I am using One Year Bible Online for my daily Bible study. For today, One Year Bible Online links here. I have found that by writing this daily blog of what I see when I read these scriptures, I get more out of them. I hope that by posting these ruminations others may get some benefit as well. If you have any thoughts or comments regarding these verses or what I have written about them, please post them. I hope that the Spirit is moving in others through these posts as the Spirit has definitely been convicting me.
     

     After Abram returned to Canaan, disputes began to break out between his herdsmen and those tending Lot’s flocks. Abram realizes that their herds are too big for them to stay together so he suggests they separate. Abram offers Lot the first choice of areas. Lot chose the plain of the Jordan valley near Sodom and Gomorrah. Abram moved his camp to Hebron. Shortly after this war broke out in the region and the kings of Sodom and Gomorrah were on the losing side. The victors plundered the area around Sodom and took captives. Among the captives were Lot and his household. One of Lot’s servants escaped and took news to Abram. Abram gathered his men and his allies and went in pursuit of those who had captured his nephew. Abram overtook them and attacked them at night. He drove off the enemy forces and recovered all of the plundered goods and the captives. Upon his return he was met by the king of Sodom and Melchizedek, the king of Salem. We are told that Melchizedek was a priest to God. Melchizedek blessed Abram and Abram gave him a tenth of the plunder. The king of Sodom asked Abram only to return his people, offering to let Abram keep the plunder. Abram rejected the goods returning all of the goods he had taken, excepting only those that his men had already consumed and a share for his allies.
     Some time after this God appeared to Abram in a vision and told him that He would continue to protect Abram and reward him. Abram asks what is the point in all of these blessings since he has no sons and his servant would inherit his wealth. God tells Abram that he will indeed have a son to inherit his wealth. Despite his advanced years (Abram was around 80 years old at this point), Abram believed God. The passage tells us that God counted Abram as righteous because of his faith.

     Following up what I said yesterday about Jesus saying we should follow the spirit of the law rather than the letter of the law, Jesus gave some specific applications. He said that if you even looked at a woman other than your wife and thought about having sex with her, you were committing adultery. He said that if your eye or your hand caused you to sin, remove them. In other words, you cannot blame something outside of yourself for causing you to sin. If you feel that something presents to you a temptation that you cannot resist, remove it from your life, even if it is something that is otherwise invaluable to you. After telling us that we should cut off our hand if it causes us to sin, Jesus says that if you divorce your wife, you cause her to commit adultery (unless you are divorcing her because she has already committed adultery).
     Jesus goes on to say that we should not take vows. When we say that we will do something, that should be sufficient for people to know that we will do it. The same should be true when we say that we will not do something. When we say something it should be “the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth.” From there Jesus talks about how we should respond to those who wrong us. He tells us that we should go beyond what is forced upon us, even when what is forced upon us is unjust. He tells us that if we are forced to go one mile, we should go a second mile. All too often, when we talk about “going the second mile” we are actually talking about going the first mile. The “first mile” that Jesus talked about put people out and inconvenienced them, very likely it cost them money. But Jesus tells us that if someone demands we go that “first mile”, not only should we willingly do that, we should go beyond that and go a second mile. The “first mile” is something that most people will only do begrudgingly, we should not only not begrudge the first mile, we should go above and beyond that. Not only should we love those who love us and treat us well, we are to love those who hate us and treat us badly. God sends the rain on both those who love and obey Him and those who hate Him and reject His commands. We are to extend our good will, love and resources in the same manner.

     I deserve to be punished by God. I have sinned against Him and against my fellow-man. It often makes me sick to think how callously I treat God’s commands and those around me. I cry out to God to change my heart and make me always desire to do His will. I know that He will answer my prayer.

     If we reject wisdom and do not fear the Lord, we will suffer the consequences. Going our own way and ignoring wise advice will lead us to our own destruction. On the other hand, if we follow wise advice and listen to the Lord’s commands, we will live in peace and have no need to fear.