The deliverance of Lot - Daily Devotional

Devotional Genesis 14 1- 24 devotional Focus verse and he Abram brought back all the goods and also brought again his brother lot and his goods and the women also and the people Genesis 1416 a while back an article in a New Finland newspaper told about a lawyer who looked out the window of his office and observed someone breaking into his car and taking items from it shouting to his secretary call the police he ran out of the building and pursued the man on foot he chased the thief for several blocks and when he finally overtook him he wrestled the man to the ground and held him there until the police arrived as a result of his efforts that lawyer retrieved what had been stolen from him in today's text when Abram heard that his nephew lot and his family had been taken captive he set out to rescue them God was with him and as the focus verse reveals lot the other captives and the goods were retrieved sadly many today are being held captive in sin by the enemy of their souls God offers deliverance and freedom but who is going to go down to the camp of the enemy and rescue the unsaved it was Abram's love for for lot and his family that caused him to take action and we too must have a love for lost souls and a burden to take part in this recovery action just as lot no doubt hoped that Abram would come to rescue him people who are held captive by sin often wish they could be free in their hearts they may hope that someone is praying for them are we doing everything in our power to make sure they are set free of course the ultimate decision to accept God's offer of Deliverance is an individual choice for every person has a free will however we can intercede before God on behalf of those who are held captive by sin God wants us to have compassion for them and do our part to retrieve them from that bondage God used Abram to bring about a miraculous deliverance and he wants us to reach out to captive souls in our time we can pray that God will help us be used of him as Abram was and that spiritual freedom for those in sin will be the result background information this chapter describes how Four Kings from the vicinity of Mesopotamia came to fight against five Kings near the Dead Sea lot and his family were captured but God helped Abram and his company to free them in ancient ient times Kings ruled a city a tribe or a significantly large territory they often wared against similar rulers and sometimes formed alliances so they could invade and control more area in this account Four Kings from the north including one from shinar which later became Babylon and one from Elum which was to the east of Babylon had United and become strong and they were able to to seize control of five Kings in Canaan there were copper mines in the area near the Dead Sea and Scholar believe that might have been the motivation for The Invasion after 12 years the kings in Canaan rebelled but the northern Kings returned to make a sweeping Victory killing and plundering even more territory the Slime pits mentioned in verse 10 were Wells or geers of pitchy liquid that was similar to Asphalt and was used as mortar or cement the original text indicates there were many of these pits making this treacherous territory for a battle lot and his household were among those taken as captives Abram took 318 servants perhaps his herdsmen who were trained to protect his livestock and his Confederates Anor eshkol and Mam and traveled North over 100 miles where God gave them victory in an attack at night against the enemy as Abram and his men returned with the retrieved captives and goods they were met by two kings melkisedek king of Salem and the king of Sodom Salem was an early name for Jerusalem and the name melkisedek is interpreted king of righteousness or king of Peace the fact that melkisedek worshiped the true God is indicated by his reference to the most high God the possessor of Heaven and Earth even though the Nations about them were Heathen these people understood who God was and how to relate to him melkisedek acted in a Priestly role when he blessed Abram and Abram gave melkisedek tithes of the spoils he had taken this is the first reference in the Bible to paying tithes and Abram's act showed his understanding that God was Supreme and that melkisedek had the authority to function as a priest although little is written in the Bible about melkisedek what is said is significant because it relates to the Messiah Psalm 1104 says the Messiah would be a priest after the order of melchisedec who lived lived long before the law and the Priestly role of Aaron and his descendants were established the writer of Hebrews quoted this verse from Psalms and showed that Jesus Christ was able to do more than bless he could save them to the uttermost that come unto God by him see Hebrews 7:25 the king of Sodom was not a righteous man like melkisedek Abram's refusal to take personal wealth from the retrieved spoils showed his honor and appreciation for God's help and kept him unobligated to the king of Sodom conclusion let us purpose to do what we can to bring about the Deliverance of those who are held captive by sin Bible reading Genesis chapter 14 and it came to pass in the days of amrel king of Shar arot king of elisar Kor lmer king of Elum and tidal king of Nations that these made war with baric king of Sodom and with Bersa king of Gora shinob king of adma and shamber king of zeboim and the king of Bala which is Zoar all these were joined together in the veil of sidam which is the salt sea 12 years they served Kor lmer and in the 13th year they rebelled and in the 14th year came Kor lmer and the kings that were with him and and smote the Reames in asaroth carame and the zims in ham and the imans in shave kirim and the horites in their Mount Seer unto elrin which is by the Wilderness and they returned and came to imbat which is cadesh and smote all the country of the amalekites and also the amorites that dwelt in hazes on Tammer and there went out the king of Sodom and the king of Gomorrah and the king of adma and the king of zeboim and the the king of Bala the same as Zoar and they joined battle with them in the veil of sidam with Kor lammer the king of Elum and with tidal king of Nations and amrel king of shenar and arot king of elisar Four Kings with five and the veil of sidom was full of slime pits and the kings of Sodom and Gomorrah fled and fell there and they that remained fled to the mountain and they took all the goods of Sodom and Gomorrah and all their vids and went their way and they took lot abrams's brother's son who dwelt in Sodom and his goods and departed and there came one that had escaped and told Abram the Hebrew for he dwelt in the plain of mamory the Amorite brother of eshal and brother of Anor and these were Confederate with Abram and when Abram heard that his brother was taken captive he armed his trained servants born in his own house 318 and pursued them unto Dan and he divided him himself against them he and his servants by night and smot them and pursued them unto hobah which is on the left hand of Damascus and he brought back all the goods and also brought again his brother lot and his goods and the women also and the people and the king of Sodom went out to meet him after his return from the slaughter of Kor lmer and of the kings that were with him at the valley of shave which is the King's Dale and melkisedek king of Salem brought forth Bread and Wine and he was the priest of the most high God and he blessed him and said Blessed Be Abram of the most high god possessor of Heaven and Earth and blessed be the most high God which hath delivered thine enemies into thy hand and he gave him tithes of all and the king of Sodom said unto Abram give me the persons and take the goods to thyself and Abram said to the king of Sodom I have lift up mine hand unto the Lord the most high God the possessor of Heaven and Earth that I will not take from a thread even to a Sho latet and that I will not take anything that is thine lest thou should us say I have made Abram Rich save only that which the young men have eaten and the portion of the men which went with me Anor eshal and mamry let them take their portion [Music]