LECTURE VII.

ABRAHAM.

Now the Lord had said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father's house, unto a land that I will shew thee: And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great: and thou shalt be a blessing. And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee; and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed. So Abram departed, as the Lord had spoken unto him: and Lot went with him: and Abram was seventy and five years old when he departed out of Haran. And Abram took Sarai his wife, and Lot his brother's son, and all their substance that they had gathered, and the souls that they had gotten in Haran: and they went forth to go into the land of Canaan; and into the land of Canaan they came. Genesis xii. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5.

THE character of the Patriarchs deserves our serious study: that of Abraham is given us at considerable length in the book of Genesis, and it is frequently referred to in other parts of Scripture. He was emphatically called "the friend of God," an expression that shows how exalted his piety was, and how highly he was esteemed by the Almighty. He who is a friend of God must be holy, devout, and obedient; must live as God would have him live; must maintain believing and spiritual communion with him in meditation and other religious exercises.

To form a just notion of the character of Abraham, we must consider the commands of God, the conduct of the Patriarch, and the reward of his eminent Piety.

I. The Commands of God. He chose to favour Abraham with peculiar revelations, to give him various injunctions, to make him various promises, and to sub

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ject him to various trials. In the verses before us there is one command: "Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father's house, unto a land that I will shew thee." This command, if we consider the strong attachment that we naturally feel to our native land, could not be agreeable to the feelings of the patriarch. But in the twenty-second chapter, we have another command of God to him; and one far more revolting to all the feelings of the human heart. "And

it came to pass after these things, that God did tempt Abraham, and said unto him, Abraham: And he said, Behold, here I am. And he said, Take now thy son, thine only son Isaac, whom thou lovest, and get thee into the land of Moriah; and offer him there for a burnt-offering upon one of the mountains which I will tell thee of." In the seventeenth chapter we read of the institution of the rite of Circumcision; a disagreeable and painful ceremony, appointed by the Almighty as a seal of the Covenant, as a sign of inward renovation, as a pledge of the divine regard.

We must not forget that, together with commands, God gave to Abraham various promises. A son is promised; and yet he is left to an advanced age before the promise is fulfilled. The land of Canaan is promised; but it is only to his posterity. It is also promised, that in him, that is, by one descended from him as to the flesh, all the families of the earth should be blessed.

II. We now consider the Conduct of the Patriarch. He acknowledged the truth of God, and believed: he acknowledged the authority of God, and obeyed. The faith and obedience of Abraham are remarkable, and render him an example for Christians in all ages.

1. See his faith. It is mentioned in the fifteenth Chapter of Genesis. "And he believed in the Lord; and he counted it to him for righteousness." But what Saint Paul says in the epistle to the Hebrews on this subject, puts it before us in a clear and striking manner.

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'By faith Abraham, when he was called to go out into a place which he should after receive as an inheritance, obeyed; and he went out, not knowing whither he went. By faith he sojourned in the land of promise, as in a strange country, dwelling in tabernacles with Isaac and Jacob, the heirs with him of the same promise. For he looked for a city which hath foundations, whose builder and maker is God. By faith Abraham, when he was tried, offered up Isaac; and he that had received the promises offered up his only begotten son, Of whom it was said, That in Isaac shall thy seed be called: Accounting that God was able to raise him up, even from the dead; from whence also he received him in a figure." Thus Abraham was strong in faith, giving glory to God. He was fully persuaded that what God had promised, he was able also to perform.

2. See his Obedience. True and living faith is always a practical principle; and that faith, however its possessor may boast, which does not produce holiness of heart and life, is a dead and useless faith. Our persuasion of the truth and power of God is a mere idle notion, unless it lead us to act in agreement with such a persuasion. Does God command Abraham to leave his Country? How does he act? "So' Abraham departed, as the Lord had spoken unto him." Is the command, "Every man-child among you shall be circumcised?" Then we read that Abraham took Ishmael, and every male of the family, and "circumcised the flesh of their foreskin in the self-same day, as God had said unto him." Is the command, "Offer Isaac for a burnt-offering?" Then we read that Abraham rose up early in the morning, and went with Isaac, taking all that was needful for the sacrifice, unto the place which God had appointed. In this manner was his strong faith productive of a willing, prompt, and exact obedience.

III. Let us see the Reward of this eminent piety. 1. We may notice the merciful attention of God to Abraham; the gracious assurances that he repeatedly

gave him; and, to speak so, the familiar intercourse that he held with him. 2. We may observe how God protected him amidst strangers, the temporal prosperity that was granted him, and the respect in which he was held by his neighbours. 3. We may also notice the peculiar honour granted him that he should be the ancestor of a numerous people who were to be the chosen people of God. 4. We should distinctly observe that he was the progenitor of the Messiah. These words, "In thee shall all families of the earth be blessed," relate to the Lord Jesus Christ, who, as to his human nature, descended from Abraham. Thus the Patriarch had all spiritual and temporal blessings.

We have God's commands: do we obey them? We have God's promises: do we believe in them? There is a reward for the righteous: do we enjoy it; and are we seeking it? We admire Abraham: but that is not sufficient; we must have the piety that he had; that is, we must believe and obey and persevere unto the end as he did, or we shall ruin ourselves for ever. O let us remember our privileges and our obligations, and earnestly pray to God for grace, that we may repent, believe, obey, and travel over the wilderness of this world to the Canaan of final felicity. As we would escape eternal misery, and as we would enjoy eternal blessedness, let us be earnest in attending to our salvation.

THE PRAYER.

O gracious God, I thank thee for the example of this thy faithful servant. I behold and admire his strong and unwavering faith, his ready and exact obedience, and his perseverance in all goodness. Mercifully grant me thy Holy Spirit, and produce in my heart all the principles of true religion, and enable me to live in all holy obedience. Let me so believe and live, so worship and obey, that, when this life is ended, I may sit down with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, in thy glorious kingdom; through Jesus Christ our Lord and Saviour. Amen.

LECTURE VIII.

ABRAHAM'S INTERCESSION.

And Abraham drew near, and said, Wilt thou also destroy the righteous with the wicked? Peradventure there be fifty righteous within the city: wilt thou also destroy, and not spare the place for the fifty righteous that are therein? That be far from thee to do after this manner, to slay the righteous with the wicked; and that the righteous should be as the wicked, that be far from thee. Shall not the judge of all the earth do right? And the Lord said, If I find in Sodom fifty righteous within the city, then I will spare all the place for their sakes. Genesis xviii. 23, 24, 25, 26.

THE intercession of Abraham for Sodom is a most interesting circumstance. It puts the patriarch before us in an amiable point of view, and it strikingly shows the condescending and gracious conduct of God. How is it that Abraham is favoured with such intercourse with the Almighty? Let us hear the declaration of Scripture; (Gen. xviii. 19.) for it is remarkable. "And the Lord said, shall I hide from Abraham that thing which I do; Seeing that Abraham shall surely become a great and mighty nation, and all the nations of the earth shall be blessed in him! For I know him, that he will command his children and his household after him, and they shall keep the way of the Lord, to do justice and judgment; that the Lord may bring upon Abraham that which he hath spoken of him." Abraham was great; but it is because he was good; he was pious; and he ruled his family as a religious man should do. God especially notices this: "He will command his children and his household after him." Christian Parents and Masters! remember the conduct of Abraham.