Abraham – La Vista Church of Christ

The Faith of Abraham

Jeffrey Hamilton — Sun, 05 Jul 2026 20:29:12 +0000

by Jeremy Paschall
via Biblical Insights, Vol. 14 No. 8, August 2014

In the Gospel of Jesus Christ, God has revealed His power to save mankind from sin (Romans 1:16). It is not a salvation based upon the works of men (Ephesians 2:9), requiring that they “earn” their way with sinless obedience (Romans 3:20), for then none would ever be saved (Romans 3:23). Instead, it is a system by which men may receive forgiveness of their sins and then stand justified — righteous — before God by His grace and mercy (Romans 3:24; Ephesians 2:5). However, such generous provisions for salvation do not inherently exclude conditions required for one to receive these blessings. Indeed, in one passage of Scripture we find a discussion of both God’s grace and His condition for receiving it:

"But now the righteousness of God apart from the law is revealed, being witnessed by the Law and the Prophets, even the righteousness of God, through faith in Jesus Christ, to all and on all those who believe. For there is no difference; for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God set forth as a propitiation by His blood, through faith, to demonstrate His righteousness, because in His forbearance God had passed over the sins that were previously committed, to demonstrate at the present time His righteousness, that He might be just and thejustifier of the one who has faith in Jesus" (Romans 3:21-26).

Faith is, as it has always been (Hebrews 11), the fundamental condition upon which one may receive the favor of God (Ephesians 2:8). Indeed, even “Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness” (Romans 4:3; cf. Genesis 15:6). He is our example, “the father of all those who believe” (Romans 4:11). Like Abraham, those who stand righteous before God today do so, “having been justified by faith” (Romans 5:1); their “access...into
this grace” has come “by faith” (Romans 5:2). In order for one to please God, there is simply no substitute for an informed, trusting faith.

Many err, however, when they fail to search out the true nature of saving faith. They conclude, without having thoroughly examined or understood the Scriptures, that the faith necessary to please God involves merely accepting, intellectually and/ or emotionally, His existence and His saving power. In other words, they believe and proclaim salvation for anyone who believes in God and in the sacrificial death of God’s Son, Jesus Christ. But the Scriptures reveal much more concerning the subject of saving faith. James wrote, “What does
it profit, my brethren, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can faith save him?… Faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead” (James 2:14,17). Genuine saving faith must manifest itself in works that please God.

Not even Abraham was saved by faith alone: “Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered Isaac his son on the altar? Do you see that faith was working together with his works, and by works faith was made perfect? And the Scripture was fulfilled which says, Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness.’ And he was called the friend of God. You see then that a man is justified by works, and not by faith only” (James 2:21-24). By faith, Abraham “obeyed,” “dwelt,” “went out,” “waited,” and “offered” (Hebrews 11:8, 9, 10, 17). His righteousness depended upon his faith manifesting itself in works which pleased God. By his works, Abraham’s faith was “made perfect” and he was justified before God.
We must not think ourselves to be any exception to this divinely given rule. For our faith to justify us before God, it must also manifest itself in humble submission to Him. “Faith without works is dead” (James 2:26), but a living faith motivates one to trust and obey God’s will as it is revealed in the Scriptures. Is your faith like the faith of Abraham — faith with works of obedience? In other words, is it truly a saving faith?

Abraham’s Informed Faith

Jeffrey Hamilton — Thu, 09 Oct 2025 14:35:36 +0000

by Clay Gentry

God’s command for Abraham to sacrifice Isaac is arguably one of the most staggering tests of faith in the Bible. How could he trust God in the face of such a shocking demand? Abraham’s obedience was not an act of blind, desperate loyalty, but a calculated step of faith, fortified by a history of God’s promises and unmistakable clues embedded within the very command itself. To gain a deeper appreciation of Abraham’s faith, let’s explore these clues.

The Tender Plea “na”

The command in Genesis 22:2 starts with a word that often goes unnoticed: “Please take your son, your only son, whom you love… as a burnt offering” (ISV). The Hebrew particle "I" is usually translated as “please,” but is often omitted when spoken by God (NIV, ESV, CSB), or translated as “now” (NKJV, NASB, LSB). Still, its presence here is significant. It appears in five divine commands, where God asks for something counterintuitive or offers His deep reassurance (cf. Genesis 13:14; 15:5; Exodus 11:2; Isaiah 7:3).*

This tender plea cushions the otherwise brutal-sounding command to Abraham. God’s use of "na" reveals His sensitivity; He is acknowledging the immense, staggering cost of what He is asking. From the outset, Abraham knew that God’s command was not arbitrary but was given with a profound acknowledgment of its personal toll. The heart of God was with Abraham in this ordeal.

A Faith Informed by Location

“Go to the land of Moriah...” The very name of the destination provided a subtle hint of salvation and deliverance that awaited Abraham and Isaac. The name Moriah is derived from the Hebrew root ra’ah, meaning to provide, to see, or to show. The entire narrative is infused with this concept of God seeing and providing, forming a chain of six wordplays on “seeing”: Abraham “saw” the place from afar (Genesis 22:4); He assured Isaac, God would literally “reveal” the offering (Genesis 22:8); After his hand was stilled, he “looked” at the ram caught in the thicket (Genesis 22:13); the name of the place is affirmed, “The Lord will see” and its explanation, “On the mount of the Lord He will be seen” (Genesis 22:14).

By sending Abraham to Moriah, God was subtly assuring him that this was a place of divine foresight and intervention. In the very place God was calling Abraham to a sacrifice, He was also giving him a linguistic clue that the situation was already under the control of a God who sees and provides. This deep textual assurance fortified Abraham's willingness to "go."

The Parallel Promise

The command to “Go… on one of the mountains of which I shall tell you” was not the first time God used this language with Abraham; it was a parallel of his initial calling. The first time God told him to “go” was decades earlier, when he was commanded to leave his home in Ur of the Chaldeans and his family to go “to the land that I will show you” (Genesis 12:1). That remarkable, life-altering act of trust was based entirely on the divine promise: “And I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing” (Genesis 12:2). Abraham could not have missed this deliberate echo. God was clearly reminding him of the promise of a “great nation,” even while commanding him to do what seemed utterly opposed to that very promise.

It’s in this tension that Abraham’s faith found its footing. If the promise of a great nation was contingent upon Isaac (Genesis 21:12), then God must have a plan to bring Isaac back. As the writer of Hebrews confirms, Abraham “considered that God was able even to raise him from the dead” (Hebrews 11:19). Abraham knew the faithfulness of the Promiser was greater than the severity of the command.

In all these ways, we see God’s faithful tenderness cushioning the startling harshness of the command to offer up Isaac. It’s as though God is saying to Abraham, “I’m testing your obedience and allegiance. You don’t understand, but in light of all I’ve done and said to you, trust Me. Not even death can nullify the promise I’ve made.” Armed with a faith that had been gently but deliberately reinforced by God Himself, the account closes with Abraham’s resolute action: “So Abraham [and Isaac] rose early in the morning… and went to the place of which God had told him” (Genesis 22:3). His immediate, early morning obedience testifies not just to his willingness to obey, but to his absolute certainty in the God who both commands and provides.

* For more on “Please…” see

Nathan Ward, The Growth of the Seed: Notes on the Book of Genesis (Chillicothe, Deward, 2007), 235.
Mike Willis, The Book of Genesis 1 Truth Commentaries (Athens, Truth, 2021), 684-5, n8.
Paul Copan, Is God a Moral Monster? (Grand Rapids, Baker Books, 2011) 47-8.

Take Your Only Son

Jeffrey Hamilton — Wed, 30 Apr 2025 16:54:49 +0000

by Terry Wane Benton

The test for Abraham was a type of the test that God Himself would undergo. In Abraham’s case, offering his only son, Isaac, was a test of his love for God. Would he trust and love God above his emotional attachment to his only son?

Even though the command made no sense, since God had promised to build a great nation through Isaac (Genesis 17:16), Abraham figured that God would keep His promise, even if it took raising Isaac from the dead. He trusted God would work it out, and he loved God enough to pass the test (Genesis 22:1ff).

Little did the Israelite people know that as Moses shared this story with them about their father Abraham, it was also foreshadowing the ultimate sacrifice of Christ, the ultimate sacrifice of God. God was demonstrating that He would undergo a test of His love for humanity.

Would God love man enough to give His “only Son?” There was an inward struggle in Jesus in the garden of Gethsemane, but He took His great love for mankind in hand and went to the very hill on which Isaac had almost been sacrificed, and laid down His life for us. The ultimate test of God’s love was displayed for us to see and remember.

How much did God love me? "For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life" (John 3:16 NKJV).

There is no doubt that I do not deserve this kind of love. But, it would be a disbelief to think I am not worth it to God. When you put yourself down as worthless, you are saying that you do not believe in God. You are saying that God made a mistake in making you, and you are saying that God was wrong in valuing you enough to give His only begotten Son for you. While you should be feeling mighty important, unbelief has a way of undermining the truth within us.

The test for us is to believe God does not make junk, and He took His only Son to show us how valuable we are to Him. Do you believe God knows better than you what value needs to be assessed in you? Do you realize that unbelief is the reason we put ourselves down? You can be on your way to eternal life if you start believing the evidence of God’s love for you. Why not believe God and obey the gospel of Christ?

Hagar and Exclusion

Jeffrey Hamilton — Tue, 12 Jul 2022 18:41:29 +0000

by Matthew W. Bassford

This became apparent last week when we studied the use of the story of Lot by Jesus and Peter. Today, gospel preachers like to bag on Lot. They condemn him for “pitching his tent towards Sodom” and point to the corruption of his family with grim satisfaction. By contrast, the New Testament uniformly describes Lot as righteous and uses his escape from destruction as an example of the way that God will save His people.

Much the same thing happens in the New Testament’s use of Genesis 21. This chapter contains the story of Sarah driving Hagar out because Ishmael made fun of Isaac. Here too, we like to moralize about Abraham’s mistake in trying to hurry God's promise along by sleeping with Hagar. If anything, our sympathies lie with the servant girl and her child, who are thrown out into the desert.

Our first clue that this is a mistake lies with Abraham’s motivation for allowing it to happen. He consents to Hagar’s expulsion because God tells him to. In Galatians 4:21-30, Paul picks up on this theme. He compares Hagar to the earthly city of Jerusalem and Sarah to the Jerusalem above. Similarly, he likens Ishmael to the Jews and Isaac to Christians. The Jews might be persecuting Christians like Ishmael harassed Isaac, but in the end, they will be driven out of the kingdom.

We live in an era that exalts tolerance. Anything goes, except for those who refuse to line up with progressive talking points. If we dare to suggest that someone might go to hell because of their practice of sin, we are condemned as hateful bigots. Even within our brotherhood, there are those who embrace members of denominations as fully Christian. If we disagree, they claim that we are tied to church tradition, narrow-minded, and so on.

However, all of this inclusiveness fails to reckon with the exclusive nature of the gospel. Yes, anyone who wishes to become a Christian may do so. Transformation, though, takes place on Christ’s terms, not our terms. Thereafter, we must live God's way, not our way. All who refuse the first of these things will not have their names written in the book of life. Those who refuse the second will have their names blotted out.

This sounds awfully ugly, but it is no uglier than the exclusion of Hagar and Ishmael. If God tells us through His word that someone does not belong with His people, we have no more right to argue with Him than Abraham did. In fact, we are responsible for solemnly warning the deluded about the danger that they are in, even though this leads to more unpleasantness. It appears harsh, but it is the kindest thing that we can do. Conversely, when we welcome those whom the Scriptures exclude, it will cost us our souls along with theirs.

How could Cornelius be righteous if all of man’s righteousness are filthy rags before God?

Jeffrey Hamilton — Sun, 17 Feb 2019 20:43:40 +0000

Question:

Hey Mr. Jeffrey,

I'm having trouble in my understanding on a matter. In the book of Isaiah it seems to insinuate that a man's righteousness is filthy rags before God, and Isaiah, a righteous prophet, felt unclean in the sight of Holy Yahweh; yet, the Bible also states we can please God with our deeds and words. My thinking leads me to believe only the forgiven man's righteousness is acceptable to God. But then there is Cornelius who wasn't a Christian at first but seemed to please God.

Can you please help?

Answer:

"For from days of old they have not heard or perceived by ear, nor has the eye seen a God besides You, Who acts in behalf of the one who waits for Him. You meet him who rejoices in doing righteousness, Who remembers You in Your ways. Behold, You were angry, for we sinned, we continued in them a long time; and shall we be saved? For all of us have become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous deeds are like a filthy garment; and all of us wither like a leaf, and our iniquities, like the wind, take us away. There is no one who calls on Your name, who arouses himself to take hold of You; For You have hidden Your face from us and have delivered us into the power of our iniquities. But now, O LORD, You are our Father, we are the clay, and You our potter; and all of us are the work of Your hand. Do not be angry beyond measure, O LORD, nor remember iniquity forever; behold, look now, all of us are Your people" (Isaiah 64:4-9).

In contrast to God's holiness, all of us come out looking like we are wearing filthy rages because of our sins. Our righteousness is not much, which is why we note that God has never owed anyone salvation. We could not earn it with the lives we live.

"More than that, I count all things to be loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them but rubbish so that I may gain Christ, and may be found in Him, not having a righteousness of my own derived from the Law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which comes from God on the basis of faith, that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death; in order that I may attain to the resurrection from the dead" (Philippians 3:8-11).

Left on our own, none of us could be saved. That is why Jesus stepped in. When we obey God in faith, then it is not our own righteousness that we are doing, but we are working the works of God. "For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them" (Ephesians 2:10).

When Isaiah saw a vision of God in Isaiah 6, Isaiah was terrified because he realized how inadequate he was to appear before the Creator. "So I said: "Woe is me, for I am undone! Because I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the LORD of hosts" (Isaiah 6:5). But God wasn't interested in Isaiah's self-evaluation. He had a task for Isaiah to accomplish.

Though Abraham sinned, like any other man, his faith, demonstrated through his obedience, was counted as righteousness (Genesis 15:6). That is what matters: having a faith that causes you to do the Lord's will. Paul asked, "Therefore, if an uncircumcised man keeps the righteous requirements of the law, will not his uncircumcision be counted as circumcision?" (Romans 2:26). Thus, "Now there was a man at Caesarea named Cornelius, a centurion of what was called the Italian cohort, a devout man and one who feared God with all his household, and gave many alms to the Jewish people and prayed to God continually. About the ninth hour of the day he clearly saw in a vision an angel of God who had just come in and said to him, "Cornelius!" And fixing his gaze on him and being much alarmed, he said, "What is it, Lord?" And he said to him, "Your prayers and alms have ascended as a memorial before God" (Acts 10:1-4). Because Cornelius, though not a Jew, was living in accordance with God's teachings, God took note of him. Peter later said, "I most certainly understand now that God is not one to show partiality, but in every nation the man who fears Him and does what is right is welcome to Him" (Acts 10:34-35). While Cornelius was a good man, who feared God, he still was a sinner and wasn't saved until he did as God directed (Acts 10:47-48).

What made God say that Abraham will be the father of the nation?

Jeffrey Hamilton — Fri, 19 Aug 2016 01:15:00 +0000

Question:

What made God say that Abraham will be the father of the nation?

Answer:

God promised Abraham that he would become the father of many nations. See: How was Abraham famous?

God didn't have to offer that promise. He chose to make that promise and through that promise we see God's power.

"And we desire that each one of you show the same diligence so as to realize the full assurance of hope until the end, so that you will not be sluggish, but imitators of those who through faith and patience inherit the promises. For when God made the promise to Abraham, since He could swear by no one greater, He swore by Himself, saying, "I will surely bless you and I will surely multiply you." And so, having patiently waited, he obtained the promise. For men swear by one greater than themselves, and with them an oath given as confirmation is an end of every dispute. In the same way God, desiring even more to show to the heirs of the promise the unchangeableness of His purpose, interposed with an oath, so that by two unchangeable things in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have taken refuge would have strong encouragement to take hold of the hope set before us. This hope we have as an anchor of the soul, a hope both sure and steadfast and one which enters within the veil" (Hebrews 6:11-19).

What about the claim that camels were not used during Abraham’s time?

Jeffrey Hamilton — Fri, 07 Feb 2014 01:45:00 +0000

Question:

All these links keep popping up on my Facebook feed due to atheistic friends. Could you explain this one to me as well? It's got me stumped, not enough to discredit the Bible or anything, but another to make me feel confused. Carbon Dating on Camel Bones Contradicts Bible's Accuracy

Thanks.

Answer:

The claim is that because they dated some camel bones to a time period after the Bible mentions camels being used as domestic beasts of burden; therefore, the claim is that Bible is wrong. But notice this is a claim based on a lack of evidence -- such does not constitute proof. They only know that camels were used in the ninth century B.C. They did not prove that camels were never used before this time.

See Camels and the Composition of Genesis where evidence is cited of camels being used in that region of the world prior to the time of Abraham.

How many sons did Abraham have?

Jeffrey Hamilton — Mon, 21 Jan 2013 03:42:00 +0000

Question:

Regarding Genesis 20, where it says Sarah was untouched. So being the wife of Abraham she had no relations with him? Then how was it written she was barren? Abraham was married to his half-sister so he only told half a lie to the Pharaoh. Why was the Pharaoh plagued when this was the free will of Abraham imposed on the Pharaoh?

The firstborn son to Abraham by his wife, Hagar, was Ishmael, so they did have relations? His first noted son was Ishmael? Wife/Hagar plus Husband/Abraham equal son Ishmael? Did they have more children? Then half-sister/wife Sarah plus half brother/husband Abraham had a son Isaac who is the younger brother to Ishmael. So same father different mothers?

Answer:

Sarah was untouched by Abimelech. "But Abimelech had not come near her; and he said, "Lord, will You slay a righteous nation also? Did he not say to me, 'She is my sister'? And she, even she herself said, 'He is my brother.' In the integrity of my heart and innocence of my hands I have done this." (Genesis 20:4-5). This does not mean she did not have sexual relations with her husband Abraham. God intervened with Abimelech to keep an innocent man from committing a sin. "And God said to him in a dream, "Yes, I know that you did this in the integrity of your heart. For I also withheld you from sinning against Me; therefore I did not let you touch her" " (Genesis 20:6).

Abraham had lied to both Pharaoh in Genesis 12 and to Abimelech in Genesis 20. We are informed of these incidences to understand that even a man of great faith had his weakness and sinned.

Hagar was Sarah's handmaid. The practice was that if a woman was unable to have children, her husband could marry her handmaid, making her a concubine. Children born to the handmaid were counted as the wife's children. "So she said, "Here is my maid Bilhah; go in to her, and she will bear a child on my knees, that I also may have children by her." Then she gave him Bilhah her maid as wife, and Jacob went in to her" (Genesis 30:3-4).

In the case of Abraham and Hagar, Ishmael was their only child. Abraham did marry another woman, Keturah, after Sarah died and had six sons by her (Genesis 25:1-2).

Isaac was Abraham's second son, but he was the son that God had promised. God told Abraham to send Ishmael away. "Therefore she said to Abraham, "Cast out this bondwoman and her son; for the son of this bondwoman shall not be heir with my son, namely with Isaac." And the matter was very displeasing in Abraham's sight because of his son. But God said to Abraham, "Do not let it be displeasing in your sight because of the lad or because of your bondwoman. Whatever Sarah has said to you, listen to her voice; for in Isaac your seed shall be called. Yet I will also make a nation of the son of the bondwoman, because he is your seed." So Abraham rose early in the morning, and took bread and a skin of water; and putting it on her shoulder, he gave it and the boy to Hagar, and sent her away. Then she departed and wandered in the Wilderness of Beersheba" (Genesis 21:10-14). Abraham also did not allow the sons of Keturah to inherit from him either. "And Abraham gave all that he had to Isaac. But Abraham gave gifts to the sons of the concubines which Abraham had; and while he was still living he sent them eastward, away from Isaac his son, to the country of the east" (Genesis 25:5-6).

Was Abraham a Gentile or a Jew?

Jeffrey Hamilton — Thu, 17 May 2012 01:07:00 +0000

Question:

Was Abraham a Gentile or a Jew? I heard that he was first a Jew, but I also heard that He was a Gentile before and then a Jew.

Answer:

"Does this blessedness then come upon the circumcised only, or upon the uncircumcised also? For we say that faith was accounted to Abraham for righteousness. How then was it accounted? While he was circumcised, or uncircumcised? Not while circumcised, but while uncircumcised. And he received the sign of circumcision, a seal of the righteousness of the faith which he had while still uncircumcised, that he might be the father of all those who believe, though they are uncircumcised, that righteousness might be imputed to them also, and the father of circumcision to those who not only are of the circumcision, but who also walk in the steps of the faith which our father Abraham had while still uncircumcised" (Romans 4:9-12).

The word "Gentiles" just means "nations." It is typically used to refer to all the nations other than the nation of Israel.

"Israelite" refers to the people who descend from Israel. The people of Israel did see Abraham as their founding father. "They answered and said to Him, "Abraham is our father." Jesus said to them, "If you were Abraham's children, you would do the works of Abraham" " (John 8:39). But this is because of the promises made to Abraham, which were passed down to Isaac, and then to Jacob who was also called Israel. However, Israel's laws were not established, however, until Moses lead the people out of Egypt. So Israel did not come to be a nation until over 600 years after Abraham.

The nation of Israel divided under Rehoboam. The northern kingdom of ten tribes remained known as Israel. The southern kingdom, essentially consisting of the tribe of Judah, was known as Judah. By the time of the captivity, the people became known as the Jews (I Kings 25:25; Ezra 4:12). Even though all the Israelites were released from captivity by the Medo-Persians, the name Jews stuck with the people and that is what we see them predominately called in Jesus' day.

Thus Abraham was not an Israelite because that came through his grandson. He definitely wasn't a Jew because that lineage came through his great-grandson. Abraham did enter into a covenant with God that eventually led to the founding of Israel, but he lived before that time. Paul's point in Romans is that Abraham was called righteous before entering the covenant; therefore, proving that people outside the covenant of circumcision could be saved.

Response:

Thank you so much for your immediate response. The information you gave was very useful and cleared all my doubts. Thank you again.

Were Abraham and Moses in the church?

Jeffrey Hamilton — Thu, 08 Mar 2012 01:13:00 +0000

Question:

I heard a quote from a preacher sometime ago that Moses and Abraham are not in the Church of Christ (Ephesians 4:4; I Corinthians 12:13), even though they are currently saved. I understand they were never baptized into Christ; but if they are not in the body, where are they? It is my understanding that all dead saved people are currently in one place right now (Luke 16:19-31; 23:43).

Answer:

The problem is the definition of terms and without being able to talk to the preacher, I cannot say he was wrong or right. The word "church," which translates the Greek word ekklesia, which means assembly, can mean a single local church (e.g. I Corinthians 1:2) or all saved under the law of Christ (Matthew 16:18). When Jesus said, "And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it" (Matthew 16:18), it implies that the church did not exist prior to Jesus establishment of it. "Now, therefore, you are no longer strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ Himself being the chief cornerstone, in whom the whole building, being joined together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord, in whom you also are being built together for a dwelling place of God in the Spirit" (Ephesians 2:19-22). Being built on Jesus, it could not exist before Jesus came into this world.

But the church of the New Testament is not the only assembly of God's people. Israel was the assembly of God's people under the law of Moses. "I will declare Your name to My brethren; In the midst of the assembly I will praise You" (Psalms 22:22). In heaven all the assemblies of God's people from all ages will be combined into one great multitude (Revelation 7:9). "And for this reason He is the Mediator of the new covenant, by means of death, for the redemption of the transgressions under the first covenant, that those who are called may receive the promise of the eternal inheritance" (Hebrews 9:15).