by Roger E. Dickson

When Adam sinned in the Garden of Eden, he died spiritually, for his sin separated him from God (Romans 5:12). He was also separated from the tree of life, and thus, took all humanity with him. All of us now suffer the consequences of his sin in that we all must physically die (1 Corinthians 15:20-22).

In the midst of this human tragedy, however, God made a promise that a solution for sin would come (Genesis 3:15). Throughout the Old Testament there are hundreds of prophecies that foretold the coming of the Messiah who would make atonement for the sins of men. All of these prophecies were concerning Jesus, who would die on the cross in order to reconcile us to God. He also came to give us a way to conquer that which all of us fear: physical death (Hebrews 2:14).

God chose a man by the name of Abraham through whom He would bring into the world the One who would be the Savior of man-kind. God promised Abraham, "And in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed" (Genesis 12:3). From the time this promise was made around 2000 B.C., God continually reminded His people that there was a "blessing" coming who would bear the iniquities of the people (Isaiah 53). The promise was not only to the descendants of Abraham, the Jews, but to all families of the earth. It was God's promise to humanity.

The Seed!

So, who was the blessing? Peter stated, "You are sons of the prophets, and of the covenant which God made with our fathers, saying to Abraham, 'And in your seed all the families of the earth shall be blessed!' To you first, God having raised up His Servant Jesus, sent Him to bless you, in turning away every one of you from your iniquities" (Acts 3:25,26).

The Seed of Abraham that would bless all mankind was Jesus. Paul wrote, "Now to Abraham and His Seed were the promises made. He does not say, 'And to seeds,' as to many, but as to one, 'And to your Seed,' who is Christ" (Galatians 3:16). So the Seed was Jesus Christ. This was the Seed of woman whom God promised after Adam sinned, the One who would crush the head of Satan (Genesis 3:15).

The Blessing!

Now, what was the blessing of Abraham that would come from the Seed? The Bible answers, "And the Scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, preached the gospel to Abraham beforehand, saying, 'In you all the nations shall be blessed'" (Galatians 3:8). The Gospel in this promise has reference to good news that would be preached to all the world!

The Gospel was the good news of the Seed who would take care of our sin problem in our relationship with God. He would bring us to justification by faith (Romans 3:20; Galatians 2:16). He would thus reconcile us to God by His blood (Romans 5:10,11). This is how Jesus blesses all those who believe in Him and obey the commands of the Gospel. He is the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world (John 1:29).

Thanks to The Voice of Truth International, Vol 42, pgs. 38-39.