We had a great discussion last night about the way traits and tendencies get passed through the generations, and importantly, ways we can move beyond negative inheritances to create and own our identities as children of God.
One thing we didn’t get to come back around to last night was that even though we saw all of the deception in the generations of Abraham, he ultimately remained faithful to God and God kept his promise to number his descendants like the stars in the heavens or the sand on the beach. Genesis 15:6 says of Abraham, “And he believed in the Lord, and He accounted it to him for righteousness.” To this day, he is considered the father of the faith for Christians, Jews, and Muslims. Even Jacob, who was mostly portrayed in a negative light, ends up having his name changed to Israel and his 12 sons would become known as the 12 tribes of Israel and the nation as we know it today is named after him. Many other great men of the bible came through their generations as well, including David, Solomon, and this guy named Jesus.
Scripture references from last night:
- Genesis 12:1-10 – Abraham calls his wife his sister
- Genesis 20:1-2 – Abraham calls his wife his sister again
- Genesis 26:1-11 – Isaac calls his wife his sister
- Genesis 34 – Rape, murder, deceit, greed…
- Galatians 4:1-7 – Heirs of God
- Galatians 5:22-23 – Fruit of the Spirit
- Ephesians 6:1-4 – Obey your parents, don’t provoke your children
College & Career Ministry 