Genesis 18

ScriptureGenesis 18:25 NLT“Surely you wouldn’t do such a thing, destroying the righteous along with the wicked. Why, you would be treating the righteous and the wicked exactly the same! Surely you wouldn’t do that! Should not the Judge of all the earth do what is right?” Observation-What does it say?The Lord appeared to Abraham one day, and Abraham served Him, and even broke bread with Him. As God was about to leave Abraham’s place, and head towards the city of Sodom, God lets Abraham in on His plans for the city. The sins of the city of Sodom and Gomorrah were so flagrant, God was going to destroy the city for their vile behavior. This is when Abraham intercedes on behalf of Sodom. Abraham knew God to be a righteous God. Abraham steps in and asks God if He would spare the city if He were able to find 50 righteous people in it. To which God agreed He would. Then this banter between God and Abraham continues in which Abraham “negotiates” the number of righteous people down from 50 to 10. In which God still agrees to spare the city if He can find just 10 righteous people within it. Now who knows if Abraham is trying to plead with God because he still knows that Lot and his family are still living there. But according to the deal Abraham “negotiated” with God, Lot and his family should have died because not even 10 righteous people could be found-(Genesis 19). But God still showed mercy on Lot because of Abraham’s intercession as we will read in the next chapter. Understanding-What does it mean?God hears the prayers of His people when they passionately and persistently seek Him. Abraham was a man of God. He found favor in God’s eyes. Abraham earnestly sought out after God, and God answered His requests. (As we read in this chapter). David was a man after God’s own heart. He too found favor in God’s eyes. David also passionately called out to God, and God too would answer his requests. (As seen in part of today’s bible reading in Psalm 18). “I called to the Lord for help, and he saved me from my enemies!” Psalms 18:3a “In my trouble I called to the Lord. Yes, I cried out to my God for help. There in his temple he heard my voice. He heard my cry for help.” Psalms 18:6  “He was pleased with me, so he rescued me. He took me to a safe place. The Lord rewarded me for doing what is right. He was good to me because I am innocent.” Psalms 18:19-20 “I always remembered his laws.” Psalms 18:22a “So the Lord rewarded me for doing what is right.”-Psalms 18:24a “Lord, you are faithful to those who are faithful. You are good to those who are good.”-Psalms 18:25 The bottom line is that God hears and answers the prayers of his people who seek and obey Him. “And we will receive from him whatever we ask because we obey him and do the things that please him.”-1 John 3:22  Life ApplicationWhat incredible things would happen if the Lord heard a steady stream of prayers from His people everywhere?

We all know we serve a God where ALL things are possible with Him! We also know how far away our world has drifted away from God’s ways. So why not stand united as God’s people to intercede and pray for our nation? Our leaders? Our church? Our family? Let’s see what God can do for His people, (the way He did for Abraham and David), when we earnestly seek Him and obey His ways.

 

-Moses Gaddi 

2 Corinthians_10

Scripture  2 Corinthians 10:3-4 

For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh, for the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh, but  divinely powerful for the destruction of fortresses. Observation-What does it say?  In Paul’s second letter to the church at Corinth, we see a deep concern for their spiritual progress.  This letter is deeply personal and comes on the heels of the division seen within the church during the first letter.  One of the themes within the letter is that of his authority as an apostle.  In chapter ten, he turns his attention to a group who are hostile to the authority given to him.  During this chapter, he makes mention of his meek personality, which is in contrast to his boldness in writing.  However, not only does he remind them that our battle is not against humans or physical, but it is spiritual and only spiritual weapons will be of any use.  Paul echoes the words of David, from Psalm 20:7-9,  “Some boast in chariots and some in horses, But we will boast in the name of the Lord, our God. They have bowed down and fallen,But we have risen and stood upright. Save, O Lord; May the King answer us in the day we call.” Understanding-What does it mean?  I was scrolling through the available movies on our Disney Plus subscription and came across one of my childhood favorites, “Mighty Ducks.”  Feeling a little nostalgic, I started it and watched while working on a small project.  Within the first ten minutes, a character named Fulton Reed.  He is introduced as a larger than life character, who comes out of nowhere to protect some less fortunate kids.  As the movie progresses, he takes the roll of the “enforcer” on the ice, the big guy who does all of the hitting.  In some instances, just his mere presence causes the opposing players to turn tail and run.  In our spiritual lives, the Holy Spirit is the ultimate enforcer.  He is more reliable than Fulton Reed, not to mention more powerful.  Several times in his writings, Paul makes mention that we have a fight that is in the spiritual realm and not the physical.  To the Ephesians he wrote, “For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand.”  In this battle, our best weapon is the help of the Holy Spirit, who Jesus told us would be our helper. Life Application  Holy Spirit, I ask that you would help guide me through my day.  Help me not to run away from spiritual fights, but in your power meet them head on.  And when my enemy is my own flesh, help me to rest in knowing that Jesus overcame my flesh when he died on the cross.  -Tyler Galloway 

Genesis_16

Scripture - What stood out?

Genesis 16:5 And Sarai said to Abram, “May the wrong done to me be on you! I gave my servant to your embrace, and when she saw that she had conceived, she looked on me with contempt. May the Lord judge between you and me!” Observation - What does it say?Ten years had passed in the land of Canaan where God had promised to give Abram and Sarai an heir. Already passed their child bearing prime and beginning to doubt God’s promise Sarai and Abram decide to take matters into their own hands.They decide to use Hagar, Sarai’s servant, to create an heir that clearly was no longer on the way. Understanding - What does it mean?Ten years is a long time. To wait for anything. In a culture where having an heir and having offspring period was a necessity, I can only imagine the weight of waiting growing heavier each day that passed in Abram and Sarai’s already old age. And so the hatch and execute this plot to speed up God’s process. Only it backfires. Sarai had not expected Hagar to treat her with contempt (other translations use the word despise as something trifling) due to her impending and expected rise in status within the home about to deliver Abram’s only child. And in the heat of one of these moments Sarai cries out to her husband - DO SOMETHING! Abram informs his wife of her own empowerment, Hagar runs away, and an angel of the Lord tells her to go back to Sarai and submit.  Hagar looks on Sarai with contempt, because in certain respects she was about to rise above her boss. And so I wonder how God felt, when he promises this elderly couple a child and they...choose not to wait on his promise. I wonder if God maybe felt that Sarai and Abram had treated His promise with contempt, perhaps despising it as something trifling. Life Application - How can I apply this to my life today?I believe God was trying to teach Sarai and her husband a lesson through Hagar. I don’t know what it would be like to live with an “enemy” in my home for 14 years. It sounds like torture. But I believe God’s ultimate message to Sarai is very similar to His message to Hagar - submit. Hagar was required to submit to Sarai. Sarai was required to submit to God. He had promised her a child, and had required her submission, he had required her to wait.  And so Lord I ask you to reveal an area of my life where I have been disobedient to you. Where have I treated Your promise as trifling? Forgive me for my sin. Help me to follow in obedience. Help me to submit to You. In the name of Jesus do I pray, amen.-kenneh lee