A STUDY IN GENESIS
Today, we start our study in the book of Genesis again. We took a break for the holidays, but then had to postpone due to the prophetic events happening with Iran and Israel. Nevertheless, we now need to go back and finish reviewing our study of the why. We are going to go back to the origins of so much of what we currently see on the news and the questions we might be wondering about.
Today, I want to dive back in and examine one of the first glimpses of God’s restraint and His desire for justice. Genesis 18, verses 16 through 33, reveals how God cares for the righteous and will not tolerate them being hurt by God’s wrath. God will restrain Himself from acting against the wicked if the righteous are going to be collateral damage. I know there have been moments in my own life where I wondered why God did not bring the hammer down on a person. Later on, it was revealed that doing so would have hurt a righteous believer whom no one knew about at that time. As you read this event, examine three things. First, God initiates the conversation with Abraham. This is done so that the reader would see the interaction, and the event would take place. God already knew how many righteous were in the city, God already knew how He would deal with the city, God already knew what would be the final outcome. And yet, He asked, “Shall I hide from Abraham what I am doing?”
Second, we see God allow Abraham to work out his own understanding of God’s justice by asking the questions. You see, it was not Abraham wanting to save the city, but rather Abraham being worried about the righteous in the city. God allows the conversation to happen so that Abraham can learn about God’s patience and kindness. In our own lives, God will do this exact thing, allowing us the opportunity to talk to Him and ask Him questions. This helps build our own relationship with Him and grow in the knowledge of Jesus Christ.
Finally, the last lesson that I want to highlight is that God’s judgment still happened. Too many Christians forget that the cross was God’s justice being initiated. The target of that justice still happened. God brought justice, and saved individuals are spared from being the target. Jesus became sin and bore our penalty. As we will learn next week, Sodom was about to experience God’s justice. The righteous who would have been collateral damage were taken away to safety. God cared for completing the justice that needed to happen, but also God wanted to keep the righteous safe.
I would encourage you to read Genesis 18:16-33 and see how God used a moment to teach you and I, and Abraham needed lessons while also implementing His justice against a sinful city.
Hold until relieved, our Blessed Hope is coming,
JL