A Covenant with Abraham

Genesis 12:1-20; 15:1-20 and 17:1-21

To grow up understanding what it means to fully trust in God, knowing that he will guide them throughout life

“ʻThough the mountains be shaken and the hills be removed, yet my unfailing love for you will not be shaken nor my covenant of peace be removed,ʼ says the Lord, who has compassion on youʺ (Isaiah 54:10, NIV*).

Preadolescents do not like uncertainty. They want to know all the details of the activities or plans in advance. When families organize their vacations, preadolescents want to know where they’re going, what they’ll do, and how long they’ll stay.

Students will be able to connect with Abraham, a man who could only imagine when and how God would fulfill his promises. The Lord does not always let us know the complete plan.

Once we begin to develop an intimate or close relationship with him, from the covenant we made one day, we must trust that he will keep his promises. This lesson will help your students trust God even when they cannot see how he’ll accomplish what he says. He is not limited by time or resources, as people are.

Many students have a hard time believing in a God who keeps his promises because life is full of people who make promises without keeping them. They listen to all kinds of speeches on television, where unreal and unreasonable promises of wealth, fame, and popularity are made. That’s why they find it difficult to know who they can really trust.

The Bible, through stories of fellowship with God from men like Abraham, shows us that he keeps all his promises. Help the preadolescents understand that God’s promises are real.

Abraham is “the main character” of the book of Genesis for several reasons. The whole process of God’s relationship with Israel begins with his story. In Genesis 12, God calls Abraham and tells him to leave his father’s land and go to a new land somewhere to the west. God promises to bless him greatly if he agrees to carry out that pilgrimage or journey with faith. Abraham packs his belongings, takes his family, and follows the instructions given by God. Because of this and other evidence of his trust in the Lord, the New Testament describes him as an example of faith.

In Genesis 15, God renews his promise to Abraham. There he tells him that he will inherit the land of Canaan and that his offspring will be innumerable or not easy to count. This promise of blessing is again summarized in Genesis 19. Here, the promise is conditioned on Abraham and his offspring living in obedience to God who loves them.

All these stories of Abraham must be understood through a single word: “covenant,” a term that describes the relationship between God and his people. Through the covenant, he promises an eternal, everlasting relationship with those who have placed their trust in him and obey his commandments.

When Abram was 86 years old, God invited him to take a walk and observe the night sky. “Look up at the sky and count the stars, if indeed you can count them. . . . So shall your offspring be” (Genesis 15:5-6). When Abram turned 99, God confirmed the promise more clearly and gave him a new name: Abraham. He went from being called Abram, which means “exalted father,” to Abraham, which means “father of a multitude.” God’s covenant established that Abraham’s offspring would be made up of many nations and that he would always live in communion with God (17:5-7). Although Abraham, from a human perspective, thought that was impossible, God is faithful to his promise. The following year when Abraham was 100 years old, Isaac was born. This leads us to ask ourselves the following question: Do we truly trust that God will fulfill all that he promised? God also made a covenant with Christians:

“But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8).

“But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved” (Ephesians 2:4-5).

If we live according to God’s covenant, the result will be much better than we can imagine. “However, as it is written: ‘What no eye has seen, what no ear has heard, and what no mind has conceived’— what God has prepared for those who love him” (1 Corinthians 2:9).

The promise God made to Abraham escapes our imagination. But let’s not forget that God is always faithful to his covenant.

Go for a walk

Before the session starts, choose a place (another outdoor where the students are probably not familiar) to take the students.

When the students arrive for this session, tell them that they’re going to a special place, but do not tell them where. When everyone is present, start walking there. The students will surely ask you where they’re going, but assure them that you know where you’re taking them and that they can trust you to guide them well. Also, make sure not to take the path directly to the chosen place, but take a tour and then guide them there. When they arrive at that special place, ask: “How did you feel when you did not know where we were going? Was it difficult to wait until we discovered it?” Allow everyone an opportunity to respond before returning to lesson. (If time permits, you could have something special prepared for them to eat.)

Say: “It is hard to trust and follow someone when you do not know where you’re going. Our Bible story today tells us about a man who obeyed God and left his home without knowing where God would take him.”

Broken promises

Pass out the first activity from Student Activity Sheet #384-A (BROKEN!). Tell the students to draw their favorite belonging (object) in the space inside the box. Ask some volunteers to comment on what they drew. Then they can discuss the question: “How would you feel if someone broke that object on purpose?” Give time for everyone who wants to respond. You can also suggest that they write the answer.

Ask them to read the three promises. Say: “How would you feel if someone made those promises and then broke them?” (The answers may be varied, but should include: sad, angry, frustrated, betrayed, etc.) Allow students to answer or write their answers.

Say, “Look at the bottom of the activity sheet. Read the phrases that are in the heart, those that say whether God fulfills his promises or not. How do they make you feel? Do you really think those phrases are true? Why or why not?” Allow them to give you the answers and the reason for them.

Say: “I think it is true because when I read the Bible, every promise God made he fulfilled. Our story today tells about a man who had to wait for God to keep his promise. Let’s find out what the promise was.”

Prepare in advance several questions related to the content of the biblical reading of Student Activity Sheet #384-B and #384-C. In the group, ask four or five students to read the parts that you’ll indicate. Choose students who read with comfort and enthusiasm. After they have done so, ask the questions as a review. If you wish, you can have a competition between girls and boys.

What did God promise?

Have students direct their attention to Student Activity Sheet #384-C (What did God promise?). Ask some volunteers to read the verses. Divide into three groups or pairs, and assign each group one of the promises. Give 2 to 3 minutes to discuss the verse and write sentences that describe the promise God made to Abraham. Then have them share with the rest of the group.

Finally, have them discuss the last two questions on the activity sheet. (Answers: God fulfilled the promises he made to Abraham. It was 25 years until Isaac was born and even longer until his descendants increased like the stars.)

Remind students that God always keeps his promises. Say, “Just as Abraham thought he was too old to be a father, there is nothing God has told us he will do in our lives, that he will not do. As God fulfilled his promise and gave Abraham a son, we can trust that he will never fail us.”

Trust in God

Explain: “Sometimes it can be difficult to wait and trust God. How can we learn to trust him more?” (Allow time to comment or give ideas.) Guide the students to the next activity in Student Activity Sheet #384-D (How Can I Trust God?). Explain, “Here is a list of some things that will help us trust God more.”

Ask them to read them silently. Ask: “How can these things help you to trust that God will keep his promises?” (Helping us know him better through stories like Abraham’s that teach us that God will not fail us; remembering that God does not break his promises even when we doubt him.) Say: “Read the sentences on the list again. Write on the side of the activity sheet the two or three that you think will help you trust him more. Take the list to your home and put it somewhere where you see and remember it. Do what you say there every day so that God helps you to trust him more.”