Disciples Global Network

The promise of the Spirit is vital to the redemption of humanity and the Covenant of God with His people, the Church of Jesus Christ . The New Testament links the “ Promise of the Spirit ” to the “ Blessings of Abraham ,” the promise that God will bless the nations through the Great Patriarch. The Spirit is the gift believers receive “ through the hearing of faith .” It is part of the Covenant promised to Abraham, and the Apostle Peter connects this gift to “ the blessings ” for the nations, the Gentiles, in his sermon preached on the Day of Pentecost.

Jesus Christ fulfills the promise to bless all nations through Abraham. There is salvation in no other name but his . Foundational to the biblical doctrine of redemption is the Covenant that God made with Abraham and his “ seed .” This includes the promises to bless all nations and to grant the Patriarch descendants, “ as innumerable as the stars of heaven .” But how and when are the nations blessed, and who or what is the seed of the Patriarch destined to inherit the promises?

The faith of uncircumcised Abraham provides an example for Jewish and Gentile believers who live from the faith of Jesus – Romans 4:11-17. God began to implement His plan to redeem humanity by establishing His Covenant with Abraham, starting with the summons for the Patriarch to leave his homeland for the “ land I will show you .” Yahweh would produce a “ great nation ” from the Patriarch, and the Covenant would bless all the “ Tribes of the Earth .” The promise of territory was central to the Covenant.

Jesus is the Son of Abraham, heir of the promises, the Anointed King who fulfills and implements the inheritance of his people . The introduction to the Gospel of Matthew  declares Jesus to be the “ Son of Abraham ,” the descendant destined to fulfill the covenant promises made by the God of Israel to the Great Patriarch. His identification as the Son of Abraham stresses the theme of fulfillment that dominates Matthew . Through Jesus of Nazareth, the promises become reality.

With the outpouring of the Spirit on the Day of Pentecost, the blessings for all nations promised to Abraham commenced . The Bible describes the Gift of the Spirit as “ the Promise of the Father ” and links it to the Abrahamic covenant. The promises to Abraham and “ his Seed ” find their fulfillment in the New Covenant inaugurated by the Death and Resurrection of Jesus, and the Spirit bestowed on us is “ the earnest ” of that inheritance.

The national sins of Israel caused her expulsion from the Land of Canaan. God, however, foresaw her failures and determined to institute a new covenant, one energized and characterized by His Spirit . It would include the salvation of the nations and culminate in the resurrection of the dead and the “ New Heavens and the New Earth .” With the outpouring of the Spirit on the Day of Pentecost, the time of the New Covenant commenced.

The promise of the Spirit is vital to the redemption of humanity and the covenant of God with His people, the Church of Jesus Christ . The New Testament links the “ Promise of the Spirit ” to the “ Blessings of Abraham ,” the promise that God would bless the nations through the Great Patriarch. The Spirit is the gift believers receive “ through the hearing of faith .” It is one of the promises made to Abraham, and Peter connects this gift to “ the blessings ” for the nations in his sermon on the Day of Pentecost.

The Book of Revelation concludes with an image of the immense and glorious city of “ New Jerusalem ” populated by the “ innumerable multitude ” of men and women redeemed from every nation. It represents the fulfillment of the covenant promises to Abraham of “ land ” and “ blessings to all the nations .” All this has been accomplished by the shed “ blood of the Lamb .” The City of God will be populated!

Israel’s possession of Canaan was an earlier stage in God’s redemptive plan, which always envisioned something larger than Israel or a small plot of land in the Middle East. With the arrival of the Messiah and the outpouring of the Spirit, the covenant promises began to find their fulfillment in the true “ Seed of Abraham ,” and in his “ brethren ” and “ coheirs ,” the promised inheritance that would include bodily resurrection and New Creation.

The Gift of the Spirit is one of the blessings of Abraham promised by God for the nations and the children of the Patriarch . The Apostle Paul refers to “ the Promise of the Spirit ” in his Letter to the Galatians, and he equates the Gift of the Spirit with “ the Blessing of Abraham. ” Jesus subjected himself to the “ curse ” of the Law to redeem believers so that “ the Blessing of Abraham might come on the Gentiles through Jesus Christ, that we might receive the Promise of the Spirit through faith .”

The Gift of the Spirit demonstrates beyond question who belongs to the Holy Covenant Community of Jesus, and who does not . In the assemblies of Galatia, “ false brethren ” were preaching “ another gospel ,” pressuring Gentile believers to adopt circumcision and conform to other regulations of the Mosaic Law.   Paul repudiated the very idea and sent the Galatians a series of arguments demonstrating why Gentiles need not be circumcised.

The Gift of the Spirit is one of the Covenant promises to bless the nations of the Earth through Abraham and his Seed, Jesus of Nazareth . When Matthew’s Gospel declares that Jesus is “ the Son of Abraham ,” it links the Man from Nazareth to the Abrahamic Covenant. The New Testament is filled with scriptural citations, stories, and apostolic teachings demonstrating that Jesus came to fulfill the Covenant. He is the expected “ seed of Abraham ” and the heir of all the promises of the Covenant.

In the  Book of Genesis , God implemented His plan to redeem humanity by establishing His covenant with Abraham, beginning with the summons for the Patriarch to leave his homeland and journey to the “ land I will show you .” Yahweh would produce a “ great nation ” from him, and the covenant would bless all the “ Tribes of the Earth .” From the start, the promise of territory was central to the Abrahamic Covenant.

By his Death and Resurrection, Jesus formed one covenant community - One New Man - based on faith in him  – Ephesians 2:11-22. The Apostle Paul is adamant. There no longer can be “ Jew or Gentile ” for disciples of Jesus. The old distinctions are inappropriate among the One People of God. By his shed blood, he “ dismantled  the middle wall of partition ” that separated Jews and Gentiles so “ he   might reconcile them both in one body for God through the Cross .” God is building both into one building,  one habitation of God in the Spirit founded on Jesus .

The outpouring of the Spirit on the Day of Pentecost was part of the promise to bless all the nations through the Patriarch, Abraham . The “ Promise of the Father ” is the Gift of the Spirit, which the Apostle Paul links to the Abrahamic Covenant. The promises are fulfilled in the New Covenant inaugurated by Jesus. The bestowal of the Spirit on his Church on the Day of Pentecost marked the commencement of the Last Days, and every man and woman who receives the Spirit from now on becomes a child and heir of Abraham.

As the Gospel of Matthew declares, Jesus is the “ son of Abraham .” The lowly man from Nazareth is the Messiah and King of Israel, the promised “ Seed ” of the Patriarch. He brings the covenant promises to fulfillment. He is the covenant heir, and our receipt of the inheritance is based on our faith in him.

The promises of the Hebrew Bible are fulfilled in the Son of God and Messiah of Israel, Jesus of Nazareth . The promises of God find their fulfillment in Jesus, their “ Yea! ” and “ Amen! ” The mysteries previously “ hidden ” are revealed in Christ’s life and words, and especially through his Death, Resurrection, and Exaltation. Jesus is the Messiah in whom  all  the shadows and types prefigured in the Hebrew Bible find their substance.

The covenant with Abraham is fulfilled in Jesus, the Heir of the Patriarch and his Seed, including the possession of the Earth  – Romans 8:1-23. The Apostle Paul presents Abraham as the great exemplar of the faith, the model for believers to emulate as they live from “ the faith of Jesus .” God counted the Patriarch’s faith as “ righteousness ” while he was uncircumcised and thus justified him apart from “ the works of the Torah .” He is the father of all those who live “ from the faith of Jesus ,” whether Jew or Gentile, and Abraham is “ the heir of the world .”

Sin is the Great Leveler that places everyone in the same predicament: Bondage now, death and “ wrath ” later. No one is exempt from the penalty of sin, and no one has a legitimate excuse for trespassing the commandment of God who will “ render to each according to his works .” But what, precisely, did the Apostle Paul mean when he brought “ works ” into the discussion? Good deeds and human efforts in general, or something more specific?

In Jesus, the original limited promise of territory to Abraham is transformed to encompass the entire creation .  The land of Canaan was an early stage in the greater redemptive plan of Yahweh, one that  ALWAYS  envisioned something beyond the nation of Israel and its relatively small territory in the Middle East. In the New Testament, the covenant promises find their fulfillment in the “ true seed of Abraham ,” Jesus of Nazareth, including the New Creation, the “ New Heavens, and the New Earth .”