“that you may come to believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God”

This lesson should be studied along with its sister lesson – For the sake of… (New Testament)

ACTIVITY – For the Sake of…
Option 1 - Assign individuals or groups one of the verse below. Make sure all verses are assigned. The individual or group should answer the following question. Is a promise or action made? Who makes the promise or action? Who is it made with or for? It is made for the sake of…?

Option 2 – Use both the Old Testament and New Testament lesson. Give one group verses from the Old Testament and the other group verses from the New Testament. Have each group answer the questions above and then compare both lists.

Genesis 18:23,24, 32 – “Then Abraham drew nearer to him and said, “Suppose there were fifty innocent people in the city; would you wipe out the place, rather than spare it for the sake of the fifty innocent people within it?”...But he still persisted, “Please, let not my Lord grow angry if I speak up this last time. What if there are at least ten there?” “For the sake of those ten,” he replied, “I will not destroy it.”

For the sake of ten – a whole city is spared. This promise was made to Abraham.

Genesis 26:23-24 – From there Isaac went up to Beer-sheba. The same night the Lord appeared to him and said: “I am the God of your father Abraham. You have not need to fear, since I am with you. I will bless you and multiply your descendants for the sake of my servant Abraham.”

For the sake of my servant Abraham - Isaac’s descendants are blessed and multiplied. This promise is made to Isaac.

2 Samuel 5:12 – And David knew that the Lord had established him as king of Israel and had exalted his rule for the sake of his people.

For the sake of his people – David is established as king. This promise is made to David and the Israelites.

1 Kings 11-13 – So the Lord said to Solomon: “Since this is what you want, and you have not kept my covenant and my statues which I enjoined on you, I will deprive you of the kingdom and give it to your servant. I will not do this during your lifetime, however, for the sake of your father David; it is your son whom I will deprive. Nor will I take away the whole kingdom. I will leave your son one tribe for the sake of my servant David and of Jerusalem, which I have chosen.”

For the sake of my servant David and for the sake of Jerusalem – Solomon is spared the full punishment he was to be given. This promise was made to King Solomon.

2 Kings 8:16-19 – In the fifth year of Joram, son of Ahab, king of Israel, Jehoram, son of Jehoshaphat, king of Judah, became king. He was thirty-two years old when he began to reign, and he reigned eight years in Jerusalem. He conducted himself like the kings of Israel of the line of Ahab, since the sister of Ahab was his wife; and he did evil in the Lord’s sight. Even so, the Lord was unwilling to destroy Judah, because of [for the sake of] his servant David. For he had promised that he would leave him a lamp in the Lord’s presence for all time.

For the sake of his servant David – Judah is not destroyed.

Psalm 23:3 – You restore my strength. You guide me along the right path for the sake of your name.

For the sake of your name – you lead me along the right path

Psalm 79:9 – Help us, God our savior, for the glory of your name. Deliver us, pardon our sins for your name sake.

For the sake of your name – you deliver us, you pardon our sins

Psalm 143:11 – For your name’s sake, Lord, give me life; in your justice lead me out of distress.

For the sake of the name of the Lord – give us life, lead us out of distress

Isaiah 45:1, 4-6 – Thus says the Lord to his anointed, Cyrus, whose right hand I grasp, subduring nations before him, and making kings run in his service, opening doors before him and leaving the gates unbarred…For the sake of Jacob, my servant, of Israel my chosen one, I have called you by your name giving you a title, though you knew me not. I am the Lord and there is no other, there is no God besides me. It is I who arm you, though you know me not, so that toward the rising of the setting of the sun men may know the there is not besides me.

For the sake of Jacob, my servant. For the sake of Israel my chosen one – Cyrus of Persia is given the power and authority to liberate the Israelites.

Ezekiel 20:44 – And you shall know that I am the Lord when I deal with you thus, for my name’s sake, and not according to your evil conduct and corrupt actions, O house of Israel, says the Lord God.

For the sake of God’s name – God does not deal with Israel according to their evil conduct or corrupt actions. – Promise made to the people.

In the Old Testament it is primarily God acting for His people. Why does he act and for the sake of what? What are the major themes? The majority of the time God acts in a certain way “for the sake of His name”. There are over 10 references to God acting “for the sake of His name”. He is the Great I AM. God keeps His good name and His name is honored and revered because of His justice and mercy. He also shows acts of Mercy because of His servant(s), the most common servant mention being King David. God shows mercy because of His servant David. We know from King David’s life that he was a great sinner, but also a repentant sinner, that strove to avoid sin and pursue good. If God will show much mercy because of King David, a sinner, imagine the mercy he will show for the sake of the Son of David, a title giving to Jesus, who was without sin. God shows mercy for the sake of His people, for the sake of Jerusalem, how much more mercy will He show to the New Jerusalem the Church that includes all His people, both Jew and Gentile.

It has been said the God of the Old Testament is a mean and vicious God that only punishes. God is both a God of justice and mercy. The Old Testament is full of references, showing God’s loving mercy for the sake of… How can we show from scripture that God is a God of mercy, even in the Old Testament? Give some examples of this.