Trusting Instead of Taking

Genesis: Part II - The PromiseBrock Graham
Written By Olivia Zurawski

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Genesis 16:1-17:14 | There is a saying we use when we feel the time has come for us to get something done ourselves: "I'm taking matters into my own hands."

Often, we say this when someone else who was responsible isn't doing things as quickly as we would like, but what happens if we do this with God? Are there times we take things into our own hands that God never asked us to take? And what tends to be the outcome when we do this in life? On the heels of an unforgettable, faith-building covenant ceremony, Abram is going to have an epic faith-fail. What can we learn from Abram and Sarai taking matters into their own hands that might help us from making the same mistake?

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Sermons
We Don't Even Know His Name
Genesis: Part II - The Promise, Brock Graham
We Don't Even Know His Name
Genesis: Part II - The Promise, Brock Graham

Genesis 24 | The promised son has come, the promised family is growing, the promised nation is on the rise. This week we watch as God unites Isaac with his wife, Rebekah. What is especially interesting is how God does it and who He uses to find a wife for Isaac.

We are going to watch a faithful, unnamed servant of Abraham fulfill one of the most important roles a dad could ever entrust to another. As we watch this faithful, unnamed servant in action, we are going to learn 6 facts of faithful servants that we can live out in our own lives as well. In God's economy, faithfulness is much more important than "famousness".

Genesis: Part II - The Promise, Brock Graham
Faith in the Uncertainty
Genesis: Part II - The Promise, Brian Holt
Faith in the Uncertainty
Genesis: Part II - The Promise, Brian Holt

Genesis 22 | We hate uncertainty. Uncertainty can be disorienting, confusing, and discouraging. We long for clarity! We long for certainty!But where then, if everything is clear, easy, and certain, is faith?

Sometimes God takes us down a path where we know the destination, but we have no idea how we're going to get there. Even worse, it can sometimes feel like obeying God will take us further from the blessings He promised.

If you've ever experienced that, you're in good company. After finally giving him the child of the promise in Isaac, God is going to test Abraham's faith. We'll see how he responds this week as we continue our study in the book of Genesis.

Genesis: Part II - The Promise, Brian Holt
God of the Promise
Genesis: Part II - The Promise, Brock Graham
God of the Promise
Genesis: Part II - The Promise, Brock Graham

Genesis 21:1-7 | At times believing what God has promised can be hard. What's often even harder, though, is trusting Him for when that promise will come to pass.

For Abraham and Sarah, they have been waiting on a promise. And waiting...

And waiting...

But sure enough, this week we see that God will always do what He says when He says it is best.  

So how about you? What promises are you waiting on from the Lord? How are you doing in the waiting?

Genesis: Part II - The Promise, Brock Graham
Repeating Sin and Redeeming Grace
Genesis: Part II - The Promise, Brock Graham
Repeating Sin and Redeeming Grace
Genesis: Part II - The Promise, Brock Graham

Genesis 20:1-18 | Ever done something you shouldn’t have done? And then ever done it again? We all know those things we should have handled differently, and then we know the feeling when we make that same mistake twice. This week we watch as Abraham repeats a mistake he made in the past. What’s so interesting to see is how God meets Abraham’s sin with total unmerited favor. What do we have to learn about how to avoid making the same mistakes twice? And what do we see of how God lavishes unmerited favor even in these mess-ups?

Genesis: Part II - The Promise, Brock Graham
Wickedness, Wrath, Mercy, and Judgment
Genesis: Part II - The Promise, Brock Graham
Wickedness, Wrath, Mercy, and Judgment
Genesis: Part II - The Promise, Brock Graham

Genesis 19:1-38 | Genesis 19 could come with a warning like "This message is rated R for violent and sexual content." There are a few chapters of the Bible that bring out the complete and utter depravity of the human condition apart from a Savior and this is one of them. In this chapter, we see four important things we must understand: Wickedness, Wrath, Mercy, and Judgment.

We will watch as God's wrath is poured out in judgment on the wickedness of Sodom, but we will also see His deep mercy to spare Lot from that wrath.

We'll learn how these 4 things work in our lives as well (Wickedness, Wrath, Mercy, and Judgment), and rejoice in the greatest news of how God has made a way for us to escape His wrath and embrace His mercy.

Genesis: Part II - The Promise, Brock Graham
In The Waiting...
Genesis: Part II - The Promise, DJ Blatherwick
In The Waiting...
Genesis: Part II - The Promise, DJ Blatherwick

Genesis 17:15-18:15 | Waiting.... waiting.... waiting....  

Even just seeing the word might stress some of us out. Waiting! I don't know many people who would say they really love to wait. Think about being put on hold during a phone call. Think about the days of dial-up. Think about traffic or waiting in long lines at the store. I'm guessing most (if not all) of these things don't bring happy and pleasant emotions.

But what do we do when God says wait? How are we to respond when we're waiting on the fulfillment of God's promises in our life? And what if it's in the waiting that God wants to do some deep work on our hearts? How would that change the way we view the waiting?

Join us as we dive deeper into the life of Abraham and see together how God used the waiting in Abraham's life.

Genesis: Part II - The Promise, DJ Blatherwick
Trusting Instead of Taking
Genesis: Part II - The Promise, Brock Graham
Trusting Instead of Taking
Genesis: Part II - The Promise, Brock Graham

Genesis 16:1-17:14 | There is a saying we use when we feel the time has come for us to get something done ourselves: "I'm taking matters into my own hands."

Often, we say this when someone else who was responsible isn't doing things as quickly as we would like, but what happens if we do this with God? Are there times we take things into our own hands that God never asked us to take? And what tends to be the outcome when we do this in life? On the heels of an unforgettable, faith-building covenant ceremony, Abram is going to have an epic faith-fail. What can we learn from Abram and Sarai taking matters into their own hands that might help us from making the same mistake?

Genesis: Part II - The Promise, Brock Graham
Our Faithful, Covenant-Keeping God
Genesis: Part II - The Promise, Brock Graham
Our Faithful, Covenant-Keeping God
Genesis: Part II - The Promise, Brock Graham

Genesis 15:1-21 | For the fourth time God will promise Abram that his descendants will be too many to count. Four times God has been saying it without Abram seeing it. Finally, Abram basically says, "Can you prove it? How do I know this?"

God delivers. In Genesis 15, God delivers with what we can look at as a really bizarre and bloody scene, and yet what God is communicating is one of the most powerful pictures of His commitment of faithfulness to a faithless people.  

What is this bloody massacre? What does it mean? And how is it one of the most powerful pictures of God's gospel commitment to His people?

Genesis: Part II - The Promise, Brock Graham
Maps, Messes, and Mysterious Melchizidek
Genesis: Part II - The Promise, Brock Graham
Maps, Messes, and Mysterious Melchizidek
Genesis: Part II - The Promise, Brock Graham

Genesis 13:1-14:24 | Genesis 14 introduces a rather mysterious yet important character throughout the Bible. His name is Melchizedek, and well, we really don't know that much about him.

But he's mentioned again in Psalm 110, and then again in Hebrews 7 where he is connected to Jesus.

In fact, we are told that Jesus is a priest forever in the order of Melchizedek. So who is this mysterious figure introduced to us in Genesis 14? And how does he give us a glimpse into a greater picture of who Jesus is?

Genesis: Part II - The Promise, Brock Graham
Walking By Faith
Genesis: Part II - The Promise, Brock Graham
Walking By Faith
Genesis: Part II - The Promise, Brock Graham

Genesis 12:1-20 | It's hard to leave places you know to go to places you don't know. It's even harder to leave the people you know to go to people you don't know. 

And yet this week, we walk with the father of the faith as he trades the known for the unknown and obeys God by faith. In our walkthrough of Genesis 12, we are going to find "4 Ways to Be Equipped to Live a Life of Faith". Without faith it is impossible to please God, so let's gather Sunday and let God's Word equip us for a life of living by faith.

Genesis: Part II - The Promise, Brock Graham
Olivia Zurawski https://www.makerscc.com
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