Pastor Matt's Blogosphere

Some Interesting Thoughts

Thought 1:
Have you ever wondered how Abraham recognized the Lord when he appeared to him in the oak grove in chapter 18 of Genesis? (Remember, Abraham was sitting in the shade of his tent and noticed 3 men standing nearby.) Well, I noticed something this morning that may or may not be new to you, but I thought it was interesting.

Before Genesis 17, it seems that the Lord had only appeared to Abraham one time while He had spoke to Abraham several times. He appeared to Abraham in Genesis 12:7 while Abraham was still young (probably later 80s). However, approximately 10 years pass before the Lord appears to Abraham again (at least from what we have recorded in the Bible). In Genesis 17:1 it states that the Lord appeared to Abraham and made the Abrahamic Covenant with him. (This is also the time where God changed Abram to Abraham and Sarai to Sarah.) Now here comes the interesting part. In Genesis 17:21 the Lord tells Abraham that Isaac would be born to him "about this time next year." Now remember, the Lord has appeared to Abraham when He says these words "about this time next year." Now in chapter 18, you see Abraham sitting at the entrance of his tent in the shade and sees 3 men. Why would he run and fall on his knees before these men? How did he know that it was the Lord? (Now don't get all theological on me...okay?) Well, if you look at Genesis 18:10, you will see where one of the visitors says, "I will return to you about this time next year, and your wife, Sarah, will have a son." Then if you look at Genesis 18:14, you will see where the Lord says, "I will return about this time next year and Sarah will have a son."

Okay, now if you put this all together, the time frame between chapter 17 and chapter 18 is short. In fact, it may only be a matter of days between the two chapters. We often think of a great span of time between these two events, but that can't be. In chapter 17, the Lord tells Abraham that would Isaac would be born "about this time next year," and then in chapter 18, the Lord tells Abraham, "I will return about this time next year, and Sarah will have a son." So, the two chapters are very close in time. Thus it would have only been days between the two appearances of the Lord to Abraham and would explain how he could recognize the Lord so quickly.

Now on the theological side, I'm sure once the Lord appeared to you, you would never forget it. But it is interesting to see how chapters 17 and 18 are so close together in time.


Thought 2:
In the following verses we see an interesting lesson from the life of Lot.

Genesis 19:17-21 (right before the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah) -
Vs. 17 - When they were safely out of the city, one of the angels ordered, "Run for your lives! And don't look back or stop anywhere in the valley! Escape to the mountains, or you will be swept away!"
Vs. 18 - "Oh no, my lord!" Lot begged.
Vs. 19 - "You have been so gracious to me and saved my life, and you have shown such great kindness. But I cannot go to the mountains. Disaster would catch up to me there, and I would soon die."
Vs. 20 - "See, there is a small village nearby. Please let me go there instead; don't you see how small it is? Then my life will be saved."
Vs. 21 - "All right," the angel said, "I will grant your request. I will not destroy the little village (Zoar)"

Now, it is interesting that Lot was told to escape to the mountains, but he had a better plan. He knew things would work out better for him if he was just able to go live in Zoar. But what really happened?

Genesis 19:30 (after the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah) -
Vs. 30 - Afterward Lot left Zoar because he was afraid of the people there, and he went to live in a cave in the mountains with his two daughters.

Wow. What a surprise. Lot ended up realizing that God's plan was the best one after all. If only Lot had followed God's plan from the very beginning!!! But how often are we like Lot? How often do we tell God that we have a better plan only to later end up exactly where we should have been all along? Maybe we should just listen to God from the "get-go" and do exactly as He says. It might save us some trouble and embarrassment too!