Meeting #3 Prep Questions Genesis 12-25

Here some of my questions and comments as I read through this section for Tuesday, August 2.  Please read the section and bring your questions and thoughts about what this portion of the text is saying about who God tomorrow.

12:1 Is God demanding?
12:2 Why does God heap these promises on Abram?
12:4 Why does Abram just pick up and go?  Does he have some reason to trust that what God promised will be true?  Might he already have a relationship with God?
12:13 And yet….. Abram doesn’t seem to trust God enough to take care of him       in this situation which seems much smaller than picking up everything and moving!  And he’s not really lying, it’s kind of true!

This seems like a weird thing, if they don’t think she’s your wife why wouldn’t they hesitate to take her?  Are we missing some cultural aspect of this story?

13:15 Maybe Abram can give Lot whichever because he knows God will take care of the rest?

14:23 Does he want to make sure God gets all the credit?  Or is he just very independent?

15:5 From God: “Trust me with your future!”
15:6 “And God declared him “Set-right-with-God.” -Message
15:9 strange….

16:10 Even the lowly maid isn’t too lowly for God to take care of.

17:1 God doesn’t seem to want Abraham to forget that He will take care of him.
What does God see in Abram that He wants to/ feels He can make this forever                   promise with him?
17:10 Why does God choose circumcision as the mark of being His people?  “So that my covenant will be cut into your bodies” This seems very strange.  Thoughts?
17:20 Again God takes care of the underdog son Ishmael

18:12 Sarah doesn’t seem to trust God nearly as much as Abraham does.
18:17 God shows His candid friendship with Abraham.
18:20 Like before the flood God doesn’t seem displeased with Sodom & Gomorrah because they don’t have a good relationship with Him, but because of the violence and the victims that suffer there.
18:23 Abraham feels free to question God, “But God, I know you to be different, would you act so unjustly?”
18:25 “…Doesn’t the Judge of all the Earth judge with justice?”
18:32 What history must Abraham have to know that he could talk to God this way?  What do God’s answers say about Him?

19 This story is pretty X rated, Sodom seems a truly wicked place.
19:8 Lot seems very evil.  What about his poor “virgin” daughters?
19:13 Again it seems to be because of the victims of this awful place.  Why does God not rain down fire and brimstone when enough people cry out to Him now?  Does He not listen?
19:16 Even Lot doesn’t really seem like he cares, he has to be drug out of the city.  Even the “good” people aren’t really that good.
19:21 The angels seem to let Lot have some choice and freedom in the decision.
19:24 What do you think of this?
19:26 This also seems sort of drastic.  “Don’t do what I say and BAM! pillar of salt!”  Tyrannical much?
19:31 This doesn’t seem to trust God at all with their future.  Skeezy.  Doesn’t Lot realize what happened when his daughters get pregnant?
19:37-38 These people come back to haunt the Israelites later.

20:2 WHAT?!  Again? Come on…..
20:11 Abraham sounds pretty condescending here.
20:12 Here’s where the “truth” of the lie comes out.
20:13 Clearly Abraham learned nothing from the first experiment in lying about his sister/wife.

22 This is a tough chapter.  Does God really want Abraham to kill Isaac?  Does God condone child sacrifice?  Why does Abraham not question God like he did in Sodom story?  What does Isaac think?  Has Abraham realized he truly can trust God with his future?  Why does God need to “test” Abraham like this?

23:11 Abraham seems to have built a very positive reputation among the people that he lives.

24 Does Abraham seem to have a mature relationship with God?

25:26 Reminds us of Genesis 3:15

I look forward to seeing you all tomorrow!