← Back to sermon library

Genesis chapter 15 for our meditation 
tonight. Genesis chapter 15. Genesis 15, I'll read the chapter 
and then we'll look at it in some detail. So Genesis 15, beginning 
in verse one. After these things, the word 
of the Lord came to Abram in a vision saying, do not be afraid, 
Abram. I am your shield, your exceedingly 
great reward. But Abram said, Lord God, what 
will you give me seeing I go childless and that heir of my 
house is Eleazar of Damascus? Then Abram said, Look, you have 
given me no offspring. Indeed, one born in my house 
is my heir. And behold, the word of the Lord 
came to him saying, this one shall not be your heir, but one 
who will come from your own body shall be your heir. Then he brought 
him outside and said, look now toward heaven and count the stars 
if you are able to number them. And he said to him, so shall 
your descendants be. And he believed in the Lord and 
he accounted it to him for righteousness. Then he said to him, I am the 
Lord who brought you out of Ur of the Chaldeans to give you 
this land to inherit it. And he said, Lord God, how shall 
I know that I will inherit it? So he said to him, bring me a 
three-year-old heifer, a three-year-old female goat, a three-year-old 
ram, a turtle dove, and a young pigeon. Then he brought all these 
to him and cut them in two down the middle and placed each piece 
opposite the other. But he did not cut the birds 
in two. And when the vultures came down on the carcasses, Abram 
drove them away. And when the sun was going down, 
a deep sleep fell upon Abram. And behold, horror and great 
darkness fell upon him. Then he said to Abram, know certainly 
that your descendants will be strangers in a land that is not 
theirs and will serve them. And they will afflict them 400 
years. And also the nation whom they 
serve, I will judge. Afterward, they shall come out 
with great possessions. Now, as for you, you shall go 
to your fathers in peace. You shall be buried at a good 
old age. But in the fourth generation, 
they shall return here, for the iniquity of the Amorites is not 
yet complete. And it came to pass when the 
sun went down and it was dark, that behold, there appeared a 
smoking oven and a burning torch that passed between those pieces. 
On the same day, the Lord made a covenant with Abram saying, 
to your descendants, I have given this land from the river of Egypt 
to the great river, the river Euphrates, the Kenites, the Kenizzites, 
the Kadmonites, the Hittites, the Perizzites, the Repham, the 
Amorites, the Canaanites, the Girgashites, and the Jebusites. Amen. Well, let us pray. Our 
Father in heaven, we thank you for your written word. We know 
it's God-breathed, and we receive it as such. And help us, God, 
to submit to the authority of Holy Scripture, to see in it 
our blessed Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, from cover to cover. 
and to see your handiwork and all that you have done in terms 
of saving sinners by him. We ask that you would bless this 
time, encourage our hearts, cause us to reflect afresh upon what 
we have in the gospel of our salvation. And may all of this 
act of worship be an expression of praise and gratitude and thankfulness 
to you for your many blessings to us. Forgive us now for all 
sin and all unrighteousness and guide us by your Holy Spirit. 
And we pray through Jesus Christ, our Lord, amen. Well, on Wednesday 
nights, we are going through the Pentateuch as a whole. So 
we started in Genesis, we went through Exodus and Leviticus, 
and now we're in the book of Numbers, and God willing, we'll 
be in Numbers 20, excuse me, this Wednesday night. And one 
of the things that we have seen repeatedly in the book of Numbers 
is that they're wandering through the wilderness en route to the 
land that God had promised. And that promise reached back 
all the way to the book of Genesis. God promised to Abraham, to Isaac, 
and to Jacob that he would give them the land of promise, that 
land of Canaan, that land that was flowing with milk and honey. 
Well, as we see here in this particular chapter, Abram was 
a man of great faith, but even Abram wanted a sign. He wanted 
confirmation. This wasn't an expression of 
his doubt, but similarly to what we find in a Gideon and what 
we find in a Hezekiah, they ask God to confirm the promise and 
that's precisely what we have in Genesis 15. It's a covenant 
ceremony with Abraham. So I want to look first at the 
promise to Abraham in verses 1 to 6 and and then the confirmation 
by covenant in verses seven to 17. So let's look first at the 
promise to Abraham in verses one to six, and there's a few 
observations here. First, note the comfort of God. And if we look at this passage, 
notice in 15, one, after these things, the word of the Lord 
came to Abram in a vision. The after these things must refer 
to what takes place in Genesis chapter 14. Basically, you had 
a coalition of Eastern kings that launched an attack upon 
Western kings. And in that attack, they subdued 
and kidnapped and took Lot, the nephew of Abram. And Abram then 
armed his servants and they went on a mission to recover Lot. And so Abram was victorious in 
that particular exchange. And as he returns, according 
to 1418, this is the instance where Melchizedek, the king of 
Salem, brought out bread and wine. He was the priest of God 
Most High, and he blessed Abram and said, so after these things, 
this message comes to Abram at a time most likely that he desperately 
needed to hear it. If the coalition of Eastern kings 
could launch one attack, they could certainly launch an additional 
attack. If a coalition of Eastern kings 
could do that, then a coalition of Western kings could do that. 
These were marauders. These were people that wanted 
to conquer. These were people that wanted 
to subdue others and take their stuff. And so as we look at 15.1, 
we need to remember that context. So after these things, the word 
of the Lord came to Abram in a vision saying, Do not be afraid. He's encouraging the patriarch 
to not fear. God has seen him through that 
battle. God has enabled him to recover his nephew. God has blessed 
him such that Melchizedek, the king of Salem, brought out bread 
and wine to him and blessed him. But as well, note the reason 
why he says to not be afraid. Notice in verse one, I am your 
shield, your exceedingly great reward. Notice he doesn't say, 
do not be afraid, Abram, because you're really good with those 
armed servants. Those men are crack shots. Those 
men are great with the weapons. Those men are great at stealth 
and recon and every art associated with military activity. That's 
not why he tells him not to be afraid. He tells Abram not to 
be afraid because I am your shield, your exceedingly great reward. 
Look back in 1418. So after, we read in verse 19 
rather, he blessed him and said, blessed be Abram of God most 
high, possessor of heaven and earth, and blessed be God most 
high who has delivered your enemies into your hand. That's the fleshing 
out of what God relates here in 15.1. I am your shield. This coalition of Eastern kings 
can go so far, but no farther. This coalition of wicked men 
can go so far, but no farther. I am your shield. So on the basis 
of who God is and what God does on behalf of his people, he exhorts 
the patriarch not to be afraid. But also notice, he says, I am 
your exceedingly great reward. If you go back to chapter 14, 
look again at verse 20, after the section that I read, and 
he gave him a tithe of all. So this is how Melchizedek, king 
of Salem, honors Abram. Now note the difference or the 
contrast with the king of Sodom. He was one of the Western kings. 
It says, now the king of Sodom said to Abram, give me the persons 
and take the goods for yourself. But Abram said to the king of 
Sodom, I have raised my hand to the Lord, God most high, the 
possessor of heaven and earth, that I will take nothing from 
a thread to a sandal strap, and that I will not take anything 
that is yours, lest you should say, I have made Abram rich. So when God tells him in 15.1, 
do not be afraid. I am your shield. God is the 
one who had defended Abram from all of his enemies. But as well, 
when God says, I am your exceedingly great reward, Abram already tasted 
that experientially. The king of Sodom says, go ahead 
and return my men, but I will give you whatever else that you 
want. And Abram says, no, I don't want that arrangement, because 
then you will attribute my blessing and my profitability to yourself. He says, no, God is my exceedingly 
great reward. Now he does make provision in 
verse 24, except only what the young men have eaten and the 
portion of the men who went with me, Aner, Eshkol, and Mamre. Let them take their portion. 
So Abram already tasted and seen that the Lord was good. Abram 
already knew this by way of experience. So when God comes to encourage 
him not to fear, he simply reminds him of what he's already been. And I think there's an encouragement 
for us in our Bible reading. It's not so much new information 
that we're after. Rather, it is a reminder of what 
we know God to be. That's why you read your Bible. 
That's why you listen to sermons. That's why you reorient yourself 
and refamiliarize yourself with the promises of God. They are 
yea and amen in Jesus Christ. We're not looking for a new angle. 
We're not looking for a new discovery. We're rather looking anew to 
see the same old God. And I do not mean that disrespectfully. I mean in the sense that God 
is a rock. that God is there for us, that 
He is our shield, that He is our exceedingly great reward. 
Certainly, Abram could join us tonight in singing, if we happen 
to be singing this one, riches I heed not, nor man's empty praise, 
thou mine inheritance now and always, thou and thou only, first 
in my heart, high king of heaven, my treasure thou art. So Abram, 
don't be afraid, I am your shield, I've got you, I'm gonna protect 
you, and know that I am your exceedingly great reward. That 
then brings us to the response of Abram. Notice in verses two 
and three, he highlights his childlessness. Now this, as far 
as Abram is concerned, is a bit of a concern because God has 
promised that his descendants would be more numerous than the 
stars of the sky and of the sand on the seashore. And thus far, 
he didn't have any children. So look at what he says in verse 
two. But Abram said, Lord God, what will you give me seeing 
I go childless and the heir of my house is Eleazar of Damascus? Then Abram said, look, you have 
given me no offspring. Indeed, one born in my house 
is my heir. So his suggestion is that this 
servant be made his heir. Now he's going to suggest that 
with reference to Ishmael in chapter 17 in verse 18, but God 
is going to decline in each of these instances. Why? because 
the son of promise is Isaac. And while it may appear that 
you are too old to have children, nothing is too hard for God. 
God is the God of all flesh. God owns the cattle on a thousand 
hills. God is able to open the womb. 
God is the author of biology. God is able to fulfill all that 
he has promised. But at the same time, we understand 
why Abram is expressing what he is expressing here. Notice 
then the Lord's promise and sign, verses four and five. And behold, 
the word of the Lord came to him saying, this one shall not 
be your heir, but one who will come from your own body shall 
be your heir. Then he brought him outside and 
said, look now toward heaven and count the stars, if you are 
able to number them. And he said to him, so shall 
your descendants be. We know that ultimately this 
hinges upon the seed of Abraham, which is Jesus Christ our Lord. 
He is identified as such in Galatians chapter 3 and verse 16. When we do look at the book of 
Revelation and we see that great multitude that no man can number, 
those stars that cannot be numbered, that sand on the seashore that 
cannot be numbered, it's not primarily due to Abraham, Isaac, 
and Jacob. It is due to their seed, the 
Lord Jesus Christ, the one in whom all the nations, all the 
families of the earth shall be blessed. So God basically says 
to Abram, just relax. I've got this. It's not going 
to be your servant. It's not going to be the son 
born of the bond woman, Ishmael, but it's going to be the son 
of promise that comes from you and Sarah. Namely, it is going 
to be Isaac. And then notice, Abraham expresses 
his faith. And this is the verse that launches 
a thousand ships in terms of scripture. This is a verse that 
is utilized by a multitude of men in the Old Testament and 
in the New Testament and throughout church history. It is the doctrine 
of justification by faith alone. Look at what we read in verse 
six. And he, Abram, believed in the Lord and he accounted 
it to him for righteousness. So the promise was not conditioned 
by Abraham's works. Abraham performed well, Abraham 
did well, Abraham never feared again. That's not what it says. It tells us very clearly he believed 
in the Lord and he accounted it to him for righteousness. 
This is the turning point. I'm not suggesting that Abram 
was a reprobate prior to this time, but this is the articulation 
of his relationship with our blessed God. John Gill says he 
believed in the promise of God that he should have a seed, and 
a very numerous one. He believed that the Messiah 
would spring from his seed. He believed in him as his Savior 
and Redeemer. He believed in him for righteousness, 
and he believed in his righteousness as justifying him before God. 
Not the act of his faith, but the object of it. Not the act 
of his faith, not, oh, good for you, Abram, you've expressed 
some faith. Doesn't really matter what that faith is in, but insofar 
as you have faith, thus I'm gonna justify you. No, faith is only 
as good as its object, and the glory of justification is by 
faith alone, in Christ alone, to the saving of the sinner. 
As our confession says, not by imputing faith itself, the act 
of believing, or any other evangelical obedience to them as their righteousness, 
but by imputing Christ's act of obedience unto the whole law 
and passive obedience in His death for their whole and sole 
righteousness by faith, which faith they have not of themselves, 
it is the gift of God. So how does Abram, out of Ur 
of the Chaldeans, go from an idolater, which he was, he worshipped 
the gods of his fathers, we know that, it's confirmed for us in 
the book of Joshua in chapter 24, just in case there was any 
misunderstanding. Coming out of Ur of the Chaldeans, 
you were not a Yahweh worshipper. Coming out of Ur of the Chaldeans, 
you were not given over to the true and living God. So how does 
he go from point A to point B? Because he's a good man, because 
he's a great man. He is a good man and he is a 
great man. But he goes there by God's grace. He goes there 
by the saving grace of faith and repentance. He believed God. He looked to the promise of God, 
and I'll argue in a bit, that he had a lot to go on. He didn't 
have both the Old and the New Testaments. He doesn't have as 
much as we do. But what he had, he held on to. And what he had, he believed 
in. Calvin makes the observation with reference to justification 
by faith. He says, The merit of works ceases 
when righteousness is sought by faith. For it is necessary 
that this righteousness should be freely given by God and offered 
in His word, in order that anyone may possess it by faith. For 
it is especially to be observed that faith borrows a righteousness 
elsewhere, of which we in ourselves are destitute. Faith borrows 
a righteousness of which we are destitute. We get the alien righteousness 
of another, namely the Lord Jesus Christ. That's the language of 
Luther. We need an alien, outside-of-ourself 
righteousness, and that is imputed to us, and it's received by faith 
alone. Calvin goes on to say, "...otherwise 
it would be vain for Paul to set faith in opposition to works 
when speaking of the mode of obtaining righteousness." And 
he's commenting there on Romans 4. Remember Romans 4, that great 
declaration of justification by faith alone. Where does Paul 
go? He goes to Abraham. He goes to 
the Old Testament. He goes to David in the Psalms. 
It's never been the case that Old Covenant Israelites that 
were actually saved were saved by a result of their works. They 
were saved by grace, through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. Their faith was forward-looking. 
Their faith was rooted in the promises of the coming of Christ, 
but it was the same Christ that they believed in. Abel went to 
heaven by virtue of Christ. Every patriarch went to heaven 
by virtue of Christ. Every prophet, every godly man, 
every godly woman that entered into heaven went by grace alone, 
through faith alone, in Jesus Christ alone. So this is a wonderful 
statement concerning Abraham. He believed in the Lord and he 
accounted it to him for righteousness. I should qualify that. It's a 
wonderful statement concerning God. He justifies us freely by 
his grace, according to Romans 3 and verse 23. So that's the backdrop. So we've 
got this issue of childlessness and the question of heirship. 
And God says, don't worry about it. You're going to have a great 
number of descendants. That then brings us to this confirmation 
by covenant in verses 7 to 17. Note in verse 7, you have what's 
called a preamble, sort of a historical prologue to a covenant. And we 
see there in verse 7, then he said to him, I am the Lord who 
brought you out of Ur of the Chaldeans to give you this land 
to inherit it. Same way that the Ten Commandments 
start, I am the Lord your God who brought you out of the land 
of Egypt. There's this preamble, there's 
this historical statement, there's this confirmation of the facts 
and what God had performed or what God had done on their behalf 
that sets the context or framework for the coming covenant. Then 
notice what we have. God restipulates what he is going 
to do. He restipulates it there in that 
verse, to give you this land to inherit it. Now, Abram says, 
Lord God, verse 8, how shall I know that I will inherit it? 
Let's just stop here. I don't want to get psychological, 
but I think we can enter in. You kind of get the drift when 
he says, Lord, how's it going to be that my descendants outnumber 
the stars and the sand? How's it going to be that I'm 
going to inherit this land? And as far as Abram's concerned, 
he just came out of a skirmish, a battle with these Eastern kings, 
the coalition of Eastern kings. How's this gonna work? That's 
what he's saying. It's clear, right? Like, I'm 
not making that up. Let me just double check. Lord 
God, how shall I know that I will inherit it? Now, we might think 
that, how dare you? You just expressed faith in the 
living and true God. Your faith is concretely rooted 
in his promises. How could you even dare to question 
if you'll inherit it? You see, God doesn't respond 
that way. God doesn't upbraid him. God doesn't rebuke him. 
God doesn't reprove him. God rather answers him, and he 
answers him by way of covenant. The request for a confirmation. Wenham says, how am I to know 
is a request for a sign to confirm the promise, not the expression 
of doubt. Let's see something, a bit of 
a foreshadow, a bit of a down payment, a bit of a taste, if 
you will, knowing that this is in fact your plan, that I inherit 
the earth. So God doesn't rebuke him, but 
God says to Abram in verse 9, he said to him, bring me a three-year-old 
heifer, a three-year-old female goat, a three-year-old ram, a 
turtle dove, and a young pigeon. For those of us who have been 
wandering through the wilderness on Wednesday nights and who lumbered 
in Leviticus at Sinai, this is the language of the Levitical 
sacrificial system. This is foreshadowing. This is 
typifying. This is kind of advancing, tipping 
the hand. This is what's going to happen, 
at least in terms of Old Covenant Israel and their approach to 
a thrice holy God. So he tells him, bring me a three-year-old 
heifer, three-year-old lamb, a female goat, three-year-old 
ram, a turtle dove, and a young pigeon. And then note that he 
prepares the animals. And I think it's here that I 
want us to see the glory of Christ. Now, that may seem a little bit 
counterintuitive, but I hope by the end of the sermon you'll 
see the glory of Christ. Notice in verse 10, "...then 
he," Abram, "...brought all these to him, and cut them in two." 
Down the middle. That means what it said. Don't 
rat me out to PETA. Don't call, you know, the SPCA. But that's what it meant. take 
the animals, cut them in half. Yes, that means they would die 
unless they were super animals that could somehow survive being 
mutilated. So they're cut in half and then 
they're put on either side, right? So half a dead animal here, half 
a dead animal here. There's an aisle way or a route 
right between the two. He brought them or brought all 
these to him and cut them in two down the middle and placed 
each piece opposite the other. But he did not cut the birds 
in two. And when the vultures came down on the carcasses, Abram 
drove them away. I think that speaks to something 
that's gonna be covered later in the book of Deuteronomy, but 
underscores judgment, underscores condemnation. The symbolism of 
these vultures is the ultimate fate of the covenant breaker. 
That's the significance of this ceremony by way of a spoiler. The issue is that the parties 
to the covenant walk between these animals. Dead animal, dead 
animal, parties walk between them. The idea being when you 
get to the end and you've ratified the covenant, that if I break 
my part of this covenant, remember a covenant is more than an agreement 
or a contract. There's skin in the game with 
reference to a covenant. I mean, there's lots of technical 
definitions that one could give about covenant, but just understand 
there's skin in the game. There are consequences for failure. There are consequences for reneging. There are consequences for breaking. And so the parties to the covenant 
walk between these animals with the understanding that if I break 
the covenant, if I renege on my obligation, then may what 
happened to these animals happen to me. In other words, it's a 
maledictory oath. I mentioned that this morning. 
Remember benediction and malediction? Malediction is what we see in 
Matthew 27. Let his blood be upon us and 
our children. It is invoking the curse and 
wrath and fury of God should we be found guilty. That's the 
significance of this particular ceremony. So Abram does it dutifully. And as I said, I think it points 
forward to Deuteronomy 28, 26, or at least captures that. Thematically, 
your carcasses shall be food for all the birds of the air 
and the beasts of the earth, and no one shall frighten them 
away. That is the covenant curse, or one of the curses placed on 
old covenant Israel, should they go in the land and not be faithful. If they renege on their covenant, 
then they're going to be basically carrying. Now, note then the 
promise of the covenant in verses 12 to 16. Now, when the sun was 
going down, a deep sleep fell upon Abram. This is the same 
sleep as Adam's in Genesis 2.21. So, when a deep sleep fell upon 
him, and behold, horror and great darkness fell upon him. Then God said to Abram, know 
certainly that your descendants will be strangers in a land that 
is not theirs and will serve them and they will afflict them 
400 years. And also the nation whom they 
serve, I will judge afterward, they shall come out with great 
possessions. Now, as for you, you shall go to your fathers 
in peace, but you shall be buried at a good old age. But in the 
fourth generation, they shall return here for the iniquity 
of the Amorites is not yet complete. So the reference to his descendants 
assumes the promise of descendants. God never makes sort of any kind 
of a hypothetical plan here. It's purposeful. It is decretal. It's going to come to pass. He 
mentions your descendants. He mentions as well their bondage 
in Egypt. They're going to be Strangers 
in a strange land. They're gonna be in bondage. 
We know that in the book of Exodus, that is precisely what we have. 
As well, there is a promise of redemption from the bondage in 
Egypt in verses 14 and 15. Now, when we look at a passage 
like that, it should remind us that we usually want things right 
now. We pray and we want it right now. Well, no, it might be 400 
years. You're not gonna get it right 
now. Why is that? Because that's God's purpose 
and plan. That's God's decree. That's God's means by which He 
does what He does for His glory and for our well-being. So it's 
never a good thing for us to question, well, why is it taking 
so long? Are you ever going to answer? 
Are you ever going to respond? Remember that no is a response, 
and that yeses at times may take some time. And so patience is 
definitely a helpful requisite in the life of the Christian. 
And then notice the return to the land of promise in verse 
16. But in the fourth generation, 
this is after Egypt, after bondage, they shall return here, for the 
iniquity of the Amorites is not yet complete. Amorites here is 
what's called a synecdoche. It's a part for the whole. It means all the Canaanites, 
those mentioned in verses 19 to 21, their iniquity is not 
yet complete. It means that God does not deal 
capriciously or arbitrarily, but he will bring upon them the 
judgment of dispossession from the land and the brutality of 
war from the warring Israelites because of their sin. He doesn't 
just look down at Israel and say, man, I just love you so 
much more than these wretches. Go ahead and take their land. 
These wretches asked for the judgment and fury and wrath of 
God. When Israel goes into the land and they become wretches 
like the Canaanites and God deals with them in like manner through 
Assyria and through Babylon. He brings the same justice upon 
them that he brought upon the Canaanites through them. So again, 
lesson here, donate the Canaanites. Don't imitate the Canaanites. 
When you go into the land, be faithful to what God calls you 
to in the covenant. And then note the ratification 
of the covenant, verses 17 and 18a. And it came to pass when 
the sun went down and it was dark, that behold, there appeared 
a smoking oven and a burning torch that passed between those 
pieces. On the same day, the Lord made 
a covenant with Abram saying, So this was the ratification 
of it. Tonight I'm gonna read from Matthew 
26 when we have the supper. Jesus is ratifying the new covenant 
in his blood. The old covenant was ratified 
through blood as well. At the base of Sinai in Exodus 
chapter 24, blood was sprinkled upon the people of God as they 
swore fidelity to Yahweh. This is a ratification of the 
covenant that God is making with Abram to underscore his faithfulness, 
not Abram's, but God's faithfulness in response to the question about 
an heir and in response to the question about inheriting the 
land. The Lord wants Abram to know that this is in fact promised, 
this is in fact real, this is in fact going to take place. 
So the smoke and the fire are symbolic for the presence of 
God. The smoking oven and burning 
torch were an emblem of the divine being according to John Gill, 
and I think he's right. But what is intriguing here? 
What is interesting? I mentioned earlier, if you and 
I were contracting a covenant, or ratifying a covenant. We're 
ancient Near Easterners, and we're going to covenant together. 
We bring our animals together. We cut those animals in half. 
We place them on either side. We then walk down that aisle 
together. But you see here, it's only God. So here, it's not Abraham. It's 
God's unilateral covenant that he is purposed to give descendants 
and to give the land to Abraham. It is not conditioned upon the 
faithfulness of Abraham. Now, the old covenant was conditional 
as a covenant of work, such that when they enter into the land, 
they're not faithful. God ejects them from the land. 
But the giving of the descendants, the giving of the land, God covenants 
to do that, and God covenants to do that by himself. Now remember 
the symbolism involved. The parties to the covenant walk 
down in the midst of the animals. What's the end game? If I renege 
on this covenant, then may what happened to these animals happen 
to me. See, God the Lord is the covenant party. God the Lord 
is the covenant maker. God the Lord is the covenant 
keeper. It's like I mentioned with reference 
to Psalm 1. Yes, don't walk that way. Don't live with evil people. 
Walk, get far from wretched people. But that's a description of Christ. 
The law of God is His delight. Brethren, if you can honestly 
say that that's true of you 24-7, you've achieved what no other 
man this side of Jesus has achieved. It is the God of heaven and earth 
that promises. It's the God of heaven and earth 
that provides. It is the God of heaven and earth 
that keeps covenant. John Gill mentions or comments, 
it being usual in making covenants, for the covenanters to pass between 
the parts of a creature slain, signifying that should they break 
the covenant made, they deserve to be cut asunder as that creature 
was. A more recent theologian, O. 
Palmer Robertson, a little bit longer of a quote, but he says, 
by dividing animals and passing between the pieces, participants 
in a covenant pledge themselves to life and death. These actions 
established an oath of self-malediction. If they should break the commitment 
involved in the covenant, they were asking that their own bodies 
be torn in pieces just as the animals had been divided ceremonially. 
In the case of the Abrahamic covenant, God the Creator binds 
himself to man the creature by a solemn blood oath. The Almighty 
chooses to commit himself to the fulfillment of promises spoken 
to Abraham. By this divine commitment, Abraham's 
doubts are to be expelled. God has solemnly promised and 
has sealed that promise with a self-maledictory oath. The realization of the divine 
word is assured. Now back to Abram's question. How do I know I'm going to inherit 
the earth? A perfectly sufficient answer would have been, because 
I said so. How do we know we're going to 
go to the park tomorrow, dad? Because I said so. Well, I want 
to sign. Okay. This is a very serious 
sign to confirm the promise of God. A self-maledictory oath 
on the part of Yahweh, such that if we pass through, or I pass 
through this, and it doesn't come to pass that you have a 
great seed, and it doesn't come to pass that you inherit a great 
land, then may what was done to these animals be done to God 
himself. Brethren, that's precisely the 
gospel. That's precisely Galatians 3. God made Christ a curse. Christ took upon himself the 
malediction. Christ took upon himself the 
destruction. Christ took upon himself the 
dissolution that those animals deserve, or that those animals 
got and those parties to the covenant deserve. Christ is what 
we see in Genesis 15 in this ancient ceremony where half animals 
are on either side, and God passes through the midst of that. He's 
preaching Jesus to him. He's preaching the gospel to 
us. He's teaching us concerning substitutionary 
blood atonement. Christ bore the penalty for our 
sin. I know that we affirm substitution, 
substitutionary penal atonement. I know that we confess that and 
we affirm it, but do we ever stand in awe and wonder at it? He took our place on the cross. Romans 3, God set forth Christ 
as a propitiation through his blood. You know what a propitiation 
is? It deals with wrath. And that 
presupposes guilt. So our guilt is heaped upon the 
Savior. Our Savior stands in our place. He takes that wrath and that 
fury and that curse and that judgment. He takes what happens 
to those animals upon himself so that his righteousness can 
then be given to us and so that our sins may be cleansed by his 
precious blood. So God, to Abraham, to assuage 
him with reference to these what seems to be outstanding promises 
that are almost unattainable or seem to be unattainable in 
terms of seed and land, God doesn't just say, because I said so. 
God goes through this elaborate situation or ceremony to confirm 
to Abraham that everything he says is true. Of course, the 
apostle picks up on this in Hebrews chapter 6, speaks about God swearing 
an oath. There's no one greater outside 
of God whereby God can swear by them, so he swears by himself. He's putting his integrity on 
the line. He's putting his faithfulness 
on the line. He's putting it all on the line for us men and 
for our salvation. As we read this ancient ceremony, 
as we read this odd sort of an answer or response to Abraham's 
question concerning seed and land, never forget that it points 
us to the glory of the gospel of Jesus Christ our Lord. This 
is precisely what takes place in the gospel of our salvation. The emblem of the divine being 
passed between the animals alone, not accompanied by Abraham. As well, the curse of the covenant 
was taken by God himself should He reneged on his promises. Gil again, only God passed between 
the pieces, not Abram. This covenant being as others 
God makes with men, only on one side, or we might call it unilateral. 
God in covenanting with men promises and gives something unto them, 
but men give nothing to him, but receive from him. Meredith 
Klein, by passing alone between the pieces, God swore fidelity 
to his covenant promises and took upon himself all the curses 
symbolized by the carcasses. So in that old covenant setting, 
there was no reneging on the part of Yahweh. There was no 
forsaking on the part of God. There was no infidelity on the 
part of God. So therefore, no decimation or 
dissolution of the divine being for his having been unfaithful 
to the terms of the covenant. When we get to the new covenant, 
the problem wasn't with Jesus. But Jesus is that man of Psalm 
1. Jesus is that representative 
of all that the Father had given him. Jesus takes for us that 
punishment that is due to us because we broke covenant, because 
we are unfaithful, because we have transgressed the law, and 
because we have lacked conformity unto it. So this text, not only 
is it a wonderful promise to Abraham's inquiry about seed 
and land, but it's a wonderful typology of what God does in 
the gospel. The section ends with the boundaries 
of the land, the geographical, the ethnological, and the typological. It's intriguing because Paul 
tells us in Romans chapter four that the promise made to Abraham 
was that he would inherit the world. But if you read the boundaries, 
that's not the world. Again, it transcends Abram. It speaks concerning Abram's 
seed, that Galatians 3.16 seed, which is Jesus Christ. How can 
it be said that Abraham inherited the world? Because of Christ. Psalm 2, ask of me and I will 
give you the nations for your inheritance, the uttermost parts 
of the earth for your possession. Matthew 28, go therefore and 
make disciples of what? All the nations. Revelation, 
men from every tribe, tongue, people, and nation. So when God 
promises to Abraham, it is certainly applicable to Abraham and Old 
Covenant Israel, but it looks beyond them, as so much of Old 
Covenant Israel is typological, foreshadowing and prefiguring 
the kingdom of God in and through the church of our Lord Jesus 
Christ. Christ is the seed of Abram and 
all the elect in him are covenant partakers of the blessings of 
God. So in this passage, we see the 
faith of Abraham. That faith was not brought to 
God and then rewarded by God. No, that faith was the instrument 
by which he laid hold of the promises of God, specifically 
concerning Messiah, the Lord Jesus Christ. Faith was the instrument. And we remember, hopefully we 
remember in John chapter eight, when Jesus is disputing with 
the unbelieving Jews and he gets into Abraham, where they claim 
Abraham is our father. So Jesus says, if Abraham was 
your father, you wouldn't try to kill me. Pretty simple thing 
here. If Abraham was your father, you 
wouldn't want to kill me because I'm the seed of Abraham. Just 
so you know. What does Jesus say to them? 
Abraham rejoiced to see my day and he saw it and he was glad. 
What do they respond? You're not yet 50 years old. 
Have you seen Abraham? Before Abraham was, I am. But 
when he says Abraham rejoiced to see my day, you mean the faith 
of Abraham was such that it laid hold of Jesus Christ? Yeah. He 
had Genesis 3.15. He had Genesis 3.21. He had Genesis 
22, or he's going to have Genesis 22. They had a lot of data. And the data that they had by 
God's grace believed it and thus received justification by faith 
alone through Christ alone. As well, we see the faithfulness 
of God, the exhortation given to him, I am your shield, your 
exceedingly great reward. The promise given to Abraham, 
the reiteration of the seed promise and the land promise, and then 
the confirmation by covenant. We have the indefectibility of 
the covenant, not subject to failure or decay. It is grounded 
in the oath and promise of God himself. In fact, turn there, 
we'll end in a moment, Hebrews chapter six, to see what the 
apostle says concerning God and Abraham. Hebrews chapter six. Verse 13, for when God made a 
promise to Abraham, because he could swear by no one greater, 
he swore by himself saying, surely blessing I will bless you and 
multiplying I will multiply you. And so after he had patiently 
endured, he obtained the promise. For men indeed swear by the greater 
and an oath for confirmation is for them an end of all dispute. 
Thus God, determining to show more abundantly to the heirs 
a promise, the immutability of his counsel confirmed it by an 
oath. God was determined to confirm 
to the likes of us that what He is saying, He is going to 
accomplish. It's amazing. It's truly amazing. Verse 18, that by two immutable 
things in which it is impossible for God to lie, we might have 
strong consolation who have fled for refuge to lay hold of the 
hope set before us. This hope we have as an anchor 
of the soul, both sure and steadfast. You know, when you see these 
Jesus fish on cars, you know, the ethus, the symbol for Jesus 
that the early church used, you know, another symbol that they 
used was the anchor. I don't see anchors on cars, 
but wouldn't be a bad pitch. Why? Because our God is a rock. Our God is one that we can anchor 
to. Our God is faithful. Our God 
answers a simple question with an elaborate ceremony invoking 
curse upon himself if he doesn't see through it with reference 
to seed and land. That's our God. So much so that 
in the fullness of the time, God sent forth his son, born 
of a woman, born under the law to redeem those under the law. Notice, he goes on. And which 
enters, verse 19, this hope we have is an anchor of the soul, 
both sure and steadfast, and which enters the presence behind 
the veil, where the forerunner has entered for us, even Jesus, 
having become high priest forever, according to the order of Melchizedek. And then just turn to Galatians 
3. We should read Galatians 3, 13 in light of Genesis 15. Galatians 3, we'll pick up in 
verse 10. For as many as are of the works 
of the law are under the curse, for it is written, Cursed is 
everyone who does not continue, notice, in all things which are 
written in the book of the law to do them. The old covenant 
was a covenant of work. You had to do all things in order 
to be saved by virtue of the old covenant. God was operating 
according to promise and the coming covenant of grace wherein 
he saved the Abels, he saved the Abrams, he saved the Isaacs, 
he saved the Jacobs. But the purpose of that old covenant 
as a system was to hedge the people of Israel in keep them 
from jeopardizing the seed, and as well, it was to show them 
their need for the seed, to show them their need for this Psalm 
1 man. Certainly as they sang Psalm 
1, they had to be mindful, as I think we all are, that ain't 
me. I kind of want, well, I really 
want to be that, but I know I'm not. I'm trying, by God's grace, 
I make a little headway once in a while. But there's a consciousness, 
as you sing Psalm 1, that ain't us. So they were taught to look 
forward to the fullness of the time when God sent forth His 
Son, born of a woman, born under the law. Notice, verse 11, But 
that no one is justified by the law in the sight of God is evident. 
For the just shall live by faith. He invokes the prophet Habakkuk. 
Yet the law is not of faith, but the man who does them shall 
live by them. Verse 13, Christ has redeemed 
us from the curse of the law, having become a curse for us. For it is written, curse it is 
everyone who hangs on a tree. He has become a curse for us. 
He has taken upon himself the fate of those animals in that 
ceremony. He has taken it upon himself 
that if A party in the covenant reneges. If a party in the covenant 
fails and falters, that party should suffer wrath and fury. Christ took that for us. He is 
our covenant head. That the blessing of Abraham 
might come upon the Gentiles in Christ Jesus, that we might 
receive the promise of the Spirit through faith. Well, brethren, 
hopefully that's at least a bit of a sketch to show as to how 
Jesus is what Genesis 15 is pointing forward to. We have much to be 
thankful for. We've got a gracious and a faithful 
God. And when it comes to our lives 
as God's people, the supper is a great help. witnessing baptism, 
participating in baptism, the preaching of the word, the reading 
of the word, the fellowship of the saints, all those things 
are calculated to feed our faith and encourage us and strengthen 
us in the knowledge of God so that we live in a manner that 
is consistent with our calling in the gospel. In other words, 
we know we're not that Psalm 1 man, but as saved sinners, 
conquered by grace, we know who the Psalm 1 man is, and as a 
result, we have his righteousness, and now we do want to follow 
him. And we do want to go wherever 
he leads. But we also need to be reminded 
of those other passages in the Scripture that we are going to 
stumble. We are going to falter. We are 
gonna sin. There is remaining corruption. 
Romans chapter seven and Galatians chapter five. There's the reality 
that we ought to just be upright and holy, but we're not. So we need to believe with every 
fiber of our being, not only the imperatives that tell us 
to let our conduct be worthy of the gospel, but the great 
indicative of a passage such as 1 John 2. Brethren, if anyone 
sins, we have an advocate with the Father, even Jesus Christ, 
the righteous. Never forget that. I'm reminded 
of a gathering of Scottish, I think they were covenanters. They were 
having their Lord's Supper and it was not as common. I don't 
think they had it every month. I'm not sure it was quarterly, 
whatever the timeframe was. But the minister noticed that 
as the cup got closer to a particular woman, she started crying even 
more. What's she doing? What's she 
going through? Probably something that you and I have gone through 
before. I don't know. It's been a rough week. I haven't 
done everything I should have done. I haven't followed that 
salmon man like I should have. You ever get that? You don't 
have to raise your hand. You don't have to nod. You don't even have 
to look in my direction. You kind of get that, I believe there's 
forgiveness, but it's just, yeah, I don't know. So the minister 
sees this woman crying, and every time the cup gets closer and 
closer and closer and closer, and he stands before her, and 
he hands it to her, and he says, it's for sinners. This is for 
sinners. Redeemed sinners and sinners. We have an advocate with the 
Father, even Jesus Christ, the righteous. By faith, lay your 
hand upon the surety of a better covenant, confessing your sins 
and find mercy from him. Proverbs 28, 13 is always true. Whoever confesses and forsakes 
will find mercy. You say, but pastor, I'm not 
always the forsaker I ought to be. I don't want to sound irreverent. I don't want to sound cheeky. 
I don't want to sound trivializing. But welcome to the club. None 
of us are the forsakers we ought to be. That's why the Psalm 1 
man came. That's why the Psalm 1 man lived. That's why the Psalm 1 man died. And that's why the Psalm 1 man 
was raised again for our justification. Praise God for his faithfulness 
and his mercies to us. Well, let us pray. Our gracious 
God and our Holy Father, we thank you for this ceremony with Abram 
and what it instructs us concerning our new covenant situation. And 
what a blessing that you sent your son, that he was a curse 
for us. Truly an amazing thought, an 
amazing reality, that you bore our penalty on that cross. You 
heaped our sin upon him. punished him in our stead and 
then heaped his righteousness upon us. What a glorious exchange 
and what a wonderful God. And may we tonight, as we eat 
this bread and drink this cup, proclaim the Lord's death until 
he comes. And we ask this through Jesus 
Christ our Lord. Amen.