Speaker 1: Previously on the chosen people.
Speaker 2: Can you count the stars Abram?
Speaker 1: Abram shook his head uncertain.
Speaker 2: You cannot, for there are too many. It is impossible.
Speaker 2: It is to be the same with your offspring. The
Speaker 2: great nation I shall make through your air would be
Speaker 2: as innumerable as the stars in the night sky.
Speaker 3: I have never been able to conceive, and in the
Speaker 3: ten years since we heard this promise, that hasn't changed.
Speaker 3: I would have you achieved this promise another way. I
Speaker 3: would present my maid to you so that you could
Speaker 3: conceive a child with her.
Speaker 1: And so Hager did as her lady instructed. That very night,
Speaker 1: she was escorted to her lord's tender.
Speaker 3: Nothing but a mayor to you to be broken in bread.
Speaker 3: However you see fit. You are nothing.
Speaker 4: You are not faith, You are nothing.
Speaker 1: Sarah was too enraged to know if she was yelling
Speaker 1: these insults at Hagar or herself.
Speaker 2: The God most High will give you a great family.
Speaker 2: He will greatly multiply your offspring, and they will be
Speaker 2: too ready to count. The child growing in your wound
Speaker 2: now will be your son. You are to name him Ishmael.
Speaker 1: Hagar was amazed at the words of the messenger. She
Speaker 1: wondered at the power and authority of his God.
Speaker 2: I received word that you sent for me, Lady Sarah,
Speaker 2: I receive found your husband. Will you require it?
Speaker 5: The name means God, hears.
Speaker 1: Abram could not shake the feeling that in taking matters
Speaker 1: into their own hands, they had indeed fallen short.
Speaker 6: Shall oh, my friends from You're in the holy land
Speaker 6: of Israel. I'm ya l Exstein with the International Fellowship
Speaker 6: of Christians and Jews, and welcome to the Chosen People.
Speaker 6: Each day we'll hear a dramatic story inspired by the Bible,
Speaker 6: stories filled with timeless lessons of faith, love, and the
Speaker 6: meaning of life. Through Israel's story, we'll find this truth
Speaker 6: that we are all chosen for something great. Please take
Speaker 6: some time after this podcast to follow and to leave
Speaker 6: a review. These small steps will ensure that you don't
Speaker 6: miss an episode, and it will help us get discovered
Speaker 6: with our important message. So let's begin. Let me ask
Speaker 6: you what's in a name. Maybe your name for someone
Speaker 6: significant in your parents' lives. Maybe it was the sound
Speaker 6: of your name that your parents loved, or maybe the
Speaker 6: meaning of your name fit into the dreams that your
Speaker 6: parents had for you. In the Bible. Names hold these
Speaker 6: meanings and more. Biblic call name are significant, and how
Speaker 6: each Bible story is shaped, and how each Biblical figure
Speaker 6: fits into the grand scheme of God's plan. Today, in
Speaker 6: a story inspired by Genesis seventeen, God will give Abraham
Speaker 6: a new name that is not only more significant, but
Speaker 6: one that captures the essence of God's plan for him.
Speaker 1: Ishmael wrestled in the dirt with another boy. The two
Speaker 1: youths grappled with the exuberance of untamed colts, their limbs
Speaker 1: entwined in a playful but fierce struggle for dominance. Dust
Speaker 1: swirled around them, intermixed with laughter and grunts. Abram's heart
Speaker 1: swelled with pride as he observed how much his son
Speaker 1: had grown in these thirteen years. He was almost a
Speaker 1: man now, and Abram had taken to building into his education,
Speaker 1: shaping him for the days to come.
Speaker 2: I made a fine clan leader.
Speaker 5: One day.
Speaker 2: All that he had.
Speaker 1: Would be Ishmael's one day, and everything Abram's God had
Speaker 1: promised would be fulfilled. Abram would have loved any child
Speaker 1: he had, but this one born to him at his
Speaker 1: advanced age and with the weight of the promise of
Speaker 1: the legacy before him. Held a very special place in
Speaker 1: his heart. Shouts of laughter announced what appeared to be
Speaker 1: the final round of the boy's wrestling match.
Speaker 5: Well done, Ishmael, Ha ha ha, well done, thank you father.
Speaker 1: Grinning ear to ear, Ishmael trotted over to Abram, and
Speaker 1: Abram affectionately ruffled his hair, feeling the fine strands beneath
Speaker 1: his calloused fingers. Am I to go with you today?
Speaker 5: If your mother can spare you, yes, I would have
Speaker 5: you join me or Elieza every day so that you
Speaker 5: can learn what it is to oversee the herds and
Speaker 5: the land. Good.
Speaker 1: I'll have to let mother know I'm going with you.
Speaker 5: Go and tell her and meet me in an hour's time.
Speaker 5: We'll meet back here.
Speaker 1: Ishmael ran off to do what Abram had asked, his
Speaker 1: youthful energy propelling him forward with the speed of a gazelle.
Speaker 1: In the years since Hager had borne Ishmael, Abram had
Speaker 1: tried to give her as comfortable a life as he
Speaker 1: could without upsetting his wife. Abram was no fool. He
Speaker 1: knew that the women despised each other. He had situated
Speaker 1: Hager's tend far from his nceerries. He also avoided bringing
Speaker 1: the boy around, because he sensed at the sight of
Speaker 1: him upset Syaye in deeper and darker ways than even
Speaker 1: seeing his mother. Abram hated living this way, but it
Speaker 1: seemed to be the only solution that could be found
Speaker 1: in the fallout of his decision all those years ago.
Speaker 1: Abram continued his walk through the tents, greeting the various
Speaker 1: faces who paused their work to acknowledge him. His people
Speaker 1: revered him, and their respect was evident in their deferential
Speaker 1: nods and murmured greetings. Abram left the camp to take
Speaker 1: a stroll into the fields, a ritual that brought him
Speaker 1: a semblance of peace amidst the tumult of his household.
Speaker 1: He took the same walk each day, hoping to hear
Speaker 1: from his God, and if he heard nothing, that he
Speaker 1: would spend the time reflecting on all that he had
Speaker 1: and all that he had to look forward to. Here
Speaker 1: in the solitude of the plains, he sought communion with
Speaker 1: his God on this day, like countless before, he walked,
Speaker 1: contemplating the breadth of his blessings and the promises yet
Speaker 1: to be fulfilled. Suddenly, a profound stillness descended upon him,
Speaker 1: a silence that spoke of the divine Abram fell to
Speaker 1: his knees, his face to the ground, awaiting the voice
Speaker 1: of the Almighty.
Speaker 2: Abram. Servant, you have been walking with me now for
Speaker 2: many years. You know me as your God, as El elyon,
Speaker 2: God most High. And now I will tell you that
Speaker 2: I am el shall die God Almighty through my majestic strength.
Speaker 2: It is I alone who has the ability to supply abundantly.
Speaker 2: When I came to you all those years ago, I
Speaker 2: told you that I would multiply you greatly. I even
Speaker 2: came to you and set up a covenant, the everlasting
Speaker 2: promise of my word. Abram remembered it well.
Speaker 1: He could still see the terrible darkness between the animal house,
Speaker 1: and then the smoking fire, putts and torch that crossed
Speaker 1: between them. As long as he lived, he would never
Speaker 1: forget such a sight.
Speaker 2: I come to you now to affirm that promise again
Speaker 2: and complete the covenant we cut in the ways of
Speaker 2: your people. Our agreement must be sealed with a covenant mark,
Speaker 2: and we shall have a ceremony of the exchanging of names.
Speaker 2: My name and reputation will come to cover your own.
Speaker 2: I have told you what my name means, and through
Speaker 2: it you will know that I will supply everything you need.
Speaker 2: You need not long outside my provision to make my
Speaker 2: promise come to pass.
Speaker 1: Abram shifted on his feet. He could not help but
Speaker 1: think of the tension between Sarah and Hagar. He loved Ishmael,
Speaker 1: and he was forever grateful that he was born, but
Speaker 1: how it came to be still troubled him greatly.
Speaker 2: In our exchanging of names, I would have yours change
Speaker 2: to reflect the promise I have given you. Your name
Speaker 2: will now be Abraham.
Speaker 1: The words vibrated in Abraham's chest. The name felt familiar
Speaker 1: but held a new weight. Abraham, father of nations. He
Speaker 1: felt his knees shaking and leaned on his staff, his
Speaker 1: heart raising and hands trembling. He strained to hear more
Speaker 1: from El Shadai.
Speaker 2: I will make you the father of many nations. I
Speaker 2: will make you extremely fruitful and will make nations and
Speaker 2: even kings come from you. Abraham wondered at the significance
Speaker 2: of the new name. He was ninety nine years old
Speaker 2: and had only recently fathered his first child, and the
Speaker 2: promise of fruitfulness in his life lifetime seemed.
Speaker 1: To be a stretch. What would his friends and neighbors
Speaker 1: think of this new name.
Speaker 2: The covenant I made with you will also be between
Speaker 2: your future offspring throughout their generations. What's more is that
Speaker 2: when your offspring possessed this land of Canaan, it will
Speaker 2: be a permanent possession. As I am your God, I
Speaker 2: will be their god. As well as you have walked
Speaker 2: with me, they will walk with me. They will fulfill
Speaker 2: and live in the reality of this permanent covenant as
Speaker 2: my chosen people. And because this covenant would be kept
Speaker 2: throughout generations, I would invoke another part of the covenant
Speaker 2: to signify this agreement.
Speaker 7: Thus, see Abraham knew that this here was usually achieved
Speaker 7: by drawing blood, which would eventually scar and serve as
Speaker 7: a reminder.
Speaker 1: Of the covenant.
Speaker 2: This shall be our mark, and it shall serve as
Speaker 2: a sign of the covenant between us. Every one of
Speaker 2: the males in your household, whether they are born into
Speaker 2: it or adopted family or servant, must be circumcised. You
Speaker 2: must cut the flesh of your foreskin. From this day forward,
Speaker 2: throughout your generations, every male among you is to be
Speaker 2: circumcised at eight days old. Through that ceremony, my covenant
Speaker 2: would be marked into their flesh as a reminder of
Speaker 2: this permanent covenant. If any male is not circumcised in
Speaker 2: the flesh of his foreskin, that man would be cut
Speaker 2: off from him his people. It will be said of
Speaker 2: him that he has broken my covenant. Now, as for
Speaker 2: your wife, Sarah, as I have given you a new name,
Speaker 2: she will receive a new one as well. She will
Speaker 2: be known as Sarah. As you will be the father
Speaker 2: of many nations, she will also be blessed. I will
Speaker 2: give you a son by her, I will bless her,
Speaker 2: and she will produce these nations I have spoken of.
Speaker 2: Mighty kings of people will come from her.
Speaker 1: Stunned, Abraham lifted his head, barely able to comprehend the
Speaker 1: enormity of the vision laide before him. He fell face
Speaker 1: down again, stifling a laugh.
Speaker 5: How can a ninety year old woman bear a child?
Speaker 5: I am nearly one hundreds well, and it's just as
Speaker 5: implausible for me. I don't understand, God Almighty, why can
Speaker 5: my legacy not be fulfilled through Ishmael. I have already
Speaker 5: adopted him and made him my heir. Wouldn't this be
Speaker 5: sufficient to achieve all that you have said will come
Speaker 5: to pass?
Speaker 2: Shall my promises be fulfilled by you? Did? I not
Speaker 2: walk through blood while you slept. Your plans shall not
Speaker 2: prevail over mine. No, Abraham, your wife Sarah will surely
Speaker 2: bear you a son because you laughed at the prospect.
Speaker 2: You shall name the boy Isaac. It is through him
Speaker 2: that I will confirm my covenant with you and with
Speaker 2: all your future offspring. When you speak his name, you
Speaker 2: will remember this moment, and you will remember that what
Speaker 2: I said would come to be has happened. As for
Speaker 2: your son Ishmael, I know that you love him. I
Speaker 2: have already made this promise to his mother Hagar. But
Speaker 2: I will tell you as well. I will bless him.
Speaker 2: He will similar way be fruitful and multiply. He will
Speaker 2: go on to father twelve tribal leaders, and I will
Speaker 2: make him into a great nation. But it is with
Speaker 2: your son Ailiazik, with whom I will confirm my governant.
Speaker 2: You will see your wife Sarah will bear him to
Speaker 2: you at this time next year.
Speaker 1: And as suddenly as Abraham's God appeared to Abraham, he
Speaker 1: was gone. Abraham stood and brushed the dust off his knees.
Speaker 1: He was still amazed at the news that he was
Speaker 1: to have another son, one with his wife Sarah. Sarah
Speaker 1: he supposed that would also take some getting used to.
Speaker 1: Abraham hurried back toward the tents he had agreed to
Speaker 1: meet Ishmael, But now he also had to arrange for
Speaker 1: the circumcisions of all the men under his protection. He
Speaker 1: knew that this would not only honor his God and
Speaker 1: show him that he was faithful to obey, but it
Speaker 1: would also mark them as men who were set apart
Speaker 1: from all other men. In a way, this ceremony would
Speaker 1: give all of them a new identity, just as Abram
Speaker 1: had assumed a new identity as Abraham. Abraham, walking fully
Speaker 1: in this new identity and name, called all the men
Speaker 1: of his household together. He called physicians to meet them
Speaker 1: as well, in anticipation of what he was about to
Speaker 1: command for all of them.
Speaker 5: The men, brothers, my family, I have gathered you altogether
Speaker 5: for a very special purpose. First, I know many of
Speaker 5: you have been with me from our time in Haran
Speaker 5: and have followed me faithfully ever since then. You have
Speaker 5: believed in me, and through that faith you have come
Speaker 5: to believe the commands of my God. I cannot express
Speaker 5: my gratitude for the faithfulness of your characters. Thank you
Speaker 5: for your loyal friendship.
Speaker 1: Abraham looked out at the men in the crowd before him.
Speaker 1: Elieza met his gaze with steadiness. He knew Elieza would
Speaker 1: follow him wherever he would go and do whatever he
Speaker 1: asked without question. Abraham could not find a more faithful
Speaker 1: servant anywhere. Then his gaze fell upon his son, Ishmael.
Speaker 1: The boy grinned up at him. Abraham smiled back. He
Speaker 1: could do no wrong in the boy's eyes. He looked
Speaker 1: up at him in admiration. He knew that Ishmael would
Speaker 1: similarly obey whatever he asked of him.
Speaker 5: I have heard from our God, El el Yon, God
Speaker 5: Most High. He gave me a new name to call him,
Speaker 5: El Shadai, God Almighty. The last time he spoke with me,
Speaker 5: he cut a covenant with me on all of our behalf.
Speaker 5: His promises to us will be upheld, and what's more,
Speaker 5: they will be everlasting. Through this new revelation of his name,
Speaker 5: he tells us of his mighty ability to supply what
Speaker 5: we need in abundance.
Speaker 1: There were murmurs of acknowledgment and understanding throughout the gallant crowd.
Speaker 5: To complete the covenant, he gave my wife and me
Speaker 5: new names. We are now Abraham and Sarah. Our old
Speaker 5: way of living is done. This completion of the Covenant
Speaker 5: is the start of a new way of living. Now
Speaker 5: there's a role for you all to play as well.
Speaker 5: This promise is not just for me and Sarah. It
Speaker 5: is for our entire people to further complete the covenant.
Speaker 5: We as a people are to seal this covenant with
Speaker 5: a mark. Every male in our household today and every
Speaker 5: day after will become circumcised. Now, I know this is
Speaker 5: a practice done by other nations, but for us, this
Speaker 5: will forever mark our separation, purity, and loyalty. We will
Speaker 5: be forever set apart from all other nations on earth,
Speaker 5: for we have been chosen by El Shadai.
Speaker 2: For this purpose.
Speaker 1: Again, there were rumblings of agreement in the crowd. The
Speaker 1: men will unite did around their leader, Abraham and their God.
Speaker 5: Our covenant mark will symbolize the everlasting promise of our God.
Speaker 5: Any man in my household from this day forward who
Speaker 5: does not bear this mark will be cast out. You
Speaker 5: will be considered an outsider. The men of l el Yon,
Speaker 5: God most High, will be circumcised. I say it again,
Speaker 5: the men of El Shadai will be circumcised shouts.
Speaker 1: In response from the men gathered around Abraham.
Speaker 8: Now, who will step up and show me they are loyal?
Speaker 8: Who will show me they are willing to be set
Speaker 8: apart from all other people's, who will be marked by
Speaker 8: their faithfulness?
Speaker 1: The men in the crown of you ord in response
Speaker 1: Abraham being to the this fill fact the beginning of
Speaker 1: a brand new chapter for his God's chosen people.
Speaker 6: This moment, the name change from Abraham to Abraham, reverberates
Speaker 6: through all of time, still holding profound significance for God's
Speaker 6: chosen people. Today, many people of faith see Abraham as
Speaker 6: a bearded fatherly figure from Sunday school songs and stories.
Speaker 6: But I hope that this series so far has showed
Speaker 6: you that he is so much more. For the Jewish people,
Speaker 6: Abraham is not just a figure from the past. Rather,
Speaker 6: he is Avraham Avenu, as we say in Hebrew, Abraham
Speaker 6: our father. He embodies the beginning of our identity as
Speaker 6: a distinct people chosen by God. Abraham is a source
Speaker 6: of hope and resilience, especially in adversity.
Speaker 1: Think about it.
Speaker 6: The Jewish people have held onto this promise, this covenant
Speaker 6: from God to Abraham through centuries of exile and persecution,
Speaker 6: the promise that we are part of something bigger, that
Speaker 6: we are a people called by God with a unique
Speaker 6: mission and identity. Even today, this legacy shapes our understanding
Speaker 6: of ourselves and our place in the world. It reminds
Speaker 6: us that we are descendants of Abraham, the man who
Speaker 6: dared to believe the impossible, the man who stepped into
Speaker 6: a new identity and embraced a destiny far beyond his
Speaker 6: wildest dreams. This promise fuels our sense of purpose and continuity.
Speaker 6: It connects our past with our present and our future.
Speaker 6: This promise is not just an ancient, historical covenant. No,
Speaker 6: it's an enduring relationship with God forever, a relationship that
Speaker 6: has sustained us through trials and triumphs. So in Jewish
Speaker 6: people even today look at Abraham, or, as we say
Speaker 6: in Hebrew, Avraham, we see more than a patriarch. We
Speaker 6: see a promise that lives on, a covenant that still
Speaker 6: holds power in identity, that continues to define us and
Speaker 6: inspire us. And it challenges us all to consider what
Speaker 6: promises shape our identities, What promises and relationships give us
Speaker 6: hope and purpose? How do we live out our calling
Speaker 6: to be a blessing to the world today. Abraham's story
Speaker 6: reminds us of God's faithfulness and the powerful nature of
Speaker 6: his promises, promises that transcend time and continue to shape
Speaker 6: the lives of those who dare to believe. God's promise
Speaker 6: to make Abraham the father of many nations also marks
Speaker 6: a new identity and mission for him and his descendants.
Speaker 6: Before this promise, Abram was just a tiny figure in
Speaker 6: the vast ancient world. But with this promise, everything changed.
Speaker 6: Abram became Abraham, Sarai became Sarah. With this covenant, God
Speaker 6: added a Hebrew letter to each of Abram and Sarah's names.
Speaker 6: That letter is Hey, one of the letters in God's
Speaker 6: holy name. By doing this, the mother and father of
Speaker 6: the Jewish people became the bearers of God's name. But
Speaker 6: not only the Abraham and Sarah bear God's name. Each
Speaker 6: of his chosen people do as well, and because of
Speaker 6: this we must act accordingly in godly ways. Abraham and
Speaker 6: his descendants were called to bless the world and carry
Speaker 6: forward a divine mission of hope, justice, and reconciliation, to
Speaker 6: reflect God's character in a world so often marked by
Speaker 6: violence and despair. This promise in the stars is God's
Speaker 6: declaration of new beginning, a beginning that points forward to
Speaker 6: a greater fulfillment and an identity that carries on still.
Speaker 6: And each of us, as His chosen people, must do
Speaker 6: the same, looking beyond our smallness and stepping out into
Speaker 6: God's vast vision for humanity being a blessing to the world.
Speaker 6: And this story doesn't end with Abraham. It lives on
Speaker 6: in his descendants to speak more on this is my
Speaker 6: good friend, Bishop Paul Lanier.
Speaker 9: Maybe you'll remember back in chapter fifteen when God spoke
Speaker 9: to Abraham so wonderfully, powerfully, prophetically and promised to him.
Speaker 4: I'm going to bless you and prosper you in every
Speaker 4: part of your life will be increased and everyone will
Speaker 4: know you belong to me. And this silver and gold
Speaker 4: in your hands, and this herds and flocks in your fields,
Speaker 4: and then multiply. And Abraham says, why, why God? What
Speaker 4: good is prosperity if I if I have no posterity?
Speaker 4: What good is all this stuff if there's no son
Speaker 4: to share it with?
Speaker 9: Then we moved to this chapter seventeen that we're looking
Speaker 9: at now. Much has changed, at least thirteen years have
Speaker 9: gone by, and now Abraham is the father of a
Speaker 9: thirteen year old boy. But it's not Isaac by Abraham's
Speaker 9: wife Sarah. Now this is Ishmael from the Egyptian servant
Speaker 9: girl Hagar. And when we look at this verse one,
Speaker 9: it doesn't say simply that God's spoke to Abraham. It says,
Speaker 9: and God appeared. Do you see that the manifestations of
Speaker 9: God's encounters with Abraham are deepening in this significance and consequence.
Speaker 9: And God begins to reveal to him. He says, I
Speaker 9: am your God. It's between you and me. And he says,
Speaker 9: it's not simply about you and me. It's about your
Speaker 9: generations and your posterity, and your sons and daughters and
Speaker 9: their sons and daughters. But it's not just about souls, Abraham,
Speaker 9: it's about soil. Those souls are standing upon the land.
Speaker 9: It's yours, but it's not simply yours. But generationally, I'm
Speaker 9: telling you, it is a permanent possession. And I'm asking
Speaker 9: you now, is anything more contentious than the conversation going
Speaker 9: on in the world now about the souls and the
Speaker 9: soil of the Jewish people and the land of Israel.
Speaker 9: You know, there was a man recently who I'm sure
Speaker 9: considers himself a world leader, made the statement someone to
Speaker 9: say that the Jewish people need to remember that they're
Speaker 9: in the land of Israel because of the actions of
Speaker 9: the United Nations. And I'm not kidding you, and I
Speaker 9: just like to sit down with that poor man and say, sir,
Speaker 9: long before your mama met your daddy, God had set
Speaker 9: this in order and set it into motion. The souls
Speaker 9: own the land, the soil. And then we moved to
Speaker 9: this conversation of circumcision. And before God begins to speak
Speaker 9: to his flesh, God addresses his name and circumcises his name.
Speaker 9: If you will as a change, as a sign to
Speaker 9: those who are watching and listening, you have been Abram,
Speaker 9: exalted Father. But it's bigger than that.
Speaker 2: Now.
Speaker 9: Now you will be the father of multitudes, Abraham, not
Speaker 9: just Abram.
Speaker 2: Abraham.
Speaker 4: Do you remember.
Speaker 9: Back then when I told you that through you all
Speaker 9: the nations of the world will be blessed. And those
Speaker 9: who are Christian listening to me, now you know that
Speaker 9: the apostle Paul made the statement that Abraham is the
Speaker 9: father of all who believe. And once God has circumcised
Speaker 9: his name, He addresses his flesh, and God requires the strangest,
Speaker 9: most peculiar mark on Abraham and all the males. God
Speaker 9: says to him, I want you to cut the most
Speaker 9: sensitive part of your Fleshhh. What, Yes, the most sensitive
Speaker 9: part of your body. I want you to cut it
Speaker 9: as a sign that you belong to me and what's
Speaker 9: happening in your life. Well, I'm the author and the
Speaker 9: finisher of it. Now I'm sitting here and I'm wondering, God,
Speaker 9: why don't you just let him cut his hand. Show
Speaker 9: that when he extends his hand in obedience and the
Speaker 9: anointing of God is upon him, whatever he touches turns
Speaker 9: to glory and it's magnificent, and everybody watches and knows
Speaker 9: that the hand of Heaven is upont No, well, why
Speaker 9: don't we cut his foot? Show that everywhere he steps
Speaker 9: in this soil, this land, when people see it, they'll
Speaker 9: know Yes God, No, God said, I want you to
Speaker 9: cut the most sensitive part of your flesh. Why because
Speaker 9: it's from that place on your body that the next
Speaker 9: generation flows. And this is a generational conversation, and it's
Speaker 9: not to happen on the first day or the third,
Speaker 9: or the fifth or the sixth. Now on the eighth day,
Speaker 9: what is the eighth day? All of us know the
Speaker 9: seventh day conversation related to creation and the evening in
Speaker 9: the morning with the first day and the second day.
Speaker 9: We know that. But God is trying to set in
Speaker 9: Abraham's understanding. There's a new paradigm that's being launched, unleashed, initiated.
Speaker 9: In the scriptures, the number eight signifies new beginnings. It's
Speaker 9: when God is about to step out and just do
Speaker 9: something brand new. You recall when God was destroying the
Speaker 9: world with the earth, but it didn't kill everybody, did it.
Speaker 9: Now there was no h There was Noah's wife.
Speaker 2: That's two.
Speaker 9: There were the three sons and their wives. There were eight.
Speaker 9: It's a new beginning, a new civilization is about to
Speaker 9: be launched. When God wanted to anoint someone else to
Speaker 9: be king, and Samuel went looking, it was not any
Speaker 9: of the other seven sons of Jesse. No, it was
Speaker 9: that one boy, the eighth son, David. And when we
Speaker 9: look at the Christian scriptures and Jesus has been raised
Speaker 9: from the dead of that crucifixion that Rome without mercy
Speaker 9: inflicted upon him. The Bible says and the Christian scriptures
Speaker 9: that he appeared to people eight times, eight appearances before
Speaker 9: he ascended back to the bosom.
Speaker 2: Of the Father.
Speaker 9: Now, I want to say to you listening, I don't
Speaker 9: know what paradigm you're living in. It may seem closed.
Speaker 9: You get to one two three, four, five, six seven,
Speaker 9: and you're going to go one two three, four, five
Speaker 9: six seven, and you're back again to one two three.
Speaker 9: But I'm telling you, the God of Glory, who adores you,
Speaker 9: is setting before you an Eighth Day possibility, and he
Speaker 9: wants to mark us in some way. For Christians, we
Speaker 9: know that the Apostle Paul said, water baptism is the
Speaker 9: circumcision of the spirit. It's not discounting what needs to
Speaker 9: be done or should be done or shouldn't be done
Speaker 9: about the flesh circumcision. No, he's saying, I'm speaking to
Speaker 9: the spirit realm now, and I'm telling you that there
Speaker 9: is an eighth Day conversation waiting for you, and God
Speaker 9: wills to pull back, to cut away whatever it is
Speaker 9: that's stalling you, postpone his greatness in your life, and
Speaker 9: I declare it is so beginning.
Speaker 6: No, So, what's in a name? Abram means exalted Father,
Speaker 6: a respectable title, but Abraham means Father of many, a
Speaker 6: name bursting with promise, potential, and a far reaching future.
Speaker 6: It says if God is saying, you are no longer
Speaker 6: confined by your past or your present circumstances. Rather, you
Speaker 6: are stepping into a new destiny. This new name signifies
Speaker 6: the expanse of nature of God's covenant. It changed not
Speaker 6: just Abraham to Abraham, but it was a promise that
Speaker 6: changed his descendants forever. It's not just a promise to
Speaker 6: an individual. Rather, it's a promise to the world, a
Speaker 6: promise that through Abraham's descendants, all nations will be blessed.
Speaker 6: It's God declaring that his plans are always bigger than
Speaker 6: our dreams. And this story prompts us to ask some
Speaker 6: big questions. What names or identities do we have that
Speaker 6: may limit us? Do we see ourselves as small, insignificant,
Speaker 6: or defined by our past failures? Or can we embrace
Speaker 6: anew us? Can we embrace the identity that God offers
Speaker 6: in renewal, one filled with purpose and potential. If God
Speaker 6: can change Abraham to Abraham, what does that say about
Speaker 6: what He can do through us? How might our lives
Speaker 6: change if we truly believe that we are part of
Speaker 6: God's expansive covenant called to be a blessing to the world,
Speaker 6: because in the end, the story of Abraham is not
Speaker 6: just his story, it's ours too. And as you look
Speaker 6: to spread blos blessings to the world, even as God
Speaker 6: blesses you, Here's a final blessing that I would like
Speaker 6: to share. Ivare hashem vi schmerechra Yeah heir hashempanave elehra
Speaker 6: vencher ye sa hashempanave lehra Vi.
Speaker 1: Salon.
Speaker 6: May the Lord bless you and keep you. May the
Speaker 6: Lord make his face shine upon you. May he be
Speaker 6: gracious to you. May the Lord turn his face towards
Speaker 6: you and give you peace.
Speaker 1: Amen. You can listen to The Chosen People with yle
Speaker 1: Exstein add free by downloading and subscribing to the Prey
Speaker 1: dot Com app today. This Prey dog Com production is
Speaker 1: only made possible by our dedicated team of creative talents.
Speaker 1: Steve Katina, Max Bard, Zach Shellabaga and Ben Gammon are
Speaker 1: the executive producers of The Chosen People with yaile Ekstein,
Speaker 1: edited by Alberto Avilla, narrated by Paul CALTAFIANU. Characters are
Speaker 1: voiced by Jonathan Cotton, Aaron Salvato, Sarah Seltz, Mike Reagan,
Speaker 1: Stephen Ringwold, Sylvia Zaradoc, and the opening prayer is voiced
Speaker 1: by John Moore. Music by Andrew Morgan Smith, written by
Speaker 1: Bree Rosalie and Aaron Salvato. Special thanks to Bishop Paul Lanier,
Speaker 1: Robin van Ettin, cayleb Burrows, Jocelyn Fuller, and the team
Speaker 1: at International Fellowship of Christians and Jews. You can hear
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Speaker 1: If you enjoyed The Chosen People with Yeile Eckstein, please
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