SERMON QUOTE
“It’s not just that God is going to keep Abraham safe. God promises to bless Abraham. He says, ‘I am your reward.’ Abraham wins God. That is a lot better than winning the lottery.”
DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT
Abraham was not just after God’s treasures. He was after God. How do we know this?
If Abraham had only been after the treasure, he would never have left Ur with his father Terah. Ur was the prosperous, urban center of a strong Mesopotamian state. Ur had all the modern conveniences of it’s day: schools, libraries, two story houses with running water, highly developed legal systems and fertile land for grazing livestock due to adequate rainfall and three major sources of water. But Abraham left Ur with his father Terah and traveled nearly 600 miles northwest to Heran.
If Abraham had only been after the treasure, when Lot needed space from his uncle, Abraham would have grabbed the fertile, well-watered pastures of the Jordan Valley and given the leftover, more sparsely covered, higher ground to Lot.
But Abraham gave the best land to Lot.
If Abraham had only been after the treasure, when the king of Sodom paid him a visit and offered him the spoils from the battle to free nephew Lot, Abraham would have grabbed the bounty.
But Abraham refused the bounty, saying “I will accept nothing belonging to you, not even a thread or the thong of a sandal, so that you will never be able to say, ‘I made Abram rich’.” (Genesis 14:23)
Abraham was not after God’s treasure. He was after God. God was the prize.
If you had been Abraham, what do you think you would have done?
AUTHOR BIO
Ruth Senter has been attending Christ Church for 22 years and served as Women’s Ministry Director for about 2 1/2 years. She also taught Christ Church Lake Forest’s Women’s Morning Bible Break for many years.
PRAYER
Lord, Giver of every good and perfect gift, thank you for all the blessing you put and around my life. Guard me from loving the blessings more than obeying where you are calling me go. When I draw near to you with prayers and petitions, I remind my soul that what I want above anything else is YOU.
You satisfy us with your unfailing love, that we may sing and be glad all our day. Psalm 90:14