A Famine Not of Bread

Click here to listen to this sermon. “By faith [Abraham] went to live in the land of promise, as in a foreign land, living in tents with Isaac and Jacob, heirs with him of the same promise. For he was looking forward to the city that has foundations, whose designer and builder is God” (Hebrews 11:15-16). Grace and peace to you from God the Father and our Lord Jesus Christ! I enjoy camping, but I prefer staying in a cabin or lodge. Two or three days in a tent… that’s about enough “roughing it” for me before my sense of adventure is satisfied. The threshold for my wife is much lower. But Abraham lived in a tent for 100 years, from the age of 75 when God called him out of Ur of the Chaldeans to the day he died at the age of 175 in the land of Canaan. Though God promised Abraham and his descendants an inheritance that would stretch from the Nile River to the Euphrates, Abraham lived as a pilgrim and stranger in Canaan. He died with the only plot of ground in his name being the cave of ...

"The Offering of Abraham" by James Tissot Click here to listen to this sermon. “After these things God tested Abraham and said to him, ‘Abraham!’ And he said, ‘Here am I.’ He said, “Take your son, your only son Isaac, whom you love, and go to the land of Moriah, and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains of which I shall tell you” (Genesis 22:1-2). Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. The temptation of Abraham lasts three days. It is not the only time he is tempted, but this is brutal. He journeys through the wilderness with Isaac, his only son from his beloved Sarah. This miracle child was born when his mother and father were ninety and one hundred, respectively. Isaac’s name means “he laughs,” he is their laughter in their old age. But even more than that, he’s the child of the promise. The Lord has declared that Abraham will be the father of a great nation through Isaac. All of that seems in jeopardy now, endangered by ...

"Abraham and the Three Angels" by James Tissot Click here to listen to this sermon. Then the Lord said, “Because the outcry against Sodom and Gomorrah is great and their sin is very grave, I will go down to see whether they have done altogether according to the outcry that has come to Me. And if not, I will know.” So the men turned from there and went toward Sodom, but Abraham still stood before the Lord. Then Abraham drew near and said, “Will You indeed sweep away the righteous with the wicked? Suppose there are fifty righteous within the city. Will You then sweep away the place and not spare it for the fifty righteous who are in it? Far be it from You to do such a thing, to put the righteous to death with the wicked, so that the righteous fare as the wicked! Far be that from You! Shall not the Judge of all the earth do what is just?” And the Lord said, “If I find at Sodom fifty righteous in the city, I will spare the whole place for their sake.” Abraham answered and sai...

"The Calling of Abraham" by Alexander Ivanov Click here to listen to this sermon.

Click here to listen to this sermon. “By faith [Abraham] went to live in the land of promise, as in a foreign land, living in tents with Isaac and Jacob, heirs with him of the same promise. For he was looking forward to the city that has foundations, whose designer and builder is God” (Hebrews 11:15-16). Grace and peace to you from God the Father and our Lord Jesus Christ! Next weekend, my family and I will go camping near the Missouri River. We’re going to bring our tents, sleeping bags, fishing rods, coolers, camp stoves, lanterns, and all the things that it takes to “rough it in the great outdoors.” Hopefully the weather will be as nice as we’ve had this week. But just in case, we have a backup plan. Logan and Samantha have a big 5 th wheel camper with air conditioning and shower parked in their back yard, all hooked up and ready to go. Two or three days in a tent… that’s about enough for me before my sense of adventure is satisfied. The threshold for my wife is much l...

Click here to listen to this sermon. The text for today is our Old Testament lesson, Genesis 22:1-18. Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ! Would you deny God in order to save your child’s life? To say that is a difficult question is a huge understatement. It’s an awful question to even consider. But it’s really not a far-fetched question. In fact, given the persecution of Christians throughout the world, it is a question far too many parents actually face. When groups like ISIS line up 21 Christian men for beheading and the only words they can force out of them is a prayer and confession of faith: “Jesus, help me,” they turn to threatening and molesting the children in order to get the parents “to convert.” That’s when the rubber hits the road, when the chickens come home to roost, when theory becomes reality. Loving parents are willing to do almost anything, to make almost any sacrifice, for their child. How far would you go? Would you deny Go...