 Okay, good morning everyone. Good morning, and yeah, thank you for connecting to this class. We'll pray and get started. So maybe I'll just lead with a word of prayer, and then we can look at what we have for today. Let's pray together. Heavenly Father, we thank and praise you for this day. Father, we thank you that Lord, we can walk by faith. Lord, in this new day that you've given us and Lord, we ask for God as we learn about the subject of faith that Lord truly our hearts will be strengthened in you, oh God, and that Lord each one will live as more than conquerors, Father God, in Christ Jesus. We give you thanks and praise. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen. Amen. So in the last session, we talked about a faith in the Old Testament, and we saw the lives of different people, how they lived as per the purpose of God for their lives, but the most important thing is by faith. So that is why they're listed in that chapter called as Hebrews chapter 11, and we went through different accomplishments, and we also saw that there were some people who were not able to really show the accomplishments that we spoke of initially, but then they went through a lot of suffering, and they went through persecution, some were even martyred, but God appreciated the faith of those who journeyed. So the most important thing is to journey with God. Okay, and of course, when we journey with God, there are many victories, but even through times of endurance, God still gives us his grace, and we are able to overcome in that sense. So today, we will look at the life of a very important person known as Abraham. Now, we all know that Abraham, his life is an inspiration because he is one of those forefathers. Now, in the Old Testament, we have the journey that Abraham made, and we see how God gave him a promise. He believed in that promise, and it was Abraham who was promised land and the fact that his descendants will possess that land. So the Jews, they are the descendants of Abraham, and we see how they, even till today, are living. Many of the promises have been fulfilled, but then there are many promises that they are still waiting on. But the first person who received the promises is Abraham. Okay, now what is so special about this person known as Abraham? He had a friendship with God or a very strong relationship with God, and in that relationship and in that journey came the promises of God, and he was willing to believe the word that God spoke to him. So that is very similar to all of our lives. In all our lives, as we journey with God, there are promises that the Lord gives us, there are instructions that he gives us. He talks about our future, so many things. And the way Abraham journeyed, we too today, can follow that pattern and journey with God. And that is why he is really an example, and his life is an example for all of us. So, yes, in the Old Testament we read about him, but in the New Testament there is a passage in Romans chapter 4. So if you have your Bibles with you, you can just turn to Romans chapter 4. Okay, could somebody quickly read for us verses 11 and then verse 12. And he received the sign of circumcision, a seal of the righteousness of the faith, which he had while circumcised. That he might be the father of all those who believe through, they are unsurpassed, that righteousness might be imputed to them also. And father of circumcision to those who not only are the circumcision, but who also walk in the steps of the faith, which our father Abraham had while still uncircumcised. Uncircumcised. Okay, so in these two verses, the first verse, it introduces Abraham as the father of all those who believe. So who is Abraham? He is the father of all those who believe, which would also be us, because we believe. So Abraham is called as the father of all those who believe. And in the next verse here, we see that we who are the children of Abraham, there is something that we are supposed to do. What is that? We are supposed to walk in the steps of Abraham. So Abraham is the father of all those who believe and we who believe must walk in the steps of Abraham. So as I shared earlier with us, God gave Abraham several promises. We read about these promises in Genesis chapter 12, where it all began. So God gave him a call and he was asked to step out of his own country. So in Genesis chapter 12, we see that once he heard the voice of God, he actually steps out. Okay, so that those are things that we see in Genesis chapter 12. And then as we move on, we see that Abraham was not, it was not that he was so perfect that he easily obeyed God. Because in Genesis chapter 16, Genesis chapter 20, we notice that he did have doubts regarding the promise of God. He did fail God because he tried to do his own thing to fulfill the promise of God. So obviously Abraham, just like all of us, he was human and he was battling matters such as doubt and unbelief and there were places where he stumbled. So it was not like he had a hundred percent perfect track record in that sense. Then what else do we see regarding him? So when he was in this place of doubt and confusion, when he was wondering, did I really hear correctly from God? How can this happen? You know, I'm so old and my wife is so old. How can we have a child? So he was in a place of confusion. We find that God was so gracious to him, to strengthen him and to confirm that it was God who actually spoke to him. You know, it happens, right? Even for us, maybe we start out very strong in God. But as we are journeying with him, somewhere we wonder, did I make the right decision? Did I hear correctly? Is it really going to happen or did I run ahead of God? We also have those questions, but God was very gracious to him. So in Genesis chapter 15, we see that God speaks to him all over again and he speaks to him in a very understandable or a relatable way. Abraham was a man of the desert. So he understood the language of the desert, you know, sand and sky and stars. So God actually takes him and he shows him. He tells Abraham, Abraham, do you see the sand? Do you see the stars? You will have those many children, right? So what is God doing? God is reassuring him and confirming to him and saying, don't worry, don't doubt. I know it's hard for you, but I am telling you all over again that it is me, I spoke to you. I will make this possible in your life and you will see the result. And when Abraham did not have the capacity to picture, God gave him a picture and told him, think about the stars. Can you count the stars? You can't think about the sand. Can you count the sand? You can't, but this is how your descendants are going to be. So I'm sure that must have been so encouraging for him, because by that point, he was really beginning to doubt and question. Is it going to happen or not? What is going on? It's so different from what I imagined. So that's Genesis chapter five. And then, you know, we move on and we see that at some point in his life, he really needed a new identity in God. You know, sometimes we try to possess the promises of God as the person we were who received the promise. So when we receive God's promise, you know, maybe our identity in Christ, we have a certain revelation. We are walking in it, but the way our life should be is that each day as we progress in our identity with Christ, our revelation of who God is must increase. And we must really be planted and very strong in who we are in Christ. But in the case of Abraham, to just to signify this, we find that Abraham, his name earlier was Abraham. But God to give him a new identity, God did not want him to possess the promise as the old Abraham, but God gave him a new name and that name is Abraham. So Abraham was not a bad name. Abraham meant exalted father or respected father. That's what Abraham meant. But Abraham meant father of the multitude in line with the promise of God. So what did God do before Abraham could receive the promise? God had to work on his identity and say, you're not just an honored father, but you are the father of the multitudes and so his name was changed. So something for us also to recognize as we move ahead to receive the promises of God, as far as our identity is concerned, who we think we are on our own. That has to be replaced with what God thinks of us, who God has called us to be and that's what God did with Abraham. He said, okay, you will possess the promises, but you're not just going to possess the promises as that old person, but I want you to be a new person when you enter into the promises. So God changed his name from Abraham to Abraham. And then we see that even Sarah, God wanted her to have a new identity. Sarah or I don't know how you pronounce the previous name SARAI, but it meant princess. So it's not too bad to have a name where you have a good identity. But what God did is God changed her name to Sarah. Why? Same thing. God wanted her to view herself the way he views her. So God's looking at ourselves with God's perspective. So God gave her the name Sarah, which meant princess of the multitude. So God was talking to both Abraham and Sarah and saying, you've not heard me wrong. This is true. This is correct. You are going to be parents of not just one or two children, but you're going to be the parents of multitudes. So tell me, how is it useful to get new names? I'm not implying that all of us should change our names. No, that's not the point. But in this case, when God said, right now Abraham doesn't have a child, Sarah doesn't have a child. Why new names? And how would it feel to call themselves, you know, father of multitude, princess of multitude, when there's no multitude, there's not even one child. Why do you think God changed their names? That's my question. Yeah. Yeah. Okay. New identity. God wanted them to see themselves the way he saw them. That's okay. That is point number one. What else? Anything else? Because, yeah, God will fulfill his promise in the future. But why new name? How does it help? I mean, even with the old name, God will fulfill his promise. How does it help? Identity is one. Correct. That answer is correct. Now, the second one I'm asking, why? Sister, because Abraham had doubts. Because Abraham had doubts. Okay. To just help him have faith, maybe. That's what you mean? Yes, sister. Okay. Thank you, sister Gertrud. John says, John bless he says to build their faith and hope Lucy also says to build them up in faith. Encouraging. Sanjay says similar to Gideon, who was chosen by God for mighty works. Correct. So when Gideon thought that he was quite weak and how do you put this weak and not warrior like God called him a valiant. He got called him mighty warrior, mighty man of valor. That was the title or the identity given to Gideon. Whereas in his own head, he was very weak. He thought, I can't do this, but God thought he could do it. So God called him by the name which he wanted for Gideon. Right. So okay, to build the faith of Abraham, that is true. To build the faith of Sarah, that is true. That's the second point. First, we said identity. Second, we said that to build them up. The third one is, you know, we talk about the power of declaration. Isn't it? We say that if you believe in your heart, you will say to this mountain, we talked about how to use our faith. One very important way to use our faith is to speak, speak your faith. Now, what was God doing in Abraham and Sarah's life? Their identity was, yes, you know, we are, we are honored. We are like God sees us as a prince or a princess. So they were quite secure in that, but he wanted them to declare the future. It's not yet happened, but what does faith do? Faith speaks. Isn't it? Faith declares. So there is a power in declaration. Even though they had not yet received even one son or one child, one daughter, God told them, well ahead of you receiving it, you've got to say it. So they started, instead of, you know, doubting, they were able to call each other like parents of a multitude way before it happened. So the same thing applies for us today. When we say that we are people of God, what are you speaking about yourself? What am I speaking about myself? Am I speaking in line with who God says I am? Do I say things like, you know, I am blessed? Maybe I don't feel very blessed or I don't see that everything in my life is blessed, but my declaration says I am blessed. I have enough and I have more than enough to give others. I am blessed because I am blessed in Christ Jesus. Okay. Or we say that I am redeemed. I am forgiven. I am triumphant. I am victorious. Are we not just trying to make this up? This is all in the word of God. We are just speaking in line with what God says about us. So like the manner in which God changed their name before they became that, he told them start declaring it. That's what it is. So first was identity. Second was to build faith. Third is make declarations way before things happen. Start to say it and say, no, God has called me for this. He will lead me. I have that calling. God will bless me. God will strengthen me. God will make this happen. God will send the resources. Start speaking your faith. Don't speak negativity and unbelief because it's very important for God because Abraham and Sarah, though they were not, their names did not pronounce unbelief. God wanted to intentionally impart a declaration of faith just through their names so that every day when they called each other or anybody called them, what's happening? The purpose of God, the intention of God, the promise of God is being spoken father of the multitude, princess of the multitude. Got it? So there is a power in declaration which God does not want us to forget. So stop speaking, unbelief and doubt. Instead speak the word of God in line with the word of God. Okay. Sister Clement seems to have a question. You can go ahead and say it, sister. Okay. Is there a question or was that a mistake? In the meantime, I'll just read what Sam Matthews has written to remind them of their identity in God of the promise coming. Okay, sure. So these are all the reasons. So there was a little bit that I wanted to share about declaring your faith. Okay. Now moving on, what else happened in the journey of Abraham? We see that Abraham finally, right, about 25 years, he finally received a son. They call him, you know, son of laughter or laughter because he brought them joy. 25 years of trusting God would not have been easy at all. But finally, the joy comes in the morning. So that's the promise of God. When we are working towards something, waiting on God for something, it may feel very dark like you're moving through a dark tunnel. But what happens? It is light at the end of the tunnel. There's joy that comes in the morning. And that's the promise of God. So in the lives of Abraham and Sarah, they had a son who brought them joy and laughter. His name was Isaac. But you see, soon after Isaac was born, Abraham went through a test. So does God lead us through a test? I mentioned earlier that, yes, there are tests sometimes that come from God. Now we must not misunderstand this with sickness, disease, oppression, all those things don't come from God because God is not the author of, you know, sickness and oppression. When Jesus walked the earth, he always healed anybody who came and asked him for healing. Not one person he turns back. Everyone who asks for healing, he heals them because healing comes from God. And that's what the Bible says. God spoke about himself with the covenant name, I am Jehovah Rafa, the God who heals you. So sickness doesn't come from God. God does not use sickness to test people. God does not use, you know, oppression to test people. But in occasions where these things happen, yes, sometimes we do learn endurance and patience when we go through, you know, challenging times. But it's God helping us through that situation, not that God has put that situation upon us. But the Bible does teach us about tests. God testing people. Okay, now God testing people is not the same as God tempting people because the Bible clearly says God does not tempt anyone. Everyone gets tempted by the desires of their own hearts. But tests, yes, sometimes God leads us through a test to see how we are going to respond through that situation. So in the case of Abraham, in chapter 22 of Genesis, God asks him to sacrifice his only son. That's the toughest thing that God could have asked Abraham to do because you see, what was he trusting God for 25 years? A son. Finally, he has a son. And what is God telling him? Sacrifice. Wow, I don't even know what emotions he would have gone through and how we must describe those emotions. Okay, it's hard to feel the emotions that he felt at that time. But it was a test. Okay, and we will see in Romans chapter 4 what Abraham's faith was like. And even in Hebrews chapter 11, we see what Abraham's faith was like. He even believed that if his son were to die, God will raise him up. Why? Because the promise of God was connected to Isaac. How can Isaac die? Isaac can't die. Otherwise, if Isaac dies, what about the rest of the promise of being the father of the multitude? So the faith of Abraham was that even if I sacrifice my son, even if he dies, God will resurrect him. So you think of the revelation that Abraham had back in those days. I don't know if he ever knew about resurrection because we talk about resurrection after Jesus died and rose again, thousands of years later. But at that point, Abraham had faith in God that even if his son died, he will be raised back to life by the power of God. So that was the kind of faith with which Abraham walked. And no wonder we are being told that he is the father of faith. So he went and he was ready to sacrifice his son. We all know what happened. God sent an animal for sacrifice at that time. So Abraham did not have to sacrifice his child, but there was a suitable sacrifice anyhow. Now the Bible also teaches us that Abraham has another name. So in the book of James, James chapter 2 and verse 21, we are told that Abraham is called as the friend of God as well as the father of faith. So there are two titles with which we call Abraham. He is a friend of God and he is the father of faith. So just think about the kind of relationship that God had with Abraham and Abraham had with God. At that point, when he started journey, he must have really trusted in God because I told us last time that he was very wealthy because we read about his family having cattle and servants and so many things. So he was so wealthy and when God told him leave everything in come, he trusted God. What if he became poor? What if he never recovered the kind of wealth that his family had earlier? He didn't wonder about any of that. He just trusted in God that God is good. If he is asking me to go somewhere and do something, I'm sure that must be better. So he had that confidence and he stepped out and you find that there was a time when the place where his nephew went a lot. He went there. There was a lot of sin and we know that God does not like sin. Sodom and Gomorrah became like the region where sin was propagating and so God was so angry he wanted to destroy that place. But before he destroyed the place in Genesis 18, we find that God told Abraham. Who do we tell our secrets to? Somebody we are close to. Somebody we could say a very close friend. It's not just people who are closely related to us. We can have people who are closely related to us but when they are friendly with us, when they are a friend, they are a true friend, we feel comfortable to open up and share our concerns or share the things that we are going to do. Maybe you could call them secrets or very personal information. So in Genesis 18, when God wanted to destroy Sodom and Gomorrah, who did he speak to? Who did he talk to about it? Abraham. So he tells Abraham, Abraham, you know what? I'm planning to destroy. Did God have to talk to him? Maybe not. God is God. He can do whatever he wants to do but what's the need to speak to a man? But you know all of this reveals something to us that Abraham was so close to God. No wonder James calls him friend of God. That God was happy to reveal his purposes to Abraham. As a friend, now you may say that he was also a prophet. So maybe God wanted to reveal his plans to him because he was a prophet. All that's fine but ultimately the relationship that Abraham had with God was very, very close and God was willing to open up his heart to Abraham. So this is a little bit, a picture about the life of Abraham, a glimpse of the life of Abraham. Now I told us that in Romans chapter 4, Apostle Paul, he enlists about the journey of Abraham in faith. So we can even look at it like the steps of faith, you know what Abraham did so that we can follow those same steps or those same patterns of faith and achieve or fulfill what God desires for us. So let's turn in our Bibles to those successful steps of Abraham. This is in Romans chapter 4 verses 17 through 21. As it is written, I have made you a father of many nations in the presence of him whom he believed, God, who gave life to the dead and called those things which do not exist as through the dead. Who can treat to hope in hope-belief so that he become the father of many nations according to what was spoken? So shall your descendants be and not being weak in faith. He did not consider his own body, already dead. Since he was about 100 years old and the deadness of Sarah's womb, he did not waver at the promise of God through unbelief, but was strengthened in faith, giving glory to God and being fully convinced that what he had promised, he was also able to perform. Okay, and therefore, last, just read 22 also. Okay, it doesn't matter, I'll read it. 22 says, and therefore, it was accounted to him for righteousness. So in the book of Romans or the letter to the Romans written by Paul, we find that Paul is trying to help the Romans understand about faith and about grace, and he's also helping them see the difference of faith and grace as opposed to law as opposed to sin and different such things. But particularly in Romans chapter 4, we find that there is a focus on this man called as Abraham and something special from the life of Abraham. So there are some steps that we can look at and summarize, you know, all that Abraham would teach us. So what is the first truth that we learn from Abraham's life and Abraham's faith? In verse 17, we are told that he believed, he believed God. Okay, so Romans 4 verse 17, there are different things. The promise of God is mentioned, where it is written, I have made you a father of many nations in the presence of him whom he believed, God who gives life to the dead and calls those things which do not exist as though they did. So what does it tell us about the steps of Abraham? Firstly, Abraham believed the promise of God, that you're going to be the father of many nations. But why did he believe the promise of God? Why do you think it's there in the same scripture? Just have a look at it. How could Abraham believe God? Abraham believed God as it was written, you shall be the father of many nations. How could he believe God? Yeah, so he trusted God that God would be faithful to his promises. See in that same passage, there's something more and that is about the nature of God. It is the most important thing because we're all talking about faith, we're talking about relationship with God which is connected to our faith. We keep trying to have faith. Okay, I'm trying, I'm trying to have faith in God but I don't know why I'm not able to have faith in God. One of the reasons could be that we don't have a revelation of who God is. Did you understand what I'm trying to say? So faith will come from a place of knowing who God is. How did Abraham know God? What does this verse say? It says that he knew that God who gives life to the dead, even if things are dead. What can God do? What can give life even to the dead? That is why he took his son Isaac. He was not worried because he had a revelation of the nature of God. So when I want to believe, I can't just believe like, yeah, it says like this, you know, and let me just believe. Yeah, that's a good place to start. However, one very key thing in the life of Abraham, first thing is he believed. Okay, he believed God. What gave him the courage to believe God because he knew God. He understood that God is the God of the impossible. It was impossible, isn't it? Back in those days, to have an elderly couple bear a child. It was already impossible, the promise that God gave him. But how could Abraham believe? He believed because he knew who God is. I mean, he is the God of the universe. He is the one who has created the heavens and the earth. Is there anything too difficult for him? Isn't he the one who has created our human body? And if he says that we will have a son in our old age, why not? It is possible. So Abraham believed God because he knew who God is, that God is the one who can even give life to the dead and call those things which do not exist as though they did. So nothing existed back when, you know, Abraham received the promise. Okay, but you see, he knew God can even call those things that do not exist as though they did. So he understood about the power and the authority that the word of God carried because God created the heavens and the earth. How did he do it? He said, let there be light with the authority of his word. Did it exist before God said, let there be light? No, nothing, it didn't exist. But when God began to speak, the unseen came into existence and became, you know, seen and visible. So even the things that don't exist, God can call that forth into being. So the point that I'm trying to make here is one, of course, the steps of Abraham is that he believed. How could he believe? One of the key things, key reasons why he was able to believe is because of his relationship with God and who he knew God to be. And so that's also so important for us when we are joining so closely with God. When God says certain things, it may feel like it doesn't exist. But we will have faith in God knowing that he can call those things that don't exist to exist because he's God. So the first and most important step in the life of Abraham was that he believed. So who are we? What do we call ourselves? Believers. So do you believe? I hope so because you're all calling each other. Oh, your believers, my believers, we are believers. What's our work? What does God expect us to do? Believe. And that is the example from the life of Abraham. The most important thing that he did, which he left behind for us to follow is to believe. Abraham believed God and that God was able to give life to the dead and call those things that do not exist as though they did. So the first step in journey with God is what to believe. Okay, believe what God says. We tend to believe what people say, right? All kinds of things. We say, oh, India is going to win in this match. Somewhere we believe we think, yeah, yeah, correct. It's going to win. But then to our surprise, India doesn't win. Some other country wins. So we put our faith everywhere. But when we put our faith in God, he is unfailing. We can be very confident at what God is saying he is able to do because he's the God who is the God of the impossible. Whether we can believe a human being or not, you know, that's a different thing. But you can definitely believe God. If God says something, just put your faith in it. Believe like Abraham because Abraham knew, God is speaking to me. I can believe this. He will do the impossible in my life. So that is the first step for all of us to learn when God says something. When God's word says something, believe. How do we listen to sermons? How do we listen to sermons? Yeah, we hear it, right? But what is the right way to listen to sermons? Have faith in your heart. Okay, and expect God is going to speak something to me. How when we read the Bible, have faith in the heart. And when you read the Bible, expect God is going to speak something to my heart. He's going to release a promise into my heart. So what is that? It's a lifestyle of faith where every moment we are trusting God, that God will speak to me, God will minister to me through the ministry of others, through circumstances. At all times we are listening because we want to believe if God is saying something to me right now, through the sermon or reading my Bible or the classes. I'm just going to take it in. I'm going to say, yes, Lord, I know you can do it. You're teaching me because you want to do something in my life like Abraham. If Abraham just received what God said as information, yeah, sounds good. Nothing more than that. It would not have helped him. But he heard what God had to say. But what was there in his heart? Faith. That made all the difference. Abraham believed God. That is the first step. Now I'm looking here at the chat and Daniel has a question. He says, ma'am, did God choose Abraham randomly to be the father of multitudes or did Abraham have some qualities? Okay. So, Daniel, I believe that God in his will or in his mind or according to his purposes, he has a plan for all of us. Okay. So, the reason why God called Abraham and not anyone else for this particular promise is because God's will was there for Abraham to fulfill this promise. Okay. Now, did he have certain qualities? Yeah, maybe. Maybe he had certain qualities which may have helped. But even that God knows, right? God already knows everyone that he has created. So, I'm sure he would have understood that Abraham also carried certain qualities that might be helpful for him to fulfill this purpose. I hope that I've answered your question. If you have any follow up question, you can post it in the chat. So, okay. All right. I'm guessing that my answer is okay. All right. Thank you. Let's move on. The second point here is against all hope, in hope he still believed. So, now the second step is that when we begin our journey of believing God, there can be occasions where everything seems to go against what God has spoken, right? All the facts go against the promise of God. And that is the phase. You know, that's the toughest phase. See, journey with God, it's like your 400 meter run. Okay. Just maybe a relay race or something like that. So, all of us know these races where you just start in the beginning. They say get set, go and everyone's at the starting line and people start running. Okay. 100 meters. Maybe 10 people started. But once 100 meters is done, you have about eight people still running. Okay. Two people may say, oh, okay. I had a sprain in my leg or somebody fell down. Okay. No worries. 200 meters. You finally have about five people still running. But who reaches the finish line first? How many people reach the finish line ultimately? Maybe only three people. Because see, it's not, it's great to start starting here. Great. Everybody has high energy. Okay. I'll do it. We'll do it. Come on. Let's start at the beginning. But when you start journey, that is the toughest part because it's not going to be easy. And even for Abraham, it says, the odds were against him. So many things were against the promise of God. The same thing happens in our lives. When we take God's promise and we try to journey in the beginning, we are full. You know, they said, Josh, right? Like, fully enthusiastic. Yes, this will happen. God will do it and all that. But as you start off somewhere, you realize, maybe I don't have what it takes. You know, maybe the circumstances are not good enough. I don't have much support. This and that. That's where our boat starts to shake. But in that situation, Abraham still carried his hope. So let's pause. We'll take a break. We'll come back at 10 o'clock and then I'll continue from here. Thank you.