Posts with the tag “abraham”

Today's reading: Hebrews 7:1-28The author of Hebrews compares Jesus to Melchizedek, the mysterious priest and king we saw back in Genesis 14. The main idea here is that Jesus is a priest who is more like Melchizedek than the Levitical priests who came after him. This is a complex and somewhat confusing chapter that we covered last year in our study of Hebrews. If you'd like to dig into this deeper...  Read More

Today's reading: James 2:1-26I'm going to focus on the last part of this chapter beginning in verse 14. Although many claim that James is contradicting Paul here, that is certainly not the case. To the Hebrew mindset, belief is always associated closely with action. In fact, we could accurately define "faith" as "belief that results in action".James cites the example to demonstrate that idea. Abra...  Read More

Today's reading: Galatians 3:1-29Paul references quite a few of the passages we read in Genesis the last couple of weeks. He goes all the way back to the promise God made to Abraham in Genesis 12. He then reminds his readers that, as we see in Genesis 15:6, Abraham was declared righteous because of his faith, not by adhering to the law, which didn't come until hundreds of years later. And we're re...  Read More

Today's reading: Romans 4:1-25Paul emphasizes that Abraham was made righteous before God the same way that we all are - by faith and not by our works. God declared Abraham righteous before he obeyed God by being circumcised and before obeyed God by being willing to sacrifice his son, Isaac. His obedience flowed from his righteousness, but it did not earn that righteousness.Most religions are based...  Read More

Today's reading: Matthew 1:1-17A lot of times it is tempting to just skim, or even skip over, the genealogies we find in the Bible. But Matthew, who is writing primarily to Jews, begins his gospel with this genealogy because it was important to show that Jesus was the fulfillment of the covenant God made with Abraham. So his genealogy begins with Abraham rather than going all the way back to Noah ...  Read More

Today's reading: Genesis 22:1-24God commands Abraham to sacrifice his son, Isaac, who God calls his "only son" since he is the son through whom God is going to build the great nation that He promised to Abraham.There are many things in this account that point ahead to Jesus and His sacrifice on our behalf:Abraham is commanded to sacrifice "his only son" just as God sacrificed His One and Only SonI...  Read More

Today's reading: Genesis 17:1-27God reaffirms His covenant once again, just as we saw yesterday in Genesis 15. This time He changes Abram's name from Abram, which means "exalted father" to Abraham, which means "father of a multitude" as a reminder of His promise to make Abraham into a great nation. He also promises that the nation will come not through Ishmael, but to another son to be born to his...  Read More

Today's reading: Genesis 15:1-21There is a lot here that might not make sense unless we understand the ancient method of establishing a covenant. The Hebrew word for “covenant” is  “berîyth” which is derived from a root that means “to cut.”   Ancient covenants were established by the cutting and dividing of animals into two parts. The contracting parties would then pass between the animal parts.  ...  Read More

Use today to catch up on your reading if you got behind this week and/or to reflect on what you've been reading. Consider whether your generosity is appropriate in light of what God has done for you....  Read More

Use today to catch up on your reading if you got behind this week and/or to reflect on what you've been reading. Think about how God has blessed you so that you can be a blessing to others....  Read More

Today's Reading: Genesis 14:1-24This morning I'm going to focus on the section that begins in verse 17. Here we are introduced to this mysterious figure named Melchizedek, who is both a king and a priest of the God Most high. He appears in the Bible only here and in two other places -in a Messianic Psalm in Psalm 110:4 and in the book of Hebrews. In Hebrews, we learn that Melchizedek is a "type" o...  Read More

Today's Reading: Genesis 12:1-20Today we move into the third section of this year's reading plan - God's covenant promise to Abraham. This covenant is foundational to God's plan to save HIs people from their sins.The first thing to note is that God initiates His plan. He doesn't wait for Abram to come to Him - He goes to Abram. God promises to make Abram into a great nation that He will bless. But...  Read More