The Gospel in Genesis: Lift Up Your Eyes

Introduction

So Abram and his family have returned from Egypt. God showed incredible grace and mercy to Abram in spite of his wandering off and trusting in the provision of Egypt rather than in the provision and power of God to meet his needs.

While he was there, if you remember, Pharoah had given him lots of animals and servants and riches in exchange for Sarai to be his wife. When he realized Sarai was already married, he sent Abram away and allowed him to keep the gifts that he had already given.

One would think that Abram had gotten an unfair blessing given to him, and in a sense, he did. But if you will remember, we also mentioned how prosperity and wealth can also serve as a curse and a detriment.

Well, here we see prosperity playing the role as a curse.

If Abram’s faith was tested last week by famine and hardship, this week we see Abram’s faith is being tested by affluence. And not just Abram, but also Lot.

Read Genesis 13

Genesis 13 (ESV)

So Abram went up from Egypt, he and his wife and all that he had, and Lot with him, into the Negeb.

Now Abram was very rich in livestock, in silver, and in gold. And he journeyed on from the Negeb as far as 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 Abram called upon the name of the Lord. And Lot, who went with Abram, also had flocks and herds and tents, so that the land could not support both of them dwelling together; for their possessions were so great that they could not dwell together, and there was strife between the herdsmen of Abram’s livestock and the herdsmen of Lot’s livestock. At that time the Canaanites and the Perizzites were dwelling in the land.

Then Abram said to Lot, “Let there be no strife between you and me, and between your herdsmen and my herdsmen, for we are kinsmen. Is not the whole land before you? Separate yourself from me. If you take the left hand, then I will go to the right, or if you take the right hand, then I will go to the left.” And Lot lifted up his eyes and saw that the Jordan Valley was well watered everywhere like the garden of the Lord, like the land of Egypt, in the direction of Zoar. (This was before the Lord destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah.) So Lot chose for himself all the Jordan Valley, and Lot journeyed east. Thus they separated from each other. Abram settled in the land of Canaan, while Lot settled among the cities of the valley and moved his tent as far as Sodom. Now the men of Sodom were wicked, great sinners against the Lord.

The Lord said to Abram, after Lot had separated from him, “Lift up your eyes and look from the place where you are, northward and southward and eastward and westward, for all the land that you see I will give to you and to your offspring forever. I will make your offspring as the dust of the earth, so that if one can count the dust of the earth, your offspring also can be counted. Arise, walk through the length and the breadth of the land, for I will give it to you.” So Abram moved his tent and came and settled by the oaks of Mamre, which are at Hebron, and there he built an altar to the Lord.

Their prosperity is causing them to fight because now they have so much stuff that the land cannot support everything and everyone between Abram and Lot.

And now instead of being gracious, the groups are fighting with each other in order to feed their flocks and their families. The land they were on were unable to support everyone.

This is where prosperity and wealth actually becomes a curse. There comes a point where we have so much we find we don’t have enough to maintain our current level of wealth.

But here, Abram shines. Abram could have pulled the elder card and he would have been just and right to do so and tell Lot where he wanted to go and that Lot could have the land that he left behind.

However, look at Abram’s response. First he appeals to Lot that they are family and that they should not be fighting. He wants to maintain love and unity between the two of them. So what does he do? He offers for Lot to take his pick of the land that he desires and Abram will simply take the land that Lot leaves behind.

We should see the contrast between this account and the account of Cain and Abel. Cain, who looked out only for himself destroyed his relationship with his brother for his own gain. Abram, however, out of love and honor for his family seeks Lot’s best rather than his own. He does not manipulate or deceive. He generously allows Lot to take the choice of land for himself.

And sadly, when we look at the land that Lot chooses, we are given a foreshadowing of what will take place and that his choice is not a wise choice.

When presented with the choice, Lot “lifts up his eyes” and looked at the Jordan Valley and how prosperous it was. He sees it was like the garden of the Lord (or the garden of Eden). It was also like the land of Egypt. Again, instead of learning from the folly of Abram’s choice, Lot is still looking to physical prosperity and possessions. And it says he went towards and moved his tent towards Sodom.

There is that note in parenthesis, “This was before the LORD destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah.” Moses is throwing a note to his audience who would have known about the story of Sodom and Gomorrah and saying, “pay attention, Lot is choosing trouble for himself.”

And yet, there might be some here who do not know about Sodom and Gomorrah. If you don’t know about it, just wait, we will definitely get to it, but it is a tragic end to a people who chose to live in sin and rebellion against the Lord.

What we see here is that Lot chose to move towards the world and its riches while Abram calmly chose to trust the Lord in whichever way he needed to go in order to maintain a good relationship with his nephew.

And as a result, we see what God told Abram, “Lift up your eyes and look from the place where you are, northward and southward and eastward and westward, for all the land that you see I will give to you and to your offspring forever.”

While Lot chose a land that he thought would provide for him, Abram received the land of promise and God’s provision for him.

This doesn’t mean that Lot wasn’t saved.

2 Peter 2:7–8 ESV

and if he rescued righteous Lot, greatly distressed by the sensual conduct of the wicked (for as that righteous man lived among them day after day, he was tormenting his righteous soul over their lawless deeds that he saw and heard);

Lot was considered righteous by Peter and by the testimony of Scripture. But he made himself miserable by moving away from the Lord instead of towards Him.

We are watching Lot move away from the Lord and His presence and we are seeing Abram move closer in faith to the Lord and His presence. What made the difference in each man’s move? It is where they fixed their eyes.

Teaching Sharidyn to drive and about the necessity of keeping your eyes on where you want to go.

Wherever your eyes are fixed on is where you will eventually start to drift to in your driving. The same is true whether it is walking or riding a bike or trying to hit a ball in baseball. Your eyes need to be fixed on the goal you are wanting to achieve.

Lot’s eyes were fixed on the world and Abram’s were finally being fixed on God. This doesn’t mean that Abram is going to get everything right, but he is making a move in the right direction.

Abram is taking baby steps of faith as he draws near to the Lord.

Take Your Eyes Off the World

Unlike Lot, if we want to draw closer to the Lord, we must first take our eyes off the world. Why?

Looking at the World…

Keeps Us Fixated On What We Don’t Have - Jealousy

First, by looking at the world, we begin to focus on all that we do not have.

Lot is falling for the same lie that Adam and Eve fell for. When they began to look at the forbidden fruit, they saw something they were denied, not all that they were given. They could only see the one thing they could not have.

When Lot lifted up his eyes and looked down at the Valley, he saw all the beautiful things he wanted and did not have. He didn’t see all the things God had already blessed him with from going to Egypt and back in spite of Abram’s rebellion of self-reliance. And he didn’t think of the troubles that all their prosperity gave to him. He just saw all the things he didn’t have and his heart was coveting.

When we focus on the world, we focus on the things we do not have and our hearts begin to covet those things.

Modern day marketing does a great job at grabbing our heart’s attention. It makes us believe that we can only truly be happy if we have this product. WE will never be complete without this. And when we believe the lie that these things can satisfy us, our hearts begin to move further away from God.

Keeps Us Fixated On Taking Care of Myself - Self-Provision

As we look at the things of this world, we also begin to believe the lie that we have to take care of ourselves.

Lot got looking at this land as a good and easy way to have his needs provided. Remember, just one chapter ago, Abram looked to Egypt to provide for his needs.

Lot has fallen into the same trap and lie Abram fell for in chapter 12.

When our eyes look up and fixate on the world, we begin to believe that I’ve got to meet my own needs. And I will begin to make the choices that seem to make the most sense when it comes to meeting my own needs.

I will do whatever it takes to promote myself at work, even if it means breaking some ethical boundaries. I might sacrifice my family on the altar of work in order to get that next promotion or raise.

I will even reject the call of God on my life to go somewhere that might appear to be less profitable because I’ve convinced myself that I’ve got to take care of me because if I don’t, no one else will either. Sometimes when God calls us to go, He calls us to go somewhere we are forced to rely on Him. But as long as our eyes are fixed on the well watered valley, we will fail to hear, or worse yet, ignore the voice of God calling us to go to the desert in order to experience true blessing.

Keeps Us Fixated On Immediate and Temporary Pleasures - Disappointment

Finally, as we look to the world, we move away from God as we seek immediate pleasures and instant gratification. We are willing to settle for lesser pleasures now than waiting for greater joys and pleasures later.

For Lot, whatever else God may have promised, saw the instant gratification of Sodom. So he took matters into his own hands by moving towards sin and away from God. And moving towards Sodom may have given him instant gratification, but it would bring a joy that would only last for a short while because as we will see, God is soon going to bring an end to Sodom.

We do the same thing. We may know in our minds that what God offers is better, but we see the fleeting pleasures of sin and we often give in because we want the instant gratification that sin brings.

The sad thing about this is that sin always only brings a temporary joy. It never lasts.

Its why those who get addicted to alcohol or drugs or porn find their high really quickly, but then it wears off and then it takes more and more to get back to the high that got them trapped to begin with. It’s a temporary and fleeting pleasure.

But we all fall for this, even in lesser ways. Think about all the products we buy thinking it will bring us the lasting joy only to have that new found pleasure wear off so quickly.

(Temprory) Every time a new iPhone, a new Xbox, or a new sports car is unveiled, we believe the lie that we need that to make us happy. As if the previous versions ever made us happy. It might have for a bit, but never for long.

Turn Your Eyes Upon Jesus

Whereas Lot turned his eyes towards Sodom and the world and he did find immediate pleasure, his pleasure and joy would not last long. Lot is going to face his troubles in the midst of the wealth and prosperity he thinks he’s getting there.

However, Abram is learning to turn His eyes upon the Lord. When Abram settled in Canaan, the land God told him to go to, God came to him and spoke once again.

This is the first time we are hearing God speak since the beginning of chapter 12. Now, we know that God has been working, but Abram was following his own plan instead of God’s. But now he’s turned around and come back into the presence of the Lord and is hearing God’s voice once again.

Know this, God never stops working for us. But as long as we are hardening our hearts in sin, we will have a hard time hearing God’s voice or we will just completely ignore His voice. If we want to hear His voice, we need to acknowledge our sin and turn back to Him and His Word.

When Abram graciously gave Lot the freedom to choose the land, Abram was learning once again to walk by faith and was putting himself in a position to hear the Word of God. And the Word of the Lord came to Abram and told him, not to lift up his eyes to the world, but to lift up his eyes and look at what God was doing for him. Abram is in essence turning his eyes upon Jesus!

And When we turn our eyes upon Jesus, we see…

There is Nothing We Do Not Have - Provision

First, when we lift up our eyes to Christ, we see that there is nothing we do not have. All our needs are completely met in Jesus.

This does not mean that we always have what we want. It does not mean that we will always have a full bank account or a full refrigerator. But it does mean that we will never lack for anything that our souls so desperately need.

Psalm 34:10 (NIV84)

The lions may grow weak and hungry,

but those who seek the Lord lack no good thing.

The Cross and Our New Relationship with Christ

Those who are in Christ realize that God is working all things to our good, even if it means suffering hunger or want because what we need most of all is Christ Himself and when we have Him, we have everything.

Abram did not have to fight for the best of the land because he already had God who is infinitely better than the best of the land.

It is because of Christ that we can go through all stages of life, whether in prosperity or in need, because our situations do not change the reality of who we are in Christ.

Philippians 4:12–13 (ESV)

I know how to be brought low, and I know how to abound. In any and every circumstance, I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need. I can do all things through him who strengthens me.

Because of what Christ has done for us, we can be content in all situations because God has provided for all we need in Christ!

We are free to care for others - Generosity

When God tells Abram to lift up his eyes, he tells him to look upon everything that God will give him. The entire land will be his because of God’s promise to him. Even the land that Lot went to go possess would one day be Abram’s inheritance.

Because of this, Abram was free to think about Lot’s needs. This faith in God’s promises led Abram to be generous with his nephew and allow him to choose the best of the land.

When we lift up our eyes to Christ, we see that we have all we need provided to us. Because of that, we also see that we can be generous and merciful towards others knowing that we will never lose out because the infinite riches of God’s grace is our in Christ.

We can give generously of our possessions because of the generous grace of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

2 Corinthians 8:8–9 (ESV)

I say this not as a command, but to prove by the earnestness of others that your love also is genuine. For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sake he became poor, so that you by his poverty might become rich.

We can give generously to others because of the generous offering of Christ to take upon our sin and to give us His righteousness!

Abram was also able to be merciful towards Lot because of the infinite mercy of God towards him.

When we receive the mercy of God through the work and person of Christ, we should also be marked by our mercy towards others. We should be willing to allow someone to have what they do not deserve because that is how God has treated us.

Matthew 5:7 (ESV)

“Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy.

We have an eternal joy - Satisfaction

Finally, whereas sin can bring instant gratification, yet temporary joy, the joy Christ brings is an eternal joy. Yes there is a patient endurance that God has called us to experience. But the temporary waiting and the temporary suffering of this life is not worth comparing to the eternal joy that is only found in Christ.

This is what Abram found in the Lord. Look at what the Lord Promises to Abram. All this land, not just the one small parcel of land that Lot chose, but all of it, including what Lot chose will be given to Abram and to his descendants forever.

Whereas Lot will only enjoy that land until sin brings the full wrath of God and experience the destruction that sin deserves, Abram’s family will enjoy the land forever.

Of course, we know that Abram’s descendants have been battling and fighting for that land and they were even exiled from the land due to their sin. There is a deeper promise going on here.

Once again, we see God promising the hope of the Messiah, the seed who would come and crush the head of the serpent. This land that God is giving to Abram is pointing forward to a new and better land that Christ will inherit and will give to His people. A land that is blessed, not because of the land itself, but because that land is where God will dwell with His people forever!

When we read the end of the story in Revelation 21 and 22, we see that God brings forth the new Jerusalem, the fulfillment of this land, and we see that all those who place their faith in Christ and wait upon the Lord will find their eternal joy in Him alone. And that joy can be experienced long before we arrive in that land.

Conclusion

The question is, as we are walking through this life, where are we placing our eyes? Are you focused on the temporary and fleeting pleasures of this world? Are you pitching our tents near Sodom where we will experience the pain and heartache of sin? Or are we lifting our eyes up to the Lord who alone gives us an eternal and lasting joy.

Hebrews 12:1–2 (ESV)

Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.