A Thrill Of Hope Week 2
Read
Genesis 22:8-19
8 Abraham answered, “God himself will provide the lamb for the burnt offering, my son.” Then the two of them walked on together. 9 When they arrived at the place that God had told him about, Abraham built the altar there and arranged the wood. He bound his son Isaac and placed him on the altar on top of the wood. 10 Then Abraham reached out and took the knife to slaughter his son. 11 But the angel of the Lord called to him from heaven and said, “Abraham, Abraham!” He replied, “Here I am.” 12 Then he said, “Do not lay a hand on the boy or do anything to him. For now I know that you fear God, since you have not withheld your only son from me.” 13 Abraham looked up and saw a ram[c] caught in the thicket by its horns. So, Abraham went and took the ram and offered it as a burnt offering in place of his son. 14 And Abraham named that place The Lord Will Provide,[d] so today it is said, “It will be provided[e] on the Lord’s mountain.” 15 Then the angel of the Lord called to Abraham a second time from heaven 16 and said, “By myself I have sworn,” this is the Lord’s declaration: “Because you have done this thing and have not withheld your only son, 17 I will indeed bless you and make your offspring as numerous as the stars of the sky and the sand on the seashore. Your offspring will possess the city gates of their enemies. 18 And all the nations of the earth will be blessed[g] by your offspring because you have obeyed my command.” 19 Abraham went back to his young men, and they got up and went together to Beer-sheba. And Abraham settled in Beer-sheba.
Matthew 1:1-17
1 An account of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the Son of David, the Son of Abraham:
From Abraham to David
2 Abraham fathered Isaac, Isaac fathered Jacob, Jacob fathered Judah and his brothers, 3 Judah fathered Perez and Zerah by Tamar, Perez fathered Hezron, Hezron fathered Aram, 4 Aram fathered Amminadab, Amminadab fathered Nahshon, Nahshon fathered Salmon, 5 Salmon fathered Boaz by Rahab, Boaz fathered Obed by Ruth, Obed fathered Jesse, 6 and Jesse fathered King David.
From David to the Babylonian Exile
David fathered Solomon by Uriah’s wife, 7 Solomon fathered Rehoboam, Rehoboam fathered Abijah, Abijah fathered Asa, 8 Asa fathered Jehoshaphat, Jehoshaphat fathered Joram, Joram fathered Uzziah, 9 Uzziah fathered Jotham, Jotham fathered Ahaz, Ahaz fathered Hezekiah, 10 Hezekiah fathered Manasseh, Manasseh fathered Amon, Amon fathered Josiah, 11 and Josiah fathered Jeconiah and his brothers at the time of the exile to Babylon.
From the Exile to the Messiah
12 After the exile to Babylon Jeconiah fathered Shealtiel, Shealtiel fathered Zerubbabel, 13 Zerubbabel fathered Abiud, Abiud fathered Eliakim, Eliakim fathered Azor, 14 Azor fathered Zadok, Zadok fathered Achim, Achim fathered Eliud, 15 Eliud fathered Eleazar, Eleazar fathered Matthan, Matthan fathered Jacob, 16 and Jacob fathered Joseph the husband of Mary, who gave birth to Jesus who is called the Messiah. 17 So all the generations from Abraham to David were fourteen generations; and from David until the exile to Babylon, fourteen generations; and from the exile to Babylon until the Messiah, fourteen generations.
Summary
We are in week 2 of our Thrill of Hope series. Humanity has always been saved by faith, the role of God in providing the sacrifice was the fulfillment of the promise made in Genesis 3, He would crush the serpent's head. Abraham was part of that path to the promise. A part of the path was a required sacrifice, one that God provided. It is in that sacrifice that we find hope, our hope in His character, releases the faith in our hearts. God provided Isaac to Abraham in fulfillment of his promise to give Abraham a child. In the same way, God provided Jesus to us, in fulfillment of His promise to make us His children. As a covenant making and keeping God, He always provides.
We see this in the story of Abraham and Isaac, an illustration of faith. Abraham’s faithfulness was a demonstration of his hope. He knew that God would spare his son, because of his promise. His submission to God meant surrendering the emotions he was struggling with, and clinging the hope of the promise.
Our first point is: Hope Is Developed By How We Relate To God
Abraham related to God by Faith. He had already failed once before (trying to have a son on his own), but God stayed faithful to provide and perform His word to him. This test of faith began with a 3-day journey to the place God had chosen. Mount Moriah was where God asked Abraham to sacrifice Isaac. Abraham’s obedience was a part of the Christmas story, Jesus would come from the lineage of Abraham. Where God spared Abraham’s son on Mount Moriah, God allowed Jesus to be sacrificed on Mount Moriah also called Golgotha. At times we can’t hear God because we stop relating to God after we get what we want from God, our promise. Abraham traveled, with his promise (Isaac), was prepared to sacrifice him, until God told him to not lay a hand on the boy.
Point two is: Hope Is Demonstrated By What We Release To God
Abraham didn’t just release his son, he also himself. By not withholding his son, he kept him from becoming an idol. God is asking us to release our bitterness, our pride, our children, all things that can keep us from Him. When we are unwilling to release to release something, we see what has become our idols. God’s faithful love toward us is better experienced by us when we give our lives to Him.
Our final point is: Hope Is Determined By How We Receive And Relate To Jesus
You can’t relate to Jesus unless you have a relationship with him. It’s that relationship that provides the hope you are looking for. Abraham had hope because he had a relationship with YAHWEH. We have hope because of our relationship with Jesus. There were 42 generations that heard of Abraham’s sacrifice of Hope, 42 generations after Abraham there would be another sacrifice of Hope when Jesus gave His life. Jesus is the proof that God provides, and we can find hope in Him.
Discussion
How did you relate to God before you accepted Him? Share
How do you relate to God as your Savior? Share
What have you released to God? Share
How did your outlook change once you made that release? Share
What does HOPE look like in your life? Share
Announcements
I want to thank all of you that came out and helped us during our OCC collection week. We had a great time taking in the thousands of boxes people prepared.
CG Leaders, please be on the lookout for an email from my assistant Meichelle. It should be coming your way this week.
Let’s continue to pray for each other and send prayer requests through our WhatsApp thread. If you are a CG Leader and are not on our WhatsApp thread please contact Meichelle at meichelle.vasquez@bt.church
Pastor Isuaro Medina
Isauro.medina@bt.church
Cell: (956) 984-9380
