Abram and Lot
Notes
Transcript
Sermon Tone Analysis
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Above All Else chorus
15 What am I to do? I will pray with my spirit, but I will pray with my mind also; I will sing praise with my spirit, but I will sing with my mind also.
12 “For you shall go out in joy and be led forth in peace; the mountains and the hills before you shall break forth into singing, and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands.
1 So Abram went up from Egypt, he and his wife and all that he had, and Lot with him, into the Negeb.
2 Now Abram was very rich in livestock, in silver, and in gold.
3 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,
4 to the place where he had made an altar at the first. And there Abram called upon the name of the Lord.
5 And Lot, who went with Abram, also had flocks and herds and tents,
6 so that the land could not support both of them dwelling together; for their possessions were so great that they could not dwell together,
7 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.
8 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.
9 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.”
10 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.)
11 So Lot chose for himself all the Jordan Valley, and Lot journeyed east. Thus they separated from each other.
12 Abram settled in the land of Canaan, while Lot settled among the cities of the valley and moved his tent as far as Sodom.
13 Now the men of Sodom were wicked, great sinners against the Lord.
14 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,
15 for all the land that you see I will give to you and to your offspring forever.
16 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.
17 Arise, walk through the length and the breadth of the land, for I will give it to you.”
18 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.
1 So Abram went up from Egypt, he and his wife and all that he had, and Lot with him, into the Negeb.
2 Now Abram was very rich in livestock, in silver, and in gold.
3 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,
4 to the place where he had made an altar at the first. And there Abram called upon the name of the Lord.
5 And Lot, who went with Abram, also had flocks and herds and tents,
6 so that the land could not support both of them dwelling together; for their possessions were so great that they could not dwell together,
7 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.
8 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.
9 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.”
10 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.)
11 So Lot chose for himself all the Jordan Valley, and Lot journeyed east. Thus they separated from each other.
12 Abram settled in the land of Canaan, while Lot settled among the cities of the valley and moved his tent as far as Sodom.
13 Now the men of Sodom were wicked, great sinners against the Lord.
14 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,
15 for all the land that you see I will give to you and to your offspring forever.
16 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.
17 Arise, walk through the length and the breadth of the land, for I will give it to you.”
18 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.
Back to the Beginning
Egypt was a necessity. It was not permanent. But no altar was made.
Not to where he started, but to where God wanted Him.
God’s plan for us is always the beginning. That is to say the next thing doesnt start before we are where God wants us.
Sometimes that is a geographical location.
Sometimes that is a state of mind/heart/spirit.
Part of Abram’s return to the beginning was to get rid of the extra.
NT tells us things like ‘lay aside every weight and sin that so easily besets us and let us run with endurance the race set before us’. It says to ‘put off the works of the flesh’.
Getting rid of the things and attitudes and habits and hangups that are unbecoming a child of God is part of this walk with Him.
1 Now the Lord said to Abram, “Go from your country and your kindred and your father’s house to the land that I will show you.
Genesis
Yet we see in v.4 that part of his father’s household, Lot, went with him. And Lot was not part of the plan. At least not part of the promise.
13 “Enter by the narrow gate. For the gate is wide and the way is easy that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many.
14 For the gate is narrow and the way is hard that leads to life, and those who find it are few.
You see God’s plan is narrow. The details are fine and carefully worked out. He does not substitute or plug in random pieces to His plan. He is specific. God specifically promised to make Abram the father of a great nation.
Zig Ziglar asks the question “Are you a wandering generality or a meaningful specific?” A wandering generality lacks direction and purpose. A meaningful specific is aimed at something. God provides the target. He sets the boundaries.
Lot was a close relative. One who was in need of a father figure. Abram should be commended for filling that role. But being a father figure for his nephew and letting that child be the child of promise are two vastly different things.
So to ensure Lot was not seen as being an option for the fulfilling of the promise, God arranged circumstances to make the pair want to separate. He blessed them to the point they would need to go their separate ways.
Once Abram was in obedience and in the place God designated (both state of spirit and geographical location) the blessing of the promise could begin.
says about Abraham that he believed God and God credited it to him as righteousness. He believed God.
When Abram began to make a habit out of believing God; when it became a way of life for him, God began to accomplish His purposes [carry out His plan] in Abram’s life.
When I make a habit out of believing God; when it becomes a way of life for me I must admit that where I am is better than where I was. Even if it’s harder, it is better. I must admit that what is next is better than what is now. Because believing God means I am obedient.
And there is our invitation: He is calling you to believe Him. First time to salvation? Maybe. For the 10,000 time so He can carry out His plan in your life? Definitely. Either way the Spirit is calling.