God called Abram to raise up the nation of Israel, the special people through whom He would bring His plan of redemption to the whole human race.
The Abrahamic covenant was the promise God made to Abram when He called him out of Ur of the Chaldees. It had three main parts: a nation, a land, and God Himself coming one day as King over that nation. Les Feldick stresses that Israel was meant to be the vehicle through which salvation would reach all humanity.
Genesis 12:1-2 — This records God's call to Abram and the foundational promise that He would make Abram a great nation.
Genesis 15:5 — God confirms the covenant promise by telling Abram his descendants would be as countless as the stars.
In Genesis 12:1-2, God told Abram to leave his country, his kindred, and his father's house and go to a land He would show him. The Lord then promised, "I will make of thee a great nation" and added that in Abram "shall all families of the earth be blessed." In Genesis 15:5, God brought Abram outside and said, "Look now toward heaven, and tell the stars, if thou be able to number them: and he said unto him, So shall thy seed be." These passages form the biblical starting point for understanding the Abrahamic covenant, especially the promise of a nation.
Les Feldick places Abram's call immediately after the Tower of Babel. He says that after 2,000 years of hopeless human failure, God did something totally different: instead of dealing with the mainstream of humanity, He called out one man, Abram, from Ur of the Chaldees and told him to leave his family and go to a land God would show him. Out of that man would come the nation of Israel. According to Les, the Abrahamic covenant has three basic parts: God would make of Abram a great nation; He would put that nation in a geographical area of land; and someday God Himself would come in the flesh to be their Messiah and King over a glorious earthly kingdom. Les also teaches that Israel's role was not an end in itself. The nation was to be the vehicle through which God would communicate and bring about His whole plan of redemption to the human race. Through Israel, salvation was to go back to the mainstream of humanity. However, Israel rejected that purpose when they crucified their King.
Les says that after 2,000 years of human history, man would not obey God simply by believing what He said. After the Tower of Babel, God declared in effect, "I'm going to do something totally different." He called one man, Abram, out of the mainstream of humanity and gave him a covenant, telling him that out of him would come a nation of people—the nation of Israel.
Les repeatedly summarizes the Abrahamic covenant with three promises: first, God would make of Abram a great nation; second, He would put that nation in a geographical area of land; and third, at the proper time God Himself would come to be their King and government over a glorious kingdom on earth.
Les teaches that Israel was not called simply for its own sake. The nation of Israel was to be the vehicle through which God would communicate and bring about the whole plan of redemption to the whole human race. God would prepare that little nation, and through them He would take salvation back to the mainstream of humanity. Israel was to be the evangelization of the nations.
What Does It Mean to Be "All Things to All Men"? — 1 Corinthians 9
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The Covenant Defined
Les explains that God promised Abraham a nation unlike any other on earth, and through Israel God would bring the whole plan of redemption to the entire human race. He summarizes the covenant as nation, land, and God as King.
The Covenant's Three Promises
Les reviews Genesis 15 and shows that the Abrahamic covenant promised Abram a nation, a geographical land, and God Himself coming in the flesh as Messiah and King.
A New Work After Babel
After man's 2,000-year failure to obey and believe God, Les says God did something totally different: He called Abram out of the mainstream of humanity and promised him a nation, Israel.
The Original Call
Les points to Genesis 12 as the first time God spoke to Abram while he was in Ur of the Chaldees, commanding him to leave his family and go to a land God would show him.
Israel's Rejection
Les says God called one man to make a little nation, prepare them, and through them take salvation back to all humanity. He also teaches that Israel rejected their King when they crucified Him.
Three Parts of the Covenant
Les names the three parts of the Abrahamic covenant: a nation of people, a geographical area of land, and God Himself coming as King over a glorious kingdom on earth.
The Nation Promise Stressed
Les emphasizes that the covenant first promised Abraham that he would become a nation, and he uses Abram's own humanity to show that the patriarchs walked by faith.
Genesis 12:1: 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:
God's call to Abram is the starting point of the Abrahamic covenant.
Genesis 12:2: 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:
This is the foundational promise that Abram would become a great nation.
Genesis 12:3: 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.
This reveals that the Abrahamic covenant was meant to bring blessing to all humanity.
Genesis 15:5: And he brought him forth abroad, and said, Look now toward heaven, and tell the stars, if thou be able to number them: and he said unto him, So shall thy seed be.
God confirmed the covenant promise of a great nation descending from Abram.
Les Feldick says God first spoke to Abram while he was still in Ur of the Chaldees. Abram was told to leave his country and family and go to a land that God would show him (Genesis 12:1; clip 4).
Les summarizes the covenant with three promises: God would make of Abram a great nation; He would give that nation a geographical area of land; and one day God Himself would come to be their King and government over a glorious earthly kingdom (clips 1, 2, 6).
Les says that after 2,000 years of human failure, including the Tower of Babel, God did something different. He called out one man to form a nation, Israel, and through that nation He would bring salvation back to the whole human race (clips 3, 5).
Watch the Teaching: What Does It Mean to Be "All Things to All Men"? — 1 Corinthians 9