Blessed and Blessing Genesis 14:8-24

A young boy went to the local store with his mother. The shop owner, a kindly man, passed him a large jar of suckers and invited him to help himself to a handful. Uncharacteristically, the boy held back. So the shop owner pulled out a handful for him. When outside, the boy’s mother asked why he had suddenly been so shy and wouldn’t take a handful of suckers when offered. The boy replied, “Because his hand is much bigger than mine!”

-We experience God’s blessings as we trust in Him.

I. The Foolishness of Faithlessness vv. 8-12

This week’s passage picks up with Abram and his family caught up in the middle of a battle involving 9 kings and their kingdoms.

The exact nature of what is taking place here is less important than the reality that it underscores: We all live in a world that is uncertain and unsafe. This is why it is so critical that we not put our trust in a broken world.

Lot has chosen security in the world

When given an option, he goes to Sodom and chooses life in a wicked city, because it offers:

A fertile valley with economic prosperity

Security in the form of a walled city

However, this comes at a cost, because it involves life among a wicked people who are engaged in every type of sin

This is the life marked by faithlessness, living only by sight rather than by faith in God

Lot’s life is marked by a slow fade that yields destruction:

Friendship with the world for the sake of convenience

Love for the world out of familiarity

Conformity to the world for security

Judgment with the world eventually

Proverbs 29:25

[25] The fear of man lays a snare,

but whoever trusts in the LORD is safe. (ESV)

A few years ago psychologist Ruth W. Berenda and her associates carried out an interesting experiment with teenagers designed to show how a person handled group pressure. The plan was simple. They brought groups of ten adolescents into a room for a test. Subsequently, each group of ten was instructed to raise their hands when the teacher pointed to the longest line on three separate charts. What one person in the group did not know was that nine of the others in the room had been instructed ahead of time to vote for the second-longest line. Regardless of the instructions they heard, once they were all together in the group, the nine were not to vote for the longest line, but rather vote for the next to the longest line. The experiment began with nine teen-agers voting for the wrong line. The stooge would typically glance around, frown in confusion, and slip his hand up with the group. The insturctions were repeated and the next card was raised. Time after time, the self-conscious stooge would sit there saying a short line is longer than a long line, simply because he lacked the courage to challenge the group. This remarkable conformity occurred in about 75% of the cases, and was true of small children and high-school students as well. Berenda concluded that, "Some people had rather be president than right," which is certainly an accurate assessment.

II. The Fruitfulness of Faithfulness vv. 13-16

Meanwhile, Abram has accepted the “lesser portion” of land, choosing life in Canaan

Interestingly, Abram’s life in Canaan is far more secure than Lot’s:

It is a dry place

It is a place of tens rather than cities

It is not a bad place, but it is not, in human terms, the best possible place

However, Canaan is the best place for Abram to be because the Lord has been with him there and prospered him tremendously

He has gained meaningful allies

He has plentiful possessions

He has developed a small army, with 318 men of war in his household

As such, Abram is going to be the Lord’s agent of rescue for Lot

This could not have happened if Abram had joined with Lot

You cannot change the world if you are living like the world; the call to be salt and light is a call to live a life of faith, distinct from the world around you

Only then can your life be fully fruitful and the blessings of God and the purpose of God go hand-in-hand

Matthew 5:13–16

[13] “You are the salt of the earth, but if salt has lost its taste, how shall its saltiness be restored? It is no longer good for anything except to be thrown out and trampled under people’s feet.

[14] “You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. [15] Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house. [16] In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven. (ESV)

III. Blessed to be a Blessing vv. 17-24

Finally, we see Abram confronted by two kings: The king of Sodom and the king of Salem

From the King of Salem, Melchizedek, Abram receives a blessing:

In human terms, it seems incredibly simple, nothing more than bread and wine to refresh him from the battle

But spiritually, Melchizedek is also a priest. He offers a blessing from the Lord to Abram

In the King of Sodom, Abram recognizes a snare:

The king of Sodom wants the people captured by Abram, but he is willing to give Abram all of the possessions

Abram will not accept them, because he recognizes that he has been blessed by God Most High and all of heaven and earth are His to give

Abram will not entangle himself with the King of Sodom like his nephew Lot!

Abram rejects the King of Sodom because he has chosen to bless the King of Salem:

There are two kings that we can serve today: a king of destruction and burning or a king of peace

The King of Salem is just different!

He is a righteous king and He is also a priest

He is not of any earthly lineage

He brings us into the blessings of the Lord

He comes to us with bread and wine and invites us to share in them

He is worthy of our full adoration

The life of faith is founded in trusting the Righteous King

Hebrews 6:19–20

[19] We have this as a sure and steadfast anchor of the soul, a hope that enters into the inner place behind the curtain, [20] where Jesus has gone as a forerunner on our behalf, having become a high priest forever after the order of Melchizedek. (ESV)

My Favorite Illustrations The Importance of Decision

Someone said there is a point in the Rocky Mountains where raindrops fall ever so close together. However, those falling on one side of the ridge flow westward toward the Pacific Ocean; those falling on the other side of the ridge flow southeastward toward the Gulf of Mexico. The raindrops fall so near each other, but wind up so far apart.

This may be an apt illustration of people making decisions for Christ. Persons may be in the same family or social group. Yet their decisions for or against Christ determine whether their eternal destiny is heaven or hell. At the moment the difference may seem so slight. But destinies are bound up in the decisions they make. Persons are to ponder long in deciding about so vital a matter.