God's Blessing for the Nations

Well, good morning, church.

Our sermon text this morning is Genesis chapter 11.

Genesis 11 · chapter mention

Starting in verse 10, we're going to go through chapter 12, verse 4.

That is page 8 in the Pew Bible, if you want to follow along there.

If you're new to the Bible, the big numbers are the chapter numbers.

The small numbers are the verse numbers.

We're going to pick up our reading about halfway through our total sermon text this morning.

In chapter 11, verse 27.

Let me pray as we come to God's word.

Speak, O Lord.

Build your church.

And fill the earth with your glory.

God, what a powerful prayer that is.

Make it our own this morning.

And make it a reality in our midst.

Through the grace of Jesus and the power of your Holy Spirit.

Amen.

Genesis 11.

Picking up in verse 27 through chapter 12, verse 4.

Let me read this for us.

Now, these are the generations of Terah.

Terah fathered Abram, Nahor, and Haran.

And Haran fathered Lot.

Haran died in the presence of his father, Terah, and the land of his kindred, and Ur of the Chaldeans.

And Abram and Nahor took wives.

The name of Abram's wife was Sarah.

And the name of Nahor's wife, Milcah.

The daughter of Haran, the father of Milcah and Iscah.

Now Sarah was barren.

She had no child.

Terah took Abram, his son, and Lot, the son of Haran, his grandson.

And Sarah, his daughter-in-law, his son, Abram's wife.

And they went forth together from Ur of the Chaldeans to go into the land of Canaan.

But when they came to Haran, they settled there.

The days of Terah were 205 years.

And Terah died in Haran.

Now the Lord said to Abram,

Go from your country and your kindred and your father's house to the land that I will show you.

And I will make of you a great nation.

And I will bless you and make your name great so that you will be a blessing.

I will bless those who bless you.

And him who dishonors you I will curse.

And in you, all the families of the earth shall be blessed.

So Abram went, as the Lord had told him.

And Lot went with him.

Abram was 75 years old when he departed from Haran.

Well, this morning, we've pretty much come to the end of our sermon series in Genesis 1 through 11.

But, obviously, we haven't come to the end of the book of Genesis.

Actually, we've come to the critical turning point.

And it's not just the critical turning point of the book of Genesis, but really of the whole Old Testament.

This is the turning point that will set the course of the rest of redemptive history.

This is it.

This is where the story turns to something special and particular and saving and exciting.

This is where God's story takes its turn.

And because of that, this passage is meant to serve as a turning point for our lives, too.

Here is a passage that, if you will hear it, if we will hear it, will turn your whole life around.

Set you on a new trajectory and never leave you the same.

What happens in Genesis, what happens in the life of Abram, later to be called Abraham, in the history of redemption, it can happen in your life, too.

So, what is it?

What is actually going on here?

Well, there are three pieces to this turning point that I want us to look at today.

And they're all found in verses 1 through 3 of chapter 12.

And the first thing that we see is the blessing that we all need.

The blessing we all need.

God calls Abram at the beginning of chapter 12 and says,

I will bless you.

And then in verse 3, we see that this blessing is meant to reach all the families of the earth.

What is this universal blessing that begins with Abraham and spreads to the ends of the earth?

Now, in order to understand this blessing, we have to see it in the context of the book of Genesis so far.

Because at first glance, it looks like it means nothing more than Abraham having a lot of descendants.

I'll make you a great nation.

And getting a great reputation.

I'll make your name great.

Now, for Abraham, this blessing certainly does mean that.

But the heart of this blessing, this universal blessing for all families of the earth,

it's much deeper than that.

After all, material blessing isn't really what we ultimately need.

Is it?

Of course, that doesn't mean that we shouldn't seek to sacrificially help others physically,

financially, socially, educationally.

All those things are entailed in loving our neighbor as ourself.

They're good things.

They are important things.

They're worthy things.

But what do we really need ultimately, eternally?

How many millionaires, though they have no material needs, humanly speaking, aren't really satisfied?

How many movie stars, though everyone recognizes their name and face, aren't really at peace?

I was just, I've been reading a journal lately of a famous 20th century spiritual writer who spent some missionary time in Latin America.

And he reflects on the fact that, though here he is in the middle of one of the poorest suburbs of Lima, Peru, ministering among the poor,

still his heart aches for something more.

Why is it that even our best efforts at philanthropy can still leave our hearts longing?

What makes us think that more money and more approval will cure the deep ache that we feel?

So what is this blessing, then, here in Genesis 12?

Well, consider with me, then, the context of Genesis.

Back in chapter 11, verse 10, we're given another genealogy.

How many genealogies are we going to see in Genesis 1 through 11?

Not another one.

Yes, another genealogy, starting in verse 10.

This time, from Shem, the son of Noah, down to Abraham, the son of Terah.

And from Shem to Abraham is 10 generations.

Now, if you've been coming to Trinity this fall, that might remind you of another earlier genealogy in Genesis 1 through 11.

In chapter 5, Genesis gives us the genealogy from Adam to Noah.

And from Adam to Noah, you guessed it, there are 10 generations.

So you start to see that there's a literary shape going on in this early part of Genesis.

Think about it.

In Genesis 1 through 5, what do we have?

Creation, fall, and then this sort of stretch of 10 generations.

In Genesis 6 through 11, what do we have?

The flood and its new creation, the fall of Babel, and then 10 generations.

You see, these 10 generations are a signal that God's redemptive plan is moving forward.

We're taking a big leap ahead into the next significant event.

Now, what happened after the fall of Genesis 3 and 4 and those 10 generations?

The flood.

Worldwide judgment.

So what would we expect to happen after the Tower of Babel in Genesis 11 in these 10 generations?

Humanity rebelling against God.

Again, seeking their own way and our own ambitions and their own kingdom.

If a flood fell the first time, what's going to come this time?

But this time, it's different.

A flood doesn't fall.

Instead, God makes a promise.

A binding promise.

A covenant with Abraham.

I will bless you.

Wonder of wonders.

When humanity deserves judgment,

God speaks a word of blessing.

And as he speaks that word of blessing,

don't you hear an echo of Genesis 1?

The story of God's creation in Genesis 1 resounds with blessing, does it not?

God delighting over his creation.

Declaring it all good.

Declaring it even very good.

From the highest star to the most obscure atom, the whole thing.

Very good.

And at the climax of that story of creation in Genesis 1 28,

after God creates humanity in his own image,

the text says,

God blessed them.

Now, we don't use this language of blessing much in our day and age, in our culture.

Do we?

Sounds kind of weird, doesn't it?

I bless you, my son.

I bless you, my daughter.

That's a strange language for us.

I get it.

But you know, we know the feeling when we get it, don't we?

Like a father or a mother who takes their child up in their arms and says,

you, I love you.

And I know you'll do great things and I will be with you every step of the way.

It's you.

Deep down in our bones, we know what it means to be blessed,

to be accepted, to be approved, to find favor in someone's eyes.

Yes, we know it, even if we don't use this language for it.

But perhaps we know it most, tragically, by its absence.

Those deep wounds of rejection, of abandonment,

we know at our gut level what blessing means because so often we don't have it.

But deeper under those human rejections and abandonments,

even deeper still, the heart knows that divine blessing,

that peace with God intended in creation,

that creational, divine blessing.

Deep down we know it's been lost.

That we're actually out of joint with our creator,

that we're alienated from our true home.

And again, is this not the story that we've been reading in Genesis?

Is this not the history of everyone and everything?

Creation begins in blessing,

but humans rebel against God,

reject God as God,

and the result is curse.

Genesis 3 tells the whole story.

Genesis 4 describes the fallout.

And the rest of human history,

and the rest of human history, friends,

is the sad tale of creatures seeking some sort of remedy

for that lost blessing in created things rather than their creator.

Why doesn't the money satisfy?

Why doesn't the fame bring peace?

Because the real blessing you're longing for

isn't from a creature or a created thing.

You were made to have the blessing of your maker.

When God says to Abram,

I'll bless those who bless you,

and those who dishonor you,

I will curse.

He's not just saying that the status of the nations

will be determined by their relationship to Abram.

But more than that,

God is promising in those words

to be Abram's defender and shield.

To be closer than a brother,

to be jealous over Abram like a lover.

That's what these words are talking about.

The quality of the Lord's relationship with Abram now.

And that's the blessing we need.

To be right with God.

To have God no longer as our judge,

but as our friend.

But how in the world can God bless sinners

who deserve his curse?

This is the great problem,

the great question

that hangs pregnant over the entire Old Testament.

In Genesis 6, after 10 generations,

it was a flood that fell,

and only a few were saved.

In Genesis 12,

after the 10 generations,

we expect some sort of judgment,

but the flood doesn't fall.

On what basis does this blessing to Abram

for all families of the earth come to us?

And the answer to that question wouldn't come

for almost 1,500 years after Abram.

The curse humanity deserved,

that you and I deserved,

would actually fall like a flood,

but it would fall on another.

It would fall on the true offspring of Abraham,

on the child born into Abram's family

who would take up our humanity

and live a life in perfect acceptance

with his heavenly father.

He would be utterly blessed.

God would say over him,

this is my beloved son

in whom I'm well pleased.

And then at 30 years of age,

after walking in perfect,

blessed fellowship with his father,

Jesus would go willingly to a cross

and become a curse for us.

And all the wretchedness of sin

and all the dark intentions

and malicious thoughts of our hearts,

Jesus Christ would bear all of it.

The Old Testament law said,

cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree.

And in the first century,

there was no greater expression of that

than a Roman cross.

As the victims hung naked

and shamed and bleeding and mocked,

the pain of crucifixion was only matched

by the public humiliation and shame of it.

You see, the Romans saved crucifixion

for the social nobodies.

This was the way the empire disposed of its trash.

And there, God incarnate hung.

The flood of human depravity

and the curse of sin poured upon him.

Why?

So that the blessing you and I were created to have

could be ours once more.

In love, Christ became a curse

so that a blessing might come to all nations,

to you and me.

That's what Paul was getting on about

in that passage we read earlier.

The perfect blessed one

stands in our place of the curse

so that we, the cursed ones,

could receive a blessing.

What wonderful good news.

Consider then, friends,

that you cannot earn this blessing of God.

That's also part of what Paul's talking about

in Galatians 2 that we read earlier.

All who rely on works of the law,

that is your performance,

your pedigree,

all who rely on those things

remain under a curse.

Could that be why

the harder we try to get peace

through achievement

and through approval

and through human relationships,

the harder we try,

the more peace seems so elusive.

Abram did nothing

to deserve God's blessing.

He was just following his dad

on what seemed to be a fool's errand.

You can do nothing

to deserve God's blessing.

It's not a reward for hard work done.

It's a gift given through the promise

purchased by Christ.

This blessing that we all need

is a great equalizer then,

is it not?

All of us,

rich or poor,

black or white,

male or female,

high or low,

all of us stand as equals

when it comes to what really matters.

All of us receive God's blessing

sheerly by grace as a gift.

None can say,

I deserved it.

As one great old hymn puts it,

nothing in my hands I bring,

simply to the cross I cling.

And that means we are all alike

in dignity as well.

God took the curse

and promised the blessing

for all who believe.

Maybe you don't enjoy

many material blessing in this life,

but the Christian has a blessing

that makes every other blessing

seem like fool's gold in comparison.

The acceptance of God,

an inheritance in his kingdom,

the dignity of a child of God.

Each and every one of you

in Christ.

So this turning point,

first, is about the blessing

we all need.

Second, it's about the departure

we must take.

God's blessing comes to Abram

through sheer grace,

but in response,

the Lord tells Abram

to go.

Notice how verse one

moves from the general

to the specific.

Go from your country,

your kindred,

and even your father's house

to the land that I will show you.

And the great question here is,

will Abram believe God's promise

and go?

Now, don't think

that this was an easy decision

for Abram.

Look at the text.

He's getting old.

His wife is barren.

His familial duties

to his father

have moved him

halfway across the known world

from Ur to Haran.

And now,

his father has just died.

Grieving his father,

Abram is a stranger

in a strange land,

now solely responsible

for his dead brother's son,

Lot,

but with no children

of his own.

Now,

what's a person to do

in that situation?

The natural thing to do

is to go back to Ur.

Go back to your homeland.

Go back to your extended family

where you know people

and where you and Sarah

can settle down

and hopefully find

some extended relative

to take care of you

in your old age.

Isn't this what reason

and common sense

would demand?

Isn't this what reason

and common sense would demand?

But then comes

the promise of God,

the promise of blessing,

if Abram will trust

God's word

and go.

Now, unlike Abram,

God isn't necessarily

telling us

to leave our physical

countries and homes.

Abram did have

a unique role

in redemptive history.

So, who are we

most like

in this story?

Well, I think you and I

must first

put ourselves

in the shoes

of those families,

the nations.

That is,

all the families

of the earth

in verse 3.

That's us

in this story.

But we have

a departure

to make

as well.

because where

is blessing

to be found

for us?

Not in a piece

of land,

but in a person.

What does the text

say?

In you,

Abram,

all the families

of the earth

shall be blessed.

That is,

to receive

the blessing

of God,

we must find

it in him.

only by identifying

with Abraham's

family

is there any

hope

of anyone,

of any family

getting God's

blessing.

And as the

biblical story

unfolds

into the New

Testament,

we see in the

opening chapter

of Matthew 1,

as the New

Testament opens

up,

that the

offspring of

Abraham,

the fulfillment

of this promise

in whom the

nations will find

their blessing,

the fulfillment

is Jesus.

How do we get

into the

spiritual family

of Abraham?

It's not by

circumcision,

but by uniting

ourselves in

faith to Jesus

Christ,

the promised

one of Abraham,

the one in whom

all these promises

of blessing find

their yes in

God.

But identifying

with Jesus

certainly means

a departure.

A departure

no less

than that of

Abraham in

Genesis 12.

Our identity,

the thing that we

base our life

on,

the thing that you

maybe could point

to and say,

that's who I am.

That center

of our life

has to shift.

the primary

identity of our

life can no

longer be our

family background,

our moral

uprightness,

our work

success.

The primary

identity must

be the

person of

Jesus,

who he is

and what he's

done.

And make no

mistake about

it,

God's blessing

is found

nowhere else.

God doesn't

bless Abraham

and say,

you will be

one of many

spiritual roads

back to my

favor.

It's not

what he says.

No,

only in you,

Abraham,

only in the

thing that I'm

starting with you

will all the

families of the

earth be

blessed.

Why?

Because only

through Jesus

does God deal

with the real

problem.

Only in Jesus

does God deal

with the curse,

with sin.

I mean,

think about it.

If there was

any other way

for us to get

back to God,

why would God

send his only

son to die

for us?

If his blessing

could come

through some

other means

or some

other path,

why would

the father

allow his

only son

to bear

the curse

and the

shame

of crucifixion?

It's the

only way.

And so

we must

make the

departure

from an

identity built

on whatever

we might

be trusting

in to an

identity built

ultimately on

Christ alone.

and that's

a radical

departure.

More radical

than leaving

country and

kindred and

father's house.

In fact,

it's a departure

so radical that

according to the

New Testament,

you actually

can't make it

on your own.

we cling

too tightly

to our

old identities.

They're,

after all,

our security

and our

comfort

and our

hope.

We don't

want to let

that go

and make

Jesus the

center of

our life.

There's too

much at stake.

There's friends

that I'll lose

and there's

pleasures that

I'll forgo

and there's

ridicule that

I'll receive.

you can't

make this

departure

on your

own.

But

thankfully,

Jesus

didn't leave

us on our

own.

After three

days in the

grave,

Jesus rose

again in

power and

he spent

40 days with

his disciples

and then

ascended to

the Father

in heaven

completing

his redemptive

work and

sitting at

the Father's

right hand

telling his

disciples to

wait for the

promise of

the Holy

Spirit.

And at

Pentecost,

the Spirit

came and

it changed

him from

the inside

out.

And the

Holy Spirit

continues the

same work

today.

The Spirit,

you see,

liberates us

to let go

of our old

identities and

to find the

beauty of

Christ and

take hold of

him and be

found in

him.

This

departure of

faith is the

ongoing work of

the Holy Spirit

and he's doing

it today.

all across

the world

as people

release this

and take

hold of

their Savior.

Perhaps

he's doing

it in you

right now.

Compelling

you,

calling you

to rest

in this

Savior who

loves you

with an

infinite love

and to hear

the word of

divine blessing

your heart so

longs to hear

you are my

son,

you are my

daughter,

in you I'm

well pleased.

And as we

set out on

this departure,

the promise is

that the Spirit

never leaves us.

You see,

the departure

of conversion

is just the

start of a

lifelong pilgrimage

of faith.

In Hebrews

Hebrews 11 · chapter mention

chapter 11,

the author

talks again

about this

moment in

Abram's life

just like Paul

did in

Galatians

Galatians 3 · chapter mention

chapter 3.

Here in

Hebrews chapter

Hebrews 11 · chapter mention

11,

Hebrews comes

back to this

moment in

Abram's life

talking about

how Abram

had to go.

Not knowing

what lie

ahead,

trusting God's

word.

This

lifelong

journey

wasn't

easy for

Abram.

And the

reality is,

friends,

it won't be

easy for

us.

There will

be years

of

discouragement

and trial.

Abram will

often find

himself in

trouble and

conflict.

At one point

in his life,

he has to

muster up an

army and

go lead a

liberation band

to free

Lot from

some kings

who had

kidnapped

him.

There will

be years of

doubt and

uncertainty for

us.

Abram and

Sarah have

remained

childless for

decades after

this moment,

wondering when

God would

ever do what

he was going

to do and

kind of doubting

it was going

to happen and

at one point

even laughing

because it

seems so

absurd.

There will

be moments

of confusion

and pain.

Abram was

called to

offer over

his only son

to the

Lord.

But through

it all,

God never

left Abraham.

Hebrews 11

says,

we're looking

forward to

a city that

has foundations,

whose designer

and builder

is God.

The journey

of faith

may have

many twists

and turns.

The road

may seem to

crumble beneath

us, but God

will bring us

safely home.

So, Christian,

if you're in a

season of trial,

of doubt,

if you cannot

hear or feel

the blessing

of God at

this moment,

hold on.

God has

not abandoned

you.

You remain

his beloved

child.

Though all

the world

may shake

and crumble,

the crucified

and risen

Christ stands

up for you

and the Holy

Spirit abides

within.

So keep

pressing on

God's

promise

remains

and nothing

can shake

it.

But as we

take this

departure of

faith,

trusting in

God's promise

of blessing,

there's a third

element to this

turning point.

We've seen the

blessing that we

all need and

the departure

that we must

take.

But third,

the mission

that we now

have.

God tells

Abram in

verse 2,

I will bless

you and

make your

name great

so that

you will

be a

blessing.

Abraham

was blessed

to be

a blessing.

Some of

my friends

in ministry

would probably

say,

now that'll

preach.

Abram was

blessed to

be a

blessing.

What he

received was

meant to

overflow to

others.

Now imagine

the nation

of Israel

hearing Moses

recite this

story on the

verge of

crossing into

the promised

land.

What they

heard wasn't

just the

promise of

God's blessing

for them,

but that

through them

that blessing

would come to

all nations.

They were

hearing that

they had a

mission to

bring blessing

to all the

families of

the earth.

And it's the

same with the

people of God

today, with the

church today.

In Christ, we

have received

every spiritual

blessing in the

heavenly places,

and that blessing

is meant to

overflow.

Jesus says to

us, you're the

light of the

world.

You are the

salt of the

earth.

Your life isn't

meant to be

lived for

yourself, but

for the great

purposes of

God in the

world.

There are

people groups

on earth

today who

have never

heard the

good news

of Jesus

Christ.

How will

we as a

church play

a part in

bringing God's

news of

blessing to

them?

Perhaps God

is calling

your life to

be a part of

that story and

to go.

There are

people right

here in our

city who are

struggling to

find warm

places to

stay, to put

food on their

tables, to get

through school

and graduate.

How are we

as a church

bringing God's

blessing to

them?

You see,

something happens

when you receive

the good news

of Jesus, when

the Holy Spirit

unites you to

Christ through

faith.

And you

become a

recipient of

grace, of

God's favor

and blessing.

What happens

is you start

to sit loose

to a lot of

other stuff in

your life.

Because the

reality is, at

a deep

spiritual level,

you don't need

it anymore.

You don't need

to hoard

possessions and

money.

In Christ, you

have an internal

inheritance that

will never fade.

You have a

dignity and a

worth that money

literally cannot

buy.

money.

So you can be

sacrificially

generous now.

Money has lost

its power over

your life and

you can give it

away.

And you don't

need to cling

tightly to your

time.

In Christ, you

literally have all

the time in the

world and in the

world to come.

time.

So you can take

time to spend

with others.

And you can

make your

schedule revolve

around things

other than your

own entertainment

and your own

pursuits.

God doesn't want

the blessing to

stop with you.

He wants it to

keep going.

Question, how are

you blessing others

right here in your

church family?

How are you

actively serving and

loving others right

here?

You know, if we

should learn anything

from our modern

culture, it is that

mere consumption

makes us bored.

Man, how, okay,

true confessions,

how many of you

really wished that

the Mandalorian that

just got released on

Disney Plus was

something you could

just stream all eight

episodes of?

If you have no

idea what I'm

talking about, you

come up to me

afterwards and we'll

pray about it.

Right?

You want to just

binge it, but we

got to wait every

week.

But how many of us

after binging that

Netflix show we've

been waiting so long

to see?

Gosh, we just feel

so bored.

It's just kind of

icky.

Don't just be a

consumer in the

spiritual family of

the church.

Be a participant.

Take up your part

to play.

Get about the

mission.

Produce the show

that's unfolding

right before your

eyes.

You are blessed to

be a blessing and

there in that

mission, you will

find what you were

created for.

A deeper communion

with God.

friends, you were

created to know

God.

Jesus says, eternal

life is knowing

me.

Has it ever struck

you that you need

to find God's

face in the

mission?

Because that's

where God meets

us.

Because after all,

God is a

missionary God.

When he wants to

bless Abraham, he

sends him halfway

across the known

world.

God's a

missionary God.

You will meet

him in the

mission.

God's a

missionary God.

The father sent

the son.

And the son sent

the spirit.

And the spirit

sends the church.

And there in the

sending, in the

going, God meets

us.

So friends, as we

conclude, is there a

turning point for you

in this passage?

Perhaps the

turning point is to

see that God really

does love you.

And that in Jesus,

he's done everything

to bring you home

and accept you.

Perhaps the

turning point is to

stop trusting in

your own self and

your own accomplishments

and to take the

departure of faith in

Christ and to make

him the center of

your life and strike

out on the

pilgrimage that he's

calling you to.

you.

Perhaps the

turning point is for

you to hold on in

the midst of trial, to

keep putting one foot

in front of the

other.

Perhaps the

turning point is to

join the mission, to

find out how the

blessing of God is

meant to flow through

you to others.

But let us be

encouraged by the

last verse of our

passage.

The turning point for

Abraham, the

point of his

spiritual departure

came when he was

75 years old.

You see, it is never

too late to begin.

No matter how long

you've spent searching,

no matter how many

detours or mistakes

your life has made,

today can be the

turning point.

The Lord called

Abraham and promised

him blessing.

And in Christ,

through his spirit, he

calls us today as

well.

Let's pray.

Lord Jesus, we ask

that you would meet

us as we come to

your table and help

us by your Holy

Spirit to make the

departures that we

need to make so that

we might live in line

with the truth of this

great blessing that

you've given to us.

Amen.

Amen.