Abrahamic Covenant

Romans 4:16 For this reason it is by faith, in order that it may be in accordance with grace, so that the promise will be guaranteed to all the descendants, not only to those who are of the Law, but also to those who are of the faith of Abraham, who is the father of us all

Galatians 3:29 And if you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s descendants, heirs according to promise.

Hebrews 6:13-19 For when God made the promise to Abraham, since He could swear by no one greater, He swore by Himself… God, desiring even more to show to the heirs of the promise the unchangeableness of His purpose, interposed with an oath, so that by two unchangeable things in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have taken refuge would have strong encouragement to take hold of the hope set before us. This hope we have as an anchor of the soul, a hope both sure and steadfast…. and one which enters within the veil,

The first 11 chapters of Genesis cover approximately 2,000 years. The next 14 chapters deal with the life of one man, Abraham. The first great Kingdom covenant was established with this man. The great promises which establish the foundation of mankind’s hope were given to him. With him we see the commencement of many great spiritual precepts which are a pattern for all believers even to this day.

Genesis 12:1-3 Abram lived in Ur of the Chaldea’s, in Mesopotamia and according to Joshua 24:2-3 his family served other gods. God called Abram because of His own lovingkindness and tender mercies. Abram did not earn or merit the privilege in any way. Yahweh initiated, called him by grace and made the promises.

Genesis 12:4 Abram responds by obedience. The pattern is the same for each of us. As Abram’s relationship with God grew, so did the promises and God’s commitment to fulfill them.

God’s First Promise

• I will make You a Great Nation
• I Will Bless You
• I Will Make Your Name Great
• You Shall Be a Blessing
• I Will Bless Those Who Bless You and curse them who curse
• In You All the Families of the Earth Will Be Blessed

Genesis 12: 7 God increases the promise to include his descendants

Genesis 12:8-13:18 God expanded the land to include as far as he could see north, south, east, and west. Great multitude beyond numbering was also promised.

• All the Land Which You See, I Will Give it to You
• And to Your Descendants Forever
• I Will Make Your Descendants as the Dust of the Earth

Genesis 14:17-15:6 The promise regarding his seed became very specific. The seed would be from his own bowels and innumerable. God also increased His commitment to fulfill His promises by cutting a covenant with Abram.

Genesis 15:7-18 The river of Egypt is probably the Nile. The territory expanded greatly.

• Heir Will Come Forth from Your Own Body
• Descendants Shall Be Like the Stars
• Land from Nile to Euphrates

Genesis 17:1-8 God established His covenant with Abram which became the hope of every believer of all ages. It was the foundation of what Jesus referred to as the Kingdom of God.
God changed Abram’s name to reflect the great promise. “Abraham” means father of many nations. Out of him also would come kings, the most notable being David and the Messiah, Jesus. The greatest promise of all was also given, “I will be their God.”

• Multiply You Exceedingly
• Father of Many Nations
• Exceeding Fruitful
• Kings Shall Come out of You
• Everlasting Covenant
• Land of Canaan for an Everlasting Possession
• I Will Be Their God

Genesis 22:15-18 If they possessed the gates of their enemies, then in essence they inherited the lands of their enemies.

The progression of God’s commitment was: first He promised (Genesis 12), then He cut a covenant (Genesis 15 and 17), and finally He swore by Himself.

Hebrews 6:13-18 When men of integrity make an oath for confirmation or assurance by swearing to God, it ends all strife or opposition. How much more so when God swears! The two unchangeable things refer to the promise and the oath.

• I Will Bless You
• I Will Multiply Your Seed
• Your Seed Shall Inherit the Lands of Their Enemies
• All the Nations of the Earth Will Be Blessed

Three major aspects of the promises:

• God’s relationship to Abraham and his seed
• Abraham’s seed reproducing and enlarging beyond count
• Abraham and his seed inheriting the land

The relationship as well as the promises that God had with Abraham were extended to Isaac. “I will establish my covenant with him [Isaac] for an everlasting covenant…my covenant will I establish with Isaac…” (Genesis 17:19). “…I will be with you, and will bless you…I will give all these countries, and I will perform the oath which I sware unto Abraham thy father; and I will make your seed to multiply as the stars of heaven…all the nations of the earth [shall] be blessed” (Genesis 26:3 and 4).

Isaac’s son Jacob was the next descendant of blessing. “And give thee [Jacob] the blessing of Abraham, to thee, and to thy seed with thee; that thou mayest inherit the land…” (Genesis 28:4). “…I am Yahweh God of Abraham thy father, and the God of Isaac: the land whereon thou lie, to you will I give it, and to your seed…in you and in your seed shall all the families of the earth be blessed…I am with you, and will keep you…” (Genesis 28:13-15).

Jacob’s name was changed to Israel. His sons were known as the 12 sons of Israel. They grew into the 12 tribes of Israel and eventually into the kingdom of Israel. God’s blessing and promises continued to be extended to them, although they did not remain faithful to God.

Romans 4:11 and 12 In the New Testament, once again we see that the promise of God is expanded. The children of Abraham extend far beyond his biological seed to include all those who believe of both Jew and Gentile.

Romans 4:13 Land includes the whole world.

Romans 4:16 Those who have the same faith as Abraham are considered his children.

Galatians 3:6-9, 15-18, 27-29 The blessing of Abraham, through Christ, is for the believing Gentiles also, since the promises were made to Abraham and his seed

Ephesians 2:11-13; 3:6 The Gentiles had been shut out of the promises, but now in Christ they too can be included.

Israel occupied part of the land promised to them and did so for a relatively short period of time. However, that occupation was by no means the complete fulfillment of the promises made to Abraham. It did not encompass the whole world, nor did it last eternally. When Israel, and eventually Judah, lost the land, the prophets spoke emphatically and frequently about the coming day when they would again inherit the Promised Land. This would be in the regeneration when Christ returns.

Isaiah 32:18 And my people shall dwell in a peaceable habitation, and in sure dwellings, and in quiet resting places;

Isaiah 57:13 “…he who takes refuge in Me will inherit the land and will possess My holy mountain.”

Isaiah 60:21 Then all your people will be righteous; they will possess the land forever

Isaiah 61:7 ….Therefore, they will possess a double portion in their land, everlasting joy will be theirs.

Jeremiah 3:18 In those days the house of Judah shall walk with the house of Israel, and they shall come together out of the land of the north to the land that I have given for an inheritance unto your fathers.

Jeremiah 30:3 ‘For behold, days are coming,’ declares Yahweh, ‘when I will restore the fortunes of My people Israel and Judah.’ Yahweh says, ‘I will also bring them back to the land that I gave to their forefathers and they shall possess it.’

Psalms 37:9, 11, 22, 29, 34 ….those who wait for Yahweh, they will inherit the land…the humble will inherit the land and will delight themselves in abundant prosperity… For those blessed by Him will inherit the land…The righteous will inherit the land and dwell in it forever…. Wait for Yahweh and keep His way, and He will exalt you to inherit the land

Matthew 5:5 Blessed are the gentle, for they shall inherit the earth.

When the Messiah returns, the earth will be changed in a most beautiful way. Eventually it will return to paradise. This regenerated earth is what was promised to Abraham’s seed. All the prophets spoke of this.

Jesus the Christ preached and taught the Kingdom of God. Its central theme was the believers’ inheriting the earth with Christ as King.

Paul also taught the Kingdom of God. He “received all that came in unto him, preaching the Kingdom of God…” (Acts 28:30 and 31).

Revelation 5:10; 11:15 The book of Revelation, the conclusion of the written Word, clearly explains this truth.

Abraham has to this day never inherited the land promised him. He must be resurrected to receive that which was promised — inheritance in the Kingdom of God.

The overwhelming evidence of the Scriptures, for those with eyes to see and ears to hear, is that Christ, along with the saints, will inherit the earth and do so eternally. The popular Christian doctrine that the believers go to heaven is a direct contradiction to the truth of God’s Word. Nowhere does it say that we will ascend into heaven and live there eternally with our Lord.

Heaven and Hell

In Plato’s last and longest dialogue called The Laws, he writes the following: “That the gods not only exist, but that they are good, and honor and reward justice far more than men do.” He gives prominence also to the doctrine of a future state of rewards and punishments. At death, by an inevitable law of its own being, as well as by the appointment of God, every soul goes to its own place. The evil gravitating to the evil, and the good rising to the supreme good. When they come before their judge, perhaps after a long series of transmigrations, each of which is the reward or punishment of the preceding, those who have lived virtuous and holy lives, and those who have not, are separated from each other. Transmigration is the movement of a soul into another body after death. This transmigration nonsense corresponds with the belief in reincarnation.

The following reasoning is the underpinning and origin of the dogma regarding heaven, hell, and the Roman Catholic’s purgatory. Plato thought the wicked whose sins are curable are subjected to sufferings in the lower world, which are more or less severe, and more or less prolonged, according to their recompences. The incurably wicked are hurled down to Tartarus, whence they never go out, where they are punished forever as a spectacle and warning to others. Those, on the other hand, who have lived virtuously and piously, especially those who have purified their hearts and lives by philosophy, will live without bodies with the gods, and in places that are bright and beautiful beyond description. Plato apparently thought of himself as one going to the better place due to his involvement in philosophy.