Genesis today includes a vivid picture of the type of tribal conflicts in the Middle East that still make the headlines today. Notice that Abram goes after a coalition of kings using trained men from his own household. It says much about the level of their training and trust for each other.
When he returns, Abram meets a mysterious person named Melchizedek. This meeting has great significance and we will see it referred to much later this year when we read the New Testament book of Hebrews. Some scholars think that this may have been the first time in his life that Abram met another person who believed in only One, true God. Everyone around him worshiped many different gods, but not Abram. He is so moved that he presents a tenth of his battle spoils to this "Prince of Salem." Salem means peace and was also the name for ancient Jerusalem. What do you think about that?
At the close of the Genesis passage, Abram enters a blood covenant with God. Remember, forgiveness of sins requires blood to be shed.
Matthew is from the Sermon on the Mount and shows a deeper view of God's true standard. It's not enough that we outwardly try to obey. Our hearts must be changed.
If Psalms doesn't express your heart experience today, I'm sure you can remember a time when you were broken because of your sins and failures.
In Proverbs, wisdom is crying out for attention.
The prince of Salem story is another one of those spots where we're reminded that God's still active beyond the one plot line we get to read about. To me it's intriguing like where did Cain's wife come from
ReplyDeleteI always have to remind myself that the bible is not a full history of the world (sorry, I'm struggling with blogger reader!)
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