The God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob – Part 1

[Study Aired March 13, 2023]

Introduction

When God burst on the scene to deliver His people Israel (type of His elect) out of Egyptian captivity, He introduced Himself as follows in the following encounter with Moses:

Exo 3:6  And he said, “I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.” And Moses hid his face, for he was afraid to look at God.

Exo 3:15  God also said to Moses, “Say this to the people of Israel: ‘The LORD, the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has sent me to you.’ This is my name forever, and thus I am to be remembered throughout all generations.
Exo 3:16  Go and gather the elders of Israel together and say to them, ‘The LORD, the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, of Isaac, and of Jacob, has appeared to me, saying, “I have observed you and what has been done to you in Egypt,

In telling Moses that He is the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, He is showing us that through His dealings with these three people, He is unveiling to us what His eternal purpose is, how His eternal purpose is being fulfilled and how He deals with the people that He chooses to accomplish His purpose. In this encounter with Moses, He also introduced Himself to Moses that “I AM WHO I AM”. This means that He is the self-existing one and is beyond comprehension.  However, we can know His purpose and His ways through His dealings with our fathers – Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. What we need to understand is that the patriarchs were three and the number three spiritually means the process of spiritual maturity through judgment. So, what we are going to learn about God introducing Himself as the God of our fathers is to show how He takes us from the pit of darkness to become spiritually mature sons through His judgment to accomplish His purpose.

If we add together all the different aspects of the experiences of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob including Joseph, who was technically part of Jacob, we see a clear picture of the complete experience of the elect and our understanding of God’s eternal purpose and how His eternal purpose is being fulfilled through His elect.

Exo 3:14  God said to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM.” And he said, “Say this to the people of Israel: ‘I AM has sent me to you.’” 

Isa 51:1  “Listen to me, you who pursue righteousness, you who seek the LORD: look to the rock from which you were hewn, and to the quarry from which you were dug. 
Isa 51:2  Look to Abraham your father and to Sarah who bore you; for he was but one when I called him, that I might bless him and multiply him.

The question is why did God introduced himself as the God of our Fathers Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and not anyone else? It is because from the time of creation to the time of Abraham, nobody had been given the task of changing his circumstance to pursue God’s agenda of going through a land to be possessed by his future generation except Abraham. That takes a lot of faith since at that time, it was humanly impossible for Abraham to have a child!! This task given to our father Abraham was subsequently transferred to Isaac and then Jacob and it unveils God’s plan of salvation for the elect first and then the whole of mankind. God in His wisdom had caused Abraham, Isaac and Jacob to live their lives on earth in such a way as to demonstrate to us how those who will come later to believe in Him will come to know Him, understand His purpose for His creation and how He deals with His elect to fulfill His purpose. What we need to note is that while we walk here on this earth, it is impossible to fully know who God is because here on earth, we only see in part and when we become perfect (when we see him as He is), then we can know Him fully.

1Co 13:9  For we know in part and we prophesy in part,
1Co 13:10  but when the perfect comes, the partial will pass away.

1Co 13:12  For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I have been fully known.

1Jn 3:2  Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is.

I remember several years ago when the Spirit of the Lord was moving me in my quest to search the scriptures to know Him, some of my friends in the churches of this world told me that since we cannot know Him so much while we are here on earth, the little scriptures that we know should suffice in our Christian walk and so we should devote ourselves to prayer and obedience. The fact is if you do not know somebody well, how can you know what He likes or dislike? It is impossible to be obedient to someone you do not know well. They quoted this verse of scripture to support their claim:

Deu 29:29 “The secret things belong to the LORD our God, but the things that are revealed belong to us and to our children forever, that we may do all the words of this law. 

They said that since the secret things belong to God, we should not worry ourselves when we do not understand certain aspects of the scriptures. They were not given eyes to see that the secret things here are those things about God which have not been written. This is because no books can even contain all that Jesus did. We are therefore admonished in Paul’s letter to the Corinthians to not go beyond what is written.

Joh 21:25  And there are also many other things which Jesus did, the which, if they should be written every one, I suppose that even the world itself could not contain the books that should be written. Amen.

The verse in Deuteronomy 29:29 therefore has become a stumbling block for many as they give up their quest to know God, forgetting that the same verse in Deuteronomy 29:29 says that the things which are revealed belong to us. The things which are revealed pertain to the Word of God that we have in our homes. They also forget Paul’s admonition to Timothy to study to show himself approved, a workman who need not be ashamed but rightly dividing the word.  Some even quote that knowledge brings about pride (1Co 8:1) and therefore as a result, there is no such desire to seek Him and know Him!! We have therefore thrown away knowledge and as the scriptures say, “for lack of knowledge my people perish”!!

1Co 4:6  And these things, brethren, I have in a figure transferred to myself and to Apollos for your sakes; that ye might learn in us not to think of men above that which is written, that no one of you be puffed up for one against another.

2Ti 2:15  Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.

1Co 8:1  Now as touching things offered unto idols, we know that we all have knowledge. Knowledge puffeth up, but charity edifieth. 

As we are aware, our relationship with God is governed by knowledge just as our relationship with our family and friends are. Relationships are deepened through knowledge.

God, in His quest to establish a relationship with the Israelites in bondage in Egypt, needed to introduce Himself to the Israelites in a powerful way to convince the Israelites and even the messenger Moses to follow Him. Introducing Himself as the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob is therefore very significant. As we explore God’s relationship with these patriarchs, we will get to know Him and how He relates to us.  We must remember that for us His elect, we are supposed to know His ways and His acts but for the others, they are destined to only know His acts!!

Psa 103:7  He made known his ways unto Moses (a type of His elect), his acts unto the children of Israel. 

In introducing Himself as the God of Abraham, our Lord Jesus Christ was showing us how He picks us from the miry clay and starts the process of cleaning us up to reflect His image and to give us the hope of salvation. The God of Isaac reveals to us that it is the Lord who does all the work within us, as we rest in Him. Isaac was privileged to have all the wealth amassed by his father Abraham. Even when he needed a wife, it was his father who worked through Eliezer to bring him a virtuous woman, Rebecca. All that Isaac did was to wait for the bride to come to him. The God of Jacob shows us how the Lord seeks an occasion to judge us by causing us to go astray and that through our judgement, we learn righteousness. The story of Jacob therefore highlights his deception as he deceived his father, Isaac, to receive Esau’s blessing and as a result, went through bitter suffering. Through this suffering, he learned righteousness and became spiritually mature such that He was able to inherit the promise – the rulership of the elect under his son Joseph who is technically considered as part of Jacob’s experience.

The Lord introducing Himself as the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob was therefore a complete revelation of who Christ is, His work and purpose. The Book of Revelation is therefore a summary of the Lord’s introduction of Himself as the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. It sums up who Christ is, our suffering which leads to righteousness, our reward, and the salvation of the world. In fact, every aspect of the Bible is a revelation of Christ, and most are circumstance specific. That is, we get to know certain aspects of Christ in these circumstances. For example, the transfiguration of Christ tells us about the fact that after our life here on earth (6 days), we shall be changed just like Christ was at the Mount of transfiguration. Our transformation begins as the law serves as our schoolmaster until faith comes (the appearance of Moses). This is followed by our need to repent (the appearance of Elijah) and then Christ comes into our lives to transform us.

Mat 17:1  And after six days Jesus taketh with him Peter, and James, and John his brother, and bringeth them up into a high mountain apart:
Mat 17:2  and he was transfigured before them; and his face did shine as the sun, and his garments became white as the light.
Mat 17:3  And behold, there appeared unto them Moses and Elijah talking with him. 
Mat 17:4  And Peter answered, and said unto Jesus, Lord, it is good for us to be here: if thou wilt, I will make here three tabernacles; one for thee, and one for Moses, and one for Elijah.
Mat 17:5  While he was yet speaking, behold, a bright cloud overshadowed them: and behold, a voice out of the cloud, saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased; hear ye him.
Mat 17:6  And when the disciples heard it, they fell on their face, and were sore afraid.
Mat 17:7  And Jesus came and touched them and said, Arise, and be not afraid.
Mat 17:8  And lifting up their eyes, they saw no one, save Jesus only.

Gal 3:23  But before faith came, we were kept under the law, shut up unto the faith which should afterwards be revealed. 
Gal 3:24  Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith. 
Gal 3:25  But after that faith is come, we are no longer under a schoolmaster. 

Mat 3:1  In those days came John the Baptist, preaching in the wilderness of Judaea, 
Mat 3:2  And saying, Repent ye: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand. 
Mat 3:3  For this is he that was spoken of by the prophet Esaias, saying, The voice of one crying in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make his paths straight.

With all these in mind, let us begin by plowing through the life of Abraham to know what our Lord Jesus Christ means when He says that He is the God of Abraham.

Knowing God Through Abraham

Abraham’s Calling – Leaving Egypt (the world)

Gen 11:27  Now these are the generations of Terah: Terah begat Abram, Nahor, and Haran; and Haran begat Lot.
Gen 11:28  And Haran died before his father Terah in the land of his nativity, in Ur of the Chaldees.
Gen 11:29  And Abram and Nahor took them wives: the name of Abram’s wife was Sarai; and the name of Nahor’s wife, Milcah, the daughter of Haran, the father of Milcah, and the father of Iscah.
Gen 11:30  But Sarai was barren; she had no child.
Gen 11:31  And Terah took Abram his son, and Lot the son of Haran his son’s son, and Sarai his daughter in law, his son Abram’s wife; and they went forth with them from Ur of the Chaldees, to go into the land of Canaan; and they came unto Haran, and dwelt there. 
Gen 11:32  And the days of Terah were two hundred and five years: and Terah died in Haran.

Abraham was steep in idolatry before God called Him to fulfil His purpose. His background was so dark that God had to appear to him twice. He was worshipping other gods in Chaldees when God approached him. Abraham was not the originator of the call. This shows that it is therefore not of him that wills or runs but of God that shows mercy.  It was God who took the initiative.

Jos 24:2  And Joshua said unto all the people, Thus saith the LORD God of Israel, Your fathers dwelt on the other side of the flood in old time, even Terah, the father of Abraham, and the father of Nachor: and they served other gods.

Act 7:2  And he said, Men, brethren, and fathers, hearken; The God of glory appeared unto our father Abraham, when he was in Mesopotamia, before he dwelt in Charran,
Act 7:3  And said unto him, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and come into the land which I shall shew thee. 
Act 7:4  Then came he out of the land of the Chaldaeans, and dwelt in Charran: and from thence, when his father was dead, he removed him into this land, wherein ye now dwell. 
Act 7:5  And he gave him none inheritance in it, no, not so much as to set his foot on: yet he promised that he would give it to him for a possession, and to his seed after him, when as yet he had no child.

Rom 9:16  So then it is not of him that willeth, nor of him that runneth, but of God that sheweth mercy.

We can easily identify with Abraham. When God called us, we were also in thick darkness with no hope for us. However, God who is rich in mercy came to us to begin our spiritual journey. Even though we did not respond to His call immediately just like Abraham, He was always with us just as His spirit moved over the waters covering the earth at the beginning of creation when the earth was without form and void.

Gen 1:1  In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.
Gen 1:2  And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters.

The number two means a witness. So, God always leaves a witness when He comes to visit us. The first time was in Ur of the Chaldees. In Acts 7:2, it states that the God of glory appeared to Abraham when he was in Mesopotamia before he dwelt in Haran. Abraham did not respond to this call wholly. However, his father was the key influence in moving Abraham from Mesopotamia to Haran, just short of the Promised Land (Gen 11:31). This is to show us that at the beginning of our walk, our own fleshly zeal (denoted by Abraham’s father Terah) carry us to a certain point in fulfillment of God’s purpose but it is not able to carry us far into the spiritual reality of Christ. That is what the scripture means by the following verse in Isaiah 61:5.

Isa 61:5  And strangers shall stand and feed your flocks, and the sons of the alien shall be your plowmen and your vinedressers.

The fact that the God of Glory visited Abraham to leave Ur of the Chaldees is significant as Chaldees refers to Babylon. Thus, we are to leave Babylon which represents the physical churches of this world if we are to respond to God’s call.

Rev 18:4  And I heard another voice from heaven, saying, Come out of her, my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues. 

When Abraham’s father died, then God appeared a second time to him in Haran (Gen 12:1-5). When we are dominated by the flesh, God uses our flesh to further His course and it is only when we start the process of daily dying to the flesh (represented by Terah’s death) that we can respond to God’s call in a positive way by moving to the Promised Land which signify the beginning of our dominance over the flesh.

1Co 15:31  I protest by your rejoicing which I have in Christ Jesus our Lord, I die daily.

Gen 12:1  Now the LORD had said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father’s house, unto a land that I will shew thee:
Gen 12:2  And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing:
Gen 12:3  And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed.
Gen 12:4  So Abram departed, as the LORD had spoken unto him; and Lot went with him: and Abram was seventy and five years old when he departed out of Haran.
Gen 12:5  And Abram took Sarai his wife, and Lot his brother’s son, and all their substance that they had gathered, and the souls that they had gotten in Haran; and they went forth to go into the land of Canaan; and into the land of Canaan they came. 

Leaving his country and kindred to follow God speaks of us leaving Egypt, that is, the world to pursue God’s agenda.  The country and kindred that Abraham left signify the fact that God wants us to leave the world and the flesh behind (the flesh must die) in our walk with Him. Unfortunately, we all start our walk with Christ as carnal as depicted by Abraham leaving Haran with Lot.

1Co 3:1  And I, brethren, could not speak unto you as unto spiritual, but as unto carnal, even as unto babes in Christ. 
1Co 3:2  I have fed you with milk, and not with meat: for hitherto ye were not able to bear it, neither yet now are ye able.
1Co 3:3  For ye are yet carnal: for whereas there is among you envying, and strife, and divisions, are ye not carnal, and walk as men? 

God’s Promises to Abraham – Being an instrument to save the world

The promise God made when He came to Abraham the second time is that He will make of Abraham a great nation and will bless Him and that through Abraham all the families of the earth will be blessed. This was God’s purpose when He called Abraham.

Gen 12:2  And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing:
Gen 12:3  And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed.

This promise by God is to motivate and strengthen Abraham and the elect that will come later to accept God’s calling. The promises are of three-fold:  First, to make out of Abraham a great nation; Second, to bless Abraham and thirdly, to make Abraham a blessing to all the families of the earth. The great nation to come out of Abraham is the Kingdom of God which is now within His elect but will be manifest at the fullness of time. God’s promise of a blessing to Abraham is explained by Paul as being the promise of the Spirit. In Galatians 3:14, it is stated that the blessing of Abraham is that we His elect will receive the promise of the Holy Spirit through faith. Making Abraham a blessing to all the families of the earth is another way of saying that through the elect (Abraham) all humanity will be saved.

Gal 3:14 That the blessing of Abraham might come on the Gentiles through Jesus Christ; that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith.

Luk 17:20  And when he was demanded of the Pharisees, when the kingdom of God should come, he answered them and said, The kingdom of God cometh not with observation:
Luk 17:21  Neither shall they say, Lo here! or, lo there! for, behold, the kingdom of God is within you. 

1Ti 2:3  For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Saviour;
1Ti 2:4  Who will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth.

Now let’s focus a bit on the blessings promised to Abraham our father and to us. Blessings can be physical or spiritual. Physical blessing relates to provision, benefit, protection, etc. In the Old Testament, the blessings that the men of God received are all physical. To be blessed physically is for our existence and as the Bible says, to exist only is vanity of vanities. Are we in this life to make a living for ourselves? Oh no!! It is in the New Testament that we are given spiritual blessings which relates to the fulfillment of God’s purpose. We need both the physical and the spiritual blessings to exist to accomplish God’s purpose. Spiritual blessings relate to being called and chosen to become holy and without blame before Him while we live here on earth as indicated by Paul. In addition to our physical blessing, we need God’s grace (spiritual blessing) to be able to accomplish God’s purpose. Grace means God Himself coming to us as revealed in John 1:17 to chastise us to live soberly, righteously, and godly in this present world. So, we need both physical and spiritual blessing (grace) to be able to accomplish God’s purpose.

Eph 1:3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ: 
Eph 1:4 According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love:

Joh 1:17 For the law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ. 

Joh 1:14 And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.

Joh 1:16 And of his fulness have all we received, and grace for grace.

Tit 2:11 For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men,
Tit 2:12 Teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world.

The Departure of Lot – Doing Away with the Flesh

Gen 13:1  And Abram went up out of Egypt, he, and his wife, and all that he had, and Lot with him, into the south.
Gen 13:2  And Abram was very rich in cattle, in silver, and in gold. 
Gen 13:3  And he went on his journeys from the south even to Bethel, unto the place where his tent had been at the beginning, between Bethel and Hai;
Gen 13:4  Unto the place of the altar, which he had made there at the first: and there Abram called on the name of the LORD.
Gen 13:5  And Lot also, which went with Abram, had flocks, and herds, and tents. 
Gen 13:6  And the land was not able to bear them, that they might dwell together: for their substance was great, so that they could not dwell together.
Gen 13:7  And there was a strife between the herdmen of Abram’s cattle and the herdmen of Lot’s cattle: and the Canaanite and the Perizzite dwelled then in the land. 

As indicated earlier, Lot going with Abraham to the promised land means that we start our walk with Christ as carnal or fleshy. Over time, Abraham grew rich in cattle, silver and gold as he journeyed to Bethel which means the house of God. Becoming rich in silver and gold is to make us aware that Abraham was growing in the truth of the knowledge of God and was also physically blessed (rich in cattle). In other words, his eyes were being opened and his ears were hearing the mysteries of the kingdom of Heaven. On the other hand, Lot, representing the flesh, is also growing in flocks, herds and tents. What this means is that the flesh was being strengthened. In other words, the flesh’s resistance to the things of the spirit is increasing within us as our eyes begin to see and our ears hear. Definitely, we cannot have two masters within us – one must be subdued. This conflict between Abraham’s herdsmen and that of Lot is all part of the work of the Lord to get rid of the flesh which in this case is Lot and his herdsmen. This is how the Bible describes this conflict:

Mat 6:24  No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.

Gal 5:17  For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other: so that ye cannot do the things that ye would.
Gal 5:18  But if ye be led of the Spirit, ye are not under the law.

Since we are led by the Spirit, the flesh will be dealt with through our fiery trials which comes as a result of the word we have received. The exit of Lot from the company of Abraham signifies the dying of the old man and the birth of the new man after the image of Christ. The conflict between Abraham’s herdsmen and that of Lot signifies our fiery trials.

Gen 13:11  Then Lot chose him all the plain of Jordan; and Lot journeyed east: and they separated themselves the one from the other. 
Gen 13:12  Abram dwelled in the land of Canaan, and Lot dwelled in the cities of the plain, and pitched his tent toward Sodom.

Abraham’s Seed and the Land – The means of achieving God’s purpose.

Gen 15:1 After these things the word of the LORD came unto Abram in a vision, saying, Fear not, Abram: I am thy shield, and thy exceeding great reward.
Gen 15:2  And Abram said, Lord GOD, what wilt thou give me, seeing I go childless, and the steward of my house is this Eliezer of Damascus?
Gen 15:3  And Abram said, Behold, to me thou hast given no seed: and, lo, one born in my house is mine heir. 
Gen 15:4  And, behold, the word of the LORD came unto him, saying, This shall not be thine heir; but he that shall come forth out of thine own bowels shall be thine heir. 
Gen 15:5  And he brought him forth abroad, and said, Look now toward heaven, and tell the stars, if thou be able to number them: and he said unto him, So shall thy seed be.
Gen 15:6  And he believed in the LORD; and he counted it to him for righteousness.

As already stated, God’s purpose as revealed in His encounter with Abraham is to have a people who express Him and through them all the families of the earth will be blessed. However, to fulfill this eternal purpose, there are two things that are needed – the seed (a son to be borne by Abraham) and the land. The seed here physically represents Isaac. However, spiritually, Isaac represents Jesus whose coming is to cause a people to express God’s image and His dominion. This people (a great nation) will later become a blessing to all the nations of the earth. Unfortunately, Abraham did not have a seed and so he counted on Eliezer as the seed. However, nothing that we have is useful for fulfilling God’s purpose.  God promised Abraham that He will work it out through him. In our walk with God, nothing that we have, or we can do (in bringing forth Ishmael) is useful for fulfilling God’s purpose. Just like Abraham, God has promised to work it out in us and bring forth the seed, which is the new man in us, borne after the image of Christ.

The second requirement for fulfilling God’s purpose is the land. The land is a place for God’s people to live in, a place where God’s enemies would be defeated, a place where God will have a habitation and a place where God will build His kingdom. Looking at it from one perspective, the land is our body. In another perspective, the land represents Christ. As the scriptures say, in Him we live, move, and have our being. It is in Christ that we can defeat our enemies and can build the kingdom.

Act 17:28  For in him we live, and move, and have our being; as certain also of your own poets have said, For we are also his offspring. 

Every kingdom has a territorial domain and in the case of the elect, our bodies (hearts and minds) are supposed to be the dwelling place of Christ or His throne where His kingdom dwells. Christ has to come and establish His kingdom within us first before the kingdom becomes visible later in another age. Unfortunately, the beast is already occupying the throne of Christ within us when we were borne. This is the same with Abraham. When he went to Canaan, the land was fully occupied by Canaanites, the Hittites, the Perizzites, the Jebusites, etc. That’s why David said the following:

Psa 51:5  Behold, I was shapen in iniquity; and in sin did my mother conceive me. 

Since we cannot on our own defeat the beast within us, it is imperative that Christ must come first so that in Him we can drive away the beast or the flesh to establish His kingdom. That’s why it was extremely important for Abraham to have a seed (Christ) first. Without a seed, Abraham can only be a stranger in the land since he does not have what it takes to drive away the Canaanites occupying the land. That is why Abraham’s call was just to go through the land as a stranger. The good news is that Christ had assured us through His covenant with Abraham that we shall possess the Land. That is, we shall possess our bodies for Christ to establish His kingdom within us.

Gen 15:18  In the same day the LORD made a covenant with Abram, saying, Unto thy seed have I given this land, from the river of Egypt unto the great river, the river Euphrates: 
Gen 15:19  The Kenites, and the Kenizzites, and the Kadmonites,
Gen 15:20  And the Hittites, and the Perizzites, and the Rephaims,
Gen 15:21  And the Amorites, and the Canaanites, and the Girgashites, and the Jebusites.

It took a long time for Abraham to have a seed and for the seed to multiply enough to be able to possess the land – more than four hundred years. In other words, it took a long time for Isaac to be born and for the twelve sons of Jacob to multiply enough to leave Egypt and to possess the land.

Gen 15:13  And he said unto Abram, Know of a surety that thy seed shall be a stranger in a land that is not theirs, and shall serve them; and they shall afflict them four hundred years;
Gen 15:14  And also that nation, whom they shall serve, will I judge: and afterward shall they come out with great substance.

This shows the Lord’s patience in dealing with us before we are capable of dealing with the beast to establish the Lord’s kingdom within. We, His elect, must also learn to be patient in dealing with the Lord, our brothers and sisters in Christ, our family and the people of the world.

Heb 10:35  Cast not away therefore your confidence, which hath great recompence of reward.
Heb 10:36  For ye have need of patience, that, after ye have done the will of God, ye might receive the promise.
Heb 10:37  For yet a little while, and he that shall come will come, and will not tarry.
Heb 10:38  Now the just shall live by faith: but if any man draw back, my soul shall have no pleasure in him.
Heb 10:39  But we are not of them who draw back unto perdition; but of them that believe to the saving of the soul.

Next week, we shall continue with the God of Abraham, God willing.

May the Lord be merciful to us as Christ increases within us to establish His kingdom!! Amen!!