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Teaching And Research By: M. E. Arbaugh
Overcoming
the
Enemies
of
Health
Success
Better than the Blood of
Bulls and Goats
From Before the Garden to the Desert
Covenants with:
EDEN, ADAM, NOAH
and ABRAHAM
LESSON THREE
EDEN
Before the fall, Adam was to replenish the earth and subdue it for
human use. God made covenant with Adam and Eve which gave them dominion
and the provision of all their needs, if they fulfilled the terms. The
terms were do not eat of the tree of knowledge of good and evil. The agreement
was clearly laid out. Obey and have life, dominion and the unconditional
provision of all your needs. Disobey and the results will be, death, subjection
and a struggle for your needs. In this covenant there was no middle ground
between blessing and cursing. No place was allowed for repentance. They
made the wrong choice.
ADAM
Where sin does abound, God's grace does much more abound. A new covenant
was made, this time it was a blood covenant. The Lord took animals and
slew them. He used the skins to clothe the man and his wife. In this covenant
the man and woman were responsible to do all known good and abstain from
all known evil. God provided the sacrifice for failure, a covering for
sin and the promise of a redeemer to come. Genesis 3:15 & Isaiah 42:6
NOAH
After the flood, God renewed His pledge of redemption for man. This
was an everlasting blood covenant. There was an altar, a sacrifice and the
shedding of blood. God pledged to Noah: Never again will the whole earth
be destroyed by flood. There will always be seed time, harvest, day and
night. Man was to have an increase of dominion over animals (this time
dominion would be because of fear.) Animals would be allowed for food.
The mark of the covenant would be God's rainbow in the sky. Noah's part (and
his seed after him) was: Do not ingest blood, (the life of the flesh is
in the blood) do not commit murder (this includes suicide, for man is made
in the image of God). Have faith in the coming redeemer. Noah became a
preacher of the righteousness which is of faith. 2 Peter 2:5
ABRAHAM
When Abram was ninety nine years old, the Lord appeared to him and
said, "I am God Almighty; walk before me and be blameless. I will confirm
my covenant between me and you and will greatly increase your numbers."
Abram fell face down, and God said to him, "As for me, this is my covenant
with you: You will be the father of many nations. No longer will you be
called Abram, your name will be Abraham, for I have made you a father of
multitudes. I will make you very fruitful; I will make nations of you,
and kings will come from you." Genesis 17:1-6 NIV
Let me give you a little background to this portion of scripture. In Genesis 12 we have the record of God speaking to a man named Abram. He said, I want you to leave this place and I am going to make you the father of a great nation. Abram is 75 and is married to a lady named Sari who is 65. Abram, whose name means high father, and Sari whose name means princess, do not have children. Being faithful to His covenant with Noah, God chose Abram, one of Noah's descendants. Previously, God dealt with mankind in general, now He selects a man. From this man (Abram, a moon worshipper from the line of Noah) there came the nation called Israel.
In chapter 13 of Genesis God said to Abram, look at the dust of the earth. Abram, your seed will be like the dust, so many, they won't be countable. In chapter 15 of Genesis, God brought Abram outside of his tent at night and said, "Abram look at the stars. If you could count them your descendants will be as many as the stars."
Try to imagine how difficult that might have been for Abram to believe. Both he and his wife, were getting along in years and still there were no children. Perhaps he thought, I must have dreamed God spoke to me. And yet, each time he kicked up dust he surely remembered that God had said, "So shall your descendants be." Each time he stepped out of the tent at night and looked at the beauty of the heavens, he no doubt, recalled with wonder that God said he would have as many descendants as there are stars.
He probably talked to Sari about it. Sari, do you know what God told me? He said, I'm going to have as many descendants as the stars. Sari may have thought he was getting a bit strange as he grew older. Still, each night as the stars came out, the words of God must have come once again into their thoughts. God said, as many descendants as the stars. WOW!!
Now here in chapter 17 it is about 24 years since God first began speaking to Abram. For twenty four years Abram and Sari have been looking at the dust and the stars and thinking about what God had said. And still, Abram and Sari do not have children. There was Ishmael, the son who was born of Hagar (Sari's handmaid) after Sari and Abram tried to help God. But God said, "No Abram, the child will come from Sari." (Genesis 17:16)
For 24 years God planted faith seed in Abram's heart. Then, when Abram was 99, God changed Abram's name from Abram to Abraham. Back in those days names were very important, everyone was aware of the meaning of names. When God changed Abram's name from exalted father (or boss in our current language), to father of many nations; He also changed Sari's to mean mother of many nations and told them they would have the son of promise by the same time next year.
It was necessary for Abraham to go out the next morning to talk with his employees and when they called him Abram, he had to say to them: "My name is now Abraham. Can you picture this 99 year old man with his 89 year old wife going out before their 318 servants and saying "I have an announcement to make. Our names have been changed to mean we are the father and mother of many nations." Here he was, with one son who was not counted as an heir. I can imagine the employees gathered there, trying to keep the smiles off of their faces, nudging one another and thinking, "The old man has really flipped."
Though it was not easy to do, Abraham spoke the words of God, believing God would bring His word to pass. Jeremiah 1:12. Now he and Sarah not only have the dust and the stars to think about, they also have people calling them father and mother of a multitude. Each time they called each other, in their minds, they heard, father of many nations or mother of many nations. Notice it was not true at the time it was being said. They still did not have a child, much less many nations as descendants.
In Chapter fifteen of Genesis, God tells Abraham to bring some specific animals to a specific place. So Abraham brought a three year old heifer, a three year old she goat, a three year old ram, a turtle dove and a young pigeon. Death passed over all of the animals. All (except the birds) were divided in half and placed back to back, with a walk way between the back bones.
The three animals that walked on the earth represented the humanity of Christ. The heifer stands for the vigor and strength of Jesus. The goat represents the sin offering of Jesus. The ram represents the consecration of Jesus. The two birds that fly represent the divinity of Jesus, they were not divided. The birds speak of one who came from heaven, and would return to heaven.
The sacrifices were arranged in piles so the parties involved in taking a covenant oath could walk a figure eight around them. The walk was literally a walkway of blood. The two circles of the eight represented eternity, with out end. With this covenant, God guarantees to Abraham, the promises will come to pass. Later Abraham, following the instructions of God, circumcised all of the males in his household. This was a sign of the covenant.
At the appointed time, Isaac the son of promise was born and there was trouble in the tent. The son of the flesh, Ishmael, was jealous of the son of the spirit, Isaac. Abraham following divine instructions, sent Ishmael away.
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God made it clear the promise would be fulfilled through Isaac. When Isaac was a young man (estimated age 25-27) God gave Abraham the order to take Isaac to Mount Moriah and offer him as a sacrifice. The scripture says Abraham believed God. Acting in faith, believing God would fulfill His word, Abraham prepared, went and was in the process of obeying when God stayed his hand. God accepted Abraham's will to obey as the accomplished fact. What was it that Abraham believed? He believed that God would honor His word even if He had to resurrect Isaac to do so. He also believed that God would provide the perfect sacrifice.
John 8:56 amp. "Your forefather Abraham was extremely happy at the hope and prospect of seeing My day [My incarnation]. And he did see it and was delighted."The covenant God made with Abraham was an everlasting covenant and included the seed of Abraham. The prophet Isaiah said, "For to us a child is born, to us a son is given;" Isaiah 9:6
Some would declare that us refers only to Abraham's natural descendants, but it is to the true Israelites that Isaiah spoke. Who are the true Israelites? Saint Paul said all are not Israel that are called Israel and then declared, it is the ones who belong to Christ and live by faith that are the true Israel. The true Israel is composed of those who are born again and worship Him in spirit and in truth. Romans 9:6 Galatians 3:7 and 3:29
The Jews (natural descendants of Abraham) told Jesus they had Abraham
as their father and Jesus replied: Yes, I know your are Abraham's offspring;
but if you were truly Abraham's children, you would do the works of Abraham:
John 8:37-40. The word says Abraham believed God and it was accounted unto
him as righteousness. It is faith that gets us into heaven, not nationality.
Galatians 3:29 NKJV And if you are Christ's, then you are Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise.
WHAT WERE THE COVENANT PROMISES that we inherited?
For Abraham, righteousness.
Genesis 15:6.amp. Abram believed, (trusted in, relied on, remained steadfast to the Lord): and He counted it to him as righteousness (right standing with God).
2 Corinthians 5:21 amp. For our sake, He made Christ to be sin Who knew no sin, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God.For Abraham, prosperity.
Genesis 13:2 amp Now Abraham was extremely rich in livestock and in silver and in gold.For us, abundance.
John 10:10 amp. "... I came that they may have and enjoy life and have it in abundance -- to the full, till it overflows."For Abraham, health.
2 Corinthians 8:9 amp. "... though He (Jesus) was (so very) rich, yet for your sakes He became (so very) poor, so that by His poverty you might become enriched -- abundantly supplied.
Genesis 25:7-8 amp. The days of Abraham's life were 175 years. Then Abraham's spirit was released and he died at a good (ample, full) old age, an old man, satisfied and satiated, and was gathered to his people.For us, health.
Matthew 8:17 amp. And thus He fulfilled what was spoken by the prophet Isaiah, He Himself took (in order to carry away) our weaknesses and infirmities and bore away our diseases.Next LESSON FOUR
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