Welcome to EBible Fellowship’s Bible study in the Book of Genesis. Tonight, is study #8 of Genesis, chapter 15 and we are going to read Genesis 15:3-5:

And Abram said, Behold, to me thou hast given no seed: and, lo, one born in my house is mine heir. And, behold, the word of JEHOVAH came unto him, saying, This shall not be thine heir; but he that shall come forth out of thine own bowels shall be thine heir. And he brought him forth abroad, and said, Look now toward heaven, and tell the stars, if thou be able to number them: and he said unto him, So shall thy seed be.

We know God was speaking to Abram, but He is giving us the Gospel. He is laying down a Biblical principal and a fundamental teaching of the Gospel that the heir would come through the line of Abraham. It would be the seed. The word “heir” and “seed” are often used interchangeably. The “seed” would come and we have talked about that often, but we are going to look at the word “heir” and see how God uses it in some places.

One place that tends to stand out is in Galatians, chapter 4. I am going to read Galatians 4:1-7:

Now I say, That the heir, as long as he is a child, differeth nothing from a servant, though he be lord of all; But is under tutors and governors until the time appointed of the father. Even so we, when we were children, were in bondage under the elements of the world: But when the fulness of the time was come, God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the law, To redeem them that were under the law, that we might receive the adoption of sons. And because ye are sons, God hath sent forth the Spirit of his Son into your hearts, crying, Abba, Father. Wherefore thou art no more a servant, but a son; and if a son, then an heir of God through Christ.

I would like to spend a little time considering this passage because there is a verse in this passage that is often misunderstood and misapplied to the coming of Christ in to the world when He was born of the Virgin in 7BC and went to the cross in 33AD. It says in Galatians 4:4-5:

But when the fulness of the time was come, God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the law, To redeem them that were under the law, that we might receive the adoption of sons.

This is often applied to the “fulness of time” when Christ entered in to the world. The way the Bible points to Christ’s coming, it was after 11,000 years of earth’s history. So, one would think that if God wanted to emphasize the fulness of time, He would have had Him come after 10,000 years or after 12,000 years, because these numbers do point to fulness, but Christ came after 11,000 years. So, this verse in Galatians 4 is not speaking of His historical entrance in to the world or to his physical coming. We can know that. First, let us look at the language in Galatians 4:1-3:

… the heir, as long as he is a child, differeth nothing from a servant, though he be lord of all; But is under tutors and governors until the time appointed of the father. Even so we, when we were children, were in bondage under the elements of the world:

Do you see the emphasis on being under “tutors and governors” and under “elements of the word” in bondage? What does that refer to? If we go to the previous chapter, I think we will get a better understanding. It says in Galatians 3:22-23:

But the scripture hath concluded all under sin, that the promise by faith of Jesus Christ might be given to them that believe. But before faith came, we were kept under the law, shut up unto the faith which should afterwards be revealed.

You see, it is speaking of being under sin and under the law, shut up until the faith is revealed: “…unto the faith which should afterwards be revealed.” Then it says in Galatians 3:24-25:

Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith. But after that faith is come, we are no longer under a schoolmaster.

Being “under a schoolmaster” is like being “under tutors and governors.” We are under the Law, which serves for instruction in righteousness, according to 2Timothy 3, verse 16. It is our teacher. It is the schoolmaster for the elect and we are kept under that Law until “faith” comes. And Christ is faith and, yet, when faith comes, that is salvation. God keeps us under the Law. Faith comes by hearing and hearing comes by the Word (Law) of God, so as an elect child of God that has not yet had the blood of Christ applied to him, he is under the Law of God until the “fulness of time” is come, at which time God has determined to save that individual by way of the hearing of the Word. Faith comes by hearing and hearing comes by the Word of God. We are under a schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ. Remember that verse in Romans that says Christ is the “end of the law.” We are under the Law and we follow the Law until we are brought to Christ in salvation.

It is just like it was in the wilderness sojourn. The Israelites followed Moses to the border of the land of Canaan, which was protected by the river Jordan. Moses was not permitted to bring them across. Joshua, whose name means “Jesus,” was the one designated to bring them across. Jesus is faith, so faith brought them across the river Jordan and gained them entry into the land of Canaan, which typified the kingdom of God. Moses could only bring them so far – he brought them to the point of the Promised Land. However, he did not cross over and lead the Israelites over Jordan because that would have painted the wrong spiritual picture. Therefore, God stopped him and said, “You will not lead them across this river.”

This is what is being said in Galatians 3:24-26:

Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith. But after that faith is come, we are no longer under a schoolmaster. For ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus.

This is exactly what Galatians 4 is saying, but it uses slightly different language, as it says in Galatians 4:1-2:

… the heir, as long as he is a child, differeth nothing from a servant, though he be lord of all; But is under tutors and governors until the time appointed of the father.

That is, until the time that God has determined for each elect, whether it be the thief on the cross or Saul when he was on the road to Damascus. Up until that point, Saul was under the Law. He was the follower of the Law of Moses, but the Law, as it were, led him to Christ and then Christ revealed Himself in the “fulness of time” for the Apostle Paul (Saul of Tarsus, who became the Apostle Paul). Once the Lord revealed Himself to Saul of Tarsus, he was no longer under “tutors and governors,” because the appointed time had come for him and the scales fell from his eyes. Then it goes on to say in Galatians 4:3-4:

Even so we, when we were children, were in bondage under the elements of the world: But when the fulness of the time was come, God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the law,

It is just the way that God is describing the Son that it can be misdirecting. Of course, God is brilliant at misdirecting mankind. As we are following the left hand, as it were, God’s right hand is doing something else. When we read, “when the fulness of the time was come, God sent forth his son,” we think that refers to when Jesus was born of the Virgin Mary, except that it is not speaking of the fulness of time regarding the coming of the Messiah, but it is speaking of the “fulness of time” in your life and my life and the life of each one God had determined to save. It is describing Christ as when the “faith comes,” or when “Christ comes” (who is faith). Or, we could say that when the fulness of time was come God sent forth His Son and then God added a few extra details like “made of a woman, made under the law, to redeem them that were under the law.” That is, God sent His Son to save those that were under the Law. So, during the church age the figurative number of “144,000” were sent in the fulness of time as God sent forth the Spirit of His Son to redeem them in that season of early rain and saved the firstfruits. In addition, at the time of the Latter Rain “in the fulness of time” God also sent forth the Spirit of His son to save. Notice that it says in Galatians 4, verse 4: “God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the law,” but God said this same thing in slightly different language in Galatians 4:6:

And because ye are sons, God hath sent forth the Spirit of his Son into your hearts, crying, Abba, Father.

Here, God does not add that Christ was made of a woman, made under the Law, but this is the real focus of what He had been saying: “He sent forth the Spirit of His Son into your hearts.” And what do we call that? We call that “salvation,” and at that point we can cry out, “Abba, Father,” because we have been adopted in to the family of God. We are sons of God. This is what is being discussed.

You know, we could also look at it this way. When the fulness of time was come when God sent forth His Son (made of a woman, made under the law) to redeem them that were under the law that we might receive the adoption of sons, how many were saved at that particular point in time? Well, very few were actually saved at the time when Christ came in history and went to the cross. It was not until the the Day of Pentecost that God caused Peter to teach one sermon and 3,000 people became saved in a single day. That was the “fulness of time” for them when God sent forth the Spirit of His Son in to their hearts, crying, “Aba, Father.” The application of Galatians 4 was for the Day of Pentecost and every day thereafter for 1,955 years of the church age or whenever someone would become saved during the 6,100 days of the Latter Rain period when the great multitude became saved. God was constantly sending forth the Spirit of His Son in to the hearts of His elect people.

We really need to get a clear picture of this. There are many people that just casually read the Bible, even some elect, and they are not being careful with the Bible. We must be careful with all the Biblical statements. Some people try to use Galatians 4 to prove that when Christ went to the cross He was making payment for sin and that was the “fulness of time” when He brought about the redemption of His people. No – that is not true. That is a conclusion based on a faulty understanding of what is actually being said.

Let us turn to Romans, chapter 8 because Galatians 4 leads us there. It says in Romans 8:15:

For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father.

This is just as we read in Galatians 4:6-7:

And because ye are sons, God hath sent forth the Spirit of his Son into your hearts, crying, Abba, Father. Wherefore thou art no more a servant, but a son; and if a son, then an heir of God through Christ.

You see, we were servants of the Lord, but through salvation we became heirs and sons of God. We are legitimate heirs and son and we are the legitimate seed that was promised to Abraham. We are that seed. We are the promised heirs. The things promised to him were promised to us because of the Spirit of adoption. Adoption is a wonderful Biblical idea. Of course, without adoption, none of us would have had any possibility of becoming saved, but God has adopted us, as it were. When did He adopt us? It tells us in Ephesians 1:4-5:

According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love: Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will,

We were predestinated before the foundation of the world to receive adoption or the Spirit of adoption. We had been children of wrath, even as others, and, yet, before the world was created God had already chosen His elect. To be elect means to be chosen. He laid our sins upon the Lamb and Christ offered up Himself as the sacrifice for our sins and He died at the foundation of the world. Our sins were paid for and, therefore, the legality of the adoption was all settled, so it was just a matter of going to “pick up the child,” we could say. Sometimes people adopt a child from another country. They take care of the paperwork and any fees that may be necessary and then they travel to Africa or India or wherever the baby is located and they meet at the adoption center to complete the adoption transaction. Then they bring the child home. In the case of God and His adopted children, God worked out the legalities of all the things concerning our adoption before the world was and He finalized it and guaranteed we would be adopted through the death of Christ at the foundation of the world. Then He created this world and history began to unfold, day after day, and God began to go into the world to find His adopted children. He would adopt this one or that one in to the family of God and we would become sons of God through the Spirit of adoption. This is what Romans 8 refers to, as it says in Romans 8:15:

For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father.

The phrase “Abba, Father” is a very personal way of addressing the Almighty God of the Bible. It reveals an intimate relationship between Father and adopted sons. And God does have a very intimate and personal relationship with each child He saved. He is not distant from any of His children. Even a person that might be considered “cold,” unemotional and detached, he also has a very intimate relationship with the Spirit of God. God indwells us and He knows everything there is to know about us. We realize that. We understand that and, as a result, we do not attempt to hide anything from God, but there is a very open relationship between Father and sons.

Then it says in Romans 8:16-17:

The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God: And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint_heirs with Christ; if so be that we suffer with him,that we may be also glorified together.

We are heirs of and joint_heirs with Christ. Because Christ is the “seed,” as we saw in Galatians 3, verse 16. He is the seed (singular). He is the promised seed, but it also says in Galatians 3:29:

And if ye be Christ’s, then are ye Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.

Jesus is the seed and we are the seed in Him. Therefore, we are joint_heirs. For instance, it says in Hebrews 1:2:

Hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things…

In this same chapter, it says in Hebrews 1:14:

Are they not all ministering spirits, sent forth to minister for them who shall be heirs of salvation?

We are joint_heirs with Him. So, as we read Genesis, chapter 15 Abraham points out that he has no seed and one born in his house is his heir. By the way, spiritually, this is the case. It is not a misstatement because the heirs are servants. Remember, the Bible says we are servants and then we are adopted in to the family of God as sons, so we are no more servants. We are considered sons.

Anyway, God addresses Abram’s statement, as it says in Genesis 15:4:

And, behold, the word of JEHOVAH came unto him, saying, This shall not be thine heir; but he that shall come forth out of thine own bowels shall be thine heir.

In the first instance, the heir is Christ. Then it says in Genesis 15:5:

And he brought him forth abroad, and said, Look now toward heaven, and tell the stars, if thou be able to number them: and he said unto him, So shall thy seed be.

We see an inference to a “great multitude,” the entire company of the elect – to you and to me, if we are truly God’s elect. We are the seed. Christ is the seed. We are joint_heirs together.