 All right, hello again, welcome back. So let's quickly recap what we've covered so far from chapter one. We've understood what altars are, what they're meaning is, what they stand for, stuff of so many other things. And amongst so many of it, one of the key things that we see that it was a place of worship, it was a place of adoration, it was a place of surrender, it was a place where death took place, blood was spilled, it was a place where God was honored. So that was the context of our altars. And we saw in very briefly the background of Abraham that God called him from polytheism to monotheism, from a religion of multiple gods to one god and invisible God. And we see that Abraham obeyed. And out of the four altars that we started studying, the first, we finished the first two altars, the first one was the altar of obedience. God called Abraham left without any hesitation, without thinking twice. And the second altar was, symbolizes an altar of intimacy and an altar of a pilgrim walk that Abraham had his eyes, his heart set on things above, more than just the earthly things that he was not looking for cities made of human hands. So we see that his intimacy level with God was growing deeper and deeper. So that was the two altars we looked at. Let's continue with the third altar in your notes in page number six. The third altar, we're calling it the altar of commitment and separation, the altar of commitment and separation. Later he went to another place, Hebron, and built another altar. So he comes down to Shechem, then Bethel, then he comes down to Hebron. We see that later he goes to a place called Hebron and he builds another altar there. So in these three places, Abraham built three altars. So this altar is associated with Abraham's communion and his relationship with God. But before he got there, in Genesis 12 verse 10, this is what it says, Genesis 12 verse 10, now there was a famine in the land. And Abraham went down to Egypt to live there for a while because the famine was severe. The famine was really bad. And so Abraham decides to leave the land that God promised him. And then he goes to Egypt. Okay, that's what's in Genesis chapter 12 verse 10. Now, this has come to Genesis chapter 13. And I've mentioned only Genesis, the verses three and four in the notes, but let's read from verse one. Okay, Genesis 13 verse one. It says, So Abraham went up from Egypt to the Negev with his wife. Negev is wilderness, okay, he's again going down south in Egypt. And again, you can go to Google and Google maps of images, whatever you put the Negev, it's a wilderness, it's a desert. Okay, so Negev desert. Abraham went up from Egypt to the Negev with his wife. And everything he had, okay, sorry guys, apologies. It's reverse a little bit. It's go to the last verse of Genesis 12. Okay, Genesis 12 verse 20. Apologies. So you know everything that happens when Abraham is in Egypt, right? He goes to Egypt, he lies to the Pharaoh about his wife, Sarah is saying that that's his sister and not his wife. And then there's, you know, God sends a plague on the Pharaoh and then Pharaoh finds out that Sarah is actually Abraham's wife and not a sister. And then he confronts Abraham saying, Why have you done this to me? You know, you're bringing God's judgment upon me. Why have you done this? So leave, go, that's what Pharaoh says. And it was 19. Why did you say she is my sister so that I took her to be my wife? Now then, here is your wife, take her and go. Verse 20. Then Pharaoh gave orders about Abraham to his men, Abraham to his men, and they sent him on his way with his wife and everything he had. That's the context. Now with that in mind, when we enter chapter 13, it says, So Abraham went up from Egypt to the negative with his wife and everything he had and lot went with him. Verse 2, Abraham had become very wealthy in livestock and in silver and gold. Means Abraham in Egypt, during his time in Egypt had become very rich, very wealthy. And he came out with a lot of, with great substance, with great possessions. So once again, just pause. This is an again, just a foreshadow of what the people of Israel would kind of come out of Egypt. Let's just hold Genesis 13 for a minute. It's just jump a couple of chapters. Go to Genesis 15. It says chapter 15. Let's look at verse 13. Genesis chapter 15. Verse 13. Everybody there? Genesis 15. Verse 13 onwards. It says, Then the Lord said to him, Know for certain that your descendants will be strangers in a country, not their own. And they will be enslaved and mistreated 400 years. But I will punish the nations they serve as slaves. And afterwards they will come out with great possessions. Okay. So when you read Exodus, you see that when Israelites came out of Egypt, they came out with great substance, with great position, with a lot of silver and gold. And it is with those goals that they used to build. First, the idol. What is that? Oh my goodness. Okay. The altar, the bull, right? Yeah. The golden calf. Golden calf. Thank you. Okay. So that's the context here, right? Let's just continue to read. Now let's go back to Genesis chapter 13. Genesis 13. From the negative, he went from place to place until he came to Bethel, until he came to Bethel to the place between Bethel and Ai, where his tent had been earlier and where he had first built an altar. There, Abraham called on the name of the Lord. Now, something about the point, it just tells me that, okay, for a certain period of time, it seems like Abraham kind of forgot God's promises, his covenant. So he went away. And then moving from one place to another, again, like not knowing where to live, he came back to the place between Bethel and, okay, Bethel means the house of God. Ai actually means vanity, but that's what Ai, H-A-I, originally, what it means, okay? So again, coming back to your notes in altar three, Abraham's trip to Egypt was a sad commentary except for his wealth that he made, okay? When he came back, when he came out of Egypt, he came out of two problems. One, he became rich and the other one was that Hagar came along with him, who would eventually go on to become his concubine, right? So he came out of Egypt, he built an altar of restoration for his former commitment. Now, again, if you look at verse five, okay, Genesis 13 verse five, it says, now Lot who was moving about with Abraham also had flocks and herds and tents, but the land could not support them while they stayed together for their possessions were so great that they were not able to stay together, okay? Now, see, because of his riches, somehow seems to be a problem between him and his family. And verse seven, in Genesis 13 verse seven, and quarreling arose between Abraham's herdsmen and the herdsmen of Lot. The Canaanites and the Parasites were also living in the land at that time. Verse eight, guys, okay, pay attention, verse eight. So Abraham said to Lot, let's not have any quarreling between you and me or between your herdsmen and mine, for we are brothers. Is not the whole land before you? Let's part company. If you go left, I will go right. If you go right, I'll go left. And Lot looked up and saw the whole plain of the Jordan was well watered like the garden of the Lord, like the land of Egypt towards Zohar. This was before the Lord destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah. So Lot, we all know that he chooses Sodom and Gomorrah. It looked pleasing to the eyes. It was green and lush and looked perfect to raise his flock and whatnot. Another side note, it's really not important in terms of what we are going to study, but just the way that Abraham parts his ways, the patriarchs of those days, they would guide in which direction they should go and they would always go towards east. So if they're going towards east to the left will always be the north and the right will always be the south. So in this context, what Abraham is telling us that, if you're going left to the north, I'll go south. And if you're going south, the right, I'll go left to the north. That's just a small geographical understanding of that scripture there. Okay. So let's just come back to the north here. In Genesis chapter 13 verse 18 says, then Abraham moved his tent and went and dwelt by the terribent trees of Mamre, which are in Hebron and built and altered there to the Lord. Okay, that means that something happened before verse 18. So if you come back to verse 14, in Genesis 13 verse 14, the Lord said to Abraham, after Lord had parted from him, lift up your eyes from where you are and look north and south, east and west. Okay, you remember this verse 14, God said, okay, the Lord said to Abraham after Lord went, lift up your eyes from where you are and look north and south, east and west. All the land that you see, I will give to you and your offspring forever. I will make your offspring like the dust of the earth so that if anyone could count the dust, then your offspring couldn't be counted. Go walk through the length and breadth of the land for I am giving it to you. So after all of this, when after Abraham decides to separate himself, he comes back to this land from Egypt, then he realizes that, okay, now I've been away from the land that God promised, I've been away from the promises of God. And then when he came back with great substance, when he lets his nephew choose the place, Abraham could have easily chosen the place that looks beautiful, that looks lush, that looks perfect and nice, but Abraham decides to separate himself and let the Lord take the best place and then God shows up when he wants to recommit himself and he decides to separate himself, God shows up and says, again, he reconfirms the promise, the covenant that he tells him in Genesis 12. As a response, Abraham builds another altar, okay, in that is, that's what we see in the last verse of Genesis chapter 13, is that Abraham moved his tent and went and dwelt by the terrible trees of Mamre, which are in Hebron and built an altar there to the Lord. The Mamre means manliness and Hebron means a society or friendship, a stable strength, firm. So coming down to page seven in your notes, in this mood by Abraham, desired to separate himself to the Lord away from Sodom and Gomorrah, before it was destroyed, it was beautiful, right? That's why the Lord chose it. Those vast cities of the plain, he desired no city here. And Hebrews 11 chapter, Hebrews 11 chapter 10 says, Abraham was confidently looking forward to a city with eternal foundations, a city designed and built by God. He was not impressed by Sodom and Gomorrah and how beautiful it was and how beautifully the city was built and constructed. He was not impressed. Again, like the Hebrews says, he was confidently looking forward to a city. He was constantly searching to that city whose foundations was eternal, whose designer and architect, so to say, was God himself. So not only did he live a pilgrim's life, denying himself the pleasures of the world, but he took the step of separating himself to God. He wanted to be in communion with his Lord in a quiet place of fellowship, Hebron. One of the first steps to communion with the Lord is separation. That's the root meaning, root word for holiness, isn't it? Holiness simply means set apart. When we say God is holy, he is set apart. There is no one like him. And when we choose to set ourselves apart from the things of the world, from the desires of the flesh, desires of the world, that is the first step for our communion with God, our intimacy just grows deeper and deeper and we see that Abraham decides to do that. Okay, right? You're all with me so far? Everything good? Yes, sir. Yeah. Okay, here I'll stop sharing the screen because the next sacrifice, next altar was not required. So altar of obedience, first altar, altar of intimacy and the altar of commitment, recommitment or separation as the third altar. And then finally we come to the fourth altar, the altar of sacrifice, the altar of sacrifice. Once again, we all know the story in Genesis chapter 22 verse 9, we are in page number 7 in your notes. It says, then they came to the place of which God had told him and Abraham built an altar there and placed the wood in order and he bound Isaac, his son, and laid him on the altar upon the wood. So at this point, by this point, Abraham gets a son called Isaac and there's a lot of things that happens between Genesis 13 and Genesis 22. He's now a father. He now has the promised child that God promised him that he would have. And after all these years, he's built all these altars and then God tells him to sacrifice his son, his one and only son. So let's just look at it. How is it that the man who is now called the father of many nations is asked to offer up the only heir he had as a burnt off of him? Who would then carry on the promised seed? What would happen to the covenant that promised? Also, how about the covenant that God made with him regarding the land, his descendants, his inheritance? What about all of that? What would happen? How will all the nations of the earth be blessed without the promise? Abraham never put these questions to the Lord. Once again, as he always did, he simply obeyed. For the life of me, I cannot imagine what Abraham is going through. I have a son. To a certain extent, I can relate. What? I mean, those are all the questions that I would ask. What about your promises? What about descendants? If Ethan, my son, was my promised child that God said that I would have and he would know his inheritance and will inherit the land and everything. I will start thinking logically and then emotionally. How can you call yourself good? Are you good? How can you be so cruel? God, you asked him for my only son. What is this? This is not fair. And Abraham never seemed to put these questions to the Lord. He obeyed, he says. He simply built. I would like to know the truth of what he told Sarah. Imagine waking up telling his wife, yeah, I'm just going to take my child, our son, and I'm going to sacrifice him. Yeah, imagine the rap that Sarah would have pulled out. And here's the thing. Again, the notes I've mentioned, it simply says that God did not want Isaac. He wanted the heart of Abraham. Abraham, it was Abraham who was really upon the altar, not Isaac. Abraham has been on that altar for three days because the trek was about three days. Some of the scholars say the trek, the walk from the time that he left to reach the place was approximately 33 days. So from the time he got that news and got us into do this, it was Abraham on the altar. So let's see what the Hebrews have to tell in the book of Hebrews chapter 11 or 17 to 19. We read that it was by faith that Abraham offered Isaac as a sacrifice when God was testing him. Abraham, who had received God's promises, was ready to sacrifice his only son, Isaac, even though God had told him, Isaac is the son through whom your descendants will be counted. Now, Abraham reasoned that if Isaac died, God was able to bring him back to life again. Abraham kind of just knew somehow, you know, in this journey of his intimacy, in this lifelong pursuit of him and God, he somehow learned that, hey, you know, if something were to happen, even if Isaac dies, I know that God can raise him up. You know, verse 19, that's what it says, Abraham reasoned that if Isaac died, God was able to bring him back to life again. And in a sense, Abraham did receive his son back from the dead. So let's just pause there, guys. Okay, this is the fourth altar, the altar of sacrifice, from the altar of obedience to the altar of intimacy to the altar of commitment, recommitment or separation to the altar of sacrifice. I just want to ask us, you know, these questions, you know, I mentioned that altars was a place, it was like the landmarks in our lives, right? You know, how many of us have those landmark moments, you know, when I was 18 in that room on so and so did God showed up to me, God spoke to me. You know, do we have those moments? Yeah, I'm sure we do, right? Those are the altar moments where God rescued us, where God heard our cry. He heard my cry and he responded to me. And at that point I have built an altar, right? That is, you are building your history with God. And as I've shared before, and I can, in this Bible, I can take you to certain chapters, you know, in certain books and say, it's like, you know, and so and so did when I was this old, when I was 18, 19, 20, 21, at this time, he spoke to me through this passage. So those are the landmark moments, those are the altar moments that I built an altar as a remembrance of God's faithfulness and his goodness and his promise and his word. So the couple of questions that I want to ask us regarding this whole altar is one, do you remember the places where God has shown up in your life in the past? Do you remember the places where God has spoken to you? Okay, can I ask that question again? Do you remember the places that God has shown up to you in the past? Do you remember those moments when God has spoken to you? Okay, you can write this question down and ask yourself, answer it later for yourself. Do you remember? Second thing, what has called you away from those promises? Like we see, we saw in Abraham's life, between Genesis chapter 12 and 13, we see that he went to Egypt because of Sylvia family and whatnot. And so he went away from the promise of God, from the land that God promised, he went away. Is there anything in your life that's caused you or that's called you away from the promise that God told you that you would do? And finally, will you come back? Are you willing to come back to that altar of recommitment and separation? That's the third question. Are you willing to come back? And God is expecting us to come back. And if you don't mind, can we, can someone read Jeremiah chapter 6 verse 16, please? We'll just quick to turn the Bible. God invites us to follow his ancient paths, as we read Jeremiah chapter 6 verse 16. Anybody? Can I read it? Yes, please. This is the Lord standing in the ways and see and ask for the old path, bear the good ways and walk in it. Then you will find rest for your souls. But they said, we will not walk in it. Yeah. Thank you, Manu. He says that stand across, stand at the crossroads and look, ask for the ancient paths. Ask where the good way is and walk in it. Ask where the good way is and walk in it. Ask for the ancient paths. That is in parallel to the third question. Are you willing to come back? Are you willing to come back into those good ways, to those ancient paths that we commit? And finally, in the altar of sacrifice, one of the last questions is, in Romans chapter 12, we are in page eight in your notes at this moment. We're on top. Paul writes, Romans chapter 12 verse one. He says, I beseech you, therefore brethren. It means I, Paul, beg you, therefore brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies as a living sacrifice, wholly acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. Now, in all of this, what I have learned is that God is not only asking you, God is not only asking us to build altars, isn't it? In remembrance of his faithfulness, but he is also asking us to be on the altar. Can I say that again? He is not only expecting us to build the altars, but he's expecting us to be on the altar that we build. That means altars, again, represent a place of worship. That means there cannot be any other false worship happening in our lives, isn't it? There cannot be another thing, something or someone taking the place of God. Once that is clear, you live a life that is worthy of a column. That is, you live a life as a living sacrifice. So the question, the fourth question was, are we on the altar for God? Okay. So can I say those four questions as one of our standards? Do you remember where God has shown up to you in the past? Do you remember the words that he's spoken to you? And second question is, what has called you away from that? And third question, will you come back to those ancient parts? Will you come back to those ways, those good ways? And finally the fourth question is, are you willing to be on the altar for God? And in the short poem there it says, but we never can prove the delights of his love until all on the altar we lay. Can I read that again? But we never can prove the delights of his love until all on the altar we lay. That's another poem. Is your all on the altar of sacrifice made? Your heart does the spirit control. You can only be blessed and have peace and sweet rest as you yield him your body and soul. So are you guys with me? Yes. So what were your key takeaways from what we just discussed so far? What were some of the points that stood out to you from the four altars, from the life of Abraham, from the four altars that he built? Okay. Do you mind sharing that? Anybody cares? We don't hesitate. You can feel free to unmute and speak as well. Friends, do you want to share, please? What do you like to? This is the third one. Yeah, the third one, the altar of commitment. It's a completely separate point of view that it's like willing to work for only God. Thanks, friends. Thank you. Anybody else? I'd like all of us to share if that's okay. It's just very few people in the class. So Dave, I know you mentioned that you would like to unmute and share. Sure. The thing is with Abraham, God called him, but he was not well introduced with God because he was just as you mentioned, he was from the background of the idol worshipers. But when he moved his car and he gradually developed his bond with God, from creating first altar of obedience and then moving into the altar of intimacy and then moving on to commitment when he goes falls away from God's plan, but he comes back again and commits himself and separates himself from other things. And again, he moves on to the sacrifice, ultimate sacrifice. So his life totally, even though we've learned and we've heard stories of him, but personally, I haven't looked his life as this perspective. So it kind of changes my thought towards Abraham and his relationship with God. Thank you. Thanks, Dave. Thanks for sharing that, yeah. Siddharth, Kanan, feel free to share. Even I'd like to take all four of them because it's really, all four points touched my heart, where the obedience is a very powerful thing. The reasons are rejected was of the disobedience. God says, obedience is better than the sacrifice. It's very important. The life of Abraham is so pretty. He doesn't know where he's going. He's just obeying God and taking a step of faith and going towards where he doesn't know the life. Of course, the intimate walk with God is very, very important. The commitment and separation also, where even I was, and I preached in a church, Lord was a somebody blocked to his calling. But when he separated from the Lord, God has came and told him, now you look at the land and the home, everything I will give to you. When we submit ourselves to the commit, committed to the work of God, the word and the unwanted things, God will show up and he will bless and he will be with us and he will guide us. And to be altered as a sacrifice is a powerful thing. Really, everything is touched my heart. Once again, I just went through the Abraham's life today. Thank you so much. Thanks Thomas. Thank you for sharing that. Kanan, I think there's something wrong with the mic. I can see you unmuting, but we can't hear you. Yeah, I can see that your mic is unmuted, but I'm unable to hear it. Well, it's just me. Yeah, now I can hear. I was sharing that fourth altar. I liked the way he said, God did not want Isaac, but he wanted the heart of Baba. Yeah. That point really touched me. Thanks. You are welcome. Manu, Kiran, please feel free to share. I want all of us to share, including Sharon. Yeah, for me, this is something stands out in the third altar, the altar of commitment and separation. And also the scripture of Jeremiah 6 to 16, where he talks about, you know, I mean, when I would just read the scripture, just talks about like, I was just remembering of my past life, where there's so many crossroads in my life, and I have to take the right decision to walk in it. And when I took the right decision, there was for some time that I walked for, you know, and it's always the flesh that pulls me back to my past life. And, you know, in the 16 words in the last it says, but you said we will not walk in it. So it's the same thing like for me, I've been walking. There's always ups and downs in life. And especially in mine. And I always walk in the right way for some time. And again, I go back and say that I will not walk into it. So it's a process for me. Yeah. Thanks for that. Thanks for sharing that. That's where the third question comes in, isn't it? And will you come back? You know, that's the wonderful thing. Yeah. Thanks for sharing this with us. Sorry, you were about to share. Go ahead. Yes, sir. I really learned all four alters and first is obedience. Yes, obedience to faith. And when we walk faith, then really we go to obedience. And I really like intimacy. Intimacy is journey with God. And it's like also this one, the order of sacrifice. This is the remembrance of God. Yeah, really. I like all four points. Thanks, man. Thanks for sharing. Yeah. Kiran. Okay, Sharon. Sharon, you'll go after Kiran. Yes, sir. Go ahead, Kiran. Thank you, sir. So whenever I hear about Abraham, I learn new things whenever I hear. So today also the four points is very touch the altar. And first, the obedience, it's just too much. I learn also so many things. I used to stay like a comfort zone and the God saw something different. So we have to leave that comfort zone and then we have to move at first as like when the God called Abraham to go that place. But he didn't say it like go that place in the proper place. But Abraham obeyed and he just step, take the faith step and he moved like that. So it's very touch whenever the obedience is very important through my life, sir. So I, it's touch too much. Yeah, sir. Thank you. Thanks, Kiran. Thank you. Sharon, please go ahead. So as we see, Abraham's life that Abraham was fully dependent upon God. Wherever he goes, he was having full faith on God that God is with him. So when it comes to second altar, the altar of intimacy when he was with God was with him wherever he was going. And he was fully dependent and intimacy means God knows him and he know God that what is going in his life in my life also whenever I'm seeing about Abraham that in our life we should know God and God should know our plan and we should have intimacy of intimacy with God that whatever we are planning that plan should be of God's plan and God should know our plan. Thank you, sir. Thank you, Sharon. Thank you Thank you everybody for sharing your thoughts. Again, I don't ask these questions to put you in a hard spot to get the right answer. But thank you for sharing. It's amazing. So I'm glad that we could learn something today and let's stop the session here and we will meet again next week and we will resume from the next point and we look at worship ministry in the Old Testament in our next session. All right, guys. Cool. Thank you all for joining. You all have a lovely day. I'll dress you all. Thank you. Thank you, sir. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you, sir.