目录

一、介绍

二、亚伯拉罕和耶稣

亚伯拉罕的子孙

单数性

基督是子孙

主题

神的恩典

亚伯拉罕的忠心

对亚伯拉罕的祝福

透过亚伯拉罕赐的祝福

三、以色列和教会

亚伯拉罕的子孙

数目广大

种族身份

属灵品格

历史情况

主题

神的恩典

亚伯拉罕的忠心

对亚伯拉罕的祝福

透过亚伯拉罕赐的祝福

四、总结

一、介绍

如果很多当代人对《圣经》有疑问的话，这个疑问就是，很难想象几千前写成的故事，竟然能够有能力影响指导我们现今的人生。《圣经》中对于亚伯拉罕的记载就是这样。亚伯拉罕自己生活在大约四千年前，而他的生平故事则写成于三千六百多年前。但是，作为基督徒，我们却要委身于这个事实：这些故事是《圣经》的一部分，因此，即便是对现今人来说，它也是有益处的。

即使我们有这样的立场，此问题仍然存在：有关亚伯拉罕的这些故事怎样应用到我们今天的人生中？怎样弥补我们和亚伯拉罕之间四千年的鸿沟？

我们将这个系列定名为「先祖亚伯拉罕」，因为我们探讨的是创世记所记载的亚伯拉罕生平。这个系列中有三个概括性的课程，本课是第三课，题目为「亚伯拉罕的生平：现今应用」。本课中，我们要总结亚伯拉罕生平的概况，从创世记记载亚伯拉罕的章节中引出对当今合宜的应用。我们应该怎样把亚伯拉罕的故事应用到我们的人生中？这些故事对我们今天有哪些影响？

为了理解亚伯拉罕生平对我们现今世界的应用，我们需要从两个基本方向来查看。第一，亚伯拉罕和耶稣之间的存在联系；第二，原本的读者——以色列和现今的读者——教会之间存在的联系。

在查看亚伯拉罕生平的现今应用之前，我们先来复习一下前面学习过的课程。我们已经学习了亚伯拉罕的故事分成五个对称的部分。第一，从11章10节到12章9节，是亚伯拉罕生平的开始，记载亚伯拉罕的背景和早期经历；第二，从12章10节到14章24节，这里的情节集中在亚伯拉罕早期和其他族群代表的互相来往；第三，是中心部分，从15章1节到17章27节，记载了神与亚伯拉罕的立约；第四，从18章1节到21章34节，集中在亚伯拉罕后期与其他族群代表的互相交往方面；第五，从22章1节到25章18节，是关于亚伯拉罕去世及其后裔的记载。这五个部分以对称的方式陈述了先祖的生平。第三部分，记述神和亚伯拉罕的立约，是亚伯拉罕人生的中心点；第二部分和第四部分彼此呼应，两者都集中记述亚伯拉罕和其他族群之间的交往；第一和最后的部分彼此呼应，提供了亚伯拉罕人生开始和结束的情况，从过去到将来，追溯了亚伯拉罕的家谱。除了亚伯拉罕生平的基本结构之外，我们前面的课程也学习了摩西撰写亚伯拉罕生平的目的。摩西撰写有关亚伯拉罕的故事，是为了教导以色列人为何及如何要离开并忘记埃及，继续征服应许之地。换句话说，从亚伯拉罕身上，以色列人看到他们人生的历史背景；从亚伯拉罕的故事中，以色列人找到可以效法的正面榜样、应该吸取的反面教训；从亚伯拉罕的人生中，以色列人看到他们自己人生的影子，这样，跟随摩西的以色列人能够寻求神为他们制定人生的目。通过对前面课程的复习，我们现在可以进入亚伯拉罕生平故事的现今应用。

亚伯拉罕和耶稣

首先让我们看看亚伯拉罕和耶稣之间存在的联系。令人遗憾的是，很多时候，基督徒或多或少地会把亚伯拉罕的人生，直接应用到现今人的人生中。我们把亚伯拉罕的故事单纯地当成道德故事，倾向于直接应用到我们的人生中。然而，作为基督徒，我们知道我们和亚伯拉罕的关系是有中介的间接关系。亚伯拉罕的人生和我们有关系是因为我们与亚伯拉罕特殊的子孙——基督已经联合。基督成为我们和亚伯拉罕之间的中介。正因为如此，我们必须以基督位格和基督的工作为基础来看待亚伯拉罕的故事。

为了明白先祖和基督之间的联系，我们要触及两个问题。一方面，我们将探讨新约有关基督是亚伯拉罕子孙的教导；另一方面，我们将探讨亚伯拉罕人生的四个主题怎样应用到基督是作为亚伯拉罕的子孙的。让我们首先看看耶稣是亚伯拉罕子孙的概念。

亚伯拉罕的子孙

从某种意义上来讲，历史上所有信徒，无论男女老少，都该称亚伯拉罕为先祖。我们都是他家族的一部分，是他的子孙，是他的后嗣。但是我们也看到，新约讲得很清楚，我们能有这样的地位是因为我们已经与基督联合，基督正是亚伯拉罕的那个特殊子孙。为了掌握《圣经》在这方面的教导，我们简要涉及两个概念，第一，「子孙」这个概念的单数性；第二，基督是亚伯拉罕独特的子孙的概念。

单数性

首先让我们看看《圣经》特别用单数来提及亚伯拉罕的子孙。涉及这一问题最重要的经文可能是加拉太书3章16节，《圣经》这样说，

所应许的原是向亚伯拉罕和他子孙说的；神并不是说「众子孙」，指着许多人，乃是说「你那一个子孙」，指着一个人，就是基督。（加拉太书3章16节）

这段经文中，保罗提到创世记中的一个事实，神的应许是向亚伯拉罕和他的子孙或后裔说的。但是，请注意保罗怎样特别解释「子孙」这个词，他说，神不是向亚伯拉罕和他的众子孙应许，不是向许多人，而是向亚伯拉罕和他的那一个子孙，指一个人，就是基督。

保罗用希伯来词「זֶרַע(/זֶרַע'/)」来阐述这个问题，这个词翻译过来就是「子孙」，是一个单数词。这个词，保罗时代的旧约希腊文翻译用的是「σπέρμα(/spérma/)」，同样用的是单数。就如保罗指出的，神没有向亚伯拉罕说，应许是给亚伯拉罕和他的众子孙的（复数形式），而是说，应许是给他的那个子孙的（单数形式）。

表面上看，保罗的观点显然直截了当，亚伯拉罕的产业只临到一个子孙，或者一个后裔，因为这个词是单数的。但是保罗关于「子孙」这个词单数性的论述导致解经的各种困难。难题可以这样来说，不错，「子孙」或「זֶרַע」这个词是单数形式，但是，旧约《圣经》中，也包括亚伯拉罕生平的故事中，很多次使用单数形式的「子孙」这个词，但是，意义上却必须常常理解为集合名词，即用单数名词来指一个群体。希伯来词「זֶרַע」或「子孙」很像中文中的「后代」，即使这个词是单数形式，但是它可以指一个子孙或者后代，也可以整体上指很多子孙或者很多后代。

例如，在创世记15章13节中，「子孙，后裔」或「זֶרַע」这个词的意义肯定就是复数，神这样对亚伯拉罕说，

你要的确知道，你的后裔[子孙]必寄居别人的地，他们要被那地的人奴役和苦待四百年（直译）。（创世记15章13节）

这里翻译成「后裔」的词就是希伯来文「זֶרַע」，是单数的，但是很明显，这个词意义上是复数的。这节经文提到后裔是指复数「他们」，动词「奴役和苦待」在希伯来文中也是复数。

保罗当然也知道，创世记中，单数形式的「子孙」这个词，很多情况下也指众人而言。实际上，加拉太书3章29节，保罗自己在这里使用子孙（后裔）这个词，也是复数的含义，经文说，

你们……就是亚伯拉罕的后裔[子孙]，是照着应许承受产业的了。（加拉太书3章29节）

这一节中的「你们…就是」在希腊文原文中是ἐστέ(/esté/)，一个复数动词，而「亚伯拉罕的后裔」对应的同义词「承受产业的」，κληρονόμοι(/klironómoi/)是复数形式。

这样，我们就需要问一个问题，如果保罗知道「子孙」这个单数词可以用来指众人。那么，为什么这里他又特别强调这个词的单数性呢？十有八九，保罗心里想的是亚伯拉罕生平中的某一段特定经文，创世记22章16到18节，这几节经文中的「子孙」在意思上肯定是单数的，经文是可以这样直译的，

「耶和华说：『你既…不留下你的儿子，就是你独生的儿子，我便指着自己起誓说：论福，我必赐大福给你；论子孙，我必[要大量繁衍]你的子孙，如同天上的星，海边的沙。你子孙必得着[他的]仇敌的城门，并且地上万国都必因你的[子孙]得福，因为你听从了我的话。』」（创世记22章16-18节）

遗憾的是，很多现代译本翻译这一段经文时，把「子孙」当作一个集合名词。但是要记住，这节经文取自亚伯拉罕献以撒的故事，这里的「子孙」一词不是笼统泛指亚伯拉罕的后裔，而是指以撒，亚伯拉罕的独生儿子。希伯来文的动词「必得着」是单数，同时注意，这个短语中的代词「他的仇敌」也用的是单数形式。

后面的课程我们会看到，创世记22章以及后面章节的记载，把撒拉的儿子以撒和其他儿子们区别开来，包括夏甲的儿孙们和基土拉的儿孙们。以撒是应许之子，是神拣选来继承亚伯拉罕产业的。所以，以撒出生之前，创世记提到亚伯拉罕的「子孙」，通常是集合性的，意思是众多「后裔」。但是，这个词在这里特别指以撒，是特殊的单个子孙，是承受亚伯拉罕应许的。

这样，当保罗提到亚伯拉罕的一个子孙时，我们能够明白保罗的基本观点。保罗注意到，创世记22章中，神没有向亚伯拉罕应许，也不是直接应许给他的众子孙的。他指出，创世记22章16节到18节中的「子孙或后裔」这个词是单数，表明应许是要传给以撒的，以撒是亚伯拉罕特别的儿子和继承人。

基督是子孙

记着亚伯拉罕子孙的单数性，现在，让我们来看看有关基督就是亚伯拉罕子孙的教导。我们再看看加拉太书3章16节中使徒所讲的，

所应许的原是向亚伯拉罕和他子孙说的；神并不是说「众子孙」，指着许多人，乃是说「你那一个子孙」，指着一个人，就是基督。（加拉太书3章16节）

这节经文，保罗不但强调亚伯拉罕的子孙是单数的，而且亚伯拉罕的这个子孙是指向基督。我们已经知道，就原本的意思来看，摩西在创始记中记载亚伯拉罕的后裔，仅仅是指以撒，是撒拉照着应许所生特殊的儿子。那么，我们怎样理解保罗写到亚伯拉罕的子孙时，是指着基督而言呢？

我们可以这样来思想，亚伯拉罕的产业是家族产业，属于他的众子孙。但是《圣经》历史中有很多重要的观点，神拣选几个特殊的人物作为继承人，来继承并分配亚伯拉罕的产业。就以撒来说，他是亚伯拉罕特殊的子孙，与亚伯拉罕其他的子孙不一样。以撒有两个儿子，雅各和以扫，神拣选雅各成为亚伯拉罕特殊的子孙，却把以扫及其后裔排除在外。从雅各生出以色列十二个支派的先祖，但是在以色列的各支派中，只有几个人成为亚伯拉罕特殊的继承人。例如，摩西，在以色列人出埃及进入应许之地时，成为神子民的独特领袖和中保。后来，当以色列发展成为一个成熟王国的时候，大卫和他的子孙成为继承亚伯拉罕产业的特殊角色。

就是大卫及其子孙的这个特殊角色才使保罗提到，基督是亚伯拉罕最终伟大的子孙，因为耶稣就是大卫王位正当的继承者，神拣选祂来做祂百姓永久的君王。基督是亚伯拉罕的伟大永恒的君尊子孙，是弥赛亚。同样，基督是每一个人加入亚伯拉罕家族的唯一通道，离开了基督，没有人能够承受亚伯拉罕的应许。

因此，就耶稣和亚伯拉罕的关系而言，我们可以作出这样的结论，从基督徒的观点来看，耶稣是亚伯拉罕独一的，最终的子孙。作为基督徒，把亚伯拉罕的人生应用到现今世界时，我们必须常常记住，亚伯拉罕和我们现今世界的联系是这样的：亚伯拉罕的祝福都传递给了基督，无论是基督在奠定祂国度的时期，或是基督目前继续拓展祂国度的时候，还是基督将来再来成全祂国度的时刻。

新约教导说，基督承受并分配亚伯拉罕的产业分为三个主要阶段。第一，在祂的国度奠基的时候，就是祂第一次来的时候；第二，在祂的国度延续的时候，就是从祂第一次来之后到祂第二次来之前的历史过程；第三，在祂的国度成全时候，就是祂第二次荣耀降临的时候。现在耶稣坐在父神的右边，执掌王权，祂不断地扩大继承和分配亚伯拉罕的产业。将来有一天，当基督在荣耀中降临的时候，祂会完全承受并全部分配亚伯拉罕的产业。

总而言之，在加拉太书3章16节简单的几句话中，其实包含了许多相当复杂的神学观点和立场，认识到这一点很重要。这里保罗说，这个应许是给亚伯拉罕和他的一个子孙的，接着，保罗还认定这个子孙就是基督，他并没有说创世记中的子孙这个词就是直接地来指向的耶稣基督。相反，保罗用简便的方式提到以撒和基督之间存在的象征关系。为了充分阐明这个问题，我们可以这样说，正如以撒是亚伯拉罕那个时候承受应许的首要子孙，同样地，基督是亚伯拉罕最伟大的子孙，是新约时代承受亚伯拉罕应许的首要子孙。

主题

为了完全明白基督是亚伯拉罕子孙的重要性，按照我们已经学过的亚伯拉罕故事的四个主题来探讨这些问题，会很有帮助。你可能还记得，从创世记的这些章节中，我们已经看到四个主题：神的恩典，亚伯拉罕的忠心，神对亚伯拉罕的祝福，以及神透过亚伯拉罕带来的祝福。我们应该怎样以亚伯拉罕和基督之间存在关联的角度来理解这些主题？

神的恩典

首先第一点，我们已经看到神在亚伯拉罕的人生中显示了奇异的恩典。当然，因为亚伯拉罕是个罪人，所以他个人人生里一定有恩典。但是除此之外，神对亚伯拉罕的怜悯也客观显示神的恩典。通过与亚伯拉罕建立关系，神实际上推进了整个世界的救赎。

尽管神在亚伯拉罕人生中所显示特别的恩典，作为基督徒，我们还相信神对先祖的恩典仅仅是神在基督里所显示恩典的预表。当然，基督自己是没有罪的，他自己不必承受救赎之恩，然而，耶稣基督的降临，成为亚伯拉罕的子孙，这是神怜悯世人无可争辩的伟大作为。

在耶稣基督第一次降临，也就是国度的奠基中，神显示了极大的怜悯。耶稣基督的完美一生、他的受死、复活、升天以及圣灵的浇灌，都是神恩典崇高的彰显。现在，耶稣基督在天上掌权，也就是国度的延续期，神继续赐下更多的恩典。随着救恩传遍地上的万族，纵观整个人类历史，神在基督里彰显的恩慈已经无可否认地改变了世界。当耶稣基督再来，就是国度成全时期，来临的恩典将是不可测度的。基督将会再来彻底改变世界，带来新天新地。作为基督徒，每一次我们看到神在亚伯拉罕生平故事中所施行的恩慈，我们的心思意念就应该转向神在基督里透过祂的国度中的三个阶段所显示出来的恩典与怜悯。

亚伯拉罕的忠心

第二点，摩西陈述的亚伯拉罕生平中第二个主题就是亚伯拉罕对神的忠心。起初，神要求亚伯拉罕尽责，迁移到应许之地。但是在亚伯拉罕的一生中，神对他也有很多其他的要求。作为基督徒，我们读到有关亚伯拉罕面临的责任时，我们的心思应该朝向基督、亚伯拉罕的这个子孙身上，思想基督对天父如何地忠心。

当然，在国度的三个阶段中，基督都是忠于天父的。在国度奠基的阶段，基督亲自证明祂向父神是完全尽忠的，虽然亚伯拉罕在一些重要的方面向神忠心，但是，基督在他人生中的每时每刻都是完全的忠心。除此之外，国度延续阶段，基督作王，仍然对天父真实地尽忠。这个时期，基督统掌一切，完全顺服神的目的，广传福音，救赎祂的百姓。

最后，国度成全阶段，基督将会再来，将会完成祂在世上所开始的公义的作为。祂将消灭上帝一切的仇敌，使万物都更新，彰显父神的荣耀。

因此，每次我们看到亚伯拉罕人生中对神忠心的主题，我们这些基督徒就通过把它们联系到基督、这个亚伯拉罕的子孙身上，就能够适当地把这些真理应用到现今的世界当中。

对亚伯拉罕的祝福

第三点，作为基督徒，我们不仅有兴趣看到神的恩典和人类的忠心这些主题在基督里面应用到我们今天的人生，而且我们也特别渴望看到亚伯拉罕人生的第三个主题，就是神对亚伯拉罕的祝福。神告诉亚伯拉罕，以色列要成为大国，要在应许之地成为繁荣的国度，亚伯拉罕和以色列在全地都要名为大。

再一次，作为基督徒，我们的心思要思想神给亚伯拉罕的子孙，就是基督的祝福。基督第一次降临的时候，神使祂从死里复活，赐给祂天上地下所有的权柄，天上地下没有任何别的名超过耶稣的名。现在，国度延续阶段，耶稣也继续享受不断增加的祝福。耶稣按照神的旨意掌管世界的时候，得到越来越多的荣耀。国度成全的时候，耶稣基督要在荣耀中第二次降临，祝福将会无限无量，祂将被升高，超过一切，万膝要跪拜这位亚伯拉罕最伟大的子孙。所以，任何时候看到亚伯拉罕受到神的祝福，我们的眼睛就应该转向基督，祂是承受亚伯拉罕应许的，更大程度上享受神的祝福。

透过亚伯拉罕而得的祝福

最后，亚伯拉罕生平中第四个主题是神透过亚伯拉罕给别人的祝福。神说，通过祝福和诅咒的过程，全地要都因亚伯拉罕得福，这个伟大的应许极大一部分发生在新约。罗马书4章13节，保罗提到这个对亚伯拉罕的应许，经文这样说，

「因为神应许亚伯拉罕和他后裔必得承受世界，不是因律法，乃是因信而得的义。」（罗马书4章13节）

这里请注意，神应许亚伯拉罕，他要成为万国的祝福，神应许这些祝福的来到是透过亚伯拉罕征服列国，把神的国度扩展到全地而实现的。亚伯拉罕和他的后裔要承受这个世界，万国都被他们掌管。起初，神要亚当和夏娃治理全地，同样，神应许亚伯拉罕和他的后裔把神的祝福传递到每一个民族，每一个家庭，以此来承受全地。

亚伯拉罕要成为万国的祝福，这个最后的主题也适用在基督身上，因为他是亚伯拉罕的子孙，是承受亚伯拉罕应许的继承人。在国度奠基的阶段，基督从以色列国中呼召了一些忠心的子民，而当祂从死里复活，升到天上的宝座上之后，祂被立为全地的大君王，就告诉那些忠心的剩余子民要把以色列的祝福带到万邦。在国度延续阶段，基督的王权，随着福音的传扬而扩展到列邦中，成就了亚伯拉罕祝福万国的应许。当国度成全的阶段，耶稣基督再来的时候，祂将要把神的祝福成就在全地的万民之中。启示录22章1到2节，经文这样说，

「天使又指示我在城内街道当中一道生命水的河，明亮如水晶，从神和羔羊的宝座流出来。在河这边与那边有生命树，结十二样果子，每月都结果子，树上的叶子乃为医治万民。」（启示录22章1到2节）

亚伯拉罕要成为万国的祝福，这个应许终于在基督国度的奠基、延续和成全时期逐步的实现了。

因此，我们可以这样来总结这个问题：亚伯拉罕生平对我们现今时代的一个正确应用，必须要包含，至少隐含地认识到耶稣基督的角色是亚伯拉罕的子孙。作为亚伯拉罕的特殊的子孙，耶稣基督就是那位成就和实现了我们所探讨的亚伯拉罕生平的这些主题：神在基督里彰显了祂的至深怜悯；基督完完全全、真真实实地忠于神；基督承受了神应许给亚伯拉罕的一切祝福；在基督里，我们看到神向亚伯拉罕应许的丰富祝福扩展到了地极。无论我们如何提及现今的应用，都必须要记住亚伯拉罕和耶稣基督之间的这些连接点，这是至关重要的。

既然已经看到了亚伯拉罕和耶稣之间的关系，形成了亚伯拉罕故事和我们现今世界之间至关重要的联结，那么让我们转向现今应用的第二个方面，以色列和教会之间的联系。

以色列和教会

我们要常常记得，摩西当初撰写亚伯拉罕生平的时候，他记载这些事情是要鼓励以色列民，离开埃及和忘记背后，前行进入和占领应许之地。他们会在亚伯拉罕的生平中，发现这个异象的历史背景；他们要在亚伯拉罕生平中看到应当效法或是拒绝的榜样，来完成这个使命；他们甚至在亚伯拉罕的生平中看见他们自身经历的影子。因此，我们要看看亚伯拉罕的这些故事怎样应用到现今的世界，我们必须考虑新约有关的经文，这些经文如何教导跟随摩西的以色列民族和现今基督教会之间的联系。

为了探讨以色列和教会之间的关系，我们要触及两个主题，和前面的讨论相呼应。首先，我们要进一步探讨亚伯拉罕子孙这一主题如何联系到以色列民族，如何联系到教会；第二，我们要看看在亚伯拉罕生平的四个主题中如何表现亚伯拉罕子孙这个主题。首先让我们看看以色列和教会都是亚伯拉罕的子孙。

亚伯拉罕的子孙

从亚伯拉罕的子孙角度来查看以色列和教会之间的联系，我们需要简单提到四个方面的问题，首先，我们要看到亚伯拉罕子孙的数量广大；第二，我们要看到亚伯拉罕子孙的种族身份；第三，我们要注意亚伯拉罕子孙的属灵品格；第四，我们要看到亚伯拉罕子孙的历史情况。我们首先来看看亚伯拉罕子孙的数目广大。

数目广大

我们已经明白，创世记清楚地说明，「亚伯拉罕的子孙」这个短语有时特指一个人，就是以撒，新约利用这一点来建立亚伯拉罕和基督之间的关系。但是现在我们必须扩大我们的眼界，看到亚伯拉罕子孙另外一个《圣经》观点。以撒并不是唯一被称为亚伯拉罕子孙或后裔的人，以撒并没有单独承受亚伯拉罕的遗产，他其实是一个管道，透过他很多人能够成为亚伯拉罕后裔中的一员。因此，摩西一而再，再而三地提到以色列民族也是亚伯拉罕的子孙。我们把亚伯拉罕的故事应用到现在世界时，记得基督是新约中亚伯拉罕最高的子孙，这很重要；与此同时，我们也必须记得基督的教会也是亚伯拉罕的子孙。保罗在加拉太书3章29节这样说，

「你们既属乎基督，就是亚伯拉罕的后裔[子孙]，是照着应许承受产业的了。」（加拉太书3章29节）

保罗在这段经文中说的很清楚，因为我们属乎基督，所以我们就和亚伯拉罕有关联。就像旧约中的以色列民族一样，我们是亚伯拉罕的子孙后裔。由于这个原因，亚伯拉罕的故事不仅仅适用于基督自己，而且也适用于亚伯拉罕广大的子孙，就是在教会中与他有份的。

种族身份

亚伯拉罕的后裔是旧约中的以色列和今天的教会，除了这个事实之外，我们也应该注意到亚伯拉罕子孙在新约和旧约中的民族身份。我们已经知道，亚伯拉罕的故事首先是写给那些当时跟随摩西的以色列民族的，当然确定的一点是，绝大多数的原本读者是由犹太族组成的，这些是亚伯拉罕自然家族的后裔，如果认为原本的读者包括所有的犹太人或只有犹太人，就错了。跟随摩西的众人包括犹太人和被[收养的]外邦人，这些外邦人是被收养认领成为以色列人。结果，很多情况下，《圣经》很清楚地说明，创世记的原本读者不全部是犹太人。

例如，出埃及记12章38节，这样描写那些跟随摩西的人，

「又有许多闲杂人，并有羊群、牛群和他们一同上去。」（出埃及记12章38节）

注意这里提到，在以色列人中间还有其他「闲杂人」，这些人是外邦人，和以色列人一起离开埃及。《圣经》中有很多处提到这群人，几乎同样，旧约《圣经》的后面提到有名的外邦人，象喇合以及路得在后面的时代中接纳进入以色列人中，历代志上1章到9章的家谱中，在神的百姓中包含有外邦人的名字。

因此，我们看到，摩西撰写亚伯拉罕的故事给这些原本的读者，就是亚伯拉罕的子孙中，包含了不同的种族。包括亚伯拉罕血统的后裔，也包括那些被收养、接纳成为以色列家族的外邦人。这两种人都从亚伯拉罕的故事中认识到他们的将来是在应许之地。

几乎同样，今天基督的教会也是种族多样化。包括了称基督是他们主的犹太族人；也包括了被接纳进入亚伯拉罕家族的外邦人，因为他们也称基督是他们的主。可以肯定，历史也已经揭示，新约教会逐渐增长，接纳更多的外邦人，超过犹太人按应许得赎的人数，但是，亚伯拉罕子孙的多样化在今天的教会中仍然是个现实，就如旧约时期一样。因此，亚伯拉罕的故事当初是写给犹太人和被算为亚伯拉罕后裔的外邦人，同样，今天，我们应用亚伯拉罕故事的时候，必须准备好是同时应用到犹太人和那些被算为亚伯拉罕子孙的外邦人身上，因为他们属于世界各地的教会。

教会种族多样化是现今应用很重要的方面，因为很多的基督徒接受了错误片面的教导，认为神在旧约赐给亚伯拉罕的应许只能应用到今天有犹太血统的人。按照这种观点，神对外邦人信徒有另外一个的计划，除了可以应用一些松散的属灵原则之外，外帮的信徒是不能承受神对亚伯拉罕的所有应许。可能这个观点很流行，但是我们必需记得，亚伯拉罕的子孙在摩西时代包含不同的种族，亚伯拉罕的子孙在今天也同样包含不同的种族。摩西对跟随他的国民所教导的一切，也应用在今天那个延续的国民上，就是基督的教会。

属灵品格

第三点，亚伯拉罕生平对现今人生的应用，也应当考虑亚伯拉罕的子孙，即以色列和教会的属灵品格。我们已经明白，旧约中把有形的以色列国民称作亚伯拉罕的子孙，亚伯拉罕群体的子孙。但是我们也需要认识到，在有形的以色列国民中，存在属灵的多样化。同时拥有非信徒和信徒，旧约记载的很清楚，以色列国民当中，有很多男人、女人和小孩不是真的信徒，但是另外其他的是真信徒，信靠神的应许。可以肯定，每一个以色列人，无论信徒和非信徒，都接受神很多特殊的、暂时的祝福，他们都从埃及为奴之地被救出来，他们都在西乃山上进入与神立约的关系，他们都有很多信心的机会，他们也都领受到进入应许之地的应许。但是内心里面存在重大的差异。一方面，以色列人中的非信徒，他们显示出来的真实品格是心里的背信，亚伯拉罕的故事的目的，就是要呼召他们真正的悔改，得到得救的信心。

另一方面，以色列人中真正的信徒，他们信靠神的应许，他们见证出来的真实品格是内心忠诚的表述。亚伯拉罕的故事的目的，就是要鼓励这些真信徒要他们在信心中成长。以色列人中那些非信徒，由于不忠诚，他们只得到暂时的祝福。但是，最终，他们要受到神将来永恒的审判。那些真信徒才是亚伯拉罕真正的子孙，是他属灵的后裔，他们不仅得到暂时的祝福，而且将来有一天会在新天新地中，还会永远承受亚伯拉罕的祝福。在罗马书9章6到8节，保罗相当强烈地阐述这个观点，他这样说，

因为从以色列生的，不都是以色列人；也不因为是亚伯拉罕的后裔，就都作他的儿女；惟独「从以撒生的，才要称为你的后裔。」这就是说，肉身所生的儿女不是神的儿女；惟独那应许的儿女才算是后裔。（罗马书9章6到8节）

那么就不难看出，在基督的教会里面，也同样存在属灵的多样性。新约时代，那些透过洗礼进入有形教会中的人，有两部分组成：信徒和非信徒。当然，由于和神、以及和神的百姓有关系，旧约时代的以色列人享受很多暂时的特权，同样，凡在基督教会的人也享有很多暂时的祝福：他们拥有相爱的群体，他们拥有神的话语和圣礼，他们能听到福音的信息和解释。但是有形教会中的很多人，他们显示出来内心真实的品格是背信不忠诚，亚伯拉罕的故事对教会中这些非信徒的应用，就是要呼召他们真正的悔改，得到得救的信心。

但是在教会也有真正的信徒，他们相信神的应许，他们忠诚的行为表明了内心的真实品格，亚伯拉罕的故事对他们的应用，就是要鼓励他们在信心中成长。教会那些非信徒，由于不忠诚，他们只得到暂时的祝福，但是最终，他们要受到神将来永恒的审判。但是，那些亚伯拉罕真正的子孙，亚伯拉罕真正的儿女，他们信靠基督，不仅得到暂时的祝福，而且将来得到永远的奖赏，在新天新地中，永远承受亚伯拉罕的祝福。

这就是为什么雅各在雅各书2章21和22节中这样提到亚伯拉罕，雅各是写给有形教会中的信徒和非信徒的，他说，

「我们的祖宗亚伯拉罕把他儿子以撒献在坛上，岂不是因行为称义吗？可见信心是与他的行为并行，而且信心因着行为才得成全。」（雅各书2章21-22节）

雅各在这里所说的主要意思是，亚伯拉罕的故事，一方面挑战教会中的非信徒，要他们转离假冒伪善。同时，鼓励教会中的信徒，要他们继续在生活中活出他们的信心。我们必须顺从雅各的榜样，在现今应用亚伯拉罕的故事时，认识到今天教会中属灵的多样性。

历史情况

第四点，为了在现今世界中应用亚伯拉罕的生平故事，我们也必需记得，跟随摩西的以色列人和现今的教会之间，存在十分相似的的历史情况。你可能还记得，摩西向以色列人撰写亚伯拉罕生平的时候，他们正在一个旅程中。不管摩西的写作对象是出埃及的第一代人或是第二代人，他原本的读者是旅行在两个世界之间。一方面，他们已经离开为奴的埃及，但是，另外一方面，他们还没有进入迦南的应许之地。也可以这样说，以色列民族已经首先从他们的旧世界中被救赎出来，但是他们还没有进入他们的新世界。结果，摩西写创世记给以色列人，鼓励他们完全抛弃埃及的缠累，勇往直前，胜利进入应许之地。

原本读者的历史情况对现今的应用非常重要，因为今天基督的教会也处在一个类似的历史情况下。就如以色列人已经从为奴之地的埃及被救赎出来，但是仍然行走在去迦南荣耀人生的旅途中；同样，因着耶稣基督来到地上以及祂所做的一切，基督的教会已经从罪的权势下被救赎出来，但是，教会仍然向着耶稣基督再来时那荣耀的新创造前进。这些类似的情况向我们提供了一个框架，如何可以把亚伯拉罕的人生应用到今天的教会。正如摩西写给以色列人，在他们从一个地方到另外一个地方的旅程中鼓励引导他们，同样，他的故事是在我们从死亡的世界到永生的新世界的旅途中，鼓励引导我们。

我们之所以可以确信这些历史情况的类似性，为我们提供了这种方向的应用，是因为使徒保罗利用这些来把旧约应用到哥林多教会中。在哥林多前书10章1到6节，保罗把摩西的读者和教会做这样的历史比较，

弟兄们，我不愿意你们不晓得，我们的祖宗从前都在云下，都从海中经过，都在云里、海里受洗归了摩西，并且都吃了一样的灵食，也都喝了一样的灵水；所喝的，是出于随着他们的灵磐石，那磐石就是基督。但他们中间多半是神不喜欢的人，所以在旷野倒毙。这些事都是我们的监戒，叫我们不要贪恋恶事，像他们那样贪恋的；（哥林多前书10章1-6节）

简单来说，保罗注意到，跟随摩西的以色列人在旷野的经历和基督徒的经历类似，他们被摩西救赎，我们被基督救赎。他们受洗归入摩西，基督徒受洗归入基督，他们从神那里有吗哪吃，有水喝，基督徒也是一样，在主餐礼中吃饼喝杯；然而，他们早期经历的这些恩典预备他们进入一个试验期，就是他们在进入应许之地的过程中所经历的一个试验期。但是，可悲的是，摩西时代，神不喜悦大多数以色列人的行为，他们就死在旷野。因此，保罗总结说，基督徒应该从以色列人的经历中接受教训，他们旅程的性质和教会一样。从保罗的例子中，我们应该学习到很多，如何把亚伯拉罕的生平应用到基督的教会中。

摩西所撰写的亚伯拉罕生平的故事鼓励以色列人，当他们回头看看神带领他们出埃及的作为，向前走往应许之地时，要保持信心。几乎同样，今天的教会应用亚伯拉罕的故事，也应该是在我们的行程中，继续鼓励我们。因着基督在国度奠基阶段的作为，我们必须对基督保持忠实的信心；在今天国度成长的阶段，我们必须不断对祂保持忠实的信心；我们必须盼望我们旅程结束的日子，那时，我们必要进入新天新地。

因此我们看到，当我们进行亚伯拉罕生平的现今应用时，我们不应该使我们自己仅仅只关心亚伯拉罕和耶稣之间的联系，我们也必须要注意到最初接受亚伯拉罕故事的旧约以色列民族和新约的耶稣基督教会之间的联系。旧约的以色列和新约的教会都是亚伯拉罕的子孙，我们两者都有混合的种族身份，我们两者都有属灵的多样性，我们两者都是在一个旅程上，目的是走向着神荣耀的国度。

主题

明白了亚伯拉罕生平的故事对今天教会的应用，教会就是今天亚伯拉罕子孙的延续，我们也应该看看，这些应用的过程怎样触及亚伯拉罕生平的四个主题。这些主题对我们在基督里面的日常生活有什么教导。

你可能记得亚伯拉罕的故事触及四个主题：神的恩典，亚伯拉罕的忠心，神对亚伯拉罕的祝福，以及神透过亚伯拉罕的祝福。下面的课程里面，我们将不断指出，这些主题如何对我们这些亚伯拉罕子孙的人生说话。在此，我们只简要提出我们应该遵循的总体方向。首先来看神的恩典这个主题。

神的恩典

神向亚伯拉罕大施怜悯，不仅在他人生开始的时候，而且在他生存在地上的每一天。《圣经》清楚地教导，正如向亚伯拉罕施行怜悯，神也向今天的基督徒施行恩典，是这些恩典让我们在基督里开始，并在基督里蒙保守。正如保罗在以弗所书2章8到9节说的，

你们得救是本乎恩，也因着信。这并不是出于自己，乃是神所赐的；也不是出于行为，免得有人自夸。（以弗所书2章8-9节）

基督里的救恩是神恩典的礼物，甚至我们的信心也是从神来的。我们如此依赖神的怜悯，我们基督徒生平的每一天都要持续生活在这个恩典当中。没有神持续的恩典，我们一切的努力都是无用的。

因此，当跟随摩西的以色列人听到亚伯拉罕的故事时，应该已经明白他们人生中神奇妙的恩典。同样，每一次我们读到神向亚伯拉罕所施的怜悯，作为跟随基督的人，无论整体或是个人，我们都有机会学习如何感谢神在我们身上的作为。神向我们大发怜悯，我们必须学习如何寻求并依赖他的恩典。

亚伯拉罕的忠心

亚伯拉罕忠心的主题，以几乎同样的方式，在各个层次上应用到基督徒身上。阅读亚伯拉罕生平的时候，很多情况下，我们看到神要亚伯拉罕忠心服事祂。当然，在他的一生中他并没到完美的地步，但是他确实结出了信心的果子。即使在旧约中，忠心顺服也是在神的恩典怜悯基础之上，记得这一点是非常重要的。因此，我们一定不要把这个重点变成律法主义。不过，和旧约时代一样，今天真正的信徒也要求以忠心服事神来回应神的恩典。

这就是为什么新约常常强调基督徒的忠心责任，看看以弗所书2章8到10节，保罗连接恩典和忠心的方式，

「你们得救是本乎恩，也因着信。这并不是出于自己，乃是神所赐的；也不是出于行为，免得有人自夸。我们原是他的工作，在基督耶稣里造成的，为要叫我们行善，就是神所预备叫我们行的。」（以弗所书2章8-10节）

第10节讲得很清楚，今天的基督徒有责任行善，神赐给我们得救的信心，使我们能够对他忠心。因此，每当我们看到亚伯拉罕的生平提出有关人类忠心的问题时，我们就要把这些道德责任应用在我们的人生中。

对亚伯拉罕的祝福

第三点，我们也应该认识到，对亚伯拉罕的祝福如何应用到基督徒的人生中。你可能记得神应许要赐给亚伯拉罕和他的后裔大福，最终，他们要成为一个举世闻名的、伟大繁荣的国度。在整个亚伯拉罕的故事中，很多次，我们看到神祝福这位先祖，这些都预示着将来最终的祝福。

原本的读者以色列人，当他们等待最终祝福的过程中，他们的人生中能够看到亚伯拉罕的祝福实现，同样，我们这些现今的基督徒，在等待最后一切成就的过程中，此时此刻也经历很多同样的祝福。我们今生所看到的祝福，大大地鼓励我们生活在希望中，盼望耶稣基督再来，实现那些终极完全的祝福。

透过亚伯拉罕的祝福

最后，亚伯拉罕的故事集中在神透过亚伯拉罕对世界的祝福，基督徒也有机会成为祝福世界的管道。你可能记得，神应许亚伯拉罕要诅咒他的敌人、要祝福他的朋友，将来他能够与全地各族分享神的祝福。不但如此，通过亚伯拉罕的故事，我们看到神有时也使用亚伯拉罕成为其他各种人祝福的管道。

创世记原本的读者读到这些事件时，当时，他们有很多机会可以进行反思。当他们进到不同的族群当中的时候，他们找到指导他们成为神祝福世人管道的方式。他们确信神保守他们战胜敌人，他们能够继续努力往前，把神的祝福传向他们的邻舍。

同样的方式，我们今天的基督徒应该把这个主题应用到我们人生中，我们也能够确信神的保守，我们也能够得到鼓励，成为世上列国的祝福，扩展神的国度到地极。

四、总结

本课是亚伯拉罕生平对现今的应用，我们探讨了创世记关于先祖的记载与我们今天的世界有何联系，首先，我们关注了基督徒的一种认识方法，就是这部分《圣经》注重了基督是亚伯拉罕的子孙，以及基督完成亚伯拉罕生平主题的方式。除此之外，我们也查看了亚伯拉罕的生平怎样应用到教会中，这个亚伯拉罕子孙的群体。在基督里的男人、女人和小孩子该怎样按照《圣经》这一部分的教导来生活。

当我们更仔细地查看创世记中亚伯拉罕的生平时，我们就会有更多的机会把先祖的生平应用到我们现今的生命和生活中。我们会发现摩西对先祖亚伯拉罕的记载，不仅把我们的心拉向这位先祖，而且也拉向亚伯拉罕的那个子孙，耶稣基督；还拉向一个奇迹，就是在基督里我们竟然也成了亚伯拉罕的子孙，是承受亚伯拉罕应许的后裔。

Father Abraham: Modern Application

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INTRODUCTION

If there is one thing that many modern people find difficult about the Bible, it is this: it's hard to imagine that stories written thousands of years ago have the ability to guide our lives today. And this is certainly true about the accounts of Abraham in the Bible. Abraham himself lived about four thousand years ago, and the stories about him were written nearly 3,600 years ago. But as followers of Christ, we are committed to the fact that these stories are part of Scripture and therefore are profitable even for modern people.

But even with this commitment the question still remains: how do these stories about Abraham apply to our lives today? How do we bridge that 4,000-year gap separating us from Abraham?

We have entitled this series, Father Abraham, because we are exploring the life of Abraham as it appears in the book of Genesis. This lesson is the third of three introductory lessons in this series, and we have entitled it, "The Life of Abraham: Modern Application." In this lesson, we will conclude our overview of Abraham's life by concentrating on the proper way to draw modern applications from the chapters in Genesis that speak of Abraham. How should we apply the stories about Abraham to our lives? What kinds of impact are they to have on us today?

To understand how the life of Abraham applies to our world, we will look in two basic directions. First, the connections that exist between Abraham and Jesus, and second, the connections that exist between the original audience of Israel and the modern audience of the church.

Before we look at the modern application of Abraham's life we should take a moment to review what we have seen in previous lessons. We have learned that the story of Abraham divides into five symmetrical steps. First Abraham's life begins with Abraham's background and early experiences in 11:10–12:9. Second, several episodes concentrate on Abraham's earlier interactions with representatives of other peoples in 12:10–14:24. The third and central segment focuses on the covenant that God made with Abraham in 15:1–17:27. The fourth section turns to Abraham's later interactions with representatives of other peoples in 18:1–21:34. And the fifth segment deals with Abraham's progeny and death in 22:1–25:18. These five sections present the patriarch's life in a symmetrical pattern. The third section, which deals with God's covenant with Abraham serves as the centerpiece of Abraham's life. The second and fourth sections compare to each other as they both focus on Abraham's interactions with other peoples. And the first and last sections correspond to each other by providing bookends to Abraham's life, tracing his family line from the past and into the future. Beyond the basic structure of Abraham's life, we have also seen in previous lessons that Moses had a purpose in writing Abraham's life. Moses wrote about Abraham to teach Israel why and how they were to leave Egypt behind and to continue toward the conquest of the Promised Land. In other words, by seeing the historical backgrounds of their lives in Abraham, by finding models or examples to follow and reject in Abraham's stories and by discerning how Abraham's life foreshadowed their own lives, the Israelites, following Moses could see the ways they were to pursue God's purpose for them. With this review of previous lessons in mind, we are now ready to turn to the modern application of Abraham's life story.

ABRAHAM AND JESUS

Let's look first at the connections that exist between Abraham and Jesus. Unfortunately, many times Christians apply Abraham's life more or less directly to modern lives. We approach the stories of Abraham as simple moral stories that speak directly to our lives. As Christians however, we know that our relationship with Abraham is mediated; Abraham's life is relevant for us because we have been joined to Abraham's special seed, Christ. Christ stands between us and Abraham. And for this reason, we must always view the biblical stories about Abraham in the light of Christ and what he has done.

To understand the connections between the patriarch and Christ we will touch on two issues. On the one hand, we will explore how the New Testament teaches that Christ is the seed of Abraham. And on the other hand, we will see how the four major themes we have noticed in the life of Abraham apply to Christ as the seed of Abraham. Let's look first at the concept that Jesus is Abraham's seed.

Seed of Abraham

Now there is a sense in which Abraham is the father of all believers throughout history — men, women and children. We are all a part of his family, his children and his heirs. But as we will see, the New Testament makes it very clear that we enjoy this status because we have been joined to Christ who is the special seed of Abraham. To grasp how the Scriptures teach this perspective we will touch briefly on two matters. First, the singularity of the concept of "seed". Second, the concept of Christ as the unique seed of Abraham.

Singularity

Let's think first of the ways the Bible draws attention to the singularity of Abraham's seed. Perhaps the most significant passage that focuses on this issue is Galatians 3:16. There we find these words:

The promises were spoken to Abraham and to his seed. The Scripture does not say "and to seeds," meaning many people, but "and to your seed," meaning one person, who is Christ (Galatians 3:16).

In this passage, Paul referred to the fact that in Genesis God made promises to Abraham and to his seed, or offspring. But notice how Paul commented specifically on the expression "seed," saying that God did not make promises to Abraham and to his seeds — that is, to many people — but to Abraham and his seed, that is to one person, Christ.

Paul argued this way by noting that the Hebrew word zera which is translated "seed" is a singular word. The same was true for the Greek word sperma in the Greek translation of the Old Testament available in Paul's day. As Paul noted, God did not say to Abraham that the promise was to Abraham and his seeds (in the plural) but to his seed, in the singular.

Now on the surface, it would appear that Paul's point of view was straightforward. Abraham's inheritance came to just one seed, or one descendant because the word is singular. But Paul's argument about the singularity of the word "seed" has raised all kinds of difficulties for interpreters. The problem may be put in this way. It is true that the word "seed" or zera is singular in form, but many times in the Old Testament, including in the stories of Abraham's life, the word "seed" in its singular form must be taken as a collective singular in meaning, a singular word that refers to a group. The Hebrew word zera or "seed" is much like our English word "offspring." Even though this word is singular in form, it can refer to just one offspring or "descendant" or it can refer collectively to many offspring or "descendants."

For instance, the term "seed" or zera is definitely plural in meaning in Genesis 15:13. There we read these words that God spoke to Abraham.

"Know for certain that your descendants will be strangers in a country not their own, and they will be enslaved and mistreated four hundred years" (Genesis 15:13).

Here, the word "descendants" translates the singular Hebrew word zera, but the word is clearly plural in meaning. This verse speaks of the seed as "their own" in the plural, and the verbs "they will be enslaved and mistreated" are also plural in Hebrew.

Of course, Paul knew that the singular form of the word "seed" referred to more than one person many times in Genesis. In fact, Paul himself used the word seed in a plural sense in Galatians 3:29 where he wrote these words,

You are Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise (Galatians 3:29).

In the Greek of this verse, the phrase "you are" translates este, a plural verb. And "Abraham's seed" is synonymous with the word "heirs," kleronomoi which is also plural.

In this light we have to ask a question. If Paul knew that the singular form of the term "seed" could refer to more than one person, why then did he stress its singularity? In all likelihood, Paul had in mind one particular passage in the life of Abraham, Genesis 22:16-18. In these verses, the term "seed" is definitely singular in meaning. Listen to this literal translation of these verses:

"By myself I have sworn, declares the Lord, because you … have not withheld your son, your only son, indeed I will greatly bless you, and I will greatly multiply your seed as the stars of the heavens and as the sand which is on the seashore; and your seed shall possess the gate of his enemies. In your seed all the nations of the earth shall be blessed, because you have obeyed my voice" (Genesis 22:16-18, literal).

Unfortunately, many modern translations render this passage as if "seed" were a collective singular. But we have to remember that this verse is part of the story of the sacrifice of Isaac. And here the word "seed" referred not to Abraham's descendants in general, but to Isaac, Abraham's son. The verb, "shall possess," is singular in the Hebrew, and notice also that the pronoun in the phrase "his enemies" is singular.

As we will see in later lessons, Genesis 22 and the chapters that follow spend time distinguishing Isaac, the son of Sarah, from his other sons, the son of Hagar, and the sons of Keturah. Isaac was the special seed of promise, the one whom God had chosen as Abraham's only heir. So, before Isaac's birth, Genesis usually speaks of Abraham's "seed" as a collective, meaning "descendants" in the plural, but here the word has a focus on Isaac as the special singular descendant who would inherit Abraham's promises.

In this light we can understand Paul's basic point when he referred to the single seed of Abraham. Paul noted that in Genesis 22 God did not make promises to Abraham and directly to all of his descendants. He pointed out that the singularity of the word "seed" in Genesis 22:16-18 indicates that the promises were passed to Isaac, Abraham's special son and heir.

Christ as Seed

With the singularity of the seed of Abraham in mind, we should now turn to the teaching that Christ is the seed of Abraham. Listen again to what the apostle said in Galatians 3:16.

The promises were spoken to Abraham and to his seed. The Scripture does not say 'and to seeds,' meaning many people, but 'and to your seed,' meaning one person, who is Christ (Galatians 3:16).

In this passage Paul not only drew attention to the fact that the seed of Abraham was singular but that the one seed of Abraham is Christ. Now, as we have already seen, in terms of the original meaning of Genesis the singular seed of Abraham of whom Moses wrote was none other than Isaac, the special son of promise born to Sarah. How then should we understand Paul when he wrote that Abraham's one seed is Jesus?

Think of it this way. Abraham's inheritance was a family inheritance that belongs to his descendants. But at a number of crucial points in the history of Scripture, God chose several key figures to serve as special heirs who received and distributed Abraham's inheritance to others. In the case of Isaac, he was the special seed in distinction from Abraham's other sons. When Isaac had two sons, Jacob and Esau, God chose Jacob to be the special seed of Abraham and excluded Esau and his descendants. From Jacob came the twelve patriarchs of the tribes of Israel. But among the tribes of Israel several figures were special heirs of Abraham. Moses, for instance, was the leader and mediator of God's people as they moved from Egypt to the Promised Land. And later, as Israel became a full fledge empire, David and his sons held the special role of mediating the inheritance of Abraham.

It is this special role of David and his sons that led Paul to refer to Christ as the last great seed of Abraham because Jesus is the rightful heir of David's throne. He was chosen by God to be the permanent king of his people. He is the great eternal royal seed of Abraham, the Messiah. And as such, Christ is the only one through whom anyone else can participate in Abraham's inheritance. No one separated from Christ will ever receive the promises of Abraham. To understand how Christ is the final seed of Abraham, it helps to think of his role in terms of the three stages of the kingdom of salvation that he brought to the world.

So, we can summarize Jesus in relation to Abraham in this way. From a Christian point of view, Jesus is the unique, final seed of Abraham. And as Christians when we want to apply the life of Abraham to the modern world, we must always keep in mind that the connection between Abraham and our world is that Abraham's great blessings are passed to Christ as he inaugurated his kingdom, as he continues to build his kingdom now and as he will bring his kingdom to its consummation.

The New Testament teaches that Christ receives and distributes Abraham's inheritance in three main stages. First, in the inauguration of his kingdom that occurred in his first coming; second, in the continuation of his kingdom that extends to all of history after his first coming but prior to his return; and third, at the consummation of his kingdom in his glorious second coming. He continues to receive and distribute Abraham's inheritance in increasing measure as he reigns over all at the right hand of God the Father. And he will one day fully receive and fully distribute Abraham's inheritance when he returns in glory.

In a word, it is important to realize that in Galatians 3:16 Paul encapsulated a rather complex theological outlook in just a few words. When Paul said that the promise was to Abraham and his singular seed, and then identified that seed as Christ, he was not saying that the word "seed" in Genesis referred directly to Jesus. Instead, Paul spoke in an abbreviated fashion of a typology that exists between Isaac and Christ. To state the matter more fully, we could put it this way: like Isaac was the chief heir of Abraham in his generation, Christ is Abraham's greatest son, and the chief heir of Abraham in the New Testament age.

Major Themes

To see more fully the significance of Christ as the seed of Abraham, it will help to explore these matters in terms of the four major themes that we have seen in Abraham's stories. You will recall that we have seen four major themes in these chapters of Genesis: divine Grace, Abraham's loyalty, God's blessings to Abraham, and God's blessings through Abraham. How should we understand these motifs in light of the connections that exist between Abraham and Christ?

Divine Grace

In the first place, we have seen that God demonstrated much grace in Abraham's life. Of course, Abraham had to have personal grace because he was a sinner, but beyond this, God's mercy toward Abraham was also an objective display of God's kindness. By building a relationship with Abraham, God actually furthered the redemption of the entire world.

Now as much as God showed kindness in Abraham's life, as Christians we believe that the grace of God toward the patriarch was little more than a shadow of the mercy God displayed in Christ. Of course, Christ himself was without sin so he did not receive saving grace himself, but still the coming of Christ as the seed of Abraham was a great objective act of God's mercy to the world.

God demonstrated much mercy in Christ's first coming, the inauguration of the kingdom. His life, death, resurrection, and ascension and the outpouring of the Holy Spirit were magnificent displays of God's grace. And God extends even more mercy as Christ reigns now in heaven, during the continuation of His kingdom. As salvation has spread throughout the world, God has demonstrated the kindness revealed in Christ in the undeniable transformation of the world throughout history. And when Christ returns, the consummation of the kingdom will bring immeasurable mercy. Christ will return and bring a new heavens and a new earth. As followers of Christ, every time we see God showing kindness in the stories of Abraham, our hearts and minds should turn to the mercy God revealed in these three stages of His kingdom in Christ.

Abraham's Loyalty

In the second place, another important theme in Moses' presentation of Abraham's life was Abraham's loyalty to God. Initially, God required Abraham to fulfill the responsibility of migrating to the Promised Land. But God also required many other things of Abraham throughout his life. As Christians when we read about the responsibilities Abraham faced, we should find our hearts and minds moving toward Christ the seed of Abraham and toward his loyalty to his heavenly Father.

And of course, Christ was loyal to the Father in all three stages of his kingdom. In the inauguration of the kingdom, Christ himself proved to be utterly faithful to God's requirements of loyalty. Although Abraham was loyal to God in very significant ways, Christ was perfectly faithful at every moment of his life. And beyond this, as king over all during the continuation of the kingdom Christ remains true and faithful to his heavenly father. He reigns over all serving the purposes of God perfectly by extending the gospel and the redemption of his people.

Finally, when Christ returns at the consummation of the kingdom he will finish the works of righteousness he began in his life on earth. He will destroy all of God's enemies and make all things new for the glory of his father. So, every time we see the theme of Abraham's loyalty to God we know that as Christians we can properly apply these matters to the modern world only as we connect them properly to Christ, the seed of Abraham.

Blessings to Abraham

In the third place, as Christians we are not only interested in seeing how these themes of divine grace and human loyalty apply to our day in Christ, we are also keenly interested in the third main theme of Abraham's life: the blessings of God to Abraham.

God told Abraham that Israel would become a great nation, that prosperity would come to the nation in the land of promise, and that Abraham and Israel would have a great name, worldwide notoriety.

Now, once again as Christians our minds should move toward the blessings that God gave to Christ, Abraham's seed. At his first coming, Christ was raised from the dead and received all authority in heaven and earth; and there is no name in heaven and earth that is as great as the name of Jesus. Jesus continues to enjoy the increase of blessings now during the continuation of the kingdom. He gains more and more glory for himself as he rules the world according to the will of God. But in the consummation, when Christ returns in glory he will enjoy these blessings beyond measure. He will be exalted over all and every knee will bow to him, the great son of Abraham. So it is that whenever we see Abraham receiving blessings from God, our eyes should turn toward Christ who inherits Abraham's promises and enjoys God's blessings in even greater measure.

Blessings through Abraham

Finally, the fourth major theme in Abraham's life is the blessings that would come through Abraham to others. God said that through a process of blessing and cursing, all peoples on the earth would be blessed through Abraham. This grand promise is the focus of much attention in the New Testament. Listen to the way Paul referred to this promise to Abraham in Romans 4:13. There he says,

It was not through 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 (Romans 4:13).

Notice here that when God promised Abraham that he would bless all nations, he promised that this would come about by Abraham taking possession of all nations and spreading the kingdom of God to all the world. Abraham and his offspring were to be heirs of the world, with all the nations under their headship. As Adam and Eve were originally told to subdue the entire earth, God promised that Abraham and his descendants would inherit the entire earth by spreading God's blessings to all the families of every nation.

Now, this final theme of the worldwide distribution of Abraham's blessings applies to Christ as well because he is the seed of Abraham and heir to Abraham's promises. In the inauguration of the kingdom, Christ called a faithful people from the nation of Israel. But when he rose from the dead and ascended to his throne in heaven, he was raised as the king of all the earth and told his faithful remnant to spread the blessings of Israel to all nations. During the continuation of the kingdom, the spread of Christ's kingship over all nations through the gospel is the fulfillment of the promise to Abraham to bless all nations. And when Christ returns at the consummation of the kingdom, He will extend the blessings of God to all the nations of the earth. As we read in Revelation 22:1-2:

Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb down the middle of the great street of the city. On each side of the river stood the tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit, yielding its fruit every month. And the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations (Revelation 22:1-2).

The promise that Abraham would be a blessing to all nations is ultimately fulfilled in the inauguration, continuation and consummation of Christ's kingdom.

So, we can sum up the matter in this way. Proper modern application of Abraham's life to our world must always involve at least an implicit recognition of the role of Christ as Abraham's seed. As the special seed of Abraham, Christ is the one who fulfills or completes the themes we encounter in Abraham's life. God's mercy is shown in Christ; true and perfect loyalty is found in Christ; Christ receives all the blessings promised to Abraham, and in Christ we see the spread of Abraham's rich blessings to the ends of the earth. Whatever else we may say about modern application, it is essential that we remember these connections between Abraham and Jesus.

Now that we have seen how the relationship between Abraham and Jesus forms a vital connection between the stories of Abraham and our world today, we should turn to a second aspect of modern application, the connection between Israel and the Church.

ISRAEL AND THE CHURCH

We must always remember that when Moses first composed his account of Abraham's life, he wrote about these things to encourage the people of Israel to leave Egypt behind and to enter into the conquest of the Promised Land. They were to find the historical background of this vision in Abraham's life; they were to fulfill it by finding examples to follow and to reject in the stories of Abraham's life; and they were even to see foreshadows of their experiences in Abraham's life. For this reason, if we are going to see how the stories of Abraham apply to the modern world, we must take into account what the New Testament teaches about the connections between the nation of Israel following Moses and the Christian church today.

To explore this relationship between Israel and the church, we will touch on two topics that parallel our previous discussion. First, we will explore further the theme of the seed of Abraham as it applies to the nation of Israel and to the church of Christ. And second, we will see how the theme of Abraham's seed is expressed in the four major themes of the stories of Abraham's life. Let's look first at Israel and the church as the seed of Abraham.

Seed of Abraham

To see the connections between Israel and the church as the seed of Abraham we will touch briefly on four matters. First, we will see the numerical breadth of Abraham's seed. Second, we will take notice of the ethnic identity of his seed. Third, we will focus on the spiritual character of Abraham's seed. And fourth, we will look at the historical situation of Abraham's seed. Consider first the numerical breadth of the seed of Abraham.

Numerical Breadth

Now as we have just seen, the book of Genesis makes it clear that the term "Abraham's seed," referred on occasion to one special person, Isaac, and the New Testament draws upon this to establish a connection between Abraham and Christ. But now we must expand our vision to see another feature of the biblical view of Abraham's seed. Isaac was not the only person in the stories of Abraham who was called Abraham's seed or offspring. Isaac did not receive Abraham's inheritance for himself alone. He was also the conduit through whom many would enjoy the status of being Abraham's descendants. For this reason, over and over Moses also spoke of the nation of Israel as Abraham's seed. And in much the same way, when we apply the stories of Abraham to our modern world, while it is important to remember that Christ is the supreme seed of Abraham in the New Testament, we must also remember that the Christian church is the seed of Abraham. As Paul put it in Galatians 3:29,

You are Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise (Galatians 3:29).

As Paul made clear in this passage, we are connected to Abraham because we are joined to Christ. We, like the nation of Israel in the Old Testament, are the seed of Abraham. For this reason, Abraham's stories do not simply apply to Christ himself, but also to the breadth of the many children of Abraham who are identified with him in the church.

Ethnic Identity

Now beyond the fact that the seed of Abraham was Israel in the Old Testament and the Christian church today, we should also comment on the ethnic identity of Abraham's seed in both Testaments. As we have seen, the stories of Abraham were written in the first place for the nation of Israel who followed Moses. While it is certainly true that the vast majority of the original audience consisted of ethnic Jews, that is Abraham's physical descendants, it is a mistake to think that the original audience was entirely or purely Jewish. The vast numbers of people who followed Moses were a mixture of Jews and Gentiles who had been adopted into Israel. As a result, on a number of occasions, the Scriptures make it clear that the original audience of Genesis was not exclusively Jewish.

Listen, for instance, to the way those who followed Moses are described in Exodus 12:38:

Many other people went up with them, as well as large droves of livestock, both flocks and herds (Exodus 12:38).

Notice here that included among the Israelites were "other people." This company consisted of Gentiles who had joined with Israel and left Egypt with them. This group is mentioned on a number of occasions in Scripture. In much the same way, later portions of the Old Testament reveal that well-known Gentiles like Rahab and Ruth were engrafted into Israel in later generations, and the genealogies of 1 Chronicles 1–9 include Gentile names among God's people.

So we see that the seed of Abraham to whom Moses originally wrote the stories of Abraham was ethnically mixed. It included Abraham's physical descendants and Gentiles who had been adopted into the family of Israel. Both groups learned about their future in the Promised Land through the stories of Abraham.

In much the same way, the Christian church today is ethnically diverse. It consists of Jews who claim Christ as their Lord and Gentiles who have been adopted into the family of Abraham because they too claim Christ as Lord. Now, to be sure, as history has unfolded the New Testament church has grown to have more adopted Gentiles than fulfilled Jews, but the ethnic diversity of Abraham's seed is still a reality today as it was in the Old Testament. So, just as Abraham's stories were first given to Jews and Gentiles counted as Abraham's seed, we must be ready to apply Abraham's stories to Jews and Gentiles today who are now counted as Abraham's seed because they are in the church throughout the world.

This is a very important aspect of modern application because so many Christians have endorsed the false teaching that the promises given to Abraham are to be applied only to ethnic Jews today. In this view, God has a separate program for Gentile believers. Apart from a few spiritual principles here and there, Gentile believers are not the heirs of the promises given to Abraham. Now as popular as this outlook may be, we must always remember that the seed of Abraham was ethnically diverse in Moses' day and that the seed of Abraham today continues to be an ethnically diverse people. What Moses taught the nation following him applies to the continuation of that nation today, the church of Jesus Christ.

Spiritual Character

In the third place, modern application of Abraham's life must also take into account the spiritual character of Israel and the church as the seed of Abraham. As we have seen, the Old Testament identifies the visible nation of Israel as the seed of Abraham, the corporate seed of Abraham, but we need to realize that there was spiritual diversity within the visible nation of Israel. There were both unbelievers and true believers. The record of the Old Testament makes it very clear that many of the men, women, and children in the nation of Israel did not truly believe, but others were true believers who trusted the promises of God. To be sure, everyone in Israel, both believers and unbelievers, received many special temporary blessings from God. All of them had been delivered from slavery in Egypt; they were all brought into covenant relationship with God at Sinai; they all had many opportunities for faith and they all were offered entry into the Promised Land. But there were important differences as well. On the one hand, unbelievers within Israel showed the true character of their hearts by infidelity. And the stories of Abraham were designed to call them to true repentance and saving faith.

On the other hand, true believers within Israel believed the promises of God and demonstrated the true character of their hearts by their fidelity. The stories of Abraham were designed to encourage these true believers to grow in their faith. Now due to their infidelity, unbelievers within Israel only received temporary blessings. But in eternity they would receive God's final, eternal judgment. It was the true believers who were Abraham's true seed, his spiritual descendants, the children who not only enjoyed many temporary blessings but would also one day receive the eternal blessing of Abraham's inheritance in the new heavens and new earth. Paul argued this outlook rather forcefully in Romans 9:6-8. Listen to what he said there.

For not all who are descended from Israel are Israel. Nor because they are his descendants are they all Abraham's children. On the contrary, 'It is through Isaac that your offspring will be reckoned.' In other words, it is not the natural children who are God's children, but it is the children of the promise who are regarded as Abraham's offspring (Romans 9:6-8).

Well, it isn't difficult to see that the same kind of spiritual diversity also exists in the church of Christ. Those who are associated with the visible church in the New Testament through baptism consist of two kinds of people: unbelievers and believers. Of course, just as all in Old Testament Israel enjoyed many temporary privileges because of their association with God and his people, there are many temporary blessings for all people involved in the church of Christ. They have a loving community; they have the word of God and the sacraments; they have the gospel explained and offered to them. But many within the visible church show the true character of their hearts by their infidelity. And the stories of Abraham are to be applied to these unbelievers in the church by calling for true repentance and saving faith.

But also within the visible church are true believers who trust the promises of God and demonstrate the character of their hearts by their fidelity. The stories of Abraham are to be applied to these true believers by encouraging them to grow in their faith throughout their lives. Now due to their infidelity, unbelievers within the church will only receive temporary blessings. In eternity, they will receive God's eternal judgment. But the true seed of Abraham, the true children of Abraham, those who have trusted in Christ will not only receive many temporary blessings, but will also one day receive their eternal reward, Abraham's inheritance in the new heavens and new earth.

This is why James wrote about Abraham as he did in James 2:21-22. Writing to the visible Christian church with both unbelievers and true believers in it, he said these words,

Was not our ancestor Abraham considered righteous for what he did when he offered his son Isaac on the altar? You see that his faith and his actions were working together, and his faith was made complete by what he did (James 2:21-22).

James' main idea here was that the stories of Abraham challenge unbelievers in the church to turn from their hypocrisy and they encourage true believers in the church to continue to express their faith through faithful living. And we must follow James' example by recognizing the spiritual diversity of the church today as we make modern application of Abraham's stories.

Historical Situation

In the fourth place, to apply Abraham's life to the modern world, we must also remember that there is significant similarity between the historical situations of Israel following Moses and the Christian church today. You will recall that Moses wrote about the life of Abraham to Israelites who were on a journey. Whether he wrote for the first or second generation of the exodus, his original audience traveled between two worlds. On the one hand, they had left slavery in Egypt. But on the other hand, they had not yet entered the promised land of Canaan. Or to put it another way, the nation of Israel had received initial deliverance from their old world, but they had not yet entered into their new world. And as a result, Moses wrote to Israel to encourage them to discard all of their attachments to Egypt and to move forward toward victory in the land.

The historical situation of the original audience is important for modern application because the Christian church today is in a parallel historical situation. Just as Israel had been delivered from slavery in Egypt but was still headed toward a glorious life in the Promised Land, the church of Christ has been delivered from the dominion of sin by the work that Christ did when he was here on earth, but it is still headed toward the glory of the new creation that will come when Christ returns. These parallel situations provide us with a frame of reference for making applications of Abraham's life to the church today. Just as Moses wrote about Abraham to encourage and guide Israel on her journey from one place to the other, his stories encourage and guide us on our journey from the world of death to the new world of everlasting life.

We can be sure that these historical parallels provide us with this kind of orientation toward application because the apostle Paul drew upon them as he applied the Old Testament to the church at Corinth. Listen to the way he noted the historical parallels between Moses' audience and the church in 1 Corinthians 10:1-6.

For I do not want you to be ignorant of the fact brothers that our forefathers were all under the cloud and that they all passed through the sea. They were all baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea. They all ate the same spiritual food and drank the same spiritual drink for they drank from the spiritual rock that accompanied them and that rock was Christ. Nevertheless, God was not pleased with most of them. Their bodies were scattered over the desert. Now these things occurred as examples to keep us from setting our hearts on evil things as they did (1 Corinthians 10:1-6).

Put simply, Paul noted that the Israelites following Moses through the wilderness had experienced things that paralleled the experiences of Christians. They had been delivered by Moses as we have been delivered by Christ. They had been baptized in Moses as Christians have been baptized in Christ. They ate manna and drank water from God much like Christians eat and drink in the sacrament of the Lord's Supper. Yet, these early experiences of grace set Israel into a period of probation, a period of testing as they moved toward the Promised Land. And sadly, in the days of Moses God was not pleased with most of the Israelites and they died in the wilderness. So Paul concluded that Christians should learn from Israel's experience the nature of their journey as the church. From Paul's example, we can learn much about how to apply Abraham's life to the Christian church.

Moses' stories of Abraham's life encouraged Israel to remain faithful as they looked back at what God had done in delivering them from Egypt and as they moved forward toward the Promised Land. In much the same way, we should apply Abraham's stories to the church today in ways that encourage us in our journey. We must remain faithful to Christ because of what he has done in the inauguration of the kingdom. We must continue to be faithful to him as his kingdom grows in our day and we must long for the day when our spiritual journey is over, when we enter into the new heavens and new earth.

So we see that as we move toward modern application of the life of Abraham, we should not only concern ourselves with the connections between Abraham and Jesus. We must also give attention to the connections between the nation of Israel who first received the stories of Abraham and the Christian church. Old Testament Israel and the New Testament church are the seed of Abraham; we both are of mixed ethnic identity; we are both spiritually diverse and we are both on a journey toward the goal of the glorious kingdom of God.

Major Themes

Having seen that the stories of Abraham's life apply to the Christian church as the continuation of Abraham's seed in the world today, we should also see how this process of application touches on the four major themes of the chapters given to Abraham's life. What do these motifs have to say about our daily lives in Christ?

As you will recall the stories of Abraham touch on four main issues: divine grace, Abraham's loyalty, God's blessings to Abraham, and God's blessings through Abraham. In the lessons that follow, we will point out again and again how these themes speak to our lives as Abraham's seed. At this point, we will briefly offer some general directions we should follow. Consider first the theme of divine grace.

Divine Grace

God showed much mercy to Abraham, not only at the beginning of his life, but every day of his existence on earth. And as the Scriptures clearly teach, just as God showed mercy to Abraham, God also shows grace to Christians today that initiates and sustains us in Christ. As Paul put it in Ephesians 2:8-9,

For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith — and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God — not by works, so that no one can boast (Ephesians 2:8-9).

Salvation in Christ is God's gracious gift; even the faith we have comes from him. We depend so much on God's mercy that every day of our Christian lives we are to continue to live in that mercy. Without God's sustaining grace, all of our efforts to remain faithful are futile.

For this reason, just as the Israelites following Moses should have learned the wonder of God's grace in their lives as they heard the stories of Abraham's life, every time we read of God showing mercy to Abraham, as followers of Christ, both together and as individuals, we have opportunities to learn how to be grateful for what God has done for us. God has shown much mercy to us and we must learn how to seek and depend on his mercy.

Abraham's Loyalty

In much the same way, the theme of Abraham's loyalty also applies to followers of Christ on many levels. As we read the life of Abraham, we see many situations in which Abraham was commanded to serve God in obedience. Of course, he did not reach perfection in this life, but he did show the fruit of true faith. Now, it is important to remember that even in the Old Testament, faithful obedience was always based on the mercy and grace of God. So, we must not mistake this emphasis as some form of legalism. Nevertheless, just as in the Old Testament, true believers today are expected to respond to God's grace with faithful service to God.

This is why the New Testament frequently emphasizes the responsibility of loyalty for followers of Christ. Listen to the way Paul connected grace and loyalty in Ephesians 2:8-10.

For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith — and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God — not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do (Ephesians 2:8-10).

As verse 10 makes clear, Christians today have the responsibility to perform good works. God grants us saving faith so that we will be faithful to him. So, every time we see how Abraham's life raises issues related to human loyalty, we are in a position to apply those moral responsibilities to our lives.

Blessings to Abraham

In the third place, we should also be cognizant of the ways in which the blessings given to Abraham apply to the Christian life. You will recall that God promised great blessings to Abraham and his seed. Ultimately, they would become a great, prosperous nation of grand renown. And throughout the stories of Abraham we find times when God blessed the patriarch with foretastes of these ultimate blessings.

Just as the original audience of Israel could see the promises to Abraham being fulfilled in their lives as they waited for their ultimate blessings, as Christians today we experience many foretastes of these same blessings here and now as we wait in hope for the day when they will come to us in all of their fullness. The blessings we see in this life can give us much encouragement as we live our daily lives in hope of the ultimate blessings that will be ours when Christ returns.

Blessings through Abraham

Finally, as Abraham's stories focus on the blessings God would give to the world through Abraham, Christians also have opportunity to reflect on the blessings that come through us to the world. You will recall that Abraham was promised protection from enemies and blessings for his friends so that one day he would share God's blessings with all the nations of the earth. And more than this, throughout Abraham's stories, we see that God used Abraham now and then as the instrument of his blessings to all kinds of people.

When the original audience of Genesis learned of these events, they had many opportunities to reflect on events in their day. They found guidance for the ways they were to serve as God's instruments of blessing to the world as they encountered different groups of people. They could be sure of God's protection against enemies and they could move forward with efforts to spread the blessings of God's kingdom to their neighbors.

In much the same way, we Christians today should apply this motif to our lives. We too can have assurance of God's protection and we can find encouragement to be a blessing to all nations of the earth by extending God's kingdom to the ends of the earth.

CONCLUSION

In this lesson on the modern application of Abraham's life, we have explored how the chapters in Genesis devoted to the patriarch are relevant to our world today. We noted first that a Christian approach to this part of the Bible draws attention to Christ as the great seed of Abraham. It looks for ways that Christ fulfills the motifs we discover in Abraham's life. But beyond this, we also looked at how the life of Abraham applies to the church, the corporate seed of Abraham. How men, women and children in Christ are to live according to the teachings of this part of the Scriptures. As we look more closely at the life of Abraham in Genesis, we will have many opportunities to apply the Patriarch's life to our lives today. We will find that Moses' account of Father Abraham not only draws our hearts toward the patriarch, but also toward Christ the seed of Abraham, and toward the wonder that in Christ we too are Abraham's children and heirs of the promises given to Abraham.