A Blessed Escape

I am finding that the only way to keep track of all these names is to write them down. Thus, my list:

In Genesis, chapter 14, battles are taking place in the Valley of Siddim (also called the Salt Sea, or Dead Sea).

The 4 kings are:

1. Amraphel (of Shinar)
2. Arioch (of Ellasar)
3. Kedorlaomer (of Elam)
4. Tidal (of Goiim)

They waged war against 5 kings:

1. Bera (of Sodom)
2. Birsha (of Gomorrah)
3. Shinab (of Admah)
4. Shemeber (of Zeboiim), and
5. Zoar (of Bela)

In the 14^th year, Kedorlaomer and the kings allied with him went out and defeated the Rephaites, the Zuzites, the Emites, and the Horites. Then they turned back to Kadesh and conquered all the land of the Amalekites and Amorites, who were living in Hazazon Tamar.

This resulted in the 5 kings marching out and drawing battle lines in the Valley of Siddim against the 4 kings.

The valley was full of tar pits, so when the kings of Sodom and Gomorrah tried to flee, some of the men fell into the tar pits, while some escaped. The 4 kings seized all the goods and food belonging to the kings of Sodom and Gomorrah. They also captured Abram’s nephew, Lot, who had been living in Sodom.

One man who escaped made it to Abram and reported what had happened. Abram called the 318 men who had been born in his home (belonging to his household), and they went to find and rescue Lot. They defeated the 4 kings and returned to the Valley of Shaveh (the King’s Valley). The king of Sodom met Abram there. Also, a king named Melchizedek, king of Salem.

The king of Salem was a priest and brought bread and wine to Abram for nourishment. He also blessed him, saying:

Blessed be Abram by God Most High, Creator of heaven and earth. And blessed be God Most High, who delivered your enemies into your hand. (Genesis 14: 19-20) 

The king of Sodom told Abram to give him the captured people and, in return, Abram would be able to keep the captured goods for himself. Abram declined taking anything from the king of Sodom (since he was declaring his dependence and blessing from the Lord, God Most High). Abram did not want this king to be able to declare, “I made Abram rich”. He only accepted what his men had already eaten, and would allow for the men who went with him (Aner, Eshcol, and Mamre) to receive their share.

Why is this detailed account so important?

After reading this, I decided that Abram’s rescue of Lot is in one way symbolic of the sacrifice and effort required to save any person from evil. In modern language, this could also refer to any controlling power, substance, or situation. It was Abram, 3 men, and 318 other trained men from his household, who went out to find Lot and defeat the notorious “5 kings”.

Likewise, Abram’s encounter with the king and priest Melchizedek is symbolic of another king and priest named in the New Testament. In Hebrews, chapter 7, Melchizedek is mentioned again, as the “king of righteousness”, the “king of Salem”, and the “king of peace”. He is a person referred to in the Bible without a father or mother, without a genealogy, without beginning of days or end of life, like the Son of God [Jesus], a priest forever (Hebrews 7:1-3). The symbols of offering bread and wine to Abram are significant since these are the elements that Christians are told to “take in remembrance of Him” during communion.

Additional notes from online commentaries can be found at biblos.com. I liked Matthew Henry’s at: http://bible.cc/genesis/14-18.htm.

Traveling Mercies

I am finding out there is too much information in the Old Testament for a daily (or weekly) blog. Therefore, here is a list to briefly highlight the "family drama" in Genesis, chapters 12-13!

1. The Lord God tells Abram to leave his country, his people, and his father's household and go to the land God would show him.
2. Abram sets out with his wife (Sarai) and his nephew (Lot). They leave from the land of Haran, with all the possessions they have accumulated and the people they have acquired (so far).
3. They arrive in Canaan, and the Lord appears and promises, "To your offspring I will give this land". Abram builds an altar there, in Shechem, and also later in the land between Bethel and Ai.
4. Due to a severe famine, they travel on to Egypt, where Abram fears for the safety of himself and Sarai. They pretend that Sarai was his sister, not his wife.
5. Pharaoh's officials believe Sarai is beautiful and report this to Pharaoh. He lets them in the palace and lavishes gifts and praise on them, for Sarai's sake.
6. The Lord inflicts diseases on Pharaoh and his household because of Sarai.
7. Pharaoh questions Abram about this sudden curse. He is furious with Abram for misleading him into thinking he could take Sarai into the palace to be his own wife. He orders his men to send Abram away, with his wife Sarai, and all that he has.
8. Abram, Sarai, and Lot head for the Negev, with all the people, animals and possessions they have acquired.
9. The land will not support them all in one place and the different herdsmen begin complaining and fighting.
10. Abram doesn't want hostility between himself and Lot since they are "brothers" (relatives...since Lot was actually his nephew). He instructs Lot to choose which direction of land he would prefer.
11. Lot chooses the land to the east, near Sodom. It would turn out that the men there were very wicked and sinning greatly against the Lord.
12. After Lot leaves for the east, the Lord reminds Abram that one day all the land in every direction will belong to Abram and his offspring. Abram moves his tents and goes to live near the trees of Mamre at Hebron. He builds an altar to the Lord there.

In the New Testament, references are made to the significance of Abraham's faith in God at that time in history. His wife Sarai was barren, but (like Noah before) Abram believed God, "and He credited it to him as righteousness" (Genesis 15:6). In the chapters that follow, we will read of Abram and Sarai's doubts, their efforts to bring this promise to fruition in their own timing, and the mercy God would eventually show to them and Hagar.

Noah Found Favor

In Genesis, chapters 6-9, we read of the flood, Noah's Ark, and the covenant God made with Noah after the flood.

The Lord saw how great man's wickedness on the earth had become, and that every inclination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil all the time. The Lord was grieved that he had made man on the earth, and his heart was filled with pain. So the Lord said, "I will wipe mankind, whom I have created, from the face of the earth--men and animals, and creatures that move along the ground, and birds of the air--for I am grieved that I have made them." But Noah found favor in the eyes of the Lord. (Genesis 6:5-8) 

How did Noah find favor? The only people to survive the flood were Noah, his wife, his three sons (Shem, Ham, Japeth), and their wives. If he had God's favor, then he must not have been like the description above. Noah was not wicked, not evil, not causing grief, not causing pain. The Bible describes Noah as a righteous man, blameless among the people of his time, and one who "walked with God". 

The earth was corrupt in God's sight and full of violence (Genesis 6:11). The rebellious ways of mankind were multiplying, and this sin would only be stopped by Noah obeying God's directions. So, "Noah did everything just as God commanded him" (6:22). When Noah was 600 years old, the floodwaters came on the earth for 40 days and 40 nights. Noah and his family were safe inside the ark because "the Lord shut him in" (7:16).

After the rain stopped, Noah and his family waited in the ark. Noah sent out a raven, and it flew back and forth looking for dry land. Then he sent out a dove, but the dove could not find a place to set its feet because there was still water on the surface of the earth; it returned to Noah. After 7 days, Noah let the dove out again. It returned with a freshly picked olive leaf. After 7 more days, Noah let the dove out again, and it never returned. This was when Noah knew the land was dry. God instructed Noah and his family, and all the living creatures, to come out of the ark, to live, be fruitful and increase in number. Noah offered a burnt sacrifice from among some of the clean animals. The Lord smelled the aroma and said in his heart:

Never again will I curse the ground because of man, even though every inclination of his heart is evil from childhood. And never again will I destroy all living creatures, as I have done. (8:21)

Then God blessed Noah and his sons and gave them power over all the beasts of the earth and birds of the air, upon every living creature, "Just as I gave you the green plants, I now give you everything" (9:3). But they were instructed to not eat meat with its lifeblood in it. God would require an accounting of life from every animal, including man, an accounting for the life of his fellow man.

God established a covenant with Noah and his sons and promised to never destroy the earth with a flood again. God said:

Whenever I bring clouds over the earth and the rainbow appears in the clouds, I will remember my covenant between me and you and all living creatures of every kind. (9:12-15)

Noah was 601 years of age when he and his family descended from the ark. After the flood, he lived 350 years. He died at 950 years of age. Noah's sons went on to have their own sons, and their descendents are listed among the Japhethites, the Hamites, and the Semites in Genesis 10.

Day 3 - Our Creator God

Our Creator God and the Supremacy of Christ in Creation

For this is what the Lord says--he who created the heavens, he is God; he who fashioned and made the earth, he founded it; he did not create it to be empty, but formed it to be inhabited--he says: “I am the Lord, and there is no other.” (Isaiah 45:18)

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. In him was life, and that life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, but the darkness has not understood it. (John 1:1-5)

In the past God spoke to our forefathers through the prophets at many times and in various ways, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom he made the universe.  (Hebrews 1:1-2)

He [Christ] is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For by him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by him and for him. He is before all things, and in him all things hold together. And he is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything he might have the supremacy. For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross. (Colossians 1:15-20)

From these passages of scripture, the Bible teaches…

1. God is the Creator of earth.
2. God is the Lord, and there is no other God.
3. Jesus is the Word of God.
4. Jesus was with God in Creation.
5. Jesus holds life and the light of mankind.
6. Those who know Jesus, have light to shine in the darkness of this fallen world.
7. Those who don’t know Jesus, live in darkness.
8. In the Old Testament, there are accounts of God speaking to mankind through other men, or prophets.
9. The Good News of the New Testament is that God has now spoken to us by His Son, Jesus Christ.
10. Jesus is the heir of all things and through whom God made the universe.
11. Jesus is the image of the invisible God.
12. All things visible and invisible, even thrones or powers, rulers or authorities were created by Him and for Him.
13. In Christ all things hold together.
14. Jesus is the head of the church.
15. Those in the church are called the “body of Christ”.
16. God was pleased to have the fullness of Himself dwell in Jesus.
17. God wanted to reconcile all things on earth or things in heaven to Himself.
18. God made peace with all things through the shed blood (crucifixion) of Christ on the cross.
19. Just as a perfect sacrifice was required in the Old Testament for the forgiveness of sins, Jesus came to this earth to live and die as the sacrifice for the forgiveness of sins for all mankind.
20. Jesus is the perfect Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.

What a blessing to believe in our Creator God and to have confidence knowing that the invisible God came to us in the visible form of Jesus Christ! His death on the cross and resurrection freed us from the bondage of this sinful world. Jesus is the light shining in the darkness, and through believing and accepting Him, we are reconciled to God. In so doing, we can have full assurance of our place in this world and gain a new identity of who we are in relation to our Heavenly Father. 

Further teaching by Dr. Charles Stanley, "In Touch Ministries":

http://www.jesus.org/is-jesus-god/names-of-jesus/the-lamb-of-god.html

Day 2 (Genesis 3-5)

Well, day 2 of my devotions has extended into another week! The topic “The Entrance and Extent of Sin” (Genesis 3-5) deserves much more study and treatment than a little blog entry. This lesson is very deserving of more time, but here are some thoughts about it in brief.

In the Old Testament, Genesis, Chapter 3, we read about the disobedience of Adam and Eve, often called the “fall of man”. Satan (a fallen angel) had already rebelled against God and was persistent to sell his “product of sin”. He made false promises to Eve, deceived her, and then she, gave the fruit to Adam, resulting in them both being guilty. I have heard sermons on this before, some believing that the guilt rests on Eve, while some regard Adam’s indifference as the cause of his wife being led astray. But, God punished and cursed all involved: the serpent, then Eve, and then Adam. Their disobedience and shame resulted in sin being passed down to the next generation. Cain became jealous of his brother, Abel, and murdered him.

This lesson saddened me, as I read painful words, such as: sin of the family, downward spiral, God’s judgment, wickedness of the world. Eve is finally comforted with the birth of another son, Seth, believing that God has appointed another son to replace Abel. Then Seth has Enosh, and finally we read, “Then men began to call upon the name of the Lord” (Genesis 4:25).

Since I am a wife and mother, this account cautioned me to not be like Eve, led astray by my own imagination of what is “better” for myself, my kids and family, my home, my career, my time, and the list goes on and on. It is easy in this modern world to lose focus on what is really important in life. Who really matters. What really matters. I hope I can be one, “who calls upon the name of the Lord”.

Jesus was tempted. In Matthew 4:1-11, Jesus is described as being led by the Spirit [of God] to the wilderness to be tempted. He fasted 40 days and 40 nights. He became hungry. The tempter came and said to Him, “If you are the Son of God, command these stones to become bread.” But He answered, “Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that proceeds out of the Mouth of God.” He was then carried away to be tempted again; first, at the pinnacle of the temple, to see if he jumped down, if the angels would save Him. He repeated the Scripture, “You shall not put the Lord, your God, to the test” (Deuteronomy 6:16). Finally, He is taken to a mountain top, and asked to bow down and worship the devil. He is promised all the kingdoms of the world; He quotes the commandment, “You shall worship the Lord, your God, and serve Him only” (Deuteronomy 6:13).

As Christians, we are to remember and strive to live by the example of Jesus Christ. The author (of this devotional guide) describes Him as being tempted by the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life. We are to do as James instructed in the New Testament, “Resist the devil, and he will flee from you” (4:7). Only then can we find the perfect peace and will of our Heavenly Father, to live a life holy and blameless in Jesus Christ.

Day 1 of devotions

A change in focus! I found this great online daily devotional, Your Daily Walk, by Bruce H. Wilkinson. I've decided to share a brief summary of each one, with what I learned from the reading. Enjoy!

 

Day 1 – Genesis 1

Corresponding to Jan. 1 from this online devotional guide, page 16.

By God’s design the world was created, and then mankind. The first verse in the English Bible answers these very important questions often asked by people of all ages.

Questions:

1. What is there?
2. How did it get there?
3. Did it have a beginning?
4. What or who is responsible?

Answers from Genesis, Chapter 1:

1. The heaven and the earth.
2. It was all created.
3. Yes, it had a beginning.
4. God is responsible.

For you and I to believe this is true, requires our acceptance by faith that God IS, and He IS our Creator. Only then can we understand our (individual) identity and purpose. This has eternal consequences, for it determines how we spend our time (eventually) in heaven and (presently) here on earth.

So, if God created mankind, then He created you and me. For what purpose?

Try to read and complete this statement, with whatever words come to mind: “By God’s design, I am ___________.”

What comes to mind?

The author of this devotional study gives the following scripture references to help us understand how we fit into God’s design, or plan. Look up these verses in a printed Bible, or online.

1. Psalm 139:14
2. 1 Corinthians 11:3
3. Ephesians 2:10 then Ephesians 5:21-6:9
4. Titus 2:14

From the readings above, we learn that from God’s design, you and I are:

1. Fearfully and wonderfully made.
2. Members of the body of Christ. Christ is the head of the church.
3. Created as God’s workmanship, designed to do good works as planned by God beforehand.
4. Holy and blameless in Christ.
5. Redeemed by Christ. His own, belonging to Him.
6. Purified from all sin and lawlessness.
7. Intended to be zealous for good deeds.

Prayer of Application:

 

Heavenly Father, thank You for having a plan and design for this universe, for mankind, and for me. Help me to understand how to walk daily with You, to serve you with my whole heart in obedience, and to be willing to serve You and others in good deeds, out of a sincere faith. In the name of Jesus Christ I pray, Amen.

Patient in Affliction

One of my favorite verses is Romans 12:12, "Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer". Today as I read it, I realized that "affliction" is the word I often overlook. Affliction is defined as a state of pain, trouble, or distress; misery. This condition is more common place than first realized. It may be a disease, or it may be a mental state. For the Christian, who is supposed to be living by faith, an "affliction" of some sort, can rob his or her spiritual joy, hope, faith, and ability to pray.

The Bible commands us to be patient in affliction. This is not to say that we deny a problem, we just recognize it and persevere through it. These problems may come in many forms, such as: doubt, fear, insecurity, lack of confidence, lack of faith, physical pain or illness, anxiety. These are examples of many types of affliction, and they are in contrast and conflict with God's plan for our lives.

In Hebrews 10, believers are encouraged to persevere..."Let us draw near to God with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water. Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful..." (22-23).


Paul faced hardships for the sake of the gospel. In 2 Corinthians 6..."as servants of God, we commend ourselves in every way: in great endurance, in troubles, hardships and distresses; in beatings, imprisonments and riots; in hard work, sleepless nights and hunger; in purity, understanding, patience and kindness; in the Holy Spirit and in sincere love. . .sorrowful, yet always rejoicing; poor, yet making many rich; having nothing, and yet possessing everything" (4-6, 10).


Even the Son of God, Jesus Christ, faced trials, ultimately crucifixion, offering himself up as the sacrificial Lamb for the sins of all mankind. It is not only human nature to have trials come our way, it is an inevitability since we are living in a sinful world. Our hope rests on our relationship with God through Jesus Christ, our advocate, who has gone to prepare a home for us in Heaven. This does not cause us to despair; rather, we seek God more, pray more, and act on our faith more, "for he who promised is faithful".

It seems that there is a great connection between our emotional, physical, and spiritual conditions. In 2 Peter 5:7-9, we are instructed:

"Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you. Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that your brothers throughout the world are undergoing the same kind of sufferings."

In the good times and the bad, whether in joy or in affliction, we are called to be patient, alert, and to persevere. This is the model of Christ, and it is a command from Paul to the early church. "Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord. Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer" (Romans 12:11-12).