"The Abrahamic Covenant"

"The Abrahamic Covenant" Lesson 7,
Compiled by Maren Hale, February 14, 2010,
Pleasant View 1st Ward

Readings: Abraham 1:1-4; 2:1-11; Genesis 12:1-8; 17:1-9

Board: People who accept the gospel and live it are called “the children of
Abraham.” (LDS Institute Old Testament Manual)

INTRODUCTION

In 1957, the First Presidency said:

“Patriarchal blessings [are] an inspired declaration of the lineage of the recipient, and also, where so moved upon by the Spirit, an inspired and prophetic statement of the life mission of the recipient,…” (Letter to stake presidents, June 28, 1957, quoted in Mormon Doctrine, 2nd ed., Elder Bruce R. McConkie, 1966, p. 558)

I know that most of us have received our patriarchal blessings as well as heard them pronounced on the heads of our children.

QUESTION: When a patriarch declares our lineage, what does he declare to us? [He reveals to us that we are descendants of the prophet Abraham through Ephraim, Manasseh, or another of Abraham’s descendants.]

Our lesson today discusses the blessings we can receive and the responsibilities we have as Abraham’s descendants.

Body

God covenants with Abraham

Abraham’s genealogy:

There are 9 generations between Noah and Abraham. 19 generations between Adam and Abraham.

It is interesting to note that Noah lived past the time of Abraham’s birth and Shem, Noah’s son, actually outlived Abraham.

Chronologically, we have:
4000 B.C. – the fall of Adam
2300-2400 B.C. – the flood
1996 B.C. – the birth of Abraham

Abraham in Ur:

Abraham lived the early part of his life in Ur, in the land of the Chaldeans, not far from the northern tip of the Persian Gulf (now Iraq, close to the borders of Kuwait and Iran).
● Ur was the largest city of Shinar or northern Chaldea, and the principal
commercial center of the country as well as the center of political power.
● Ur was consecrated to the worship of Sin, the Babylonian moon-god.

As a young man, Abraham desired to live righteously and live worthy of the blessings of God. (Abraham 1:1-6).

The Lord made a covenant with Abraham that he would greatly multiply his seed. (Abraham 1:2).

“Abraham would become the father of many nations. The Lord would covenant with Abraham and his seed, and He would be their God.” (Teachings and Commentaries on the Old Testament, Ed. J. Pinegar and Richard J. Allen, p. 296)

SCRIPTURE: Abraham 1:2

“And, finding there was greater happiness and peace and rest for me, I sought for the blessings of the fathers, and the right whereunto I should be ordained to administer the same; having been myself a follower of righteousness, desiring also to be one who possessed great knowledge, and to be a greater follower of righteousness, and to possess a greater knowledge, and to be a father of many nations, a prince of peace, and desiring to receive instructions, and to keep the commandments of God, I became a rightful heir, a High Priest, holding the right belonging to the fathers.”

QUESTION: Abraham had a desire for the “blessings of the fathers.” What is that? [The priesthood]

QUOTE #1: Elder Bruce R. McConkie: “…It has become the right of those holding special inheritance in the Lord’s chosen lineage to receive the priesthood, provided they are obedient and faithful. Thus Abraham ‘sought for the blessings of the fathers,’ and by righteousness ‘became a rightful heir, a High Priest, holding the right belonging to the fathers.’ The priesthood, he says, ‘was conferred upon me from the fathers; it came down from the fathers, from the beginning of time, yea, even from the beginning, or before the foundations of the earth to the present time, even the right of the firstborn, on the first man, who is Adam, our first father, through the fathers, unto me. I sought for mine appointment unto the Priesthood according to the appointment of God unto the fathers concerning the seed’ (Abraham 1:1-4).” (Mormon Doctrine, p. 478)

Abraham’s fathers turned from righteousness to the worship of the heathen gods.

SCRIPTURE: Abraham 1:5

“My fathers, having turned from their righteousness, and from the holy commandments which the Lord their God had given unto them, unto the worshiping of the gods of the heather, utterly refused to hearken to my voice; [They had become apostate]

They “endeavored” to take away Abraham’s life “by the hand of the priest of Elkenah,” who was also a priest of Pharaoh (Abraham 1:7,12).

SCRIPTURE: Abraham 1:15-16

15. “And as they lifted up their hands upon me, that they might offer me up and take away my life, behold, I lifted up my voice unto the Lord my God, and the Lord hearkened and heard, and he filled me with the vision of the Almighty, and the angel of his presence stood by me, and immediately unloosed my hands.

16. “And his voice was unto me: Abraham, Abraham, behold my name is Jehovah, and I have heard thee, and have come down to deliver thee, and to take thee away from thy father’s house, and from all thy kinsfolk, into a strange land which thou knowest not of;

We learn in verse 1:20 that “..The Lord broke down the altar of Elkenah, and of the gods of the land, and utterly destroyed them, and smote the priest that he died.”

A famine was then sent upon the land of Chaldea. Abraham says that his “father was sorely tormented because of the famine, and he repented of the evil which he had determined against me.” (Abraham 1:30)

Then “The Lord God caused the famine to wax sore in the land of Ur.” Abraham’s brother, Haran, died as a result of the famine (Abraham 2:1).

Abraham then took Sarai as his wife and went from Ur. (Abraham 2:2).

Abraham Migrates from Ur

SCRIPTURE: 2:3-4

3. “Now the Lord had said unto me: Abraham, get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father’s house, unto a land that I will show thee.

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.”
Haran was near the Turkish-Syrian border and they lived there for a time.

QUOTE #2

Elder John A. Widtsoe: “Abraham was a chosen spirit, destined to be a great leader of the work of the Lord. He was commanded to move into another land to be shown him where he might be free to worship the Lord of earth and the heavens….In obedience to God’s command, Abraham, with believing members of his family, moved into the promised land known to us as Palestine.” (Evidences and Reconciliations, 3:25)

SCRIPTURE: Abraham 2:5

“And the famine abated; and my father tarried in Haran and dwelt there, as there were many flocks in Haran; and my father turned again unto his Idolatry, therefore he continued in Haran.”

Abraham’s father wavered between idolatry and the true God. This wavering between worshipping the things of this world and the true God is a never ending struggle.

QUESTION: How can we make our commitment to God more consistent? What keeps us on the straight and narrow? [Be anxiously engaged in the gospel – meet with the Saints often, maintain a temple recommends, learn, pray, serve].

Let’s read the advice of 2 of our prophets on our commitment to God:

QUOTE #3

President Joseph F. Smith: "In Christ's Church we cannot be neutral or inert. We must either progress or retrograde. It is necessary for the Latter-day Saints to keep pushing on in order that they may keep their faith alive and their spirits quickened to the performance of their duties. Let us remember that we are engaged in God's work—and when I say God's work, I mean that we are engaged in the work which the Almighty has instituted in the earth for our salvation individually. Every man should be laboring for his own good and as far as possible for the good of others." (Gospel Doctrine, p. 115)

QUOTE #4

President Lorenzo Snow: "We should labor for perfection so far as possible, and seek to go onward. There is no man or woman who can stand still any great length of time. In this path over which we are moving we are very likely to go backward if we undertake to stand still or act indifferently. We must push forward, because as the Church moves on, it is very evident that things of a more difficult character are occurring constantly, and we will find it far from easy to overcome them. Unless we improve as we move along we will find it very difficult to magnify our callings and to perform the work required at our hands. Latter-day Saints should not permit themselves to stand still. It is a privilege we have to serve the Lord and enjoy His spirit in our labors, but many of the people lose that portion of happiness that they might enjoy because of not reflecting seriously upon their duties and acting wisely and prudently." (Teachings of Lorenzo Snow, p. 95)

The Abrahamic Covenant

While in Haran, Abraham prayed and received a vision in which God covenanted to bless him and his posterity. This is called the Abrahamic Covenant.

“The Abrahamic Covenant embraces the divine promise to grant unto the faithful special gathering places of refuge upon the earth, as well as an ultimate home among the mansions of the Father on high.” (Teachings and Commentary on the Old Testament, Ed J. Pinegar and Richard J. Allen, p. 298)

Let’s read about this covenant.

SCRIPTURE: Abraham 2:6-11

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.

7. “For I am the Lord thy God; I dwell in heaven; the earth is my footstool; I stretch my hand over the sea, and it obeys my voice; I cause the wind and the fire to be my chariot; I say to the mountains – Depart hence – and behold, they are taken away by a whirlwind, in an instant, suddenly.

8. “My name is Jehovah, and I know the end from the beginning; therefore my hand shall be over thee.

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;

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;

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), for I give unto thee a promise that this right shall continue in thee, and in thy seed after thee (that is to say, the literal seed, or the seed of the body) 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.”

QUOTE #5:

Elder Bruce R. McConkie: “Abraham’s inheritance in Canaan, for himself and his seed after him, was to be an eternal inheritance, one that would endure in time and in eternity. This promise is the hope of Israel, the hope that the meek shall inherit the earth, first during the millennial era and finally in that same immortal state when the earth becomes a celestial sphere. (Mormon Doctrine, 2nd ed., pp. 366-368). The principle is the same as when the Lord spoke to his Latter-day Saints of their ‘land of promise.’’ [D&C 38:19-20].” (Doctrinal New Testament Commentary, 2:71)

“From time to time, the Lord sets apart certain lands and locations as ordained gathering places [or Holy places] for His covenant people:

● In the Middle East, it was the Holy Land;
● In the Book of Mormon context, it was the Americas;
● In the latter days, it is the stakes of Zion,
and eventually the New Jerusalem.

All of this mortal geography is but a type and symbol for the eternal abode of the righteous in the eventual heavenly courts of the Father and Son.” Teachings and Commentary on the Old Testament, Ed J. Pinegar and Richard J. Allen, p. 298)

We as heirs to this covenant are always in search of Holy places

EXPERIENCE: Stand in Holy places.

I’m sure that each of us has had a time in our lives when we felt alone.
As a teenager, I remember feeling quite alone as I walked a mile to seminary at 6:00 a.m. in the morning. After seminary I took a city bus to school. I was one of 2 active members of Church at our large high school.

After school, I waited for a bus, transferred to a second bus, and walked to an empty home. I waited for my younger brother to come home from school. I rode my bike alone to piano lessons. I rode the bus into downtown Washington, D.C. for ballet lessons and art lessons. My mother, a widow, worked in downtown Washington, D.C. I made dinner and waited for her to come home each night.

I don’t remember feeling sorry for myself or alone in my teenage years. I felt secure. I knew my mother loved me. I knew I was a child of God. I knew I could pray to Him and that He would answer my prayers. I felt the Spirit prompt me and guide me. There were occasions where I felt the Spirit warn me to quickly leave some place and I obeyed. I can remember that I used my long walks as a time of prayer and meditation. I realize now that I was in a Holy place.

QUESTION: What are some Holy places we may gather and abide in?

1. Our own hearts and minds are holy places as we purify and make ourselves
a place where the Spirit can abide. [I felt the Spirit as a child]

2. Our own families and homes are holy places when we work diligently to
make them sanctuaries of safety that are hospitable to the Spirit.
[As a mother, I always made sure the house was clean, that there was a healthy snack on the table, and that lovely music was playing as my
children entered our home following a day at school – I wanted them to
feel the Spirit as they entered our home] QUESTION: How have you
brought the Spirit into your homes?

3. Our wards and stakes are holy places for the covenant children of our
Father in Heaven. [I have always loved taking every opportunity to meet
with the Saints – my spirit is fed and my testimony strengthened]

4. Our temples are holy places where we gather for spiritual refuge. [I love
entering the temple where I feel great peace. It is like I’m coming home]


We are Heirs to the blessings and responsibilities of the Abrahamic Covenant.

We understand from verse 9 that Abraham would be made “a great nation” (Abraham 2:9), and that in his seed “all the families of the earth shall be blessed, even with the blessings of the Gospel, which are the blessings of salvation, even of eternal life” (Abraham 2/11).

The Abrahamic Covenant embraces the divine promise of the abundance of “seed” (posterity) upon the earth, as well as eternal increase in the hereafter through the blessings of eternal marriage. (Abraham 2:9)

Brigham Young: “Abraham was faithful to the true God; he overthrew the idols of his father and obtained the Priesthood after the order of Mechizedek, which is after the order of the Son of God, and a promise that of the increase of his seed there should be no end; when you obtain the holy Priesthood, which is after the order of Melchizedek, sealed upon you, and the promise that your seed shall be numerous as the stars in the firmament, or as the sands upon the seashore, and of your increase there shall be no end, you have then got the promise of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and all the blessings that were conferred upon them.” (Discourses of Brigham Young, 106)

Verse 10 tells us that all Church members are the “Seed of Abraham.”

Abraham 2:10. “…for as many as receive this Gospel… shall be accounted thy seed…;”

QUOTE #6:

President Joseph Fielding Smith: “The great majority of those who become members of the Church are literal descendants of Abraham through Ephraim, son of Joseph. Those who are not literal descendants of Abraham and Israel must become such, and when they are baptized and confirmed they are grafted into the tree and are entitled to all the rights and privileges as heirs.” (Doctrines of Salvation, 3:246)

QUOTE #7:

Joseph Smith: "...the effect of the Holy Ghost upon a Gentile, is to purge out the old blood, and make him actually of the seed of Abraham. That man that has none of the blood of Abraham (naturally) must have a new creation by the Holy Ghost." (TPJS, p149)

Heirs to the covenant

We become heirs to this Abrahamic Coveant through baptism and temple odinances]

1. When we are baptized into the Church, the Abrahamic covenant’s promise of salvation is renewed with us.

QUOTE #8:

Brother Robert L. Millet: “Those who are not lineal descendants of the ancient patriarchs may, through baptism into the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, be adopted into Abraham’s family and become heirs to all the blessings promised to those who are actual descendants…” (Alive in Christ: The Miracle of Spiritual Rebirth, 78 - 79)

2. When we are sealed in the temple, the Abrahamic covenant’s promise of exaltation is renewed with us.

Blessings and Responsibilities of the Abrahamic Covenant:

Earthly Blessings:
1. A promised land to live in
2. A great posterity
3. The gospel of Jesus Christ and the
Priesthood for Abraham and his posterity

Eternal Parallels:
1. The celestial kingdom
2. Eternal marriage and eternal increase
3. Exaltation and eternal life

Lets talk about our RESPONSIBILITIES as heirs of the Abrahamic coveant:

1. Help all of God’s children receive the full blessings of the gospel (Abraham 2:9,11)

Abraham 2:9: “… thou shalt be a blessing unto thy seed after thee,…they shall bear this ministry and Priesthood unto all nations;

Abraham 2:11: “…and in thy seed…shall all the families of the earth be blessed…”

QUOTE #9

Elder John A. Widtsoe: "This covenant with Abraham was also a call to leadership. Therefore, it has been interpreted to mean that Abraham and his descendants were chosen to conserve in purity and to advance on earth the eternal plan for human salvation." (Gospel Interpretations, p. 95)

QUOTE Joseph Fielding McConkie reminds us that –

Joseph Fielding McConkie: “In claiming to be a chosen people, we make no pretense to be superior to any other people but simply claim to have been chosen to serve as the Lord’s messengers in declaring the message of salvation among the nations of the earth. Ours is a call to service, not to privilege, though the service itself is such…” (Answers: Straightforward Answers to Tough Gospel Questions, pp. 181-182)

Another responsibility as heirs of the Abrahamic covenant is to:

2. Obey God’s commandments (Genesis 18:19)

Genesis 18:19: “For I know him, that he will command his children and his household after him, and they shall keep the way of the Lord, to do justice and judgment; that the Lord may bring upon Abraham that which he hath spoken of him.]

QUESTION: What are some of the ways we can help all of God’s children receive the full blessings of the gospel? [Missionary work, genealogy and temple work, being examples of righteousness]

1. We help God’s children receive the full blessings of the gospel through
Missionary work.

QUOTE:

President Ezra Taft Benson: “The responsibility of the seed of Abraham, which we are, is to be missionaries to ‘bear this ministry and Priesthood unto all nations’
(Abraham 2:9).” (Conference Report, April 1987, p. 107)

“The solemn obligation associated with the Abrahamic Covenant is to be worthy spiritual servants to the world, delivering to all nations, kindreds, tongues, and peoples the blessings associated with the kingdom of God upon the earth, including the priesthood in all its saving functions.” (Teachings and Commentaries on the Old Testament, Ed J. Pinegar and Richard J. Allen, p. 304)

Think of our young elders and sister missionaries, our retired missionary couples, our senior single sister missionaries, and each of us as member missionareis, as you read Elder Bruce R. McConkie’s “Mission Commision”:

“I am called of God. My authority is above that of kings of the earth. By revelation I have been selected as a personal representative of the Lord Jesus Christ. He is my master and He has chosen me to represent Him – to stand in His place, to say and do what He Himself would say and do if He personally were ministering to the very people to whom He has sent me. My voice is His voice, and my acts are His acts; my doctrine is His doctrine. My Commission is to do what He wants done; to say what He wants said; to be a living modern witness in word and deed of the divinity of His great and marvelous Latter-day work. How great is my calling!” (How Great Is My Calling)

President Kimball tells how we go about doing this great missionary work:

President Spencer W. Kimball: “We are not interested in numbers. They are secondary. We are interested in warning the nations of the world. I believe we have not scratched the surface….Our goal is nothing less than the penetration of the entire world….Evengelization of the world does not mean that all men will respond, but all men must be given the opportunity to respond as they are confronted with the Christ. (Teachings of Spencer W. Kimball, p. 545)

2. We help God’s children receive the full blessings of the gospel by doing genealogy and performing temple ordinances for the dead.

SCRIPTURE:

D&C 128:24: “Let us, therefore, as a church and a people, and as Latter-day Saints, offer unto the Lord an offering in righteousness; and let us present in his holy temple, when it is finished, a book containing the records of our dead, which shall be worthy of all acceptation.”

3. We help God’s children receive the full blessings of the gospel by being examples of righteousness.

SCRIPTURE: Matthew 5:15

“Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.”

CONCLUSION

“On April 3, 1836, as part of a magnificent sequence of heavenly manifestations in the newly completed Kirtland Temple, Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery experienced a visitation by Elias, who “committed the dispensation of the gospel of Abraham, saying that in us and our seed all generations after us should be blessed” (D&C 110:12).

“Thus the continuity of the Lord’s ancient covenant program was assured in the latter days.

“The Lord delights in blessing his children:

● He gives them places of refuge in this world (lands and gathering places, such as
the stakes of Zion).

● He gives them hope for eternal mansions on high.

● He makes them fruitful in their posterity and gives them the hope of eternal
increase through the blessings of temple marriage.

● He provides the fullness of the everlasting gospel of Jesus Christ and the
priesthood of God, with its ennobling and redeeming power to grant immortality
and eternal life for the valiant who endure to the end.

“For all of these extraordinary blessings, He asks only that we walk in righteousness and obey his commandments, sharing our witness to the world through His missionary program.

“The central blessing for those who participate in the Abrahamic Covenant is to have the fullness of the gospel of Jesus Christ while on earth, including all the essential saving doctrines and the associated blessings of the priesthood, plus the hope and promise of immortality and eternal life in the hereafter.” (Teachings and Commentaries on the Old Testament, Ed J. Pinegar and Richard J. Allen, p. 304)

I know that the Lord established with Abraham and his posterity a covenant of righteousness, with an eternal promise of granting earthly and heavenly blessings
based on obedience and service. I am grateful for the Abrahamic Covenant.

May we honor this covenant of righteousness, I pray.

References:

Comentaries on the Old Testament, Ed. J. Pinegar and Richard J. Allen.
LDS Old Testament Teachers Manual, Lesson 7
LDS Institute Old Testament Manual
Old Testament lesson, Bob Beardall
Personal experience, Maren Hardy Hale
Quote sources as designated in lesson