Genesis 13:1-4
Abram left his altar between Bethel and Ai unattended. In unbelief, he ran off to Egypt to take care of himself, walking away from the place where he met God. He left his place of worship to pursue his plan. Abram didn't build any altars in Egypt.
Maybe we can surmise that Abram realized going 'down' to Egypt wasn't such a great idea and decided to go 'up'. It wasn't a direct route back to the place of his altar. He went Negev and then place to place. He found nowhere to build an altar; we know of no exchange, worship, prayer or conversation with God. After all this wandering, he came back to the place of faith, of promise and of worship. It was there Abram called on the Lord. Do you suppose it occurred to Abram that he should have stayed right there and been faithful? Do you think he realized God would have met his needs?
F.B. Meyers, a turn of the century pastor and writer, friend of D.L. Moody summarized this passage by saying:
"The world may entreat us well, but that will be a poor compensation for our losses. There is no altar in Egypt, no fellowship with God, no new promises; but a desolated home, and a wretched sense of wrong. When the prodigal leaves his Father's house, though he may win a brief spell of forbidden pleasure, yet he loses all that makes life worth living, and brings himself down to the level of the swine. In such a case there is no resource, save to retrace the way that we have come, to 'do the first works,' and like Abraham to go up out of Egypt to the place of the altar where we were 'at the first'. Abraham's failure in Egypt gives us an insight into the original nature of the patriarch, which was by no means heroic." (F. B. Meyer)
In Revelation 2 the church of Ephesus is chastened by the Lord for leaving their first love. They are advised by the Lord to remember from where they had fallen, repent and the first works. This would have been good advice to for Abram. The bigger lesson for us is that we shouldn't leave our altar, our place of worship. Hebrews 10:23 adds:
Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful.
Here we are though, looking with a critical eye at other's lives. In the first part of chapter 12 we came to know Abram as a man of faith doing hard things. In the second half of the chapter we know him in his great failure. What would our life look like to such a critical eye?
The path leading away from the altar was one leading 'down' to the world. We could map the downward progress like this:
- Unbelief. – Might have sounded like, "These promises are nice, but I need food. I better go to Egypt!"
- Lack of worship – Abram walked away from the place God had led him to.
- Self-confidence – He was pretty sure he knew what was right and didn't need God for this part of his life. He would only go to God for the big stuff.
Trust in the Lord with all your heart,
And lean not on your own understanding;
6In all your ways acknowledge Him,
And He shall direct your paths. (Proverbs 3:5)
- More sin – His failure led him to a place where he assumed the worse of another, used this to justify lying and asking his wife to lie also. Sin leads us down a path, out into the world and far from God and His ways.
Most assuredly, I say to you, whoever commits sin is a slave of sin. 35 And a slave does not abide in the house forever, but a son abides forever. 36 Therefore if the Son makes you free, you shall be free indeed. (John 8:34-36)
- Great loss – He lost his wife, and with her was the promise of God. He had no ability to get her back.
12There is a way that seems right to a man,
But its end is the way of death. (Proverbs 14:12)
- Rebuke and deep humiliation – Abram was chastised for his wickedness and lack of integrity by a man Abram looked down on as a wicked man.
- The Lord chastened Judah as they considered running to Egypt for help:
Your own wickedness will correct you,
And your backslidings will rebuke you.
Know therefore and see that it is an evil and bitter thing
That you have forsaken the Lord your God,
And the fear of Me is not in you," (Jeremiah 2:19)
- Consequences – It seemed as if it all ended well when Abram returned to the place of his altar. However, with the solution are the seeds of further crisis. Abram brought 2 things back, baggage from his wandering. He brought back a handmade named Hagar and the wealth he brought back would cause a problem between Lot's flocks and his. This led to Lot separating to Sodom and creating several problems in the days to come.
7 Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, that he will also reap. 8 For he who sows to his flesh will of the flesh reap corruption, but he who sows to the Spirit will of the Spirit reap everlasting life. (Galatians 6:7-8)
*****
Recent archeological discoveries uncovered the city of Ai. It was fascinating to read that it was right by Beth Aven. This place of Abram's altar was right between Bethel and AI. Bethe means 'house of God' and Ai means 'heap of ruins'. Beth Aven means house of iniquity, pain. Abram's tent and altar were between this house of God and house of iniquity. As a Christian, we seem to be in a similar place. We live in the presence of God on the outskirts of a house of iniquity. All around us is the garbage of this trash heap. We can't help but wreak of it at times. We often wonder how to avoid it at all. Paul attempted to put this into words in Romans 7:
For the good that I will to do, I do not do; but the evil I will not to do, that I practice. 20 Now if I do what I will not to do, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells in me.
21 I find then a law, that evil is present with me, the one who wills to do good. 22 For I delight in the law of God according to the inward man. 23 But I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members. 24 O wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death? 25 I thank God—through Jesus Christ our Lord!
This is our hope; it's not in wealth or a trip out in the world, it's found in Christ.
If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new. (1 Cor 15:58)
Our tendency is to obey and trust as long is all goes well in our life. However, when trouble comes; famine, peril, sword or any other thing, our piety goes out the window. We start to lean on our own resources and our own ways as if God had let us down and we now have to figure out a solution.
But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him. (Hebrews 11:6)
Genesis 13:5-7
Abram was supposed to have left his family behind when he came to the land of Canaan. He was not obedient in this. While he may have thought, "What's the harm?" we see the disobedience beginning to cause a problem. Lot had been tagging along all along the way of Abraham's travels. Whether it was Abram's increased wealth alone or if Lot also became wealthy in Egypt is irrelevant; Lot had many herds in close proximity to Abraham's and it was the recipe for strife. The wealth Abram acquired in spite of his disobedience was now causing a problem, that wouldn't have been if Abram would have been obedient from the beginning. Even though Abram had returned to a walk of faith the consequence of his disobedience and unbelief still brought consequences.
There were two primary things to consider to herd livestock; pasture land and sources of water. From April through September it was hot and dry. The herds would be moved to higher elevations where grass could still be found and the streams still flowed. When the cooler months rolled around and the rains came the flocks would be brought back down to the plains. Understanding the seasons, the land and the flocks would be all important. We can see why disputes over grazing land and access to water would be the source of conflict between herdsmen. This was even more critical when the Canaanites and Perizzites were already there and possessed the best pasture and had claim to the water sources. We can be assured they were keeping a close watch on these newcomers.
Why is Lot still following Abram around? Why doesn't Lot just break out on his own? You get the feeling he was obsessed with money. He wanted more and more possessions and following Abram around seemed to work well. Abram was a blessing to those around him.
Abram had a lot of possessions but it he seemed to have a more mature approach to it. His wealth was just another part of this world that he sojourned in. We'll begin to see Lot's taste for the things of the world lead him astray.
Genesis 13:8-9
It was the cultural norm for the younger Lot to yield to his elder. While lot's lust for the world becomes visible, we also see Abram in a different light. He is so changed from the man we saw heading to Egypt, plotting and calculating his steps to lie, to survive, to manipulate and expose others to injury. Suddenly he seems to be more caring of relationship than of the world; a leader that shows some directness in dealing with the problem. He showed himself to be a peacemaker when he could have demanded his rights. Instead, Abram humbled himself and let Lot choose the land. Suddenly he appeared to be a man unworried and unhurried by the world:
24 "No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon. 25 "Therefore I say to you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink; nor about your body, what you will put on.
Abram made Lot a pretty good deal. The land had been given to Abram, not Lot. So, it was quite a generous offer to give Lot the choice he did. Abram's action indicated he valued his relationship with Lot more than the land. As Abram said, "You choose, Lot, take what you want," we get the feeling Lot placed his highest value on worldly wealth.
The humility of Abram is consistent with Paul's words in Philippians 2:3-4:
Let nothing be done through selfish ambition or conceit, but in lowliness of mind let each esteem others better than himself. Let each of you look out not only for his own interests, but also for the interests of others.
And Matthew 5:9:
Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.
Abram reminded Lot they were close relatives, brethren. He was saying that it wasn't right for men to fight, especially brothers. He made a conscious and wise choice not to quarrel over the 'stuff' of life. In doing so, he became Christlike in his actions and attitudes, looking very much like what Paul taught the Philippians:
3 Let nothing be done through selfish ambition or conceit, but in lowliness of mind let each esteem others better than himself. 4 Let each of you look out not only for his own interests, but also for the interests of others. 5 Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus…. (Philippians 2:3-5a)
Genesis 13:10-13
Lot lifted his eyes and looked around. He didn't pray, seek the Lord, ask his elder's advice or study what was best for his life. Like Eve in the garden when she saw the fruit and that it was pleasing to the eye and desirable, the mind was made up. Lot lifted his worldly eyes and saw all the plain of Jordan; it was a fine sight. He saw the opportunity for wealth and riches and an abundant life. He saw it was well-watered like the garden of the Lord; but he also likened it to Egypt. It's odd that Lot compares this to Egypt and the garden of the Lord. How are they alike? It may be the abundant water and food of the Nile was where Abram went and Lot followed along and also became wealthy. This valley before Lot appeared to have a similar potential, a land of opportunity. However, Lot didn't lift his eyes high enough to look to the Lord. He was blinded by his greed. The abundance of the land clouded his judgment. It looked so good; he was sure it couldn't be bad.
Today we call this following your heart, your dreams and desires. But the heart is deceitful above all things and desperately wicked. In case you missed it, Lot set out toward the east. This is a dark shadow of Cain, who, bearing the weight of his sin, set out to the east to make his way in the world apart from God's way.
We see Lot's choices and we know his future as well as that of Sodom, but before we write off Lot, look at what Peter said:
……..turning the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah into ashes, condemned them to destruction, making them an example to those who afterward would live ungodly; 7 and delivered righteous Lot, who was oppressed by the filthy conduct of the wicked 8 (for that righteous man, dwelling among them, tormented his righteous soul from day to day by seeing and hearing their lawless deeds) (2 Peter 2:6-8)
This man was a righteous man who made mistakes and poor choices. This should give us hope; for God knows how to rescue and reclaim the righteous.
However, we are called to "walk by faith, not by sight". (2 Corinthians 5:7) We are to walk in belief regardless of what our eyes see. We allow so much deception to take root through our eyes. The reality we see with our eyes overwhelms the reality of our promises. We need to fix our eyes on Jesus and allow Him to overwhelm our life.
Abram was walking by faith; Lot was walking only by sight. Lot chose to pitch his tent toward Sodom. This wasn't a good start to a new life. We know already that the men of Sodom were exceedingly wicked and sinful against the Lord. Lot has stepped onto the slippery slope. First, he looked that way and liked the way it looked, then he pitched his tent toward Sodom. In Chapter 19 he has moved to the city and is an official at the gate of Sodom.
James 4:4
Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Whoever therefore wants to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God.
Lot chose to be friends with the world.
Genesis 13:14-16
Lot was gone. Abram was supposed to have been separated from his family long ago. Abram wasn't willing to separate from Lot earlier in life. But God is sovereign and His will won out, as it always does, and we finally see the separation. Things are beginning to look more like what He intended by bringing Abram to a point where he is not only willing to separate as originally instructed, but they both felt it was necessary to separate. Abram was now in the Promised Land apart from Lot. With this done, the Lord renewed the covenant promises to him.
"The Lord said." Was the this the Lord Jesus standing by Abraham and inviting him to look around the land? The Lord had visibly appeared to Abram previously and He would do so again. Or, was it the voice of God speaking to his heart; hearing without doubt but not audibly? We don't know for sure. Everything Abram saw would be given by the sovereign Lord who created it and had it to give. The Lord promised this 70 something year old man with a barren wife that He would make their descendants like the dust of the earth. To this childless couple, having a child would be an incredible blessing. To consider a multitude of offspring far outweighed anything the world had to offer.
Genesis 13:17-18
Abram was to walk the land. To walk through it was to possess it and enjoy it and lay claim to the gift that had been given him. He may have thought, 'What if the Canaanites see me? What if I run into giants?' Our own sinful nature will be goaded on by the enemy to allow fear to rob us of the promises of God, from claiming and enjoying and possessing them. We should walk through and explore the promises we have.
While Lot camped near Sodom, Abram camped near Hebron. What a contrast these two cities create; very similar to the future contrast of Babylon and Jerusalem. The tale of these two cities is rich. Sodom, Gomorrah and Zoar will be seen in the coming chapters; they were wicked, godless and practiced evil. Hebron became a home base to the patriarchs and many would be buried there; including Sarah, Abraham, Isaac, Rebekah, Leah and Jacob. David was anointed King at Hebron. The city also served as capital for the first seven and a half years of his reign. Abram begins this rich heritage when he pitched his tent there and built an altar to the Lord.
We see Abram again as a solid man of faith. This is a nice recovery, for he gave us pause when we saw him go to Egypt in chapter 12. The Promises was still fresh in his ears as the Lord spoke it to him when he built an altar and worshiped the Lord. Yet, it makes clear the point we shouldn't forget. There were two Abrams, a strange mixture of trust and distrust, a man of faith abiding within a man of flesh. The determining factor seems to be where we put our focus, where we put our eyes and trust.
Very much like Lot, each of us are tempted to lift our eyes, to look at the world and make our choice. It can appear beautiful; seeming full of potential joy, success, fame and fortune; good times and affluence. It seems to be there for the taking. Like some kind of perverse 'Let's make a Deal' game, every selection leaves one unfulfilled and empty. Oh, the worldly things might distract us or please us for a season, but the season is always too short. We quickly look away from yesterday's distraction and lift our eyes and begin to look for something else. For yesterday's selection didn't quite fill us, scratch the itch or quench that deep desire we have. So many have spent their lives looking here and there only to express the loneliness and emptiness they feel amidst their acquisition, wealth and fame.
As Alexander Maclaren put it:
The less of our energies are consumed in asserting ourselves, and scrambling for our rights, and cutting in before other people, so as to get the best places for ourselves, the more we shall have to spare for better things; and the more we live in the future, and leave God to order our ways, the more shall our souls be wrapped in perfect peace.
I want that peace for me and for you. I want to lift my eyes, not to the world, but much higher – to lift my eyes to the Lord. I want to trust the everlasting promises he gave to me.
Unto You I lift up my eyes,
O You who dwell in the heavens (Psalm 123:1)
©2019 Doug Ford
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