The story and the life of Abram, who became Abraham [17:5] is recorded for us in Genesis
Chapters 12 -25.
In Chapter 12 we read of
God’s call of Abraham to leave his country and kindred to go to a land which
God would show him. Along with the call comes a set of wonderful and great
promises: “I will make of you a great
nation, and I will bless you and make your name great, so that you will be a
blessing” [Gen.12:2]. He takes his nephew Lot, his
brother’s son with him to the Promised Land called Canaan, which is named after the cursed son of Ham. God was planning to reverse the curse in
this land and to make it a land of promise. All this foreshadows God’s great plan
in terms of the new creation, the new heaven and the new earth [Rev. 21:1]. At Christ’s second coming the curse with
which the earth has been cursed in Genesis 3 will be finally lifted, “and the earth will be filled with the
knowledge of the glory of the LORD as the waters cover the sea.” [Hab.2:14]
As he arrives in the Promised Land however, a challenge
confronts him and his family. There is a terrible drought, and he leaves there
to seek temporary relief in Egypt. This presented him with further troubles, relating
to his wife Sarai. He almost lost his
wife to Pharaoh due to a lie concerning her which he told Pharaoh in
Egypt, when he said that she was his sister. But by the grace of God he was
helped. We read of this in vv. 11- 20 and we asked the question whether
Abram did right to go to Egypt for help, when he could have in fact relied upon
the Lord to sustain him in Canaan in the midst of this drought, as He would indeed
sustain Moses and Israel in their 40 year long journey through the desert into
the Promised Land. All this reminds us that Christians, the called-out people
of God, on their way to our heavenly city can indeed make bad choices, based on
a lack of faith and a lack of biblical thinking and motivated by fear. If it
were not for the grace and mercy of our faithful and merciful God, who forgives
us in Christ we would never find our way out of Egypt back into the Promised
Land.
With that unhappy experience in Egypt behind him he, in
Chapter 13, returns with all his family to the promised land where
he finds his next challenge,
and in this challenge we shall find him
a wiser man. “So Abram went up from Egypt…into the Negev” (v.1).
1.
The first thing we learn is that Abram returned to Canaan. He
left the place of compromise and deceit and he returned to the place of promise.
As he retraces his steps we are reminded that this is the way of repentance. The biblical idea of repentance[1],
both in the Greek and the Hebrew,
contain the thought of turning away from one’s error or sin. Abram turns
away from Egypt and returns to God’s design for him. That is what you must do that when you have
fallen into sin. You repent by confessing your sin, and by leaving the place of
sin, and by returning to the place of blessing. That is the story of the
prodigal son [Lk 15:11-32]. Zacchaeus the tax collector [Luke 19:1-10] demonstrated his repentance
when he confronted by Jesus. He confessed his sin. He went to the people from whom
he had unfairly exacted tax money and he paid them back with interest, and from
then on he walked with God.
Abram returned
and he came to “Bethel, to the place where
his tent had been at the beginning, between bethel and Ai, to the place where
he had made an altar at the first, and there he called on the Name of the LORD.”
[13:3, 4 cf. 12:8]. Griffith
Thomas says: “Whenever we backslide there
is nothing else to do but to come back by the old gateway of genuine repentance
and simple faith.”[2]
So, Abram went back to the place
where he had first worshiped God in the Promised Land, and there he found
grace in the eyes of the Lord. We need
to stop here for a moment and consider a fact that runs through the biblical
narrative. We often find that it is not
the enemies of God, but God’s people themselves who are the cause of the
problems that exist in this world. Many a time we who are the church are quick to condemn the
sin and hypocrisy of the world around us,
but fail to take the log out of our own eyes [See Romans 2:21-24]. If it had not been for God who had intervened on
Abram’s behalf in Egypt there is no telling where he would have found himself
at the end of the day. And so it is with
us.
So then, there between Bethel and Ai, Abraham found himself
in that place in which he would meet with God once again. This is important for
it influences the story line which follows from here.
2.
A new challenge arises, and it comes
from his nephew, Lot. Another challenge! The life of faith is rarely straight forward! Now, both of these men, in the course of time,
had grown very wealthy (v.2).
Between them they had so much livestock that they found it hard to live
together any longer. We read in vv. 6-7 that “the land could
not support both of dwelling together; for their possessions were so great that
they could not dwell together, and there was strife between Abram’s
herdsmen and the herdsmen of Lot.” This
is a real moment of tension, and sinful people can easily make such a situation
worse. But, at this moment Abram was
living in the recent experience of the grace of God extended to him, and
because of this he has become wiser and therefore instead of angry words and strife
he can also extend grace to Lot. Do you
see what experiencing God does to you? Knowing the grace of God experientially helps
us to be more thoughtful, self-denying, and kind. And so Abram
took the initiative in vv.8-9 and he
spoke to Lot about the problem. And this
time he makes the right choice based on the promises of God. These are the words of a man who had been
humbled by God! He was back in that place
of trusting in the promises of God. Now remember that God and not Lot had been promised to be the father of a
great nation [12:2] (the mystery of
election). He had been promised this when as yet he had no child and no son to
carry on the family line.
Lot would later become the father of the Ammonites and the Moabites, by an
incestuous relationship with his daughters [19:30-38]. These tribes would become sworn enemies of Israel in
time, but Abram believed that this land was his by God’s promise. Therefore he
could say to Lot in a peaceful way, “Listen!
Take what you want. I will take what is left!” Abram kept reminding himself
whose he was, remembering who had accepted him and who loved him. Lot was not
born of the chosen seed of the woman, and so we will see in time that Lot will become
an obstacle to Israel. Therefore this
parting actually becomes a blessing. It becomes necessary. This is worth reflecting on. As Christians we often think face
situations in which we do not realise that those who are
close to us can actually become obstacles in our Christian progress,
particularly if they prove to be self- centred pursuers of their own agendas
and not of God’s agenda, and this leads to a parting of the ways. Fighting on every hill is not good. We have
to choose our battle carefully. We need to be as peaceful as we can afford to
be. David had too much blood on his
hands. Let God sort Lot out! This is Abram’s confidence. By faith he knew
that the last page had not yet been written, and he could trust God in this. And so he made the right choice
based on the promises of God. When your eyes are on Jesus and His promises for
you, then you will not easily be tempted to live for the quick fix! Let the Gospel, the Good News of Jesus direct
your agenda. Keep Christ before your eyes. David says in Psalm 16:8, “I have set the
LORD always before me, because He is at my right hand, I shall not be shaken.”
And so Abram humbly says to his nephew, “You choose.” The Bible says that “whoever humbles himself will
be exalted. [Matt 23:12]. Remember
this principle as you live your life in this world! And as a church we must
also remember this. As we participate in kingdom work, remember that the best
way to remove those obstacles which prevent our reforming and building and
expanding is to humbly walk with God, and according to His Word, and to be like
the Lord Jesus, meek, just and patient.
Now Lot’s choice was based on what his eyes saw and desired.
It was purely physical, and selfish. He
quickly grabbed that which he thought was best: “He saw
that the Jordan valley was well watered everywhere like the garden of the LORD,
like the land of Egypt…” [v. 10].
Little did he know that this was the
land of Sodom and Gomorrah, filled with
wicked great sinners against the LORD” [v. 13]. Little did he know this this land was soon to be judged
with fire and brimstone.
“Abram settled in the
land of Canaan, while Lot settled among the cities of the valley and moved his
tents as far as Sodom.”[v.12] so, it is clear now that Lot had abandoned
the land of promise in which the operative principle was to live by faith in God’s
promises. Abram, by contrast will be blessed and he will become the sole
inheritor of the land.
3. The Lord Confirms The Blessing Coming On
Abram After Lot Had Separated From Him. [Vv. 14-17] “All the land that you see I will give
to you and your offspring forever.” In Chapter 15:18 God will
provide specific details. The land will be from the Nile to the Euphrates. The land would actually stretch far beyond Abram’s
physical sight. Again we learn the principle
that we walk by faith and not by sight. God promises exceedingly, abundantly, above
that which the eyes can see. [Eph. 3:20,
21]
Abram’s offspring eventually received a substantial portion of
the promised land of Canaan under Joshua, but not all. Under David more of the land was taken, and under
Solomon it became a reality…but not really, because God had even more in mind. Abram is going to be the father of much more than
a people who will a territory in the Middle East. Abram’s offspring would be heir of the world.
[Rom.
4:13]. So here we are! Children of
Abram, offspring of the promises of God in Windhoek. A vast multitude is being called out from
every corner of the world, and all those who profess faith in Jesus are of the
promised offspring of Abram, the father of our faith.
As we speak from the perspective of this chapter, the
Canaanites and Perizzites were still living in the land, and yet God told Abram
to consider it as his own. They would not be there much longer. “So
Abram moved his tent and came and settled by the oaks of Mare at Hebron, and there
he built an altar to the Lord” (v.18). He is surrounded by enemies, but
what God promises He will do. Nothing will separate Abram from the love of God,
not even his temporary unbelief and lapse of faith in Egypt. God has promised.
He is faithful, and Abraham knows it, and he is thankful and humbled because of
it.
CONCLUSION:
Dear child of God, I don’t know where you are in your life’s
journey. It is possible for you to be here today in the presence of God’s
people and of God and yet, in your heart, be in Egypt. To you God says, “Repent and return!” Humble yourselves in
the sight of God and He will lift you up.
Dear Child of God, trust in God. Be patient! Be kind to those
who disagree with you. Let go of the aggressive pursuit of your own desires, and
your restlessness and unbelief. God is
in charge. In Christ you have received far better promises
than Abram. You do not see it now, but by faith fix your eyes on them and on
Jesus. All things are yours. This inheritance is ours. It is secured for
you by the Lord Jesus Christ and it is guaranteed to you by the Holy Spirit.
Do not fear the strongholds of Satan and the
kingdoms of men.
Christ has already
conquered them by his life and death.
Walk and live in this this world in the confidence
of the gospel!
Amen.
[1] Greek:
metanoia, literally to have a change of mind; Hebrew: There are two words for
repentance in the Old Testament Hebrew.
One word is “nacham” which means “to be sorry” or “to regret” but the
overwhelming majority of the time it is used (391 times) it means “turn” or
“return” (“shuwb”).
[2]
Quoted in: Philip Eveson: The Book of Origins,
p. 261, Welwyn Commentary, Evangelical Press 2001
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