Galatians 3:29 Blessings of Abraham are Ours to Claim

by | May 12, 2016 | For Parents, Promises to Claim | 0 comments

 

 

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My amazing discovery because of Galatians 3:29:

For years, I thought I have understood Genesis 22:18 where God promised Abraham that “In your seed all the nations of the earth shall be blessed..”. My understanding of that verse was that Christ Jesus would come as a descendant of Abraham and by believing in Christ Jesus, our sins are forgiven, we are saved, we have eternal life and we will not be thrown into the lake of fire in hell when we die.

I have always taken that as something I will experience after I die. As for life on earth, there is not much change even after I became a Christian. I have much problems and struggled badly.  I heard Christian friends commenting that the lives of believers are more difficult than non-believers because we will be persecuted. Actually, it is not supposed to be that way. That is a wrong belief because the bible said that as Christians we have the Holy Spirit (John 14:16,  Galatians 3:14) and Jesus had overcome the world (John 16:33) as well as the promise He gave us that we can ask anything in His name and our Heavenly Father will give to us (John 16:23-24). Apostle Paul wrote about this incredible power that believers have (Ephesians 1:18-20, Romans 8:11):

I also pray that you will understand the incredible greatness of God’s power for us who believe him. This is the same mighty power that raised Christ from the dead and seated him in the place of honor at God’s right hand in the heavenly realms.

The Spirit of God, who raised Jesus from the dead, lives in you. And just as God raised Christ Jesus from the dead, he will give life to your mortal bodies by this same Spirit living within you. Romans 8:11 (New Living Translation)

 

However, the concept of the Holy Spirit has been very difficult for me to grasp because I cannot see Him.

Then one day, while studying the promises God made to Abraham in Genesis 12:2-3, I wanted to find out if Christians too can be so favoured by God and receive such promises. At that moment I recalled vaguely that I have read in the past that the blessings of Abraham are also applicable to Christians. So I did a search and found Galatians 3:29. I was so amazed when I read that when we believe, we belong to LORD Jesus and become the true children of Abraham. It says we are ‘heirs of Abraham’. Heirs? Hey, that gives me a down-to-earth understanding. Whatever the inheritance that God promised to Abraham’s descendants (heirs) on earth are also received by Christians through believing in Christ Jesus! Suddenly, I understand Galatians 3:14, we can receive the same inheritance promised to Abraham because we have the Holy Spirit!

 

So what is the inheritance?

The inheritance is both for our life on earth and our life in eternity.

To know what is our inheritance for our earthly life, first, let us look at the blessings of Abraham. When I was working on this website, and reading the promises God gave to Abraham in Genesis 12, 13, 15, 17, and 22, I was amazed at the great plans God had for Abraham even without Abraham asking or imagining it. God promised to multiply and bless him, to give him countless descendants, fame, territory, protection, victory over his enemies and be a blessing to others. Are these not what everyone of us long to have?

So did God fulfil His promises to Abraham? God did! Exceedingly and abundantly! When I was doing my MBA, I discovered by chance that many of the world famous companies were founded by Jews, e.g. Estee Lauder, Marks & Spencer, Goldman Sachs, Bloomberg, Dell, Oracle, Calvin Klein, Gap Inc.,Ralph Lauren, Citigroup, Google, Facebook and many others. You can read more in Wikipedia. Even Albert Einstein was a jew.

In Revelation 21 (the second last chapter of the bible), it is written that some day, God will make all things new, He will build a new Jerusalem that will have “.. a great and high wall with twelve gates, and twelve angels at the gates, and  the names of the twelve tribes of Israel were written on the gates” (Revelation 21:12-14). When I first learned about this, I am amazed at the unfailing and everlasting love God has for Israel. Oh, such great love! From the beginning of the bible to the end, thousands of years,  and forever, God’s love never change, regardless of what the children of Israel may be.

Friends, the above shows the blessings of the children of Israel on earth and in eternity.

 

All promises or only the promise of salvation?

I read several translations of Galatians 3:29 to be sure. In “The Daily Walk Bible – New Living Translation”, it says “..all the promises God gave to him belong to you.”

 

Galatians 3:29

Galatians 3:29 from The Daily Walk Bible (NLT)

 

So I began to search the promises God gave to Abraham:

I will make you into a great nation.I will bless you and make you famous,and you will be a blessing to others.I will bless those who bless youand curse those who treat you with contempt.All the families on earth will be blessed through you.”
Some time later, the Lord spoke to Abram in a vision and said to him, “Do not be afraid, Abram, for I will protect you, and your reward will be great.”
“This is my covenant with you: I will make you the father of a multitude of nations!

 

Then I studied God’s promises to Abraham with regards to his descendants (heirs)”

I am giving all this land, as far as you can see, to you and your descendants as a permanent possession.
I will make you extremely fruitful. Your descendants will become many nations, and kings will be among them!
I will confirm my covenant with you and your descendants after you, from generation to generation. This is the everlasting covenant: I will always be your God and the God of your descendants after you.
But God replied, “No—Sarah, your wife, will give birth to a son for you. You will name him Isaac, and I will confirm my covenant with him and his descendants as an everlasting covenant.

I will certainly bless you. I will multiply your descendant beyond number, like the stars in the sky and the sand on the seashore. Your descendants will conquer the cities of their enemies. And through your descendants[a] all the nations of the earth will be blessed—all because you have obeyed me.”

[a] In New King James Version, it is stated as ‘In your seed all the nations of the earth shall be blessed..’

 

I sought the LORD for understanding

I sought the LORD, I asked Him, does all the promises God made to Abraham now belongs to me? Certainly the promise of the land of Canaan is not applicable as it is clearly meant only for the Israelites.

I asked the LORD, which of the promises to Abraham applies to Christians?

 

Then the LORD says “you are My people”

The LORD gave me this simple and direct answer that helps me understand it very vividly. The LORD reminds me that He calls the children of Israel “My people”.  This is what the LORD promised Abraham in Genesis 17:7.  He will be their God. So when we believe in Christ Jesus, we are His people. He is our God.

When we have LORD Jesus as our God, the Maker of the Universe, God Almighty, the LORD Most High, the LORD of lords and King of kings, all blessings are for us — children, wisdom, protection, wealth, health, victory over enemies, territory, love, joy, peace…every blessings!

God makes great plans for us as stated in:

19 May you experience the love of Christ, though it is too great to understand fully. Then you will be made complete with all the fullness of life and power that comes from God.

20 Now all glory to God, who is able, through his mighty power at work within us, to accomplish infinitely more than we might ask or think.

 Ephesians 3:19-20 (New Living Translation)

No need to ask which of Abraham’s blessing. If the LORD calls us “My people”, there is nothing for us to fear or worry. God takes care of everything! He makes great plans for us even before we know how to ask.

Friends, it is that simple. We belong to LORD Jesus!

God plans a rich and glorious inheritance for His people:

18 I pray that your hearts will be flooded with light so that you can understand the confident hope he has given to those he called—his holy people who are his rich and glorious inheritance.

19 I also pray that you will understand the incredible greatness of God’s power for us who believe him. This is the same mighty power 20 that raised Christ from the dead and seated him in the place of honor at God’s right hand in the heavenly realms.

 Ephesians 1:18-20 (New Living Translation)

If you want to live a victorious life, filled with God’s power, meditate on this ..that when we believe in Jesus Christ, we belong to Him. God calls us “My People”. What does that mean with regards to your problems? It means everything will be solved. No fear. No worries. God cares for you and will protect and help you.

Isaiah 51:15-16

Isaiah 51:15-16

 

 

And now that you belong to Christ, you are the true children of Abraham. You are his heirs, and God’s promise to Abraham belongs to you.

Galatians 3:29 New Living Translation

 

 

Read Galatians 3:29 in different translations:

If you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise. (New International Version)
 And if you are Christ’s, then you are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.(New King James Version)
If you belong to Christ, then you have become the true children of Abraham. What God promised to him is now yours.(New Life Version)
And now that we are Christ’s we are the true descendants of Abraham, and God’s promise to Abraham belongs to us. (Living Bible)

 

 

Read in Context:

Galatians 3:26-29 New Living Translation

26For you are all children of God through faith in Christ Jesus.27 And all who have been united with Christ in baptism have put on Christ, like putting on new clothes.28 There is no longer Jew or Gentile, slave or free, male and female. For you are all one in Christ Jesus.29 And now that you belong to Christ, you are the true children of Abraham. You are his heirs, and God’s promise to Abraham belongs to you.

 

Cross Reference:

The real children of Abraham, then, are those who put their faith in God. Galatians 3:7 (NLT)
So all who put their faith in Christ share the same blessing Abraham received because of his faith. Galatians 3:9 (NLT)
Through Christ Jesus, God has blessed the Gentiles with the same blessing he promised to Abraham, so that we who are believers might receive the promised Holy Spirit through faith. Galatians 3:14 (NLT)
For if the inheritance could be received by keeping the law, then it would not be the result of accepting God’s promise. But God graciously gave it to Abraham as a promise. Galatians 3:18 (NLT)

 

 

What do you have to do?

 

Friends, if you are not a believer yet, all it takes is to believe that Christ Jesus came to die on the cross for your sins. By believing in Him, He became your Saviour. Just say this simple prayer to Him:

LORD Jesus, thank you for dying on the cross for my sins. I ask that you come into my life and be my Saviour. I bring before you all my cares and concerns and I know You will help me and carry me through. Fill me with Your Holy Spirit so that I can lead a victorious life, the life that You sacrificed to give me. In Jesus’ precious name I pray. Amen.

 

If you say the above prayer, you have become a Christian. Look for a church near you, a church that believes that Jesus is the Son of God, our Savior and that only through Jesus, we can have eternal life. A church that teaches people to read God’s words, to believe in the unwaivering, steadfast love of our Heavenly Father who through His grace sent us His one and only beloved Son, Jesus Christ to come and suffer and die in our place. A church that helps you understand the truth of the love of God who will never withhold any good from us, for He even gave us His Son(Romans 8:32). A church that will help strengthen your faith to believe and possess the inheritance that all believers have because of the finished work of Christ Jesus for you. Know this– there is nothing more you need to do to gain the love of God. God loves you even before you were borned. All the power and inheritance are there for you to possess as you read His words, bring all your concerns to Him in prayer and be guided by the Holy Spirit that lives in you.