Sermon: The Journey of a Lifetime P 2
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Abram seemed to get caught in the middle of a feud. He did nothing wrong to get himself in this situation. However, God used this intense time to glorify himself and show his presence to Abram
Abram’s Rescue
At that time Amraphel was the king of Babylonia. Arioch was the king of Ellasar. Kedorlaomer was the king of Elam. And Tidal was the king of Goiim.
They went to war against five kings. The kings were Bera king of Sodom, Birsha king of Gomorrah, Shinab king of Admah, Shemeber king of Zeboiim, and the king of Bela. Bela was also called Zoar.
Those five kings all gathered their armies together in the Valley of Siddim. It was the valley of the Dead Sea. For 12 years they had been under the rule of Kedorlaomer. But in the 13th year they opposed him.
In the 14th year, Kedorlaomer and the kings who helped him went to war. They won the battle against the Rephaites in Ashteroth Karnaim. They also won the battle against the Zuzites in Ham and the Emites in Shaveh Kiriathaim. They did the same thing to the Horites in the hill country of Seir. They marched all the way to El Paran near the desert.
Then they turned back. They went to En Mishpat. En Mishpat was also called Kadesh. They took over the whole territory of the Amalekites. They also won the battle against the Amorites who were living in Hazazon Tamar.
Then the king of Sodom and the king of Gomorrah marched out. The kings of Admah, Zeboiim and Bela went with them. Bela was also called Zoar.
They lined up their armies for battle in the Valley of Siddim. They got ready to fight against Kedorlaomer king of Elam, Tidal king of Goiim, Amraphel king of Babylonia, and Arioch king of Ellasar. There were four kings against five.
The Valley of Siddim was full of tar pits. The kings of Sodom and Gomorrah ran away from the battle. Some of their men fell into the pits. The rest escaped to the hills.
The four kings took all of the things that belonged to Sodom and Gomorrah. They also took all of their food. Then they went away.
They carried away Lot, Abram’s nephew, and the things he owned. Lot was living in Sodom at that time.
One man escaped. He came and reported everything to Abram. Abram was a Hebrew. He was living near the large trees of Mamre the Amorite. Mamre was a brother of Eshcol and Aner. All of them helped Abram.
Abram heard that Lot had been captured. So he called out his 318 trained men. All of them were sons of his servants. They chased the enemy as far as Dan. During the night Abram separated his men into groups. They attacked the enemy and drove them away. They chased them north of Damascus as far as Hobah.
Abram took back all of the things the kings had taken. He brought back his nephew Lot and the things Lot owned. He also brought back the women and the other people.
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Abram called others to join him
Insight: Melkizedek brought bread and wine to celebrate the restoration of the kingdoms. In the last day, Jesus will eat bread and wine to celebrate the restoration of the captivity of God’s people. He will celebrate that he is the savior of his people, the one who brings people back to the presence fo the Righteous King.
Abram was not giving to a cause, or holing back. He understood that he was giving to God himself, therefore he was generous just as his God was generous to him. Proving to be faithful because God had been faithful to him first.
Abram’s response: Worship and offerings
What an amazing thought: For some, it may have looked like Abram was the only person who was worshiping the Living God. But God was already living in Canaan. He even had a priest there! God had invited Abraham to be part of what he was already doing there. That means that there were people who were already offering sacrifices to God. What an amazing thought it is to recognize that God is already at work. When God sends you, you need to know that he is already at work, ahead of you.
You and I are not the main characters in this story, but we are simply instruments of his glory!