haran, the father of both Milcah and Iscah. 30 Sarai was unable to conceive; she did not have a child. Terah took his son Abram, his grandson Lot (Haran’s son), and his daughter-in-law Sarai, his son Abram’s wife, and they set out together from Ur of the Chaldeans to go to the land of Canaan. But when they came to Haran, they settled there. 32 Terah lived 205 years and died in Haran.
12:1 The Lord said to Abram: Go from your land, your relatives, and your father’s house to the land that I will show you. 2 I will make you into a great nation, I will bless you, I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing. 3 I will bless those who bless you, I will curse anyone who treats you with contempt and all the peoples on earth will be blessed through you. 4 So Abram went, as the Lord had told him, and Lot went with him. Abram was seventy-five years old when he left Haran.

Original Intent

1) In studying the Bible, repetition is significant. Abram is mentioned 9 times in this passage, the most of anyone. What is significant about him?
Genesis 11:26 contains the first reference to Abram. Abram/Abraham is mentioned 312 times in 272 verses in the Bible. He is the most notable man of the Old Testament and, except for Moses, no other Old Testament character is mentioned more in the New Testament than Abraham. Moses gives us the record of the lives of three early Jewish patriarchs, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. But Abraham’s son, Isaac, serves mainly as a transitional figure rather than a prominent one. Therefore, the early patriarchal record divides history between the two lives of Abraham and Jacob. The New Testament authors signify for us Abraham’s importance and impact in Scripture’s redemptive history. Believers in all generations are called Abraham’s sons (Galatians 3:7), and the Bible author James refers to him as “God’s friend.” (James 2:22-23) Under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, James reiterates the Lord’s message to the prophet Isaiah regarding Abraham as his friend. (Isaiah 41:8) This specific title is used of no one else in Scripture, although Exodus tells us Moses and the LORD spoke face to face as friends do. (Exodus 33:11) While we don’t meet Abram until he’s 75 years old, his role in the story of our own redemption is pivotal.


2)
Who called Abram?
Abram’s story begins in Ur, an ancient Chaldean city. Joshua describes his earlier history for us in his record. Before God called him, Abram had no knowledge of the one true God. (Joshua 24:2) He had no idea the God of the universe would choose a special people for Himself, nor that He would bring Abram into His plan to redeem mankind. Like He often does, God called an unlikely man from a family of idol worshippers, who himself was probably one. Following the information regarding Abram’s lineage, we are introduced to the first part of God’s call to him. In Genesis 12:1, several translations aptly translate the verse as “the Lord had said” instead of “the Lord said.” This is important because according to Acts 7:2-4, Abram received his call in Ur before his father died in Haran. We see in these Genesis verses it was God who called Abram to go to a land where the promise would be fulfilled for him and his descendants.

3) What was Abram called from? What was he called to?
Abram was called to leave his home and was called to go to an unknown place. God called him to this unseen promise as an example for those who would come after him, choosing to follow Christ though we cannot yet see our eternal promised hope in Heaven. “By faith Abraham, when he was called, obeyed and set out for a place that he was going to receive as an inheritance. He went out, even though he did not know where he was going.” (Hebrews 11:8) God was not only calling Abram to a land, but to a promise. In verses 2-3, God says “I will” five times. In chapter 11, we see man’s plan, but in chapter 12, we see God’s. (blueletterbible.org) God’s plan was bigger than Abram could ever have imagined! God called Abram to blessing in three ways: He would make him into a great nation, He would give Abram and his descendants a great name, and He would prosper and protect him. The apostle Paul offers insight into the promise God gave Abram as he guided the Galatians to understand that the blessing of righteousness in Jesus comes from faith, even for the Gentile, just as it had for Abraham. (Galatians 3:7-9)

Everyday Application

 

1) In studying the Bible, repetition is significant. Abram is mentioned 9 times in this passage, the most of anyone. What is significant about him?
According to Old Testament scholar Gordon Wenham, no section of Genesis is more significant than this passage. Abram was called by a God he had never known to leave his familiar environment and go to a land he had never seen. Since the beginning of history with Adam and Eve, man’s sin had resulted in God’s curse. Yet now God promises to redeem humanity and call out a people for Himself who would experience blessing and hope. Abram’s extraordinary faith is a foundation for all those after him who will enter into the story of God’s redemption with him. The significance of Abraham’s obedience is that it links every believer to Abram’s faith; all those after him who would trust God for salvation are impacted by Abraham’s obedience tied to his faith. (Acts 13:26). The birth of Christ was the culmination of that faith. Abraham was a living example of faith and hope in the promises of God, though unseen (Hebrews 11:8–10). Dear sister, may our lives so reflect this kind of faith in the unseen future that we pass on to those who come behind us a lasting hope.

2) Who called Abram?
It is the LORD who called Abram! It is Yahweh, the divine Creator who desired to have a relationship with His people. God’s call and promise to Abram in Genesis 12 focus on the hope that secures our sure future through His grace. It is the LORD God who called him out, and it is this same God who has called us out from our sin and saved us from death. (2 Timothy 1:9-10) The kind of faith God blesses is the kind willing to leave everything behind for the sake of the Lord Jesus Christ. Just as God called Abraham to leave, He calls us to leave the familiarity and comfort of sin and enter to the promise of eternal life. Jesus called people to follow Him, but some were unwilling. (Matthew 19:16-22) Paul reminded the believers in Philippi that it was God who called them to salvation and they were to only believe and obey, “Therefore, my dear friends, just as you have always obeyed, so now, not only in my presence but even more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling. For it is God who is working in you both to will and to work according to His good purpose.” (Philippians 2:12)

3) What was Abram called from? What was he called to?
Abram’s call from God reminded Moses and the Israelites that God had a plan for Abram’s life long before Abram had done anything for God. God had called Abraham as His humble servant simply because it pleased God to do so, thus revealing the amazing grace of God! God’s rich grace towards us is a theme woven throughout the life story of Abraham. God showed mercy to the patriarch at every moment of his life because he needed God’s mercy all the time. Abraham’s saving righteousness was a gift of mercy from the God who called him.  “Abram believed the LORD, and he credited it to him as righteousness.” (Genesis 15:6) As heirs of Abraham’s faith, we can follow his example. We are called out of sin and into God’s promise of eternal life. We are called out of disobedience and into the abundant life of Christ. We are called out of our temporary dwelling and into an eternal and better one; an extraordinary one!! (Hebrews 11:13-16)

What do YOU think?! Share Here!
Missing the connection to our other Journey Study?
Catch up withEntering The Extraordinary!

Digging Deeper is for Everyone!

1) Take this passage (or any other passage).
2) Read it, and the verses around it,
several times
3) Write down your questions
as you think of them.
4) Ask specific culture related questions and be ready to dig around for your answers. Google them, use www.studylight.org, or look them up in a study Bible and read the footnotes (click on the little letters next to a word and it will show you
other related verses!). (www.esvbible.org)
5) Check your applications with other trusted Christians that you are in community with and embrace the fullness of God
in your everyday!

Digging Deeper Community

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Why Dig Deeper?

Finding the original meaning is a huge deal when we study Scripture and can make all the difference in our understanding as we apply God’s truths to our everyday lives.

In our modern-day relationships, we want people to understand our original intention as we communicate; how much more so between God and humanity?!

Here’s a little bit more on why we take Digging Deeper so seriously.

Study Tools

We love getting help while we study and www.studylight.org is one of many excellent resources, providing the original Hebrew (Old Testament) or Greek (New Testament) with an English translation.

Want to know more about a specific word in a verse? Click on “Strong’s Interlinear Bible” then click the word you’d like to study. Discover “origin”, “definition” and hear the original pronunciation – That Is Awesome!

Want more background? Click “Study Tools”, then pick a few commentaries to read their scholarly approach, keeping in mind that just because a commentary says it, doesn’t mean it’s true. (just like the internet :-))

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Posted in: Called, Digging Deeper, Faith, Follow, God, Grace, Holy Spirit, Jesus, Obedience, Promises, Redemption, Scripture Tagged: abraham, blessing, Entering, extraordinary, Fulfilled, God of the Universe, I Will, reflect, righteousness

The GT Weekend Ten Week 1

August 8, 2020 by Rebecca Adams Leave a Comment

The GT Weekend!

At Gracefully Truthful, weekends aren’t for “checking out”.
Use this time to invite the Almighty’s fullness into you life in a deeper way!
Saturdays and Sundays are a chance to
reflect, rest, and re-center our lives onto Christ.
Don’t miss the opportunity to connect with other women in prayer,
rest your soul in reflective journaling,
and spend time worshiping the Creator who
longs for intimacy with each of us!

Worship Through Journaling

Worship Through Journaling

1) Idols come in all shapes and sizes. Maybe it’s the little “harmless” Buddha statue you leave food and water for. Maybe it’s a statue of Mary, or even Jesus, that you make the sign of the cross in front of, or give a little bow towards. While the motivations may be genuine, the Lord is clear about idolatry; it has no place in the life of a believer. The Lord is infinite and vast, much too magnificent to be represented by an object made by human hands. Idolatry doesn’t stop at objects, however, it seeps into our hearts through a love of anyone or anything more than the God of the Universe. He will not share His glory with anyone or anything else, because none, beyond Himself, are worthy of worship. Make some space this weekend with a pen and paper and God’s Word, praying for the Lord to reveal your idols. Lay these before the One God of all, and ask Him to quicken your heart to love Him most and best!

2) On Wednesday, Merry challenged us to reconsider the depths of taking on the Lord’s holy name. She picked up on the theme of marriage as Paul does in his letters about Christ and the Church. When we consider our daily walk with the Lord as being a marriage partnership where we are living under His Name and for the purpose of glorifying His Name, where might we be taking His Name in vain? Calling ourselves Christ-followers or walking through the doors of a church building, but not allowing His Holy Spirit to remake us from the inside out is taking the Lord’s Name in vain. We may appear as if we are working for the Lord, but really the inside hasn’t been remade. Live up to the calling you have been given in Christ! Live worthy of the high price of sacrifice and love Jesus has lavished upon you, and follow Him in full surrender! Take His Name, and live it out!

3) The idea of sabbathing is largely a foreign concept within the Church, and practically unheard of outside of the Church, which results in a tragic neglect of this precious, life-giving commandment from the heart of God. Many believers think, as I once did, that honoring the Sabbath equates to going to church on Sunday. While it can certainly include this, it isn’t the whole! Kendra beautifully shared, and challenged, us yesterday to begin incorporating Sabbath into our everyday rhythms of life. You can begin this weekend! The value doesn’t lie in a specific day, or a specific set of rules, but in setting aside time to truly rest and worship. The rewards are rich and deep; come see for yourself!

Praying Scripture back to the One who wrote it in the first place is a great way to jump start our prayer-life! Pray this passage from Ephesians 4:4-5 back to the Lord and
let His Spirit speak to you through it!

There is one body and one Spirit—just as you were called to the one hope that belongs to your call — one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all.

Prayer Journal
Father God, Your word is so rich and full of intricacies, deeper than I often am willing to see at first glance. Holy Spirit, teach me the depth of your majesty, the lavish love You have for mankind, and the work You have prepared for me as I follow You. Use this study of Your commandments to shake my heart and unveil my preconceived ideas about who You are! Take me deeper into truth, Lord God. Wrap me in grace as You show me Yourself. Convict me of sin, and fuel me with passion to pursue You with everything I have!

Worship Through Community

Can we pray for you? Reach Out! We’d love to pray for and with you!
Send us an email at prayer@gracefullytruthful.com

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Comment Here or in our Facebook Community Group!

Worship Through Prayer

Worship Through Music

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Posted in: Christ, church, Deep, Faith, Follow, God, GT Weekend, Holy Spirit, Jesus, Love, Peace, Rest, Sacrifice, Truth, Worship Tagged: calling, God of the Universe, God's Word, Holy Name, idols, sabbath, surrender

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And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen His glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth. John 1:14