Abraham’s acts of faith in God

31/3/2023

Gen 12:1 – 9, 15:1 – 6, 17:23-24 21:1-7, 22:11 – 19

Abraham is referred to as the father of faith.
He demonstrated his faith in God in the following ways:

He was willing to leave his motherland and go to a strange land.
Abraham readily believed all promises God made to him.
By faith Abraham trusted in God’s voice.
By faith Abraham built two altars for God; one at Bethel and another at Sechem.
Abraham entered into a covenant relationship with God.
He was willing to change their names from Abram to Abraham and Sarai to Sarah.
He offered the best of his flock as a sacrifice.
He obeyed God’ call for personal relationship/ left polytheism for monotheism.
He was ready to sacrifice his son Isaac when instructed by God.
He was willing to obey God’s command of circumcision.

ABRAHAM’S ACTS OF FAITH IN GOD - KCSE C.R.E NOTES

GENESIS 12:1-9

Genesis 12:1-9 Good News Translation (GNT)
God's Call to Abram
12 The Lord said to Abram, “Leave your country, your relatives, and your father's home, and go to a land that I am going to show you. 2 I will give you many descendants, and they will become a great nation. I will bless you and make your name famous, so that you will be a blessing.

3 I will bless those who bless you,
But I will curse those who curse you.
And through you I will bless all the nations.”

4 When Abram was seventy-five years old, he started out from Haran, as the Lord had told him to do; and Lot went with him. 5 Abram took his wife Sarai, his nephew Lot, and all the wealth and all the slaves they had acquired in Haran, and they started out for the land of Canaan.

When they arrived in Canaan, 6 Abram traveled through the land until he came to the sacred tree of Moreh, the holy place at Shechem. (At that time the Canaanites were still living in the land.) 7 The Lord appeared to Abram and said to him, “This is the country that I am going to give to your descendants.” Then Abram built an altar there to the Lord, who had appeared to him. 8 After that, he moved on south to the hill country east of the city of Bethel and set up his camp between Bethel on the west and Ai on the east. There also he built an altar and worshiped the Lord. 9 Then he moved on from place to place, going toward the southern part of Canaan.

GENESIS 15:1-6

Genesis 15:1-6 Good News Translation (GNT)
God's Covenant with Abram
15 After this, Abram had a vision and heard the Lord say to him, “Do not be afraid, Abram. I will shield you from danger and give you a great reward.”

2 But Abram answered, “Sovereign Lord, what good will your reward do me, since I have no children? My only heir is Eliezer of Damascus.
3 You have given me no children, and one of my slaves will inherit my property.”

4 Then he heard the Lord speaking to him again: “This slave Eliezer will not inherit your property; your own son will be your heir.”
5 The Lord took him outside and said, “Look at the sky and try to count the stars; you will have as many descendants as that.”

6 Abram put his trust in the Lord, and because of this the Lord was pleased with him and accepted him.

GENESIS 17:23-24

Genesis 17:23-24Good News Translation (GNT)
23 On that same day Abraham obeyed God and circumcised his son Ishmael and all the other males in his household, including the slaves born in his home and those he had bought. 24 Abraham was ninety-nine years old when he was circumcised,

GENESIS 21:1-7

Genesis 21:1-7 Good News Translation (GNT)
The Birth of Isaac
21 The Lord blessed Sarah, as he had promised, 2 and she became pregnant and bore a son to Abraham when he was old. The boy was born at the time God had said he would be born. 3 Abraham named him Isaac, 4 and when Isaac was eight days old, Abraham circumcised him, as God had commanded. 5 Abraham was a hundred years old when Isaac was born. 6 Sarah said, “God has brought me joy and laughter. Everyone who hears about it will laugh with me.” 7 Then she added, “Who would have said to Abraham that Sarah would nurse children? Yet I have borne him a son in his old age.”

GENESIS 22:11-19

Genesis 22:11-19 Good News Translation (GNT)
11 But the angel of the Lord called to him from heaven, “Abraham, Abraham!”

He answered, “Yes, here I am.”

12 “Don't hurt the boy or do anything to him,” he said. “Now I know that you honor and obey God, because you have not kept back your only son from him.”

13 Abraham looked around and saw a ram caught in a bush by its horns. He went and got it and offered it as a burnt offering instead of his son. 14 Abraham named that place “The Lord Provides.”[a] And even today people say, “On the Lord's mountain he provides.”[b]

15 The angel of the Lord called to Abraham from heaven a second time, 16 “I make a vow by my own name—the Lord is speaking—that I will richly bless you. Because you did this and did not keep back your only son from me, 17 I promise that I will give you as many descendants as there are stars in the sky or grains of sand along the seashore. Your descendants will conquer their enemies. 18 All the nations will ask me to bless them as I have blessed your descendants—all because you obeyed my command.” 19 Abraham went back to his servants, and they went together to Beersheba, where Abraham settled.

How Abraham demonstrated his faith in God in the incident when he was willing to sacrifice his son [Genesis 22:1-19]

Abraham collected wood for a burnt offering.
Abraham went with his son, Isaac and servants a three days’ journey.
He informed his servants to wait for him and his son as they go and worship.
When Isaac enquired about the lamb for the sacrifice, Abraham told him that the lord shall provide.
Abraham built an altar and laid the wood in order.
Abraham bound Isaac and laid him on the altar.
He took the knife to slay his son, but the angel of the Lord stopped him.
Abraham took a ram from the bush and offered burnt offering instead of Isaac.
He named the place “The Lord will provide”.

Lessons Christians learn from the incident Abraham was willing to sacrifice his son

They should obey/honour God.
They should have faith in God.
They should be patient and wait upon God/should not give up.
They should be prepared to face difficult situations/perseverance.
They should be ready to give up everything.
They should rely on God’s guidance.
They should be wise when dealing with issues affecting their lives.
They should involve family members in worship.
They should rely on God’s providence.

More C.R.E Notes

Questions to expect in examinations

Explain the importance of the covenant between God and Abraham. (6 marks)
1. God bound Himself in a personal relationship with Abraham
2. It showed that Abraham had faith/trust in God
3. It demonstrated Abraham’s obedience to God
4. Abraham and his descendants were assured of God’s protection
5. The descendants of Abraham were promised the land of Canaan
6. It confirmed Abraham as God’s choice through whom all nations shall receive salvation
7. God continued with his plan of salvation for human kind through the covenant.
State the promises God made to Abraham during his call. (6mks)
1. God would make Abraham a great Nation.
2. God would bless Abraham.
3. God would make Abraham’s name great / famous.
4. God would make Abraham a source of blessings to others.
5. God would bless those who bless Abraham.
6. God would curse those who cursed Abraham.
7. God would give Abraham the land of Canaan.
Give the incidences when Abraham demonstrated his faith in God. (7 mks)
1. Abraham positively responded to God’s call to go to unknown land.
2. He built altars at Shechem and Bethel.
3. He offered sacrifices to God in Canaan.
4. He accepted the change of his name and of his wife’s.
5. He entered into a covenant relationship with God.
6. He accepted circumcision as a sign of the covenant with God for himself and his descendants.
7. He was ready to offer his only son, Isaac as a sacrifice.
8. He abandoned the worship of many gods and went for one true God.
Explain the importance of the promises given to Abraham to Christians today. (7 mks)
1. Christians will inherit the kingdom of God which is equivalent to the promised land of Canaan.
2. They should seek blessings from God.
3. They are under God’s protection in all their activities.
4. Christians who disobey God are punished by Him.
5. If Christians obey God, they receive His rewards.
6. They should trust in God’s providence.
7. They should accept suffering because they will be liberated by God.
8. By accepting Christ they have an everlasting covenant with God.
Describe how God tested Abraham’s faith in Genesis 22:1-19 (8mks).
1. God called Abraham and Abraham said here I am
2. He asked him to take his son Isaac to the land of Moriah and offer him as a sacrifice upon one of the mountains he would tell him
3. Abraham rose early in the morning, saddled his ass and took two of his servants and his son Isaac
4. He cut wood for the burnt offering and went to the place God had told him
5. On the third day, he lifted his eyes and saw the place afar off
6. He told the young men to stay while he would go up with his son to worship and come back
7. He laid the wood on Isaac and took in his hand the fire and the knife
8. Isaac enquired where the lamb for burnt offering was
9. Abraham replied that God would provide the lamb
10. When they reached the place God had told him about, Abraham built an altar there and arranged the wood on it
11. He bound his son Isaac and laid him on the altar, on top of the wood
12. Then he reached out his hand and took the knife to slay his son
13. But the angel of God called him from heaven by name
14. He told him not to do anything to the son for it had been confirmed that he feared God
With reference to Genesis 17:10-17, outline five instructions given by God to Abraham concerning Jewish circumcision (5 mks).
1. Every male among his descendants had to be circumcised
2. They would be circumcised by cutting the flesh of the foreskin
3. Circumcision would take place when a boy was 8 days old
4. All the male servants of Abraham had to be circumcised
5. It would be a symbol of an everlasting covenant between God and Abraham’s descendants
6. Any male who was not circumcised would be cut off from Abraham’s descendants
Describe the making of the covenant between God and Abraham (8x1 = 8 mks)
1. God asked Abraham to bring the best of his animals.
2. Abraham brought a heifer, a she goat, a ram, a turtle dove and a young pigeon.
3. He then cut the animals into halves and placed them apposite each other in two rows.
4. The birds were not split.
5. Birds of prey came on the carcasses but Abraham drove them away.
6. Towards evening, Abraham fell into a deep sleep.
7. While he slept the Lord appeared to him in a vision and gave him other promises.
8. After the sun set and it was dark, God in form of a smoking fire pot and a flaming torch passed between the pieces of animals.
9. The Lord made a covenant with Abraham and promised to give him and his descendants the land of Canaan.
Outline the background of Abraham before his call. (6 marks)
1. He lived in ur of chaldeans
2. He was son of Terah
3. He moved from ur to Haran with his family
4. He and his wife were childless.
5. He and his family worshipped idols
6. His name was Abram and his wife Sarai
7. God called him when he was 75 years old.
8. He had two brothers – Haran & Nahar.
Describe the call of Abraham (Genesis 12:1-9). (7 marks)
1. God called Abraham in Haran after the death of his father.
2. Abraham was 75 years old when God commanded him to leave with his family.
3. To leave Haran and go to unknown land.
4. God made promises to Abraham of a great nation,/many blessing,/a great name/a source of blessings to many/curses to those who curse him.
5. Abraham obeyed and set off for the unknown land, with his wife, nephew lot, servants and livestock.
6. In Canaan God appeared to him in Bethel and Schechem.
7. Here, he was shown the land that would belong to his descendants.
8. Abraham built altars at Bethel and Schechem and worshipped God.
9. God appeared to Abraham in the land/promised to give the land of Canaan to his descendants.
10. He moved to the mountain to the east of Bethel/pitched his tent/built an altar for the lord/called the name of the lord.
Give seven reasons why Abraham is referred to as the Father of faith
1. He left his land and wealth to go to a foreign land.
2. He was ready to sacrifice his son Isaac.
3. He undertook a long and dangerous journey to an unknown land.
4. He trusted God’s promise of a son despite his wife’s age.
5. He built an alter for God at Bethel and Shechem.
6. He accepted to make a covenant with God by offering him sacrifices of animals and birds.
7. He accepted God’s command of circumcision at old age.
8. He abandoned the worship of idols and worshipped Yahweh as the true God