January 22, 2019
Salvation in a B.C. World
Genesis 15
Kristen Belveal
Central Truth
What do A.D. and B.C. salvation have in common? Faith! God's people have always been justified by faith alone.
Key Verse | Genesis 15:6
And he believed the LORD, and he counted it to him as righteousness.
Genesis 15
God's Covenant with Abram
1 After these things the word of the LORD came to Abram in a vision: “Fear not, Abram, I am your shield; your reward shall be very great.” 2 But Abram said, “O Lord God, what will you give me, for I continue 1 15:2 Or I shall die childless, and the heir of my house is Eliezer of Damascus?” 3 And Abram said, “Behold, you have given me no offspring, and a member of my household will be my heir.” 4 And behold, the word of the LORD came to him: “This man shall not be your heir; your very own son 2 15:4 Hebrew what will come out of your own loins shall be your heir.” 5 And he brought him outside and said, “Look toward heaven, and number the stars, if you are able to number them.” Then he said to him, “So shall your offspring be.” 6 And he believed the LORD, and he counted it to him as righteousness.
7 And he said to him, “I am the LORD who brought you out from Ur of the Chaldeans to give you this land to possess.” 8 But he said, “O Lord God, how am I to know that I shall possess it?” 9 He said to him, “Bring me a heifer three years old, a female goat three years old, a ram three years old, a turtledove, and a young pigeon.” 10 And he brought him all these, cut them in half, and laid each half over against the other. But he did not cut the birds in half. 11 And when birds of prey came down on the carcasses, Abram drove them away.
12 As the sun was going down, a deep sleep fell on Abram. And behold, dreadful and great darkness fell upon him. 13 Then the LORD said to Abram, “Know for certain that your offspring will be sojourners in a land that is not theirs and will be servants there, and they will be afflicted for four hundred years. 14 But I will bring judgment on the nation that they serve, and afterward they shall come out with great possessions. 15 As for you, you shall go to your fathers in peace; you shall be buried in a good old age. 16 And they shall come back here in the fourth generation, for the iniquity of the Amorites is not yet complete.”
17 When the sun had gone down and it was dark, behold, a smoking fire pot and a flaming torch passed between these pieces. 18 On that day the LORD made a covenant with Abram, saying, “To your offspring I give 3 15:18 Or have given this land, from the river of Egypt to the great river, the river Euphrates, 19 the land of the Kenites, the Kenizzites, the Kadmonites, 20 the Hittites, the Perizzites, the Rephaim, 21 the Amorites, the Canaanites, the Girgashites and the Jebusites.”
Dive Deeper | Genesis 15
Many people read the Bible and wonder how people were saved in the Old Testament. Well, Genesis 15 gives us an example of how people were saved by giving us insight into a conversation Abram had with God.
In Genesis 15:1-5, God promised to reward Abram greatly, to give him a biological son for an heir, and to give him innumerable descendants. This mirrors the promises that God made in Genesis 12:1-3. How did Abram respond to God? Genesis 15:6 says, “And he believed the LORD, and he counted it to him as righteousness.”
Abram being counted righteous because of his belief in God's promises is a picture of what God’s salvation has always looked like—we are justified by faith, not by our works. He was counted righteous before he received the covenant of circumcision (Genesis 17:10-14) and before his descendants received the Law (including the sacrificial system). So, neither circumcision nor keeping the Law brings salvation. Romans 4:1-12 also talks about this concept.
Of course, God went on to fulfill all of these promises! In Genesis 21:1-3, Abram and his wife Sarai (renamed Abraham and Sarah) had their son, Isaac. Based on Exodus 1, we know that Abraham’s descendants through his son Isaac and grandson Jacob (also known as Israel) had multiplied so much that the Pharaoh saw them as being too many and too mighty (Exodus 1:9). Last but not least, Abraham’s descendants entered the Promised Land and conquered it in the book of Joshua, which led to Israel becoming a nation. No one keeps promises like God!
Furthermore, Romans 4:16 says that Abraham is the father of us all. Like him, Christians are declared righteous by faith. When we believe in Jesus Christ, the son/descendant of Abraham through whom all the families of the world are blessed (Genesis 12:3, Matthew 1:1), we are justified (i.e., declared righteous). It’s as if we have Jesus' perfectly righteous record credited to us instead of our own sinful pasts.
Salvation has always been and will always be by grace through faith (Ephesians 2:8-9). If that isn’t good news, I don’t know what is!
Discussion Questions
1. Do you ever feel like you have to work your way to God? If your answer is yes, read the following verses, which also emphasize that salvation is by faith, not works: Ephesians 2:4-5, 2:8-9; John 5:24; Romans 3:21-28, 5:1.
2. Who in your life needs to hear the gospel? Commit to praying for them and for wisdom about how to move forward with sharing the gospel.
3. If you are a Christian, how did you first hear and believe the gospel? Find someone to share your testimony with this week!
4. This chapter talked a lot about God's promises to Abraham, but have you ever taken the time to study God's promises to believers? If so, which ones do you cherish the most? Let us know in a comment below.