genesis 4:1-16

………………………………………..A……………………………………….

Amraphel king of Shinar ……..G.……Bera king of Sodom

Arioch king of Ellasar…………A…….Birsha king of Gomorrah

Kedorlaomer king of Elam….I…… Shinab king of Admah

Tidal king of Goiim…………….N……. Shemeber king of Zeboiim

………………………………………..S…….Zoar King of Bela

…………………………………………..T……………………………………….

4 kings               vs.         5 kings

the 5 kings  were subject to Kedorlaomer, king of Elam for 12 years.

In year 13, rebel

hence, war.

We go down to the valley of Siddim

There are tar pits where the 5 kings have drawn their battle lines. Then, the 4 Kings defeat the 5 who rebelled.

Lot  falls within the cross fire since he’s in Sodom & gets captured by the 4 Kings.

One guy escapes the 4 kings & tells Abram what had happened.

Abram takes 318 men born in his household.

At night, Abram and his men attack the 4 kings & their army and the bible says he “routed” them (NIV, Amp.) which  dictionary.reference.com defines as any

“overwhelming defeat”

[see definition, "rout"]

These 318 guys go in, go out; clean break

They just went to rescue their kindred, you  know?

So I walk away scratching my head.

What happened?

And then it dawns on me:

The 5 kings drew their battle lines in the day-time.

“oh we’re going to war & we’re going to massacre these great powers.”

It was such a pride thing.

“and not only that, we’re going to do it in a valley full of tar pits.”

What were they thinking? the other guys would fall into the pits & somehow they would walk away  unscathed?
I think  they were so motivated & blinded by pride that they didn’t have a legitimate mission except to glorify themselves.

They were not content to gain their victory in the dead of night.

All we need are the bare essentials that will achieve the goal in mind.

It doesn’t have to be tricky or complicated.

We need to be humble enough to pursue things with purpose in mind

not vain glory.

^{PHILIPPIANS 2:3(Amp.)} Do nothing from factional motives [through contentiousness, strife, selfishness, or for unworthy ends] or prompted by conceit and empty arrogance. Instead, in the true spirit of humility (lowliness of mind) let each regard the others as better than and superior to himself [thinking more highly of one another than you do of yourselves].

Don’t waste your time and energy going for the things the world ooo’s and ah’s over

If you’re going to get something, get it because you have an actual purpose of use in mind for it, you know?

And by so doing, you will live the life you love and love the life you live rather than striving toward useless ends.

And more important than that,

you will actually have room in your heart & mind to focus on what’s truly important… rather who:

God.

^{GALATIANS 1:10(Amp.)}Now am I trying to win the favor of men, or of God? Do I seek to please men? If I were still seeking popularity with men, I should not be a bond servant of Christ (the Messiah).

⁸Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor. ⁹“All this I will give you,” he said, “if you will bow down and worship me.”

¹⁰Jesus said to him, “Away from me, Satan! For it is written: ‘Worship the Lord your God, and serve him only.’^[d]“

-Matthew 4(NIV)

vs. 8 –>This is a hard one for me. As I write, I want to be watching TV right now. I have these thoughts where I don’t expect learning at God’s feet to be enough. I want “more.”

I’m like that seed that looks out the window at the shiny lights directing my attention to the things of the world and then I look around at my room at what I now feel is a boring display Suddenly, the life I’ve always had seems inadequate; the things that used to make me happy become mundane all of a sudden (IRONY – the devil presents things of the world & things of God as each other i.e. presenting light as darkness and darkness as light) - Mark 4:18-19

vs. 9 –> Perhaps he does it in a more subtle way but when you get right down to it, picking other things over God IS bowing to the devil.

⁷Surrender to God! Resist the devil, and he will run from you.

-James 4 (CEV)

It’s caving to his lies because you’re imprisoned by deceit. It’s doing the opposite of James 4:7 and surrendering to the devil, resisting God & leaving His presence.

¹The LORD hasn’t lost his powerful strength; he can still hear and answer prayers. ²Your sins are the roadblock between you and your God. That’s why he doesn’t answer your prayers or let you see his face.

-Isaiah 59 (CEV)

But what does James further advise us to do?

⁸Come near to God, and he will come near to you. Clean up your lives, you sinners. Purify your hearts, you people who can’t make up your mind.

-James 4 (CEV)

In the very next statement, he urges us to draw close to God. You see, the points at which we’re going through those internal battles are the times we need to draw even closer to God.

My tendency has been to withdraw from God’s presence in an effort to clean up my life rather than drawing into God’s presence in an effort to clean up my life.

but as I confessed my struggle in verse 8, the issue was out there in the open.

I didn’t know what would come next. I was just there,  waiting on God, as Beth Moore described yesterday in (the Esther bible study video session 5). He had called me into His presence at a time when I was weak and unwilling; at a time when I had failed to rescue myself from temptation. I knew what was happening to me. I had seen it time and time again:

i) I’m enjoying seeking after God

ii) The world calls out to me

iii) As time goes on, I become spiritually weak due to my lack of the word (the fresh, daily word)

iv) In my weakness, the devil attacks full force at any and everything because I am ill-equipped to handle it and its all mental but it affects my relationships, schoolwork, job, peace, rationality, hope, joy, patience… I mean, I just suck at life because I’m not in the presence of my Lord.

and I’m bowing down to Satan

He doesn’t just randomly show up. He’s strategic. What seems like a small issue could reek disaster in your life.

So anyway, there I was waiting on God and wow. Compared to when I started writing? Big difference! I’m excited to be here.

Just like Beth Moore encouraged us yesterday:

³¹But those who wait for the Lord [who expect, look for, and hope in Him] shall change and renew their strength and power; they shall lift their wings and mount up [close to God] as eagles [mount up to the sun]; they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint or become tired.^(A)

-Isaiah 40 (AMP)

When a certain temptation attempts to draw you away from God, don’t flow in its direction. Draw close to God because therein lies your

SALVATION.

In the beginning of Matthew 4, Jesus faced temptation in the desert after He had undergone a period of fasting. At one point, the devil tempted Him to jump off the highest point of the temple:

⁵Then the devil took Him into the holy city and placed Him on ^[b]a turret (pinnacle, ^[c]gable) of the temple ^[d]sanctuary.^(C)

⁶And he said to Him, If You are the Son of God, throw Yourself down; for it is written, He will give His angels charge over you, and they will bear you up on their hands, lest you strike your foot against a stone.^(D)

⁷Jesus said to him, ^[e]On the other hand, it is written also, You shall not tempt, ^[f]test thoroughly, or ^[g]try exceedingly the Lord your God.^(E)

-Matthew 4 (AMP)

So, there are two things that stuck out to me here:

i) If you don’t know the bible as a whole, you are likely to misinterpret whatever little section you choose to read. If you are going to be a good student of God’s word, knowing it in its entirety is necessary to be a well-informed Christian (I am working on that right now and I think my brothers and sisters in Christ should too). So, even though the devil tried to side-track Jesus with one verse, Jesus had a full picture of God’s word and was a deep student of it (as is evident in other parts of scripture when His knowledge was challenged by other scholars)

ii)Many translations of the bible simply use the word “test” in verse 7, which although is accurate, is still slightly ambiguous and easily misinterpret-able (if that’s a word). Thanks to the Amplified version (and the Recovery version), I got to see a more precise definition of what it means to “test” God and that’s what I’ll be zoning in on today.  Perhaps some other time, I can talk about my first point (maybe after I’ve studied the whole bible so give me a couple of years. Haha. I’ll be studying this book till I die. It’s just that good).

ok.   Test  (original Greek meaning) —> “try exceedingly”   “test thoroughly”

When God as He is is just not enough for you. When you become a junkie for signs and you ask more questions than you need to .

When you want to make God out to be a maliable miracle monkey that you carry on your shoulders, giving you a show whenever you demand or desire it.

I can even remember once asking God to turn out the lights for me. Was I lame or unable to reach the light switch? No, not really.

Some call it faith. God calls it the exact opposite because:

Blessed and happy and ^[a]to be envied are those who have never seen Me and yet have believed and adhered to and trusted and relied on Me.

-Jesus to Thomas (John 20:29b – AMP)

When an All-powerful God, independent of our manipulation, asks us, a prideful people, for our allegiance, bowing becomes the toughest act for us. We desire things our way and on our terms, not His. We desire to be in control, not bow down to a provident King.

God is different

People cast idols and “worship” them but really they are still the ones in control. Idols only require sacrifice but no change of heart. You can stay as awful as you were born. It will not object or speak against your actions because you have danced around the fire.

God requires all of you without even showing you His face.

He is silent, yet everyone talks about Him.

Deep studies of His character are absent from our history books, yet He is at the center of human events.

You see, He gives us ample evidence to make our faith sturdy but only people who have a hard time simply accepting His pre-eminence and providence demand more than

a silent whisper in a chaotic world.

“Is that all you give me to go on?!”

“I deserve more for my troubles”

and He simply responds, “No, you don’t”

and He doesn’t give it to you.

Will you argue with the Lord?

Are you here for the flashy show or do you REALLY seek to know your creator? Only you can answer that question.

The one who comes with a genuine, humble heart will find what he is looking for.

The one who comes with a self-entitled, prideful, greedy heart will never have enough to satisfy his thirst. There is a hole within him where every divine blessing that is poured in slips out.

Read John 2: 18-25

The only proof Jesus left for people was his Resurrection (Seriously, that’s ample evidence and if that doesn’t sway them, then something is going on beneath the surface. They have a personal problem with Him).

²³But when He was in Jerusalem during the Passover Feast, many believed in His name [identified themselves with His party] after seeing His signs (wonders, miracles) which He was doing.

²⁴But Jesus [for His part] did not trust Himself to them, because He knew all [men];

²⁵And He did not need anyone to bear witness concerning man [needed no evidence from anyone about men], for He Himself knew what was in human nature. [He could read men's hearts.] [I Sam. 16:7.]

-John 2 (AMP)

⁶But without faith it is impossible to please and be satisfactory to Him. For whoever would come near to God must [necessarily] believe that God exists and that He is the rewarder of those who earnestly and diligently seek Him [out].

-Hebrews 11 (AMP)

SO, if you’re still waiting for miracles to decide if you’re going to pledge your allegiance to God’s team, your heart is out of sorts because :

You believe He exists

You know He is God

But you refuse to do the right thing with that conviction(that’s is called a lack of integrity and is a huge display of pride ergo… a sin. Hidden, though it may be).

It’s all or nothing[a]. The bible is one book with one message, one God an done Savior. You don’t get to pick and choose[b].

As long as you continue to dance around that obvious truth because it is inconvenient for you, you will

never fully grab hold of the life found in Christ. You’re avoiding full submission to God, falsely thinking you are wise (only in your own eyes)[c] and free (doing as you please) but you are cheating yourself out of the fullness of what it means to be a Christian.

In avoiding the cross (full submission to God’s will and full sacrifice for all mankind), you are avoiding the resurrection and ascension to the right hand of God[d].

How long will you keep up this game? Your motives in approaching God are devoid of purity[e]. You’ll stick around for the blessing as long as He doesn’t demand your full submission. You don’t trust Him and you won’t let yourself submit to Him because you know what it means[f].

Did you think you were coming for riches[g], miracles, and power that you can squander?

Well, my dear, you were sadly misinformed about God. You see, there are indeed riches, miracles, and  power at His side but it only comes by dying to yourself and taking up your cross[h]. You HAVE TO humble yourself and submit to God[i].

Thus God ensures that only the pure in heart (intent/motives) shall see Him[j].

____________________________________________________________

footnotes to the scriptures are on an external website. Follow the link by clicking the scripture reference listed.

[a] Revelation 3:15-16

[b] Ephesians 4:5-6

[c] Proverbs 3: 5-8

[d] Hebrews 12:2-3

[e] 1 Samuel 16:7

[f] Galatians 6:7-8

[g] 1 Timothy 6:5-6, 6:10

[h] Matthew 10:38, Mark 8:31-38

[i] Matthew 18:3-4

[j] Matthew 5:8, Psalm 24:3-4, 15:1-2, 112:4

Also see, Matthew 6:33. Matthew 10:38, Matthew 7:6

This is a little snippet of my journal entry… Some stuff have been cut out and some words have been rearranged.

January 10, 2009 – 12:22am (Saturday)

Two deep thoughts:

First, Jesus is willing to share us with the world but only to a degree… after all, you can’t fully divide yourself between two masters. Jesus should take precedence, in my opinion (I’m sure it’s His opinion too… ooo. Wow. Things are changing. I just treated Jesus like one of my human-earthly friends. I said, “I’m sure it’s his opinion” instead of “That’s His opinion.” He’s an individual and if I can admit I don’t know my friends that well, how much more JESUS, you know?)

Secondly, sometimes the things you are not instantly attracted to turn out to be the very things you end up falling in love with. For instance, I saw this really cute coffee mug at the family dollar store. It had “coffee” written all over it whimsically and it had little whimsical swirls and stuff all over it. I LOVE WHIMSICAL ART. It was yellow and I instantly liked it. I had it in my hand when I decided not to get it on a whim because I might end up regretting it or not liking it. Well, a few days later, I was at Wal-mart and since I had just bought tea, I decided a coffee cup of some sort would be appropriate. Disposable plastic just won’t do when it comes to hot beverages. I saw this one plain black coffee cup and I didn’t want it. It wasn’t that fun. Plus, after my whole yellow cup experience, it just wouldn’t do. So I kept looking and looking but for some reason (probably because I ask God’s opinion on a lot of stuff even what outfit to wear) I couldn’t get the black cup out of my head and I had this semi-nagging feeling that I should go back and pick that one. I kept looking to see if maybe I’d see a better, more exciting, love at first sight type of tea/coffee cup. This thought occurred to me (and I believe it was the Holy Spirit):

(paraphrase)”A home is not made because it contains the chic & the mod components. It is made of memories and the clutter that contains sentimental & happy recollections. You feel a sense of wealth in your room full of junk simply because of the amazing memories they invoke. You BUILD your home but a beginning such as the makings of what you are seeking will not necessarily end the way you want it. If you pick something simply because it LOOKS cool, what will you do when you end up getting bored with it? (Inevitably, the excitement will fade. You know that, right?)” He was also speaking in reference my future plans to make purchases that would give my room a more “homey” feeling. He said, “Get this cup for the simple fact that it is functional. There will be no initial excitement that can fade into disappointment BUT you will grow to cherish this cup as well as every bag of tea or serving of hot chocolate that you have in it BECAUSE it will hold the precious memories of moments you decided to unwind and relax. You will appreciate it simply for what it is: a teacup.”

He was right. He was right…

So, when I go shopping, I will try to get things only because I want to use them, not necessarily because it looks awesome but they will be mine and I will grow to enjoy the warm, fuzzy memories they invoke, in due time. I’m sure of it. I want my mommy to go shopping with me. I love her.

(end of entry)

Ok, so, I had this entry as a draft a a few days ago but I would just like to reiterate my point. Last night was hard. For reasons I am still in the process of figuring out, it was painful and sad. It had it’s awesome moments, no doubt, but it pierced my heart and I almost cried. Seriously (and I didn’t expect that after spending the night with family but well…surprise!). When I got back to my room, I didn’t walk in immediately. I just stood outside my door, bags in hand, high-heeled boots hurting, jacket and scarf still on. I just stood there. I didn’t get why I was standing there but I did. This happened, like, forty minutes ago.  I finally walked in. It was 18 degrees outside. I wanted something warm. The cold was too symbolic. I washed my dishes and warmed up some milk in my little black cup. In went my organic Cascadian farm cinnamon raisin granola cereal. It was like really good oatmeal. I felt so relaxed. I popped in Relient K’s “Two lefts don’t make a right… but three do.” It was just Jesus and I (He’s my roommate). Nothing in the world is better than that little moment with him and warm food (I couldn’t do that with a plastic cup). Perfect combination and I thank God for it. This might not make sense to some of you but it means a lot to me. May God bless you all.

Buki.

When you ARE objectified you don’t worry about it because you have lost

sense of the meaning of the word. You don’t even notice it when it is

happening to you. Being objectified  becomes something you just have to

deal with… So now, you live in your world objectified and you don’t even

know.

object  + ified

like nullified –> made null

simplified –> made simpler

stupefied –> made stupid

objectified

made into an object.

MADE INTO AN OBJECT

“Dehumanized” as Rob Bell put it.

You cease to be a special, LIVING, breathing, thinking, wonderful creation

of God.

The Lord made Eve, looked at her

and thought she was good.

She moved. She made choices. She was like God. Both she and Adam.

Women are not the only ones who are objectified.  Men are also

often objectified and we must not forget that. It’s all a product of lust.

We see the body and cease to acknowledge the existence of the soul

and spirit within. He or she, in that moment, is just a shell for our own

personal pleasure and satisfaction.

To objectify someone is to downgrade him/her from the status of God’s

image into something inanimate like a rock, kicked, tossed about, stomped

on, and then

Forgotten

To buy into that lie (based on what you’ve been called all your life, what

you’ve been treated like for as long as you remember or what hollywood

has sold you) is to close yourself off to the possibility of being that perfect,

powerful, precious image of the Lord God Almighty.

From where I’m standing, I see a flawed mentality- backwards thinking…

You- a once free, innocent, bold, confident child – became a scared, timid, tainted, prisoner because someone objectified you.

You responded to what you thought was a true assessment of your value.

A response involves personal consent and everyday, you cheapen yourself

(and others) by your words, your thoughts, your actions, your attire… you

continue to choose to live like an object instead of a human. Your body

becomes your only appeal to the world. Your mind becomes secondary.

⁷ But the LORD said to Samuel, “Do not consider his appearance

or his height, for I have rejected him. The LORD does not look at

the things man looks at. Man looks at the outward appearance,

but the LORD looks at the heart.”

– 1 Samuel 16:7 (NIV)

It is your choice everyday.

A rock cannot choose.

An object cannot decide.

An object can’t change voluntarily.

but YOU can.

No one can make you feel inferior without your consent.

-Eleanor Roosevelt

(more…)

found and awesome article and decided to share:

http://www.allaboutlifechallenges.org/trusting-god-faq.htm

Why is trusting God so difficult?

The Bible says this about trusting God, “Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding” (Proverbs 3:5). Furthermore, it tells us that “He who trusts in himself is a fool. . .” (Proverbs 28:26). Still, most of us have difficulty trusting God at least at one point or another in our walk with Him.

There are probably many reasons why trusting is difficult. God’s ways don’t always make sense to us. God told Noah to build an ark. It may have never rained up to this point and the nearest body of water was probably many miles away. It could not have made much sense to Noah at all (story found in Genesis 6-8). We want life to make sense. We always want to set our own terms and timetables.

God works on a different timetable than our minds comprehend. God promised Abraham a son from his own body through his wife Sarah. It was at least 24 years before this promise was fulfilled in the manner in which God had promised. In the meantime, Abraham and Sarah had difficulty trusting God and tried their own methods to fulfill the promise (read about this in Genesis 15-17). We want what we want and we want it. . .now! It is difficult to trust in a plan that requires us to surrender all control of the time for completion.

In order to trust in God, you must totally surrender your will, your ideas, your desires, and your future in to God’s hands. Many of us are “control freaks.” We don’t want to give the control of any part of our lives over to another. If you don’t believe that God loves you fully and really does have your best interests at heart and desires the very best for you, trusting Him is going to be extremely difficult. It takes a very special relationship to allow that measure of surrender. Most of us have a tendency to claim trust in God. However, at the first sign of any difficulty or trial, we think that God must not love us because He is allowing this difficulty to happen. The trial is exactly what God is using to test the level of trust that we have in Him.

In spite of the trials, we always have God’s promise that the trials and tests that we go through are for our good (Romans 8:28, Hebrews 12:2, 2 Corinthians 4:17, James 1:2). We learn that it is through trust that our relationship with God strengthens and our love for Him grows.

We can trust in many things. None, however, offer the protection plan, the long term security, or the benefits that trusting in God offers. All of the other things in which we place our trust can fail. God never fails! In the words of King David, “. . .Do not be afraid or discouraged, for the LORD God, my God, is with you. He will not fail you or forsake you. . .” (1 Chronicles 28:20).