Genesis 12-17, Abraham 1-2 Teaching Activities and Insights
- Benjamin Wilcox
- Feb 1
- 50 min read
TEACHING ACTIVITIES
LESSON #1 THIS PROMISE IS YOURS ALSO (ABRAHAM 1-2)
TRUTH:
God has great blessings and promises for the seed of Abraham—but they come with a sacred responsibility to bless the world without becoming like it.
FIRE IN THE BONES:
A fire in the bones gets sparked in my heart for this lesson as I consider how fundamental the Abrahamic covenant is in understanding who the children of Israel are in the Old and New Testaments, and who WE are as part of God’s chosen people in the latter-days. The Abrahamic covenant applies to us! But what this lesson can do is reframe the meaning of the word chosen for us. We are chosen for something, not chosen over someone. That idea can change the way we see missionary work, covenants, temples, and even our daily discipleship.
OBJECT:
Display a passport at the start of class and let it sit in view. Later, use it to explain that covenants—like a passport—give identity and access, but they also imply movement and responsibility; being part of Abraham’s covenant family means I belong to God and I’m meant to carry His blessings beyond my own borders.
ICEBREAKER/HANDOUT:
For the icebreaker, I like to introduce Abraham with a short pre-test that helps students see how familiar or unfamiliar they already are with this key figure in church and world history. You could either do them all together as a class with the slides, or you could give them the handout version and then correct the answers together to see how they did. I feel this activity can help to give them a starting point for understanding who Abraham was and why he’s such an important of our faith.
SEARCH ACTIVITY:
Our search activity, then, invites our students to identify the two parts of the Abrahamic Covenant. First, briefly summarize verses 1-5 to give them context, define what a covenant is, and create the following chart on the board. Now, invite your students to search the following verses for God’s part of that covenant.
Abraham 1:18, Abraham 2:9, Abraham 2:11, Abraham 2:19
List their answers as they discover them.
TEACHER SUMMARY:
Then, you’re going to want to point out, as the teacher, that repeatedly throughout these verses, the Lord says that these promises apply not just to Abraham but also to his seed. And explain what is meant by that term “the seed of Abraham”. I go into detail on that in the insight video but you’re going to want them to understand that Abraham’s seed includes his literal descendants, but there’s more than that. Verse 10 tells us that Abraham’s seed includes anyone who receives the gospel, and verse 11 highlights those who become partakers of the priest . . .hood of God. This community of individuals who are granted God’s power and authority, which includes men and women in the Church. Then to reiterate that these promises they’ve just listed on the board apply to them, take them to Doctrine and Covenants 132:30-31 and show them that Joseph was directly told that these promises are ours also.
DISCUSSION QUESTION
What stands out to you as you look at all of these promises together?
TAKE IT TO HEART:
Which blessing of the gospel in Abraham’s covenant are you most grateful for right now—and why that one?
SEARCH ACTIVITY:
Now we want to go back in and highlight the second part of the covenant. Our part. And you can tell them that there is only one major thing God asks us to do in return for all those amazing blessings he’s given and promised us. Remind them that, yes, we are CHOSEN, but we are CHOSEN to DO something, not CHOSEN ABOVE other people. Can they figure out what that one main thing is. A fun way to get them participating in this is to tell them that you are going to read a number of verses from Abraham that talk about that responsibility, and when they think they’ve figure it out they should stand up. Then read Abraham 1:19, Abraham 2:6, Abraham 2:9, Abraham 2:10-11. And they should see it, it’s fairly apparent in these verses. Then just ask one of the students that is standing to explain what they feel what it is. And the answer is . . . to do missionary work, to gather Israel, to bear His ministry to all nations, that’s what we’ve been chosen to do. As I’ve heard one teacher express it “Exclusivity in the pursuit of inclusivity” (Jared Halvorsen).
DISCUSSION QUESTION:
Now if you feel like you have the time, I like to try and include this idea in the lesson as well. I like to show them a map of the ancient world and ask them why they think God would have chosen Palestine, Israel, that particular plot of real estate, to give to Abraham and his seed? Geographically, and in light of what we were just told about what the seed of Abraham’s responsibility is in the covenant. Why there? And whether they see it or not, the point should be made that he put them at the crossroads of the ancient world, smack dab in the middle of it, so that they could influence the nations and peoples around them. So that they would be in a prime position to bear God’s ministry to all nations. But, you also want to ask them this question: If God placed His covenant people right in the middle of other nations, what do you think the risk of that arrangement might be? I mean, they were placed there to influence those around them for good. But what also could happen? It also placed them in a prime position to be influenced by those nations in a negative way. And that’s the story of the Old and New Testaments—the House of Israel’s success or failure to live up to that responsibility. They either influenced or were influenced. They either bore God’s ministry, or the ministry of the world was brought to them.
TAKE IT TO HEART QUESTION:
Have you ever had an “Abrahamic Covenant” experience in your life? (A time when you sought to share the gospel with someone). What was that experience like?
I WILL GO AND DO QUESTION:
What could I do to better fulfill my part in the Abrahamic Covenant?
Suggestions:
Be more open about my faith and look for natural opportunities to influence and invite others to come unto Christ.
Choose my closest influences carefully, especially the voices I listen to most.
Invite someone to church or a church activity.
Live my standards consistently, even when it would be easier to blend in.
TAKEAWAY:
The takeaway slide echoes the words we read earlier from the Doctrine and Covenants that remind us that the promises and responsibilities of the Abrahamic covenant apply to us too! Testify that the promises God made to Abraham are real, and they’re still active. They apply to us. The Abrahamic covenant isn’t just something to understand—it’s something to live, and when we do, I know that we’ll discover that God keeps His promises every single time.
OPTIONAL LESSON ENHANCEMENTS:
VIDEO:
As a video suggestion, I like this one entitled “Inviting Others to "Come and Stay". It’s just a short one that shows ordinary members seeking to help visitors feel at home when they come to church for the first time. It can be a good way to help people see ways that they can fulfill the Abrahamic Covenant by bearing his ministry to others.
QUOTE:
From President Russell M. Nelson that, throughout his presidency, emphasized the importance of the Abrahamic Covenant and the Gathering of Israel. He said:
“The Lord has commanded that we spread the gospel and share the covenant. That is why we have missionaries. He wishes for every one of His children to have the opportunity to choose the Savior’s gospel and embark upon the covenant path. God wants to connect all people to the covenant He made anciently with Abraham.
Thus, missionary work is an essential part of the great gathering of Israel. That gathering is the most important work taking place on earth today. Nothing else compares in magnitude. Nothing else compares in importance. The Lord’s missionaries—His disciples—are engaged in the greatest challenge, the greatest cause, the greatest work on earth today.”
(“The Everlasting Covenant” Liahona, October 2022)
LESSON #2 DO THE WORKS OF ABRAHAM (ABRAHAM 1-2)
TRUTH:
If I choose to desire and stand for righteousness in a spiritually hostile world, then God will strengthen and guide me as He did Abraham.
FIRE IN THE BONES:
The fire in the bones for this lesson is sparked within my heart when I consider all the incredibly relevant lessons that grow from Abraham’s example. Our world is not that different from his. We too live in a world that constantly tells us what we should want, what to value, and what success looks like, and usually in ways that pull us away from covenant living. What we want to do here is inspire our students to want to follow his righteous example. To see Abraham as a role model. And we can also show them where those desires and actions of Abraham lead. Righteousness, obedience, and faith still lead to good places and good things.
OBJECT:
This is probably not something that most of you are not going to have access to, but I do find it to be very effective and a fun visual to accompany this particular lesson. I have access to some really nice Egyptian canopic jars. These are the jars that the Egyptians would use in their mummification process and each jar features the head of one of the Egyptian gods or idols. And it’s kind of a cool connection to the Abraham story because you can see a representation of those jars in facsimile #1 right there at the beginning of Abraham 1. And you can use those little idols to make that point that those were the idols of Abraham’s day, but then you hold one up and ask “What are some of ours? “ Who are some of the idols of our day? And you could talk about celebrities, or money, or popularity, pleasure, or the philosophies of men as some of the gods of our world. Now you could just show a picture of these if you like and it would have a similar effect, but if you really wanted to have these as visuals in your lesson, I did find some fairly inexpensive ones on Amazon you could purchase. I put a link in the description if you’re interested.
Link to purchase canopic jars: https://amzn.to/3NIT4c7
ICEBREAKER:
For the icebreaker, I like to do the Role Models question that I suggested in the insight video. It works really well and encourages easy sharing. You simply ask: Who is one of your role models and what about them do you wish to emulate?
GAME:
If you prefer to have more of an activity type icebreaker, you could just simply play a game of hangman with the phrase “Do the Works of Abraham.” And though that may seem like a silly way to start a lesson, it can be fun and it highlights the main title or focus of the lesson.
But regardless of which icebreaker you choose, you’re going to want to take them to Doctrine and Covenants 132:32 to show them that God wants us to follow Abraham’s example, and seek to do his works. Make the point that we can’t do his works if we don’t know them. So that will be the purpose of this and next week’s lessons.
SEARCH ACTIVITY/HANDOUT:
And in this first lesson, we’re going to focus specifically on THREE of those works. You can give them the following handout that will not only provide them with a framework for understanding the lesson, but it will also play a part in helping them to apply the lesson later.
Our first activity is what I would label “Duplicate his Desires”. You can encourage them to write that phrase in the first box there on the handout. Then send them to Abraham 1 verse 2 and tell them this incredibly meaningful verse is going to tell us what Abraham most desired. What he wanted out of his life. And since we’ve been told to do his works, then these are desires that hopefully we seek to emulate and foster as well. Then show them the following slide and say: As we read Abraham 1:2, decide which of these statements sound like Abraham, and which ones don’t. Be ready to explain why.”
I’m excited to be ordained and take that responsibility seriously.
I want to be successful.
I don’t want to just be good—I want to become better.
I want people to know not to cross me because I don’t back down no matter what.
I want my life to feel meaningful.
I don’t really want responsibility—I just want life to be easy.
I want to grow spiritually, even if that takes effort.
I don’t want anyone telling me what to do.
I want to do more than just what is expected of me. I want to magnify the responsibilities God gives me.
I want to be someone God could trust with a family.
I want to be someone that no one would mess around with.
Now some of those statements are obvious matches, some are obvious mismatches, and some are a bit more ambiguous. The goal is not to approach this so much as a right match or wrong match, but more importantly, can they explain where in the verse they see that desire reflected. I think that could lead to some meaningful discussion about righteous desires, or emulating Abraham’s attitudes.
It could also give you, as a teacher, an opportunity to share some personal insight on those verses. The insight video has plenty of material that could help you out there.
TEACHER SUMMARY:
For the next activity, I would just take them to Abraham 1:5, and 2:4 and talk about Abraham’s desire to help his father—to be a good example and influence on his family. And I love just talking about that idea because some of your students may not come from the best of homes. Abraham shows us that anyone can live righteously, even those with parents who maybe don’t. In most cases, parents guide and lead in righteousness, but in some cases, children take on that role and can be the ones guiding and leading in their homes. That can be a very empowering and inspiring thing to those in that situation. I’ve known individuals and students like that, and I respect the heck out of them.
DISCUSSION QUESTION:
Do you know of anyone in that situation? Have you ever noticed someone whose example seemed to quietly influence their family for good?
What kinds of things did that person do that made them a positive influence?
SEARCH ACTIVITY:
And for the final work of Abraham, one simple question to ask as the story is read. The question being: What work of Abraham do you see being taught here? Not what happens to him, not what God does for him, but what he did. And then read the story. One way to read a larger portion of scripture is do something called popcorn reading. You choose one student to read two verses and then they get a chance to choose the person that reads the next two verses. Then that person gets to choose who read the next two and so on until the end of the story.
There may be any number of principles that they find here, but if they don’t notice the following principle, you may want to guide them a little. You might ask: What specific reason is given for why certain people were chosen to be the ones sacrificed? What does that suggest is the reason Abraham was chosen to be sacrificed? So one of the works of Abraham is to refuse to worship false gods and idols. That can lead to a good discussion about how we can do the same today. What are some of the false gods people worship today? Things that people place above God. They might mention money, fame, celebrities, a political belief, pleasure, or drugs and alcohol.
I also suggest you take at least a minute to point out who Abraham’s role models must have been. Who perhaps gave him the strength to stand up for what was right regardless of the consequences. Certainly not his father, he was the one that allowed him to be sacrificed. But who? The Daughters of Onitah. These courageous young women certainly deserve to be recognized as heroes in scripture. They were sacrificed because of their virtue. Abraham must have been inspired by them. Now we may look to Abraham as a role model, but his role models were three virtuous young women.
TAKE IT TO HEART QUESTION:
Who is someone you admire who lives one of the works of Abraham, and what do you notice about how they do it?
I WILL GO AND DO QUESTION/HANDOUT:
Ultimately this lesson is all about applying what we’ve learned. After all, the title is DO the works of Abraham. So hopefully we’ve got a plan for how to act on those works. So our final activity is to fill in the third column on our Works of Abraham handout. Invite your students to ponder how they can literally go and “do the works of Abraham”. And to put it more simply, we want them to ponder how they can emulate Abraham’s desires, Abraham’s influence, and Abraham’s courage in their lives. That’s a good way of summarizing the three works of Abraham the lesson covered. Give them some quiet pondering and writing time to complete the activity.
TAKEAWAY:
The takeaway slide reminds us to seek to do the works of Abraham. So I suggest that you testify of your admiration of this great prophet and the blessings of seeking emulate him and emphasize just how important he is to us as Latter-Day Saints. No wonder God chose him to make that foundational covenant with. So, let’s go DO the works of Abraham!
OPTIONAL LESSON ENHANCEMENTS:
VIDEO:
For a video suggestion, there is a short dramatization of the attempted sacrifice of Abraham. You could use it to emphasize the blessings of seeking to do the works of Abraham. After watching it, you might ask your students to consider what things God could deliver us from if we seek to be courageous in our faith like Abraham was.
QUOTE:
In conjunction with the idea that Abraham desired a greater happiness, I sometimes like to share the following quote from President Gordon B. Hinckley regarding the added happiness that comes from greater understanding and righteousness. He said:
“Let me say that we appreciate the truth in all churches and the good which they do. We say to the people, in effect, you bring with you all the good that you have, and then let us see if we can add to it. That is the spirit of this work. That is the essence of our missionary service” (meeting, Nairobi, Kenya, 17 Feb. 1998).
STORY:
And then finally, something I shared in the insight video that I really like but may not fit into the time frame you have. But if you do have time and you want a little something extra, I really like that little story about Abraham and his Father from the Book of Jasher. The one where Abraham cleverly makes the point to his Dad that his idols were not really gods, just wood and stone. So I’ll include a link to that story in the video description for you. It’s really delightful.
LESSON #3 NOT A THREADSWORTH OF SODOM (GENESIS 14:1-24)
TRUTH:
Small compromises matter—because choosing even a little of the world can pull me away from God.
FIRE IN THE BONES:
I love this story because it very effectively mirrors the kinds of situations most of us find ourselves in from day to day. Most of us won’t frequently face dramatic, life-or-death moments of faith, but what we do face are steady invitations to blur our standards, just a little—to partake of the tainted things of this world because it seems harmless, convenient, or deserved. Well, this lesson matters because Abraham models a kind of discipleship that is thoughtful, settled, and decided ahead of time. Help your students to understand that God notices what we refuse just as much as what we accept. Ultimately, this lesson is about boundaries, and why setting those boundaries early and without apology is so important.
OBJECT:
And I love this object lesson, it’s so effective. Just bring in a piece of thread. That’s it. Now the color of that thread is going to depend on what you’re wearing. If you’re wearing dark clothing, you’re going to want to get a piece of white thread. If you’re wearing light clothing, get a piece of dark thread.
ICEBREAKER:
And what you do for the icebreaker is you place the piece of thread on to your clothing up near my shoulder in a very conspicuous place. And then, as students come in, I just wait to see the reaction. And trust me, it’s hilarious. People almost can’t help but try to pick it off or tell you that it’s there or say that it’s bothering them. And it’s just this small, little piece of thread. That’s it. But if they try to take it off, or they tell me it’s there I just say, “I know, we’ll talk about it later”. And then as the lesson begins, I just bring it up. If no one has said anything, I might even prompt them by asking if there’s anything about my appearance that’s bothering them. Which I understand is kind of dangerous thing to ask. But typically, somebody is going to mention the thread. And you just talk about that for a minute. Why does that bother you? It’s just a small piece of thread. Yes, but it clashes, it really stands out. It’s bugging me Brother Wilcox!
Then you can transition to the scriptures by saying that something once happened to Abraham where a reference to a thread becomes an important part of the story. There’s a reason this tiny thing is bothering people so much. Keep that feeling in mind as we study.
SEARCH ACTIVITY:
Send your students to Genesis 14 and summarize the first portion of the story. And you can see that summary in the chapter heading. It says that Lot is captured in a battle. The battles of the kings. And eventually Lot is rescued by Abraham and his men. And in the process, Abraham also ends up rescuing some people and goods that belonged to the kingdom of Sodom. And so, picking the story up in verse 18 we have two kings approach Abraham. My search activity is simple. Invite your students to read verses 18-23 and be prepared to answer the following questions:
1. Who are the two kings?
2. What does each offer Abraham?
3. How does Abraham react to their offers?
The answers. Question 1. The two kings are the King of Salem, or Melchizedek, and the King of Sodom. Question 2. Melchizedek offers Abraham bread and wine (which kind of sounds like a sacramental offering) and a blessing. And how does Abraham react to that? He accepts that blessing and then he gives Melchizedek tithing of ALL he possesses. Now contrast that with how he reacts to the King of Sodom’s offer. And you’re going to want to explain to your students that Sodom is a very, very wicked city but what does the King of Sodom offer him? He says, Give me the persons (that you’ve rescued) but you can keep all the spoils of the battle. All the treasure you captured that belonged to us, can now be yours. And how does Abraham react?
22 And Abram said to the king of Sodom, I have lift up mine hand unto the Lord, the most high God, the possessor of heaven and earth,
23 That I will not take from a thread even to a shoelatchet, and that I will not take any thing that is thine
So, King of Sodom, I won’t take anything from you. Even a thread or a shoelace of your possessions is too much for me. I don’t even want a thread’s worth of Sodom.
DISCUSSION QUESTION
Why do you think Abraham accepted the offer of one of the kings but rejected the other? Especially when accepting the second offer would have made him rich!
And I imagine they’ll get it. Abraham didn’t want ANY part of Sodom. He wanted nothing to do with a place that was so wicked. But with Melchizedek. He not only accepts what he has to give him, the blessing, but he actually is willing to give something to THAT king, happily. Tithing.
And then I might simply ask: How can we relate this story to ourselves? Can anyone “liken the scriptures” with this story?
If they need some help. Explain that we too are faced with two kings every day. Who are they? Christ and Satan. The King of Zion and the King of Babylon. Both have treasures to offer us. The one offers salvation, peace, happiness, and opportunities to sacrifice and give—like tithing. The other offers money, pleasure, power, and material things. And we have a decision to make. What do you think Abraham would suggest?
My answer: Even a thread’s worth of what Satan has to offer is too much.
Some other discussion questions you might ask:
Why do you think Abraham chose such a small object to make his point?
Why do you think something small can still matter spiritually?
What kinds of ‘small things’ do you think are hardest for people to say no to today?
Abraham tells the king of Sodom that he’d already promised God he wouldn’t take anything from Sodom. Why do you think deciding ahead of time makes a difference?
TAKE IT TO HEART QUESTION:
Have you ever seen someone quietly refuse something that most others accepted? What stood out about that?
Maybe you could share an example of that from your own life. For me, I had a friend who refused to use a certain swear word in a school play, even when the drama teacher really pressured him. Which I know, that would seem like a small thing, and it is. But he didn’t want even a thread’s worth of the language of the world.
I WILL GO AND DO QUESTION:
What does “not even a thread’s worth” look like in one specific area of my life right now?
Suggestions:
Be willing to say no or opt out without needing to explain or justify myself.
Adjust a routine of mine that seems harmless, but I know is slowly weakening my spiritual discipline or sensitivity.
Step back from situations where my standards are constantly tested, even if it costs popularity.
Choose my response ahead of time in situations where it would be easy to compromise “just a little.”
TAKEAWAY:
The takeaway slide highlights our main battle cry from the lesson: Not even a thread’s worth! Remind them that Abraham understood that small things matter, and that loyalty to God is often shown in quiet moments when no one is applauding. But God notices those moments. Make your decision now, because each day we will find ourselves being approached by the two kings. Whose offer will you take? And whose will you refuse? Encourage them to “do the works of Abraham” in those situations, and they too will be greatly blessed by the King of Peace!
OPTIONAL LESSON ENHANCEMENTS:
VIDEO:
A video that I think pairs really well with the message of this story is this one called “Leave the Party”. And it’s great because it features a true story of some individuals who were put into a “king of Salem, king of Sodom” kind of situation. An opportunity to compromise on something small. And then we see the results that come to those who took the thread’s worth, and those who refused.
QUOTE:
From Dallin H. Oaks:
“What does it mean to be true to the faith? That word true implies commitment, integrity, endurance, and courage.”
(Conference Report, Oct 1997 “Following the Pioneers”)
HANDOUT:
If you wanted to have your students do a quick activity to help them understand the basic framework of the story, you could have them do the following crossword puzzle. This could be a good lead into a discussion about the principles the story teaches. I won’t go through all the questions and answer here, but I’ll include an answer key in the downloads for this week.
INSIGHTS
WHO WAS ABRAHAM
ICEBREAKER
As an icebreaker, I like to do this little “Who was Abraham?” Activity. It’s a bit of a short pre-test to help introduce your students to this key figure in Bible History. We’re going to see how much you already know about Abraham before we study his life over the next few weeks.
Let’s go over the answers together.
What was Abraham’s name before God changed it?
A. Abish
B. Abram
C. Abarah
D. Abama
ANSWER: B Abraham was originally called Abram. Later God changed his name to Abraham which means, “Father of a multitude”. This change takes place in Genesis 17:5.
Abraham’s father Terah was a righteous prophet who received the priesthood from Noah.
TRUE FALSE
ANSWER: False. Actually, Abraham’s father was not a righteous man. In fact, we learn that he was an idol worshipper and even allowed for Abraham, his son, to be sacrificed by the priest of Pharoah.
How many immediate children did Abraham have?
A. Only one-Isaac
B. Two
C. Eight
D. Twenty-Five
ANSWER: C, eight. We often focus a lot on Isaac, as he is the son through him the covenant continues, but first he has Ishmael, through Hagar. Then Isaac, through Sarah, and then later in his life, after Sarah dies, he marries Keturah, and has six more sons through her (Genesis 25:1-4)
Who did Abraham receive his priesthood from?
A. Melchizedek
B. Aaron
C. Noah
D. Peter, James, and John
ANSWER: A. Abraham receives the priesthood directly from Melchizedek. Yes. Abraham knew THE Melchizedek. We see an encounter between the two in Genesis 14. In that chapter we do see Abraham being blessed by Melchizedek and perhaps could be a description of his priesthood ordination, or it could have been some later priesthood blessing, but Doctrine and Covenants 84:14 specifically tells us that he received the priesthood from Melchizedek.
Which world religions consider Abraham to be a founding father?
A) Only Christianity
B) Christianity and Judaism
C) Christianity, Judaism, and Islam
D) Christianity, Judaism, and Zoroastrianism
ANSWER: C. Abraham is a considered a father to each of these world religions, although his role is viewed a little differently. Now the connection to Abraham to Judaism and Christianity are apparent, as both consider the Old Testament to be scripture, but what is the connection between Abraham and Islam? The Arabs come through Ishmael, Abraham’s first son through Hagar. The prophet Mohammed recognized that connection to Abraham and therefore he is considered a prophet of Islam as well.
Abraham has already received his exaltation.
TRUE FALSE
ANSWER: TRUE We learn that in Doctrine and Covenants 132:29 and 37. Because of his obedience, he has already entered into his exaltation.
How old was Abraham when he had his son Isaac?
A. 37
B. 86
C. 100
D. 175
ANSWER: C. Genesis 21:5 tells us that Abraham was exactly 100 years old when Isaac was born. He’s 86 years old when he has Ishmael, and he dies at age 175.
Though considered a great prophet, Abraham is not deemed to be an especially significant figure to members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.
TRUE FALSE
ANSWER: That would be emphatically FALSE. Abraham is very significant to us. The promise between God and Abraham known as the Abrahamic covenant is of great profound import to members of the latter-day Church of Jesus Christ. We have also been privileged to have been given through the prophet Joseph Smith, a book Abraham’s own personal writings known as the book of Abraham, found in the Pearl of Great Price. Therefore, as a church, we are privileged to know more about the life of Abraham than any other faith.
So over the next two weeks, let’s get to know this powerful prophet even better.
THE COVENANT
Now, as a teacher, I tend to do these chapters just a little out of order. I like to focus first on the Abrahamic Covenant and then move into the details and stories of Abraham’s life after. I find that if we first establish the reasons for why Abraham is such an important figure to us, then the lessons of life tend to have more impact. So I’d like to start there in Abraham chapter 2. Here we find Abraham leaving his hometown of Ur to travel to the land of Canaan. On his way, while they are stopped in a place called Haran, the Lord, Jehovah appears to Abraham and establishes a covenant with him. The particulars of that covenant are found mainly in Abraham 2:6-11. Now, Abraham had already gotten a short preview of this covenant back when he was a young man in Ur and his life was spared by an angel, so we may also take a look at Abraham 1:18-19 as well. There are other places in scripture that we can turn to, to understand the Abrahamic covenant but these are probably the best.
My first question then. What is a covenant? The little booklet entitled “True to the Faith” defines it like this:
“A covenant is a sacred agreement between God and a person or group of people. God sets specific conditions, and He promises to bless us as we obey those conditions.”
SEARCH
To make this more visual, I’ll usually draw a line on the board and write “God’s Promises” on one side and “Abraham’s Promises” on the other.
So let’s begin with God’s promises. What does God promise to Abraham and his seed if they keep the covenant? Look in the following verses for those promises.
Abraham 1:18, Abraham 2:9, and Abraham 2:11, Abraham 2:19
Abraham 1:18
First, Abraham is promised guidance. “Behold, I will lead thee by my hand”. How does God lead him? We’ll see that Abraham is guided by prophets, scripture, and direct revelation from God.
Also, he is promised “and I will take thee, to put upon thee my name, even the Priesthood of thy father, and my power shall be over thee.” So Abraham is promised priesthood power. The power and authority to act in the name of God. And we’ll talk a little more about the significance of that word “priesthood” a little later.
Abraham 2:9
Here God promises that “I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee above measure, and make thy name great among all nations. This promise is that Abraham will have a great posterity come from him, in this world, and the next. He would have a great earthly posterity, and an eternal one as well. Families can be together forever. This isn’t stated quite as directly here as it is in Genesis 17 where it’s worded this way:
4 As for me, behold, my covenant is with thee, and thou shalt be a father of many nations.
5 Neither shall thy name any more be called Abram, but thy name shall be Abraham; for a father of many nations have I made thee.
6 And I will make thee exceeding fruitful, and I will make nations of thee, and kings shall come out of thee.
This promise is going to be increasingly significant as Abraham’s life progresses, and no apparent heir appears.
Abraham 2:11
I will bless them that bless thee and curse them that curse thee. In other words, he will offer him his protection. Those that come after Abraham will be cursed and thwarted.
Also, Priesthood is mentioned again here. Abraham is promised that the priesthood will continue through his priesthood and literal seed. Another allusion to the fact that Abraham will be the father of many nations.
And then, I love how that verse concludes. The Lord says that both Abraham and his posterity would be blessed with the blessings of the Gospel, which are the blessings of salvation, even life eternal. Now let’s stop right there and consider what the “blessings of the Gospel” are. Let’s try and list some of those. What are the blessings of the Gospel?
We could say, prophets, ordinances, the Gift of the Holy Ghost, spiritual gifts, scriptures, truth, temples, and on and on and on. And these blessings, in turn, will bring you salvation, even eternal life. Abraham, I’m going to give all of this to you. And your seed after you.
One final promise, found in verse 19. “Unto thy seed will I give this land.” What land is he referring to? The land of Canaan, Palestine or in modern-day Israel.
That’s a lot of promises, isn’t it. Look how gracious and generous the Lord is with Abraham and his seed.
That begs the question, “Who is Abraham’s seed?” Well there are actually three groups of people that we would consider the seed of Abraham. The most obvious, is there in verse 11. There would be the literal seed of the body. So yes, Abraham, this promise will be passed down from generation to generation through your literal descendants. The covenant will continue down through Isaac and Jacob, and his twelve sons, which will become the twelve tribes of Israel.
And let’s not forget about Ishmael here too. I believe that the Abrahamic covenant is fulfilled through him as well. Another prophet that will come through him by the name of Muhammed will also help bring millions to a better knowledge of God. He’s going to help turn the Arab population away from paganism and commit them to many of the same gospel truths that we see in Christianity. The book of scripture that he brings forth, the Koran, will also teach true principles. Now it may not be on the same level as the New Testament, or the Book of Mormon, but we can see God’s influence and love manifest through Ishmael’s seed as well.
Now, does this promise only apply to the literal descendants of Abraham? No. Look in verse 10. Who else is included as the seed of Abraham?
10 And I will bless them through thy name; for as many as receive this Gospel shall be called after thy name, and shall be accounted thy seed, and shall rise up and bless thee, as their father;
So, anybody who receives the Gospel is accounted as the seed of Abraham. This is a spiritual lineage. If I accept the gospel, no matter my background, then these promises apply to me. I can receive all those things too! I can have absolutely no connection in my ancestry with Abraham or anyone even remotely associated with the Middle East and still be Abraham’s seed. Abraham’s family includes people of all races, ethnicities, and nationalities.
The third seed is also found in verse 11. It says:
11 And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse them that curse thee; and in thee (that is, in thy Priesthood) and in thy seed (that is, thy Priesthood),
So we also have his Priesthood seed. Those that are partakers of the priesthood power are members of Abraham’s posterity. And the key to understanding that is to examine the word priesthood itself. When we talk about priesthood, we usually mean the power and authority to act in the name of God. But there is more to it than that. A “hood” is a community of people, not just a thing. It’s a community of people with shared values and goals. As in neighborhood, or brotherhood, or sisterhood. We also have the priest “hood”. A society unified by a common cause. And I’m not just talking about men here. This does not just apply to those who hold priesthood office. Women are a part of that “hood”. Women receive patriarchal blessings, women preach the gospel as missionaries, women make covenants in the temple. There is a priest and priestesshood within the Church of Jesus Christ. So the bearers of that power and authority are accounted the seed of Abraham.
So all three groups are included here: the literal seed of his body, all who receive the gospel, and those who are a part of the priest-“hood”. They are all considered the seed of Abraham.
You’ll see that idea reiterated in the Doctrine and Covenants, so we know that the Lord still considers this to be a relevant and important idea to the members of his latter-day church. Take a look at Doctrine and Covenants 132:30-31
30 Abraham received promises concerning his seed, and of the fruit of his loins—from whose loins ye are, namely, my servant Joseph—which were to continue so long as they were in the world; and as touching Abraham and his seed, out of the world they should continue; both in the world and out of the world should they continue as innumerable as the stars; or, if ye were to count the sand upon the seashore ye could not number them.
31 This promise is yours also, because ye are of Abraham, and the promise was made unto Abraham; and by this law is the continuation of the works of my Father, wherein he glorifieth himself.
Now I don’t think he’s necessarily saying to Joseph Smith, you are of Middle Eastern descent, as much as he is saying that Joseph certainly qualifies as the spiritual seed of Abraham, as would all members of the church.
That’s one of the reasons we receive patriarchal blessings. Many assume that we call them patriarchal blessings because we receive them from the stake patriarch. That’s only partly correct. They’re also called patriarchal blessings because through them we are connected to THE patriarchs. A patriarchal blessing will name you to a lineage, to one of the twelve tribes of Israel. Which tribe we’re aligned with is really not as significant as the fact that we are being linked to Abraham’s family. The twelve tribes came from Jacob. Jacob’s father was Isaac, and Isaac’s father was Abraham. So a patriarchal blessing is a pronouncement. The promises of the patriarchs are being pronounced upon us.
We are accounted the seed of Abraham, and therefore these promises apply to us.
But don’t forget that a covenant is a two-way promise. This is not just God blessing or giving extra things to one group of people out of a sense of favoritism. He expects something of the seed of Abraham. Sometimes we refer to the children of Israel, or even the Jews as the chosen people. His elect people. You may have even heard prophets refer to the rising generation in the church as a chosen generation. I think we sometimes take that to mean that we are better in some way. Like we’re part of an exclusive club or something. We’re “chosen”. And in a way that’s true. But, what those titles mean is that we are chosen to do something. God is choosing us (just as he chose the children of Israel in the Old Testament) to fulfill a responsibility. Yes, we are elect. But when you elect somebody, you are electing them to do something. To do a job. And since these promises are ours, the obligations are ours as well. What were and are the seed of Abraham to do? What have we been chosen or elected to do? It’s not going to be as big a list as God’s side. Remember, he’s gracious. But there is one major responsibility that the seed of Abraham have. Look in the following verses. You’ll see it.
Abraham 1:19
Abraham 2:6
Abraham 2:9
Abraham 2:10-11
Abraham 1:19
19 As it was with Noah so shall it be with thee; but through thy ministry my name shall be known in the earth forever, for I am thy God.
Abraham 2:6
6 But I, Abraham, and Lot, my brother's son, prayed unto the Lord, and the Lord appeared unto me, and said unto me: Arise, and take Lot with thee; for I have purposed to take thee away out of Haran, and to make of thee a minister to bear my name in a strange land which I will give unto thy seed after thee for an everlasting possession, when they hearken to my voice.
Strange here does not mean weird of bizarre, it just means foreign. A land that is not your birthplace.
2:9
9 And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee above measure, and make thy name great among all nations, and thou shalt be a blessing unto thy seed after thee, that in their hands they shall bear this ministry and Priesthood unto all nations;
And then verses 10 and 11 point to the fact that Abraham’s seed are sharing the gospel with others.
I will bless them that receive the Gospel—through your efforts.
“in thy seed after . . . shall all the families of the earth be blessed, even with the blessings of the Gospel, which are the blessings of salvation, even of life eternal.”
What is our part in the Abrahamic covenant? To share the gospel with the world, so that everyone can have those promises and blessings. To be ministers of that gospel to people in strange or foreign lands and all around us. It’s missionary work! It’s the gathering of Israel. That’s what we are meant to do. We are CHOSEN to spread the gospel. We are ELECT “ed” bring the blessings of salvation to all nations.
So hopefully, one of the major motivations we will have for doing missionary work will be a realization of the power of this covenant. A realization that we have been given so much as the seed of Abraham. We’ve been blessed with the priesthood, and we’ve been blessed with temples with and blessed with prophets, been and scriptures and ordinances. “But of him unto whom much is given, much is required” (Doctrine and Covenants 82:3). Because I have been given much, I too must give. We have a duty to perform. We don’t want to just sit around calling ourselves elect, and chosen and keeping to ourselves. We minister, to all that will hear us.
I WILL GIVE THEE THIS LAND
Now the idea of land becomes very important. God promised them the land of Canaan or Israel. Now why would God give them that land, in light of everything else we just talked about? Considering that they were meant to take the gospel to all the world. Take out a map of that area and look at it for a minute. Where is Israel in relation to all the ancient world? Right smack dab in the middle. Three major continents meet at that place. Asia, Europe, and Africa. Israel was the hub or the crossroads of the ancient world.
Why would God put them there? Where’s the wisdom in that? I mean, why not put them in Iceland or some remote wilderness where everyone could just leave them alone? He put them there so that they would be in a prime position to influence other nations for good. They could minister and share the gospel with them.
Ezekiel hints at this in Ezekiel 5:5
5 Thus saith the Lord God; This is Jerusalem: I have set it in the midst of the nations and countries that are round about her.
The story of the rest of the Bible is an account of how the seed of Abraham either fulfilled or failed to fulfill the Abrahamic Covenant. You’ve got all kinds of stories of prophets and missionaries spreading the message of the gospel to the nations and countries that surround it.
So you have Joseph and Jeremiah, and even Abraham ministering in Egypt,
Elijah ministers to Naaman of Syria
You’ve got Daniel in Babylon
Esther in Persia
Jonah is sent to Ninevah in Assyria
Paul, in the New Testament gets this idea almost better than anyone else and he ministers all over: he’s all over modern-day Turkey, and Greece, and then Rome. The gospel is spread from that centralized core to all the ancient world.
And then, who would we consider to be the greatest example of fulfilling the Abrahamic covenant in the scriptures? Who is the most famous descendant of Abraham? Jesus Christ. Jesus spends his entire life fulfilling that covenant. He truly sought to bless all mankind, past, present, and future with the blessings of the gospel, which are the blessings of salvation, even of life eternal.
Still, there are some dangers in having your chosen people set right in the middle of all those nations. What might the danger of this plan be? Yes. If they’re in the center of it all, they’re in a prime position to influence everyone else. But what else could happen? They run the risk of BEING influenced. And this is a major problem in the Old Testament. Israel struggles with the desire to be like the rest of the world. Rather than changing it, they allow the world to change them. And we can’t really bless the world if we’re just like it. So we’ve got, the children of Israel building a golden calf in Exodus, you have the tribes of Israel wanting to have a king like all the other nations in 1 Samuel, and you’ve got Samson who’s more of a Philistine than he is an Israelite. And then you have many instances of the people worshipping the idols of the nations that surround it. And what were the consequences of that desire? Well, what happened to the 10 tribes? What happened to both the kingdoms of Israel and Judah? They become lost. They became captive. They became scattered.
Well, that was the Old Testament problem. In the New Testament we have the exact opposite problem. They kind of finally learn their Old Testament lesson but they completely swing the pendulum to the other side. In the New Testament, the Israelites, or Jews, want nothing to do with the world. They say, “just leave us alone and we’ll leave you alone. We are the chosen people. We are the elect. We are not going to be influenced by the world, so much so that we won’t even associate with it.” And they basically separate themselves from the nations around them. And you know, I think Satan sits back and says, “I don’t really care which way I stop the Abrahamic covenant from being fulfilled, just as long as I stop it. Either I’ll make them like the world, or I’ll lift them up so much in a spirit of pride and exclusivity, that either way I win.”
Now remember, we are the seed of Abraham too. It might be good to ask ourselves if WE are ever falling for these same devilish tactics? As the latter-day chosen people of God, we too have got to be careful of both the Old and New Testament problems. Can we remain the influencers and not become influencees? Can we live in the world but not be of the world? Because we are meant to stand out and be different in a good way—to be examples. I’m afraid that when we try too much to be like the world, we too can become lost, captive, and scattered. And unfortunately, I’ve seen that happen to people: family, friends, ward members, and students. The lure of the idols of the world becomes too strong for many. But at the same time we’re avoiding the influence of the world, we’ve got to minister. That’s a difficult balance to strike sometimes. We’ve also got to fulfill our part of the Abrahamic covenant to bear the blessings of the gospel to all the world as well. Do WE sometimes make the mistake of becoming prideful in the fact that we are members of the only true and living church? Do we become cliquish, exclusive, or reclusive in our faith and only create friendships with other members or keep our mouths closed rather than sharing the good news of the restored gospel? Interestingly enough, the headquarters of the church has also been placed at a kind of crossroads. Salt Lake City is sometimes referred to as the crossroads of the West. But more importantly, the Church has got to be the figurative crossroads of the world. And we do send missionaries all over the world from that center. From that centralized hub, the gospel is being taken to all nations. But we can also look at it on a more personal level. From our sphere of influence, do we seek to spread the gospel to all around US--in our communities, in our workplaces, and in our nations? The lessons of the Abrahamic covenant can help us to fulfill our part in God’s great plan for this world.
TRUTH
God has great blessings and promises for all the seed of Abraham, if they will minister the gospel to the world, without becoming like it.
LIKEN THE SCRIPTURES
What blessings of the gospel are you most grateful for?
Have you ever noticed the Old Testament or New Testament problems in your own life? What has helped you to overcome them?
Consider sharing an “Abrahamic Covenant” or “ministering” experience that you’ve had.
CONCLUSION
Well, I hope I was able to help you grasp the significance of the Abrahamic covenant to us as members of the latter-day Church of Jesus Christ. Honestly, when you understand that concept, you will begin to notice that it comes up A LOT in the scriptures. It’s seriously all over them—in every standard work. This promise that God made to a righteous man thousands of years ago continues to have reverberations right down to the year 2022. As the Lord said to Joseph Smith, “This promise is yours also, because ye are of Abraham.” (Doctrine and Covenants 132:31) Can you see just how important Abraham is to us? I pray that we can remember and live up to his great example, which will be the subject of the next portion of this lesson.
DO THE WORKS OF ABRAHAM
ICEBREAKER
I like to open with a discussion question as an Icebreaker this time. You can either have your students share their answer to this question with a paired partner, or you could have a few volunteers share their answers with the class. The question is: Who is one of your role models? What about them do you wish to emulate? Some of the people on my role model list would include Jesus, of course, my father, Joseph Smith, C.S. Lewis, Gandhi, Ernest Shackleton, and even a mountain climber named Ed Viesturs. These are some of my role models that have inspired and motivated me in different areas of my life.
TRANSITION
In Doctrine and Covenants 132:32, the Lord gives us another role model that we can all look up to. A spiritual mentor of sorts. Who is it? And that verse reads:
32 Go ye, therefore, and do the works of Abraham; enter ye into my law and ye shall be saved.
Abraham is a spiritual role model for us. Now we can’t do his works if we don’t know them. So the rest of this lesson, and into next week’s lesson, we’re going to delve into the works of Abraham so that we can fulfill that scripture and seek to do them .
SEARCH
It might be easier for us to do the works of Abraham if we can see them all compiled into one place. I’ve put together the following handout to help us to understand the works of Abraham a little bit better. As we study these selected verses together, you can write down the different works of Abraham that you wish to emulate.
And let’s take a closer look at each one.
DUPLICATE THE DESIRES OF ABRAHAM (ABRAHAM 1:2)
One way we can do the works of Abraham is to have his same desires. What were they? Look in Abraham 1:2. And there is so much in this one verse. It is dense with meaning.
He desired greater happiness, peace, and rest.
I love that desire. Whereas your typical person might say that their greatest desires are prosperity, success, and recognition—and as good as those desires are, Abraham prioritizes happiness, peace, and rest. Well, where do we get those things? The rest of the verse shows us how. Abraham tells us that he is a follower of righteousness, but that he desires to be a greater follower of righteousness. Do you see the link between the two? We know from Alma that righteousness is happiness, not wickedness. Therefore, to become a greater follower of righteousness, means to receive greater happiness, peace, and rest along with it. And you know, I think that’s an important point to make. The restored gospel is not the only source of happiness, peace, and rest in this world. I do believe that people have found those blessings in other places, and religions, and activities. I don’t think it’s fair to suggest that we are the only happy people on the face of the earth—members of the church do not have a monopoly on happiness. BUT, I also believe that we do have access to these things in greater amounts. That’s what the gospel has to offer to the world. GREATER happiness, peace, and rest. As Gordon B. Hinckley once said:
“Let me say that we appreciate the truth in all churches and the good which they do. We say to the people, in effect, you bring with you all the good that you have, and then let us see if we can add to it. That is the spirit of this work. That is the essence of our missionary service” (meeting, Nairobi, Kenya, 17 Feb. 1998).
Abraham seems to understand that idea. He wished to increase his happiness, peace, and rest, and he knew that those things come through righteousness.
Continuing on. He sought for the blessings of the fathers and the right to be ordained to administer in the priesthood. Now this desire may be unique to young men, but he sought ordination. He desired to be ordained to priesthood office. This is a great verse for young men to read and consider. How do they feel about being ordained to the office of deacon, teacher, or priest, or elder? Is it their deep desire? Or do they see it as just something you’re supposed to do because you turned 12, or 14, or 16, or 18?
What other desires does he have. He wishes to be one who possessed great knowledge. And then later in that verse, a desire to possess “a greater knowledge”. There we see that theme again. The desires of a true member of the priest-“hood” is to increase—to do better. Sometimes I think that there is a more subtle and insidious temptation of the devil that can hamper otherwise good disciples of Christ. It’s the “bare minimum” type of attitude of discipleship. It’s the, “What do I ‘have to do’? I want to be good, but I don’t want to be THAT good. What can I get away with? Where’s the line and how far can I push it?” kind of attitude. That’s not Abraham. Abraham says, I know I’m doing “enough” but I want to do more. I want greater knowledge. I want to be a greater follower of righteousness. I want to “magnify” my calling.
He wishes to be a father of many nations. Now that’s quite a bit contrary to your average young man in the world today, isn’t it? Instead the general attitude seems to be to have as many sexual relationships as you want, just as long as your “safe”. In our world we see the problems of abortion, and deadbeat dads, and an avoidance of the responsibilities of parenthood. But Abraham wants to be a father. He aspires to fatherhood. He values success in the home over worldly success.
He wants to be a prince of peace. Nice! That’s a title we often hear to describe the Savior. A true member of the priesthood wants to be like Christ. They are peacemakers. Whereas in our world “toughness, assertiveness, and self-promotion” are often hailed as the greater virtues.
Desiring to receive instructions. Abraham was teachable. Again, in our society, An “I don’t need any help from anyone—I can do this on my own-Don’t tell me what to do” kind of attitude is prevalent.
And then a desire to “keep the commandments of God”. He desired to do what was right. He had an obedient spirit. That obedient spirit is going to be severely tested later in his life with his son Isaac, but he never flinches in his commitment keeping the commandments.
As you can tell, this is one of my favorite verses to share with my children and the youth of my ward. These, I tell them, are the desires of a true disciple of Christ, a member of the priest-”hood.
Therefore, what does Abraham receive as a result of his desires? He became a rightful heir. A high priest. It is conferred upon him (1:3) and he receives his appointment (1:4) God always gives according to our righteous desires. Ask, and ye shall receive. So one of the works of Abraham we can do is to duplicate his desires.
HELP YOUR HOUSEHOLD (ABRAHAM 1:5, 2:4)
Unfortunately for Abraham. This attitude does get him into a bit of trouble. Standing up for what’s right will not always make life easy. Just look at the illustration to the left! This is where he ends up, on the sacrificial table. The first verse of Abraham 1 is almost funny when you consider that illustration. He says:
1 In the land of the Chaldeans, at the residence of my father, I, Abraham, saw that it was needful for me to obtain another place of residence;
And I say, “Yeah, no kidding!” Look what they’re doing to him! You know, I probably ought to leave town.
Abraham lived in a place where his fathers, including his immediate father, had turned from their righteousness and the commandments. Yet, Abraham manages to be righteous in that environment. Which is really an amazing thing! Usually, it’s the parents that have to be the good example to their children and lead them in righteousness. But here we have the reverse. Here, Abraham has to be an example to his Father, Terah. His father is an idol worshipper and is part of the reason why he ends up on that altar in the picture. But Abraham doesn’t give up on his Father. He sets the example for him! And you know, over the years, I’ve had students in that very situation, and I have massive respect for them. I’m not sure if I would have been faithful enough on my own without the righteous influence and example of my parents. I give my parents a lot of the credit for why I’m an active member of the Church. But some people walk the path DESPITE their parents. These students are ABRAHAMS. And Abraham doesn’t just seek to be righteous himself, but he also seeks to help his household do the same, including his father. And it does work for a time. Look at Abraham 2:4.
4 Therefore I left the land of Ur, of the Chaldees, to go into the land of Canaan; and I took Lot, my brother's son, and his wife, and Sarai my wife; and also my father followed after me, unto the land which we denominated Haran.
So, Abraham was able to influence many of his household, including his father, to leave the idolatrous nation of the Chaldeans and follow him to a better land. Now, just for fun. There is a wonderful little story about Abraham and his father that you find in another book of sacred Jewish scripture called the Book of Jasher—which is mentioned in a number of places in the Bible, so we know it exists (Joshua 10:13; 2 Samuel 1:18; 2 Timothy 3:8). Whether the version we have is THE legitimate book of Jasher, is unclear. So this story may be a bit apocryphal. But it fits with what we know about Abraham here in the Pearl of Great Price. And I feel, personally, that it is very likely true. But the story goes like this, and I’ll just paraphrase it. If you’d like to read the original story, I’ll put a link to it in the video description. (https://www.sacred-texts.com/chr/apo/jasher/11.htm)
Abraham’s father has a room full of stone and wood idols that he worships. Now Abraham knows that they’re just rock and wood and he wants to help his father come to the same conclusion. So he gets an idea. One day when his father leaves home, Abraham grabs an ax, and he smashes all of his father’s idols except one! One big one right in the middle and he lays the ax in his hands of the great idol. Now when Abraham’s father gets home, he’s beside himself when he sees all his smashed idols and he says “Abraham, how could you have done this!” And Abraham says, “It wasn’t me Dad! You should have been here. I brought an offering into the idols, and they all started arguing about who should get it first. And that big one in the middle shouted that he was the greatest and that he was going to teach them all a lesson. So he grabbed the ax and he smashed them all to pieces. And see! Look! He still has the ax in his hand. It was him! Not me.” And Abraham’s father looks at him and basically says, “Abraham. How stupid do you think I am. My idols can’t talk, they can’t run around, they can’t fight with each other, they’re made of stone, I made them myself! You did this. Stop lying to me” And Abraham smiles and says, “You’re right, Dad. They are just stone and wood. So why are you worshipping them.” Fun story, right?
Well, eventually Abraham’s father does end up following him out of Ur and leaving behind his idol worship. Unfortunately it doesn’t last for long as the next verse tells us that Abraham’s father eventually does return to his idol worship. But perhaps one of the works of Abraham we can emulate is to seek to influence our families for good. To help our households.
DON’T BOW TO THE GODS OF THIS WORLD (ABRAHAM 1:8-20)
Well, let’s take a look at that story that’s illustrated by facsimile #1, that picture at the beginning of the Book of Abraham. When he’s younger, Abraham’s father allows him to be chosen to be sacrificed by the priest of Pharoah on Potiphar’s Hill. The people of Ur believed in child sacrifice, or what they call a thank-offering. You can see that in verses 8-10. And then I love this little tidbit of information we get from verse 11 about the nature of these sacrifices. It seems that there was something that helped the priests decide who was to be sacrificed to their gods. It says:
11 Now, this priest had offered upon this altar three virgins at one time, who were the daughters of Onitah, one of the royal descent directly from the loins of Ham. These virgins were offered up because of their virtue; they would not bow down to worship gods of wood or of stone, therefore they were killed upon this altar, and it was done after the manner of the Egyptians.
It seems that they like to choose to sacrifice those that refused to worship their idols. Let’s sacrifice the troublemakers who won’t fall in line with the rest of us. And I’m so impressed with the integrity of these three young ladies—the daughters of Onitah. They were willing to give up their lives rather than bow down to the idols of the world. And that’s why they’re chosen. They are offered up because of their virtue. They won’t worship. They are the female counterparts of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. And talk about role models. Without a father to inspire him to righteousness, who do you think Abraham looked to as his role models and inspiration. No doubt it was the daughters of Onitah that gave him the strength to also not bow down to idols, even if it meant certain death. He, like them, decides that it would be better to die, than compromise his virtue. Those young ladies inspired one of the greatest prophets of scripture. So, you never know who’s watching. Your example may inspire future prophets. And although their story only occupies one little verse of scripture, the daughters of Onitah definitely deserve our admiration and recognition. I love sharing that story with the young women of my ward. In my mind, the daughters of Onitah stand right up there with the likes of Ruth, and Esther, and Eve, and Mary as some of the greatest female heroines of scripture.
Fortunately for Abraham, the Lord preserves his life in this instance by sending an angel to protect him and to smite the priest of Pharoah who had raised a knife to take his life. Abraham, we know, still had a work to perform in this life, and therefore, the Lord spares him. So what’s a work of Abraham that we can do? Don’t bow to the Gods of this world, no matter what. Who or what are some of the gods of this world? Celebrities. Rock stars, sports stars, movie stars. Is that who we want to choose as our role models. Money, popularity, pleasure, drugs and alcohol, material wealth, the philosophies of men. These things can quickly become idols that supplant the one true God. Do the works of Abraham, don’t bow to them.
QUICK PRINCIPLES (ABRAHAM 2:12-18)
The last portion of Abraham 2 has a bunch of short principles in quick succession. See if you can find them. What is the work of Abraham that we could emulate in each of these verses?
:12 We too can seek the Lord earnestly
:13 We too will do well to hearken to His voice.
:15 We too can seek to win souls on our journey (You can already see him striving to fulfill the Abrahamic Covenant just as soon as he’s made it)
:16 We too can draw close to the Savior. Abraham says that eternity was our covering and our rock and our salvation. Those three titles, who do they often refer to in the scriptures? Eternity, Rock, Salvation. It’s Christ!
He put the Savior over him, and under him and all around him. Jesus was his covering AND his rock.
:18 We too can make offerings or sacrifices unto the Lord while calling upon Him devoutly. And why does he do this? “Because we had already come into the land of this idolatrous nation”. They were entering a Canaanite world. And they would need that extra strength and diligence to stay righteous in the midst of it. Sacrifice and prayer will help us to stay faithful too, as we also live in an idolatrous, Canaanite type world.
BE A PEACEMAKER (GENESIS 13:5-12)
Now to the Book of Genesis for a few more. There is an interesting little story here in chapter 13. Verses 5 and 6 tell us that Abraham and Lot live in the same area and that they begin to have a problem. We discover that the land is not able to bear them both. There’s not enough room for both of their flocks, and herds and tents. And this causes a strife between the herdsmen of Abraham and the herdsman of Lot. Now look at how Abraham deals with this situation. Does he throw a fit? Does he stick up for his “rights?” Does he say, “I’m the oldest?” Does it come to blows so that he can assert his dominance over the situation? No. Watch how a member of the priesthood deals with potential strife. He says to Lot “Let there be no strife, I pray thee, between me and thee”. So he shuns conflict and contention. And what’s his reasoning? “For we be brethren”. In other words, “our relationship is more important than land and resources—people are more important to me than things—we are brothers, let’s not fight over this.” And he recognizes something: “ Is not the whole land before thee?” There’s enough room in this area for both of us. Oftentimes conflict arises because we view everything as a limited resource. If you get something, that means less of it for me. Abraham, instead, has an abundance mentality. There’s enough here for all to be fulfilled and happy, so why argue over it. What’s his solution? Separate thyself, I pray thee, from me: if thou wilt take the left hand, then I will go to the right; or if thou depart to the right hand, then I will go to the left. We can work out a practical compromise here. In fact, I’ll even give you the benefit of the choice in this matter. Now that’s a mature, humble way to approach potential conflict. Give the other the benefit of choice. And Lot does, and Abraham happily takes the other option. This is a perfect example of how to be a peacemaker. Shun contention, value people over property, realize there’s enough for all, and give the other the benefit of choice. So let’s not have arguments, and contention, and bitterness amongst brethren. Peace was more important than personal gain or pride to Abraham. I believe that many marital, professional, political, and even world conflicts could be solved if we just followed the Abrahamic pattern. So do the works of Abraham, be a peacemaker.
NOT A THREADSWORTH (GENESIS 14:1-24)
For Genesis 14, there’s a little bit of an object lesson that I like to do. On the day I teach this lesson I like to wear a dark jacket. Then, I find a little piece of white thread and I put up near my shoulder. And then, as students come in, or as I’m teaching, I just wait to see the reaction. And trust me, it’s hilarious. People almost can’t help but try to pick it off or tell you that it’s there or say that it’s bothering them. And it’s just this small, little piece of thread. That’s it. Yet, it really, really, bothers people. It’s too much for them. And when they try to take it off, or they tell me it’s there I just say, “I know, we’ll talk about it later”.
Now to the story. Usually I’ll just summarize the first portion. You can see this in the chapter heading. It says that Lot is captured in a battle. The battles of the kings. And eventually he is rescued by Abraham and his men. And in the process, Abraham also ends up rescuing some people and goods of the kingdom of Sodom. And so, picking the story up in verse 18 we have two kings approach Abraham. Now read verses 18-23 and be prepared to answer the following three questions:
1. Who are the two kings?
2. What does each offer Abraham?
3. How does Abraham react to their offers?
So number 1. Who are those two kings? The King of Salem in verse 18, or Melchizedek, and the King of Sodom in verse 21. Both commend and applaud the bravery of Abraham for his rescue and wish to give him something. Melchizedek was the priest of the most high God and such a great high priest that the priesthood will eventually come to be known by him. (See Doctrine & Covenants 107:2). And Melchizedek offers Abraham bread and wine (hmmmm, sounds almost like a sacramental offering) and a blessing. And how does Abraham react to that? He accepts that blessing and he gives Melchizedek tithing of ALL he possesses. So yes, the practice of tithing goes all the way back to Genesis. It’s an eternal principle. Now contrast that with how he reacts to the King of Sodom’s offer. Now Sodom is a very, very wicked city (we’re going to see just how wicked next week in chapter 19) but what does the King of Sodom offer him? He says, Give me the persons (that you’ve rescued) but you can keep all the spoils of the battle. All the treasure you captured that belonged to us, can now be yours. And how does Abraham react?
22 And Abram said to the king of Sodom, I have lift up mine hand unto the Lord, the most high God, the possessor of heaven and earth,
23 That I will not take from a thread even to a shoelatchet, and that I will not take any thing that is thine
So, King of Sodom, I won’t take anything from you. Even a thread or a shoelace of your possessions is too much for me. I don’t even want a threadsworth of Sodom. What a great attitude.
How could we liken this story unto ourselves? We too are faced with two kings. Who are they? Christ and Satan. The King of Zion and the King of Babylon. Both have treasures to offer us. The one offers salvation, peace, happiness, and rest. The other offers money, and pleasure, and power. How are we going to react to those kings? I hope that we can do the works of Abraham. Receive the blessings of the King of Righteousness and commit ourselves to him. And to the King of Sodom? Even a threadsworth is too much for us. We don’t want to have anything to do with him. Now what is a threadsworth of Sodom? Compromising even a little with our standards. Do we justify ourselves in telling small lies? In cheating just a little bit.? Do we rationalize watching the movie because, well, there’s just this one scene. Or, it’s just violence. Or, the language isn’t THAT bad. Do we fudge on our obedience? OR, do we look at that thread and say (and I point to the piece of thread on my shoulder) “You know what, that may be small, it may seem insignificant, but in reality, it’s too much for me. I don’t want a thread even to a shoelatchet of the things of Sodom.”
TRUTH
Now let’s look back at our list here. Look at all the ways Abraham is a role model to us.
LIKEN THE SCRIPTURES
Choose one of the works of Abraham that you feel you most need in your life right now. Which one is it? And how could you do that work this week.
CONCLUSION
I love Abraham and I hope you do to. There is so much to admire and emulate in him. Now wonder God chose him to make a covenant with. And the Lord blesses him immensely because of it. I bear witness that if we follow his example, those same blessings will be ours. So, let’s go out together and do those same works. Let’s do the works of Abraham!
