Joel M Bradshaw

16Then the men set out from there, and they looked down toward Sodom. And Abraham went with them to set them on their way. 17The LORD said, “Shall I hide from Abraham what I am about to do, 18seeing that Abraham shall surely become a great and mighty nation, and all the nations of the earth shall be blessed in him? 19For I have chosen him, that he may command his children and his household after him to keep the way of the LORD by doing righteousness and justice, so that the LORD may bring to Abraham what he has promised him.”–Genesis 18

In this context, we have a theophany–a physical appearance of God. Before in Jesus the Word became flesh, theophanies were very rare. There are just. few instances of them in the Old Testament. This scene with Abraham and the three men is probably the most famous one. God was just about to destroy Sodom and Gomorrah and before that Abraham was going to intercede for them. Verse 19 grabbed ahold of me this morning. Let’s ask 3 questions.

1. WHY HAD GOD CHOSEN ABRAHAM? Abraham and his descendants were to keep the way of the Lord by doing righteousness and justice. God chose Abraham to lead his family to live lives that were opposite of the way the residents of Sodom led their lives. There was to be a stark contrast to be had. We are not surprised when Jesus later proclaimed that his disciples were not of the world, but instead sanctified by the truth of the Word of God (John 17:16-17).
2. WHAT WOULD BE THE RESULT OF THEIR OBEDIENCE? That God would bring to Abraham what he had promised him. God’s plan was for Abraham and his family to be different and in that difference God would bless them. In that blessing God would keep his word. This is a theological win-win. God leads man to be faithful and in the process God shows himself to be faithful.
3. WHAT CAN I TAKE FROM THIS? The choices of God lead to his plan being fulfilled. His choices also bring him the most glory. He chooses people on purpose and for a purpose. We can be grateful that God uses our lives to accomplish his will in history. Our situations may at times be stressful and difficult, but we can trust that God is at work in and through our stories.–JMB