Who Gets the Glory?

-


Scripture:

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).
Gen. 14:18 And King Melchizedek of Salem brought out bread and wine; he was priest of God Most High.
Gen. 14:19 He blessed him and said,
    “Blessed be Abram by God Most High,
        maker of heaven and earth;
Gen. 14:20     and blessed be God Most High,
        who has delivered your enemies into your hand!”
And Abram gave him one tenth of everything.
Gen. 14:21 Then the king of Sodom said to Abram, “Give me the persons, but take the goods for yourself.”
Gen. 14:22 But Abram said to the king of Sodom, “I have sworn to the LORD, God Most High, maker of heaven and earth,
Gen. 14:23 that I would not take a thread or a sandal-thong or anything that is yours, so that you might not say, ‘I have made Abram rich.’
Gen. 14:24 I will take nothing but what the young men have eaten, and the share of the men who went with me—Aner, Eshcol, and Mamre. Let them take their share.”

Observation:

Probably the most memorable story about Abram and his nephew Lot comes to us when fire and brimstone are brought down upon the evil city of Sodom where Lot had chosen to live.  But that is not the first time that Lot is saved from that city.  There is a period of time earlier where the kings of the region make war against Sodom and Lot and his family are taken away as plunder in that battle.  There were numerous kings and communities involved in the battle. Amazingly Abram grabs members of his family and they go out to save Lot and his family.  Even after all of this Lot goes back to live in Sodom.

It is the meeting which occurs after all of this fighting that is quite amazing.  One of the "good" kings involved in the battle is also known as a High Priest, and his name is Melchizedek.  He worships and serves God and he is the king of Salem, which we know today as Jerusalem.  Why would this man appear here and in this place?  It is almost as if the curtain is pulled back on the future and that he represents for us in this moment a glimpse of the future and the coming of Jesus Christ.  We see him for a moment and then he disappears again from the pages of history.  However, Abram's response to him shows us the importance of our response to the Messiah who will come. 

Application:

Abram brings Melchizedek a tenth -- he brings to him a tithe of everything that he had.  Again this becomes a foreshadowing of what faithful followers of Jesus Christ are do in the presence of The King!  And Abram knew that he wanted God to have the credit for what had happened and not man.  This is found in his very purposeful response to the king of Sodom.  Abram could have had considerable additional wealth as a result of the plunder from this altercation but instead he refused to keep it and instead gave it back to the king of Sodom.  He returned to the earth what was the earth's and gave in worship to God what was to be given to God -- and God was given the glory for all that happened in his life!


Prayer:

Lord, I want my life to glorify you -- and I want the world to know that all I have is from you.  Please, help me to be faithful in all things!  Amen.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Take Off Your Ornaments

-
Scripture: Ex. 33:4 ¶ When the people heard these harsh words, they mourned, and no one put on ornaments. Ex. 33:5 For the LORD had said to Moses, “Say to the Israelites, ‘You are a stiff-necked people; if for a single moment I should go up among you, I would consume you. So now take off your ornaments, and I will decide what to do to you.’” Ex. 33:6 Therefore the Israelites stripped themselves of their ornaments, from Mount Horeb onward. Observation: The people had sinned before God by making and worshiping the golden calf!  They had taken their golden jewelry — the earrings and other items they had gotten from the Egyptians and used them to create an idol.  Now, in an act of humility and repentance they were to take off all of their jewelry and ornaments.  It was a time of mourning over their sin and it included intentional action on the part of the Israelites.  Application: We don’t do all that well with humility and repentance!  It seems that we live in a ti...
Read more

Does God Value Boys More than Girls?

-
Scripture: Lev. 12:1 ¶ The LORD spoke to Moses, saying: Lev. 12:2 Speak to the people of Israel, saying: ¶ If a woman conceives and bears a male child, she shall be ceremonially unclean seven days; as at the time of her menstruation, she shall be unclean. Lev. 12:3 On the eighth day the flesh of his foreskin shall be circumcised. Lev. 12:4 Her time of blood purification shall be thirty-three days; she shall not touch any holy thing, or come into the sanctuary, until the days of her purification are completed. Lev. 12:5 If she bears a female child, she shall be unclean two weeks, as in her menstruation; her time of blood purification shall be sixty-six days. Lev. 12:6 ¶ When the days of her purification are completed, whether for a son or for a daughter, she shall bring to the priest at the entrance of the tent of meeting a lamb in its first year for a burnt offering, and a pigeon or a turtledove for a sin offering. Lev. 12:7 He shall offer it before the LORD, and make atonement on her ...
Read more

On Grief and A Flute Player

-
Scripture: Matt. 9:23 When Jesus came to the leader’s house and saw the flute players and the crowd making a commotion, Matt. 9:24 he said, “Go away; for the girl is not dead but sleeping.” And they laughed at him. Matt. 9:25 But when the crowd had been put outside, he went in and took her by the hand, and the girl got up. Matt. 9:26 And the report of this spread throughout that district. Observation: This is a simple story which we have heard or read numerous times. Jesus heals the little girl and the people rejoice. But at the moment in which he arrives at the home he encounters the professional mourners. These are the flute players, the ones who have come to make a great noise about the child’s death. It is the flute player that testifies to the fact that she is truly dead. Also, flutes were generally employed when it came to the death of a child. The whole community would therefore understand that it is a child who has died in this home. The flute player is doing the job they have ...
Read more