The book
of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the Son of David, the Son of Abraham.
Matthew 1:1*
Abraham was special. He had special promises, a special
relationship with God, and a special place in human history. It is not
surprising that he was a significant ancestor of the Messiah. Both genealogies
of Christ call Him the Son of Abraham.
The patriarch was promised “descendants as the dust of the
earth” (Genesis 13:16). That means
lots – too many to number. And so it is today the true number could never be
reached. Both the Jewish people and Arabs proudly consider Abraham as their
father (the Jews through Isaac and Arabs through Ishmael). Both ethnic groups
are sons of Abraham although they don’t necessarily have the patriarch’s
features.
God’s promises to Abraham weren’t really about billions of
people claiming relationship through some distant DNA but being conformed to
the faith and actions of Abraham. Zacchaeus was Jewish by birth but ostracized
from Jewish society because of his political affiliation. When the little man
came to Christ, the Savior declared “Today salvation has come to this house,
because he also is a son of Abraham”
(Luke 19:9).
In a very real sense this is what happens to believers when
their faith is life changing and they believe God’s promises to be true just
like Abraham did. “Just as Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him
for righteousness” (Galatians 3:6), therefore know that only those who are of
faith are true sons of Abraham.
Because I have faith in Christ, I’m adopted into the family
of God and I become a son of Abraham.
Sisters in Christ are Abraham’s daughters. This is one of the few titles that
Christians can actually share with their master. Praise God!
*See also Luke 3:34
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