In this episode we look at how the promise God made to Abraham to bless others through him gets more clearly defined as the story goes along. For example, if you pay close attention, you'll notice that God starts off by saying to Abraham in 12:3 that "In you all families of the earth will be blessed." At this stage the promise is somewhat generic - "In you" - and focused on the micro - the families of the earth. But later in 22:15-18, after Abraham attempts to offer Isaac, God repeats his promise in more specific and macro terms. He says to Abraham, "In your seed all the nations of the earth shall be blessed." It's not just "in you" it's "in your seed." It's not just focused on the micro (families), it's focused on the macro (nations.)
To see how this promise is fleshed out in the New Testament, we go to Galatians chapter 3 where Paul is arguing with a group of people who claim the way to get access to this blessing of Abraham is to rely on the works of the law. Paul confronts and critiques this approach by not only quoting a portion of the promise from Genesis 22:18, but also tapping into the other passages from the story of Abraham that frame the blessings as coming, not by relying on works of the law, but through faith. These two option for receiving the blessing of Abraham - works of the law vs faith - take up a large portion of the book of Galatians.
Key Passages
Genesis 12:3
Genesis 22:15-18
Galatians 3:5-9
Galatians 2:20

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* Intro Music: "Admirable" Carlos Herrera Music

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