MONDAY 19 July 2021 “Three Visitors” Genesis 18:1-15

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Hello my “Walking with Jesus” friends,

When was the last time unexpected guests showed up at your door and how did you respond? Hospitality is a dying gift in many parts of our fast paced world, isn’t it, especially hospitality of people you don’t know well or maybe not even at all!

In our journey with Abraham and Sarah, this is exactly what they faced one day… unexpected guests! Join me in Genesis 18. “While Abraham was sitting at the entrance to his tent, in the heat of the day, he looked up and saw three men standing nearby. He hurried from the entrance of his tent to meet them and bowed low to the ground….’do not pass by, let a little water be brought, and then you may wash your feet and rest under this tree. Let me get you something to eat, so you can be refreshed and then be on your way…” (Gen. 18:2) May I ask, does that sound like how you have been received when you showed up unexpectedly, or how you have received other unexpected travelers?

This verse gives us Abraham’s perspective. Three men he’d never seen before, walking in the hot sun of the day. The first verse of Gen. 18 gives us God’s perspective: “The LORD appeared to Abraham…while he was sitting at the entrance to his tent in the heat of the day.” Oh my, suddenly this unexpected encounter between Abraham and three unknown travelers takes on a whole different perspective, doesn’t it? God is involved here! May I invite us to pause just a moment. I see a pattern throughout the Bible and it is this: as normal people like you and me, are going about the normal routines of life, God often takes the initiative to reach into our routine. Sometimes God speaks, sometimes it’s a dream or a vision, sometimes it’s an angel, sometimes it’s a set of circumstances that God is orchestrating, and once in a while, it’s God HIMSELF stepping into our day. That’s what happened to Abraham as he sat under the awning at the entrance to his tent, in the blazing heat of the day. . . God walked by! Don’t write this off as ancient myth or Old Testament stories. God is doing this all the time in our day! I wonder how many times it’s happened to you and me, and we didn’t recognize that God was stepping into our day!? Remember Hebrews 13:2 “Do not forget to entertain strangers, for by so doing some people have entertained angels without knowing it!

So the record says Abraham quickly put servants to work drawing water, killing a choice, tender calf, and having a great meal prepared for three strangers he’d never seen before! Now that’s hospitality! “While they ate, Abraham stood nearby under a tree. ‘Where is your wife Sarah?’ they asked. ‘There in the tent’, Abraham answered. ‘I will surely return to you about this time next year and Sarah, your wife will have a son.” (Gen. 18:9,10) Go ahead, put yourself in this scene. Feel the heat of the day? Smell the fresh cooked meal? See how these three hungry travelers seem so grateful for the kindness of Abraham? But wait… how did they know Abraham’s wife’s name was Sarah? And how did they know God had promised Abraham, in their covenant conversation in Genesis 17, that she would have a miracle son within a year? Who are these guys? Look at Abraham…his eyes are wide open, he’s stroking his beard, he’s confused, maybe even a bit frightened. What’s happening here, he’d never seen these guys before!?

The record says: “Now Sarah was listening at the entrance to the tent…Abraham and Sarah were already old and well advanced in years and Sarah was both barren and well past the age of childbearing. So Sarah laughed to herself as she THOUGHT, ‘After I am worn out and my husband is old, will I now have this pleasure?’ Please notice the record is careful to tell us Sarah did not say a word. But the record continues: “And the traveler said to Abraham, ‘Why did Sarah laugh and say “Will I really have a child, now that I am old?’ IS ANYTHING TOO HARD FOR THE LORD? I will return to you at the appointed time next year and Sarah will have a son.’ Sarah was afraid, so she lied and said, “I did not laugh’. But the traveler said, ‘Yes you did laugh.’ (Gen. 18:11-15)

Take a close look, what expression do you see on Abraham’s and Sarah’s faces? Shock, disbelief, shame, fear, anxiety, awe? If they wondered before, now they really are wondering… who are these three men who just appeared in the desert in front of their tent? What would you have thought? What do you do when things are happening which don’t seem logical or explainable? If you look closely at Genesis 18, the author has three times attributed the title “the LORD” to one of these visitors! (Gen. 18:1, 10, 13) From our vantage point we can see what’s happening… GOD has come down from heaven, in the form of a human traveler, to visit with Abraham and confirm, face to face, the covenant promise Abraham had received in Genesis 17! Whenever God comes here, He always comes in the person of Jesus, therefore this is another Old Testament appearance of Jesus, God the Son!

Did you notice the powerful declaration He made: “Is anything too hard for the LORD”? (Gen. 18:14) If you know your Bible much, can you think of other times God has said this to human beings who are being confronted with the awesome, almost incomprehensible majesty of God? God said it to Moses in Exodus 14 when Moses and the fleeing Hebrew slaves stood trapped between the Red Sea and Pharaoh’s advancing army! “Stand firm and you will see the deliverance the LORD will bring you today…The LORD will fight for you, you need only be still.” (Ex. 14:13,14) Do you know what happened next? A strong wind began to blow and the Red Sea opened, and about 1 million fleeing Hebrew slaves walked between two walls of water, while a huge dark cloud blocked the way of the approaching army. Then in the morning, when the cloud dissipated and the army rushed in, the walls of water collapsed on them. Miraculous! “Is anything too hard for the LORD”?

Perhaps you remember God said it again to Moses and the people, as recorded in Numbers 11:23, when God promised to feed more than 1 million Hebrew slaves in the desert with meat! And it happened again when the angel Gabriel visited a young virgin girl Mary in Nazareth, to inform her that the Holy Spirit of God would come upon her and she would conceive and give birth to the Son of God, and name Him Jesus! (Luke 1:26-37). So here’s the life altering question for us today my friends: “Is anything too hard for the LORD God?” Let’s just sit with Abraham, the three travelers and Sarah and ponder that statement… but from the perspective of 2021 and your personal life journey, and all you know about our world? What do you say… Is anything in our entire world or universe too hard for the LORD God to accomplish? Is there something going on in your life, that’s big, really big, needing an Almighty God to handle? Here’s a song to help you ponder this powerful truth and worship the unlimited God who understands your situation much better than you do. . . Are you ready? For God to stretch your mind, to overwhelm you with how BIG God really is?!

Today’s Scripture is Genesis 18:1-15.

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Bible images provided with attribution to www.LumoProject.com.

Have a comment or question about today’s chapter? I’m ready to hear from you, contact me here.

Pastor Doug Anderson 262.441.8785
“Let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, with our eyes fixed on Jesus…” (Heb. 12:1,2)

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