I. INTRODUCTION
A. In John 8:31-59, Jesus had a discussion with the Jews concerning what it means to be a child of Abraham.
1. In verses 31-32, the Lord said, "If you continue in My word, then you are truly disciples of Mine and you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free.” The Jews then replied, "We are Abraham’s descendants and have never yet been enslaved to anyone.”
2. Christ then exposed the truth about the disbelieving Jews’ real father.
a. They claimed to be born of Abraham, but their deeds were not like his (vv. 37-41).
b. They also claimed to be children of God, but they were truly children of the devil, for they did the devil’s desires (vv. 41-44).
B. At the conclusion of that discussion, Jesus made a profound claim that drove the Jews to try to kill Him.
1. In verse 51, Jesus said, "Truly, truly, I say to you, if anyone keeps My word he will never see death.” Notice the Jews’ response in verse 52-53:
"Now we know that You have a demon. Abraham died, and the prophets also; and You say, ‘If anyone keeps My word, he will never taste of death.’ Surely You are not greater than our father Abraham, who died? The prophets died too; whom do You make Yourself out to be?”
2. In verse 58, Jesus made it clear whom He was making Himself out to be when He said, "Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was born, I am.”
3. Because of this statement, the Jews were enraged and attempted to stone Him.
a. They rightly understood the claim that Jesus had made, which was that He preceded Abraham and was eternal.
b. By saying "I am,” Jesus was making an obvious connection between Himself and Jehovah God, who declared that His name was "I AM” when He spoke to Moses in Exodus 3:14.
C. From this context, let us consider the words of Jesus in verse 56.
1. Jesus said to the Jews, "Your father Abraham rejoiced to see My day, and he saw it and was glad.”
2. Exactly what did Abraham see and what does it mean for us today?
II. WHAT DID ABRAHAM SEE?
A. In a sense Abraham saw the day of Christ by faith through the promises he received from God and specifically through the promise of blessings for all nations through his seed.
1. Consider the passages in which God made the seed promise to Abraham.
a. Genesis 12:3 – "And I will bless those who bless you, and the one who curses you I will curse. And in you all the families of the earth will be blessed.”
b. Genesis 17:19 – But God said, "No, but Sarah your wife will bear you a son, and you shall call his name Isaac; and I will establish My covenant with him for an everlasting covenant for his descendants after him.”
c. Genesis 22:18 – "In your seed all the nations of the earth shall be blessed, because you have obeyed My voice.”
2. Jesus is the fulfillment of these promises, and the time of His coming was the day which Abraham saw.
a. Jesus is "the son of Abraham” (Matt. 1:1ff; see also Luke 3:34) who came to earth to be the Savior (Matt. 1:21-23).
b. The apostle Paul identified Jesus specifically as the seed of Abraham in Galatians 3:16 – "Now the promises were spoken to Abraham and to his seed. He does not say, ‘And to seeds,’ as referring to many, but rather to one, ‘And to your seed,’ that is, Christ.”
3. Notice that Abraham had been given a preview of the gospel through these promises. Consider Galatians 3:8 – "The Scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, preached the gospel beforehand to Abraham, saying, ‘All the nations will be blessed in you.’”
B. Abraham did not receive the fulfillment of the promises in his lifetime, but he saw their fulfillment and the day of Christ from a distance.
1. Consider what Abraham was looking for and what he saw according to Hebrews 11:9-10, 13-16, 39-40 (emphasis added):
By faith [Abraham] lived as an alien in the land of promise, as in a foreign land, dwelling in tents with Isaac and Jacob, fellow heirs of the same promise; for he was looking for the city which has foundations, whose architect and builder is God…All these died in faith, without receiving the promises, but having seen them and having welcomed them from a distance, and having confessed that they were strangers and exiles on the earth. For those who say such things make it clear that they are seeking a country of their own. And indeed if they had been thinking of that country from which they went out, they would have had opportunity to return…And all these, having gained approval through their faith, did not receive what was promised, because God had provided something better for us, so that apart from us they would not be made perfect.
2. Although Abraham did not receive the fulfillment of the promises while he lived on earth, by faith he saw them and "welcomed them from a distance.” This statement is very similar to the words of Christ in John 8:56, when He said, "Your father Abraham rejoiced to see My day, and he saw it and was glad.”
C. Has Abraham seen more than this?
1. Thus far, we have assumed that the words of Jesus in John 8:56 are explained by what Abraham saw by faith. However, Jesus seemed to be indicating that Abraham was truly aware when Christ came to earth as a fulfillment of the seed promise.
2. Let us consider the parable of the rich man and Lazarus (Luke 16:19-25) and whether it gives us any insight into what Abraham may have been able to see.
a. When Jesus spoke in parables, He did not necessarily tell a historical story, but rather He told anecdotes that were set in true situations. He never told parables that were based in fictitious settings.
b. In the parable of the rich man and Lazarus, Lazarus died and was taken by angels to a place of comfort referred to as Abraham’s bosom. Throughout the parable, Abraham communicated with the rich man, who also died and was taken to a place of torment. Consistent with all of Christ’s parables, this setting must have been real.
c. If the setting of the parable is real (apparently it is), then Abraham was aware of Moses and the prophets (who came after him) and even current events on earth.
d. With this, we can understand that Abraham could also have had the opportunity to be aware of Christ’s coming to earth.
e. Of course, this leaves us with some questions.
i. What else does Abraham know? Was he privileged to know more than others? What do any of the dead know?
ii. Ecclesiastes 9:5 says, "For the living know they will die; but the dead do not know anything, nor have they any longer a reward, for their memory is forgotten.” However, the next verse indicates that this applies to "all that is done under the sun” and not to the spiritual realm.
iii. It is obvious that Abraham knew many things after death.
III. CONCLUSION – CHILDREN OF ABRAHAM REJOICE
A. Jesus told the Jews to "do the deeds of Abraham” (John 8:39), and Abraham rejoiced over Jesus’ day.
1. We may not know exactly what Abraham knew or when he knew it, we do know that he was glad to see the day of Christ.
2. If the Jews were truly the children of Abraham, then they would also have been glad to see the day of Christ. Instead, they sought to put him to death, thus making them children of Satan.
B. Today, we are the children of Abraham through faith in Christ who will rejoice to see the day of the Lord.
1. Notice Galatians 3:7, 29 – "Therefore, be sure that it is those who are of faith who are sons of Abraham…And if you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s descendants, heirs according to promise.”
2. The day of Christ for which we look is the time of His second coming. That will be not a dreadful day for us, but rather it will be a day of rejoicing (see 1Thess. 4:13-5:11). Consider 2Peter 3:11-14:
Since all these things are to be destroyed in this way, what sort of people ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness, looking for and hastening the coming of the day of God, because of which the heavens will be destroyed by burning, and the elements will melt with intense heat! But according to His promise we are looking for new heavens and a new earth, in which righteousness dwells. Therefore, beloved, since you look for these things, be diligent to be found by Him in peace, spotless and blameless…