Abram rescues Lot

Good morning everyone…I am so grateful you are all here this morning and we get to worship together as a spiritual family. Right now our kids to get go out and hang out with their amazing teachers that have taken time out of their week to prepare a fantastic class to help make sure our kids know what Scripture says in a way that makes sense to them…I am so grateful for that…Then of coarse we want to welcome those of you joining us online right now. We are honored that you have chosen to be a part of our extended spiritual family right now and it is our hope that you will be blessed and encouraged by our time here today.

Now over the last few weeks we have been looking at this guy named Abram. Abram is a man that had a pretty significant encounter with God when he was 75 years old. During that encounter God made some pretty amazing promises to Abram. You see, during this encounter with God, Abram was promised that he would have a new land, that he would have descendants as numerous as the dust of the Earth, or the stars of the Sky, and then he was promised blessings. Actually, God promised more than blessings…he promised to bless those who bless Abram and curse those who curse Abram. Then of course we saw that actually play out as Abram lied to the king of Egypt about his wife Sarai. Remember the King and all of his household came down with plagues becuase their desire was to take advantage of Sarai. That was actually a pretty intense first interaction with the guy named Abram. Then last week we saw that Abram and Lot had to separate and long story short, we saw how Lot choose to reject the promise of God, and Abram choose to worship the Lord.

Listen, this is amazing…when you enroll in the “school of faith,”, you know…when you decide you want to learn more about God and your relationship with him..you never know what is going to happen next. Visit Abram one day and you find him settling a boundary dispute with his nephew. See him another day and you see him gearing up for a battle like Seal Team 6. Why is that…Well, for one thing, God wants us to mature in every area of life, but maturity doesn’t come easy. There can be no growth without challenge, you know the old saying, no pain/no gain, and there can be no challenge without change. See if circumstances never changed, everything would be predictable all the time; and the more predictable life becomes, the less challenge it presents. Author William Cullen Bryant wrote:

Weep not that the world changes—did it keep...A stable changeless state, ’twere cause indeed to weep. — William Cullen Bryant

Bryant was a poet and what he is saying here is that when there is no change…that is when you weep, becuase you can’t grow and be challanged when everything is always the the same. As I was looking at that quote this week, a movie came to my mind. There was a movie in the 90’s called The Truman Show. In this movie, everything was planned out and identical to the main character named Truman. This happened becuase there were cameras on this guy for his whole life, so theres cameras hidden all over. Eventually…he got so sick of it that he was willing to risk his life to try and make something different. Now, there is alot more to that movie, but that is one aspect of what is going on there.

Today, we will see Abram, the man of faith, fulfill three special roles: the watcher (1-12), the warrior (vv. 13–16), and the worshiper (vv. 17–24). In all three roles, Abram exercised faith in God and made the right decisions. Today, I hope to encourage you, in all of these same roles in your life, to exercise faith in God and make the right decisions as well...Now, I am going to tell you that there is so much in this chapter that we will not be able to cover all of it, but I hope to wet your appetite to want to read into this a little more and think about what Abram is doing a little more on your own time. I have also started on Wednesday’s uploading a video giving a racap and potentially additional information and thoughts on the text and so you will want to keep an eye out for that.

Now, let’s jump in and take a look at ...

Abram the Watcher (1-12)

So what does it mean to be a watcher…That is what we are going to look at first this morning. I think the first thing we really need to do, is simply read the passage and see what pops out at us this morning…so, open your Bible, or the Bible app, or grab the Bible from the pew in front of you and lets take a look at

Genesis 14:1–12 (ESV)

In the days of Amraphel king of Shinar, Arioch king of Ellasar, Chedorlaomer king of Elam, and Tidal king of Goiim, these kings made war with Bera king of Sodom, Birsha king of Gomorrah, Shinab king of Admah, Shemeber king of Zeboiim, and the king of Bela (that is, Zoar). And all these joined forces in the Valley of Siddim (that is, the Salt Sea). Twelve years they had served Chedorlaomer, but in the thirteenth year they rebelled. In the fourteenth year Chedorlaomer and the kings who were with him came and defeated the Rephaim in Ashteroth-karnaim, the Zuzim in Ham, the Emim in Shaveh-kiriathaim, and the Horites in their hill country of Seir as far as El-paran on the border of the wilderness. Then they turned back and came to En-mishpat (that is, Kadesh) and defeated all the country of the Amalekites, and also the Amorites who were dwelling in Hazazon-tamar. Then the king of Sodom, the king of Gomorrah, the king of Admah, the king of Zeboiim, and the king of Bela (that is, Zoar) went out, and they joined battle in the Valley of Siddim with Chedorlaomer king of Elam, Tidal king of Goiim, Amraphel king of Shinar, and Arioch king of Ellasar, four kings against five. Now the Valley of Siddim was full of bitumen pits, and as the kings of Sodom and Gomorrah fled, some fell into them, and the rest fled to the hill country. So the enemy took all the possessions of Sodom and Gomorrah, and all their provisions, and went their way. They also took Lot, the son of Abram’s brother, who was dwelling in Sodom, and his possessions, and went their way.

Now, this is the very first war that is recorded in Scripture. It was almost certainly not the first war to ever happen, but it is the first recorded in the Scripture. It is important to note that while the Bible is a story of history, it is more importantly a story being told to us by the Lord. What that means is that everything we read in this book has some sort of significance. Quite honestly as we read many of the historical events of ancient history, we are able to see a Spiritual truth being communicated to us…that is why it is included in his letter to us. So, then our job becomes understanding how what is written is for our benefit, and that is what we are going to get a glimpse of this morning.

Now, I want to give you the super condensed version here, ok. There are these 4 kings and their armies that are coming down to defeat these 5 kings and their armies. The 5 kings should do well, but they all lose and run away and hide, even getting stuck in the tar pits that they should have known about. By running away, they left all of the cities defenseless…Thats pretty messed up. Well, then becuase they are defenseless..Sodom is ransacked and Lot is not only robbed, but taken as a prisoner of war…in other words a slave. Now, Lot seems to be ignoring the promises of the Lord, yet Peter, in the New Testament, will call him righteous in his letter. You can find that in 2.Peter.2.6-8 . The question is…what makes Lot righteous…It is very likely this very situation that drives Lot to refocus on the promises of the Lord. You see, Abram is sitting back watching all of this, and very likely praying for his nephew Lot who has run from the promises of the Lord. I know that many of you can relate to that concept of praying for your loved one who has run from the promises of the Lord. You see, Lot had a desire here to live according to the ways of the world, and that is what led to his capture. We all see that type of thing happening countless times to those we love. They don’t become prisoners of war in a physical sense, but they are absolutely prisoners of a Spiritual war that is waging all around us. We each have loved ones that are caught up in various sinful patterns of the world around us, whether that is the obvious of the LGBT or living a promiscuous lifestyle, or ignoring the Scripture and participating in life away from the Lord…even if it looks harmless. We see this all around us and we watch as we pray for those who need the Lord…

Well, that is where Abram was…He was watching all of these things happening all around and he was watching Lot and Lot’s family live among the ways of the world. Maybe Lot didn’t seek to conform to the world, maybe he simply wanted to see what was out there and become a friend to the word. However, it didn’t take long for that friendship to push Lot into living with the world and if Lot was going to live with the world, then Lot would be condemned with the world as well…Again, we see that happening all around us. I see within those that are or once were close to me how they have allowed their friendship with the world to lead them to conform to the world and therefore, unless they repent, they will be condemned with the world, and that is increasing disheartening when I see that.

Now, Abram should hopefully inspire every single one of us here this morning becuase Abram watched, but he did not stay a watcher…Let’s take a look at...

Abram the Warrior (vv. 13–16)

Yeah, you heard me right…Abram the warrior. Abram sees what happens to someone he cares about and man Abram suits up and takes care of business…I mean, ok, let’s take a look at this passage and you will see why I am so impressed by Abram this morning...

Genesis 14:13–16 (ESV)

Then one who had escaped came and told Abram the Hebrew, who was living by the oaks of Mamre the Amorite, brother of Eshcol and of Aner. These were allies of Abram. When Abram heard that his kinsman had been taken captive, he led forth his trained men, born in his house, 318 of them, and went in pursuit as far as Dan. And he divided his forces against them by night, he and his servants, and defeated them and pursued them to Hobah, north of Damascus. Then he brought back all the possessions, and also brought back his kinsman Lot with his possessions, and the women and the people.

People…did you see what Abram just did. This is actually the only time we read about Abram being a warrior, but warrior he was none the less. Abram took his 318 men and they took off and rode after these 4 kings that have just pillaged and stolen everything as well as enslaved everyone and he took off after them and took them out. Abram, with 318 men took everything that was taken and defeated these armies that had defeated everyone else…Man, Im telling you as I was reading this I was picturing Captain America taking off by himself and rescuing all of the solders that the Nazi’s had taken. If you haven’t seen Captain America you will want to go take a look at the movie and you will see what Im talking about.

I mean Abram took care of business ya’ll…When it was time to act…Abram did what was needed to protect those he cares about…how many of us can say we have done, or would do the same thing today? I mean look…Im gonna be real her for a minute to all the parents in the room and joining us online. You are in a battle for the soul for your children…it is not time to be hands off. It’s not time to free range and hope for the best. Look I have seen people that I care about over the years that have a hands off attitude towards their kids and then they will call me crying because they never saw it coming...When you look around and see what is happening in the culture around us it’s time to mount up, you and your trained men so that you can go in pursuit of those you love as far as it takes. Of course in order to mount up with your trained men, you have to be connected with trained me. The only way to get connected to trained men is to get trained yourself…We have Bible studies through the week as well as here on Sunday mornings and if you are not in a group, you need to join a study group so that you will be trained. Very soon I will be announcing a Bible 101 class that we will be launching in order to help train you to know why the Bible is the best selling book of all time and why we can actually trust what is said. If you are interested in that class then I want you to send me a message online or write on a connect card here in person so that we can make that happen together.

Listen...Abram was a warrior when a warrior is what was needed. Remember, this is the only time that we read about Abram going to war like this. Abram was trained, Abram was strapped, and Abram was ready for battle. However, thats not the end of this story is it? Lets take a look at...

Abram the Worshiper (vv. 17–24)

Now this is the Abram we are all more accustomed to, and thats good. Abram was a pretty faithful worshiper and we see that throughout his story in various ways. Let’s take a look at how Abram worships this morning. Take a look at

Genesis 14:17–24 (ESV)

After his return from the defeat of Chedorlaomer and the kings who were with him, the king of Sodom went out to meet him at the Valley of Shaveh (that is, the King’s Valley). And Melchizedek king of Salem brought out bread and wine. (He was priest of God Most High.) And he blessed him and said, “Blessed be Abram by God Most High, Possessor of heaven and earth; and blessed be God Most High, who has delivered your enemies into your hand!” And Abram gave him a tenth of everything. And the king of Sodom said to Abram, “Give me the persons, but take the goods for yourself.” But Abram said to the king of Sodom, “I have lifted my hand to the Lord, God Most High, Possessor of heaven and earth, that I would not take a thread or a sandal strap or anything that is yours, lest you should say, ‘I have made Abram rich.’ I will take nothing but what the young men have eaten, and the share of the men who went with me. Let Aner, Eshcol, and Mamre take their share.”

So I said that Abram was a worshiper and that we see that in these Scriptures…but I didn’t see anything about Abram going to his alter or building another alter or anything like that…So…How does Abram worship? Well, did you see what Abram did here? First we see how Abram was greeted by the kings of the land. We have King Melchizedek who is the King of Salem, which is a shortened form of Jerusalem. This king is known as the King of Righteousness. This king immediately greeted Abram with bread and wine, and worshiping the Lord by acknowledging where Abram’s blessings came from. Melchizedek even acknowledged who actually possesses everything that they see. He is acknowledging that God is sovereign over everything that has happened. Now it is important to realize that Melchizedek is a priest of the Lord right…That tells us why his focus is on the Lord first maybe…That also allows Abram to worship with Melchizedek. Abram’s response to this opportunity is to respond in worship by giving Melchizedek a 10th of everything as an offering to the King of righteousness. So in this we see that Abram worshiped by choosing God.

Thats not all that happened though is it? You see the other king came and offered Abram everything that they retrieved from the invading kings. Abram has the opportunity here to become insanely rich…However, Abram refuses the riches from the King of Sodom. Why did he refuse all of that…well because he has made a commitment to the Lord that he would not take anything that belonged to the King of Sodom. Abram also acknowledges that the Lord is sovereign over everything, but he is going to rely on the Lord to give to him…he will not rely on Sodom. So…here we see that Abram worshiped by rejecting the world.

Now, do you remember, I said earlier that as we read the historical actions in Scripture we are able to see Spiritual truths that God is revealing to us…Well that is seen so clearly in this passage today. We see that Lot suffered the consequences of his desire to conform to the world around him. Then we see that Abram went into battle to save his nephew and finally as we see the interactions between two very different kings. One King called the King of Righteousness offered an opportunity to worship. We saw him bring the bread and wine, something that didn’t have the same level of impact then as it does on this side of Christ’s resurrection. You see, even in this action we are able to see a glimpse of the Gospel fulfilled, through the bread as the body and the wine as the blood…Contrast that to the King of Sodom, known as the place of wickedness…All of the attractions of the world around them…But Abram chose to worship with Melchizedek...

Now, each of us as faced with this exact same choice day after day. We are faced with the decision of focusing on and worshiping the Lord, or allowing the delight of the eyes in the world around us to press us into taking what is offered there. You and I are faced with the decision about protecting those around us, or simply watching and hoping for the best…and being surprised when things dont go the way we hoped they would. We are faced with the decision to get trained, and prepared, and go into battle when necessary. I told you all last week about some of what is happening in the culture around us, We need to be aware so that we are not conformed as we read in...

Romans 12:2 (ESV)

Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.

Are you being transformed by the renewal of your mind…or are you being conformed to the world around you this morning? Listen, if you are here or joining online, and you have been a part of Leaf River or some other church for 50 years, or if you are relatively new to church then let me encourage you that its not to late, or to soon to make that decision to be transformed by the power of Scripture in your life instead of allowing the culture around us to define what our lives should look like. Look at

2 Corinthians 3:18 (ESV)

And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit.

Now, let me be very clear to you right now…If you have, or if you do choose to be transformed into the image of Christ, then you better get prepared for battle, because it will not be easy…but while it is not easy…I promise you...it is worth it when you rely on the God of Abram to fulfill the promises he has made to each and every one of you. This morning I have asked the worship team to come up and play and sing a chorus as you bow your heads in worship to the God of Abram…to the God who is faithful to bring you through the stress and trials that you are currently experiencing. To the God who is faithful to walk with you through the easy times just as he is to carry you through the hard times. Then after going through that chorus they are going to ask you to join them standing and worshiping the Lord your God with one heart and one mind. Let me encourage you to lift your hands…lift your eyes…lift your hearts, and lift your voices to the Lord as you worship choosing the Lord, God Most High, Possessor of heaven and earth.

Let’s Pray