BVOV Magazine 2013 - present

Exactly what kind of faith did Abraham have? He had the same kind God uses! No human being ever had that kind of faith until Abraham came along. But he caught hold of it and once he did, he used it to the max. He actually believed God to the point that he perpetuated his seed to a thousand generations. He put so much faith in his covenant with God that there was no way God could ever annul that covenant or call it off. As He said to Abraham in Genesis 22:16-18: “By myself have I sworn, for because thou hast done this thing, and hast not withheld thy son, thine only son: that in blessing I will bless thee, and in multiplying I will multiply thy seed as the stars of the heaven, and as the sand which is upon the sea shore; and thy seed shall possess the gate of his enemies; and in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed; because thou hast obeyed my voice.” Notice that according to those verses Abraham’s faith in God was so strong he didn’t withhold from Him even his own son. He went up the mountain and put Isaac on the altar of sacrifice simply because God asked him to. As a result, he obligated God, as his covenant partner, to do the same. He put God in the position where He was bound by covenant to sacrifice His own Son for the sake of all mankind. Up until Abraham, God hadn’t found that kind of faith on the earth. He’d found some people who would believe Him for financial BLESSINGS or for healing. But no one had ever believed God to raise someone from the dead—and when Abraham offered Isaac, that’s exactly what he was believing God would do. Abraham wasn’t brokenhearted and crying the day he took Isaac to the altar, like the silly Hollywood movies portray him. He had the fire of faith flashing in his eyes. He was “accounting that God was able to raise [Isaac] up, even from the dead; from whence also he received him in a figure” (Hebrews 11:19). As far as Abraham was concerned, the outcome was certain. God had said, “In Isaac shall thy seed be called” (Genesis 21:12); and Abraham absolutely believed it. He fully expected to sacrifice that boy and then watch God raise him up from the ashes. Of course, God sent the ram to take Isaac’s place so his blood was never shed…but ultimately what Abraham believed came to pass. Jesus died on the cross as God’s sacrifice, to set us free from sin and the curse, and after He spent three days in the heart of the earth, Abraham’s faith finally bore fruit. His faith for resurrection slammed together with the power of Almighty God and Jesus was raised from the dead! If you’re wondering how Abraham’s faith, which was released thousands of years before the cross, could have anything to do with Jesus’ resurrection, it’s because there’s no time in God. It doesn’t make any difference to Him if it’s a thousand years, 10 minutes or a split second. God doesn’t forget anything except the sins we put under the blood of Jesus. Every ounce of faith any of us have ever released is still on record with Him. You might have believed God for something 35 years ago and then let go of it, but as far as God is concerned that faith is still in force. If you’ll stand on your covenant rights, you can reconnect with it and pick up right where you left off. You can get back on your faith in that area and receive the fulfillment of the promises that are yours through Abraham’s covenant with God. A Covenant With God on Both Ends “But Brother Copeland,” you might say, “as a New Covenant believer, God’s promises to me aren’t through Abraham, they’re through Jesus. They’re mine because of what He did.” That’s absolutely true. It was also true for Abraham. His was a covenant with God on both ends. Read in Genesis 15 about how God established it and you’ll see what I mean. When He cut His covenant with Abraham He came down Himself, walked in the blood of the sacrificial animals, and made covenant promises to Abraham’s Seed. “He saith not, And to seeds, as of many; but as of one, And to thy seed, which is Christ” (Galatians 3:16). Abraham’s covenant had God Almighty on one side and His Son, Jesus, on the other! God basically said to Abraham, “If you’ll believe this covenant and act on it, I’ll treat you just like I treat Jesus. You’ll be able to approach Me with the same confidence He does, and I’ll receive you and treat you like you’ve never sinned.” God has said the same thing to us in the New Covenant. He’s not saying, “Get away from Me, you sinner.” He has invited us to come boldly to His throne of grace. He’s saying to us, “I’ve wiped out your sin and I’m no longer holding it against you. You’ve been washed in the blood of the Lamb and if you’ll walk before Me by faith in Him, I’ll treat you like you never sinned!” This is the reason we can follow in the footsteps of Abraham’s faith. We’re in on the same covenant. Galatians 3 confirms this. It says clearly, “They which be of faith are blessed with faithful Abraham. For ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus. For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus. And if ye be Christ's, then are ye Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise” (verses 9, 26-29). Look again at the last verse. It refers to you and me, as believers, as Abraham’s “seed.” The word seed there is singular, talking about us just as it is in verse 16 when it’s referring to Jesus. That’s important. It lets us know that when it comes to walking in the faith of Abraham, we’re all in this together. We’re one with Jesus and He’s one with us. 8 : BVOV

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