My Bible Blog Genesis 13 and 14

In Genesis 13 & 14, Abram left Egypt, taking his wife, his nephew Lot, and all of their livestock, silver, and gold.  He went back to the place where he had built an altar then called on the name of the Lord.  Lot also had livestock, so much so, that the land could not sustain them both, so he and Abram decided to split up with Abram settling in the land of Canaan, while Lot chose for himself all the valley of the Jordan, moving his tents as far as Sodom.  The men of Sodom were exceedingly wicked, but Lot remained righteous.

            God told Abram that the land lying north, south, east, and west of where he stood would be his and his descendants’ forever.  God promised Abram that He would make his descendants as the dust of the earth, meaning they would be great in number. 

            After a few years, there was rebellion and war among the kingdoms – four kings against five.  The kings of Sodom and Gomorrah fled, some falling into the tar pits of the valley of Siddim. Those who survived fled to the hill country, taking all the food supply and goods of Sodom and Gomorrah.  To their detriment, they also took Abram’s nephew with them.  When Abram heard, he took his trained men, over 300 by that time, and set out to find Lot. He pursued them, defeated them, and brought back all they had taken, including his nephew, among others. 

            After his return, the king of Sodom went to meet Abram at the valley of Shaveh (the King’s Valley).  Melchizedek, king of Salem and a priest of God, brought out bread and wine and blessed Abram.  In return, Abram gave him a tenth of all the spoils of war.  The king of Sodom told Abram to give the people to him but to keep all the goods for himself.  He rejected the king’s offer, refusing to be obligated to anyone but God.  In the end, Abram took only his own men and the food they had already eaten, but he did allow his allies to take the spoils due them. Abram wanted there to be no mistake that his loyalty was to God alone, and that he was not to be under the debt of the king.

            To whom do we owe our allegiance?  Is it our country?  Our president?  Our laws?  Though Jesus does tell us in Mark 12:17 to render unto Caesar what is Caesar’s (pay our taxes), our true allegiance should belong to God and His word.  Just because some laws in our country allow conduct that is considered an abomination to God, does not mean we are to partake.  Though we are expected to follow the law of the land, we are to be separate from our faithless society and choose God’s will over our own.  That’s not always easy considering that social media, news networks, many forms of entertainment, and even some churches brainwash people into not only tolerating sin, but also accepting and even participating in it.  God understands the battle, but He also expects us to stand strong in His word, promising that He will not only stand with us, but in front of us.