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Observations from today’s readings and today’s S-WOD, Wednesday, 20 November 2024:
Genesis 18:1-2 – And the Lord appeared to him by the oaks of Mamre, as he sat at the door of his tent in the heat of the day. He lifted up his eyes and looked, and behold, three men were standing in front of him.
This is another Old Testament Theophany – Jesus appearing with two angels.
“And the Lord appeared to him by the oaks of Mamre.” This was a significant place in Abraham’s life. Abraham moved to Mamre when he came back into the promised land from Egypt and built an altar there (Genesis 13:18). Abraham later purchased a field and cave at Mamre, using it for Sarah’s burial (Genesis 23:17-19). Abraham himself was buried there (Genesis 25:9), and his son Isaac was also buried there (Genesis 49:30, 50:13).
Genesis 18:11-14 — Now Abraham and Sarah were old, advanced in years. The way of women had ceased to be with Sarah. So Sarah laughed to herself, saying, “After I am worn out, and my lord is old, shall I have pleasure?” The Lord said to Abraham, “Why did Sarah laugh and say, ‘Shall I indeed bear a child, now that I am old?’ Is anything too hard for the Lord? At the appointed time I will return to you, about this time next year, and Sarah shall have a son.”
One of the biggest faith problems we have is we tend to prejudge God based on our human perspective, and we underestimate His character and His power. We act as if God is somehow constrained by the laws of physics He created and controls, and we also act like He behaves like humans, selfishly, half-heartedly, with ulterior motives, etc. Not only is nothing too hard for God, but nothing is too small for the Lord. He counts every hair on your head and collects your every tear (Luke 12:7; Psalm 56:8). He knows you better than you know yourself and wants the best for you in ways you can’t possibly imagine. There is nothing that can separate you from His love (Romans 8:38-39). However, we can hinder His blessings by refusing to accept His love and trust in His love. We can trust God in our circumstances, even when the situation is “impossible” — “With man it is impossible, but not with God. For all things are possible with God.” (Mark 10:27) When you are in Christ, it isn’t happening to you, it is happening for you; and if it isn’t working for you, it is working on you as the Refiner’s fire. (Romans 8:28-29)
Genesis 18:15 — But Sarah denied it, saying, “I did not laugh,” for she was afraid. He said, “No, but you did laugh.”
Again, we tend to forget that God is God, and we act as if He isn’t omnipresent and omniscient. You can’t hide from God in any way. One of the reasons prayer is so important is because it helps us appreciate that we have a real relationship with God, which is spiritual but practiced in the physical; prayer employs and unites the whole of us, our souls (our entire being, both physical and spiritual). In prayer, we can learn to recognize that we are fully exposed to God. When we talk with people, we are careful to control our expressions and words to shape the other person’s perceptions of us, perhaps even to manipulate their responses to us. However, with God, this isn’t possible. He sees past your presentation and cannot be manipulated. He knows your heart better than you do, knows what you want and why you want it before you ask for it; and He knows how to answer your prayers the way you would have offered them if you knew all that He knew and had His perfect character.
So, why do we pray if He already knows all? In part, because He is working on our relationship with Him and our character (John 17:22-23; Romans 8:29), and He is teaching us how to be honest with Him and ourselves, to fully appreciate the truth of His love, mercy, and grace. Notice that, in fear, Sarah lied to God, but God convicted her. There is a good “fear” of the Lord, in the form of respect, which is the foundation of all knowledge, understanding, and wisdom (Proverbs 1:7, 9:10), and there is a bad “fear” of the Lord, in the form of doubt or suspicion, which is the foundation of all sin. Sarah didn’t trust God with the truth of her sinfulness, failing to recognize that God knew exactly who she was but loved her anyway. So she felt she had to sin (lie) to protect herself from God, as if that were possible.
We put up barriers to God in our fear of condemnation, but God tells us, “There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.” (Romans 8:1) We need to learn to be transparent before God and others, with full confidence in God’s grace. You can’t fix what you aren’t willing to be honest about. There is great freedom in being fully exposed without fear of judgment.
- Hebrews 4:13 — And no creature is hidden from his sight, but all are naked and exposed to the eyes of him to whom we must give account.
- 1 John 4:18 — There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear. For fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not been perfected in love.
- Ephesians 5:6-14 — Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of these things the wrath of God comes upon the sons of disobedience. Therefore, do not become partners with them; for at one time you were darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light (for the fruit of light is found in all that is good and right and true), and try to discern what is pleasing to the Lord. Take no part in the unfruitful works of darkness, but instead expose them. For it is shameful even to speak of the things that they do in secret. But when anything is exposed by the light, it becomes visible, for anything that becomes visible is light. Therefore, it says, “Awake, O sleeper, and arise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you.”
Genesis 18:19 — For I have chosen him, that he may command his children and his household after him to keep the way of the Lord.
Obedience is to be taught to the next generation. Even those without children are commanded to “make disciples,” to train up others to follow Jesus. You are not merely called to be a good student; you are called to be a good instructor.
Genesis 18:22-32 – Will you indeed sweep away the righteous with the wicked?
God’s people have always had a genuine heart for sinners and seek to intervene for them. This is the first time in Scripture that someone initiated a conversation with God as opposed to God taking the initiative. Abraham interceded to God for the people of Sodom, not just Lot. In doing so, Abraham appealed to God’s character of righteousness rather than His mercy — “Far be it from you to do such a thing, to put the righteous to death with the wicked, so that the righteous fare as the wicked! Far be that from you! Shall not the Judge of all the earth do what is just?” (Genesis 18:25) Of course, Abraham’s false assumption was that any righteous people could be found in Sodom — “None is righteous, no, not one.” (Romans 3:10) Only Lot was counted by God as “righteous,” (by faith, not by deeds), and by God’s grace, he was saved along with his degenerate daughters. (2 Peter 2:7, 8) Lot wasn’t enough to save Sodom from destruction — “For the sake of ten I will not destroy it.” (Genesis 18:32) However, it would appear that a godly minority could delay judgment by promoting godliness, something worth considering in our time. As salt and light, we preserve by exposing darkness and revealing truth. How are we influencing our culture as we intercede on behalf of the nations?
“Cross” Fit S-WOD (Spiritual Workout of the Day) – 20 November 2024: Today, practice living transparently before God and others, naked, but covered in God’s grace. Learn the humility which comes from being honest. In your increased appreciation for the grace you require, prayerfully intercede on behalf of other sinners, particularly for those who have directly sinned against you, that they would receive forgiveness and salvation through Jesus and that they would be drawn closer to Him.
Defenders Bible Reading Plan 