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Abraham as the Ideal Man of Faith
The question is frequently asked, “What does it mean to have faith?” “What does it mean to be faithful?” The path to righteousness has always been one paved in good faith, and this is a well-known fact. The ideal man of faith, it can be reasoned, would be the man who was the most suitable spiritual companion for God. This would be someone with whom God could speak with, and fulfill his wishes for human beings there within. God would not simply want a servant, but a friend who would walk through his life with God. This is a hard man to find. One place worshippers of God are always certain to look for an example is the Bible. The Old Testament offers many differing examples of men of faith. Some men of faith closely looked at in the Old Testament are Abraham, Noah, and Job. Abraham can be viewed as the ideal man of faith because his relationship with God exceeded those of Noah and Job. His relationship was ideal in that there was true communication and a mutual respect. While Noah and Job were men of faith, their relationships were not ideal because Noah did not truly communicate and Job lacked both respect and trust for the Lord.
Abraham was God’s chosen “father of all nations.” He and God shared a relationship that no other man ever shared with God. God says to Abraham:
I will make of you a great nation,
And I will bless you;
I will make your name great,
So that will be your blessing.
I will bless those who bless you
And curse those who curse you.
All the communities of the earth
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...ause he never lacked trust or respect for the Lord. Even when God demanded that Abraham kill his own son, Abraham never once lost any respect or trust. He merely had faith.
The conclusion to be drawn is a fairly easy one. Abraham was the ideal man of faith, due to his upholding of the vital elements of the ideal, as well as the fact that he was the best companion for God. He proved that devotion does not necessarily mean just strict servitude, but that it also means maintaining a relationship on a level that servants cannot. Also, he showed that a mutual respect must be present if a relationship will work, and that trust is required at all times. Faith was never a “sometimes” thing for Abraham. He took it to the fullest extent at every moment, which is why he was the ideal man of faith. He did everything necessary to be the ideal companion for God.
McManus, Doyle. “Drawing Budget Battle Lines.” Editorial. Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles Times, 14 Apr. 2011. Web. 5 June 2011. .
Abraham obeyed God by preparing wood and loading his donkey and took away Isaac and two servants with him. On reaching the place ordered by God, Abraham built an Alter and arranged the wood on it. He tied up his son and placed him on altar, on top of the wood and picked up the knife to kill him. Abraham was stopped by the Lord’s voice from heaven telling him, he was an obedient man who honored God. The angel of God confirmed to him how God would richly bless him and give him many descendants as there are stars in the sky or grains of sand along the seashore.
Abraham is deemed the founder and one of three patriarchs of the Jewish faith. In Fundamental Theology, by Heinrich Fries, a detailed description of Abraham’s journey and faith is given. A summary of Fries explanation is that Abraham’s name was originally Abram. He was considered a “nomadic chief” from Mesopotamia. God spoke to Abraham and told him to leave his home and country. This was one of many tests Abraham faced. In the words of the Bible, Abraham was t...
U.S Federal Deficit and Debts:Understanding the history and context. (2011, November 1). Utah Foundation. Retrieved January 25, 2014, from http://www.utahfoundation.org/img/pdfs/rr7
One day, Abram had a vision. In the vision God tells Abram to leave his father’s house which is today’s Iraq, and travel to a place that God will show him. God said that if Abram who becomes Abraham obeyed this command, his descendants would become a great nation, and that he will bless thee,...
Abraham, on the other hand, conceded to his rules and does as he is told without even the slightest hesitation. He made his slow venture up the mountain, to the exact place God had shown him, and, builds the altar then ties his son up and getting him ready for the sacrificing (Gen 22:9). But at this point the Lord stopped him. Without shame, for he did as he was told, he announced “Here I am” (Gen 22 :11). This is unlike Adam whom has to hide himself for going against the Lords will earlier in chapter three of Genesis. And unlike in chapter three, instead of getting reprimanded and punished, Abraham is blessed by the Lord (Gen 22 :16-19), for he did what he was told even though it was a great loss in his family.
“The Budget and Economic Outlook : Fiscal Years 2010 to 2020.” Congress of the United States
With the appearance of Abraham we enter into datable history. Abraham (known as “the father of the Jews”) is also significant because the nation of Israel are his descendants.
Kierkegaard was a Danish philosopher in the mid 1800s. He is known to be the father of existentialism and was at least 70 years ahead of his time. Kierkegaard set out to attack Kant’s rational ethics and make attacks on the Christianity of our day. He poses the question, how do we understand faith? He states that faith equals the absurd. In “Fear and Trembling”, he uses the story of Abraham and his son Isaac to show an example of faith as the absurd. The story of God asking Abraham to sacrifice his son Isaac signifies a break in the theory that ethics and religion go hand in hand. He shows how the ethical and the religious can be completely different. “I by no means conclude that faith is something inferior but rather that it is the highest, also that it is dishonest of philosophy to give something else in its place and to disparage faith” (Fear and Trembling, 12).
... In conclusion, Abraham is shown to be justified; he is not a murderer. In Fear and Trembling, Kierkegaard wrote that "the future will show I was right (Kierkegaard, 91). " Well, Abraham was proven right by the result. He does not kill Isaac.
To begin with, God’s faithfulness is displayed in the Pentateuch. One example is found in the opening chapters of Genesis. Even though Adam and Eve disobeyed his command, God does not let sin prevent him from being faithful. Instead, God enters the garden and asks the couple, “Where are you?” (Genesis 3:9) This example displays the theme that God remains involved in the lives of his followers even when they disobey him. Another example of God’s faithfulness is found in his interactions with Abraham. When God and Abraham establish a covenant that promises the man land, descendants, and blessings for all people, God completes the ratification ceremony for both parties. This act signifies that God is entirely responsible for upholding the covenant. From this passage, the faithfulness of God is highlighted. God makes a deal that only he can uphold; therefore, his faithfulness to Abraham and his descendents is crucial. In addition to Genesis, God’s faithfulness is displayed in the events of the Exodus and subsequent wanderings of Israel. God rescues Israel from slavery in Egypt, just as he promised Abraham, then establishes a covenant with the people at Sinai. This agreement, known as the Mosaic covenant, was conditional in nature because it required the faithfulness of Israel to God. While this stipulation seems to detract from God’s f...
According to Argyris (1953), “budgets frequently serve as a basis for rewarding and penalizing those in the organization” (Argyris, 1953, p. 97). Further, Argyris (1953) describes a budget as a measuring instrument, which sets goals which mean that people can be measured in this way (Argyris, 1953). People tend to have a problem with this and complain about this part of the budget as no one wants to seem as inefficient. For supervisors, budgets can be a way to put things in writing, and thus vent other unrelated issues (Argyris, 1953). Also, budgets can be considered to be pressure devices to keep employees on track and motivated, while also being pressured (Argyris, 1953).
An advantage of performance budgeting would be transparency; this type of budgeting allows stakeholders the ability to ascertain the amount of service delivered for the funded cost. Basically it measures to what extent does government agencies getting what they paid for. This type of budgeting also provides an avenue by which management and line staff can contribute feedback for the enhancement of a program’s success.
Buddhism is one of the major world religions with many followers around the world. It is unique in its nature as it is frequently referred to as a ‘spiritual tradition’ (Miller, 2010). Buddhism focuses on personal spiritual development and the attainment of a deep insight into the true nature of life (Johnston, 2003). Buddhists believe that nothing is fixed or permanent and that change is always possible. This belief in the impermanence of all things underpins the Buddhist interpretation of the world and reality (Maguire, 2001).