Matthew 1 - Abraham

The Great Commission – A Study of Matthew - Abraham

Matthew 28:18-20 - New International Version (NIV)

^18 “Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. ¹⁹ Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, ²⁰ and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”

Abraham 

Matthew 1:1 & 2 – New International Version (NIV)

¹“This is the genealogy of Jesus the Messiah the son of David, the son of Abraham:

² Abraham was the father of Isaac,

Isaac the father of Jacob,

Jacob the father of Judah and his brothers”

Who is the genealogy of (verse 1)?

Who are the two people who are named as ancestors (verse 1)?

In your opinion, why would they be listed as father and son?

Is the same person listed as a son in verse 2?

In your opinion, why would there be a difference between the person listed as a son of Abraham in verse 1 and in verse 2?

In your opinion, what does this passage from Matthew 1:1 & 2 show us about the Great Commission?

      

      Hebrews 11:8-19 – New International Version (NIV)

^8 “By faith Abraham, when called to go to a place he would later receive as his inheritance, obeyed and went, even though he did not know where he was going. ⁹ By faith he made his home in the promised land like a stranger in a foreign country; he lived in tents, as did Isaac and Jacob, who were heirs with him of the same promise. ¹⁰ For he was looking forward to the city with foundations, whose architect and builder is God. ¹¹ And by faith even Sarah, who was past childbearing age, was enabled to bear children because she considered him faithful who had made the promise. ¹² And so from this one man, and he as good as dead, came descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and as countless as the sand on the seashore.

¹³ All these people were still living by faith when they died. They did not receive the things promised; they only saw them and welcomed them from a distance, admitting that they were foreigners and strangers on earth. ¹⁴ People who say such things show that they are looking for a country of their own. ¹⁵ If they had been thinking of the country they had left, they would have had opportunity to return. ¹⁶ Instead, they were longing for a better country—a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared a city for them.

¹⁷ By faith Abraham, when God tested him, offered Isaac as a sacrifice. He who had embraced the promises was about to sacrifice his one and only son, ¹⁸ even though God had said to him, “It is through Isaac that your offspring will be reckoned.” ¹⁹ Abraham reasoned that God could even raise the dead, and so in a manner of speaking he did receive Isaac back from death.”

What did Abraham do by faith when he was called to go (verse 8)?

What did Abraham do by faith when he was “like a stranger in a foreign country” (verse 9)?

What did faith allow Abraham to look forward to (verse 10)?

What was Sarah able to do “because she considered him faithful who had made the promise” (verse 11)?

How is Abraham, from whom “came descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky”, described (verse 12)?

How did Abraham, and others in Hebrews 11, respond to the things promised, but not yet received (verse 13)?

In your opinion, how does saying they are “foreigners and strangers on earth” (verse 13) show that they were “looking for a country of their own” (verse 14) and allow God “to be called their God” (verse 16)?

What did Abraham do by faith concerning Isaac (verse 17)?

      What did Abraham reason (verse 18)?

      In your opinion, what does this passage from Hebrews allow us to understand about why Abraham is listed in the genealogy of Jesus from Matthew 1:1 & 2?

      In your opinion, what does this passage from Hebrews show us about the Great Commission?

    

Romans 4:3 – New International Version (NIV)

^3 “What does Scripture say? “Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness.”

Where did Abraham’s righteousness come from (verse 3)?

Genesis  15:1-7 – New International Version (NIV)

¹ “After this, the word of the Lord came to Abram in a vision:

“Do not be afraid, Abram.

    I am your shield,

    your very great reward.”

² But Abram said, “Sovereign Lord, what can you give me since I remain childless and the one who will inherit[c] my estate is Eliezer of Damascus?” ³ And Abram said, “You have given me no children; so a servant in my household will be my heir.”

⁴ Then the word of the Lord came to him: “This man will not be your heir, but a son who is your own flesh and blood will be your heir.” 5 He took him outside and said, “Look up at the sky and count the stars—if indeed you can count them.” Then he said to him, “So shall your offspring be.”

⁶ Abram believed the Lord, and he credited it to him as righteousness.

⁷ He also said to him, “I am the Lord, who brought you out of Ur of the Chaldeans to give you this land to take possession of it.”

How does God’s word come to Abraham (called Abram here) (verse 1)?

What is God’s word to Abraham (verse 1)?

What is the question that Abraham asks God in response to His word (verse 2)?

Why does Abraham ask that question (verse 3)?

How does God reassure Abraham (verses 4 & 5)?

In your opinion, are Christians today counted like “the stars” as descendants of Abraham?

What was Abraham’s reaction to God’s reassurance (verse 6)?

In your opinion, why did that reaction result in “he credited it to him as righteousness” (verse 6)?

In your opinion, how does this story from Genesis help us understand why Abraham might be included as an ancestor of Jesus?

In your opinion, what does this story from Genesis show us about the Great Commission?

Romans 4:13-25 – New International Version (NIV)

¹³ “It was not through the law that Abraham and his offspring received the promise that he would be heir of the world, but through the righteousness that comes by faith. ¹⁴ For if those who depend on the law are heirs, faith means nothing and the promise is worthless, ¹⁵ because the law brings wrath. And where there is no law there is no transgression.

¹⁶ Therefore, the promise comes by faith, so that it may be by grace and may be guaranteed to all Abraham’s offspring—not only to those who are of the law but also to those who have the faith of Abraham. He is the father of us all. ¹⁷ As it is written: “I have made you a father of many nations.” He is our father in the sight of God, in whom he believed—the God who gives life to the dead and calls into being things that were not.

¹⁸ Against all hope, Abraham in hope believed and so became the father of many nations, just as it had been said to him, “So shall your offspring be.” ¹⁹ Without weakening in his faith, he faced the fact that his body was as good as dead—since he was about a hundred years old—and that Sarah’s womb was also dead. ²⁰ Yet he did not waver through unbelief regarding the promise of God, but was strengthened in his faith and gave glory to God, ²¹ being fully persuaded that God had power to do what he had promised. ²² This is why “it was credited to him as righteousness.” ²³ The words “it was credited to him” were written not for him alone, ²⁴ but also for us, to whom God will credit righteousness—for us who believe in him who raised Jesus our Lord from the dead. ²⁵ He was delivered over to death for our sins and was raised to life for our justification.”

Was it obedience to the law that allowed Abraham and his offspring to receive the promise (verse 13)?

If not obedience then what allowed Abraham and his offspring to receive the promise (verse 13)?

What does the law bring (verse 15)?

What two types of offspring does Abraham have (verse 16)?

In your opinion, what is the connection between hope and belief (verse 18)?

Why was it physically impossible for Abraham and Sarah to have children (verse 19)?

In your opinion, how are wavering through unbelief and giving glory to God opposites (verse 20)?

Who were the words “it was credited to him” written for (verses 22-24)?

How are we, the ones “to whom God will credit righteousness” described (verse 24)?

Why was Jesus delivered over to death (verse 25)?

What was Jesus “raised to life” for (verse 25)?

In your opinion, how does this passage from Romans help us understand what happened in Genesis?

In your opinion, how does this passage from Romans help us understand why Abraham might be listed as the first ancestor of Jesus?

In your opinion, what does this passage from Romans show us about the Great Commission?

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