East Coast Korean Camp Meeting

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Andrews Korean Church

Plenary

Chester Clark

The Need to Know

Giving Up All

Where Are We

Father Abraham

Lamp Feet

Building Altars

This Is Good

Always Giving

Looking To Jesus

This morning we are going to begin looking at the life of Abraham.

Yesterday we established, I hope, that we are living in the last days.

We don't have a message of definite time, but we are living in the last days.

And as I study the Bible, I am more and more convinced that God has a special work and a special experience for those who live in the last days.

He's called us to be a part of his last day remnant people, to give a special message to the world.

And it may seem a little odd that we could go all the way back to the far reaches of the post-flood era, I guess you might say, and find someone that would be an example for us to follow, someone whose life We can find so much instruction in.

But yet, I'm convinced more and more that Abraham is in fact the father of the end-time faithful.

Now, I was trying to figure out how I could cover what I want to cover in the next couple of mornings, a few mornings that we have together as I talk about Abraham.

We're going to have to spend a little bit of time just establishing why I call Abraham the father of the end time faithful.

But the story is that Abraham believed in the Lord and he accounted it to him for righteousness.

What Abraham believed, how Abraham believed in God and God accounted it to him for righteousness.

Now Paul uses this story in Romans chapter 4 and he uses it to illustrate the fact that we're not justified or forgiven or made righteous because of anything we do, but because of our belief in God, God makes us righteous.

Now we won't take the time to go through Genesis 15, 16, 17, but basically Paul's using the argument, he says, was Abraham counted righteous after he obeyed and was circumcised or before he obeyed and was circumcised?

And the biblical record states that it was before, in fact it's several chapters before, the circumcision, the obedience, and all these outward signs of his faithfulness were reality.

Abraham believed in God and he counted it to him for righteousness.

Well, he goes on in chapter 5 and verse 1, he says, therefore.

And we could spend a whole time just talking about therefore.

When you see therefore in the Bible, you have to ask yourself, what's it there for, right?

And chapter 5 and verse 1 is an artificial chapter division.

You understand Paul didn't write letters and say, oh, chapter 1, chapter 2, chapter 3, just like we don't write letters, I don't think, like that.

And so Paul is just continuing on and when he says, therefore, he says, look, based upon what I've just said about Abraham being fully persuaded that what God was able to do, God had promised to do, he was able also to perform, and therefore it was counted to him for righteousness.

Based upon that experience we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.

Being justified by faith we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.

Oh I tell you friends, I'm a Seventh-day Adventist Christian.

I love being a part of God's remnant people with a special message for the last days.

I mean, there's the people in the last days who I believe are described as the faithful, the 144, 000.

When Satan says, OK God, where is the evidence that your law is just and fair and that your character is righteous and that you can both forgive and empower and that your law can be kept in humanity.

I believe God's going to point to a people and say, here's the patience of the saints, here are those who keep the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus.

But friends, I think it's a human tendency, not an Adventist tendency, it's a human tendency to try to have a religion that is based upon our works.

Steps Christ says the proud heart strives to earn salvation.

But both our title to heaven and our fitness for it is found in the righteousness of Jesus.

And so I can't remind myself often enough, I'm not downplaying obedience, but I'm saying salvation comes through Jesus Christ.

Sometimes we're tempted to get the cart before the horse.

I've come to the point where sometimes I catch myself thinking, okay, well, I'm going to obey.

I'm gonna do better so that God will love me.

And somehow I try to say, well, I'm supposed to live this kind of life, so I'm going to conform my life to what's expected of me.

And I conform myself to what people expect.

And it's almost as if we try to experience sanctification without first experiencing justification.

It's like pushing a wet noodle, you know?

Getting The cart before the horse doesn't work very well.

And sanctification on my own, without first...

I mean, sanctification is, I think, most simply defined as living in, as staying in an abiding relationship with Jesus, living in a justified state.

Well, if you're not already in that state, you can't live that way.

And so the story of Abraham teaches us, Paul uses it to teach us, the truth about justification by faith.

In order to live the Christian life, we have to first become a Christian.

That miracle that we are lost without, we have to experience.

We can't just start doing the rituals and the forms and the ceremonies.

We need Jesus to transform our hearts, to justify us, to make us right.

As it says in Steps to Christ, when we give our lives to Him and accept Him as our Savior, then sinful as our life may have been, for His sake we are accounted righteous.

His character stands in place as our character and he looks upon us just as if we had not sinned.

So we need that experience before we can have the Christian life.

This is what Paul says, I think it's Colossians 2 verse 6, he says, as you have received Christ Jesus the Lord, that's justification, right?

As you have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk ye in Him." So we can't walk in Him without first receiving Him.

Genesis 15, 6, quoted several times in Romans chapter 4.

He believed in the Lord and he counted it to Him for righteousness.

Let's notice here in Romans chapter 4, if you have your Bibles there, I love this passage because it's just a powerful, powerful presentation.

Ellen White says that For the letter of Paul to the Romans, every Christian has reason to thank God.

It's just a wonderful exposition on the gospel of Jesus Christ.

And in Romans chapter 4, there's 2 references here of Abraham becoming a father.

It says in verse 17 and 18, first of all, As it is written, I have made thee a father of many nations, before him whom he believed, even God, who quickens the dead, and called those things which be not as though they were, who against hope believed in hope, that he might become the father of many nations according to that which was spoken so shall thy seed be." Now here Paul is referring to the literal ancestry of many nations.

Abraham would become the father of many nations and his descendants would be as the sand of the sea ashore, as the stars of the night sky.

Remember, go out, Abraham, and count the stars and see if you can number them.

That's the way your descendants are going to be.

But notice that it's not just the literal forefather of many nations.

He received the sign of circumcision, a seal of the righteousness of the faith which he had yet being uncircumcised, that he might be the father of all them that believe, though they be not circumcised, that righteousness might be imputed unto them also.

Abraham was not just to become the progenitor and the father of many nations, literally the Jews and others.

Abraham was to become the spiritual father of all who would believe.

That's you and me and I propose that he's the spiritual father of even all who would believe in the last days.

We become the spiritual descendants of Abraham.

When I was a kid, I thought it was just a really silly, foolish song.

It's fun to sing, but it didn't have a lot of meaning to me.

Series

Plenary

Father Abraham

Transcript

Parent Series

Parent Conference

Sponsor

Recorded

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Meeting the Master Gardener

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Creation- Genesis as the Foundation

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Unlock Revelation

17. The 144,000

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Morning Devotions: In HIS Presence

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Sanctuary, Salvation & Our Savior: It’s All About Jesus

39m

That You May Believe

52m

Flight Plan

3. Destination

1h 3m

GYC SE 2012 Seminar: Prophecy

144,000: First Fruits Unto God

47m

Flip the Script

02 How Bible “Buts” Change Trials Into Triumph

53m

Sound Doctrine