GENESIS 18: The Promise of Isaac Confirmed to ABRAHAM AND SARAH & SODOM AND GOMORRAH JUDGED

Abraham meets some very important visitors.

Verses 1-5 tells us Abraham invites the Lord and two others to a meal.

“Then the Lord appeared to him by the terebinth trees of Mamre, as he was sitting in the tent door in the heat of the day. So he lifted his eyes and looked, and behold, three men were standing by him; and when he saw them, he ran from the tent door to meet them, and bowed himself to the ground, and said, “My Lord, if I have now found favor in Your sight, do not pass on by Your servant. Please let a little water be brought, and wash your feet, and rest yourselves under the tree. And I will bring a morsel of bread, that you may refresh your hearts. After that you may pass by, inasmuch as you have come to your servant.” They said, “Do as you have said.”

Apparently, this happened a short time later. In Genesis 17:21, God said Sarah would give birth one year later, and at this time, she is not yet pregnant. So this could NOT be more than three months after the events in Genesis 17 when Jesus met Abraham face to face and told him, at the age of 99 & 90, he and Sarah would have a son and they would name him Isaac, which we know means “laughter”.

Here again, the Lord came to Abraham in HUMAN appearance & this time he had TWO angels with him. This is another presentation of Jesus in human form longgggggg before Bethlehem. Just another cameo appearance that tells us JESUS CHRIST WAS BUSY, HANDS ON, APPEARING TO MANKIND ALL THROUGH THE OLD TESTAMENT.


We KNOW THIS TO BE TRUE, WE KNOW THIS CAN ONLY BE JESUS CHRIST because of God the Father it says, No one has seen God at any time. The only begotten Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, He has declared Him (John 1:18), and no man has ever seen God in the Person of the Father (1 Timothy 6:16). Therefore, if God appeared to someone in human appearance in the Old Testament (and no one has seen God the Father) it CAN ONLY BE ANOTHER CAMEO APPEARANCE of the eternal Son, the Second Person of the Trinity, before His incarnation in Bethlehem.

Behold, three men were standing by him: We don’t know if Abraham immediately recognized that the other two WERE angels of JESUS CHRIST, BUT WE DO KNOW THAT JESUS CHRIST HAD ALREADY APPEARED TO ABRAHAM TWICE BEFORE, IN Genesis 12:7; 17:1.

He ran from the tent door to meet them, TELLS US that according to his godliness and the customs of that culture, Abraham offered the hospitality of his house to these travelers.

Verses 6-8 tells us Sarah and Abraham prepare a meal for their visitors.

“So Abraham hurried into the tent to Sarah and said, “Quickly, make ready three measures of fine meal; knead it and make cakes.” And Abraham ran to the herd, took a tender and good calf, gave it to a young man, and he hastened to prepare it. So he took butter and milk and the calf which he had prepared, and set it before them; and he stood by them under the tree as they ate.”

Abraham HURRIED into the tent....Again, some have said ABRAHAM WAS overdoing it, some have said this is where "brown-nosing" originated, but that is a LIE. Ancient biblical culture had an extremely STRONG sense of hospitality to visitors. And ADDED TO THAT, THE GOD MOST HIGH, IN HUMAN FORM, HAD COME TO VISIT ABRAHAM AGAIN…

FACE TO FACE…I DO NOT KNOW ABOUT YOU, BUT IF JESUS CAME TO SEE ME, I WOULD BE OVERDOING IT AS WELL. I WOULD MAKE SURE TO GIVE JESUS THE VERY BEST OF ALL THAT I HAD TO OFFER HIM, AMEN.

AND HERE IS ANOTHER REVELATION FOR ALL OF US. AS UNBELIEVABLE AS IT SOUNDS, THERE ARE THOSE WHO SAY, ALMIGHTY GOD IN HUMAN FORM, WHICH CAN ONLY BE JESUS CHRIST, NEVER REALLY APPEARED IN HUMAN FORM BEFORE BETHLEHEM. AND THERE ARE THOSE WHO TEACH THAT BEFORE JESUS CHRIST WAS BORN IN BETHLEHEM, THAT ALMIGHTY GOD CAN NOT EAT, DRINK, HAVE TOUCHABLE HUMAN FORM….NOR THAT THEY WERE TOUCHED.

RIGHT HERE, FOR THE FIRST TIME EVER IN THE BIBLE, ALMIGHTY GOD SHOWS US, THAT THEY CAN AND DO EAT AND DRINK. THEY CAN WALK THE EARTH, AND THEIR HUMAN FEET AND HANDS WILL GET DUSTY.

HERE ALSO PUTS TO REST THE ABSURD TEACHING THAT IF ALMIGHTY GOD DID EAT, HE ONLY ATE MANNA AND WATER. RIGHT HERE ALMIGHTY GOD IS TELLING US THAT HE LIKED, ENJOYED AND DID EAT MEAT.

HOW COOL IS THAT?

AND YOU NOTICE BEFORE ABRAHAM SERVED THEM A FINE FEAST OF HIS VERY BEST, HE HAD WARM WATER, AND CLOTHS BROUGHT SO THAT THEY ALL COULD WASH THEIR FACES AND FEET.

RIGHT HERE WE ALSO SEE AND LEARN FOR THE FIRST TIME THAT OUR ALMIGHTY GOD IS TANGIBLE…TOUCHABLE. SO THE NEXT TIME SOMEONE TELLS YOU THAT ALMIGHTY GOD IN HUMAN FORM IS NOT VIEWABLE, TOUCHABLE…REAL…YOU HAVE GENESIS 18 TO POINT OUT THAT LONGGGGGGG BEFORE JESUS CHRIST WAS BORN IN BETHLEHEM OUR TRIUNE WAS VISIBLE, TOUCHABLE, REAL, HE COULD AND DID EAT AND DRINK AND SOCIALIZE.

HOW COOL IS THAT?

Verses 9-10 tells us God reconfirms His promise of a son.

“Then they said to him, “Where is Sarah your wife?” So he said, “Here, in the tent.” And He said, “I will certainly return to you according to the time of life, and behold, Sarah your wife shall have a son.” (Sarah was listening in the tent door which was behind him.)”

We may wonder why God repeated the promise again, so close to the time when He said it previously. After all, it seems God was silent about the promise for more than 13 years. Now He came personally to repeat it twice in three months.

ALMIGHTY GOD IS THE GOD WHO SEES, HE SAW, KNEW AND READ ABRAHAM AND SARAH’S HEARTS…HE KNEW THIS MAN OF WHY WHY WHY….WHEN LORD WHEN LORD…ARE YOU SURE…ARE YOU SURE LORD…NEEDED TO BE REMINDED…SO INSTEAD OF ANOTHER VISION, A STILL SMALL VOICE, ALMIGHTY GOD LOVES ENOUGH THAT HE MADE ANOTHER PERSONAL FACE TO FACE APPEARANCE.

AND JUST LIKE ABRAHAM, SOMETIMES WE NEED TO hear God’s promises over and over again. It is a way God uses to encourage and develop our faith as we are REMINDED IN ROMANS 10:17, WHICH SAYS, “So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.”

AND IN PRACTICAL TERMS, AT THEIR AGE, WHEN SEXUAL RELATIONS WERE A THING OF THE PAST, AND PROCREATION, HERE IS THAT WORD, ……IMPOSSIBLE …ALMIGHTY GOD WANTED THEM TO KNOW NOWWWWWWWW IS THE TIME, I WILL GIVE YOU A SON…BUT UMMMMMM ABRAHAM, YOU DO REALIZE THAT YOU AND SARAH HAVE TO COOPERATE, RIGHT? IN LESS THAN A YEAR, YOU WILL HAVE A SON, BUT YOU TWO NEED TO STEP OUT IN FAITH, AND YOU TWO NEED TO GET BUSY, YOU TWO NEED TO BEGIN TO HAVE SEXUAL RELATIONS AGAIN IN ORDER TO ACHIEVE IT TOO.

ONE PART OF ME THOUGHT, WELL UMMMMM DUHHHHHHH ABRAHAM, JESUS CHRIST HAD TO COME BACK AND TELL YOU TWO TO START GETTING BUSY? HOW ELSE DID YOU THINK A CHILD WAS GOING TO BE CONCEIVED? ABRAHAM DID NOT KNOW ABOUT MARY, THE VIRGIN BIRTH, THE SHEKINAH GLORY COVERING MARY TO PRODUCE JESUS CHRIST.

BUT THEN IT HIT ME…ABRAHAM WAS GROWING AND HE HAD NO DOUBT THAT ALMIGHTY GOD COULD BRING ABOUT A SON FOR HE AND SARAH WITHOUT ANY HELP. THAT IS WHAT ELSE THIS PASSAGE TELLS US…ABRAHAM WAS LEARNING TO WAIT FOR FURTHER INSTRUCTIONS. HE DID NOT WANT TO BE OUTSIDE THE WILL & BLESSING OF ALMIGHTY GOD. AND THAT PLEASED ALMIGHTY GOD SO MUCH THAT HE CAME TO TELL HIM PERSONALLY, FACE TO FACE…BASICALLY….ABRAHAM…GET BUSY, I AM WAITING ON YOU, AMEN?

Verses 11-12 tells us Sarah’s reaction to God’s promise.

“Now Abraham and Sarah were old, well advanced in age; and Sarah had passed the age of childbearing. Therefore Sarah laughed within herself, saying, “After I have grown old, shall I have pleasure, my lord being old also?”

Sarah laughed within herself at this promise. She could not believe God would literally grant this child as the result of normal sexual relations. The giggling STARTS up AGAIN…It is as if Sarah was saying within her heart and mind…ARE YOU KIDDINGGGGGGG ME?? NOW? NOW? ABRAHAM CAN BARELY SEE TO FIND HIS BED AT NIGHT AND MY MENSES STOPPED AND MY WOMB DIED YEARSSSSSSSSSSSS AGO…AND YOU ARE TELLING ME THAT I AM GOING TO GET PREGNANT NOWWWWWWW???

It may be, even after the dramatic promises of Genesis 17, Abraham and Sarah had a way of “spiritualizing” God’s promise, making it mean something other than what God intended. Here, God made it plain: Abraham and Sarah will have normal sexual relations and produce a baby.

It is strangely characteristic of us to believe God’s promise for a long, long, time, and endure & wait through MUCH discouragement along the way, until the promise is almost there, and then we find out NOW ALMIGHTY GOD WANTS US TO DO SOMETHING. When in the NATURAL…IT APPEARS…HERE IS THAT WORD AGAIN….IMPOSSIBLE.

THANK YOU JESUS, OUR GOD IS GREATER than our doubts, AMEN!
ALMIGHTY GOD HAD TOLD ABRAHAM FROM THE FIRST….ALL WILL KNOW THAT EVERYTHING YOU HAVE, EVERYTHING YOU ARE, EVERYTHING YOU RECEIVE…THERE WILL BE NO DOUBT….NOT ONE THAT IS COULD ONLY BE POSSIBLE….IT COULD ONLY OCCUR FOR YOU BECAUSE OF MY BLESSING, MY FAVOR, AND MY PROVISION.

AND IF WE COULD USE ONE WORD TO DESCRIBE THE LIFE AND WALK OF ABRAHAM IT WOULD BE FAITH. AND TO DESCRIBE IT IN THE NATURAL…THE ONE WORD WOULD BE IMPOSSIBLE.

SO EVERYONE WHO KNEW ABRAHAM AND SARAH AND THEIR LIFE…WOULD KNOW….ALMIGHTY GOD DID THE IMPOSSIBLE AGAIN. HE IS GOING TO REAWAKEN A DEAD WOMB, REAWAKENED AND ENLIVEN THE ABILITY AND THE SPERM WITHIN ABRAHAM AND GIVE THEM A SON.

EVEN THOUGH Sarah had by ALL OUTWARD APPEARANCES AND PHYSICAL CIRCUMSTANCES AND LIFE CYCLES, NEVERTHELESS…THAT THERE WAS GOOD REASON FOR Sarah to “spiritualize” the promise and laugh at its literal meaning. She had passed the age of childbearing, which literally seems to mean, “the manner of women had ceased to be with Sarah.” She had stopped menstruating and had gone through menopause…BUT NEVERTHELESS…OUR TRIUNE GOD…THE GOD OF THE IMPOSSIBLE…WAS GOING TO ONCE AGAIN DOOOOOOO THE IMPOSSIBLE.

AND EVEN KNOWING NOW for their long lives (Abraham lived to be 175 and Sarah 127), they were both well past middle age. It would take a miracle of God for them to have literal children through normal means.
AND HERE THE GIGGLING BEGINS AGAIN…Therefore Sarah laughed within herself: Significantly, this is what Sarah (and Abraham) most wanted all their lives.

Yet, they find it so hard to believe God’s promise when He says NOW HOW HE WILL GRANT IT TO THEM. IT IS ONE THING TO BELIEVE IN THE IMPOSSIBLE WHEN GOD IS DOING IT…IT IS ANOTHER WHEN GOD SAYS…OOOOOOOO BY THE WAY…YOU AND ABRAHAM ARE GOING TO GET PREGNANT. YOU ARE NOW GOING TO HAVE TO PARTICIPATE.

Verses 13-15 tells us that THIS TIME God answers Sarah’s laugh.

"And the Lord said to Abraham, “Why did Sarah laugh, saying, ‘Shall I surely bear a child, since I am old?’ Is anything too hard for the Lord? At the appointed time I will return to you, according to the time of life, and Sarah shall have a son.” But Sarah denied it, saying, “I did not laugh,” for she was afraid. And He said, “No, but you did laugh!”

HERE IT IS AGAIN…..ANOTHER GOTCHA!!!! ANOTHER I HEARD THAT!!!!! THIS TIME, SARAH IS NOT EVEN LAUGHING AND GIGGLING OUT LOUD, LIKE SHE AND ABRAHAM HAD BEEN UNDER THE COVERS IN GENESIS 17.…THIS TIME…ALMIGHTY GOD IS TELLING SARAH….AND YESSSSSSSSS….YOU AND I THAT HE HEARS US WHEN WE LAUGH, MUTTER, SNORT, EVENNNNNN IN OUR HEARTS AND MINDS….

ANOTHER REMINDER…There was nothing hidden before the Lord. AND WE SHOULD LIVE AND THINK VERY DIFFERENTLY….REMEMBERING that God hears and knows EVERYTHING we think and say.

At the APPOINTED TIME I WILL RETURN to you: We might think God would say, “I gave you this promise twice and twice you two HAVE laughed at it…AND doubted me EVERY TIME! GOD COULD HAVE SAID….I HAVE HAD ENOUGH OF YOU TWO. I AM DONE…THAT IS IT! I AM THROUGH WASTING MY TIME, MY PROMISES, AND MY BLESSINGS ON YOU TWO. I’ll take it to someone who will appreciate it.

THINK ABOUT IT…HOW MANY TIMES HAVE YOU AND I THOUGHT, IF NOT DONE THE SAME THING????

BUT NOT OUR PATIENT FATHER…Instead, God responded by dealing with her unbelief, but not by taking away the promise.

THE TRIUNE GOD IS FAITHFUL.
THE TRIUNE GOD IS NOT FICKLE.
THE TRIUNE GOD IS A PROMISE MAKER & A PROMISE KEEPER.

And remember what TIMOTHY REMINDS US IN, 2 Timothy 2:13, “If we are faithless, He remains faithful; He cannot deny Himself.”

Is there anything too hard for the Lord? Thankfully not, and God can also triumph even over our weak faith.

Hard is the same word for wonderful in Isaiah 9:6, which says, “For unto us a Child is born, Unto us a Son is given . . . And His name will be called Wonderful.” Jesus is our “wonderful” One, and He is NOT to hard or wonderful for God to give unto us.

The Lord said TO Abraham: Significantly, God dealt with Abraham about this, NOT Sarah herself,.

WHY?
Because Abraham WAS the head of his home. ALMIGHTY GOD WAS TELLING ABRAHAM….AND YESSSSSSS US, IF YOUR WIFE DISBELIEVES, IF YOUR CHILDREN DISBELIEVE AND DOUBT…I HOLD YOU RESPONSIBLE, MAN, HUSBAND, FATHER TO CORRECT YOURSELF AND CORRECT YOUR THOUGHTS AND YOUR ACTIONS SO THAT THEY WILL BELIEVE WHAT I SAY I MEAN.

THIS STANCE…HAS NOT CHANGED FROM THEN TO NOW WITH OUR TRIUNE GOD….IF YOU ARE JESUS BELIEVING, FOLLOWING AND TRUSTING FAMILY…AND THE WIFE OR THE CHILDREN BEGIN TO DOUBT…LOOK TO YOURSELF FATHER, HUSBAND…THEY FOLLOW YOUR LEAD…IF YOU MUTTER AND SPEAK DOUBTS…OR YOUR ACTIONS SPEAK DOUBT IN ME…THEN YOUR FAMILY WILL MUTTER, WILL GIGGLE, WILL LAUGH…WILL DOUBT.

THE WORLD MAY SAY IT IS LIVE AND LET LIVE….BE FREE SPIRITS…MAKE YOUR OWN DECISIONS…DO NOT TRUST OR BELIEVE IN YOUR PARENTS…YOUR FATHER’S TEACHING AND WALK…AND WHAT MY WORD SAYS…THIS IS A NEW AGE…A NEW WORLD…IT IS A SELF FOCUSED WORLD…WE ARE ALL ON OUR OWN NOW…THE BIBLE IS NOT RELEVANT ANY MORE.

ALMIGHTY GOD THEN AND NOW SAYS….I CHANGE NOT!

AND THEN GOD MOVES ON….HE TELLS ABRAHAM ABOUT THE CITIES OF Sodom and Gomorrah.

Verses 16-19 tells us God decides to reveal to Abraham the fate of Sodom and Gomorrah.

“Then the men rose from there and looked toward Sodom, and Abraham went with them to send them on the way. And the Lord said, “Shall I hide from Abraham what I am doing, since Abraham shall surely become a great and mighty nation, and all the nations of the earth shall be blessed in him? For I have known him, in order that he may command his children and his household after him, that they keep the way of the Lord, to do righteousness and justice, that the Lord may bring to Abraham what He has spoken to him.”

Abraham went with them to send them on the way…As would be customary for a hospitable host in that day, Abraham will accompany his guests on their journey for a while as they depart.

Shall I hide from Abraham what I am doing....Because of what God would bring from Abraham (a great and mighty nation), and because Abraham had to be a great leader (that he may command his children and his household after him), God will reveal to Abraham what He will do with Sodom and Gomorrah.

We see something very VITAL HERE…

There are those who have taught and said that God’s purpose in TELLING ABRAHAM…shows that GOD LIKES GOSSIP. THIS IS NOT THE TRUTH. ALMIGHTY GOD DECIDES TO TELL ABRAHAM not for “gossip” with Abraham about what He will do, nor is it to satisfy Abraham’s curiosity either! God wanted to do something in Abraham’s life through what He will reveal to him…and make a POINT TO ABRAHAM AND TO US…

Verses 20-21 tells us God tells Abraham He will see if Sodom and Gomorrah are worthy of judgment.

“And the Lord said, “Because the OUTCRY AGAINST Sodom and Gomorrah is great, and because their sin is very grave, I will go down now and see whether they have done altogether according to the outcry against it that has come to Me; and if not, I will know.”

THIS TELLS US SOMETHING IMPORTANT…OUR TRIUNE GOD IS A HANDS ON FATHER…HE DOES NOT SIT IN HEAVEN REMOVED FROM OUR LIVES AND THE SITUATIONS HERE….AND EITHER SEND MANNA OR LIGHTNING BOLTS IN RESPONSE. HE WALKS AMONG US. HE CHECKS THE SITUATION OUT PERSONALLY!!!!


Verses 22-26 tells us Abraham asks an important question: will God destroy the righteous with the wicked?

“Then the men turned away from there and went toward Sodom, but Abraham still stood before the Lord. And Abraham came near and said, “Would You also destroy the righteous with the wicked? Suppose there were fifty righteous within the city; would You also destroy the place and not spare it for the fifty righteous that were in it? Far be it from You to do such a thing as this, to slay the righteous with the wicked, so that the righteous should be as the wicked; far be it from You! Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right?” So the Lord said, “If I find in Sodom fifty righteous within the city, then I will spare all the place for their sakes.”

The men turned away from there and went toward Sodom, but Abraham still stood before the Lord: We NOW REALIZE THESE TWO MEAN ARE THE ACTUAL ANGELS WHO VISITED Sodom in Genesis 19. The third “man” in the party is actually the Lord Himself.

And Abraham came near…Abraham came near to the Lord. Effective intercession is a matter of drawing near to God so we can pray with His heart. WHEN WE WANT TO INTERCEDE…WE SHOULD GET CLOSER….NOT STAND AT A DISTANCE…BUT BOLDLY GET CLOSE….THROUGH PRAYER….AND BOLDLY YET HUMBLY GO STRAIGHT TO THE THRONE OF GRACE BEFORE WE INTERCEDE…JUST AS ABRAHAM DOES. ABRAHAM IS LOOKING ALMIGHTY GOD IN THE FACE…AND ABRAHAM KNOWS IT IS ALMIGHTY GOD IN THE HUMAN FORM OF JESUS CHRIST…YET HE IS EVER APPROACHABLE…THERE IS NO FEAR…THERE IS ONLY TRUST AND BELIEF AND THE KNOWLEDGE THAT HE CAN TALK WITH, AND CONFIDE IN, AND HUMBLY AND EARNESTLY QUESTION ALMIGHTY GOD.

AGAIN WE SEE THAT OUR JESUS CHRIST IS A PATIENT, LOVING AND APPROACHABLE FATHER…AMEN!

Would You also destroy the righteous with the wicked?…In discussing this question, Abraham “reminded” the Lord of His own nature and principles (shall not the Judge of all the earth do right?) Abraham thought that God, as a righteous Judge could not punish the innocent the same way as the guilty.

Prayer is MOST effective because it prays knowing WHO ALMIGHTY GOD IS, and KNOWING HOW God works in a particular situation. Effective prayer does NOT see itself AS THE FOCUS OR THE IMPORTANT FOCAL POINT, NOR as a passive spectator in what God does, but acts as if it must “remind” God in prayer.

THAT IS RELATIONSHIP…AND ALMIGHTY GOD LOVES IT WHEN WE REMIND HIM OF ALL HE SAYS IN HIS WORD TO US AND REMIND HIM OF HIS PROMISES AND REMIND HIM OF HOW HE SEES…THAT IS NOT ARROGANCE, THAT IS TELLING AND SHOWING JESUS CHRIST THAT WE ARE COMING TO KNOW HIM, WE ARE EVER SEEKING HIM, HIS PROMISES AND HIS WORD…AND THAT, BROTHERS AND SISTERS PLEASES JESUS CHRIST SOOOOOOOOO VERY MUCH.

IT IS NOT ARROGANCE…IT IS LOVE….IT IS SAYING JESUS I LOVE YOU ENOUGH TO WANT TO UNDERSTAND YOU, TO WANT TO PLEASE YOU, TO WANT TO DO WHAT YOU EXPECT OF ME…AMEN!

We might find it remarkable Abraham even cared about the people of Sodom and Gomorrah. He HAD DEALT WITH THE GREEDY SELF SERVING KINGS OF SODOM AND GOMORRAH. AND HEAVEN KNOWS LOT HAS BEEN NOTHING BUT A SORROW, TRIAL AND PAIN TO ABRAHAM, SINCE HE DISOBEYED GOD AND BROUGHT HIS FATHER AND LOT OUT OF UR OF THE CHALDEANS WHEN HE LEFT.

SO ABRAHAM COULD HAVE JUST THROWN HIS HANDS UP, WASHED HIS HANDS OF THE ENTIRE FILTHY MESS AND SAID GOD…DO YOUR WORST. OR ABRAHAM COULD HAVE JUST SAID, Lord, get my nephew Lot out of there first,” but he did NOT. Abraham’s heart was full of sorrow and compassion, even for the wicked of Sodom and Gomorrah.

If I find in Sodom fifty righteous within the city, then I will spare all the place for their sakes…THIS SHOWS ALMIGHTY GOD LOVES ABRAHAM‘S HEART OF COMPASSION…AND IS WILLING TO SPARE THESE CITIES IF 50 INNOCENT AND RIGHTEOUS CAN BE FOUND BETWEEN THE TWO CITIES. God said this because Abraham asked. When Abraham drew near to the Lord and prayed according to God’s revealed nature and will, God agreed. The Lord said that He would spare the city if there were 50 righteous there.

BUT THEN ABRAHAM THINKS ABOUT HOW AWFUL THE CITIES ARE…HOW EVIL…HOW CORRUPT…AND SAYS TO THE LORD…

WAIT A MINUTE….WAITAMINNIT…LETS RETHINK THIS LORD, OKAY….THERE MAY NOT BE EVEN 50 INNOCENT OR RIGHTEOUS LIVING IN THE TWO CITIES…SO HE BARGAINS AGAIN WITH ALMIGHTY GOD.

Verses 27-33 tells us…ABRAHAM TRIES AGAIN!

“Then Abraham answered and said, “Indeed now, I who am but dust and ashes have taken it upon myself to speak to the Lord: Suppose there were five less than the fifty righteous; would You destroy all of the city for lack of five?” So He said, “If I find there forty-five, I will not destroy it.” And he spoke to Him yet again and said, “Suppose there should be forty found there?” So He said, “I will not do it for the sake of forty.” Then he said, “Let not the Lord be angry, and I will speak: Suppose thirty should be found there?” So He said, “I will not do it if I find thirty there.” And he said, “Indeed now, I have taken it upon myself to speak to the Lord: Suppose twenty should be found there?” So He said, “I will not destroy it for the sake of twenty.” Then he said, “Let not the Lord be angry, and I will speak but once more: Suppose ten should be found there?” And He said, “I will not destroy it for the sake of ten.” So the Lord went His way as soon as He had finished speaking with Abraham; and Abraham returned to his place."

Suppose there were five less than the fifty righteous....Now the principle is established - God will not destroy the righteous with the wicked - now it is just a matter of numbers. How many righteous people will God spare the city for?

Abraham’s intercession was effective because it was SPECIFIC. He talked about specific numbers with God, not in broad, general terms. Often our prayers are ineffective because we really don’t ask the Lord to do anything. Instead we often just toss wishes up to heaven.

HERE WE SEE AND ARE TAUGHT THROUGH ABRAHAM AND LEARN TO NOT BE AFRAID TO BE SPECIFIC WITH GOD.

Let not the Lord be angry, and I will speak: Abraham continued his intercession with a “bold humility.” He was not proud or arrogant before the Lord, but he still continued to ask...TO STRIVE TO INTERCEDE

Abraham’s humility was demonstrated in that nowhere in his prayer did he ask “Why?” or did he demand that God explain Himself and His actions.

Suppose ten should be found there? Abraham was a skilled negotiator and he prevailed upon God to lower the number of righteous required to spare the city. First by units of five, then by units of ten, until the number settled at ten.

DO YOU NOTICE THE PERSISTENCE OF ABRAHAM’S INTERCESSION? Why didn’t he give it up at 40 or 50 and say simply “it’s in the Lord’s hands” or “the Lord will do what the Lord will do”? Because we LEARN SOMETHING VERY IMPORTANT AND VALUABLE ABOUT OUR INTERCESSION….WE, LIKE ABRAHAM MUST FEEL, AND BELIEVE, at the moment of prayer, that the eternal destiny of men depends on OUR prayer.

This is the kind of heart God WANTED TO CREATE AND DRAW OUT OF ABRAHAM - a heart that cared so much for people made in the image of God that he worked hard to intercede on behalf of a city that DESERVED judgment. This was the heart a great leader of a great and mighty nation needed to have.

WE WHO HAVE READ THE BIBLE, KNOW THAT ABRAHAM’S BARGAINING, HOPE, AND INTERCESSION SEEMED HOPELESS, WORTHLESS, AND FRUITLESS…BECAUSE WE KNOW THAT ALMIGHTY GOD KNEW THERE WAS NOT EVEN 10 INNOCENT AND RIGHTEOUS PEOPLE OUT OF HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS BETWEEN THE TWO CITIES OF SODOM AND GOMORRAH.

WHY?

BECAUSE MOST WHO WERE INNOCENT AND RIGHTEOUS IN THE EYES OF ALMIGHTY GOD LEFT THOSE CITIES TO SPARE THEMSELVES AND THEIR FAMILIES FROM BEING INFECTED OR CORRUPTED.

ALSO….we see this, in the future, knowing the past, that there is a sense in which all this negotiation was fruitless. We KNOW there were NOT EVEN TEN RIGHTEOUS people in the city, ONLY FOUR.

SO THE CITIES WERE destroyed.

Yet God specifically revealed the fate of these cities to Abraham to draw out of him an intercessor’s heart of love, so even before the time of Jesus Abraham could be conformed into the image of His Son as told to us in Romans 8:29 AND who is Himself an intercessor told to us in Hebrews 7:25.

SO Abraham returned to his place…SOME DEBATE AND WONDER if Abraham should not have continued the negotiations because there were only four righteous in the city. Would God have spared the city for four if Abraham had asked? Perhaps Abraham felt Lot would surely have brought six people beyond his own family to God in his time in Sodom.

BUT WE KNOW THAT ABRAHAM WAS A LEADER, A MILITARY AND SOCIAL LEADER OF MANY…so he KNEW that ALLOWING the VAST CORRUPTION, EVIL, DEMONICS, AND SELFISHNESS OF THESE PEOPLE IN SODOM AND GOMORRAH WOULD NOT CHANGE…THEY COULD NOT BE SAVED…THEY HAD NO DESIRE TO BE MORAL, HONORABLE, AND GODLY…AND ABRAHAM KNEW SINCE THEY REJECTED HIS ALMIGHTY GOD, IF THEY WERE ALLOWED TO CONTINUE…THAT THEY WOULD EVENTUALLY SPREAD AND BEGIN TO INFECT AND OPPRESS THE INNOCENT AND THE RIGHTEOUS OF HIS PEOPLE.

GENESIS 18 IS A WONDERFUL CHAPTER…ONCE AGAIN WE SEE THE HUMOR OF OUR ALMIGHTY GOD. WE ALSO SEE AND LEARN THAT OUR TRIUNE IS A WONDERFUL, PATIENT AND HANDS ON FATHER. HE DOES NOT LEAD, GUIDE AND DIRECT FROM THE SAFE DISTANCE OF HIS HEAVENLY THRONE…BUT HE WALKS AMONG US…HE IS WILLING TO GET HIS HANDS AND FEET DUSTY IN ORDER TO BE A HANDS ON TEACHING, GUIDING, AND INVOLVED FATHER.

WE LEARN THAT HE IS MERCIFUL…AND THAT HE LOVES FOR US TO HUMBLY YET BOLDLY INTERCEDE FOR OTHERS. HE IS NOT OUTRAGED OR INSULTED BY OUR QUESTIONS…THAT IS RELATIONSHIP.

OUR TRIUNE GOD LOVESSSSSSSSSSS US TO SEEK HIM OUT, SEEK TO KNOW HIM, SEEK TO UNDERSTAND HIM, SEEK TO PLEASE HIM….SEEK TO OBEY HIM, AMEN?

SPEND TIME WITH YOUR FATHER…HE MISSES YOU.

BE BLESSED AND STAY BLESSED IN OUR JESUS!