"A Consecraetd Life Of Faith"
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“A Consecrated Life of Faith”
Genesis 13:5-18
A couple weeks ago I read and preached from a VERY important passage of Scripture.
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. And 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. I will bless those who bless you, and him who dishonors you I will curse, and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.”
This foundational to our beliefs regarding the Mission of the Church, or more importantly, the mission of God. The Lord told Abraham to step out in faith and follow Him. The result would be that God would make him (Abraham) a GREAT NATION. God said, I will make your name great, I will bless you, and through you all the families of the Earth will be blessed.
Because of God’s goodness and Abraham’s faith, we are all sitting here this evening. Because of God’s goodness and Abraham’s faith, every person that has ever walked this planet has had, has now, or will have in the future, the opportunity to walk with God, serve Him, and be blessed by Him.
BUT, as we saw last week, even walking with God and trying to be faithful to God can still result in failures. Abraham believed God and it was accounted to him as righteousness, but along the way, when trials came and hardship arose, FEAR SET IN!
Famine and drought led to Abraham and his family traveling to find better fields and better water supplies. As they found themselves entering Egypt, Abraham must have turned his eyes off of God and onto his circumstances. Truth be told it wasn’t even his circumstances, but what he THOUGHT MIGHT happen.
So instead of facing whatever was to come next and believing in the proven power of God, he put his wife’s dignity on the altar of self-preservation. He lied and talked her into doing the same.
We left off last week with an awesome display of repentance which we will see today leads to renewal and reward
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.
PRAY
Abraham failed, but when he recognized the effects of his failure on other people, he did the only thing any of us can OR SHOULD DO… He went back to the beginning. He returned to the place where he had placed an altar, a memorial, a place to meet with God.
Abraham saw the effect of his failure and his compassionate heart chose to call upon the name of the Lord!
In the very next verse, Moses brings the story back to Abraham’s living arrangements.
For whatever reason, Abraham had his nephew lot tagging along. This was probably a family obligation culturally, but you all know what they say about family and fish… after a few days they both start to stink.
Here the problem likely goes a lot deeper.
This had turned into…
I. The Impossible Relationship Genesis 13:6-7
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.
a. Great possession can lead to great conflict.
i. The Rich Young Ruler Matthew 19:16-24
And behold, a man came up to him, saying, “Teacher, what good deed must I do to have eternal life?” And he said to him, “Why do you ask me about what is good? There is only one who is good. If you would enter life, keep the commandments.” He said to him, “Which ones?” And Jesus said, “You shall not murder, You shall not commit adultery, You shall not steal, You shall not bear false witness, Honor your father and mother, and, You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” The young man said to him, “All these I have kept. What do I still lack?” Jesus said to him, “If you would be perfect, go, sell what you possess and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me.” When the young man heard this he went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions.
And Jesus said to his disciples, “Truly, I say to you, only with difficulty will a rich person enter the kingdom of heaven. Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God.”
ii. Ananias and Saphira Acts 5
b. It’s Not Wrong to Have Great Possessions, But it is wrong to allow Great Possessions to Possess You!
i. Matthew 6:24
“No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money.
c. Being Unequally Yoked Prevents Promotion and Peaceful Living
i. 2 Corinthians 6:14-16
Do not be unequally yoked with unbelievers. For what partnership has righteousness with lawlessness? Or what fellowship has light with darkness? What accord has Christ with Belial? Or what portion does a believer share with an unbeliever? What agreement has the temple of God with idols? For we are the temple of the living God; as God said,
“I will make my dwelling among them and walk among them,
and I will be their God,
and they shall be my people.
II. The Incredible Generosity of Faith Genesis 13:8-9
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.”
a. Blessed are the Peacemakers Matthew 5:9
“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.
b. The Faithful trust in God’s provision
c. The Faithful Use their Faith in God to do good for others
III. The Inwardness of the Worldly-Minded Leads to Destruction Genesis 12:10-13
Now there was a famine in the land. So Abram went down to Egypt to sojourn there, for the famine was severe in the land. When he was about to enter Egypt, he said to Sarai his wife, “I know that you are a woman beautiful in appearance, and when the Egyptians see you, they will say, ‘This is his wife.’ Then they will kill me, but they will let you live. Say you are my sister, that it may go well with me because of you, and that my life may be spared for your sake.”
a. Lot saw the better ground and chose it.
b. Selfishness isolates us from the People we love
c. Lot lifted up his eyes and saw the World and its riches
IV. The Inclusion of the Separated Genesis 13:14-17
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.”
a. God waited For Abraham to Be Away from Lot To show Him The Promise
b. 2 Corinthians 6:17
Therefore go out from their midst,
and be separate from them, says the Lord,
and touch no unclean thing;
then I will welcome you,
c. Abraham Saw God’s Faithfulness and Promises
V. The Evidence of an Altar of Testimony Genesis 13:18
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.
a. Abraham Built an Altar to the Lord
b. Lot chose Sodom
2 corinthians 5:6-9
So we are always of good courage. We know that while we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord, for we walk by faith, not by sight. Yes, we are of good courage, and we would rather be away from the body and at home with the Lord. So whether we are at home or away, we make it our aim to please him.
We walk by faith knowing that whatever lies ahead, God can use for His glory. He can make crooked paths straight. He can turn barrren desolate land into gardens of sustenance,
Surely he has borne our griefs
and carried our sorrows;
yet we esteemed him stricken,
smitten by God, and afflicted.
But he was pierced for our transgressions;
he was crushed for our iniquities;
upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace,
and with his wounds we are healed.
Pray for those in need!