Father Abraham had Many Sons

 Read Genesis 25

The Father of Many Nations died at the age of 175.  That’s a good run.  He lived 48 years after his wife died.

He didn’t just go hang out at the senior center or play dominos all day.  He got himself another wife and had some more kids—6 are listed in this chapter.  While the text does not say sons, it is most likely that these are all male children.  The girls usually are not listed, so there could have been other children that are not listed.

The line that we will follow going forward is the one that goes through Isaac, but Abraham had other children and they had children. We will talk more about Isaac’s children in the next service.

Don’t forget that Abraham jumped the gun on this Father of Many Nations business.  I guess that would make him a Sooner? He had a son with Hagar.  That son, Ishmael, had many sons who became tribes—12 in fact are listed in this chapter.

Abraham gave substantial gifts to all of the sons that he had by Keturah—his second wife, but his estate went to Isaac. He sent the other kids packing but not without material blessing. Abraham had been blessed by God and he blessed his children.

What other children did Abraham have?  Were there other women?  How many side chicks does an old guy need?

What other children did Abraham have?  He probably didn’t even know about them.

If you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.

We who have professed Jesus—the promised seed of Abraham—have been grafted into his family.  This is the man that God chose to be the father of many nations.  He promised that kings would come from his line.  He promised that the world would be blessed through him.

The blessing that would come to us came through Abraham, Isaac, and if we keep reading--Jacob. 

We are Abraham’s seed.  Read Romans 11 if you want the whole story of being grafted into the line of Abraham.  It’s a discussion that can’t be had in this chapter of Genesis as the Chosen People have not been fully manifested.  Romans 11 is about Jews and Gentiles both belonging to Abraham in Christ Jesus.

While there were plenty of Gentiles—that’s not what they were called in Genesis—but there were plenty of pagans in the land.  There were so many pagans that Abraham’s son and one grandson had to get their wives from back east.

But there are no Jews yet.  That story is just beginning and is now in the hands of Isaac and then Jacob.

There is one more thing in Romans 11 that I ask you to consider when we think about being children of Father Abraham. We all come into this family out of disobedience.

For God has bound everyone over to disobedience so that he may have mercy on them all.

So here is the lesson for today. 

Abraham had children who had children through Hagar. We get a list in this chapter.

Abraham had children who had children through Sarah. This is the line through which God’s promises are fulfilled—nations and kingdoms, a Promised Land, and a descendant—Christ Jesus—through whom the entire world will be blessed.

And Abraham had children through your professions of faith.  Some of you got birth certificates.  We give them out here with your baptism.

You can now genuinely call Abraham your earthly father. It’s through your relationship with your heavenly Father through Christ Jesus, but that gets you into the family.

So, when we get to that part in the song, I am one of them and so are you, you can sing along with the kids because you know what it’s all about.

Father Abraham had many sons and daughters.

I am one of them and so are you

 

Amen.