Abraham The Christian

In order to understand the religion of Abraham, one must first understand Who was the God of Abraham, after Abram (who the LORD later renamed as Abraham; see Abram and Sarai) came out of idolatrous Babylon (see The Journey From Ur Of The Chaldees).

Note the "us" in "God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness":

"^1:26 And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.

^1:27 So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them." (Genesis 1:26-27 KJV)

The "us" was God and the Word of God. God sent the Word of God to create all things.

"^1:1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. ^1:2 The same was in the beginning with God.

^1:3 All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made." (John 1:1-3 KJV)

The one and only Word of God was later born as the man known as Jesus Christ (or by other Names in other languages - that was the purpose of "speaking in tongues," which means speaking in other languages - salvation is not limited to Hebrew speakers, or people of other languages who attempt to pronounce Hebrew words with their foreign-language accents). The Word of God was born as the Son of God.

"^1:14 And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth." (John 1:14 KJV)

The Word of God, Who was born as Jesus Christ, the Son of God, was "the LORD God" Who "made the earth and the heavens." It was "the LORD God" Who created humans; whenever humans (e.g. Adam and Eve, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob/Israel, Moses etc.) saw "God," it was "the LORD God" Who they saw (Jesus Christ plainly stated that no human has ever seen God the Father i.e. "^1:18 No man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him" John 1:18 KJV).

"^2:4 These are the generations of the heavens and of the earth when they were created, in the day that the LORD God made the earth and the heavens, ^2:5 And every plant of the field before it was in the earth, and every herb of the field before it grew: for the LORD God had not caused it to rain upon the earth, and there was not a man to till the ground. ^2:6 But there went up a mist from the earth, and watered the whole face of the ground. ^2:7 And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul.

^2:8 And the LORD God planted a garden eastward in Eden; and there he put the man whom he had formed. ^2:9 And out of the ground made the LORD God to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight, and good for food; the tree of life also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of knowledge of good and evil." (Genesis 2:4-9 KJV)

It was "the LORD God," the "I AM," who delivered the Israelites in the Exodus.

"^3:13 And Moses said unto God, Behold, when I come unto the children of Israel [see Why Did They Go To Goshen?], and shall say unto them, The God of your fathers hath sent me unto you; and they shall say to me, What is his name? what shall I say unto them?

^3:14 And God said unto Moses, I AM THAT I AM: and he said, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I AM hath sent me unto you.

^3:15 And God said moreover unto Moses, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, The LORD God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, hath sent me unto you: this is my name for ever, and this is my memorial unto all generations.

^3:16 Go, and gather the elders of Israel together, and say unto them, The LORD God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, of Isaac, and of Jacob, appeared unto me, saying, I have surely visited you, and seen that which is done to you in Egypt" (Exodus 3:13-16 KJV)

Jesus Christ was "the LORD God," the "I AM," of the Exodus i.e. "that Rock was Christ."

"^10:1 Moreover, brethren, I would not that ye should be ignorant, how that all our fathers were under the cloud, and all passed through the sea [see also Paul's Geography Lesson]; ^10:2 And were all baptized unto Moses in the cloud and in the sea; ^10:3 And did all eat the same spiritual meat; ^10:4 And did all drink the same spiritual drink: for they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them: and that Rock was Christ." (1 Corinthians 10:1-4 KJV)

"The LORD God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, of Isaac, and of Jacob ... and that Rock was Christ"

As plainly identified in the Holy Scriptures quoted above, Jesus Christ was the "I AM" of Moses and Abraham. Abraham followed and obeyed Jesus Christ. Abraham was a Christian, regardless of who chooses to believe that reality, then or now.

"^8:56 Your father Abraham rejoiced to see my day: and he saw it, and was glad.

^8:57 Then said the Jews unto him, Thou art not yet fifty years old, and hast thou seen Abraham?

^8:58 Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Before Abraham was, I am.

^8:59 Then took they up stones to cast at him: but Jesus hid himself, and went out of the temple, going through the midst of them, and so passed by." (John 8:56-59 KJV)

It was "the LORD God," Jesus Christ, Who met with Abraham and Sarah to announce the future birth of Isaac (see The LORD And The Two Angels); the LORD thereafter departed and destroyed Sodom "because their sin is very grievous."

"^18:1 And the LORD appeared unto him in the plains of Mamre: and he sat in the tent door in the heat of the day; ^18:2 And he lift up his eyes and looked, and, lo, three men stood by him: and when he saw them, he ran to meet them from the tent door, and bowed himself toward the ground" (Genesis 18:1-2 KJV)

"^18:13 And the LORD said unto Abraham, Wherefore did Sarah laugh, saying, Shall I of a surety bear a child, which am old? ^18:14 Is any thing too hard for the LORD? At the time appointed I will return unto thee, according to the time of life, and Sarah shall have a son." (Genesis 18:13-14 KJV)

"^18:20 And the LORD said, Because the cry of Sodom and Gomorrah is great, and because their sin is very grievous; ^18:21 I will go down now, and see whether they have done altogether according to the cry of it, which is come unto me; and if not, I will know. ^18:22 And the men turned their faces from thence, and went toward Sodom: but Abraham stood yet before the LORD." (Genesis 18:20-22 KJV)

"^19:24 Then the LORD rained upon Sodom and upon Gomorrah brimstone and fire from the LORD out of heaven; ^19:25 And he overthrew those cities, and all the plain, and all the inhabitants of the cities, and that which grew upon the ground. ^19:26 But his wife looked back from behind him, and she became a pillar of salt [see Why Did Lot's Wife Look Back?].

^19:27 And Abraham gat up early in the morning to the place where he stood before the LORD: ^19:28 And he looked toward Sodom and Gomorrah, and toward all the land of the plain, and beheld, and, lo, the smoke of the country went up as the smoke of a furnace." (Genesis 19:24-28 KJV)

Abraham was declared righteous by Jesus Christ because Abraham obeyed the Word of God, which in the time of Abraham was spoken by the Word of God (whereas now the Holy Bible is also called the Word of God because it recorded what the Word of God, Jesus Christ, said). John the Baptist warned that merely being a physical descendant of Abraham is worthless - it was Abraham's living example of repentance and obedience to the Word of God that is required for salvation (see the series of ten studies beginning with The Way To Salvation: Step 1).

"^3:1 In those days came John the Baptist, preaching in the wilderness of Judaea, ^3:2 And saying, Repent ye: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand. ^3:3 For this is he that was spoken of by the prophet Esaias, saying, The voice of one crying in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make his paths straight.

^3:4 And the same John had his raiment of camel's hair, and a leathern girdle about his loins; and his meat was locusts and wild honey. ^3:5 Then went out to him Jerusalem, and all Judaea, and all the region round about Jordan, ^3:6 And were baptized of him in Jordan, confessing their sins.

^3:7 But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees come to his baptism, he said unto them, O generation of vipers, who hath warned you to flee from the wrath to come? ^3:8 Bring forth therefore fruits meet for repentance: ^3:9 And think not to say within yourselves, We have Abraham to our father: for I say unto you, that God is able of these stones to raise up children unto Abraham. ^3:10 And now also the ax is laid unto the root of the trees: therefore every tree which bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire." (Matthew 3:1-10 KJV)

The Word of God, when He was born as a man, taught the very same that He always did - the very same Word of God spoken to Abraham. Some Jews at that time, and ever since, were not yet ready for that Truth (see When Do Jews Become Christians?), just as many who merely claim to be Christian (see Antichristians), and most of the rest of humanity (see The Eighth Day: What Does It Mean?), are not yet ready today.

"^8:31 Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on him, If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed; ^8:32 And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.

^8:33 They answered him, We be Abraham's seed, and were never in bondage to any man [Note: they seemed oblivious that their nation at that time was under Roman military occupation; they were not free, politically or religiously - they had returned to the "Babylon" that Abraham came out of; see Pax Romana: The Birth Of The Roman Empire, Herod Antipas and What And Where Is Babylon Today?]: how sayest thou, Ye shall be made free?

^8:34 Jesus answered them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Whosoever committeth sin is the servant of sin. ^8:35 And the servant abideth not in the house for ever: but the Son abideth ever. ^8:36 If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed. ^8:37 I know that ye are Abraham's seed; but ye seek to kill me, because my word hath no place in you. ^8:38 I speak that which I have seen with my Father: and ye do that which ye have seen with your father.

^8:39 They answered and said unto him, Abraham is our father.

Jesus saith unto them, If ye were Abraham's children, ye would do the works of Abraham. ^8:40 But now ye seek to kill me, a man that hath told you the truth, which I have heard of God: this did not Abraham. ^8:41 Ye do the deeds of your father.

Then said they to him, We be not born of fornication; we have one Father, even God.

^8:42 Jesus said unto them, If God were your Father, ye would love me: for I proceeded forth and came from God; neither came I of myself, but he sent me. ^8:43 Why do ye not understand my speech? even because ye cannot hear my word. ^8:44 Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it. ^8:45 And because I tell you the truth, ye believe me not. ^8:46 Which of you convinceth me of sin? And if I say the truth, why do ye not believe me? ^8:47 He that is of God heareth God's words: ye therefore hear them not, because ye are not of God.

^8:48 Then answered the Jews, and said unto him, Say we not well that thou art a Samaritan, and hast a devil?

^8:49 Jesus answered, I have not a devil; but I honour my Father, and ye do dishonour me. ^8:50 And I seek not mine own glory: there is one that seeketh and judgeth. ^8:51 Verily, verily, I say unto you, If a man keep my saying, he shall never see death.

^8:52 Then said the Jews unto him, Now we know that thou hast a devil. Abraham is dead, and the prophets; and thou sayest, If a man keep my saying, he shall never taste of death. ^8:53 Art thou greater than our father Abraham, which is dead? and the prophets are dead: whom makest thou thyself?

^8:54 Jesus answered, If I honour myself, my honour is nothing: it is my Father that honoureth me; of whom ye say, that he is your God: ^8:55 Yet ye have not known him; but I know him: and if I should say, I know him not, I shall be a liar like unto you: but I know him, and keep his saying. ^8:56 Your father Abraham rejoiced to see my day: and he saw it, and was glad.

^8:57 Then said the Jews unto him, Thou art not yet fifty years old, and hast thou seen Abraham?

^8:58 Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Before Abraham was, I am. ^8:59 Then took they up stones to cast at him: but Jesus hid himself, and went out of the temple, going through the midst of them, and so passed by." (John 8:31-59 KJV)

Fact Finder: Why was Abraham successful in his Christian journey?
See Don't Look Back and What Was The Lesson Of John 3:16?

This Day In History, December 2

1254: Manfred, king of Sicily, defeated the papal armies at the Battle of Foggia.

1547: Hernando Cortes, Spanish explorer, died at age 62.

1804: In the Cathedral of Notre Dame, Napoleon seized the crown from the hands of Pope Pius VII and crowned himself emperor. Napoleon then crowned Josephine as empress. See Emperors and Popes

1805: The Battle of Austerlitz, also called the Battle of The Three Emperors, the first engagement of The War of The Third Coalition and one of Napoleon's most perfect victories. His 68,000 troops defeated almost 90,000 Russians and Austrians, forcing Austria to make peace with France (Treaty of Pressburg) and keeping Prussia temporarily out of the anti-France alliance. Napoleon lost 9,000 men, while Russia and Austria lost 15,000 killed and 11,000 captured.

1814: The Comte de Sade, also known as the Marquis de Sade, died. His sexual fetishes and writings about them led to his name becoming the origin of the term "sadism."

1823: U.S. President James Monroe declared his "Monroe Doctrine." It stated that the entire continents of North and South America were no longer open to colonization by any European (referring primarily to Britain, France or Spain) power. Ironically, while it was intended to prevent further imperialism by European nations, it marked the birth of "Imperial America" toward the rest of the world.

1848: Franz Josef became the emperor of Austria and King of Hungary.

1859: Abolitionist John Brown was hanged after a famous raid on a federal arsenal in Virginia.

1918: Armenia proclaimed independence from Turkey.

1942: In Chicago, scientists developed nuclear fission, the basis of the atomic bomb.

1946: The United States and Britain merged the German occupation zones in their sectors, which eventually became West Germany. The Russian sector became East Germany.

1954: Senator Joseph McCarthy was censured by the U.S. Senate for misconduct after his ruthless public "investigations" of many thousands of people whose lives and careers were severely damaged or destroyed after they were publicly "blacklisted" after McCarthy falsely accused them of being communists (nearly all were simply patriotic Democrats whose electoral opposition frustrated and enraged McCarthy, who was a Republican convert; President Eisenhower, also a Republican, disapproved of witch-hunt "McCarthyism," saying that he refused to "get down in the gutter with that guy"). McCarthy died in 1957, at the age of 48, of liver failure caused by his alcoholism.

1958: Belgium, the Netherlands and Luxembourg signed the Benelux Treaty.

1971: The Soviet Mars 3 space probe landed on Mars.

1979: Iranian electors voted in favor of a new constitution giving absolute power to Ayatollah Khomeini.

1982: Barney Clark received the first permanent artificial heart transplant, developed by Dr. Robert K. Jarvik.

1990: Helmut Kohl was re-elected as Chancellor of Germany in the first all-Germany election since the time of Adolf Hitler.