The Book of Genesis
Part 32
In our last lesson from the life of Abraham, we noticed the different roles in which our Patriarch appears in the Book of Genesis. We looked at him as a pilgrim and as an host; we shall continue this same line of studies and look at him in still other roles.
Abraham The Friend - (Gen. 18:16-22)
God and Abraham were on the most intimate terms. The walk of Jesus and the two disciples to Emmaus may have been filled with warmth and hope, but it was not nearly as intimate as the walk of the Lord, His two attendants, and Abraham toward Sodom. How God opened the secret of His heart to Abraham! (Psa. 25:14).
Any disagreement that had arisen between Lot and himself was soon forgotten. There was no quarrel in the heart of Abraham with his nephew; there was nothing there but peace and good will toward Lot. Undoubtedly, it was Lot and his family that he was thinking of as he stood alone with God on the road to Sodom, looking out over the plains toward the city.
Abraham was a man of a holy pilgrim character, a quiet emotional spirit, and of no bitterness or quarrelsomeness toward any. Well might he be an intercessor!
Abraham The Supplicant
We have considered what might be called the state of intercession, that of holiness, calmness, and goodwill; let us now consider
The place of intercession: (V. 22-23): Somewhere on the road to Sodom, the two attendants leave and the Lord and Abraham stand together. Abraham alone with God! As the full impact of what the Lord had said grips him, and as he looks over on the horizon toward the cities of the plain, “Abraham drew near.” (Jas. 4:8). Prayer is a ministry of the near place, and of no other.
The basis of intercession (V. 25): The basis of all prayer must ever be divine righteousness, the perfect will of God (1 John 5:14). The honest supplicant must be in the spirit of the Master, “Not My will, but Thine be done.”
The petition of intercession (V. 23): Abraham was Spirit taught (Rom. 8:27). He now knew for what to pray, “Wilt Thou destroy the righteous with the wicked?” The only way Abraham could see to save the righteous was to save the cities. There is an interesting contrast between Abraham’s prayer and that of Lot (Gen. 19:18-20). Abraham prayed for the sake of others; Lot, for his own sake. Abraham prayed that others be saved from judgment; Lot, that he might be sheltered from evil. Abraham’s was sacrificial prayer; Lot’s, selfish prayer.
The pleading: of intercession: It would appear as if Abraham expected the entire family of Lot to be righteous (Gen. 19:12-14), but alas, this was not so; nevertheless, he pled with God until God was willing to spare Sodom for the sake of ten righteous persons.
The recompense of intercession: (Gen. 19:27-29): We are told to continue in prayer and to watch in the same (Col. 4:2). It was a watchful Abraham that, early the next morning, returned to the place of his intercession, and there saw that the divine will had been accomplished, that divine righteousness had been vindicated, but that his prayer had been answered; the righteous had been saved (2 Pet. 2:9).
This is the second time that Abraham had accomplished the deliverance of Lot. He saved him with his sword from captivity, but foolish Lot had returned to Sodom. He saved him again, through his prayers, from a dreadful death among the wicked. Yet Lot never learned, and he died in absolute disgrace.
May we, by divine grace, develop those essential spiritual qualities of prayer in order that we be a means of salvation to the lost, deliverance for the erring, preservation for the saints, and blessing for all.