Abram and the Nations

As we get the message today, I am reminded that we have an inclination to doubt other people.

So often when we hear people say things, there's part of us that goes,

hmm, I wonder what their motivation is.

I wonder what they're really trying to get.

And I was thinking about that.

I thought of some expressions that we often use in our speech that reflect this doubt,

this almost innate doubt that we have of others.

We're told to read the fine print.

We're told if it's too good to be true, it probably is.

Don't believe everything you hear.

And definitely don't believe it until you see it.

The check's in the mail.

And then we jokingly say, well, if the Internet said it, it must be true, right?

We're told there's no such thing as a free lunch.

And then, of course, after every political speech, fact check.

Because we have to see where they were lying and where they weren't.

And finally, an expression that's entered our speech over the last year or so, fake news.

That means we just doubt everything, doesn't it?

But in today's message, what we're going to find is that while it may be easy to doubt the words of other people,

there is someone whose words that we can trust.

And that is God.

We are going to find today that God keeps His promises.

So if you get one thing out of our message today, that's going to be it.

I want you to know that God keeps His promises.

An important part of our passage today is going to actually come from two weeks ago when we were in Genesis,

looking at earlier in chapter 12.

And so there is God's promise to Abraham in Genesis chapter 12.

Genesis 12 · chapter mention

And that's really going to become our tent for the message today.

So we're going to see our message today looking back to those earlier promises at the beginning of chapter 12.

So I'm going to read those for us.

This is at the beginning of chapter 12, beginning in verse 1.

And this, once again, is God speaking to Abraham and providing him these promises that we are going to talk about.

Now the Lord said to Abraham,

Go from your country and your kindred and your father's house to the land that I will show you.

And I will make you a great nation.

And I will bless you and make your name great so that you will be a blessing.

I will bless those who bless you.

And him who dishonors you, I will curse.

And in you, all the families of the earth shall be blessed.

And also in chapter 12, there is a specific promise that is passed to Abraham concerning land that they will possess.

While Abraham and his household were passing through the land of Canaan,

God says to Abraham in verse 7,

To your offspring I will give this land.

We'll be coming back to these promises during the message today.

As we go into our message, the outline for today,

we have five points that we're going to be looking at.

We're going to be looking at first, promise honored.

We're going to then see second, promise expanded.

Third, promise empowered.

Four, promise guided.

And five, the fifth thing we'll look at,

will be the connection between Melchizedek and Jesus.

Let's look at number one, promise honored.

I'm going to begin reading for us in verse 10.

What I want you to focus on as I'm reading is this is Abraham and his wife as they are entering Egypt.

And so I want you to see Abraham's plan as he enters Egypt.

Now there was a famine in the land, so Abraham went down to Egypt to search on there,

for the famine was severe in the land.

When he was about to enter Egypt, he said to Sarai, his wife,

I know that you are a woman beautiful in appearance.

And when the Egyptians see you, they will say,

This is his wife!

And then they will kill me, but they will let you live.

Say you are my sister, that it may go well for me because of you,

and that my life may be spared for your sake.

If I was to retitle this section for a children's book,

I would title it this,

Abram's very bad plan.

Abram's plan is this.

He's going to enter the land.

He's going to present Sarai, his wife, as his sister,

which is a slight measure of truth.

Sarai is actually his half-sister.

So there's a little bit of truth there, not the right truth.

And then the next thing in Abram's plan is that

then the Egyptians won't kill him.

And the third thing,

Oh, Abram didn't make any provisions for Sarai.

Just going to let it and see how that goes for her.

And let's just pause for a moment.

So Sarai, as she is coming into Egypt,

is at least 65 years old.

So let that just kind of stay with you there.

So Sarai, apparently at 65 years old,

must be quite the stunner.

Abram is worried that people are going to kill him

so that they can have his wife.

Abram's plan unfolds as expected,

which is to say that his plan unfolds terribly.

Here's what happens with Abram.

Just as they plan,

Abram and his household enter into Egypt.

And just as he's predicted,

the Egyptians see Sarai,

and they think she is very beautiful.

She is so beautiful, in fact,

that we see in verse 15

that she is taken into Pharaoh's house.

And because Sarai is in Pharaoh's house,

we see that Pharaoh, we're told in verse 16,

dealt well with Abram.

So because Sarai is with Pharaoh,

Pharaoh says,

Hey, Abram, let's have a good relationship.

And as a result of this good relationship,

Abram is about collecting sheep,

and oxen, and servants,

and many other things.

And one of the things I want you to see

is in verse 16,

is that when it says that Abram had sheep and oxen,

that word had has the idea of came to be.

So by understanding as it came to be,

there is a direct linkage

between Pharaoh dealing well with Abram

as a result of Sarai being in Pharaoh's house.

So Abram is collecting these things

because Sarai is with Pharaoh.

And Sarai, while she's in Pharaoh's house,

we're not provided with the exact nature

of this relationship between Sarai and Pharaoh.

But we do know this.

We do know that Pharaoh thinks she is unmarried,

and Sarai has certainly been appropriated

into Pharaoh's house.

And Pharaoh has brought her into his household

for the purpose of making her his wife.

But while Sarai is in Pharaoh's household,

Pharaoh and the people with him,

we're told,

are afflicted with great plagues.

I told you this section was going to be

about promise honored.

And that's what I want us to see now,

is how God honors his promise to Abram.

In chapter 12, verse 3,

God promised to Abram.

He says,

Him who dishonors you,

I will curse.

And so what we have in this passage

is that Pharaoh, unknowingly,

has dishonored Abram

by taking Abram's wife,

and bringing her into his household

for the purpose of marrying her.

And while Pharaoh has made this act unknowingly,

God, nevertheless,

sends a plague upon Pharaoh and his household.

God is honoring that promise that he made,

that for someone who dishonors Abram,

that God will curse.

Pharaoh eventually learns

that Sarai is actually Abram's wife.

And we can see his response to this

there beginning in verse 19.

Pharaoh speaking says,

Why did you say,

She is my sister,

so that I took her for my wife?

Now then,

here is your wife.

Take her and go.

And Pharaoh gave orders concerning him.

And they sent him away with his wife

and all that he had.

And then Abram and his household

depart Egypt with his wife

and more enriched at Pharaoh's expense.

In this account,

we actually find Pharaoh acting more honorably

than Abram.

But despite that,

God continues to honor his promise

that he has given Abram,

that he will protect his family,

and that those who dishonor Abram,

God will curse.

As we think of our own lives,

what I want you to think

as you hear this passage today,

is I want you to think about Abram.

Abram, who is a great standard bearer of faith,

a patriarch of the faith.

But we see him in this passage

simply acting horribly.

There are simply no excuses

for Abram's actions in this passage.

And what I want us to think about for ourselves

is that we all fail.

But we need to not let these faults define us.

Each of us has spiritual failures.

Each of us has moments in life

when we can look back

and like Abram say,

I've acted poorly before God.

I've acted poorly before the people

I love the most.

And while there are certainly consequences

for our actions,

those actions need not define

who we become.

It is the schemes of the evil one

to remind us of our failures

and say that the failures will define us.

We can come and look and see the example of Abram here,

who despite his failure here,

will not let that failure define him.

In fact, as we see Abram grow and develop,

and even in our message today,

we see that Abram will be lauded for his faith,

his trust in God.

So I'd ask you today

to not let the failures of your past

cast long shadows into your future.

Each Sunday as we come and gather here during our service,

we have a time where we're able to confess our sins before God.

And we confess with the hope,

with the assurance,

that we will be forgiven.

Let me read a passage from you from 1 John 1.9.

If we confess our sins,

he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins

and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

The second thing I want us to look at today

is to see promise expanded.

So the second thing will be promise expanded.

Now, Abram is described in chapter 13, verse 2,

as very rich in livestock, in silver, and in gold.

Now, to the extent that his wealth is

our ill-begotten games from Egypt,

we do not know.

But nevertheless, Abram has many things.

And then a dispute arises

between the herdsmen of Abram

and the herdsmen of Lot.

Lot, who is his nephew,

who is part of his family.

And there's not enough land

for the herdsmen,

for Abram and Lot.

So Abram offers Lot the solution.

Beginning in verse 8, he says,

Let there be no strife between you and me,

and between your herdsmen and my herdsmen.

For we are kinsmen.

Is not the whole land before you?

Separate yourself from me.

If you take the left hand,

then I will go to the right.

Or if you go to the right hand,

then I will go to the left.

So Abram comes and gives Lot

the choice of lands.

He says, Lot,

we can't be in the same place.

It's not working out.

It's causing conflict.

You just decide where you want to go.

If you go that way,

I'm going here.

If you go here,

I'm going the other way.

Lot, your choice to make.

And then we see in verse 10

that Lot does indeed make his choice.

He chooses the Jordan Valley,

which is described as well watered everywhere,

like the garden of the Lord.

By appearance's sake alone,

Lot has chosen the better land.

Because he has chosen the land

that is well watered,

looks very fertile,

and looks like it will be a great place

for his herd to continue to expand.

But we're told also in the scripture

that as Lot moves into the Jordan Valley,

he eventually settles in Sodom.

And in verse 13,

reminds us of what is to come

and reminds us what is the case now

as Lot has come and settled in Sodom.

Because in verse 13,

the men of Sodom were described as wicked

and great sinners against the Lord.

Now I want us to pause for a moment

and I'm going to put this before you,

that I want you to be very wary

of making decisions

based upon appearances alone.

Let us be careful in making decisions

based upon appearances.

Lot in this case has made his decision

upon the land appearing well watered.

It looks good.

Yet we find that Lot is going to be living

among great sinners

against the Lord.

This is now the fourth instance

we've seen so far in Genesis

where people have made choices

based upon attractive appearances

and they have made the wrong choice.

So the third time this happened

was actually earlier in our passage today

where Pharaoh sees the beauty of Sarai

and eventually brings a plague upon his house.

The second time that we see this decision

being made upon appearances alone

comes from chapter 6, verse 2.

And I'm going to read that for you.

The sons of God saw that the daughters of man

were attractive

and they took them as their wives.

Any they chose.

Immediately after that,

God reduces the lifespan of people

to 120 years.

There's an immediate consequence

that's listed in the scripture

after the sons of God

began to marry the daughters of man.

And in fact,

soon after that,

the flood happens.

And finally,

the first instance

where we've seen people

making choices

based upon appearances

comes from the Garden of Eden

in chapter 3, verse 6.

So there in the garden we see,

So when the woman saw

that the tree was good for food

and that it was delightful to the eyes.

She goes about leading her

and Adam and Eve

then eat of the fruit

and the sin enters the world

and they're cast out of the garden.

All of it started

based upon appearances.

So the caution for us

is that we need to be wary

of making decisions

based upon appearances alone.

We might want to attend a school

because it has a very chic name.

We might choose a job

because the salary

begins with a very alluring figure.

We might change jobs

because that new job

offers some snazzy job title.

And it'll be nice to tell

the people around you

your new snazzy job title.

We might date a person

because that person

has appealing features.

You're looking at that person

and you're going,

that's a Sarai right there.

They look good now.

And when they're 65,

they're still going to look good.

And people will be envious of me.

Not the reason

to pick out someone to date.

I could go on and on.

But the point is

that we need to be wary

of making decisions

based upon appearances.

Otherwise,

we may find ourselves

similar to Lot

and that we are surrounded

by great wickedness.

We find that Lot

in his choice

actually excuse

the promise of God.

He walks away

from the promise of God.

Lot's enticement

towards the attractive land

has led him

into the Jordan Valley.

This is a problem

because in chapter 12

earlier,

Abram's family

was traveling

through Canaan,

the land that God

had promised them.

And we read this verse there

but I'll repeat it for you now.

In chapter 12,

verse 7,

God says to Abram,

to your offspring

I give this land,

that being Canaan,

the land that they are in.

And here in chapter 13,

we find that they are

in the exact same place.

That Abram and Lot

are not only back in Canaan

but in chapter 13,

verse 4,

we see to the place

where Abram first

made an altar.

They're back

in the exact same place

God has given them

the promise of the land.

And when that strife

emerges between

the herdsmen

of Lot and Abram,

and then Abram

gives Lot the choice.

Where do you choose?

Lot chooses

the Jordan Valley

which is not part

of the promised land

of Canaan.

He has left

the promised land

and he has chosen

the Jordan Valley

way over there.

They're in the exact

same spot

of the promise.

And Lot says,

I don't want

what you've given me.

I want something

over there

because it looks

better than what

you have given me here.

So while Lot

goes off

into the Jordan Valley,

Abram remains

in Canaan.

And after Lot leaves

and Abram,

still in the land

of Canaan,

we see in verses

14 and 15

that the original

promise of God

for the land

of Canaan

to Abram

and his family

is repeated.

But then we find

that promise

expanded.

That God actually

increases the promise

that he has given

Abram.

I want you to see

in verse 16

how this promise

is expanded.

God says,

I will make

your offspring

as the dust

of the earth

so that if anyone

can count the dust

of the earth,

your offspring

also can be counted.

So the promise

expands

from land

to now,

not only land

but innumerable

progeny.

And the key point

of when this promise

came is it was

noted specifically

after Lot

had separated

from him.

Lot missed out

on the expanded promise

because he wanted

to pursue

the enticing land

of the Jordan Valley.

Third thing

I want us to look at

is promised

in power.

So the third thing

will be

promised

in power.

Now chapter 14

begins with

a lengthy description

of kings

and battles.

I'll provide

a bit of a summary

for you.

And so you're

certainly welcome

to look along

in the scripture

but I'll provide

you a little bit

of what's taking place

here in this

part of the message

today.

So here in chapter 14.

So what we have

is that a group

of kings

has come from

the east

and they have

come on a

lengthy war party.

So they are not

here close to

where Abram

and Lot

are now.

They've come

from a far country

and now they have

come in on this

war party.

And they have

traveled around

the desert

and now as they

come into

this area

where Abram

and Lot

are located

they are going

to be traveling

along the east

side of the

Jordan River.

Now Canaan

and Abram's

location

is on the

west side

of the Jordan

River.

So Canaan

and Abram

are unaffected

by this war

party.

Lot on the

other hand

we are told

that he has

journeyed east

and he has

relocated himself

in his journey

east

into the Jordan

Valley

which is right

in the path

of this war

party that

is coming

through.

And this

group of kings

that is coming

through and

raiding the

land

they eventually

arrive in

Sodom

and there in

Sodom

they claim

another victory

and in claiming

another victory

they will also

capture Lot.

Let me read

for us in

chapter 14

verses 11

and 12.

So the enemy

took all the

possessions of

Sodom and

Gomorrah

and all their

provisions and

went their way

and they also

took Lot

the son of

Abram's brother

who was dwelling

in Sodom

and his possessions

and went

their way.

We find that

Abram then

learns of

Lot's capture

and

in this

encounter

that is

taking place

there is a

great war

that is going

on.

In verse 9

it's described

as four kings

against five.

So this is a

significant conflict

but Abram

still has

learned of

Lot's capture

and has

decided he

is going

to do

something

about it.

He is going

to go

and retrieve

Lot and

bring him

back.

And what I

want us to

see is that

when Abram

goes about

this process

of retrieving

Lot from

this powerful

war party

and this

powerful group

of kings

that he is

going to be

promise

empowered.

I want you

to think back

to one of

the original

promises that

God gave

to Abram.

God says

to Abram

I will make

of you

a great

nation.

With this

idea of

Abram

who will

become

a great

nation.

Abram

begins

his expedition

into the

foray to

retrieve

Lot,

his family

member.

Now God

indeed does

say to

Abram

that I

will make

you a

great

nation.

But Abram

enters this

conflict here

to retrieve

Lot.

He enters

this conflict

that has

involved

nine kings

and he

is described

as Abram

the Hebrew.

Now this

is a strange

terminology

to find

here in

this place.

Abram

the Hebrew.

The reason

is that

Hebrew

refers to

descendants

of Jacob

who will

be renamed

Israel.

So Jacob

Israel

have the

same name.

Hebrew

is his

descendants.

So the

Hebrew

is really

the descendants

of Jacob

who are

the descendants

of Israel.

the thing

is that

Jacob

that's

Abram's

grandson.

There aren't

Hebrews

quite yet.

In fact

the next

person in

scripture

who is

going to

be

described

as a

Hebrew

is going

to be

Joseph.

That's

one of

Jacob's

sons.

So the

term

Hebrew

here in

chapter 14

is an

anachronism.

It doesn't

quite fit

in place.

But what

that does

provide us

is it

does provide

us with

the description

of the

nation

that Abram's

descendants

will become.

Abram's

descendants

will become

a great

nation.

Abram

here in

chapter 14

though

is no

great

nation.

In fact

he is

described

as having

318

trained

men.

That

is not

a great

nation.

And when

you think

of let's

go and

try and

follow a

warring

group of

kings to

retrieve

part of

their

bounty,

I really

feel like

if you

can count

everybody

who is

going with

you,

that is

probably

a bad

sign.

So the

fact that

he knew

he had

318,

that is

almost as

disappointing

as thinking

you do

have

318,

that you

could count

them all.

We missed

one.

Oh,

we did,

didn't we?

318.

But Abram

with his

318

trained men

will enter

the fray

like a

great

nation.

So Abram

pursues the

plundering

kings all

the way

to Dan,

which is

about 100

miles away,

probably a little

over 100

miles.

And there

in pursuing

those kings

all the way

to Dan,

he then

attacks

successfully.

And with

his small

brand,

Abram

somehow

becomes the

pursuers

of these

kings.

So these

plundering

kings from

the east,

who were

once the

predator,

have now

become the

prey.

And the

new apex

predator is

named Abram.

Abram,

the alpha

predator.

He's got

318

trained men.

He's also

got some

allies.

More

importantly

though,

he has the

promise of

God.

The promise

of God

is this,

is Abram,

I will

make you

a great

nation.

Abram,

right now,

is warring

like a

great nation.

In fact,

Abram

keeps up

the pursuit

all the

way to

Hobah,

which is

north of

Damascus.

That's

another 50

miles.

Abram and

his band

of people

pursue those

kings

another 50

miles.

And in

the process,

they're able

to retrieve

Lot and

the many

possessions.

One of

the things I

want us to

think about

is the

faith of

Abram.

It's one

of his

most notable

qualities.

He had

faith.

He truly

believes

God.

When he

went to

retrieve

Lot,

he needed

this

faith.

Without

faith,

without

belief,

Abram,

the

Hebrew,

and his

318 train

bin had

no chance.

They had

no chance

by human

standards.

But with

belief,

with God's

provision,

Abram

defeated,

pursued,

and plundered

a group that

just ransacked

numerous nations.

So I

ask you

today,

how will

your faith

send you

forward?

We've

seen Abram

who was

able to

go forward

and accomplish

incredible

things,

an amazing

victory.

We know

that he is

a man of

faith.

So my

question for

you is,

how will

your faith

send you

forward?

The reality

is that many

followers of

God are

deficient in

faith.

And all of

us at some

point struggle

with faith.

as we

think of

this,

of people

who are

deficient in

faith,

and for

those of

us who

are struggling

with faith,

we find

ourselves

doubting the

possible,

fearful about

the unknown,

dwelling upon

obstacles.

While we're

lacking in

trust,

we find

ourselves

waiting for

certainty to

act,

needing more

coaxing,

needing more

assurances,

promises,

and all

the time

forgetting

the promises

of God.

And when we

do that,

we are never

realizing the

greatness that

God has

planned for

us.

And when you

do that,

you're not

realizing the

greatness that

God has

planned for

you.

When I do

that,

I am not

realizing the

greatness that

God has

planned for

me.

faithless

faithless,

and perhaps

most disappointing

of all,

is that when we

have people who

are faithless,

we have followers

of God who

are faithless,

they become

anchors to

those around

them,

holding others

back with

their endless

reservations,

doubts,

fears,

and concerns.

And in our

church,

what we need,

we need people

who are warriors

of faith,

people who

have great

faith,

because we

need people

who will be

trailblazers.

Abram was a

trailblazer.

He left his

home country,

traveling through

the world,

and we still

find him in

this nomadic

existence,

going into

places where

God is not

known.

He is a

trailblazer of

the faith,

and in our

church,

we need people

who will be

trailblazers

of the faith.

We need

people who

will go

forward by

faith.

Who will

make a way

for others

to know

Jesus.

And when we

look around

in our

communities,

there's not

other churches

doing this.

When we go

to where we

live,

and where we

work,

and where we

attend school,

there's not

other followers

of Jesus

there.

We need

trailblazers

to go and

get them.

Trailblazers

to tell them,

come,

come and

follow Jesus.

But if we

want to be

a trailblazer,

like Abram

was a

trailblazer,

we need

to have

faith.

So my

question for

you,

in this

year,

how has

your faith

sent you

forward?

Over these

five,

six months,

how has

your faith

sent you

forward?

What actions

have you

taken to

show faith

in God's

provision?

fourth point

for today

is going

to be

promise

guided.

So

promise

guided.

So

Abram

the Hebrew

returns

from victory,

and he

is met

by two

people.

So we

see Abram

in verse

17,

he is met

by the

king of

Sodom.

The

king of

Sodom

is king

where men

were wicked

and great

sinners

against God.

And at

the mention

of king

Sodom,

then Abram

is met

by another

king,

king

Melchizedek,

who was

king of

Salem and

priest of

God most

high.

And there

in verse

18,

we find

that Melchizedek

brings bread

and wine

for Abram

and his

people.

This bread

and wine

reflects the

basic provisions

needed for

him.

I think in

our day,

we might

think of

someone bringing

sandwiches

and bottled

water for

us.

And there

Melchizedek

pronounces a

blessing over

Abram in

verses 19 and

20.

And here's

the blessing

that he

provides for

Abram.

He says,

blessed be

Abram by

God most

high,

possessor of

heaven and

earth,

and blessed

be God

most high,

who has

delivered your

enemies into

your hand.

Abram responds

to this blessing

and gives a

10% offering,

a tenth of

everything,

to this

priest,

to Melchizedek.

Melchizedek.

An interesting

thing about

Melchizedek is

that he

seems to

appear from

nowhere and

returns to

the same.

There's no

background

information,

no further

information is

provided on

him.

When did he

become a

priest?

How did he

become a

priest?

We're left

not with the

answers to

these questions.

But we'll

revisit this

later and

we'll talk

more of

Melchizedek in

a little bit.

And then

immediately

after Melchizedek,

the king of

Sodom is

brought back

into the

picture.

So once again

we've seen

the king of

Sodom

introduced,

king Melchizedek

comes in

place,

and now

king of

Sodom is

back here.

And the

king of

Sodom says

to Abram,

give me the

persons,

but take

the goods

for yourself.

Abram refuses

the king of

Sodom.

Abram says

to the king

of Sodom,

he says,

I have lifted

my hands to

the Lord,

God most

high,

possessor of

heaven and

earth,

that I would

not take a

thread or a

sandal strap or

anything that is

yours,

lest you

say,

I have

made Abraham

rich.

I will

take nothing

but what the

young men have

eaten and the

share of the

men who went

with me.

What we find

is that Abram

utterly refuses

the king of

Sodom.

Abram allows

zero relationship

between himself

and the king

of Sodom.

There are two

kings before

Abram,

and we almost

have this image

that's being

provided here of

these two kings

simultaneously

vying for

Abram's

allegiance.

The question

is,

with which

king will

Abram

associate?

As we think

of the idea

of promise

guiding,

we see the

choice before

Abram,

thinking of

the promise

that he has

received from

God,

that God

has told

Abram,

I will

bless you

and make

your name

great so

that you

will be

a blessing.

between these

two kings,

which one

will provide

that?

Here's the

king of

Sodom who

has daily

provisions,

a blessing,

and guess

what?

Abram's still

going to have

to give

him stuff.

And then we

have the

king of

Sodom who

lives in

the lush

land and

offers to

bestow

great wealth

on Abram.

Which king

will receive

Abram's

allegiance?

Abram roundly

rejects the

king of

Sodom.

He says,

you're not

going to

make me

rich.

I'm not

taking

anything

from you.

We have

no

relationship.

So the

king of

Sodom,

that place

who was

great

sinners

against

God,

Abram

says,

we are

not in

relationship.

We're

certainly

not friends

and there's

going to be

no exchange

of goods

between us.

Abram

trusts God.

He trusts

that God

will bless

him and

make his

name

great.

And since

Abram

trusts that

God

will bless

him and

make his

name

great,

then he

doesn't

need to

rely upon

the king

that

happen.

Fifth thing

I want us

to see is

the connection

between Jesus

and Melchizedek.

Melchizedek

is not

mentioned

again in

the Old

Testament.

He's

mentioned

here in

Genesis

Genesis 12 · chapter mention

chapter 12.

He's not

mentioned

again in

the Old

Testament,

save for

a reference

in Psalm

110.

But

interestingly,

the book

of Hebrews

provides a

lengthy

description

of Melchizedek.

And if

you want

to turn

to Hebrews

7 in your

Bible now,

speak

a second

sermon.

I don't

think anyone

wants that

right now.

So we're

just going to

provide a

little snippet

for you

of what's

taking place

in this

uniqueness of

Melchizedek

and how

Jesus is

like Melchizedek.

So in

just before the

last verse of

chapter 6,

so right before

chapter 7,

we find

that Jesus,

Jesus by

the way,

he's living

about 2,000

years after

Melchizedek.

So their

time frame is

nothing at all

related.

So we can

think of

us to

Jesus,

it's kind

of like

Jesus to

Melchizedek.

It's a long

time.

But nevertheless,

despite that

great distance

of time,

we describe

that Jesus

is described

as after the

order of

Melchizedek.

And that

phrasing,

after the

order of

Melchizedek,

actually comes

from a

prophecy in

Psalm 110.

So it's kind

of these

things are

being brought

together.

And one

of the things

I also want

us to see

in understanding

that Jesus

as this

priest after

the order

of Melchizedek

is the role

of a priest.

So a priest

is someone who

mediates the

relationship between

God and

people.

So that's in

our church,

so we don't

have priests.

We have

pastors who

are leading

us along

the way.

It has to

do with our

understanding of

that relationship

between us

and God.

Whereas in

some churches

they would

have priests,

so someone

who is

mediating that

difference.

So when

Jesus is a

priest,

Melchizedek is

also a

priest.

They're

mediating the

relationship

between God

and people.

So Hebrews

6 explains the

uniqueness of

Melchizedek.

Melchizedek is

indeed a unique

figure in the

scripture.

So one of

the things with

Melchizedek,

his name means

righteousness.

He's the king

of righteousness.

Melchizedek is

also the king

of Salem.

Salem means

peace.

Melchizedek is

the king of

peace.

Melchizedek lacks

a genealogy.

There's no

beginning, no

begin, no

begin, no

end.

And it's said

that he continues

as a priest

forever, like

the Son of

God.

In fact,

Melchizedek in

Hebrews 7 is

perceived as

greater than

Abraham.

Abraham and

Abram, our

character from

today, are the

exact same

person.

So Melchizedek

is perceived as

greater than

Abram.

And that's

almost a

sacrilegious

claim to

make at

this point

in time.

In fact,

Jesus insinuates

his superiority

to Abram, to

Abraham, and

people start to

get rocks to

begin about the

process of

killing him.

So Melchizedek

is greater than

Abram, because

Abram has

subjected himself

to him by

pain, a

tenth of

those spoils,

and also

Abram's

lineage, because

the people who

follow Abram are

part of his

lineage, and

that's part of

the nation of

Israel.

They have

subjected

themselves through

Abraham also to

Melchizedek.

We see that

Melchizedek is

greater than the

great priest out

of the law.

So the law has

provided priests

through the line

of Aaron, but

Melchizedek is

greater than

these.

We see that

Jesus is like

Melchizedek.

And Hebrews

7 begins

explaining that

Jesus is a

priest like

Melchizedek.

This is

specifically

described as

in the order

of Melchizedek.

He is not a

priest of the

law.

That's what

Hebrews would

say.

Jesus is not

in the line of

priests in the

law, but

rather a priest

of the order

of Melchizedek.

And so

Jesus doesn't

come from a

priestly lineage.

He comes from

Judah, who is

not the priest

line.

Levi is the

priest line.

And Jesus

becomes a

priest, not

because of his

lineage, not

because of his

birth, but

through the

power of an

indestructible

life, like

Melchizedek.

And we see

here in Hebrews

they would say

that Jesus has

fulfilled the

prophecy in

Psalm 110.

name.

Thus the

prophecy is

this.

It's repeated

here in

Hebrews 7

21.

The Lord

has shown,

and while

not change

his mind,

you are a

priest forever.

Jesus is a

priest who is

able to

continue forever.

Some priests

will die, other

priests will die.

Jesus, however,

will not.

And as so, he

is able to

constantly bring

us to God, to

stand in the

way, so that we

have a path

before God, to

mediate that

relationship that

we have with

God.

Jesus serves

forever as our

priest, mediating

our relationship

with God.