New Identity, New Resopnsibilities

You may be seated.

Good morning.

My name's Matthew Capone, and I'm one of the pastors here at Cheyenne Mountain Presbyterian Church.

! And it's my joy to bring God's word to you today.

A special welcome if you're new or visiting with us.

We're glad that you're here.

And we're glad that you're here not because we're trying to fill seats,

but because we're following Jesus together as one community.

And as we follow Jesus together, we become convinced that there's no one so good,

they don't need God's grace, and no one so bad that they can't have it.

Which is why we come back week after week to hear what God has to say to us in his word.

This morning we're continuing our series in the book of Genesis.

The book of Genesis first tells the origin of the world in chapters 1 through 11.

And then it tells the origin of God's people, the story of Israel, in chapters 11 through 50.

We are focusing only on chapters 11 through 25 because we are in the Abraham story.

And we're looking at Abraham for two reasons.

First, because we are preparing to go back into our series in the book of Romans.

Romans chapter 4 is about Abraham.

Romans 4 · chapter mention

Second, it allows us to ask the question, what does it look like to follow God in faith?

Last week we were in Genesis chapter 16, which I told you was one of the most painful and tender passages in Scripture.

Genesis 16 · chapter mention

Painful because of human failing and tender because of God's great mercy and grace.

This week we're in chapter 17.

There have been 13 years of silence since the end of the previous chapter.

So we have a large gap between 16 and 17.

17 is a follow-up in many ways to chapter 15.

Because both 15 and 17 cover God's covenant.

When we talk about covenants, we are always talking about the nature of our relationship with God.

That's the realm that we're in when we have covenant talk.

Chapter 15, we ask this question, what is the foundation of our relationship with God?

You remember the foundation is that we are His children.

That will never change.

Chapter 17 is a different question, not what is the foundation of our relationship,

but what does it mean to be in a relationship with God?

How does that relationship change and form us?

And so with that, I invite you to turn with me to Genesis chapter 17.

Genesis 17 · chapter mention

You can turn on your phone.

You can turn in your worship guide.

You can open your Bible.

And no matter where you turn, remember that this is God's Word.

Proverbs chapter 30, verse 5 tells us,

Proverbs 30:5

Every word of God proves true.

He is a shield to those who take refuge in Him.

And so that's why we read now chapter 17, starting at verse 1.

When Abram was 99 years old, the Lord appeared to Abram and said to him,

I am God Almighty.

Walk before me and be blameless,

that I may make my covenant between me and you,

and may multiply you greatly.

Then Abram fell on his face,

and God said to him,

Behold, my covenant is with you,

and you shall be the father of a multitude of nations.

No longer shall your name be called Abram,

but your name shall be Abraham,

for I have made you the father of a multitude of nations.

I will make you exceedingly fruitful,

and I will make you into nations,

and kings shall come from you.

And I will establish my covenant between me and you,

and your offspring after you throughout their generations,

for an everlasting covenant,

to be God to you and to your offspring after you.

And I will give to you and to your offspring after you

the land of your sojournings,

all the land of Canaan,

for an everlasting possession,

and I will be their God.

Verse 9.

And God said to Abraham,

As for you, you shall keep my covenant,

you and your offspring after you throughout their generations.

This is my covenant,

which you shall keep between me and you

and your offspring after you.

Every male among you shall be circumcised.

You shall be circumcised in the flesh of your foreskins,

and it shall be a sign of a covenant between me and you.

He who is eight days old among you shall be circumcised.

Every male throughout your generations,

whether born in your house or bought with your money,

from any foreigner who is not of your offspring,

both he who is born in your house

and he who is bought with your money,

shall surely be circumcised.

So shall my covenant be in your flesh,

an everlasting covenant.

Any uncircumcised male who is not circumcised

in the flesh of his foreskin

shall be cut off from his people.

He has broken my covenant.

Verse 15.

And God said to Abraham,

As for Sarah, your wife,

you shall not call her name Sarah,

but Sarah shall be her name.

I will bless her,

and moreover I will give you a son by her.

I will bless her,

and she shall become nations.

Kings of peoples shall come from her.

Then Abraham fell on his face and laughed

and said to himself,

Shall a child be born to a man

who is a hundred years old?

Shall Sarah, who is ninety years old,

bear a child?

Verse 18.

And Abraham said to God,

Oh, that Ishmael might live before you.

God said, No,

but Sarah, your wife,

shall bear you a son,

and you shall call his name Isaac.

I will establish my covenant with him

as an everlasting covenant

for his offspring after him.

As for Ishmael, I have heard you.

Behold, I have blessed him

and will make him fruitful

and multiply him greatly.

He shall father twelve princes,

and I will make him into a great nation.

But I will establish my covenant with Isaac,

whom Sarah shall bear to you

at this time next year.

Verse 22.

When he had finished talking with him,

God went up from Abraham.

Then Abraham took Ishmael his son

and all those born in his house

or bought with his money,

every male among the men of Abraham's house,

and he circumcised the flesh of their foreskins

that very day,

as God had said to him.

Abraham was ninety-nine years old

when he was circumcised

in the flesh of his foreskin.

And Ishmael his son was thirteen years old

when he was circumcised

in the flesh of his foreskin.

That very day,

Abraham and his son Ishmael were circumcised.

And all the men of his house,

those born in the house,

and those bought with money from a foreigner,

were circumcised with him.

I invite you to pray with me

as we come to this portion of God's word.

Our Father in heaven,

we do thank you again for your word,

that you do speak to us

in words that we can understand.

We ask that you would do that this morning,

that you would open our eyes

to what you have for us,

that you would speak to us,

you'd teach us,

you would grow our love for you

and our obedience as well.

We thank you that we don't worry this morning

about whether we've earned

or deserved these things.

We know that we haven't,

and so we simply ask for them

in the mighty name of Jesus Christ.

Amen.

Amen.

In April of 2016,

there was a news article that came out

that threatened to break the internet,

as they say,

because the British government

had commissioned a research vessel

for polar research.

So this vessel was supposed to study

global warming and climate change,

polar science, rising sea levels,

and they decided they had a great idea

that they would find the name,

they'd pick the name of this ship

through an online poll.

And so there were a variety of names

that rose to the surface in this.

One of them was Ice Ice Baby.

Another one was I Like Big Boats

and I Cannot Lie.

Science with three exclamation points.

Clifford the Big Red Boat.

None of those I've told you about

won the poll, though.

The winner was this,

Bodie McBoatface.

And so the question that came up was this,

are they going to honor the poll?

Will they do what they said

they were going to do?

Will the British government

have an RRS,

Bodie McBoatface?

And the answer was this,

no.

British government went back on their word.

They didn't do what they said

they would do.

They didn't honor the process.

No, instead they decided

they're going to name the ship

after a natural scientist.

And so it was named after

David Attenborough.

It makes sense, right?

It's fitting.

It makes sense that a ship

devoted to natural science

would be named after

a natural scientist.

Principle is this,

names really matter.

names really matter.

You actually can't name

a research vessel

by the British government,

Bodie McBoatface.

Because the name of the ship,

right, it needs to reflect

the ship's purpose

and mission.

Names shape

and show

our identity.

Parents, you know this.

When you named

your child,

there's a good chance

that name reflected

your hopes for them, right?

Especially if you choose

a name from the Bible.

Man, I like this character

and what they show

and I want my son

or daughter to show that.

Wives, when you got married,

maybe you took

a new last name, right?

Because there's a change there

in identity.

That's what's happening here

in chapter 17.

Verses 4 and 5,

we go from Abram,

which means father,

to Abraham,

which means father

of many nations.

There's a change.

Yes, Abram's a father.

He hasn't been

for most of his life.

He has one son,

Ishmael.

That's the present.

The future is going

to be something much greater.

The father not of nations,

of a nation,

many nations.

Same thing happens

with Sarai to Sarah,

verse 15.

Now, there's a vowel change

that happens.

That's the difference here.

And what's hard about this

is that Sarai and Sarah

actually mean the same thing.

So they both mean princess.

Our best guess, then,

is that the first name

reflects the past,

that Sarah came

from this royal family.

The new name

reflects the future,

that she will be

the mother of kings.

Note that in verse 16,

it's said in the context

of the name change,

she shall become nations,

kings of peoples

shall come from her.

By the way,

this is the first,

but not the only mention

of kings in Genesis.

The first time we're told

that the kings

are going to come

from Abraham and Sarah.

And so we see also,

not just this identity marker,

but there's a decisive break

from the past here.

We knew Abram and Sarah,

they were a couple

with no kids

wandering around

in the desert.

Now we're introduced

to Abraham and Sarah.

And we might say

in a certain sense

they're new characters

because the new names matter.

What does it mean

to be in a relationship

with God?

How does that relationship

change us?

First answer is this.

It means that God

gives us a new identity.

It means that God

gives us a new identity.

Now it doesn't mean

that your name will change,

although we do call

ourselves Christians.

It does mean we get

a new purpose,

a new mission,

a new life.

I had a job interview

many, many years ago

and I think

it was a large interview.

It was me

and a bunch of people

around this big table

and I think

one of the individuals

that interviewed

had gone on the internet

and searched questions

to ask in a job interview

and got in probably

one of the worst lists possible.

And so she looked at me

and she said,

how would you describe yourself

in one word?

Which is extremely relevant

to getting a job.

And I'm terrible

at questions like that

and really the only answer

I could think of

was the one I gave.

I said, well,

redeemed.

That's the Christian

in one word.

What is one word

that describes you

as a Christian?

Redeemed.

You've been bought by God.

You've a new identity.

So if you're a Christian,

what is most true about you?

What is most true about you

is not that you are a man

or a woman

or a boy or a girl.

It is not that you are wealthy

or poor.

It is not your choices

or your parents' choices.

It is not your education

or your lack of education.

I'm not saying those things

don't matter.

I'm not saying they're insignificant.

They are not

what is most true

about you.

They are not

what is most important.

What is most important

about you

is this,

that you belong

body and soul

to your faithful Savior,

Jesus Christ.

He is fully paid

for all your sins

with his precious blood

and he has set you free

from the tyranny

of the devil.

He also watches over you

in such a way

that not a hair

can fall from your head

without the will

of your Father in heaven.

In fact,

all things must work together

for your salvation.

Christian,

that is what is most true

about you.

That is what is first.

Of course,

that brings to us

both great humility

and great hope.

Humility,

if we look to all

those other things,

if we think,

I'm fine

because I'm smart

or wealthy

or powerful,

brings great hope

if you don't have

any of those things.

What does the world say

if you don't have

any of those things?

Either hustle

or give up.

The Bible says

something quite different.

If you don't have

those things,

you still belong,

body and soul,

to Jesus Christ.

Brothers and sisters,

we do not make

our own identity.

That is the great lie

of our current age.

The great lie

of our current age

is that it is all

up to you

to figure out

exactly who you are

and what that means.

That's actually

too great of a weight

for you to carry

as a human.

That's actually more

than you were meant

to figure out.

It's like that quote

that I told you

from a few years ago

by Taylor Swift.

I have some good news.

It's totally up to you.

I have some terrifying news.

It's totally up to you.

Christian,

I have some good news.

It is not at all

up to you.

We don't make

our identity.

We receive it.

What do you believe

is most true

about you?

If it is something

other than

the fact that

you have been redeemed,

you have lost

the plot.

That is what

is most important.

I also don't want you

to miss that there

is a decisive break

from the past here.

There's, of course,

many things that have

happened to Abraham

and Sarah,

and there's now

a new future.

You,

if you're a Christian,

have a decisive break

from the past

as well.

I do not mean

that the past

does not affect you.

Remember,

I had a professor

in seminary.

He said,

there are things

that have happened

to me in this life

that I will

never get over.

Meaning,

the impact of that

is going to travel

with me until I die.

And so,

I'm not saying

the past doesn't

affect you.

What I am saying

is this.

It cannot

define you.

It cannot

define you.

2 Corinthians

2 Corinthians 5 · chapter mention

chapter 5

tells us,

therefore,

if anyone

is in Christ,

he is a new

creation.

The old

has passed away,

the new

has come.

If you belong

to God,

there is

nothing else

that gets

the final

word on you.

If you belong

to God,

there is

nothing else

that gets

the final

word

on you.

What did we sing?

Verse 3,

this is on page 4.

And if

he has

redeemed me,

I am not

my own.

The measure

of my worth

is his love

alone.

He declares

my standing

and he declares

my state.

So,

I will know

myself

by the

what?

By the name

he

gave.

If you are

cynical,

you might

be thinking,

man,

that sounds

really great,

Matthew,

except you

totally skipped

verses 1

and 2.

What does

God say to

Abraham in

verses 1

and 2?

He says,

walk before

me and

be

blameless.

Man,

that kind of

sounds like a

bait and switch,

right?

Sounds like

you have to

earn something

from God.

Yes,

get those

new names

and there's

a new

weight that

comes along

with it.

Kind of

sounds,

right?

You have

to earn

something

from God.

Then in

verses 9

through 13,

there's all

these instructions

about circumcision.

Verse 14,

the threat

of punishment.

If you

do not

circumcise,

you'll be

cut off.

So,

how is

this new

identity,

how is

that a

good thing

if it

also comes

with this

requirement,

this demand

to be

blameless?

To understand

that,

we've got

to grasp

a couple

of things.

First,

we have

to understand

what is

meant by

a covenant.

The word

covenant

appears 13

times in

this passage,

and there's

many different

ways of

defining it.

The definition

I like

best shows

up on the

back of

your worship

guide.

It's from

a pastor

who says

this,

a covenant

is a

stunning

blend

of both

law

and love.

It is

more intimate

and loving

than a mere

contract,

more binding

and accountable

than a mere

relationship.

God's calling

Abraham into

this relationship.

It's a relationship

that has intimacy

in it.

It's also a

relationship that

has things that

are binding

and accountable.

The second

thing then

is God

is not,

Abraham is not

earning God's

blessing here.

What's being

presented to us

is the logic

of relationships.

That blessing

requires certain

activities.

Okay,

blessing

requires

certain

activities.

You'll see

this on page

seven of your

worship guide.

Obedience

then is the

means of

living within

the sphere

of blessing

and enjoying

it.

Obedience

is never

the means

of earning

or deserving

the blessing.

In other words,

you never earn

God's blessings.

You do have

to be in the

right place

to receive

them.

Okay,

you don't earn

God's blessings.

You do have

to be in the

right place

to receive

them.

So think

about it

this way.

Today is

July 6th.

Two days

ago was

July 4th.

If you

were invited

to a

cookout

and you

went,

you received

a blessing.

Right?

Probably

you got a

hamburger

or a hot

dog.

did you

earn

the

burger?

No.

Would

you have

received

the

burger

had you

not

shown

up

to

the

cookout?

No.

You had

to be

within

the sphere

of blessing.

Right?

You had

to be

within

the

proximity

of the

grill.

Your

invitation

was not

based on

merit.

The host

did not

say,

come over

to my

house

because

you

have

performed

so

well.

Come

over to

my

house.

You

showed

up.

You

didn't

earn

anything.

But

you

had

to

be

there

to

receive

it.

Kids,

you

know the

same

thing.

If

you

want

to

receive

your

parents'

wisdom

and

blessing

and

guidance,

what

do

you

have

to

do?

You

don't

have

to

earn

it.

It's

given

to

you

freely,

right?

You're

their

child.

You

do

have

to

show

up

for

it.

You

do

have

to

be

within

the

same

thing

here

with

Abraham

and

Sarah.

Do

they

earn

anything

that

God

has

promised

to

them

to

become

a

great

nation?

Of

course

not.

Do

they

have

to

do

something?

Yes.

It

actually

turns

out

there

are

certain

things

you

have

to

do

if

you

want

to

have

a

child.

Abraham

and

Sarah

are

going

to

have

to

do

those

things.

They

don't

earn

the

blessing.

They

show

up

to

know

what's

also

included.

The

Lord

appeared

to

Abraham

and

said

to

him,

I

am

God

Almighty.

The

Hebrew

word

here

is

El

Shaddai.

El

Shaddai

talks

about

God's

great

power

over

creation.

In

other

words,

God

is

saying

these

great

things

are

going

to

happen

to

you

because

I

will

do

it.

Verse

two,

I

will

make

the

covenant.

Verses

five

through

seven,

I

will,

I

will.

Of

course,

that's

going to

have to

happen,

right?

God

was not

in the

ancient

Near

East

looking

for

the

most

powerful

or

fertile

couple,

and

if

he

were,

he

would

not

have

chosen

Abraham

and

Sarah.

God

loves

to

use

the

foolish

and

the

weak.

Christian,

God

loves

to

use

you.

Gives

him

great

honor

and

glory.

And so

what does

it mean

to be

in a

relationship

with

God?

How

does

it

change

us?

We've

seen

that it

gives

us

a

new

identity.

We

also

see

it

gives

us

new

responsibilities.

Yes,

Abraham

has a

new

name

and

he's

called

to

new

things.

We

have

two

commands

to

obedience

here.

There's

a

general

and

a

specific.

We're

going

to

look

at

both.

The

general,

verse

one,

walk

before

me

and

be

blameless.

The

specific,

verse

two,

is that

Abraham

would

perform

this

circumcision.

You

might

be

wondering,

why

in the

world

is

circumcision

the

sign

that's

presented

here?

This

passage

does

not

answer

that

question

for

us.

There's

all

kinds

of

theories

and

conjectures.

What I

want to

point

out

is

simply

what

we

see

here

in

these

verses.

We

find

out

two

things.

Verse

13,

circumcision

is the

sign

because

it's

a

permanent

sign

of a

permanent

covenant.

So

shall

my

covenant

be in

your

flesh

an

everlasting

covenant.

Permanent

sign

of a

permanent

covenant.

We

find out

also in

verse

14

the

punishment

and

the

punishment

gets at

the

purpose.

The

meaning

here.

If

the

punishment

is being

cut off

from the

community,

what

must be

part of

the

meaning

of

circumcision

if not

membership

in the

community?

It's the

same thing

we see

in

baptism.

The

emphasis

in this

passage

though is

not on

the

meaning

of

circumcision.

The

emphasis

is on

obedience.

Is

Abraham

going to

do

what God

has

called

him

to

do?

Especially

something

so

painful.

When I

was a

teacher

many years

ago at a

Christian

school,

I was

teaching

ninth

graders

and we

went

through the

book of

Genesis

together

and this

sweet

ninth grade

boy,

when we

got to

Genesis

17,

raised his

hand and

he said,

what is

circumcision?

And I

said,

you know

what?

That's a

great question

for you to

ask your

parents at

home.

Came back

to the next

class and

every time

circumcision

came up

after that,

he would

just put

his head

in his

hands and

go like

this.

The

ninth grade

girls would

laugh at

him.

Why?

This is not

an easy

command.

God is

demanding

something very

serious from

Abraham.

The narrator

of Genesis

is very

skilled and

so the

question in

the mind of

the ancient

Near Eastern

reader is,

is Abraham

actually going

to do it?

There's this

suspense that

the narrator

is building.

Verse 14

is when the

punishment is

laid out

and then we

have to wait.

Right?

We have to

wait throughout

the rest of

the reading and

so as we're

waiting through

the narrative,

we're wondering,

wow, is

Abraham actually

going to do

this?

Is he for

real right

now?

Is he going

to follow

through?

And then to

make it even

better,

verse 22,

when he had

finished talking

with him,

God went

up from

Abraham.

Scholars will

tell us that

when God

finishes speaking,

we almost

always move

on to the

next scene.

There is no

note of God

getting up and

leaving.

And so this is

especially important

that we're told

of God's exit.

It is, in a

sense, God's

kind of his

mic drop,

right?

Okay, you

need to

obey.

I'm out.

And so we

have that

moment where

the question

is, is

Abraham going

to obey?

That explains

for us

verses 22

through 27.

Does

Abraham

obey?

Yes.

And not

only does he

obey, he

really obeys.

We are

told, not

once, not

twice, but

three times

that Abraham

circumcised

Ishmael.

Why do we

need to hear

about that

three times?

So there's

no mistake

in our

mind.

Abraham did

what God

told him

to do.

of course, our

New Testament

reading, Romans

Romans 4:11

chapter 4,

verse 11,

points out,

Abraham's

righteousness

came before

circumcision.

Genesis 15

comes before

Genesis 17.

This obedience

does not earn

his new

identity.

It does not

earn God's

favor.

It is the

right response

to his new

identity, to

God's favor.

God's favor.

What does

it mean to

be in a

relationship

with God?

How does

it change

us?

Being in a

relationship

with God

means that

he gives

us a

new identity.

Being in a

relationship

with God

means he

gives us

new

responsibilities.

I told

you that

Abraham had

a general

and a

specific

command.

There is

a general

and a

specific

command for

us as

well.

general

command,

walk

before me

and be

blameless.

As I

told you a

couple weeks

ago,

God's

laws,

his rules

are not

arbitrary.

God's

rules,

his laws

are set

up to

cooperate

with the

grain of

the

universe.

If you

want to

experience

blessing

and

flourishing,

do

what

God

says.

God

gives us

his

commands

not

because

he

is

a

harsh

task

master,

but because

he wants

you to

have

what is

good.

He wants

you to

have

what is

good.

There's a

specific

command as

well.

Abraham

has this

call to

circumcision.

Now,

circumcision

has been

replaced

by baptism

in the

New Testament.

Baptism

means many

things.

One of the

things it

means is

the same

that we

saw this

morning in

circumcision,

which is

membership

in God's

people.

We know

that,

right,

because of

the punishment.

The punishment

in the Old

Testament often

fits the

crime.

Verse 14,

if you

don't get

circumcised,

you'll be

cut off

from the

people.

What's

the opposite

of that?

The

opposite is

embracing

God's

people.

Embracing

the church,

being a

part of

where God

has said,

this is the

place where

my blessing

happens.

You cut

yourself off

from God's

people.

You've

actually chosen

what God

says is a

curse.

Can you

imagine an

Israelite saying,

well, I've

been circumcised

and I'm still

going to

leave?

No,

that's where

God's

blessing

resides.

Don't

choose

the

curse.

Commit

to God's

church.

Commit

to his

people.

You

will be

blessed.

That's the

place.

That's the

place where

we're

equipped and

empowered to

do everything

God's called

us to

do.

The article

about Bodie

McBoatface

came out in

2016,

and at the

time, they

said it was

going to set

sail in

2019, did

not have

its maiden

voyage until

2021.

Why?

The boat

had to be

equipped for

the mission

ahead of it,

right?

It is not

easy to

navigate the

icy waters

of the

Arctic.

Christian,

the Lord

never sends

us out

before he

equips us.

Notice what

happens here.

the identity

comes before

the mission.

The same

thing with

our Lord

Jesus.

Remember,

Jesus is

baptized before

he goes into

the desert

for 40 days

and 40 nights.

And what

happens when

he's baptized?

God the

Father says,

this is my

beloved son.

Even

Jesus needed

to be reminded

of his

identity

before his

mission.

Of course,

it doesn't

come free.

Remember what

we saw in

Genesis 15.

God is

the one

who pays

the price

of the

covenant.

He's the

one who

pays for

our failure.

The

punishment,

verse 14,

is that you

will be

cut off.

What

happened to

Jesus?

Jesus was

cut off.

Jesus came,

lived the

perfect life

that we

should have

lived,

died the

death that

we deserve,

cut off

instead of

us.

We don't

earn the

blessings

because Jesus

earned them

for us.

Because God

has given

us a

new

identity,

we can

live

lives

of obedience.

Because we

have a new

identity,

we can

embrace

new

responsibilities.

let's

pray.

Our

Father in

heaven,

we do

again praise

you and

thank you

for your

word.

We thank

you that

you come

to us,

you seek

us out

like Hagar,

even when

we're not

seeking you.

That you

free us

from the

burden

of justifying

ourselves and

instead

you're the

one who

gives us

a name.

We ask

that you

would drive

that deep

into our

hearts,

that it

would lead

us to love

and serve

you more

and more.

We ask

these things

in Jesus'

name.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.