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Objective

In this lesson we’ll see that serving God often means waiting faithfully upon Him and trusting His promises, even when the fulfillment seems delayed.

Key Verse

Hebrews 11:8: By faith Abraham obeyed when he was called to go out to the place which he would receive as an inheritance. And he went out, not knowing where he was going.

Introduction

Abraham is the greatest example of faith in the Bible. Like Noah before him, Abraham made mistakes, but he trusted that God would be faithful to His promises. When we study Abraham’s life, we discover that faith isn’t about being perfect—it’s about believing that God keeps His word, even when circumstances make that seem impossible.

God promised to make Abraham the father of a great nation. This is what his new name meant—Abraham literally means “father of many nations.” But there was one problem: Abraham had no son, and he had to wait many long years for God’s promise to be fulfilled.

Genesis 12:1-3: The Lord had said to Abram, “Go from your country, your people and your father’s 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.”

Genesis 17:5: No longer will you be called Abram; your name will be Abraham, for I have made you a father of many nations.

Genesis 21:1-3: Now the Lord was gracious to Sarah as he had said, and the Lord did for Sarah what he had promised. Sarah became pregnant and bore a son to Abraham in his old age, at the very time God had promised him. Abraham gave the name Isaac to the son Sarah bore him.

The truth of God’s word is mentioned three times in these verses:

• as he had said (verse 1)
• what he had promised (verse 1)
• at the very time God had promised (verse 2)

This teaches us something crucial about God’s character. He is not only faithful to keep His promises, but He also keeps them at exactly the right time. What seems like delay to us is perfect timing to God.

But how was Abraham saved? How did he receive eternal life? The New Testament gives us the beautiful answer to this question:

Romans 4:3: What does Scripture say? “Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness.”

Galatians 3:6: So also Abraham “believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness.”

Abraham was saved by looking ahead in faith to the fulfillment of God’s promises. He didn’t have the full picture that we have—he couldn’t see Christ clearly or understand exactly how God would fulfill His covenant promises. But he had faith in God’s word, and that’s what God requires. Abraham believed that God would do what He promised, even when it seemed impossible, and God counted that faith as righteousness.

This is the same way we are saved today. We look back in faith to what Christ has already accomplished on the cross, while Abraham looked forward in faith to what God promised He would do. The object of our faith is clearer, but the principle is exactly the same—God saves people who believe His promises.

In this lesson, we’ll look at how Abraham waited for the promise. We’ll see that waiting doesn’t mean doing nothing. Abraham was busy serving God faithfully while he waited. We’ll focus on four key ways that Abraham remained faithful during his long season of waiting:

• He was faithful to worship God
• He was faithful to pray
• He was faithful to disciple others
• He was faithful to engage in battle

Abraham Was Faithful to Worship God

False religions teach that we should worship God for what we get in return. Pure worship is when we worship God for who He is—not for what He gives us, but because He deserves our worship simply by being God.

Revelation 4:11: You are worthy, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power, for you created all things, and by your will they were created and have their being.

Abraham understood this truth in a profound way because of where he had come from. Before God called him, Abram lived in a world saturated with idolatry. His own family worshiped false gods, including his father Terah.

Joshua 24:2: Joshua said to all the people, “This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: ‘Long ago your ancestors, including Terah the father of Abraham and Nahor, lived beyond the Euphrates River and worshiped other gods.’

When God called Abram out of this idolatrous background, He was calling him from darkness into light, from lies into truth. (Notebook Moment: If you came to Christ from another religious background, how does Abraham’s experience encourage you? What does it mean to you that God calls people out of false worship into true worship?) Abraham had experienced firsthand the emptiness of idol worship, so when the true and living God revealed Himself, Abraham understood what a privilege it was to worship the God who actually hears and responds.

Because of this background, worship became the foundation of Abraham’s life and his walk with God. Everywhere Abraham went, he built altars to the Lord. This wasn’t just religious routine—this was a man who had discovered that the God of heaven and earth was real, personal, and worthy of worship.

Genesis 12:7: The Lord appeared to Abram and said, “To your offspring I will give this land.” So he built an altar there to the Lord, who had appeared to him.

Genesis 13:3-4: From the Negev he went from place to place until he came to Bethel, to the place between Bethel and Ai where his tent had been earlier and where he had first built an altar. There Abram called on the name of the Lord.

Notice that Abraham worshiped even when he didn’t see the fulfillment of God’s promise. He built altars and called on the name of the Lord while he was still waiting for a son, still waiting for the land, still waiting to see how God would make him into a great nation. This teaches us that we too should be faithful in worship regardless of our circumstances:

• whether healthy or sick
• whether prospering or struggling financially
• whether comfortable or suffering persecution

David and Paul give us powerful examples of faithful worship in difficult times. When David’s men were talking about stoning him after a devastating military defeat, Scripture tells us that “David strengthened himself in the Lord his God.”

1 Samuel 30:6: David was greatly distressed because the men were talking of stoning him; each one was bitter in spirit because of his sons and daughters. But David found strength in the Lord his God.

Paul and Silas sang hymns to God while sitting in a Roman prison with their backs bleeding from beatings.

Acts 16:25: About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the other prisoners were listening to them.

Worship isn’t dependent on our circumstances being good. True worship comes from understanding who God is and choosing to honor Him no matter what we’re facing.

Abraham Was Faithful to Prayer

We can become so focused on our own needs that we fail to pray for the needs of others. But Abraham was a man of prayer who interceded for others, even when they were facing God’s judgment for their sins.

The most remarkable example of this comes when God was about to destroy the wicked cities of Sodom and Gomorrah. Instead of thinking, “They deserve whatever they get,” Abraham boldly interceded for these cities, asking God to spare them if even ten righteous people could be found there.

Genesis 18:23: Then Abraham approached him and said: “Will you sweep away the righteous with the wicked?”

Abraham’s prayer reveals his heart for others and his understanding of God’s mercy. He knew that God is both just and merciful, and he appealed to both aspects of God’s character in his intercession.

Paul gives us another beautiful example of faithfulness in prayer. Even while he was imprisoned for preaching the gospel, Paul’s letters show that he was constantly praying for other believers.

Philippians 1:3-4: I thank my God every time I remember you. In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy.

These examples challenge us with important questions: Are you faithful to pray for the lost? Are you faithful to pray for the body of Christ? (Notebook Moment: When you pray, how much of your prayer time is spent on your own needs versus interceding for others? What does this reveal about your heart?) Abraham’s example reminds us that mature faith expresses itself in prayer for others, not just ourselves.

Abraham Was Faithful to Disciple Others

Abraham understood that faith must be passed on to the next generation. While he waited for God’s promise to be fulfilled, he invested his life in training and discipling those around him. He had 318 trained servants in his household—men who had learned from Abraham not just practical skills, but spiritual truths about following the true God.

Genesis 14:14: When Abram heard that his relative had been taken captive, he called out the 318 trained men born in his household and went in pursuit as far as Dan.

The word “trained” here is significant. These weren’t just employees or workers—they were men whom Abraham had prepared and equipped. But Abraham’s discipling went beyond military training. God Himself testified that Abraham was faithful to teach those in his household about righteousness and justice.

Genesis 18:19: For I have chosen him, so that he will direct his children and his household after him to keep the way of the Lord by doing what is right and just, so that the Lord will bring about for Abraham what he has promised him.

God knew He could trust Abraham to pass on spiritual truth to the next generation. Abraham understood that being blessed by God creates responsibility to bless others by sharing what we have learned.

Paul gives us the clear pattern for this kind of spiritual multiplication in our own lives.

2 Timothy 2:2: And the things you have heard me say in the presence of many witnesses entrust to reliable people who will also be qualified to teach others.

This isn’t just for pastors or full-time ministers. Every believer should be looking for opportunities to disciple others—to share what God has taught us and to help newer believers grow in their faith. Whether in our families, our workplaces, or our churches, we all have opportunities to invest in others the way Abraham invested in his household.

Abraham Was Faithful to Engage in Battle

When Abraham learned that his nephew Lot had been captured by enemy kings, he didn’t hesitate to take action. Abraham assembled his trained men and pursued the enemy army to rescue Lot and the other captives.

Genesis 14:13-16: A man who had escaped came and reported this to Abram the Hebrew. Now Abram was living near the great trees of Mamre the Amorite, a brother of Eshkol and Aner, all of whom were allied with Abram. When Abram heard that his relative had been taken captive, he called out the 318 trained men born in his household and went in pursuit as far as Dan. During the night Abram divided his men to attack them and he routed them, pursuing them as far as Hobah, north of Damascus. He recovered all the goods and brought back his relative Lot and his possessions, together with the women and other people.

This wasn’t just a family rescue mission—it was an act of faith. Abraham was willing to risk his life and the lives of his men to save someone who had made foolish choices and gotten himself into trouble. Abraham’s heart was focused on doing what was right, not on protecting himself.

This teaches us about the spiritual battles we face as believers. We are constantly engaged in warfare against sin, Satan, and the world system that opposes God. We must be prepared for battle and focused on the fight, not just on our own comfort and safety.

Romans 13:12: The night is nearly over; the day is almost here. So let us put aside the deeds of darkness and put on the armor of light.

Ephesians 6:10-11: Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes.

Just as Abraham trained his men and kept them ready for battle, we need to be spiritually prepared for the conflicts that will come. This includes knowing God’s word, maintaining a strong prayer life, and being ready to stand for truth even when it’s costly. (Notebook Moment: What specific spiritual battles are you facing right now? How can Abraham’s example of being prepared and willing to fight encourage you in these struggles?)

Conclusion

What should we learn from Abraham’s example as we wait for God’s promises to be fulfilled in our own lives?

First, faithful servants always wait on their masters. Waiting is not passive inactivity—it’s active trust. When God asks us to wait, He’s not asking us to stop serving or stop growing. He’s asking us to trust His timing while we continue to be faithful in the responsibilities He has already given us.

Second, we should be busy serving God while we wait. Abraham didn’t sit around complaining about the delay in God’s promise. He worshiped, prayed, discipled others, and engaged in the battles that God brought his way. Our seasons of waiting can be our most productive seasons if we use them to grow in faith and serve others.

Third, we should be focused on God and others, not on ourselves. When we become self-focused during seasons of waiting, we become discouraged and impatient. But when we focus on worshiping God and serving others, we discover that God uses our waiting periods to prepare us for the blessings He has planned.

Abraham’s life reminds us that God’s promises are certain, but His timing is perfect. While we wait, we have the privilege of serving the God who never fails to keep His word. Like Abraham, we can build altars of worship, offer prayers of intercession, disciple others in the faith, and engage in the spiritual battles of our time.

The same God who was faithful to Abraham is faithful to us. The same God who fulfilled His promise to give Abraham a son will fulfill His promises to us. Our calling is to remain faithful while we wait, knowing that God’s timing is always perfect and His promises are always sure.

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[Revision Notes: Make sure that in one of the Abraham lessons I refer to the passage that says “Abraham was the friend a God.” This could be incorporated into one of the intros or conclusions.]