Love is verb when a lot is at stake

Godfrey Nyika Dupwa

• In Genesis 14, Abram goes to war to rescue Lot
from some kings that captured him, and then
gives some of the spoils of the war to
Melchizedek the King and Priest of Jerusalem.
• There are different kinds of wars Christians
experience.
• There are the outward, physical wars. Not just
the wars like the one we are fighting in Ukraine,
but the little battles in our life.
• The trials we face with other people.

• The financial difficulty.

• The work related problems.

• The family crisis.

• The disagreement with your neighbour.

• These test our patience, try our
endurance, and fray our emotions.
• But as difficult as these battles are,
there are always more sinister and
secret battles going on behind the
scenes, beneath the surface.
• The spiritual warfare.
• As we go through the obvious and
outward attacks of life, we must always be
wary of the spiritual sniper called Satan to
pick us off with one of his fiery bullets.
• He often uses these outward, physical
battles as a diversion tactic so that when
the real battle comes, we are unaware and
unprepared.
• In such battles there is always a lot at
stake.
• This is what we see in Genesis 14.

• Abram fights in a battle for Lot.

• He is very successful in the battle, but just when he

thinks the threat is past, and the battle is won, Satan
springs the trap and ambushes Abram.

• Genesis 14 gives us much guidance on how to prepare

for the physical and spiritual battles, and how to be
victorious in both.

• The physical battle begins with a time of turmoil in

verses 1-10.
• Turmoil (Genesis 14:1-10)

• Genesis 14:1-4. And it came to pass in the days of

Amraphel king of Shinar, Arioch king of Ellasar,
Chedorlaomer king of Elam, and Tidal king of
nations, that they made war with Bera king of
Sodom, Birsha king of Gomorrah, Shinab king of
Admah, Shemeber king of Zeboiim, and the king
of Bela (that is, Zoar). All these joined together in
the Valley of Siddim (that is, the Salt Sea). Twelve
years they served Chedorlaomer, and in the
thirteenth year they rebelled.
• All of these kings lived in either the Jordan Valley
or Eastward.

• The Eastern kings had joined together and

conquered the kings in the Jordan Valley.

• The Kings of Sodom, Gomorrah, Admah, Zeboiim

and Zoar were under the rule of the Eastern king,
Chedorlaomer.

• In the thirteenth year of subjection, the Jordan

Valley kings rebelled. So, Chedorlaomer sets out
with his allies to quell the rebellion.
• Genesis 14:5-11. In the fourteenth year
Chedorlaomer and the kings that were with
him came and attacked the Rephaim in
Ashteroth Karnaim, the Zuzim in Ham, the
Emim in Shaveh Kiriathaim, and the
Horites in their mountain of Seir, as far as
El Paran, which is by the wilderness. Then
they turned back and came to En Mishpat
(that is, Kadesh), and attacked all the
country of the Amalekites, and also the
Amorites who dwelt in Hazezon Tamar.
• And the king of Sodom, the king of Gomorrah, the
king of Admah, the king of Zeboiim, and the king
of Bela (that is, Zoar) went out and joined
together in battle in the Valley of Siddim against
Chedorlaomer king of Elam, Tidal king of nations,
Amraphel king of Shinar, and Arioch king of
Ellasar — four kings against five. Now the Valley
of Siddim was full of asphalt pits; and the kings of
Sodom and Gomorrah fled; some fell there, and
the remainder fled to the mountains. Then they
took all the goods of Sodom and Gomorrah, and
all their provisions, and went their way.
• So the Eastern Kings prevail and
retake the Jordan Valley kings.
• All of this is important because of
someone who lives near Sodom.
• Lot, Abram’s nephew lived there,
and when Sodom falls, he is taken
captive.
• Taken Captive (Genesis 14:12)
• Genesis 14:12. They also took Lot, Abram’s
brother’s son who dwelt in Sodom, and his
goods, and departed.

• When you live near sin, you experience the

downfall of sin as well.
• Pride comes before the fall, and sin brings
destruction.
• Lingering in the presence of sin
• Ask Eve who lingered near the forbidden fruit, she
saw it was pleasing, ate and lost Eden
• When Sodom falls, it is just judgment for the sin
they have committed.
• Lot, living near there, experiences the downfall as
well.
• God has not yet destroyed the city, but we could call
this a warning shot.
• It is a tremor before the earthquake, the drop of
rain before the flood.
• Lot should have learned a lesson here.
• He should have seen that it doesn’t pay
to compromise with the world, for when
the ship sinks, it takes everyone who is
on board.
• This is just a little judgment compared
to the big one that is coming upon
Sodom.
• God often sends little judgments
before He sends the big ones.
• This is the warning before the end.
• Lot didn’t know if he would ever get his
freedom back, but if he did, he should
have made sure to separate himself
from Sodom.
• Did you know that God
disciplines those He loves?
• Sometimes, he allows tests and
trials just to teach us patience
and perseverance, but
frequently, tests and trials can
also be forms of discipline.
• And they will almost always start
out minor.
• Just as a father gives warning to
his children before he spanks
them, God the Father warns His
children before he disciplines
them.
• If you are living in sin, the first
thing God will do is point it out to
you through His Word or
through the church.
• Of course, if you are not in His Word, or
you not attending church, you’ve got a
whole different problem.
• But God will first lovingly, and gently
warn you through Scripture what will
happen if you continue down your path.
• But if that doesn’t cause you to turn from
your sin, He may send a little warning
shot – a slap on the hand. It may be
slightly painful, but it will not be
devastating.
• But as we continue to ignore the discipline, it
will get more and more painful until we finally
agree to do what God wants.
• Sometimes, if we ignore his discipline for too
long, he just lets us go, and experience the
devastation of sin in our lives.
• This may result in death or disease, family or
financial ruin.
• Sin’s devastation is always terrible, but can
always be avoided if we heed the loving
discipline of God.
• If we are trained by it, we will always come out
better for it on the other side.
• Lot is being disciplined here.
• He is being warned. He can avoid much pain
and heartache if he will learn his lesson
now.
• Jon Courson says that we can either learn in
the Sanctuary or learn in the storm.
• The choice is up to us.
• Those Christians who refuse to get into the
Word, and refuse to hear strong Biblical
teaching on Sabbath mornings, have no
option but to learn in the storm, and they
are due for a very painful life.
•This is what is going on with Lot
here.
•He is in a storm. He has lost
everything.
•He has been taken captive.
•He is being dragged off with his
family, most likely to become slaves.
•But God is only warning Lot here, for
in verses 13-17, Abram tracks down
Chedorlaomer and attacks him in
order to free Lot.
•For love is a verb.
•You have to take action, you have to
act it out
•You have to do something.
•Tracking and Attacking (Genesis
14:13-17)
•Genesis 14:13. Then one who had
escaped came and told Abram the
Hebrew, for he dwelt by the terebinth
trees of Mamre the Amorite, brother of
Eshcol and brother of Aner; and they
were allies with Abram.
• Now remember, Abram might have felt cheated
by Lot.
• Abram, to whom all the land belonged, in order
to be a peacemaker, had divided the land that
was due to him in two, and let Lot choose which
portion to live in. Love is a verb
• Now, Lot and all the people of Sodom and
Gomorrah had been carted off.
• If Abram was like most of us, he would have said,
“Thanks God! I knew you would work it out
somehow.
• Now I can go down and take possession of the
land that you have cleared out for me.
• Too bad for Lot. Oh well, he had it coming.
• There’s nothing I could have done anyway.
• I guess I’ll just go clean out the people hiding in
the hills, and the rich, verdant Jordan Valley will
be mine.” But Abram doesn’t do this.
• Remember from Genesis 13, Abram chooses
family over finances, and he does the same thing
here for love is verb.
• Genesis 14:14-17. Now when Abram heard that his
brother was taken captive, he armed his three hundred
and eighteen trained servants who were born in his
own house, and went in pursuit as far as Dan. He
divided his forces against them by night, and he and his
servants attacked them and pursued them as far as
Hobah, which is north of Damascus. So he brought back
all the goods, and also brought back his brother Lot and
his goods, as well as the women and the people. And
the king of Sodom went out to meet him at the Valley of
Shaveh (that is, the King’s Valley), after his return from
the defeat of Chedorlaomer and the kings who were
with him.
• Hearing the tragic news, Abraham
marshaled his forces to deliver Lot.
• It is remarkable that Abraham did not lay
blame on Lot for the choice he made to
settle near Sodom.
• Neither did he exhibit an attitude of
superiority and let Lot suffer the
consequences of his poor choices.
• There are times that love acts recklessly.
•Love is a verb.
•Love pursues, seeks, and wins back
those who make poor choices.
•Certainly there are times for people
to face the result of their choices but
there are also times for love to act in
spite of the choices others make.
•Genesis 14:16 calls Abram and Lot
brothers, but it just means relatives.
•I have to wonder how many soldiers
the four victorious kings had.
•You would imagine that, being kings,
each one had more soldiers that
Abram had. He only had 318.
• Genesis 14:14 is definitely true. Abram had
318 servants.
• It is telling us about Abram’s wealth.
• About how God has blessed Abram.
• And, as we see in context, if Abram was able
to defeat the armies of four kings with only
318 servants, God was watching out for
Abram and protecting Him as well.
•It reminds us of Gideon who attacked
the hoards of the Midianite army
with only 300 men.
•Abram took his 318 men, divided
them up in a smart military
maneuver, and attacked the kings all
the way up past Dan to Hobah, north
of Damascus.
• This is a long way from Hebron where Abram
was living.
• It’s almost 400km.
• Do you see how far out of his way Abram
went to rescue Lot?
• This battle was not settled in one day. It
probably went on for weeks.
• Weeks of following them, tracking them,
pursuing them, attacking them.
• When it comes to rescuing family members
from the clutches of captivity.
• There is no distance too far to travel,
• No cost too great to expend.
• If a family member is enslaved to sin, we
must do all we can to deliver them from
captivity.
• To deliver them from the clutches of the evil
one.
• We may see a story in the account of Abram’s
rescue of Lot.
• We were those off in sin and shame, rescued
by one who left his safety and happiness.
• Our kinsman redeemer Lord Jesus Christ went
to great trouble and distance, and with His
courage and daring, defeated the mighty
enemy that had put us in bondage, and He
took all the enemy’s spoil.
• And in so doing, Abram didn’t just rescue lot, but all
the women, children and other people who had
also been captured.
• When you set out to rescue a family member, God
causes your efforts to rescue others as well.
• All over the world, children are routinely abducted
off the streets and then sold into prostitution or
child slavery.
• One father had his son kidnapped in such a way,
and went to great lengths to find him.
• When he did, he was able to get the law
involved, and rescue all the other children
who had been similarly enslaved.
• Chuck Colson is indicted for his involvement in
the Watergate Scandal.
• Someone comes to him in prison and shares
the Gospel.
• Now Chuck Colson headed one of the largest
prison ministries in the world where
thousands of inmates hear and accept the
Gospel every year.
• When you seek to rescue a family member,
also look around for others who have no
family to rescue them for love is a verb.
• Abram went to rescue Lot, and rescued all
the people who had also been taken
captive.
• When Abram returns, he receives the
blessing and thanks from a very important
person, Melchizedek, the King of Salem.
•Thanksgiving (Genesis 14:19-20a)
• Genesis 14:18-20. Then Melchizedek king of
Salem brought out bread and wine; he was
the priest of God Most High. And he blessed
him and said: “Blessed be Abram of God
Most High, Possessor of heaven and earth;
And blessed be God Most High, Who has
delivered your enemies into your hand.”
• It’s interesting, isn’t it, that we had all this talk about kings
and wars, but Melchizedek was not mentioned until now.
• He just walks onto the pages of Scripture, blesses Abram,
and then disappears.
• But stranger still is that he is not only a king, but also a
priest of God Most High.
• This is El Elohim, the God, the Only God, the God over all.
This is the same God that Abram worships, and is God of
heaven, creator of heaven and earth.
• Beyond even that, however, he was the king of Salem, which
is later known as Jerusalem. And notice what he brings —
bread and wine.
• This reminds of a later time when another King of Jerusalem,
who is also a High Priest, brings bread and wine to his
disciples and tells them that it represents His body broken
and His blood shed for them (1 Cor. 11:26).
• I am not saying that Melchizedek is Jesus. I am saying that
Melchizedek is a foreshadowing, or a type of Jesus.
• And the reason we know it is, is because Scripture tells us so.
• Psalm 110 prophecies that the Messiah will be in the order of
Melchizedek.
• Hebrews 5-7 makes a big deal about Melchizedek and what
happens here in Genesis 14, and how it all relates to Jesus
Christ.
• Melchizedek thanks Abram in verse 19 by blessing him, and
then gives credit to God in Heaven, for it is only because of
God that Abram was able to defeat the enemy and rescue Lot.
• When God does something great through us, do not take the credit.
• It was not your might, or your power, or your creativity that
brought about such a great victory.
• It was God’s power working through you.
• Give Him the glory.
• Give Him the praise.
• This is kind of what Abram does in the last part of verse 20
when he offers a tithe to Melchizedek.
•Tithe (Genesis 14:20b). And he gave him a
tithe of all.
• When Abram gave the tithe to Melchizedek, he was
actually giving it to God Most High.
• This is the way tithes work.
• When you tithe, you are tithing not to the church, and
not to the pastor.
• You are tithing to God.
• If you refuse to give to God, you are stealing not from
the church, not from the pastor, but from God.
• The tithe has changed a little bit in the New
Testament, but notice that Abram is tithing long
before any law about tithing was giving.
• So, don’t let anyone tell you that tithing is an Old
Testament law and therefore doesn’t have to be
obeyed. Abram tithes as an act of giving worship
to God long before any law about tithing ever
came into existence.
• Tithing is one way to worship God and give him
thanks for what He has done for you and given to
you.
• By refusing to tithe generously and joyfully
(this is the instruction of 2 Corinthians 8-9),
you are losing the joy of worshiping God, and
refusing to give back to God some of what he
has given to you.
• Everything you have belongs to Him and
came from Him.
• A tithe is a universal and timeless way of
recognizing that.
•Now that Lot has been rescued, Abram
has been thanked, and Abram has
worshiped God, it would seem that the
story could end.
•But it doesn’t. The war is over, but the
real battle is just about to begin.
•The King of Salem has just blessed
Abram. Now, the King of Sodom comes
and tempts him.
• Temptation (Genesis 14:21)
• Now the king of Sodom said to Abram, “Give me the persons, and
take the goods for yourself.”
• The trap is sprung! Abram is ambushed.
• He has gone and rescued Lot.
• He was victorious.
• He even worshiped God.
• He tithed.
• He did everything right, and just when he heaved a big sigh of relief
that it was all done, just when he was about to let down his guard,
the enemy attacks.
• This is the way it often is with the severest temptations.
•Temptations often come right after the
blessing. Jesus is baptized by John in the
Jordan River.
•The Holy Spirit descends out of heaven
like a dove upon him, and God the Father
speaks out loud, “This is my Son, in
whom I am well pleased.” That’s a
blessing.
•That’s a mountain top experience.
• But then, Luke 4:1 says that he was immediately
led into the wilderness to be tempted.
• The worst temptations always come right after the
victory, right after the blessings.
• In 1 Kings 18, Elijah sees a great victory over the
prophets of Baal.
• But in 1 Kings 19, he is hiding out in the
wilderness for fear of his life.
• He was afraid that God would not protect him
from Jezebel.
• It is the same way with all great victories and blessings.
• After the blessing comes the trial.
• After the victory comes the temptation.
• This is because God wants to see what we will do with
our newfound fame, our recent success, our financial
windfall.
• We have proven faithful in the past with what he has
given to us.
• That is why he gave us this most recent blessings.
• But now He wants to see how we will handle it.
• This is what happens with Abram in verse 21.
• The king of Sodom offers riches and wealth to Abram.
Now, Abram was already rich.
• He was already wealthy.
• But there is always the desire for more.
• So here is a test of Abram’s contentment.
• Is he content with what he has, or is he greedy?
• But more than this, it is a test of Abram’s trust in God’s
Word.
• God promised Abram wealth and success, but this
wealth and success would come from God.
• Now, the king of Sodom was offering Abram the
goods, the spoils, the wealth from the war.
• We could speculate about whether the offer was
genuine or not, whether the king of Sodom was
trying to bribe or win over Abram as a friend, or
maybe the king was just being generous.
• There are so many things that could be going
through the king’s mind when he makes this
offer.
• We cannot know what the king was thinking.
• But one thing we do know. Sodom was one of the
evilest cities in history.
• Because of this, the wealth and goods that the king
was offering Abram had probably been gained
through evil means.
• It was blood money, gangster’s money,
extortioner’s money, money from thieves and
criminals.
• Maybe Abram thought about all the good he
would do with it.
•If he let the king of Sodom keep it, the
money would only be used to fund more
evil.
•This is the temptation Abram faced.
•He had an opportunity to become richer
than he already was, but the money had
come from criminal activity, and it would
be a gift from an evil king.
• In fact, if King Melchizedek later becomes a figure
for Jesus Christ, I believe that the King of Sodom
can be understood as a figure for Satan.
• He was the ruler of an evil city.
• He is trying to bypass God’s promise to Abram and
give Abram a shortcut to wealth.
• He may even be trying to bribe Abram.
• The words this king speaks to Abram in verse 21
remind me very much of the words Satan spoke to
Jesus Christ during the temptation in the
wilderness.
• Jesus, knowing that God had promised Him the
right to rule the world, was offered a shortcut to
that promise by Satan.
• Satan took Jesus to a high mountain and showed
Jesus all the kingdoms of the earth and said, “I
will give you all these kingdoms if you will just
worship me” (Luke 4:6-7).
• That sounds very similar to what the king of
Sodom offers Abram here.
• You see, Abram had just, in a sense, given honor
to Melchizedek, the King of Salem.
• Melchizedek blessed Abram, and Abram tithed to
Melchizedek. And the king of Sodom, looking on,
probably thought, “I want some of that praise.
• I want some of that recognition.
• I’m not going to bless Abram, but I’ll give him some
money rather than have him give me some.”
• And what is even more humorous about this is that
technically, the money belonged to Abram anyway.
• If Abram hadn’t gone and rescued the king of Sodom,
the king would still be in captivity.
• So the king is actually saying, “I will give to you
what is already yours. Aren’t I generous?”
• This is exactly what Satan was saying to Jesus.
“Here are all the kingdoms of the earth. I will
give them to you. Aren’t I generous?”
• But Jesus knew that God had already promised
to give Him all the kingdoms.
• Jesus didn’t need a handout from Satan.
• The kingdoms of the earth already belonged to
him based on the promises of God.
• I think Abram recognized all this as well.
• The possessions the king of Sodom was offering here
technically already belonged to Abram.
• But Abram did not want the king of Sodom to be able to
malign God’s name or get the glory for helping God keep the
promises to Abram.
• Abram has faced another test, and he passes this test with
flying colors.
• Although he was probably weary and tired from the battle
with the kings, he was not caught unaware by the
temptation from Sodom.
• In verses 22-24, we see the true victory of Genesis 14.
•True Victory (Genesis 14:22-24)
• Genesis 14:22-24. But Abram said to the king of
Sodom, “I have raised my hand to the Lord, God
Most High, the Possessor of heaven and earth,
that I will take nothing, from a thread to a sandal
strap, and that I will not take anything that is
yours, lest you should say, ‘I have made Abram
rich,’ except only what the young men have eaten,
and the portion of the men who went with me:
Aner, Eshcol, and Mamre; let them take their
portion.”
• Abram passes the test here. According to the code of
Hammurabi of that day, all the people and all the booty
belonged to Abram.
• It was his right to take it.
• The King of Sodom comes along and very craftily lays a
trap for Abram. “Give me the people and keep the goods
for yourself.”
• Abram could have fought for his rights, and said, “Hey,
they’re mine anyway. I get to keep it all.”
• But as soon as Abram heard the King of Sodom lay this
trap for him, Abram knew what the outcome would be.
• If Abram held on to his rights, by holding on to all
the people and possessions he had won back,
then forever after, whenever somebody said,
“God sure made Abram rich” the king of Sodom
would be able to say, “It wasn’t God. It was me.”
• The king of Sodom is trying to take the place of
God, and bring discredit to the name of God
through a sly trick, and Abram sees right through
it.
• He abandons his rights and chooses instead to
serve God.
• Did you know that it is sometimes not possible to both
serve God and hold on to your rights?
• Sometimes, it is not right to say “I have my rights!”
Sometimes, holding on to our rights discredits and
brings slander to the name of God.
• God has given us his own promises in Scripture to
uphold us and provide for us.
• There is nothing in Scripture about the rights of life,
liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.
• Do not get me wrong. I love living in a democracy.
• But God has not promised us a democracy.
• Abram gives up his rights in verses 22-24 and
chooses instead to live right.
• God made a promise to Abram to bless him,
multiply him and give him this land.
• Abram made a promise in return to receive God’s
promise from God’s hand alone.
• Abram promised to not accept anything from any
man so that it might seem that man-made Abram
rich rather than God.
• If Abram gets rich, God will have to do it.
• I think it was Francis Schaeffer who once said that
if you are faced with two options, and one seems
more glorious than the other, take the one that is
less.
• That way, if God is going to raise you up, it will be
obvious to all that it was God’s doing.
• This is the route Abram chooses.
• He takes none of the people or possessions for
himself.
• Of course, notice at the end there that even though this is
Abram’s choice for himself, he also recognizes that he has
other people under his care who must provide for
themselves and for their families, and must be paid for the
work they have just performed.
• So after saying that he himself will not take anything, he will
let those who fought for him take their portion of the
plunder.
• Trust in God for self, but provide for those under your care.
• God may call you to suffer, but he does not call you to make
sure that others suffer with you or because of your
decisions.
• Nor should you expect others to live up to your
convictions for how you will live your life.
• Paul says the same thing in Romans 14 and
elsewhere. Each of us has been given certain
promises from God and certain convictions about
how to live.
• It is our responsibility to live up to those
convictions, but not to make sure others live up to
our convictions.
• To your own Master, you stand or fall.
• Abram provides for those who are under his
care, but he makes sure that in so doing, his
own convictions and promises from God are
not compromised in any way.
• He has faced two wars in chapter 14, and
with God’s help, came through both
victoriously.
• He defeated the enemies and conquered a
temptation.
•Why? Because in both situations, he
trusted and relied upon God.
•Whether you are facing a physical
threat or a spiritual battle, your
approach should be the same – trust
in God, and rely upon Him for the
strength and wisdom to make it
through for love is a verb.