Getting To Know God - Part One

Posted on August 26, 2007

 

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Genesis 14:1-15:21

ONE GREAT TRUTH: God wants to be known by you in a multi-faceted way. He wants you to know who He is, but also to come to know Him personally and intimately.

TWO GREAT QUESTIONS…

1.         Do you know the Most High God, Possessor of Heaven and Earth? (El-Elyon)

The confrontation between the two nations of kings in 14:1-12 is significant only in that it serves as an example of warfare. The end of the chapter concerns itself with the spiritual warfare over the souls of men. There is an amazing experience inserted concerning Abram’s taking of his 318 household members and chasing down the four evil kings to have his nephew and others released.

The confrontation between the two kings at the end of the chapter is the significant part of the story, and represents the spiritual warfare that has taken place since the garden of Eden.

·         The King of Sodom is a type, or representative of Satan. His battle cry is “Give me the souls of people, and you take all the riches you want.” That has been Satan’s battle cry throughout the generations, in Jesus’ life, and in our lives today.

·         Melchizedek, King of Salem is a type, or representative of Christ. He is “King of Righteousness” and “King of Peace.” In Psalm 110, David declares that there will arise another priest after the order of Melchizedek and Hebrews 7:1-10 tells us that Jesus fulfilled that literal promise. Melchizedek and Jesus were both prophets, proclaiming the name of the Lord. They were both priests, interceding and mediating between mankind and God. And they were both Kings. His battle cry was “Let us commune together, and give glory to the Most High God!”

2.         Do you know the Master, the Justifier of the Souls of Men? (Adonai)

Abram hatched a back-up plan. “Hey, I’m a master and I have a servant, so I’ll just make my servant my heir, okay?” God’s reply is essentially, “You’re not the Master, I am, and I will keep my promise to you. Just seek me.” Abram was offered a reward by the King of Sodom and wisely refused it. Here, God says, “I, Adonai, your Master, am your reward!”

·         God provides the means of our knowing Him – by faith. (vs. 1-6; Romans 4:4-5)

·         God provides the basis of our knowing Him – by sacrifice. (vs. 7-12)

o         The heifer represents the cleansing of the sinner. (Num. 19)

o         The goat represents the removal of sin to an innocent sacrifice.

o         The ram represents an atoning sacrifice.

o         The birds represent the redemption of the poor.

·         God provides the security of our knowing Him – by covenant. (vs. 13-21) Abraham sees the suffering of the people under Egyptian bondage. He also sees their deliverance and the fulfillment of the Abrahamic covenant. But the most important aspect of this contract is that it is one-sided. God will fulfill it regardless of what Abraham, his descendants, Satan, or anyone else in the world does – it’s simply God’s covenant. The same is true with our salvation through the shed blood of Jesus Christ.

By walking through the midst of the blood of the innocent animals, God forever established that we may only approach Him by going through the blood of Jesus Christ. Do you know Him as your Sacrifice? And do you know Him as Master?