God is not a carnivore.

It’s a classic scenario, one that is put to students in every philosophy and ethics class everywhere. It begins with, “Would you be willing to die for a cause/ideology/religion  you believed in?” Almost everyone says yes. There is a glory to martyrdom that appeals to the ego, and it attracts like mosquitos to a bug-zapper. It is a glory that, to a lesser degree, appeals to those in the military. They would not die as martyrs, but as soldiers on the battlefield, or at least consider the possibility. To go out in a blaze of glory has always drawn people to step forward into harm’s way.

The twist comes when the class is asked the next part of the scenario. “Would you be willing to sacrifice someone you love for same cause/ideology/religion?” To this almost everyone answers no. The reason is expressed in different ways, but boiled down  is the same all over: by definition, to love someone is to protect them from all harm, even if it means allowing harm to come to you instead. So, by human standards, sacrificing someone else in your place is incompatible with loving them, because you are placing their survival below yours in priority.

Genesis 22:1-12
“Some time after these things God tested Abraham. He said to him, "Abraham!" "Here I am!" Abraham replied. 2 God said, "Take your son - your only son, whom you love, Isaac - and go to the land of Moriah! Offer him up there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains which I will indicate to you." 3 Early in the morning Abraham got up and saddled his donkey. He took two of his young servants with him, along with his son Isaac. When he had cut the wood for the burnt offering, he started out for the place God had spoken to him about. 4 On the third day Abraham caught sight of the place in the distance. 5 So he said to his servants, "You two stay here with the donkey while the boy and I go up there. We will worship and then return to you."  6 Abraham took the wood for the burnt offering and put it on his son Isaac. Then he took the fire and the knife in his hand, and the two of them walked on together. 7 Isaac said to his father Abraham, "My father?" "What is it, my son?" he replied. "Here is the fire and the wood," Isaac said, "but where is the lamb for the burnt offering?" 8 "God will provide for himself the lamb for the burnt offering, my son," Abraham replied. The two of them continued on together. 9 When they came to the place God had told him about, Abraham built the altar there and arranged the wood on it. Next he tied up his son Isaac and placed him on the altar on top of the wood. 10 Then Abraham reached out his hand, took the knife, and prepared to slaughter his son. 11 But the Lord's angel called to him from heaven, "Abraham! Abraham!" "Here I am!" he answered. 12 "Do not harm the boy!" the angel said. "Do not do anything to him, for now I know that you fear God because you did not withhold your son, your only son, from me."

So the question is, did Abraham truly love his son? We know that he did, after all, God states it plainly. But if Abraham loved his son Isaac, why would he be willing to sacrifice him simply because God had commanded it? Perhaps Abraham figured God wouldn’t really make him carry out the sacrifice. Abraham’s explanation to Isaac about God providing the lamb for the burnt offering would indicate this. But if this is so, then how is it a true test of Abraham’s loyalty to God? The only explanation is that Abraham must have believed that God really wanted him to kill Isaac. And for him to go through with it must mean that Abraham loved God more than his own son.

Thankfully, God is not a fan of human sacrifice, a favorite of pagan religions all over the world. He is, however, sympathetic to sacrificum deus, that is, divine sacrifice. For what the story of Abraham’s aborted sacrifice of Isaac foreshadows is exactly that. And because the Father and the Son are of the same essence, God is both demonstrating His willingness to die for the human cause/ideology/religion, and also protecting those He loves.

Romans 5:8 – “But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” 

Your secrets are no secret.

We live in an age of few secrets. The CIA and the FBI maintain records on millions of US citizens. Meth addicts comb through your garbage, looking for any useful information in defrauding you. Our cellular phone calls can be monitored at anytime. Video cameras stare at us at traffic lights, ATMs, and street corners. A few clever taps of the keyboard and some 22 year old hacker in Finland is strolling through your Internet history. You are public knowledge. Just Google yourself sometime – its amazing what is out there for anyone to view. At the same time, the technology that enables all of this to happen distracts us from face to face communication, to the point of creating a society made up of citizens who are strangers to each other personally but known to the world publicly.

Genesis 21:22-34
“At that time Abimelech and Phicol, the commander of his army, said to Abraham, "God is with you in all that you do. 23 Now swear to me right here in God's name that you will not deceive me, my children, or my descendants. Show me, and the land where you are staying, the same loyalty that I have shown you."  24 Abraham said, "I swear to do this."   25 But Abraham lodged a complaint against Abimelech concerning a well that Abimelech's servants had seized.   26 "I do not know who has done this thing," Abimelech replied. "Moreover, you did not tell me. I did not hear about it until today." 27 Abraham took some sheep and cattle and gave them to Abimelech. The two of them made a treaty.   28 Then Abraham set seven ewe lambs apart from the flock by themselves. 29 Abimelech asked Abraham, "What is the meaning of these seven ewe lambs that you have set apart?" 30 He replied, "You must take these seven ewe lambs from my hand as legal proof that I dug this well."   31 That is why he named that place Beer Sheba, because the two of them swore an oath there. 32 So they made a treaty at Beer Sheba. Then Abimelech and Phicol, the commander of his army, returned to the land of the Philistines.   33 Abraham planted a tamarisk tree in Beer Sheba. There he worshiped the Lord, the eternal God. 34 So Abraham stayed in the land of the Philistines for quite some time.”

Abraham had double-crossed Abimelech not too long before this encounter, so Abimelech was naturally a little wary of Abraham. He establishes a treaty with Abraham, but makes him promise that there will be no more deception. Abraham complains to Abimelech that his servants had seized a well that Abraham had dug. When Abraham sets apart 7 female lambs as a testimony to his honesty, swearing an oath regarding it, his reputation was reestablished with Abimelech.

We are a society in contradiction. We try to cultivate contact with our friends and family, and we try to keep strangers away, but we have succeeded in doing the opposite. Recently, Facebook added new restrictions aimed at protecting the privacy of underage members, due to the fact that the website had become an easy place for creepy people to troll for 14 year old girls in short shorts. But this kind of regulation only works if the 14 year old girl in question wants her page to be private, otherwise she just puts her age down as 18 years old. My page is certainly not a popular one, yet I have had almost 4,000 views registered. I can only imagine how many hits her website has received. At that same time, I watch that same 14 year old girl walk around at church on Wednesday night with her head buried in her cell phone, text messaging people who are her BFFs, who are sometimes in the same room. Meanwhile, modern suburbia dictates that we barely know our neighbors, never let our children run around unsupervised, and move across the state from our parents, grandparents, and college roommates.

How will God narrate our society in the 21st century? A nation of strangers, whose reputations and character are common knowledge, walled off from each other by technology that had promised to bring us closer together.

Polygamous Rivalry

It is common today in churches across America to see blended families, or families with children from previous relationships. In most cases, the previous relational setups have been over for some time, and the current marriage is strong. Often, the family begins to attend church and grow in the Lord from an early stage of the marriage, sometimes because of the marriage. This is all well and fine, and God will bless what has been offered to Him.

However, I have seen challenges in most blended families that threaten to disrupt them. Due to the fact that at least one of the parents is not the mother or father of all the children, there can be problems with jealousy, favoritism, sibling rivalry, and even conflict between husband and wife. This can put additional strain on a family that has already been through some broken relationships in the past.

Genesis 21:1-21
“The Lord visited Sarah just as he had said he would and did for Sarah what he had promised.   2 So Sarah became pregnant and bore Abraham a son in his old age at the appointed time that God had told him. 3 Abraham named his son - whom Sarah bore to him - Isaac.   4 When his son Isaac was eight days old, Abraham circumcised him just as God had commanded him to do.   5 (Now Abraham was a hundred years old when his son Isaac was born to him.)  6 Sarah said, "God has made me laugh. Everyone who hears about this will laugh with me." 7 She went on to say, "Who would have said to Abraham that Sarah would nurse children? Yet I have given birth to a son for him in his old age!" 8 The child grew and was weaned. Abraham prepared a great feast on the day that Isaac was weaned.   9 But Sarah noticed the son of Hagar the Egyptian - the son whom Hagar had borne to Abraham - mocking.   10 So she said to Abraham, "Banish that slave woman and her son, for the son of that slave woman will not be an heir along with my son Isaac!" 11 Sarah's demand displeased Abraham greatly because Ishmael was his son.   12 But God said to Abraham, "Do not be upset about the boy or your slave wife. Do all that Sarah is telling you because through Isaac your descendants will be counted.   13 But I will also make the son of the slave wife into a great nation, for he is your descendant too." 14 Early in the morning Abraham took some food and a skin of water and gave them to Hagar. He put them on her shoulders, gave her the child, and sent her away. So she went wandering aimlessly through the wilderness of Beer Sheba. 15 When the water in the skin was gone, she shoved the child under one of the shrubs. 16 Then she went and sat down by herself across from him at quite a distance, about a bowshot away; for she thought, "I refuse to watch the child die." So she sat across from him and wept uncontrollably.  17 But God heard the boy's voice. The angel of God called to Hagar from heaven and asked her, "What is the matter, Hagar? Don't be afraid, for God has heard the boy's voice right where he is crying. 18 Get up! Help the boy up and hold him by the hand, for I will make him into a great nation." 19 Then God enabled Hagar to see a well of water. She went over and filled the skin with water, and then gave the boy a drink. 20 God was with the boy as he grew. He lived in the wilderness and became an archer. 21 He lived in the wilderness of Paran. His mother found a wife for him from the land of Egypt.” 

Sarah was finally blessed with a birth child. Although technically Ishmael was her child by the fact that Hagar was her slave and Abraham was Ishmael’s father, in practice the plan Sarah had hatched to produce an heir for Abraham had blown up in her face. Now that Isaac was born, there was no need to rely on Ishmael to carry on the family lineage. Things came to a head when Ishmael began to disrespect Isaac, either by mocking him or treating Isaac as if Ishmael were equal with him instead of the son of a slave. Sarah immediately went on the offensive and demanded that Abraham expel Hagar and Ishmael from the family. This greatly upset Abraham, who loved Ishmael his son. But Abraham caved into to Sarah’s wishes and booted Hagar and Ishmael from the family.

God didn’t give up on Hagar and Ishmael, even if Abraham and Sarah did. Even though it was not God’s idea in the first place for Sarah to give Hagar to Abraham to father a child, God still honored the relationship between Him and Abraham enough that He blessed Ishmael and made him into a great nation. God has means of making things balance out.

It becomes the very definition of irony that, two generations later, Joseph (Abraham’s great grandson) is sold to an Ishmaelite caravan as a slave. God exacts exquisite justice.

Jesus, save me from your followers.

Christians do some really stupid things sometimes, like all people everywhere. The problem with being a Christian and doing stupid things, especially in public, is that it makes Christ’s Church look bad too. This is unfair, of course, but nevertheless true. Whether it’s being filmed holding a sign that says “God hates fags” at the funerals of soldiers, or publicly endorsing a very questionable political candidate (Pat Robertson), some Christians in the public eye seem to have a knack for embarrassing the rest of us. Its all the more frustrating because these things become the media’s portrayal of us in everything from plays to music videos to Headline News.

Genesis 20
“Abraham journeyed from there to the Negev region and settled between Kadesh and Shur. While he lived as a temporary resident in Gerar, 2 Abraham said about his wife Sarah, "She is my sister." So Abimelech, king of Gerar, sent for Sarah and took her. 3 But God appeared to Abimelech in a dream at night and said to him, "You are as good as dead because of the woman you have taken, for she is someone else's wife."  4 Now Abimelech had not gone near her. He said, "Lord, would you really slaughter an innocent nation?   5 Did Abraham not say to me, 'She is my sister'? And she herself said, 'He is my brother.' I have done this with a clear conscience and with innocent hands!" 6 Then in the dream God replied to him, "Yes, I know that you have done this with a clear conscience. That is why I have kept you from sinning against me and why I did not allow you to touch her. 7 But now give back the man's wife. Indeed he is a prophet and he will pray for you; thus you will live. But if you don't give her back, know that you will surely die along with all who belong to you." 8 Early in the morning Abimelech summoned all his servants. When he told them about all these things, they were terrified. 9 Abimelech summoned Abraham and said to him, "What have you done to us? What sin did I commit against you that would cause you to bring such great guilt on me and my kingdom? You have done things to me that should not be done!"   10 Then Abimelech asked Abraham, "What prompted you to do this thing?"  11 Abraham replied, "Because I thought, 'Surely no one fears God in this place. They will kill me because of my wife.' 12 What's more, she is indeed my sister, my father's daughter, but not my mother's daughter. She became my wife. 13 When God made me wander from my father's house, I told her, 'This is what you can do to show your loyalty to me: Every place we go, say about me, "He is my brother." 14 So Abimelech gave sheep, cattle, and male and female servants to Abraham. He also gave his wife Sarah back to him. 15 Then Abimelech said, "Look, my land is before you; live wherever you please."  16 To Sarah he said, "Look, I have given a thousand pieces of silver to your 'brother.' This is compensation for you so that you will stand vindicated before all who are with you."  17 Abraham prayed to God, and God healed Abimelech, as well as his wife and female slaves so that they were able to have children. 18 For the Lord had caused infertility to strike every woman in the household of Abimelech because he took Sarah, Abraham's wife.”

Abraham did a very stupid thing, again. He apparently didn’t learn his lesson last time he pretended his wife was his sister and Pharaoh to her into his harem, so now Abimelech must endure Abraham’s lack of moral fiber. On top of this, this scenario is repeated again with his son Isaac!

I doubt very much that Sarah was all that appealing at 90 years of age. More than likely, Abimelech took her into his harem in order to cement a political alliance with Abraham. It might also explain why Abimelech had not yet come near her as well! But God was not pleased. He warns Abimelech of the extreme danger he was in, and reveals to Abimelech the truth about Sarah. Abimelech then scolds Abraham in front of his whole court.

It is one thing to take advice and correction from another believer who comes to you in sincerity and concern. It is quite another to be chewed out for blowing it big time in front of a courtroom full of nonbelievers.

Try not to make us look bad anymore, Abraham, if you can help it, ok? Oh, the same goes for the rest of you. ;)

Your first priority is truly your addiction.

I have a very addictive personality. I thank God all the time that I never got into drugs when I was younger, because I would probably still be hooked on them – I’m just that kind of person. But I have to be very careful not to let other things hook me as well. The word addiction is from the Latin, and literally means “to give over, surrender.” Broadly used, addiction could apply to anything you have given yourself over or surrendered to. In this regard, whatever is truly your first priority is your addiction. We are all addicts in this sense.

Genesis 19:30-38
“Lot went up from Zoar with his two daughters and settled in the mountains because he was afraid to live in Zoar. So he lived in a cave with his two daughters. 31 Later the older daughter said to the younger, "Our father is old, and there is no man anywhere nearby to have sexual relations with us, according to the way of all the world. 32 Come, let's make our father drunk with wine so we can have sexual relations with him and preserve our family line through our father."  33 So that night they made their father drunk with wine, and the older daughter came and had sexual relations with her father. But he was not aware that she had sexual relations with him and then got up.   34 So in the morning the older daughter said to the younger, "Since I had sexual relations with my father last night, let's make him drunk again tonight. Then you go and have sexual relations with him so we can preserve our family line through our father."   35 So they made their father drunk that night as well, and the younger one came and had sexual relations with him. But he was not aware that she had sexual relations with him and then got up. 36 In this way both of Lot's daughters became pregnant by their father. 37 The older daughter gave birth to a son and named him Moab. He is the ancestor of the Moabites of today. 38 The younger daughter also gave birth to a son and named him Ben-Ammi. He is the ancestor of the Ammonites of today.”

In the case of Lot’s daughters, we find they are addicted to fear. It is fear that drives them to do this universally repulsive act, in order to preserve their family line. The rest of the family, including Lot’s wife, had perished in Sodom, and now these two virginal daughters are scrabbling around in a cave with their father, who up until this point had been a wealthy man. Having lost everything, Lot’s daughters turn in desperation to incest in order to produce not only male heirs, but also someone to take care of them when they became old.

Our addictions enslave us, they can drive us to do foolish and destructive things. And it is not a matter of curing our addictions, which we are unable to do, but rather shift them so that they become beneficial to us rather than harmful. God has designed us to be addicted to him, He has designed us so that we go through horrendous withdrawal symptoms if we are separated from Him. By surrendering to His control over our lives, we receive what we truly need, rather than finding ourselves in a cave committing incest.

The City

The city has long represented a place of vice and corruption in the Western mind. There are countless stories that entail the young country innocent encountering the Big City for the first time, and in many of those stories, it isn’t long before the young innocent encounters someone who takes advantage of him. Pinnochio is an excellent example of such a story. A movie entitled The Village is another, although in that story it is the fear of “the towns” rather than the reality that is more harmful. The story of the Prodigal Son (Luke 15) is a biblical example. The moral of these types of stories generally has something to do with appreciating the love, security, and goodness to be found at home and hearth.

Genesis 19:18-29
“But Lot said to them, "No, please, Lord!   19 Your servant has found favor with you, and you have shown me great kindness by sparing my life. But I am not able to escape to the mountains because this disaster will overtake me and I'll die.   20 Look, this town over here is close enough to escape to, and it's just a little one. Let me go there. It's just a little place, isn't it? Then I'll survive."  21 "Very well," he replied, "I will grant this request too and will not overthrow the town you mentioned. 22 Run there quickly, for I cannot do anything until you arrive there." (This incident explains why the town was called Zoar.)  23 The sun had just risen over the land as Lot reached Zoar.   24 Then the Lord rained down sulfur and fire on Sodom and Gomorrah. It was sent down from the sky by the Lord.   25 So he overthrew those cities and all that region, including all the inhabitants of the cities and the vegetation that grew from the ground. 26 But Lot's wife looked back longingly and was turned into a pillar of salt. 27 Abraham got up early in the morning and went to the place where he had stood before the Lord. 28 He looked out toward Sodom and Gomorrah and all the land of that region. As he did so, he saw the smoke rising up from the land like smoke from a furnace.  29 So when God destroyed the cities of the region, God honored Abraham's request. He removed Lot from the midst of the destruction when he destroyed the cities Lot had lived in.”

Even though Lot was fairly hypocritical in his involvement with Sodom and Gomorrah, including his shabby treatment of his own virginal daughters, God still rescues him and his family from destruction. More than this, Lot actually bargains with God so that they will not have to flee as far in order to escape. Lot and his daughters escape (although considering the next part of the story it might have been better for them to have been destroyed). Lot’s wife, however, disobeys the angels’ orders and looks back toward the cities. The implication is that it was more than a mere curiosity to see what God was doing that prompted her to turn around – it was a spiritual longing for what Sodom and Gomorrah had to offer – pleasures and entertainments and high society.

Today in America, most people live in or near cities. The current culture lifts up the city as a place of tolerance and diversity, as opposed to the supposed small-mindedness and bigotry of the country folk. But not much has changed since Sodom and Gomorrah; there are the same men wandering the streets and bus stations and airport bathrooms, waiting for some hayseed fresh from Sticksville.

Our Faces Will Burn With Shame

There’s an old saw about Christians being hypocrites. The saw is generally true, in the sense that we proclaim  a holy God who has called us to holy living but regularly fall short. That unbelievers say this so often about us is a problem, though. Part of the blame is ours, because like to pretend we’ve got it all under control, even though we don’t in the slightest.  I usually try to disarm any false appearances, because they are very difficult to live up to.

It is tough to walk your faith before your critics. They hold you to a higher standard than they do themselves, and any misstep along the way could influence their understanding of what it means to being a disciple of Jesus.

Genesis 19:1-17
“The two angels came to Sodom in the evening while Lot was sitting in the city's gateway. When Lot saw them, he got up to meet them and bowed down with his face toward the ground. 2 He said, "Here, my lords, please turn aside to your servant's house. Stay the night and wash your feet. Then you can be on your way early in the morning." "No," they replied, "we'll spend the night in the town square."  3 But he urged them persistently, so they turned aside with him and entered his house. He prepared a feast for them, including bread baked without yeast, and they ate. 4 Before they could lie down to sleep, all the men - both young and old, from every part of the city of Sodom - surrounded the house.   5 They shouted to Lot, "Where are the men who came to you tonight? Bring them out to us so we can have sex with them!" 6 Lot went outside to them, shutting the door behind him. 7 He said, "No, my brothers! Don't act so wickedly!   8 Look, I have two daughters who have never had sexual relations with a man. Let me bring them out to you, and you can do to them whatever you please. Only don't do anything to these men, for they have come under the protection of my roof." 9 "Out of our way!" they cried, and "This man came to live here as a foreigner, and now he dares to judge us! We'll do more harm to you than to them!" They kept pressing in on Lot until they were close enough to break down the door. 10 So the men inside reached out and pulled Lot back into the house as they shut the door. 11 Then they struck the men who were at the door of the house, from the youngest to the oldest, with blindness. The men outside wore themselves out trying to find the door. 12 Then the two visitors said to Lot, "Who else do you have here? Do you have any sons-in-law, sons, daughters, or other relatives in the city? Get them out of this place 13 because we are about to destroy it. The outcry against this place is so great before the Lord that he has sent us to destroy it." 14 Then Lot went out and spoke to his sons-in-law who were going to marry his daughters. He said, "Quick, get out of this place because the Lord is about to destroy the city!" But his sons-in-law thought he was ridiculing them.  15 At dawn the angels hurried Lot along, saying, "Get going! Take your wife and your two daughters who are here, or else you will be destroyed when the city is judged!"   16 When Lot hesitated, the men grabbed his hand and the hands of his wife and two daughters because the Lord had compassion on them. They led them away and placed them outside the city. 17 When they had brought them outside, they said, "Run for your lives! Don't look behind you or stop anywhere in the valley! Escape to the mountains or you will be destroyed!"

In the debate with ourselves and with our culture over homosexuality, this passage is one of the most often used. The argument usually centers around God’s condemnation of Sodom and Gomorrah, the reason being that the men were homosexuals. This is not exactly the issue here. The problem with using this passage as a prooftext for homosexuality as sin is that those on the other side of the debate will then argue semantics. They will say that what God is condemning is rape or a gross violation of the hospitality expected between a host and guest. They are right, but the fact that the men of the town are also attempting homosexual rape of two men in the care of Lot and his family adds another layer sinfulness. They are so focused on this heinous act that they brush aside Lot’s offer of his two virgin daughters in exchange for his guests’ safety.

Which brings us to the other issue here. Lot may be Abraham’s nephew, but he is morally corrupt. He had chosen to live in a place where sinful rebellion had sunk to the very depths of evil. He had betrothed his daughters to Sodomite men, forming familial and political alliances with people who had no ethical and moral boundaries. As the epitome of Lot’s complete hypocrisy, he is willing to throw his daughters to these dogs outside his door, knowing that his guests are angels of the Lord. I don’t know if he could ever look his daughters in the eye again, let alone these angels of God. And yet, Lot is still rescued from total destruction.

God’s mercy and compassion even cover those buried in corruption. We may be hypocrites at times, but when God decides to spare us from annihilation, nothing can stand in His way, especially our own hollow souls. He reaches down and plucks us from the quicksand of our Sodomite situation and lifts our heads until our eyes meet His and our faces burn in shame.

What would you ask for if you could make a deal with God?

One of the most underrated artists of the 1980's was Kate Bush. The British singer's work is unique in a sea of lesser offerings. She was well-loved in the alternative music scene, but not well-known in mainstream music. One of her biggest hits was a song called "Running Up That Hill" :

"And if I only could, I'd make a deal with God,
And I'd get him to swap our places, Be running up that road,
Be running up that hill, Be running up that building."

What would you ask for if you could make a deal with God?

Genesis 18:16-33
“When the men got up to leave, they looked out over Sodom. (Now Abraham was walking with them to see them on their way.)   17 Then the Lord said, "Should I hide from Abraham what I am about to do?   18 After all, Abraham will surely become a great and powerful nation, and all the nations on the earth will pronounce blessings on one another using his name. 19 I have chosen him so that he may command his children and his household after him to keep the way of the Lord by doing what is right and just. Then the Lord will give to Abraham what he promised him." 20 So the Lord said, "The outcry against Sodom and Gomorrah is so great and their sin so blatant   21 that I must go down and see if they are as wicked as the outcry suggests. If not, I want to know." 22 The two men turned and headed toward Sodom, but Abraham was still standing before the Lord.   23 Abraham approached and said, "Will you sweep away the godly along with the wicked? 24 What if there are fifty godly people in the city? Will you really wipe it out and not spare the place for the sake of the fifty godly people who are in it? 25 Far be it from you to do such a thing - to kill the godly with the wicked, treating the godly and the wicked alike! Far be it from you! Will not the judge of the whole earth do what is right?"  26 So the Lord replied, "If I find in the city of Sodom fifty godly people, I will spare the whole place for their sake." 27 Then Abraham asked, "Since I have undertaken to speak to the Lord (although I am but dust and ashes),   28 what if there are five less than the fifty godly people? Will you destroy the whole city because five are lacking?" He replied, "I will not destroy it if I find forty-five there." 29 Abraham spoke to him again, "What if forty are found there?" He replied, "I will not do it for the sake of the forty." 30 Then Abraham said, "May the Lord not be angry so that I may speak! What if thirty are found there?" He replied, "I will not do it if I find thirty there." 31 Abraham said, "Since I have undertaken to speak to the Lord, what if only twenty are found there?" He replied, "I will not destroy it for the sake of the twenty." 32 Finally Abraham said, "May the Lord not be angry so that I may speak just once more. What if ten are found there?" He replied, "I will not destroy it for the sake of the ten." 33 The Lord went on his way when he had finished speaking to Abraham. Then Abraham returned home.”

Abraham has the audacity to make a deal with God over how many righteous people are required to save a city. This was only possible because God seemed interested in interacting with Abraham in this way. God is talking to Himself out loud in Abraham's hearing, so it seems that He wanted some of Abraham's input on the matter. Abraham was motivated by the fact that his nephew Lot and his family were living in Sodom at the time. Lot has made the foolish decision to place himself among a people with a large reputation for debauchery. His timing couldn't have been worse, since God had decided that the evil of the people living there had reached the threshold of gracious tolerance. But Abraham counts on God's justice and mercy to stay His fist of judgment.

We try to make deals with God all the time, even those who don't really believe in Him. From the lips of a young child comes the universal pattern for bargaining with God: "If I promise to eat all my vegetables and do all my chores, can I have a puppy?" The adult version of this procedure for haggling only changes the elements within: "If I promise to be a better person, or start  going to church more often, or not yell at my kids, can I have a better job, or happiness, or another chance?"

It usually doesn't occur to people that the best way to make a deal with God is to seek out His justice and mercy, like Abraham did. This means understanding that God is more interested in saving the lost than giving you a puppy.

Its better than circumcision.....

Christians are not visually distinct from the rest the people in the world. Unlike medieval Europe and Nazi Germany, where Jews were forced to wear particular items of clothing to mark themselves, Christians have no such indicators. There are some sects, such as the Amish and the Mennonites, who have adopted a distinctive dress, but this is only obvious in the present. When the Amish and Mennonites were formulating, the dress they chose was very similar to others around them. Their dress is characteristic today because it has been frozen in time.

We are basically indistinct from other people, and yet we know our eternal home is not in this world. We blend in when it is convenient to do, and people walk by us without knowing that we are carrying the Divine Majesty within us. We feel the pull of the eternal world on our soul, even while we are getting the kids dressed for school or filling the gas tank.

This conundrum is nothing new to disciples of Jesus. The second-century Epistle to Diognetus offers a self-portrait of the early Christian community:

    “For Christians are distinguished from the rest of men neither by country nor by language nor by customs. For nowhere do they dwell in cities of their own; they do not use any strange form of speech. … But while they dwell in both Greek and barbarian cities, each as his lot was cast, and follow the customs of the land in dress and food and other matters of living, they show forth the remarkable and admittedly strange order of their own citizenship. They live in fatherlands of their own, but as aliens. They share all things as citizens and suffer all things as strangers. Every foreign land is their fatherland, and every fatherland a foreign land. … They pass their days on earth, but they have their citizenship in heaven.”

Genesis 17:1-27
"When Abram was 99 years old, the Lord appeared to him and said, "I am the sovereign God. Walk before me and be blameless.   2 Then I will confirm my covenant between me and you, and I will give you a multitude of descendants."  3 Abram bowed down with his face to the ground, and God said to him,   4 "As for me, this is my covenant with you: You will be the father of a multitude of nations. 5 No longer will your name be Abram. Instead, your name will be Abraham because I will make you the father of a multitude of nations. 6 I will make you extremely fruitful. I will make nations of you, and kings will descend from you.   7 I will confirm my covenant as a perpetual covenant between me and you. It will extend to your descendants after you throughout their generations. I will be your God and the God of your descendants after you.   8 I will give the whole land of Canaan - the land where you are now residing - to you and your descendants after you as a permanent possession. I will be their God." 9 Then God said to Abraham, "As for you, you must keep the covenantal requirement I am imposing on you and your descendants after you throughout their generations. 10 This is my requirement that you and your descendants after you must keep: Every male among you must be circumcised.   11 You must circumcise the flesh of your foreskins. This will be a reminder of the covenant between me and you. 12 Throughout your generations every male among you who is eight days old must be circumcised, whether born in your house or bought with money from any foreigner who is not one of your descendants. 13 They must indeed be circumcised, whether born in your house or bought with money. The sign of my covenant will be visible in your flesh as a permanent reminder. 14 Any uncircumcised male who has not been circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin will be cut off from his people - he has failed to carry out my requirement."  15 Then God said to Abraham, "As for your wife, you must no longer call her Sarai; Sarah will be her name. 16 I will bless her and will give you a son through her. I will bless her and she will become a mother of nations. Kings of countries will come from her!" 17 Then Abraham bowed down with his face to the ground and laughed as he said to himself, "Can a son be born to a man who is a hundred years old? Can Sarah bear a child at the age of ninety?"   18 Abraham said to God, "O that Ishmael might live before you!"  19 God said, "No, Sarah your wife is going to bear you a son, and you will name him Isaac. I will confirm my covenant with him as a perpetual covenant for his descendants after him. 20 As for Ishmael, I have heard you. I will indeed bless him, make him fruitful, and give him a multitude of descendants. He will become the father of twelve princes; I will make him into a great nation. 21 But I will establish my covenant with Isaac, whom Sarah will bear to you at this set time next year." 22 When he finished speaking with Abraham, God went up from him. 23 Abraham took his son Ishmael and every male in his household (whether born in his house or bought with money) and circumcised them on that very same day, just as God had told him to do. 24 Now Abraham was 99 years old when he was circumcised;   25 his son Ishmael was thirteen years old when he was circumcised. 26 Abraham and his son Ishmael were circumcised on the very same day. 27 All the men of his household, whether born in his household or bought with money from a foreigner, were circumcised with him."

Abraham and the other males of his family were to be marked physically as a sign of the contract between them and God. It would intimately separate them from the rest of the world. They would be set apart as a people, as a reminder of the covenant and promises made. Every eight-day old boy would be brought into this exclusive club with a painful initiation.

Christians are circumcised as well, but internally. Our hearts are circumcised by the Holy Spirit, both male and female. We have been marked as separate from others, with the pain coming from a renunciation of the world’s desires and placing one foot on earth and one already in heaven.

Still, maybe we should wear cool hats or something.

The Infertile Ways and Means

I knew almost nothing beyond a superficial knowledge of infertility treatments before I entered the world of adoption. Krista and I had known from very early on in our marriage that we would most likely have to adopt in order to have children, so we were about 95% there already when it came time to really think about raising children. We spent about a day wandering around in a daze after being told by a doctor that it wasn’t going to happen for us, then we moved right on into preparing for our first adopted child. But in my work as a pastor and a social worker for our adoption agency, I have encountered many couples who have really agonized over the fact that they can’t conceive. They spend tens of thousands of dollars on drugs, hormone shots, in vitro fertilization, and other methods in the effort to have a child with their exact genes.

Genesis 16
“Now Sarai, Abram's wife, had not given birth to any children, but she had an Egyptian servant named Hagar.   2 So Sarai said to Abram, "Since the Lord has prevented me from having children, have sexual relations with my servant. Perhaps I can have a family by her." Abram did what Sarai told him. 3 So after Abram had lived in Canaan for ten years, Sarai, Abram's wife, gave Hagar, her Egyptian servant, to her husband to be his wife.   4 He had sexual relations with Hagar, and she became pregnant. Once Hagar realized she was pregnant, she despised Sarai.   5 Then Sarai said to Abram, "You have brought this wrong on me! I allowed my servant to have sexual relations with you, but when she realized that she was pregnant, she despised me. May the Lord judge between you and me!"  6 Abram said to Sarai, "Since your servant is under your authority, do to her whatever you think best." Then Sarai treated Hagar harshly, so she ran away from Sarai.  7 The Lord's angel found Hagar near a spring of water in the desert - the spring that is along the road to Shur.   8 He said, "Hagar, servant of Sarai, where have you come from, and where are you going?" She replied, "I'm running away from my mistress, Sarai." 9 Then the Lord's angel said to her, "Return to your mistress and submit to her authority. 10 I will greatly multiply your descendants," the Lord's angel added, "so that they will be too numerous to count."   11 Then the Lord's angel said to her, "You are now pregnant and are about to give birth to a son. You are to name him Ishmael, for the Lord has heard your painful groans.  12 He will be a wild donkey of a man. He will be hostile to everyone, and everyone will be hostile to him. He will live away from his brothers." 13 So Hagar named the Lord who spoke to her, "You are the God who sees me," for she said, "Here I have seen one who sees me!"   14 That is why the well was called Beer Lahai Roi. (It is located between Kadesh and Bered.) 15 So Hagar gave birth to Abram's son, whom Abram named Ishmael.   16 (Now Abram was 86 years old when Hagar gave birth to Ishmael.)”

Abram, even though he has just been told by God (again!) that he was going to have more descendants than he could ever count, took matters into his own hands when Sarai presented her maid for him. Abram seemed to have a habit of jumping the gun when it came to relying on God to take care of things, and this example is no different. He impregnates Hagar (not the cartoon ;) ), but then is indifferent to her plight when the inevitable catfight occurs between her and Sarai. God intervenes at this point to clean up the mess, and promises Hagar that, even though her descendants will not be the Chosen People, they will be great in and of themselves, although hostile to all others.  By the way, the Koran switches this scenario around to make Isaac instead of Ishmael the outcast, and it is Ishmael who is almost sacrificed by Abram later instead of Isaac.

Personally, I have nothing against infertility treatments or any other means to acquire children. There is deep pain and loss for some people when they recognize that their ability to conceive is impaired in some way. But as an adoptive parent, I can’t help but want to remind them that there are currently millions of children waiting to be adopted all around the world, children who will otherwise never know the love of family.

I am always glad when they come to realize this and start filling out paperwork.

The Bittersweet Nature of the Future

We want so badly to see the future, to control it for our benefit. We want to see things come out in our favor – the right job to take, the right spouse to marry, the right house to buy. Our desire to know the outcome of our choices ahead of time is universal, and yet equally universal is our inability to have what we desire.

There are various theories about why the future remains closed  while the present and the past are open to us. One theory is that the future doesn’t yet exist, that it only comes into being when the future becomes the present. Another theory is even if you could know something of the future, how much of it is flexible enough to change to your advantage? How would knowing the future affect your decisions in the present?

Genesis 15
"After these things the word of the Lord came to Abram in a vision: "Fear not, Abram! I am your shield and the one who will reward you in great abundance."2 But Abram said, "O sovereign Lord, what will you give me since I continue to be childless, and my heir is Eliezer of Damascus?"   3 Abram added, "Since you have not given me a descendant, then look, one born in my house will be my heir!"  4 But look, the word of the Lord came to him: "This man will not be your heir, but instead a son who comes from your own body will be your heir."   5 The Lord took him outside and said, "Gaze into the sky and count the stars - if you are able to count them!" Then he said to him, "So will your descendants be." 6 Abram believed the Lord, and the Lord considered his response of faith as proof of genuine loyalty.  7 The Lord said to him, "I am the Lord who brought you out from Ur of the Chaldeans to give you this land to possess." 8 But Abram said, "O sovereign Lord, by what can I know that I am to possess it?" 9 The Lord said to him, "Take for me a heifer, a goat, and a ram, each three years old, along with a dove and a young pigeon." 10 So Abram took all these for him and then cut them in two and placed each half opposite the other, but he did not cut the birds in half. 11 When birds of prey came down on the carcasses, Abram drove them away. 12 When the sun went down, Abram fell sound asleep, and great terror overwhelmed him.   13 Then the Lord said to Abram, "Know for certain that your descendants will be strangers in a foreign country. They will be enslaved and oppressed for four hundred years. 14 But I will execute judgment on the nation that they will serve. Afterward they will come out with many possessions. 15 But as for you, you will go to your ancestors in peace and be buried at a good old age.   16 In the fourth generation your descendants will return here, for the sin of the Amorites has not yet reached its limit."  17 When the sun had gone down and it was dark, a smoking firepot with a flaming torch passed between the animal parts.   18 That day the Lord made a covenant with Abram: "To your descendants I give this land, from the river of Egypt to the great river, the Euphrates River -  19 the land of the Kenites, Kenizzites, Kadmonites, 20 Hittites, Perizzites, Rephaites, 21 Amorites, Canaanites, Girgashites, and Jebusites."

Abram had received a promise from God: that he would be the ancestor of countless multitudes. Time went by, however, and Abram still had no children. After moving to a foreign land and dwelling there as an alien, Abram was now wondering if he had somehow misunderstood what the Lord had said. What if Abram had made a mistake in leaving his own people and going to an unfamiliar place?

So Abram did what a lot of us would do in those circumstances, he began to worry and get anxious. And when God appeared to him again some time later, he decided to get some clarification on the matter. But when God came to him in his dreams, we get a glimpse of why God had not revealed the details of Abram’s future to him. The knowledge that his descendants would be enslaved and oppressed for four hundred years must have been a heavy piece of knowledge. Only after this tremendous trial would God’s promise to Abram begin to be fulfilled. Their coming to the Promised Land of Canaan would not only be a homecoming of sorts, it would also be a time of punishment and judgement on the natives in the land, whose evil had finally reached its limit.

I wonder if there was something about God’s voice that alerted Abram to the fact that there was a lot more to the story of his descendants than God was telling him? A tone of bitter sweetness, perhaps?

Dealing with people you don't like

We all have times when we have to interact with someone who we don’t like much. No doubt others have had the same experience with you and me. In those situations, for the most part, we just smile and get through it, though if we’re feeling particularly nasty we might actually be rude. Not very pleasant, but that’s part of life. Occasionally, we might feel a little guilty about it afterwards, but we usually don’t do anything about it. We think, “Jesus wants me to love people, He didn’t say anything about liking them.”

There will always be people around we don’t particularly care for. Something about them just rubs us the wrong way. It may have been a bad first impression, or perhaps you witnessed the person doing something you don’t agree with. It might be that the person is just plain weird, and your instinct is to get away from him or her as soon as possible.

Genesis 14:8-21
“Then the king of Sodom, the king of Gomorrah, the king of Admah, the king of Zeboiim and the king of Bela (that is, Zoar) marched out and drew up their battle lines in the Valley of Siddim 9 against Kedorlaomer king of Elam, Tidal king of Goiim, Amraphel king of Shinar and Arioch king of Ellasar--four kings against five. 10 Now the Valley of Siddim was full of tar pits, and when the kings of Sodom and Gomorrah fled, some of the men fell into them and the rest fled to the hills. 11 The four kings seized all the goods of Sodom and Gomorrah and all their food; then they went away. 12 They also carried off Abram's nephew Lot and his possessions, since he was living in Sodom. 13 One who had escaped came and reported this to Abram the Hebrew. Now Abram was living near the great trees of Mamre the Amorite, a brother of Eshcol and Aner, all of whom were allied with Abram. 14 When Abram heard that his relative had been taken captive, he called out the 318 trained men born in his household and went in pursuit as far as Dan. 15 During the night Abram divided his men to attack them and he routed them, pursuing them as far as Hobah, north of Damascus. 16 He recovered all the goods and brought back his relative Lot and his possessions, together with the women and the other people. 17 After Abram returned from defeating Kedorlaomer and the kings allied with him, the king of Sodom came out to meet him in the Valley of Shaveh (that is, the King's Valley). 18 Then Melchizedek king of Salem brought out bread and wine. He was priest of God Most High, 19 and he blessed Abram, saying, "Blessed be Abram by God Most High, Creator of heaven and earth. 20 And blessed be God Most High, who delivered your enemies into your hand."Then Abram gave him a tenth of everything. 21 The king of Sodom said to Abram, "Give me the people and keep the goods for yourself. 22 But Abram said to the king of Sodom, "I have raised my hand to the LORD, God Most High, Creator of heaven and earth, and have taken an oath 23 that I will accept nothing belonging to you, not even a thread or the thong of a sandal, so that you will never be able to say, 'I made Abram rich.' 24 I will accept nothing but what my men have eaten and the share that belongs to the men who went with me--to Aner, Eshcol and Mamre. Let them have their share." 

Abram rescued his nephew Lot, who had been kidnaped by a raiding party from his home in Sodom. In doing so, however, he was forced to come into contact with the king of Sodom, and from reading between the lines, Abram did not like him at all. “Why would that boy want to live in such a place, and with such a despicable king for a ruler?” Abram refused to keep anything he retrieved in the raid, so it couldn’t be said that Sodom made Abram rich.

In the middle of this story, though, something strange happens. The king of Salem came out to meet with Abram and Abram gave a tenth of his plunder to Melchizedek. This happened before he met with the king of Sodom. Melchizedek was a priest of “God Most High” (El-Elyon) and came with a blessing for Abram. At this point it is hard to know if Abram understood who Melichizedek was or which God he served. This obscure figure is mentioned later in the New Testament as a foreshadow or type of Christ. But why did Melchizedek come out and bless Abram, and why did Abram give a tenth of his plunder to him?

Maybe Melchizedek just didn’t rub him the wrong way.

In Greed We Trust

Our culture is very seductive. Based on a free market economy, there are literally millions of sales to be made every year. We are constantly asked to evaluate our current happiness, with the not-so-subtle implication that we would be so much happier if we had that new car or tube of toothpaste. We scoff at such a ridiculous notion – that a thing could make someone happy – and then we go buy it anyway.

We have been steeped in greed from birth, so much so that we don’t even recognize it around us, much as a fish doesn’t recognize that it is swimming in water. We all know that money can’t buy the truly important things, but the billions spent each year on stuff we don’t need declares a large disparity between what we know and what we do. Our intentions and our actions are at odds with each other.

Genesis 13
"So Abram went up from Egypt to the Negev, with his wife and everything he had, and Lot went with him. 2 Abram had become very wealthy in livestock and in silver and gold. 3 From the Negev he went from place to place until he came to Bethel, to the place between Bethel and Ai where his tent had been earlier 4 and where he had first built an altar. There Abram called on the name of the LORD. 5 Now Lot, who was moving about with Abram, also had flocks and herds and tents. 6 But the land could not support them while they stayed together, for their possessions were so great that they were not able to stay together. 7 And quarreling arose between Abram's herdsmen and the herdsmen of Lot. The Canaanites and Perizzites were also living in the land at that time. 8 So Abram said to Lot, "Let's not have any quarreling between you and me, or between your herdsmen and mine, for we are brothers. 9 Is not the whole land before you? Let's part company. If you go to the left, I'll go to the right; if you go to the right, I'll go to the left." 10 Lot looked up and saw that the whole plain of the Jordan was well watered, like the garden of the LORD, like the land of Egypt, toward Zoar. (This was before the LORD destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah.) 11 So Lot chose for himself the whole plain of the Jordan and set out toward the east. The two men parted company: 12 Abram lived in the land of Canaan, while Lot lived among the cities of the plain and pitched his tents near Sodom. 13 Now the men of Sodom were wicked and were sinning greatly against the LORD. 14 The LORD said to Abram after Lot had parted from him, "Lift up your eyes from where you are and look north and south, east and west. 15 All the land that you see I will give to you and your offspring forever. 16 I will make your offspring like the dust of the earth, so that if anyone could count the dust, then your offspring could be counted. 17 Go, walk through the length and breadth of the land, for I am giving it to you." 18 So Abram moved his tents and went to live near the great trees of Mamre at Hebron, where he built an altar to the LORD."

Abram, as the patriarch of the family, did not in any way have to offer Lot the pick of the best pasture. Through the eyes of oriental culture, it was a vastly generous bestowal. Lot shows a glimpse of his true nature in choosing the better of the grazing land, another cultural surprise when courtesy demanded the opposite. More than likely, Lot wasn’t fully conscious of what he was doing in choosing the plain of the Jordan, where not only was there the best grass for his herds but also cities infamous for their evil. We find out soon enough the results of this decision, but for now we should note that Lot’s greed directed him to override cultural courtesy and placed him in harm’s way.

I have noticed that many people, including myself at times, begin to get very territorial when it comes to money and how it is used. Christians struggle with this as much as non-Christians, because in our tolerant and diverse society it is embarrassing to be shown as greedy, but when the chips are down and how money is earned or spent is questioned, people act a lot differently than normal. And when offered a chance to significantly gain wealth, they will jump at the chance, even if it puts someone else at a disadvantage.

Sodom and Gomorrah was about a Lot more than attempted homosexual rape.

The Snake Coiled Around Your Heart

Fear is a powerful emotion. Rooted in the instinct for self-preservation, fear demands that we act to save ourselves. It is not rational, nor is it influenced by rationality. It is a primal, physiological wave that steeps our brains in fight or flight neurotransmitters.

The situations that prompt this reaction are different for each person. What would be terrifying to one person, such as jumping out of an airplane with a parachute, would be exhilarating for someone else.  I am terrified of drowning, and as such I will not swim in the deep ocean. A Navy SEAL, however, is actually put through the experience of drowning in order to conquer the fear of it. No thanks.

Genesis 12:6-20
"Abram traveled through the land as far as the site of the great tree of Moreh at Shechem. At that time the Canaanites were in the land. 7 The LORD appeared to Abram and said, "To your offspring I will give this land." So he built an altar there to the LORD, who had appeared to him. 8 From there he went on toward the hills east of Bethel and pitched his tent, with Bethel on the west and Ai on the east. There he built an altar to the LORD and called on the name of the LORD. 9 Then Abram set out and continued toward the Negev. 10 Now there was a famine in the land, and Abram went down to Egypt to live there for a while because the famine was severe. 11 As he was about to enter Egypt, he said to his wife Sarai, "I know what a beautiful woman you are. 12 When the Egyptians see you, they will say, 'This is his wife.' Then they will kill me but will let you live. 13 Say you are my sister, so that I will be treated well for your sake and my life will be spared because of you." 14 When Abram came to Egypt, the Egyptians saw that she was a very beautiful woman. 15 And when Pharaoh's officials saw her, they praised her to Pharaoh, and she was taken into his palace. 16 He treated Abram well for her sake, and Abram acquired sheep and cattle, male and female donkeys, menservants and maidservants, and camels. 17 But the LORD inflicted serious diseases on Pharaoh and his household because of Abram's wife Sarai. 18 So Pharaoh summoned Abram. "What have you done to me?" he said. "Why didn't you tell me she was your wife? 19 Why did you say, 'She is my sister,' so that I took her to be my wife? Now then, here is your wife. Take her and go!" 20 Then Pharaoh gave orders about Abram to his men, and they sent him on his way, with his wife and everything he had."

Abram responded out of fear. He assumed that because of Sarai’s beauty, he would be murdered in order for Pharoah to take her into his harem. Sarai must have been amazingly beautiful, because the same thing happens again when she is about 90 years old. Of course, it is also possible that the charm she inhabited was more along the lines of the political and financial benefits of an alliance between Abram and Pharoah than her physical beauty. This would explain why, later on, a 90 year old woman would command such devotion from a king.

In both of these circumstances in which Abram pretended Sarai was his sister ( a half truth, as she was technically his half sister as well as his wife), Abram makes out like a bandit in the end. He gets his wife returned to him, but also receives a large amount of property in order to smooth over this embarrassing incident. Despite Abram’s fear, which was coiled like a snake around his heart, God was still in control. He had made promises to Abram, and God does not break promises.

If only we could remember that better when we ourselves are gripped with fear. When that snake coils its cool body around our quivering heart, we tend to go blank and respond without thinking. And yet, when we do that, we find ourselves in the same predicament as Abram, acting foolishly and embarrassing ourselves or others.

The Restless Wanderer

I have never stayed very long in any one place. I went to three different high schools, during which time I also moved to a different state. Since high school, I have never lived anywhere for more than six years. I guess I get restless, or the Lord opens another door, or I just need to move on. I find it very exciting to move to a new place and learn the terrain, although as I get older I find this less and less appealing!

In my ministry I have met people who have never moved anywhere, or only once or twice in their whole lives. I know of some people who have never even been out of the county in which they were born. They’ve just never seen the need to go elsewhere. They’ve worked the same job for 30 years, retired, and stayed put.

I must admit that these folks puzzle me. Have they never felt a need to roam a little?

Genesis 11:27-12:5
"This is the account of Terah. Terah became the father of Abram, Nahor and Haran. And Haran became the father of Lot. 28 While his father Terah was still alive, Haran died in Ur of the Chaldeans, in the land of his birth. 29 Abram and Nahor both married. The name of Abram's wife was Sarai, and the name of Nahor's wife was Milcah; she was the daughter of Haran, the father of both Milcah and Iscah. 30 Now Sarai was barren; she had no children. 31 Terah took his son Abram, his grandson Lot son of Haran, and his daughter-in-law Sarai, the wife of his son Abram, and together they set out from Ur of the Chaldeans to go to Canaan. But when they came to Haran, they settled there. 32 Terah lived 205 years, and he died in Haran. 12:1 The LORD had said to Abram, "Leave your country, your people and your father's household and go to the land I will show you. 2 "I will make you into a great nation and I will bless you; I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing.  3 I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse; and all peoples on earth  will be blessed through you." 4 So Abram left, as the LORD had told him; and Lot went with him. Abram was seventy-five years old when he set out from Haran. 5 He took his wife Sarai, his nephew Lot, all the possessions they had accumulated and the people they had acquired in Haran, and they set out for the land of Canaan, and they arrived there." 

Why did Terah take Lot, Abram, and Sarai on a trip to Canaan, only to settle down in a place named after his dead son? Did impending old age finally catch up with Terah, and he decided he had wandered enough? I wonder what his final words were to Abram? Perhaps they were something like, “Tell Sarai I am sorry for dragging you both out into the wilderness like this.”

When God spoke to Abram, and told him to go Canaan, was it to complete the journey Terah had set out on? Its possible that God started working with Terah first, but Terah got cold feet when the distance between his birthplace and himself began to grow. So God started again with Abram, who did pull up stakes and move west to Canaan.

In later parts of the biblical record, Abram became known as a “wandering Aramean,” someone who was perpetually on the move in a land that was not his own. He lived as a stranger and an alien to the people he dwelt among.

I can relate.

Our Pride Causes Our Confusion

I really wish I had learned another language when I was younger. I took two and a half years of Spanish in high school, but I was too busy trying to impress my girlfriend to remember anything but what I use to order at Taco Bell.

All four of my children started life immersed in another language than my own. Studies have shown that children who experience two or more languages in their early years develop pathways in their brain that will enable them to learn languages much easier. I am hoping to teach them other languages from the start so that they will be able to converse easily by the time they are teenagers. My own preferences are Latin, Greek, Amharic, Russian, and Spanish, but who knows which will interest them? Maybe they’ll just be able to order at Taco Bell, too.

Genesis 11:1-9
11:1 “Now the whole world had one language and a common speech. 2 As men moved eastward, they found a plain in Shinar and settled there. 3 They said to each other, "Come, let's make bricks and bake them thoroughly." They used brick instead of stone, and tar for mortar. 4 Then they said, "Come, let us build ourselves a city, with a tower that reaches to the heavens, so that we may make a name for ourselves and not be scattered over the face of the whole earth." 5 But the LORD came down to see the city and the tower that the men were building. 6 The LORD said, "If as one people speaking the same language they have begun to do this, then nothing they plan to do will be impossible for them. 7 Come, let us go down and confuse their language so they will not understand each other."8 So the LORD scattered them from there over all the earth, and they stopped building the city. 9 That is why it was called Babel--because there the LORD confused the language of the whole world. From there the LORD scattered them over the face of the whole earth." 

Some of the great problems of our world are the fundamental differences in culture, religion, and language, and yet here we learn that the root of those differences was initiated by God to prevent humanity from working together. Once again the human race had reached a point that pride rose to the top of the list of offenses against their Creator, and once again God put His creatures in their place.

One might wonder why God would be so concerned about a tower. After all, we build towers today that reach half a mile into the sky (one in Dubai just reached past that height).  Perhaps God is just as unhappy about human arrogance today as He was at Babel. Perhaps that is why we can’t get along – our pride causes our confusion.

Missing the point

I don’t know a lot about my ancestors. My maternal grandmother was from Montreal and was French/Italian.  My paternal grandmother was from Arkansas and traced her roots back to 18th century North Carolina. That’s basically all the information I have on my historical relatives. Genealogy has never really interested me much, probably because I have never been close to anyone beyond my own nuclear family.

There are people for whom genealogy is a major interest. Mormons are very interested in their ancestors because they practice baptism for the dead by proxy, in other words, they believe they can be baptized in the place of a long dead ancestor, who will then be allowed into Paradise. Because of this belief, the best institution for genealogical research in the world is in Salt Lake City, Utah, which is headquarters for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.

Genesis 10
10:1 "This is the account of Shem, Ham and Japheth, Noah's sons, who themselves had sons after the flood.  The sons of Japheth: Gomer, Magog, Madai, Javan, Tubal, Meshech and Tiras. 3 The sons of Gomer: Ashkenaz, Riphath and Togarmah. 4 The sons of Javan: Elishah, Tarshish, the Kittim and the Rodanim.   5(From these the maritime peoples spread out into their territories by their clans within their nations, each with its own language.) 6 The sons of Ham: Cush, Mizraim, Put and Canaan. 7 The sons of Cush: Seba, Havilah, Sabtah, Raamah and Sabteca.The sons of Raamah: Sheba and Dedan. 8 Cush was the father of Nimrod, who grew to be a mighty warrior on the earth. 9 He was a mighty hunter before the LORD; that is why it is said, "Like Nimrod, a mighty hunter before the LORD." 10 The first centers of his kingdom were Babylon, Erech, Akkad and Calneh, in Shinar.   11 From that land he went to Assyria, where he built Nineveh, Rehoboth Ir, Calah 12 and Resen, which is between Nineveh and Calah; that is the great city. 13 Mizraim was the father of  the Ludites, Anamites, Lehabites, Naphtuhites, 14 Pathrusites, Casluhites (from whom the Philistines came) and Caphtorites. 15 Canaan was the father of Sidon his firstborn, and of the Hittites, 16 Jebusites, Amorites, Girgashites, 17 Hivites, Arkites, Sinites, 18 Arvadites, Zemarites and Hamathites. Later the Canaanite clans scattered 19 and the borders of Canaan reached from Sidon toward Gerar as far as Gaza, and then toward Sodom, Gomorrah, Admah and Zeboiim, as far as Lasha. 20 These are the sons of Ham by their clans and languages, in their territories and nations. 21 Sons were also born to Shem, whose older brother was Japheth; Shem was the ancestor of all the sons of Eber.  22 The sons of Shem: Elam, Asshur, Arphaxad, Lud and Aram. 23 The sons of Aram: Uz, Hul, Gether and Meshech.   24 Arphaxad was the father of Shelah, and Shelah the father of Eber. 25 Two sons were born to Eber: One was named Peleg, because in his time the earth was divided; his brother was named Joktan. 26 Joktan was the father of Almodad, Sheleph, Hazarmaveth, Jerah, 27 Hadoram, Uzal, Diklah, 28 Obal, Abimael, Sheba, 29 Ophir, Havilah and Jobab. All these were sons of Joktan. 30 The region where they lived stretched from Mesha toward Sephar, in the eastern hill country. 31 These are the sons of Shem by their clans and languages, in their territories and nations. 32 These are the clans of Noah's sons, according to their lines of descent, within their nations. From these the nations spread out over the earth after the flood."

This genealogical survey of Noah’s descendants record the growth and migration of people all around the Mediterranean Sea, from Spain to Egypt. In this primordial chronicle, most of the names are obscure – their deeds and memories lost in the mists of time.

There is some debate as to when this all happened. There is a record of a flood in the Mediterranean region, as well as elsewhere, some 2,000 to 3,000 years before Christ, but this is only one of many floods that have occurred over time in the area.

The main problem with the prehistorical section of Genesis (chapters 1-11) is, as the term implies, the events are beyond normal historical reckoning. They exist in the long memories of an orally-oriented ancient society. Written records of biblical accounts did not appear much before 1100 BC, around the time Israel became a monarchy under Saul. Up until that point, the stories and teachings of God and His Chosen People were handed down in oral form. They were recounted around the fire at night, through the Levite priests, or taught from father to son and mother to daughter.

In an orally-oriented society, exact dates and details of when, where, and why are not usually considered a priority. The teaching and the deeds of the ancestors are the most important things. So when it comes to the Bible, anything before the calling of Abraham in Genesis 12 is prehistorical, that is, there are no historical indicators of when all these events happened. It could have been hundreds, thousands, or even tens of thousands of years before 2000 BC, when Abraham lived.

This doesn’t mean that these events are mythological, on the contrary, they are important to the biblical record and the physical and spiritual legacy of Israel and the Church. But debates about exacts times for the creation of the world or Noah’s flood or the tower of Babel will never end, and in my opinion, miss the point of the stories entirely.

God's insistence on working with failed, flawed people.

I remember when I began to realize that the Sunday School versions of Bible stories often left a lot of detail out. I didn’t go to church much after junior high, so when I began my first year at Bible college, my understanding of many of the biblical accounts were frozen at that level or younger. So it was a surprise and a fascination to me to discover those stories again in their uncensored form. I began to understand why King David’s family was all messed up, for example, and also why Baal worship was at the same time so popular and so evil.

Something else I realized when I read these stories again with adult eyes was that not every story was neat, tidy, and came with its own handy-dandy moral. Too often, particularly when we read the Old Testament stories, we want to turn them into a kind of Aesop’s Fable – a story whose main importance is the morality lesson at the end. When treated like this, the biblical story and persons involved become almost irrelevant, as if they existed solely to provide a means to teach the reader some important life-lesson.

Genesis 9:18-29
"The sons of Noah who came out of the ark were Shem, Ham and Japheth. (Ham was the father of Canaan.) 19 These were the three sons of Noah, and from them came the people who were scattered over the earth. 20 Noah, a man of the soil, proceeded to plant a vineyard. 21 When he drank some of its wine, he became drunk and lay uncovered inside his tent. 22 Ham, the father of Canaan, saw his father's nakedness and told his two brothers outside. 23 But Shem and Japheth took a garment and laid it across their shoulders; then they walked in backward and covered their father's nakedness. Their faces were turned the other way so that they would not see their father's nakedness. 24 When Noah awoke from his wine and found out what his youngest son had done to him, 25 he said, "Cursed be Canaan! The lowest of slaves will he be to his brothers." 26 He also said, "Blessed be the LORD, the God of Shem! May Canaan be the slave of Shem.   27 May God extend the territory of Japheth; may Japheth live in the tents of Shem, and may Canaan be his slave." 28 After the flood Noah lived 350 years. 29 Altogether, Noah lived 950 years, and then he died." 

As I mentioned above, there is more to the Bible stories than the flannelgraph version. This particular story is usually not told in Sunday School because of two embarrassing revelations – one is obvious and the other is more subtle in nuance. The first is that Noah was a drunk, or at least he got very, very drunk on this occasion. This seems to explain why Shem and Japheth were embarrassed when Ham came out of his father’s tent and told them he had seen their father passed out naked inside. But why would Noah, when he recovered from his inebriation, call down curses upon Ham, who had seemed to act out of concern that Noah not be dishonored?

The answer seems to be, especially when compared to other places in the Old Testament where the phrase is used, that when Ham “saw his father’s nakedness,” it implies more than the literal truth of the statement. It appears that Ham raped his father while he was drunk, thus dishonoring Noah in a fundamental way. When Ham came out of the tent to brag to his brothers, they were ashamed and walked in backward with a blanket between them so as not to see anything.

This explains much more fully why Noah cursed Ham and his Canaanite descendants so vehemently. It also explains why the Canaanites as a people were to be wiped out by the children of Israel when they came into the Promised Land from Egypt, as apparently the Canaanites continued this and other detestable practices.

Try putting together a “moral of the story” on this one. (Don’t rape your father? Don’t get drunk when your sons are around? Homosexual rape is a good reason to curse a whole people?)

I think, rather than tack some kind of teachable moment on the end, it would be better just to tell the story and allow people to understand that even though God had wiped out most of the human race because of evil, sin and its corruption still existed. Noah may have found favor in the eyes of the Lord before the flood, but in the end remained a flawed, failed human being, fallen short like the rest of us.

Beyond Here Be Dragons!

We all navigate through our lives using a kind of mental/emotional map. Once certain routines are established, such as workplace environment, housing arrangements, how survival needs are met, driving routes, etc., our mental/emotional map comforts us by defining the Known for us. When we no longer have to think or be very emotionally engaged in pioneering the basic routines of our lives, our minds can rest more comfortably and focus on less pressing matters.

It takes tremendous energy to pioneer those routines – that’s why it is so hard to start a new job, for example. You have to learn the expectations of the new job, yes, but there’s a great deal more to it than just learning how to do the job required of you, isn’t there? You have to figure out what time you should get up in the morning in order to be ready for work on time, what is appropriate dress for your new job, what the typical mood of the workplace stays within (light-hearted, serious, unpredictable?), what pace to set for yourself during the work day, and many other unknown territories that are currently off the edge of your mental/emotional map. During the pioneering phase of this mapwork, you are barely able to drag yourself into bed at night, but after a while – a few weeks, month, six months –it gets easier. The unknown becomes the routine, and your mental/emotional map is pushed out further, to buffer against the dragons living  past beyond its borders.

But what would happen if your whole map was erased?

Genesis 9:1-17
“Then God blessed Noah and his sons, saying to them, "Be fruitful and increase in number and fill the earth. 2 The fear and dread of you will fall upon all the beasts of the earth and all the birds of the air, upon every creature that moves along the ground, and upon all the fish of the sea; they are given into your hands. 3 Everything that lives and moves will be food for you. Just as I gave you the green plants, I now give you everything. 4 "But you must not eat meat that has its lifeblood still in it. 5 And for your lifeblood I will surely demand an accounting. I will demand an accounting from every animal. And from each man, too, I will demand an accounting for the life of his fellow man. 6 "Whoever sheds the blood of man, by man shall his blood be shed; for in the image of God has God made man. 7 As for you, be fruitful and increase in number; multiply on the earth and increase upon it." 8 Then God said to Noah and to his sons with him: 9 "I now establish my covenant with you and with your descendants after you 10 and with every living creature that was with you--the birds, the livestock and all the wild animals, all those that came out of the ark with you--every living creature on earth. 11 I establish my covenant with you: Never again will all life be cut off by the waters of a flood; never again will there be a flood to destroy the earth." 12 And God said, "This is the sign of the covenant I am making between me and you and every living creature with you, a covenant for all generations to come: 13 I have set my rainbow in the clouds, and it will be the sign of the covenant between me and the earth. 14 Whenever I bring clouds over the earth and the rainbow appears in the clouds, 15 I will remember my covenant between me and you and all living creatures of every kind. Never again will the waters become a flood to destroy all life. 16 Whenever the rainbow appears in the clouds, I will see it and remember the everlasting covenant between God and all living creatures of every kind on the earth." 17 So God said to Noah, "This is the sign of the covenant I have established between me and all life on the earth.”

In loosing the flood upon the earth, God was wiping the map clean. Well, almost. It wasn’t a complete wash (pardon the pun), since God kept a remnant from which to build again in the person of Noah and those with him on the ark. When Noah, his family, and all the animals emerged from the ark, there was still some ragged bits of the mental/emotional map left to navigate by. But not much.

So, God established a new map for Noah and his descendants. He set out a new agreement upon which He would interact with humanity once again. In it, God required certain things from Noah, and He also made certain promises, the main one being He would never destroy earthly life by flood again. He offered the rainbow as a sign of His promise. Noah was made to understand that Cain’s murder of Abel would not be tolerated, that there would be a blood for blood restitution on those who killed another. Blood was also a factor in how people would eat – there was to be no lifeblood remaining in the meat they ate. The animals would no longer tolerate the presence of human beings as they did on the ark, and they would flee and hide from people. In addition, Noah and his family were expected to be fruitful and multiply their numbers upon the earth, filling it up.

How long was it before Noah found the edge of his map again? “Beyond here, there be dragons.” For you, Noah, the dragons lurk not too far away. Get your pioneering boots on, there’s a lot of mapping to do.

The Difficulties of a Very Stuck Elephant

International adoption is a hurry-up and wait experience. There are mounds of paperwork to go through, upon which the whole mechanism of adoption depends, but when you finish your part, it’s time to wait. You wait for the social worker to schedule a home study, for the social worker to actually visit your home, and for the social worker to write up the home study proper. Just those three things can take a couple of months. Adding to that waiting period is scheduling an appointment with INS to get fingerprinted, getting your clearance from INS, and waiting for the Federal government to record your clearance with the embassy of the particular country you are adopting from.

All of the above is only the preliminary stage of the process. Once your dossier is complete, it is sent to the government of the target country. At that point, you’ve done your part, and there is nothing to do but wait. Depending on the country, the waiting can be up to 18 months, before you receive a referral for a child. Then there is usually a couple of months or more to wait until everything is cleared for you to travel and meet your child for the first time.

Genesis 8:1-21
“But God remembered Noah and all the wild animals and the livestock that were with him in the ark, and he sent a wind over the earth, and the waters receded. 2 Now the springs of the deep and the floodgates of the heavens had been closed, and the rain had stopped falling from the sky. 3 The water receded steadily from the earth. At the end of the hundred and fifty days the water had gone down, 4 and on the seventeenth day of the seventh month the ark came to rest on the mountains of Ararat. 5 The waters continued to recede until the tenth month, and on the first day of the tenth month the tops of the mountains became visible. 6 After forty days Noah opened the window he had made in the ark 7 and sent out a raven, and it kept flying back and forth until the water had dried up from the earth. 8 Then he sent out a dove to see if the water had receded from the surface of the ground. 9 But the dove could find no place to set its feet because there was water over all the surface of the earth; so it returned to Noah in the ark. He reached out his hand and took the dove and brought it back to himself in the ark. 10 He waited seven more days and again sent out the dove from the ark. 11 When the dove returned to him in the evening, there in its beak was a freshly plucked olive leaf! Then Noah knew that the water had receded from the earth. 12 He waited seven more days and sent the dove out again, but this time it did not return to him. 13 By the first day of the first month of Noah's six hundred and first year, the water had dried up from the earth. Noah then removed the covering from the ark and saw that the surface of the ground was dry. 14 By the twenty-seventh day of the second month the earth was completely dry. 15 Then God said to Noah, 16 "Come out of the ark, you and your wife and your sons and their wives. 17 Bring out every kind of living creature that is with you--the birds, the animals, and all the creatures that move along the ground--so they can multiply on the earth and be fruitful and increase in number upon it." 18 So Noah came out, together with his sons and his wife and his sons' wives. 19 All the animals and all the creatures that move along the ground and all the birds--everything that moves on the earth--came out of the ark, one kind after another. 20 Then Noah built an altar to the LORD and, taking some of all the clean animals and clean birds, he sacrificed burnt offerings on it. 21 The LORD smelled the pleasing aroma and said in his heart: "Never again will I curse the ground because of man, even though every inclination of his heart is evil from childhood. And never again will I destroy all living creatures, as I have done.”

It must have drove Noah and his family bonkers to be stuck on that boat with all those animals for 6-9 months. However did they pass the time? All the excitement of the Flood had now vanished into all the tedium of watching a bathtub full of water drain out, only on an ocean-sized scale. When the ark came to rest up in the mountains, there must have been some tense conversations between Noah and the other family members about when they were getting out of there.

God’s timing is always best. Whether its international adoption or sitting aboard a large wooden boat full of animals, God has the best schedule for departure. Often in adoption, particularly when there is a long waiting period, people will exclaim that their child hadn’t even been born when they began the process. If things had moved along exactly the way they had wanted them to go, they wouldn’t have the child they have now. God knew exactly which child was going to be placed in that family, and He orchestrated all the events to make it so.

The same was true for Noah and his family. If they had had their own way about when to get off the boat, the elephants would’ve probably sunk up to their eyeballs in mud.

There are few things in life more difficult than getting an elephant unstuck.....

Does anyone have a winch and some cable?