Episode 264 - Abram delivers Lot and is blessed by Melchizedek - Genesis 14

Gen. 14:1 In the days of Amraphel king of Shinar, Arioch king of Ellasar, Chedorlaomer king of Elam, and Tidal king of Goiim, 2 these kings made war with Bera king of Sodom, Birsha king of Gomorrah, Shinab king of Admah, Shemeber king of Zeboiim, and the king of Bela (that is, Zoar). 3 And all these joined forces in the Valley of Siddim (that is, the Salt Sea). 4 Twelve years they had served Chedorlaomer, but in the thirteenth year they rebelled. 5 In the fourteenth year Chedorlaomer and the kings who were with him came and defeated the Rephaim in Ashteroth-karnaim, the Zuzim in Ham, the Emim in Shaveh-kiriathaim, 6 and the Horites in their hill country of Seir as far as El-paran on the border of the wilderness. 7 Then they turned back and came to En-mishpat (that is, Kadesh) and defeated all the country of the Amalekites, and also the Amorites who were dwelling in Hazazon-tamar.

Gen. 14:8 Then the king of Sodom, the king of Gomorrah, the king of Admah, the king of Zeboiim, and the king of Bela (that is, Zoar) went out, and they joined battle in the Valley of Siddim 9 with Chedorlaomer king of Elam, Tidal king of Goiim, Amraphel king of Shinar, and Arioch king of Ellasar, four kings against five. 10 Now the Valley of Siddim was full of bitumen pits, and as the kings of Sodom and Gomorrah fled, some fell into them, and the rest fled to the hill country. 11 So the enemy took all the possessions of Sodom and Gomorrah, and all their provisions, and went their way. 12 They also took Lot, the son of Abram’s brother, who was dwelling in Sodom, and his possessions, and went their way.

Gen. 14:13 Then one who had escaped came and told Abram the Hebrew, who was living by the oaks of Mamre the Amorite, brother of Eshcol and of Aner. These were allies of Abram. 14 When Abram heard that his kinsman had been taken captive, he led forth his trained men, born in his house, 318 of them, and went in pursuit as far as Dan. 15 And he divided his forces against them by night, he and his servants, and defeated them and pursued them to Hobah, north of Damascus. 16 Then he brought back all the possessions, and also brought back his kinsman Lot with his possessions, and the women and the people.

Gen. 14:17 After his return from the defeat of Chedorlaomer and the kings who were with him, the king of Sodom went out to meet him at the Valley of Shaveh (that is, the King’s Valley). 18 And Melchizedek king of Salem brought out bread and wine. (He was priest of God Most High.) 19 And he blessed him and said,

“Blessed be Abram by God Most High,

Possessor of heaven and earth;

20 and blessed be God Most High,

who has delivered your enemies into your hand!”

And Abram gave him a tenth of everything. 21 And the king of Sodom said to Abram, “Give me the persons, but take the goods for yourself.” 22 But Abram said to the king of Sodom, “I have lifted my hand to the LORD, God Most High, Possessor of heaven and earth, 23 that I would not take a thread or a sandal strap or anything that is yours, lest you should say, ‘I have made Abram rich.’ 24 I will take nothing but what the young men have eaten, and the share of the men who went with me. Let Aner, Eshcol, and Mamre take their share.”

One of my priorities in this blog and podcast is not to get caught up in some of the arguments between scholars concerning the historicity of events and other nitpicky details. Rather, I want to focus on what I believe is the most important point for the inclusion of a given story and how it contributes to the greater story. Suffice to say that some scholars like to critique this story because they haven’t found archeological data or ancient writings that identify some of these kings and people groups. Therefore, in their minds, it’s fictional. They forget that other like-minded scholars have eaten proverbial humble pie as archeological discoveries have often proved other critics wrong. It is fair enough to say that we don’t know who all these kings and kingdoms were and if they are also known by other names.

That said, we understand this story to tell us about kingdoms uniting to battle other kingdoms. Sodom and Gomorrah were conquered, and Lot’s family and possessions were taken as spoils of war. I think it’s safe to say that if Lot and his family had not been affected, Abram would not have bothered to intercede.

We learned in the previous chapter that the men of Sodom and Gomorrah were wicked and that Lot had settled near there. One might expect Abram to have an attitude of “Lot made his bed, and now he can lie in it.” But he doesn’t. He went out and defeated those who had conquered them and returned the people and possessions to Sodom and Gomorrah. I take this as God working through Abram to show mercy and compassion to the people of Sodom and Gomorrah. They did nothing to deserve justice in this matter. Yes. God even shows mercy and compassion to the wicked sometimes. Why? I think the only reason is so they may repent and turn to the LORD.

However, the second part of this story reveals two kings who approach Abram. One is the king of Sodom, and the other is called Melchizedek, King of Salem. Notice the contrast between these two. We already know what the men of Sodom are like. But we’ve heard nothing about Melchizedek. Melchizedek brings bread and wine to Abram and blesses him in the name of the God most high. Abram, in return, gives him a tenth of the spoils. Why did he do that? Hadn’t Abram already done enough good by liberating people? The answer is that Abram is acting according to God’s promise to him. Abram recognizes that God gave him the victory and is blessing the one who blessed him.

The king of Sodom makes no such acknowledgment and offers nothing but a deal. He does not recognize God’s grace and mercy to him and his people. Abram is wise in recognizing this king’s motives and wants nothing from him because he doesn’t honor the LORD.

All good things come from the LORD. We need to be sensitive to God’s acts of compassion and mercy to us each day and respond in worship as did Melchizedek and Abram.

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Episode 255 - God's covenant with all living things - Genesis 9:8-17

Gen. 9:8 Then God said to Noah and to his sons with him, 9 “Behold, I establish my covenant with you and your offspring after you, 10 and with every living creature that is with you, the birds, the livestock, and every beast of the earth with you, as many as came out of the ark; it is for every beast of the earth. 11 I establish my covenant with you, that never again shall all flesh be cut off by the waters of the flood, and never again shall there be a flood to destroy the earth.” 12 And God said, “This is the sign of the covenant that I make between me and you and every living creature that is with you, for all future generations: 13 I have set my bow in the cloud, and it shall be a sign of the covenant between me and the earth. 14 When I bring clouds over the earth and the bow is seen in the clouds, 15 I will remember my covenant that is between me and you and every living creature of all flesh. And the waters shall never again become a flood to destroy all flesh. 16 When the bow is in the clouds, I will see it and remember the everlasting covenant between God and every living creature of all flesh that is on the earth.” 17 God said to Noah, “This is the sign of the covenant that I have established between me and all flesh that is on the earth.”

Many Bible scholars hold that the first covenant God made was with Adam. In Genesis 2:15-17 the LORD commanded the man to take care of the garden and enjoy it. However, the one prohibitive command to not eat from the one tree was the stipulation to continue receiving these blessings the LORD had provided. Disobedience would lead to certain death. The only problem with understanding this instruction as a covenant is that nowhere is it called a covenant. It has characteristics of a covenant. So, it may be a covenant. However, I cannot imagine why the LORD didn’t call it a covenant or why Moses didn’t explain that it was a covenant. Whether it is or isn’t, the covenant that God makes with Noah and all living creatures is the first time it’s recorded in the Bible that what God is promising is, in fact, a covenant.

A covenant is commonly defined in our language today as a solemn promise that may be conditional or unconditional. Some covenants offer promises to the recipients if they keep their part of the deal. That’s a conditional covenant. On other occasions, God makes an absolute covenant promise regardless of how the people respond. If God’s words to Adam in Genesis 2 constitute a covenant, then the covenant is conditioned upon Adam’s obedience to God’s command. What God promises Noah and his sons in this text, however, is an unconditional covenant. This fact alone is a significant thing to consider in our study today because it provides important truth about the character of the LORD.

First, notice that God included Noah’s sons in his audience. He didn’t just speak to Noah. I don’t recall the LORD including Noah’s sons in his message concerning the flood and the building of the ark. It was upon Noah to share God’s message and for Noah’s sons to follow him by faith. One can only imagine what that must have been like for Noah’s sons. “God’s going to do what?” “Water is going to come down from the heavens?” “You’re going to build a large boat and we are going to live on it with a bunch of animals?” I would think they believed their dad was a bit crazy. However, concerning this covenant promise, they each hear the same message. It seems to me that God is drawing them into a closer relationship, wanting to mitigate any fears that the God who brought about the flood might do it all again each time it started raining. It’s God’s way of helping them understand that he will not get angry and resort to annihilation at the drop of a hat. There are people today who live under this kind of fear that God is just looking for an excuse to smack them down. This couldn’t be further from the truth.

What’s more, is that God explained to Noah and his sons that this covenant promise extends to all living creatures. It reveals that God values animals to the extent that he makes an unconditional covenant promise to the animals and birds as well as to all humanity. What’s the promise? “Never again shall all flesh be cut off by the waters of the flood, and never again shall there be a flood to destroy the earth.” (Gen 9:11)

The text continues to explain that God’s sign of this covenant is the rainbow. I love rainbows. Whenever it rains, and the sun comes out, I often run or look outside to see if there’s a rainbow. They’re beautiful! It’s something visible that many people can see from different locations. Think about it. God made a sign for his covenant that he knew would bring joy and pleasure to look at and could be viewed by many at once. What a gift and encouraging message from the LORD. All these generations later, we get to enjoy its beauty and rest in its promise.

But the sign of the covenant is not just for us. Notice in verse 16 that God also sees it and remembers the “everlasting covenant” he has made with all living beings. I like to think about that. God doesn’t forget anything. I don’t think he has to be reminded that he made this covenant. When God “remembers” something, it’s that his promise is before him, and he acts in accordance with that promise. It’s like he’s saying, “When I see the rainbow, I will fulfill the promise I made in accordance with that sign. You can rely on it.” It communicates that God is trustworthy.

The rainbow is just one little sign of the LORD’s care for all living things, of his peace, beauty, and trustworthiness. Reflect on that this week.

Episode 252 - "Noah built an altar" - Genesis 8:20-22

20 Then Noah built an altar to the LORD and took some of every clean animal and some of every clean bird and offered burnt offerings on the altar. 21 And when the LORD smelled the pleasing aroma, the LORD said in his heart, “I will never again curse the ground because of man, for the intention of man’s heart is evil from his youth. Neither will I ever again strike down every living creature as I have done. 22 While the earth remains, seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, day and night, shall not cease.”

Sometimes, the Scriptures can raise as many questions as it answers. One of the reasons this happens is due to the vast historical, geographical, and cultural distance that exists between us and those of the ancient world of the Bible. The very idea of animal sacrifices, for example, is offensive to our 21st-century, western sensibilities. That’s true even for those of us who believe the Bible and trust in the God of the Bible. Another reason is that there were many things that happened that the Bible doesn’t tell us about. We are left to make inferences and speculate how people got from “point A to point B” in terms of their worship and ways of life. I’m certain that both of these factors are in play in this section we’re reading today.

In these few verses, we might ask ourselves, “Why did Noah build an altar and sacrifice animals on it?” “Why did this please God? Didn’t God instruct Noah to take the animals on the ark to preserve them?” “How did Noah know what animals were ‘clean’?” And more.

Let’s examine this. First, unless I’m mistaken, the only specific acts of sacrifice in worship recorded in the Scriptures up to now are those of Cain and Abel. Abel brought an animal sacrifice, and Cain brought a sacrifice of food. God accepted Abel’s sacrifice but rejected Cain’s. It’s not uncommon for people to infer that God accepted Abel’s sacrifice because it was an animal sacrifice and rejected Cain’s because it was a food offering. But the text doesn’t tell us that. Instead, it suggests that the reason for God accepting Abel’s sacrifice was because it was the best of what he had. Conversely, Cain brought “some” of his produce, suggesting that it wasn’t the best. In other words, the difference between the sacrifices was not about what was offered as it was how it was offered. Abel’s attitude about the LORD was of gratitude and awe of God, and Cain’s wasn’t. This is confirmed when God approaches Cain to correct him and Cain refuses to listen to the LORD.

It seems that this is what we are witnessing in Noah’s sacrifice. God has fulfilled his promise and delivered them safely through this flood, and Noah is expressing his thankfulness and awe of what God has done.

How did Noah know which animals were ‘clean’? We don’t. What we do know is that this story was written by Moses long after the flood and after God had given the Law to Israel that designates what animals were clean or unclean. What this account does is confirm to Israel that the God who has delivered them out of bondage in Egypt has revealed Himself previously to their ancestors. This God who has just given them the Law has not just come up with a new, arbitrary set of rules. God had revealed this before. It was just not important enough to document exactly when that happened. What is revealed is that God had seven pairs of the clean animals and birds on the ark versus the one pair of all the other animals. Noah didn’t seem to question this. Perhaps Noah understood the “extra” animals were God’s provision for such a sacrifice. Perhaps Noah even recognized this as a sign that God really would get them through this ordeal.

This sacrifice pleased the LORD, and, in response, he made a threefold promise “in his heart.” How would Noah or, later on, Moses know what God had said in his heart? Again, we don’t know. However, if we apply one of our common principles of interpretation, examining the context, we discover in the next chapter that God reveals his resolve to Noah through a covenant promise. (See Genesis 9:11-17) What God promised to Noah and all humanity in this covenant is consistent with what he resolved “in his heart.”

The first part of this threefold resolution of God is interesting. He had just judged the earth by water because of the evil of humanity in the world. God resolves to “never curse the ground again because of man.” The interesting part is the reason he gives for this resolution. He explains, “for the intention of man’s heart is evil from his youth.” Wow! There’s a statement we should not jump past too quickly. We so often want to assume the best in people. But God doesn’t. What this means is not that God has abandoned his value of humanity. If that were true, he would not have bothered to spare Noah and his sons and their wives. While Noah is declared righteous, God hasn’t overlooked that he is not perfect, and neither are his sons and daughters-in-law. The sin problem will continue and God is acknowledging that. Yet, God had a plan and “the seed” was still to come at that point. God would still execute his plan despite humanity’s tendency to do what is “evil.”

The last question I’ll raise for this section and attempt to address is, “Does the apocalyptic prophecy in Revelation contradict the LORD’s resolution here in Genesis? I believe the answer to that is “no.” Revelation speaks of a final judgment for the very same cause that brought the judgment by flood. Yet, the final judgment is a fiery destruction of the earth and the creation of a new heaven and new earth. Those whom the LORD deems righteous will be delivered eternally to an eternal life on the new earth where sin will be eradicated because “the seed” will have made that possible. The point then of this promise is that Noah and all people who live after him are not to live in fear every time it rains or every time there’s a drought. The LORD will sustain his creation and life within the earth until he has fulfilled all that he’s promised, despite the ongoing problem of humanity’s evil tendencies.

This text affirms God’s right to judge evil. It reveals his desire to offer life and provision revealing his patience, love for his living creatures, and resolve to fulfill every promise he makes. This is a God that is worthy of our thankfulness and awe and to whom we should direct our best worship.

Episode 192 - "Don't take God's blessings for granted" - 1 Corinthians 10:1-5

1Cor. 10:1 For I do not want you to be unaware, brothers, that our fathers were all under the cloud, and all passed through the sea, 2 and all were baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea, 3 and all ate the same spiritual food, 4 and all drank the same spiritual drink. For they drank from the spiritual Rock that followed them, and the Rock was Christ. 5 Nevertheless, with most of them God was not pleased, for they were overthrown in the wilderness.

Paul has been encouraging them to use their liberty in Christ in a discerning way that would edify other believers and not destroy their faith. As we begin chapter 10, Paul provides them with a historical example to warn them how they ought to conduct their lives. Some of these Corinthian believers think they know more than they really do. Paul tells them that he’s going to make them aware of a cold hard truth. Even though God had guided, delivered, and provided for the Israelites coming out of Egypt, he was not pleased with most of them. Why? How does this apply to the Corinthians or us?

Paul reminds them of the Exodus and how God had led them by a pillar of cloud that went before them. That guiding cloud led them to and through the sea that God parted for them to walk through on dry ground. It teaches us that when we follow God, he can and will overcome the obstacles. God can do the impossible. But he expects his children to have faith in following him.

Paul interprets this journey through the sea and being led by the cloud as a form of baptism. What is that all about? Baptism for Christians is an act of obedience to identify with Christ’s death, burial, and resurrection. We are identifying ourselves with Christ through that obedience. In the same way, the Israelites were identifying with God’s chosen leader, Moses, by following him, who was following God. That’s good.

Paul then says that all of these people ate the same spiritual food and drink. Their food and drink were supernaturally provided by God, and they partook of it. In fact, he reminds us where they got their water; from a rock. Then Paul says something strange, “the Rock was Christ.” What is this? Does he mean that the pre-incarnate Jesus became a literal rock? No. But he is indicating his belief that Jesus was the eternal Son of God who literally existed from eternity past. He is God, and he was with the Israelites, providing everything they needed. The actual rock from which they drank water only provided water because that was the will and blessing of God to the people. He not only provided what they needed in terms of physical sustenance. He did it in a miraculous way to show the Israelites (and indirectly us) what he is capable of doing and his willingness to bless them. It was evidence their God could be trusted in all things.

There was only one problem. They quickly forgot or ignored that lesson, and time after time, they complained and did not trust the LORD. God was “not pleased” with them, and most of that generation would die wandering in the wilderness.

If Paul wanted the Corinthian believers to be aware of this, then it seems reasonable that we should be aware of this. How should it impact us? At the very least, it should remind us that God provides for us, leads us, and delivers us out of our bondage to sin. He makes himself known through his work. We need to learn not to take God for granted and to constantly seek to follow his will.