Read Genesis 15

A popular children’s song begins, “Father Abraham had many sons / and many sons had Father Abraham.” The Scriptures name eight sons of Abraham. One was his child with his maid Hagar (Gen. 16:3–4). Another was his son with Sarah (Gen. 21:1–3). The other six were born to Keturah, the woman he married after Sarah died (Gen. 25:1–6). But we don’t sing about “Father Abraham” because he gave birth to numerous sons. More importantly, he is our father in the faith.

Today’s passage shows why Abraham deserves this title: not because of his parenting skills but because of his faith. Up until this point Abraham had relied on God to provide for his needs (see Gen. 14:21–24). But he was troubled

by his lack of an heir, despite God’s promise to make him a great nation (Gen. 12:2). The Lord reiterated His promise in a vision, and Abraham’s response was one of faith (vv. 5–6). Because of his faith, the Lord rewarded him with the gift of righteousness. In this way Abraham became the prototype of all who believe (see Rom. 4:3; Gal. 3:6; James 2:23).

Abraham continued to struggle with doubt. His son by Hagar was the result of an attempt to bring about God’s promise through human effort. But in the end, he “was strengthened in his faith and gave glory to God, being fully persuaded that God had power to do what he had promised” (Rom. 4:20–21). God waited until Abraham and Sarah were too old to have children by any means other than divine intervention to show that the promise came from God.

We are Abraham’s children if we believe God’s promise to give us the gift of righteousness through Jesus Christ (Gal. 3:7).

APPLY THE WORD

We can become frustrated when God does not answer our prayers as quickly as we would like, especially when we are praying for God to work in our family life. Trust God to act in His own good time. Ask the Lord to increase your faith that He will not only keep His promises but also will do so in the best way and the perfect time.

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Read Geness 10

Many cultures have creation or migration legends that tell how a people group or nation began. Some skeptics view the table of nations in Genesis 10 this way. Seventy names are listed along with the nations that proceeded from Noah’s descendants. The biblical narrator does not give any indication, however, that this list is legendary or allegorical. The list includes the names of individuals along with some of their accomplishments, including some of the greatest cities in biblical history.

The purpose of the list is to set the stage for the destruction of the Tower of Babel. The overall impression is one of proliferation and growing ambition. In the next chapter this will culminate in an arrogant attempt to supplant God Himself.

Instead of multiplying and filling the earth as they had been commanded (see Gen. 9:1, 7), the men of Babel chose to build a monument to themselves in the form of a city with a tower that reached to the heavens (Gen. 11:4). The function of this tower does not appear to have been for the purpose of worshiping God or even astrological deities. Instead, it was part of their project of self-worship. They were more intent on making a name for themselves than they were on glorifying God’s name. God thwarted their plan by destroying their tower, confusing their language, and scattering the people. This judgment was also a blessing, for it halted their rebellion.

This curse was reversed on the day of Pentecost—not by restoring everyone to a single language, but by allowing everyone to declare the wonders of God in the langue of “every nation under heaven” (Acts 2:5). Despite mankind’s rebellion, God continues to work out His ultimate purpose for His creation. The whole earth will be filled with His glory.

APPLY THE WORD

Have you ever wished that God had placed you in another family? Paul’s words in our key verse for today, Acts 17:26, are also true of our family background. God’s sovereign purpose was at work in selecting our appointed time and place. Pray for each of your family member by name today and ask God to extend His grace to them.

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Read Genesis 9:18-29

Ernest Hemingway was raised in a Christian home. So was pop superstar Katy Perry and best-selling author Bart Ehrman. Atheists such as Richard Dawkins sometimes claim people have faith only because of their family background, but plenty of evidence demonstrates that belief is not passed to the next generation like hair color. The faith of a father or mother does not automatically guarantee that their children will believe.

Noah’s family is one of many biblical examples of this. Noah experienced grace, but his son Ham rejected God’s truth.

It’s important to see that the experience of grace did not make Noah perfect. He behaved scandalously by becoming drunk and passing out unclothed in his tent. Some scholars have suggested that Noah behaved this way out of ignorance, arguing the phrase “proceeded to plant” implies that this was his first experience with wine. The biblical text includes the reaction of Shem and Japheth, however, to suggest that Noah’s behavior was shameful. Unlike his brothers, Ham sinned by failing to show his father respect (v. 22).

The focus of the passage is on the curse and blessings that follow. Noah’s curse foreshadowed the struggle between Israel (descended from Shem) and the inhabitants of Canaan (vv. 25– 26). God had spared a remnant from the Flood, but sin and discord would still characterize human relationships. Some have suggested that the curse on Canaan implies that he might have been complicit in this incident. It at least suggests that Ham’s son was already following in his father’s footsteps.

The entrance of grace into a family is no guarantee that everyone will walk in faith. Even those who experience God’s grace sometimes fall. It is natural to be disappointed when this happens, but we should not be shocked.

APPLY THE WORD

One way to deal with the collateral damage that sin creates in family life is by covering sin. This is not the same thing as denying or ignoring sin. The grace of covering is the decision to follow this exhortation from Scripture: “Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you” (Col. 3:13).

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SONS OF ADAM

Popular websites such as Ancestry.com have helped millions of people trace their family tree. Some who have been adopted hope to learn something about their family of origin. Many people are hoping to discover that they are related to some notable or interesting historical figure. But the results are not always happy. We may discover that our ancestor was a thief or a murderer rather than a laudable hero.

That is certainly true when we trace our human genealogy back to the first family. Instead of success we find failure on an epic scale.

In these first few studies we have been focused on God, who is the perfect Father. As we shift our attention to earthly fathers, we see a different picture. Today’s passage helps us to understand why. All earthly families are affected by the curse of sin. The relational consequences show up early in human history in the form of shifting blame (see Gen. 3:11–13). Tragically, these consequences were passed on to the descendants of Adam and Eve. In today’s passage we learn how Adam’s firstborn son Cain murdered his brother Abel. The motive was spiritual jealousy. God had accepted Abel’s sacrifice and rejected Cain’s. Subsequent chapters show how this tragic cycle of sin continues in all of Adam’s descendants.

This sad fact is important to know and helps us to understand the stories we will study in the days ahead. It also explains much about our own family experience. The stark reality of sin combined with the mystery of God’s grace helps to explain why good parents can sometimes have bad children and why children from bad homes can turn out better than expected. It explains the root cause of abuse within families. The intrusion of sin into human experience means no perfect families populate this world. We are all dysfunctional in some way.

APPLY THE WORD

Are you disheartened by your family tree? Are you discouraged by a wayward child or an unresponsive parent? Take heart: “Where sin increased, grace increased all the more” (Rom. 5:20). God’s grace extends to broken families. He can redeem and transform hurt and pain, forgive generational sin, and restore relationships.

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Read 1 Corinthians 13

What would you expect to pay for a scoop of gourmet ice cream? How about $816? The Scoopi Café in Dubai offers the “Black Diamond,” which is ice cream flavored with Madagascar vanilla, Iranian saffron, black Italian truffles, and edible, 23-karat gold sprinkles. This treat comes with a Versace bowl and spoon that the customer keeps. It’s the most expensive ice cream in the world!

The most, the best, the highest—we find superlatives fascinating. When Paul wrote that he would describe “the most excellent way” (12:31), our ears perk up. This chapter is an encomium, that is, a poem written to praise an abstract idea or quality. Paul used poetic techniques such as hyperbole and metaphor to make his points more vividly.

First, he described the worth of love (vv. 1–3). Its value is incalculable, to the point where anything else, lacking love, is worthless or empty. He used examples that we might (and the Corinthians did) think of as spiritually impressive, which made his conclusion that much more shocking. Second, Paul defined or explained love (vv. 4–7). The Greek word is agape, meaning love that is selfless, self-sacrificing, warm, and full of good will and brotherly affection. It prioritizes the well being of others. This list should take our breath away! Who among us can claim to live like this? Only by the power of the Spirit can we grow in this direction.

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Read 1 Corinthians 12:12-31

A classic series of Peanuts comic strips by Charles M. Schulz features Snoopy taking up jogging. As he runs, his body parts speak up. The lungs complain, “This is hard on us lungs.” The feet whine, “Why do we feet have to do all the work?” And the heart warns, “If I start complaining, you’re all in trouble.”

Sometimes the body of Christ acts this way as well! But that’s not what God intended. By comparing the church to a human body, Paul has highlighted its diverse yet unified nature. He had already taught on the imperative of unity, but unity doesn’t mean sameness. God’s design includes amazing, wonderful diversity, and this is beautifully communicated in the metaphor of the body with Christ as the Head (vv. 12–14). A body has many parts and functions and differences, yet it has a single identity and passes through experience as a unified entity. So, too, does the church.

In Paul’s first cycle of rather humorous examples (vv. 15–20), his point was that no part of the body is inferior or unneeded. Jews were not more important than Gentiles; slaves were not less essential than free believers. In context, then, we know there is no pecking order in the second list of spiritual gifts in verses 28 through 30—none are inferior or unneeded. The second cycle of examples (vv. 21–27) makes the same point from the other direction, as Paul asserted that all parts of the body are indeed necessary and interdependent.

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Read 1 Corinthians 3:1-9

Scientist Carl Hodges believes that a plant called salicornia, or sea asparagus, can help solve the world’s food and energy problems. Salicornia is nourished by seawater and can grow in places with little soil or fresh water. It can also be converted into biofuel (like ethanol). Hodges has already developed successful “seawater farms” in Eritrea and northern Mexico.

Hodges’s goal is a healthy crop to benefit the world. When Paul compared the church to a farmer’s field in today’s reading, he similarly meant that the church’s purposes should be maturity and fruitfulness. Being divided over leaders showed the shallowness of their faith, but a deeper understanding of the gospel, the Cross, and the Spirit would move them in the right direction.

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Read 1 Corinthians 1:4-9

In an interview about his book The Church Awakening: An Urgent Call for Renewal, pastor and author Chuck Swindoll worried that the church today is too focused on entertainment rather than worship. He offered this perspective as a corrective: “When you come Sunday, you’re going to focus on One who is eternal, and we’re all going to meet him together. And in doing so, we’re going to leave different than we came because we will have been in his awesome presence, and we will be ignited by the work of the Spirit within us.”

Paul’s pressing word for the Corinthians was much the same. But before he began exhorting and correcting them, he first affirmed the power of God’s grace in their lives. Compared to other epistles, he spent less time commending them and more time commending God to them. God is the One in whom they should boast and find their true identity.

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Read Colossians 1:3-23

Roman emperor Caesar Augustus understood the value of political propaganda. In addition to his military victories that ended a civil war and his extensive public works campaigns, he also commissioned poets to sing his praises. Virgil, who wrote the Aeneid in honor of Augustus, also penned these lines: “He shall have the gift of divine life, shall see heroes mingled with gods, and shall himself be seen by them, and shall rule the world to which his father’s prowess brought peace.”

Despite the lofty attributes ascribed to him by poets, Augustus did not in fact have divine life. But as we see in our passage today, there is One who is truly worthy of such lavish praise. The apostle Paul wrote a magnificent hymn of praise to Jesus, every word of which is true. This text also describes how our identity as blessed in Christ flows from His unique being and nature.

We’ll focus on two parts of our identity mentioned in this passage. First, we have been rescued and redeemed from the power of sin (vv. 13–14). We had no claim based on our own merit or qualifications to enter the kingdom of God, but we have been given this privilege based on the work of salvation that Jesus accomplished for us (v. 12).

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Read Philippians 4:4-20

In 2013, the animated film Frozen was released—and within days, millions of parents heard the same refrain from their daughters: “I need an Elsa doll! I need an Elsa dress!” Stores quickly sold out their stock of Frozen merchandise, from dolls to costumes to lunch boxes. Two years later, Elsa dolls were still among the top five best sellers from online retailer Amazon.

Many of us think of praying for our needs in the same way: “God, I need a job! God, I need a car! God, I need healing from this disease!” Often our requests are reasonable; human existence does require food, shelter, health, and provision for our physical needs. And God welcomes our requests and cares about what happens to us. But notice that throughout our study of God’s blessings, we have not seen any of these items mentioned. Perhaps God’s perspective on our needs differs from our human viewpoint.

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Read Romans 8:14

The character Superman can fly faster than a speeding bullet and leap tall buildings in a single bound. But Superman uses the alter ego of mild- mannered reporter Clark Kent to veil his true identity. Clark Kent is unobtrusive, wearing inconspicuous clothes—until Superman needs to save the day. Then he hurriedly pulls off his dress shirt to reveal the large “S” emblazoned on Superman’s uniform.

For the rest of our study this month we’ll focus on the ways that we are blessed in Christ. An essential part of our identity is the blessing of the Holy Spirit, who indwells our hearts. Though we might look like everyone else around us, in reality we have the power of God’s Spirit in our lives, shaping our true identity to look more like Jesus. Unlike Superman and Clark Kent, however, we don’t have to keep our true identity a secret.

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Read Ephesians 3

In 1943 psychologist Abraham Maslow published a paper describing his “Theory of Human Motivation.” It became known as the hierarchy of needs, with basic human needs such as food, shelter, and safety forming the base of the pyramid, while self- actualization—the desire to be all you can be—was the pinnacle. In 1969 Maslow revised his theory to add another step beyond self-actualization: self-transcendence. He thought that the self could truly be actualized only when it was focused on a higher goal outside itself, whether that be spiritual or philanthropic.

Maslow seems to have realized that the human search for purpose can never be fulfilled by looking within ourselves. Thankfully, in Christ we are part of God’s eternal purpose. We are part of something beyond ourselves, and this eternal purpose transforms our lives even now.

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Read Galatians 3:26-4:7

Inheritance fraud is one of the most common scams perpetrated today. You receive notification that someone with your same last name (perhaps a distant relative?) has died without heirs. The so-called lawyers who sent the letter say that for a small fee to process some paperwork, the vast inheritance can be yours! But they keep requesting fees and bank transfer details and no inheritance ever arrives.

Thankfully, our identity as heirs of God is secure! We are heirs not because of how impressive our accomplishments are or because we have the right genetic profile—we are heirs because we belong to Christ (3:29).

Our passage today is filled with some of the most beautiful and profound statements about our identity. Through faith in Jesus, we are children of God (3:26). This familial relationship is more than just emotional connections of love and care. It also has legal implications; as God’s children, we stand to gain His inheritance (4:7). We have the Spirit of God within our hearts as confirmation of our status as heirs (4:8). Unlike the inheritance fraudsters who just want to take your money, God gives us the Spirit as a down payment on our inheritance. We have the Spirit dwelling within us now, and one day we will dwell with God fully, worshiping in His presence.

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