Abraham, Part 16 - The Way of the Lord
Genesis 18v16-21
31st December 2010
God and two others, presumably angels, had visited Abraham and Sarah.
Genesis 18v16
When the men [that is, God and the angels] got up to leave, they looked down towards Sodom, and Abraham walked
along with them to see them on their way.
Abraham lived in the hill country in the south of Canaan. From the eastern edge of those hills, you can look down on the Dead Sea. At that time, Sodom was near the southern end of that sea. Abraham stood with God and two angels and looked down on the wicked city. What a privilege! But what a solemn moment!
Genesis 18v17-21
Then the LORD said, "Shall I hide from Abraham what I am about to do?
Abraham will surely become a great and powerful nation, and all nations on earth will be blessed through him.
For I have chosen him, so that he will direct his children and his household after him to keep the way of the
LORD by doing what is right and just, so that the LORD will bring about for Abraham what he has promised him."
Then the LORD said, "The outcry against Sodom and Gomorrah is so great and their sin so grievous
that I will go down and see if what they have done is as bad as the outcry that has reached me. If not, I will
know."
God was going down to Sodom to judge it, and He decided to tell Abraham in advance. God always tells His church what He intends to do, through His prophets, although we don't always listen:
Amos 3v4-8
Does a lion roar in the thicket when he has no prey? Does he growl in his den when he has caught nothing?
Does a bird fall into a trap on the ground where no snare has been set? Does a trap spring up from the earth
when there is nothing to catch?
When a trumpet sounds in a city, do not the people tremble? When disaster comes to a city, has not the LORD
caused it?
Surely the Sovereign LORD does nothing without revealing his plan to his servants the prophets.
The lion has roared - who will not fear? The Sovereign LORD has spoken-who can but prophesy?
God also gave a specific reason for telling Abraham. He said that Abraham "will surely become a great and powerful nation, and all nations on earth will be blessed through him". Like all fathers, Abraham was responsible not just for his own actions, but also to teach those who would come after him. He was to "direct his children and his household after him to keep the way of the LORD by doing what is right and just". This was particularly important in Abraham's case, because he is the father of all who believe, both Israelites and Christians (Romans 4:11).
All of us who know the Lord (that is, all Abraham's children) have a responsibility to teach our children, and those we bring to faith, about God. This must go beyond teaching about the love and mercy of God, and must go on to keeping "the way of the LORD" by "doing what is right and just". We believe a gospel of grace, but we also understand that:
1 John 2v3-6
We know that we have come to know him if we obey his commands.
The man who says, "I know him," but does not do what he commands is a liar, and the truth is not in him.
But if anyone obeys his word, God's love is truly made complete in him. This is how we know we are in him:
Whoever claims to live in him must walk as Jesus did.
I find it much easier to preach on love and grace than on righteousness and justice, but we are answerable to God if we fail to pass on to our children and to new Christians the vital importance of keeping the way of the Lord.
God told Abraham that He was about to pass judgment on Sodom. A major element in our instruction about keeping the way of The Lord is the reality of judgment. This is also a major part of our motivation towards right living. It would be nice is we were totally motivated by love and mercy, and didn't need to be motivated by fear of God's judgment, but:
Proverbs 9v10a
The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom