Genesis 12:11-14:24 — Faith in Every Circumstance

Today's sermon is from Genesis 12:11-14:24 and is entitled "Faith in Every Circumstance."

Genesis 12:11–14:24

It was delivered to Ekklesia churches on Sunday, July 19, 2026.

Over and over again throughout Scripture, we're told about the importance of having

faith.

In fact, faith is the only requirement for salvation.

Ephesians 2, verses 8 and 9 say,

Ephesians 2:8

And then Hebrews 11, verse 1 defines what faith is for us.

Hebrews 11:1

It says,

Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.

So it's a kind of hope that is so certain that we are convicted by it, even if we haven't

fully seen it yet.

Our hope in Jesus is so certain that it causes us to live our lives differently, with different

priorities, with different treasures than the world around us.

And last week, the woman at the well had this moment in which she believed Jesus was the

Savior.

And when she put her faith in him, it caused her to make different choices.

She left her bucket behind.

It wasn't the highest priority that day anymore.

She ran to talk to people she had previously avoided to invite them to come meet Jesus.

But putting your faith in Jesus isn't just a one-time decision.

It's an ongoing condition of trusting Jesus and the way of Jesus in every circumstance.

And I want to say that again because it's really central to our passage today.

Putting your faith in Jesus isn't just a one-time decision, but is an ongoing condition.

As we go back to the story of Abram today, we're going to witness him go through some

pretty serious life circumstances.

His faith is going to be put to the test through a time of poverty and through a time of abundance

and also through kind of a time of conflict.

And Abram doesn't really pass these tests with flying colors,

but he does learn and he does grow.

And we do see the unearned faithfulness of God throughout the entire story.

So as we get ready to go through these few chapters together,

I would invite you to also learn and grow through the instruction of God's word

and to see the grace of God and respond to him with wholehearted faith.

Faith in God cannot simply be an addition to your life.

It must become the primary thing that drives everything else in your life.

That's the kind of faith that is life-changing, that causes us to leave buckets behind, that

causes us to leave comfort behind and to go where the Lord is leading us to go.

For Abram, it was a faith that led him into the unknown land of Canaan, building altars to worship

God as he went. And in chapter 12, verse 10, he's faced with really the first real challenge of this

journey. So let's read verses 10 through 16 of Genesis chapter 12 together.

Genesis 12 · chapter mention

Now there was a famine in the land. So Abram went down to Egypt to sojourn 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 so that it may go well with me because of you and that my life may be spared

for your sake. When Abram entered Egypt, the Egyptians saw that the woman was very beautiful.

And when the princes of Pharaoh saw her, they praised her to Pharaoh, and the woman was taken

into Pharaoh's house. And for her sake, he dealt well with Abram. And he had sheep, oxen,

male donkeys, male servants, female servants, female donkeys, and camels.

So after showing so much faith in his journey to Canaan, when things got hard and food got scarce,

Abram begins to do what Proverbs calls leaning on your own understanding. Actually,

the first thing that we notice about verse 10 is the absence of God's direction and the failure of

Abram to inquire of God at all. So in this part of the passage, Abram is actually not our example

of faith. This part of the story is a cautionary tale for the reader to learn from. So what does

Abram's failure in Egypt teach us about having faith when in poverty, when we have very little?

First, understand why Abram does the things that he does, because from a human standpoint,

Abram is actually being very clever here. He's anxious about this famine that is in Canaan,

probably from a lack of rain, and he knows that many people go to Egypt for food when this happens.

Egypt is kind of a safe haven in this area of the world when it comes to famines, because the Nile

River is fed by a spring, so droughts in the area do not impact Egypt the same way as they impact

other areas around them. So Abram is anxious about Egyptian men trying to steal his wife,

who is by all accounts very beautiful.

And so he creates this ruse or this story that he is her brother.

So in the ancient world and still today in the Middle East,

when the father is not around,

the brother is the one with the authority over his sister,

particularly when it comes to marriage.

So Abram thinks he will be treated well by men who want to marry Sarai

because they'll be trying to win his permission if they think that he's her brother.

So he's anxious about all of these things, and he comes up with some very clever and sensical

solutions. But the one solution he never appeals to is to put his faith in God. In fact, God kind

of appears absent here because Abram is leaning firmly on his own understanding and failing to

acknowledge God, the one thing he failed to account for with his limited understanding was

Pharaoh. The men of Egypt do recognize Sarai's beauty, but instead of coming for her themselves,

they actually tell Pharaoh. Pharaoh is the one person in Egypt to whom these cultural standards

do not apply. What Pharaoh wants, he simply takes, and that's exactly what happens here.

You know, what a different Abram this appears to be from the only few verses earlier, the

man who was walking into unknown lands that were filled with pagans and setting up altars

of worship to the one true God in the places of their idol worship.

What has changed about Abram?

His circumstances.

Things got hard.

Food got scarce.

Abram was filled with anxiety and fear for his life.

And in the midst of all of that, he leaned on his own understanding and found his own

solutions.

And thanks to his own solutions, all of his material problems were solved.

He's rich, thanks to Pharaoh.

Pharaoh gives Abram things like camels, which were very rare and exotic gifts at that point

in time.

Think of them kind of like the Ferraris of the ancient Middle East.

But for all the treasure that he gained, he's lost the one thing that mattered most to him,

his wife.

She's being held in Pharaoh's palace, and it's a matter of time before she is taken as one of his

wives in every sense of the word.

Ultimately, it's God who graciously intervenes before this can go any further.

And after his household is struck with a plague, Pharaoh finds out what's going on.

And he gives Abram back his wife and he kicks them out of Egypt.

So Abram comes away from Egypt wealthy, but let's think about what he's lost.

He's lost his integrity that has now been called into question by the pagan ruler of

Egypt of all people who Abram has sinned against by deceiving.

His relationship with his wife has certainly been impacted.

I wouldn't want to be in that tent for a while after they left.

But for the grace of God, he would have lost so much more.

So in seasons of scarcity, when the bank account is low, when budgets are tight, when we start

to get anxious, in our anxiety, it is easy to turn inward for the solution, to my wisdom,

to my plans, to my solutions.

If I can just spin the gears fast enough, I'll get out of this rut I'm in, and all we do is make

things worse for ourselves. We add to the anxiety. We amplify the fear because what we're really

doing is saying, my wisdom is enough, and I know better. By not acknowledging our need for God,

we actually make things worse for ourselves. And scripture instructs us to do the opposite.

Psalm 55 verse 22 says, cast your burden on the Lord and he will sustain you.

Psalms 55:22

First Peter in the New Testament, chapter 5 verse 7 says, cast all your anxieties on him because

he cares for you. Abram's mistake wasn't feeling afraid. It was failing to go to the Lord with it.

Remember Proverbs 3, 5, and 6, in all your ways acknowledge him, which means even when we're

anxious turning to God. So what does it look like to have faith, to acknowledge God in seasons of

scarcity and anxiety? It might mean saying, Lord, you can see my bank account. You know that I'm

doing all I can to provide. Please provide for us in the way that gives you the most glory.

It might mean asking for a change in perspective. We are really good at assigning importance to

things that are unimportant. We assign importance to our own comfort, to our own sense of pride,

to our social status, the things that have no eternal impact whatsoever. In Abram's case,

the question was, what good are all of these camels if you've lost your wife and your integrity?

In our case, if you remember what Jesus said in Mark chapter 8,

Mark 8 · chapter mention

what good is it if you gain the whole world and lose your soul?

God very often uses seasons of scarcity to expose what or who our faith is really in.

Abram comes back, though, into Canaan after being kicked out of Egypt, and it's quickly

apparent that he is a different man.

The first thing he does is to build an altar and worship God.

His pride has taken a major hit and he responds by bowing before God and placing his faith

in him again.

And the first evidence of this is the way that he now deals with his wealth in this new season

of abundance.

In seasons of scarcity, people of faith lean on the wisdom and the provision of God.

And in seasons of abundance, the people of faith actually hold their wealth with an open

hand.

So let's read about how Abram's wealth actually starts to cause a new type of issue for him.

This is chapter 13, verses 5 through 13.

Isaiah 13:5–13

And Lot, who went with Abram, also had flocks and herds and tents, so that the land could

not support both of them dwelling together, for their possessions were so great that they

could not dwell together.

And there was strife between the herdsmen of Abram's livestock and the herdsmen of Lot's

livestock.

At that time, the Canaanites and the Perizzites were dwelling in the land.

Then Abram said to Lot,

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.

If you take the right hand, then I will go to the left.

And Lot lifted up his eyes and saw that the Jordan Valley was well watered everywhere like the garden of the Lord,

like the land of Egypt in the direction of Zor.

This was before the Lord destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah.

So Lot chose for himself all the Jordan Valley and Lot journeyed east.

Thus, they separated from each other.

Abram settled in the land of Canaan while Lot settled among the cities of the valley

and moved his tent as far as Sodom. Now the men of Sodom were wicked, great sinners against the

Lord. So Abram and Lot are both very, very wealthy at this point. And the question we want to ask

of this part of the passage is how does faith in God lead Abram to respond with that wealth

compared to how does Lot respond? So Abram has come back from Egypt, a humbled man. And look

the way it causes him to act. The first thing that I just want to point out is that Abram's first act

when he gets back to the place that he last pitched his tents in Canaan is that he goes back to the

altar that he built and he worships God. He returns to Canaan with all of this wealth, but the first

thing that Abram wants to do is bow before God. And I don't know what was said by Abram to God as he

bowed there at the altar, but I imagine it was something like, thank you for having mercy on me.

Thank you for being gracious and saving me from my own foolishness.

Thank you for not making my wife suffer any further as a result of my own fear.

Do you ever pray to God like that?

Do you ever look back and see the gracious hand of God giving you far better than you

deserved and just say thank you?

Abram is seeing things differently after Egypt.

His eyes have been opened to his own foolishness a bit, and he's returned to the Lord with

a renewed faith.

It's really funny how going through trials can do that to a person and how God uses difficulty

to refine our faith.

So after this decision to worship God, the second evidence that something has changed

in Abram is the way that he deals with this conflict with Lot.

Look at how unconcerned with his share or his portion he is.

He and Lot have so many animals and people with them that they have to spread out.

But Abram doesn't tell his nephew where to go.

He says to Lot, you know what?

You take first pick.

You sometimes see this kind of arrangement when you're at the table with kids and there's

not enough of something.

I think moms are notorious for this, where they say, just take what you want and I'll

have what's left.

This kind of offer comes from the heart of someone who is wholly unconcerned with getting

their share.

What a different faith has formed in Abram from selfishly telling his wife to lie so

that he may gain earthly favor to now selflessly telling his nephew to take freely whatever

he liked for himself and his people.

This is a man who recognizes that God is his portion.

God has already said that all of this land is his to give and has already shown Abram

such generosity, and as a result, Abram trusts God to supply for him. Do you see what kind of

freedom comes from having faith in God's ability to provide? Do you know what that kind of freedom

feels like? Or are you still wrestling with trying to secure what you believe is yours?

I've had the opportunity to know some very wealthy people over the years, and this financial success

has one of two effects on them, it seems, always.

Either they become more and more consumed

with growing and keeping what they have collected,

or the wealth becomes less and less important

and they become more and more generous with it.

One ends up perpetually unsatisfied with what they have,

and the other has an opportunity to gain treasure

that is more than temporary.

The difference between pre- and post-Egypt Abram

and between Abram and Lot, as we'll see in a moment, is a faith that no longer says,

give me my kingdom. It's one that says, Lord, thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory.

When we pray, when we worship, when we read and hear the word of God,

we are changing the perspective of our souls to say, thine is the kingdom.

Abundance and wealth can actually be more dangerous spiritually than poverty.

But those who keep the kingdom of heaven in view while on this earth will experience a freedom and a wealth like no other.

Because that unseen inheritance that comes through knowing Jesus is better than any earthly wealth.

So as we head into our last chapter today, which is Genesis 14, some of Lot's choices end up coming back to bite him.

So while Abram has demonstrated great faith in God, Lot does not share his faith.

It really starts to appear actually that Lot's faith was in Abram.

He's kind of tagged along from the beginning and he's gotten wealthy by closeness to Abram.

The difference between someone who has faith in God and someone who only wants the benefits

of it without the actual faith eventually always become apparent.

So for Lot, we see this in his choice of land.

First, he chooses land that looks good, but is actually beyond the borders of Canaan where

God has promised an inheritance to Abram.

Second, he chooses a location that is close to the city of Sodom, which is noted as being

a city of wicked people who are particularly depraved and have their hearts set against

God.

We also find out in 14 that Lot eventually moves from close to the city to into the city of Sodom.

He has the appearance of faith by following Abram.

But after he becomes wealthy and he sees this attractive land and he sees this great city,

his priorities are exposed and his faith or lack thereof is exposed.

So in the interest of time, I'm going to summarize what happens at this point with Lot.

And you can read it for yourself in the first 16 verses of chapter 14.

Essentially, there are these nine kings in the area around Sodom in this valley, and

eight of them submit to the rule of a king named Keter-leomer.

Five of those kings decide to rebel against Keter-leomer, including the king of Sodom,

where Lot lives.

Cedar Leomer and the three kings who stood with him completely defeat these five rebel kings.

And then they plunder their cities and carry off their people as slaves, including Lot and his

family. So I guess that city wasn't a safe place to live after all. When Abram hears about this,

he takes only 318 of his own trained men, along with some other people who come with him from the

area, and he chases the armies of Keter-Leomer and his allies, and he completely defeats them.

And he brings back all of the captives and all of the loot to the cities that they came from.

All of it comes back with him. And it's here that Abram meets yet another king,

who is also a priest of God, that is Yahweh. So let's read verses 17 through 24 and see how this

somewhat mysterious priest-king might be pointing us toward another greater priestly king.

This is verses 17-24 of Genesis 14.

After his return from the defeat of Keterleomer and the kings who were with him, the king of Sodom

went out to meet him at the valley of Sheva, that is, the king's valley.

And Melchizedek, king of Salem, brought out bread and wine.

He was priest of God Most High.

And he blessed him and said, 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.

And Abram gave him a tenth of everything.

And the king of Sodom said to Abram, Give me the persons, but take the goods for yourself.

But Abram said to the king of Sodom,

I have lifted my hand 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 should say, I have made Abram rich.

I will take nothing but what the young men have eaten

and the share of the men who went with me.

Let Aner, Eshcol, and Mamre take their share.

So as we close up this passage, looking at the faith of Abram, let's take a moment longer to

consider two questions. First, who is this Melchizedek? And second, how does Abram respond

in faith to this victorious homecoming? Abram gets back with all of these people and possessions

and really has an opportunity to claim them all as spoils of war, but he doesn't. The king of

Sodom, who didn't get carried off in the raid with his people, apparently, tries to make

a deal with Abram in which his subjects are returned, but Abram can keep the rest.

But Abram refuses this deal that would have left him incredibly wealthy.

And this is how he breaks down the spoils.

The people he gives back.

He does not take people as spoils of war because, remember, God has promised him more offspring

than can be counted. Then 10% of everything that remains he gives to Melchizedek. This is

an offering to God. This was not demanded by this priest king. It was not coerced. It was not

expected. It was freely given as an offering. And this is really the first place in scripture that

we see the tithe or 10%, and it is a free offering out of gratitude for the way that

God has blessed Abram. Out of the remaining 90%, he gives a share to each of the people

from the surrounding area that went to war with him and his men. So he gives his allies

their portion. Abram does not believe it is his place to tell these other people what to do with

what they have earned. And finally, he looks at the remaining portion and says, I will take none of

it. You can have it all back. Why does Abram do this? It's because of his faith that God is going

to give him something far better. And when that happens, he wants everyone to see without a shadow

of a doubt that God is the giver of these far better things. Abram wants the world to know the

of God, and he has absolute faith in God's promises of what was to come.

Now, speaking of things to come, let's talk about this character, Melchizedek,

and the way that he is pointing forward in history to someone even better who is to come.

Melchizedek is a very interesting character in scripture, and we could actually

study him for a long time, but here's the short version for our passage today. First,

He is a king from a city called Salem, which will later become known as Jerusalem.

Second, he uniquely has two roles in that city, being both a king and a priest.

Now, usually there was division between the royal and the priestly lines, but here is one who is

both. And even more important, he is a priest of God Most High, meaning Yahweh, our God.

Remember, there is no Jewish line yet.

There are no Levites descended from Abram.

So this is a person who has been selected by God as his priest or representative in this

time and place.

And he comes out specifically to announce and bestow God's blessing on Abram.

In the middle of the kings and the people and all their possessions, the priest proclaims

that it all belongs to God.

and God has delivered all of these enemies and spoils of war to Abram.

But we really can't understand Melchizedek properly without seeing who he is pointing toward.

Who could this priest king from Jerusalem who comes with God's blessing and offers a meal of

bread and wine possibly be pointing to? But let's connect the dots a little bit as we jump ahead to

Psalm 110. King David prophesies about this king who would come, who would also be a priest,

but an everlasting one who never dies. And he says that this priest king who would come was

after the order of Melchizedek. So this coming king who would not come from the Levites,

but would be specifically chosen and sent by God, unlike the Levite priests, he would never die.

He would never fail. He would go where no priest ever could to bridge the space between God and man.

And Hebrews chapter 6 in the New Testament, verses 19 through 20 is our final connection here.

Hebrews 6 · chapter mention

It says,

We have this as a sure and steadfast anchor of the soul, a hope that enters into the inner

place behind the curtain where Jesus has gone as a forerunner on our behalf, having become

a high priest forever after the order of Melchizedek.

My faith is not a feeling or a hard-to-grasp wish, because my faith is anchored in the living

Jesus, my great high priest and king forever. My hope is built on nothing less than Jesus' blood

and righteousness, and I dare not trust even the sweetest frame of mind or momentary trouble,

for that matter, but I solely rest on Jesus' name. As I would paraphrase that famous song,

if you have not yet trusted all of your hope to Jesus, I beg you to do so because no one

and nothing else is worthy of your faith. And the treasure of life eternal that Jesus offers us,

The treasure of abounding, unshakable peace with God is worth so much more than any earthly

treasure that you can gain.

If you put your faith in Jesus, you are rich beyond measure and you are able to say in

poverty and in abundance and in war and peace, Lord, everything I have is yours and you are

all I need.

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