Abraham, a Man Under Grace and You

By Edwin Ocasio

Come and meet a person who was called by God out of humble beginnings, stumbled in his faith, and later became known as the Man of Faith. Youll find out that the individual is not only Abraham, but you as well! See how God transforms him (You!).

You will also a meet a man named Paul whom God used to affirm the grace that Abraham, you, and I were called to live out.

• Language: English
• Publisher: WestBow Press
• Release date: Feb 20, 2018
• ISBN: 9781973615989

Edwin Ocasio

Edwin Ocasio has been involved in teaching ministries for over twenty-five years. He has led Bible Studies in prison, churches, and homes. Edwin has a gift of teaching which includes simplifying scholastic terminologies into laymans terms so that the word of God is understood at all levels.

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Copyright © 2018 Edwin Ocasio.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced by any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping or by any information storage retrieval system without the written permission of the author except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

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Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Thinkstock are models, and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

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Scripture quotations taken from the New American Standard Bible® (NASB),

Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973,

1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation

Used by permission. www.Lockman.org

Scriptures taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide. www.zondervan.com The NIV and New International Version are trademarks registered in the United States Patent and Trademark Office by Biblica, Inc.™

This book is a work of non-fiction. Unless otherwise noted, the author and the publisher make no explicit guarantees as to the accuracy of the information contained in this book and in some cases, names of people and places have been altered to protect their privacy.

ISBN: 978-1-9736-1599-6 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-9736-1600-9 (hc)

ISBN: 978-1-9736-1598-9 (e)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2017919770

WestBow Press rev. date: 02/08/2018

To my wife, Grace, who has inspired me to write by way of her dogged determination and perseverance in life, issuing forth from her love for the One who has called her to be a wife, mother, writer, editor, and teacher.

To my daughter, Chloe, who at seven years old reminds me of that childlike attitude we should have before our heavenly Father. She simply asks one question when I get home from work: Daddy can you play with me?

To my mom, Leila, whom God has used to pass on to me spiritual gifts.

To my dad, Calvin, whom God fastened as a nail in a sure place in my life.

Special thanks to my dear brother in the Lord, Ron Goode, for contributing nuggets of wisdom that found their way into this book.

CONTENTS

Introduction

Abraham, A Man Under Grace and You

Chapter 1

To Follow or Not to Follow: Called by God

Chapter 2

Faith Building

Chapter 3

A Timely Meeting with a Unique Person

Chapter 4

God’s Confirmation and Assurance

Chapter 5

A Delivered Promise

Chapter 6

A Time of Testing

Chapter 7

It’s Always Been a Matter of Grace

Conclusion

God’s Plan for You

INTRODUCTION

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Abraham, A Man Under Grace and You

M any Christians know the stories of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. These men, who are known as the patriarchs , are seen as representing the nation of Israel. God gave the patriarchs certain promises that flowed down to the nation of Israel. Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob are so important that God refers to them as being their God: I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob (Exodus 3:6).

Unfortunately, the patriarchs are often viewed as only historical figures in the history of Israel. They are read and studied individually—not as one person, one man…you. Does the concept of three persons representing one sound familiar? These three patriarchs also represent the Holy Trinity. Regarding the study of the three individuals as one individual, Watchman Nee speaks of their experiences as being ours.¹ If we were to step back and look at their physical lives as well, we see in the Bible that while Abraham was still living, the story of Isaac was introduced in detail and then Abraham died. While Isaac was still living, the story of Jacob was introduced in detail and then Isaac died. These three patriarchs were representing one individual…you!

Isn’t God great in how He reveals His truths? He uses the natural to explain the spiritual. Nature always speaks to the existence of God. Our solar system contains a bright star called the sun around which the planets revolve—exactly like everything revolves around the Son, our Savior. The sun’s bright light permeates the darkest darkness from millions of miles away. Go to a room in the house, turn off the lights, open a closet door, and rays of light coming through the window will penetrate into the deepest corner of that closet. Even a small pinhole will allow that light traveling over ninety million miles to penetrate through the darkness. Jesus does that with man’s heart, for He is the true light of humanity (John 1:4, 5, 9). Nature, including our own natural bodies, is waiting for change. Better yet, nature cries out that there is a God, and is, in fact, moaning as it waits for His return to change into something more glorious (Romans 8:22).

Our view of the patriarchs is in the natural and physical level, which includes how they related to the nation of Israel. Before looking at Abraham from a spiritual perspective, we must recognize that spiritual matters are higher than the natural even though, from man’s perspective, the natural came first. However, spiritual matters are much more edifying and hold far more value to us (1 Corinthians 15:46). We must seek the spiritual things that are revealed to us by the Holy Spirit.

With that introduction, I pray the Lord opens our spiritual eyes in order to see Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the spiritual light God wants to reveal to us. Indeed, these patriarchs are significant historical figures to whom promises were given that affected an entire nation. A spiritual reality goes far beyond that fact. God wants today’s Christians to see that those three men are…you! No wonder they are so important to the nation of Israel—although for the present, the Jews do not realize the comprehensiveness of this truth.

This book will detail how the patriarchs, namely Abraham, his son Isaac, and his grandson Jacob truly relate to today’s Christians. The key points to constantly keep in mind regarding the patriarchal trinity are as follows:

The Patriarchal Trinity Represents You

1) Abraham was called out of a pagan world in the same way today’s Christians have been called out of this world to follow Jesus (2 Timothy 1:9).

2) Isaac inherited everything his father had formerly possessed, including the promises of God. Today’s Christians are co-heirs with Jesus and will inherit all that belongs to God the Father through His Son Jesus Christ (Romans 8:17).

3) Jacob struggled with his trust, faith, and dependency on God because of his humanity. He tried to manipulate matters for his benefit and to have his way—not God’s way. Even his name Jacob affirms his deceptive character: One who trips [you] up or supplanter. Once God had transformed Jacob, only then was Jacob able to enjoy the blessings God bestowed on him. As Christians, we struggle with our sinful nature (Romans 7:15-20), and the Holy Spirit works in our lives to help us overcome our sinfulness in a process called sanctification.

God is marvelous! I am the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. I am the God of ___ (fill in your name).

The Patriarchal Trinity Represents the Holy Trinity

1) Abraham represents God the Father. He is the progenitor of the Israelite people. The inheritance he gives to Isaac and the offering up of Isaac, his only son, to God by faith represents the inheritance being passed on.

2) Isaac represents Jesus Christ the Son. As the son, Isaac inherits everything his father has for him. He humbly obeys his father as he is about to be sacrificed by the one who loves him.

3) Jacob’s transformation represents God’s work in us through the Holy Spirit. After God’s dealing with Jacob through using the Holy Spirit’s work in his heart, Jacob becomes a new man renamed Israel. God had changed his heart so a new name was given to him to represent the new life. We are also a new creation (2 Corinthians 5:17), and we will be given a new name as well (Revelation 2:7).

A study of the lives of the patriarchal trinity reveals some key steps in following the Lord: 1) God calls you, 2) You live by faith, 3) You learn obedience to God, and 3) You dwell in the land.

Grace Vs. the Law

One more very important fact regarding these three men who together represent you is as follows: they lived not only by faith but by God’s grace. These three men, like Adam, were not aware of the Law, which is the basis for some Christians’ confidence. These three men were individually and directly given promises by God. The Jewish people hold tightly to these three men as their patriarchs because of God’s promises made to them. The Jews are standing on the Law while holding on to the promises of God given to men who lived not under the Law but under grace.

Do you see what God was doing? Do you see what saves them? It is grace. The promises of God were given to them in grace by God for they knew nothing of the Law that was to come. God, in His great wisdom, did not tie His promises to the Law! God does not change a beat from the time of Adam. When Adam and Eve sinned, God made clothing from animal skins (represents the shedding of blood for the price of sin) to cover them, and He made a promise that Eve’s seed (Christ) would crush the serpent’s head (Satan). God’s promise and His subsequent actions were not attached to the Law. The promise was consummated by grace birthed out of love for them…and us. Neither were the promises attached to the Law for grace was always there—well before the Law was made known to man.

That the Law was written down on a tablet by God and delivered by angels so that there was, if you will, hard evidence on earth aside from the Bible is interesting. But when it comes to the promises, God provided no hard evidence written in His hand aside from the Bible. Why? I believe God’s promises are believed and accepted by faith based on His grace. When Jesus was born, the promises, through grace and truth, became hard physical evidence. The apostle John said that God’s Word, including the promises spoken to the patriarchs, became flesh (John 1:1).

The Law pointed out how holy, righteous and just God is, which simultaneously showed us that we are not (Romans 7:12-14). Out of the patriarchal trinity, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, which one of them knew the full extent of his sins before God? None. Only God knew the full extent of their sins. If you will, God created the cheat sheet, the Law, so that we are without excuse. The patriarchs were chosen, stood and lived according to God’s grace. A relationship built on God’s grace offers life, but the Law brings about death because of man’s sinful flesh (Romans 7:9).

Perhaps God has blessed you with children. They play in front of you without a care in the world, having fun and not keeping track of each and every wrong they do. The Law, however, does exactly that…keeps track. In fact, the Law requires keeping track of a person’s sin. As a parent, if one of your kids does wrong, the person who traditionally steps into the child’s life to correct him is you, of course. The children need not keep checking the rules every second of their lives. In fact, what they learn of right or wrong springs forth from a living relationship of discipline, grace, mercy, and truth) that they have with their parents. They learn from constant interaction and watching their parents. Grace works much the same way.

These three men did not have a Bible, let alone the Law to guide them. What they did