1st Quarter 2015 Lesson 7 Cornerstone Connections

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CORNERSTONECONNECTIONS
FEBRUARY142015
Scripture Story: Genesis 1215; 17:1-16; 18.

Commentary: Patriarchs and Prophets (or Beginning of the
End ), chapters 11 and 12.
long, strange trip
It was no light test that was thus brought upon Abraham,

no small sacrifice that was required of him. There were
strong ties to bind him to his country, his kindred, and his
home. But he did not hesitate to obey the call. . . . God had
spoken, and His servant must obey; the happiest place on
earth for him was the place where God would have him to
be (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 126).
keytext
I will make you into a great nation, and I will bless you; I will
make your name great, and you
will be a blessing.
Photo by Audrey Goforth
(Genesis 12:2, NIV)
cornerstoneconnections
flashlight
29
what
do you think?
Throughout the Bible God calls on seemingly ordinary people

to do extraordinary things. Fill in the blanks below.
____________ was called to deliver Gods people from the
Philistines.
____________ was very young and very afraid when
called by God.
____________ spent 40 years getting ready for

his task.
30
____________ has a name that sounds like

that of his mentor, who was taken to heaven.
____________ volunteered to pay the ultimate sacrifice for sin.
INTO
THE
STORY
The Lord had said to

Abram, Go from your country, your people and your fathers household to the land I will
show you. I will make you into a
great nation, and I will bless you; I
will make your name great, and you
will be a blessing.
I will bless those who bless you,
and whoever curses you I will curse;
and all peoples on earth will be
blessed through you.
did you
know?
he city of UrAbrahams
home until God told him to
leavewas a developed city,
complete with libraries, schools,
and a system of law. It was also a
place where astrology was the main religion. Even
Abrahams father, Terah, worshipped strange gods
and idols (see Joshua 24:2). No
wonder God told Abraham to
leave.
So Abram went, as the Lord had told

him; and Lot went with him. Abram
was seventy-five years old when he
set out from Harran. He took his wife
Sarai, his nephew Lot, all the possessions they had accumulated
and the people they had acquired
in Harran, and they set out for
the land of Canaan, and they
arrived there.
Lot looked around and
saw that the whole plain
of the Jordan toward
Zoar was well watered, like the garden of the Lord,
like the land
of Egypt.
(This
was before the

Lord destroyed Sodom
and Gomorrah.) So Lot chose
for himself the whole plain of the Jordan and set out toward the east. The two
men parted company: Abram lived in the
land of Canaan, while Lot lived among
the cities of the plain and pitched his
tents near Sodom.
After this, the word of the Lord came
to Abram in a vision: Do not be afraid,
Abram. I am your shield, your very great
reward. But Abram said, Sovereign
Lord, what can you give me since I remain childless and the one who will inherit my estate is Eliezer of Damascus?
He took him outside and said, Look up
at the sky and count the starsif indeed
you can count them. Then he said to
him, So shall your offspring be.
When Abram was ninety-nine years old,
the Lord appeared to him and said, I am
God Almighty; walk before me faithfully
and be blameless. Then I will make my
covenant between me and you and will
greatly increase your numbers.
God also said to Abraham, As for
Sarai your wife, you are no longer to call
her Sarai; her name will be Sarah. I will
bless her and will surely give you a son
by her. I will bless her so that she will be
the mother of nations; kings of peoples
will come from her.
Abraham fell facedown; he laughed and
said to himself, Will a son be born to a
man a hundred years old? Will Sarah
bear a child at the age of ninety?
The Lord appeared to Abraham near
the great trees of Mamre while he was
sitting at the entrance to his tent in the
heat of the day. Abraham looked up
and saw three men standing nearby.
When he saw them, he hurried from the
entrance of his tent to meet them and
bowed low to the ground.
(Genesis 12:1-5; 13:10-12; 15:1, 2, 5;
17:1, 2, 15-17; 18:1, 2, NIV)
OUT
OF THE
STORY
punch lines
By faith Abraham, when called to go to a place he would later receive as his
inheritance, obeyed and went, even though he did not know where he was going
(Hebrews 11:8, NIV).
Who are the main actors in this story?
See that what you have heard from the beginning remains in you. If
it does, you also will remain in the Son and in the Father. And this
is what he promised useternal life (1 John 2:24, 25, NIV).
As I was with Moses, so I will be with you; I will never
leave you nor forsake you (Joshua 1:5, NIV).
Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view
of Gods mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to Godthis is your true
and proper worship (Romans 12:1, NIV).
What parts of the story are key to understanding it? (Underline

them.)
What emotions, actions, or adjectives enrich this story? (Put a rectangle
around them.)
I love those who love me, and those who

seek me find me (Proverbs 8:17, NIV).
What do you think God meant when He told Abram he must be blameless?
How can we be blameless before God? (See Matt. 5:43-48; 1 John 1:82:2;
Rev. 14:5)
What good is it for someone to gain the

whole world, and yet lose or forfeit their
very self? (Luke 9:25, NIV).
eyes
other
What new thing about God have you learned from Abrahams story?
Explain.
It is not what we take up,

but what we give up, that
makes us rich. Henry Ward
Beecher, 19th-century U.S. clergyman.
What two lessons can Sarahs life teach us?

1.
2.
A journey of a thousand miles

must begin with a single step.Lao
Tsu, 6th-century B.C. Chinese philosopher.
Why do you think God told Abraham to leave his home, his family, and his
country?
The righteous person may have many troubles, but the Lord delivers him from them all;
he protects all his bones, not one of them will
be broken (Psalm 34:19, 20, NIV).
31
makingitreal
Sabbath
ere you able to find all the answers in

the What Do You Think? section of this
weeks lesson? Read the following scriptures
below, each of which tells us something interesting about Gods call to each of these people,
and to us. Write a brief explanation of how God
called each of these people to serve Him.
Judges 13:1-5.
Jeremiah 1:4-8.
Exodus 3:7-12.
32
What do you think God is calling you to do? Ask

Him to show you, and have faith that He will.
Sunday
ead the Bible passages around which

this lesson is built (Into the Story section). You will notice that these scriptures are
a series of short passages about the life and
times of Abraham. Based on what you just
read, list the three most important moments
in Abrahams life. Explain how these three moments changed Abrahams life. (Hint: One is
provided for you.)
Matthew 11:28.
something happen for you that God alone has

power to control?
John 10:28.
What can God do for you?
Tuesday
otice the last sentence in the Flashlight

section of the lesson.
Does this mean that Abraham never got upset

with God for making such a challenging request of him? When God asks tough things of
us, how should we respond?
What place in your life is God asking you to
leave? Abraham could not receive the blessing
God had for him until he was willing to leave
all behind to follow God. What things are you
willing to give up for God?
Wednesday
hat good is it for someone to gain the

whole world, and yet lose or forfeit
their very self? (Luke 9:25, NIV). Thats one
of the Punch Lines this week. Explain in your
own words what this text means to you.
Try this for one day: ask Gods guidance about

what to wear, what to eat, where to go, whom
to talk to, what to say to those you meet, etc.
Look for opportunities to seek Gods guidance
before you act.
Friday
brahams life of faithfulness got him into

the great Hall of Faith found in Hebrews
11. Most of us will never be asked by God to
leave our home for a strange land we dont
know. Most of us will never be asked to sacrifice a child. However, to achieve Gods purpose for our lives, He will require a sacrifice of
something we hold dear. Are you prepared to
make that sacrifice?
In your own words, write a prayer to God asking Him to show you His plan for your life and
to give you willingness and strength to sacrifice for Him.
Remember, Gods timing may not match yours
perfectly. He may choose to reveal His plan for
your life in pieces, bit by bit. But if you trust
Him and do not give up, He will bless you beyond your wildest dreams.
1. God tells Abraham to leave his home.

2.
3.
Monday
ead carefully Genesis 12:2. Imagine God

coming to you and saying the following:
I will make you into a great nation, and I will
bless you; I will make your name great, and you
will be a blessing (NIV).
Most people do not believe it, but God wants
to bless us beyond our wildest dreams. Look
up the passages below to find out what God
promised to do for the people mentioned there:
Isaiah 56:4, 5.
Do you know of someone who went after the

alluring things of the worldmoney, riches,
fame, illicit relationships, etc.only to lose
sight of who they really were? How can the
Punch Line found in 1 John 2:24, 25 help to
prevent this from happening to any of us?
Thursday
ne of the truly sad episodes in the life of

Abram and Sarai was the Ishmael scandal. Read Genesis 16:1-8. What did they do
to help Gods promise come true? How did
their scheme turn out? In what ways might you
be trying to help God outtrying to make
Texts credited to NIV are from the Holy Bible, New International Version. Copyright 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011
by Biblica, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved
worldwide.
this weeks reading*

Patriarchs and Prophets (or Beginning of the End), chapters 11
and 12.
*Beginning of the End is a special adaptation of
Patriarchs and Prophets, created for you by the Ellen
G. White Estate and Pacific Press. Get more information about it at www.cornerstoneconnections.net/
article/191/about-us/conflict-of-the-ages-compan
ion-books#.URlhF1rBO9s. By following the weekly
reading plan, you will read at least one book of the
Conflict of the Ages Series each year.

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real.solid.

Scripture Story: Genesis 1215; 17:1-16; 18.

long, strange trip

It was no light test that was thus brought upon Abraham,

Photo by Audrey Goforth

(Genesis 12:2, NIV)

Throughout the Bible God calls on seemingly ordinary people

____________ spent 40 years getting ready for

____________ has a name that sounds like

The Lord had said to

So Abram went, as the Lord had told

was before the

Who are the main actors in this story?

What parts of the story are key to understanding it? (Underline

I love those who love me, and those who

What good is it for someone to gain the

It is not what we take up,

What two lessons can Sarahs life teach us?

A journey of a thousand miles

ere you able to find all the answers in

What do you think God is calling you to do? Ask

ead the Bible passages around which

something happen for you that God alone has

otice the last sentence in the Flashlight

Does this mean that Abraham never got upset

hat good is it for someone to gain the

Try this for one day: ask Gods guidance about

brahams life of faithfulness got him into

1. God tells Abraham to leave his home.

ead carefully Genesis 12:2. Imagine God

Do you know of someone who went after the

ne of the truly sad episodes in the life of

this weeks reading*

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