October 11, 2011

• “Shall I hide from Abraham what I am about to do" (Genesis 18:17a)

  My last couple prayers (here and here) were based on Genesis 18, specifically God's promise to return to Abraham and Sarah in the following year, at which time Sarah would bear the child of promise. Anytime we read in the Bible of fruitfulness coming to barren places, be they wombs or deserts, that's a wonderful encouragement to us who are brought face to face with the barrenness in our own lives, in the lives of our congregations and denominations, so many professing Christians who are professing faith but have little life and light and fire flowing out from them, particularly here in the western world at this time.

  Today I'd like to continue in Genesis 18 and consider the interchange we find between the LORD and Abraham, starting in verse 16:

  16  Then the men set out from there, and they looked down toward Sodom. And Abraham went with them to set them on their way. 17  The LORD said, “Shall I hide from Abraham what I am about to do, 18  seeing that Abraham shall surely become a great and mighty nation, and all the nations of the earth shall be blessed in him? 19  For I have chosen him, that he may command his children and his household after him to keep the way of the LORD by doing righteousness and justice, so that the LORD may bring to Abraham what he has promised him.” 20  Then the LORD said, “Because the outcry against Sodom and Gomorrah is great and their sin is very grave, 21  I will go down to see whether they have done altogether according to the outcry that has come to me. And if not, I will know.”

  Right before this Abraham and Sarah have been give assurance Sarah would bear a child, even in her old age, even as she has passed the time of child bearing. We know Abraham is the one with whom God established His covenant, and his was the family out of whom the Christ would come to be a blessing to all nations. What a great privilege!

  And yet, here we have Abraham entrusted with another privilege: that of intercession.

  That begins with the LORD revealing His heart to Abraham. We see a real intimacy here:

  “Shall I hide from Abraham what I am about to do..."

  Isn't that an amazing thought?! Consider it: the God of the Universe revealing Himself and His plans to dust and ashes!

  The intimacy Abraham had here was based on the covenant relationship the LORD has established with Abraham, where Abram believed the LORD and it was credited to Him for righteousness (Gen. 15:1-6), which was revealed in all its fullness through the coming of God's only begotten Son (see Romans 4).

  Thanks be to God that He has made the way for sinners like us to begin to know His mind, to know Him in such an intimate way – by grace though faith in the Lord Jesus Christ! The transcendent God came down and dwelt among men - the Son of God became incarnate and took the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men, He lived the sinless life we could not live and died in our place, so lost sinners like us might be reconciled to God and have fellowship with Him, such as Abraham is having here. May we never take this fellowship for granted, but may we bless God continually for the privilege we have to know Him and fellowship with Him through the body and blood of the Lord Jesus Christ.

  As we are born again and become partakers of the life of Christ, we begin to enter into intimacy with the one true God like Abraham. The LORD begins to show us more and more of Himself and His thoughts and His heart. Through the Holy Spirit, we are given the heart and mind of Christ and the desires of Christ.

  In this passage, along with Abraham, the LORD is showing us that the unrighteous are going to be judged (the unrighteous being all who are not justified by faith in Christ) - and that is part of the ministry of the Holy Spirit to us today (John 16:5-15). However, among the unrighteous there exists a righteous, holy remnant, i.e.- those other sheep from all nations that our Good Shepherd has said He must bring (John 10).

  We see how the LORD's revealing His plan for Sodom and Gomorrah spurs Abraham on to a wonderful prayer of intercession for Sodom and Gomorrah (v. 22-33). Such intercessory prayer is a picture of the ongoing ministry of Lord Himself, our great High Priest, who ever lives to make intercession for His own at the right hand of the Father. As Christ's joint-heirs, we should be engaged in such intercessory prayer. As sons of Abraham through Christ's seed, we have the same high calling and privilege Abraham was given: to be intercessors until all the remnant be brought in.

  There is a great temptation for all of us to be ingrown and/or prejudiced and/or judgmental against those who are not like us or those who are outside the church.

  Let us remember that as Christians, we have been brought into God's great and mighty nation not because of anything in us: it is all of grace!

  There was nothing at all in us to commend us to God. The only thing we brought to the throne of mercy and grace was our sinfulness!

  And we were not adopted in merely for our own enjoyment of the LORD, not to remain in some Christian club, but so we might be used by Him to take His Gospel to the ends of the earth. We are a holy priesthood. We have been brought in so we might be praying for and calling out to those other sheep and gathering them in, including those who dwell in the Sodoms and Gomorrahs of this world today. However, as those souls are brought it, it will be for the glory of God and the joy of the LORD, which means it will be for our joy and rejoicing!

  All of us who have been given grace to enter the Kingdom of God have a stewardship to reach souls by using the gifts God has given us to His glory. And we need to be in prayer for the lost sheep. God forbid we take God's gift of salvation and hoard it for ourselves and forget the multitudes of souls that have yet to be gathered in from all nations. So long as Christ tarries in His return, still there is room in His house!

  I confess to you how I have lacked a deep heart of compassion for lost souls and for all the nations who have yet to hear the Gospel, but I thank God that He has been growing that in me in the past couple years now, and I ask Him to continue to grow it more and more. There is no end to His love and His faithfulness. May He continue to grow our love for Him and our love for all peoples. May His Spirit give us ears to hear Him, minds to understand Him and hearts to respond as He reveals to us these secrets to us from His bosom. By His grace working in us, may we tremble at His Word and may we act in full obedience as He shows us what He is about to do.

  * * *

  Holy Father, we thank and bless You for adopting us into Your family. We acknowledge that our salvation is all of grace, not unto us, but unto You, all the glory goes to You alone, LORD God! Son of God, what a tremendous thing that You have condescended, that You became sin for us, so lost sinners like us might be saved and not only saved, but come to know You and Your Father in such intimacy! May we never take for granted the relationship we have with You. May we have ears to hear Your Spirit's voice as You speak to us from Your heart. May our hearts be good soil to receive all Your words and may they bear much fruit in us. Protect us from being ingrown. Protect us from self-seeking and self-protection and self-absorption. Grow in us Your heart for the sheep that are lost, the sheep You died to bring into Your house. Increase our vision and burden and passion for all the nations. May we persevere in prayer by Your resurrection power at work in us.

  LORD God, open our ears to hear Your voice speaking to us. May we not grieve or quench Your Holy Spirit but respond in faith by Your grace at work in us.

  Psalm 36:5  Your steadfast love, O LORD, extends to the heavens, your faithfulness to the clouds.

  May we reflect the LORD's love and faithfulness in our continuing prayers for all nations.

  * Please add your PRAYERS below as the Holy Spirit leads you. *

  • 1:51 PM
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