How does Acts 3:26 connect with God's promise to Abraham in Genesis 12:3? The Promise to Abraham: A Universal Blessing • Genesis 12:3: “I will bless those who bless you and curse those who curse you; and all the families of the earth will be blessed through you.” • God makes a literal, unconditional covenant with Abram: through his physical line a worldwide blessing will flow. • The same promise is reiterated and enlarged in Genesis 22:18; 26:4; 28:14. Peter’s Sermon: Jesus as the Fulfillment • Acts 3:26: “When God raised up His servant, He sent Him first to you to bless you by turning each of you from your wicked ways.” • “His servant” = Jesus, physically resurrected and commissioned. • Peter is preaching in Solomon’s Colonnade (Acts 3:11), addressing Jewish listeners—Abraham’s descendants according to the flesh. Key Parallels Between Genesis 12:3 and Acts 3:26 • Same Source of blessing: – Genesis 12: “I will bless…” – Acts 3: “God…sent Him to bless you…” • Same agent: – Genesis 12: “through you” (Abram’s lineage) – Acts 3: “His servant” (the Seed of Abraham, cf. Galatians 3:16). • Same scope, different order: – Genesis 12 looks forward to “all the families of the earth.” – Acts 3 shows the blessing arriving “first” to Israel, then—by implication—outward to the nations (cf. Acts 13:46; Romans 1:16). • Same content of blessing: reconciliation with God. In Acts 3 that blessing is defined as repentance and forgiveness. Blessing Defined: Turning from Wickedness • Acts 3:26 clarifies that the core blessing is moral and spiritual transformation—“turning each of you from your wicked ways.” • Isaiah 53:11–12 anticipated the Servant bearing sin; Luke 24:47 states that “repentance for the forgiveness of sins will be proclaimed in His name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem.” • Thus, Genesis 12:3 is not merely about material prosperity but about a restored relationship with God realized through Christ. The Priority of Israel, the Reach to the Nations • God “sent Him first to you” (Acts 3:26). This honors the covenant order: – Romans 9:4–5: Israel possesses “the covenants.” – Matthew 10:5–6; 15:24: Jesus’ earthly ministry prioritized “the lost sheep of the house of Israel.” • Yet the promise’s end-goal remains universal: – Galatians 3:8: “The Scripture foresaw that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, and foretold the gospel to Abraham: ‘All nations will be blessed through you.’” Implications for Today • The Abrahamic promise is already inaugurated in Christ’s first coming and continues as the gospel reaches the ends of the earth (Acts 1:8). • Salvation is offered on the same basis—faith in the risen Seed—for Jew and Gentile alike (Galatians 3:14; Ephesians 2:11-18). • Every believer today experiences Genesis 12:3’s blessing when turning from sin to the Savior, and is commissioned to channel that blessing to others (2 Corinthians 5:18-20). |
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