Derek Grier - Work In Me, Work In Us
Today we’re gonna be in Genesis chapter 14. So verse one, «And it came to pass in the days of Amraphel King of Shinar, Arioch king of Ellasar,» And I’ve tried for over 20 years to pronounce this next King’s name properly. So what I decided to do, how many y’all remember the 80s? Any of you alive during the 80s? Yeah, I decided to call this King Shalamar. So I’m gonna call him. Make that move for the lover in me? Okay. so he’s officially a grace. «He’s Shalamar, king of Elam, and Tidal King of the Nations or King of Nations, that they made war with Bera king of Sodom, Birsha king of Gomorrah, Shinab king of Admah, Shemeber king of Zeboim, and the king of Bela, that is, Zoar».
So that was a long a list of kings. But all this was said to state that this is the first recorded war in the entire Bible. Now, I’m sure many wars, you know on planet earth were fought before this time but this one is documented because it affected Abram or Abraham. And you know, when, when, when you belong to God everything that affects you affects him. The very hairs on your head are numbered and God misses absolutely nothing. «And all these joined together». The five small Canaanite kings joined in a confederacy against the four mighty Eastern kings. And nothing unites people like a common enemy. And the best time to make friends is really before you need them. 12 years the Canaanite nations served Shalamar. They paid yearly homage or taxes or revenue to the very powerful Eastern overlords.
The situation at this time in history was a lot like the way the mob operates in certain cities. Each year, the five Canaanite kings would pay protection money to the head of the four nations in the East to ensure they weren’t invaded. And if you know how that type of thing works what happens is someone shows up at your door the door of your business and says it’s a dangerous neighborhood. And if you want us to protect you, you’re gonna have to pay us like you do ADT. And if you do not pay us, all of a sudden you’re gonna find windows broken and all the rest. So some folks decided not to pay. And guess what happened? Windows were broken. People began to break in. As soon as they started paying, all of a sudden all that went away.
So it was powerful nations, big armies. And the kings in the little Jordan Valley were threatened and intimidated and they were willing to pay this protection money year after year after year. But how many know everyone has a breaking point? Yeah. What we tolerate ultimately teaches people how to treat us. You know, when we get to heaven, the lion’s gonna lay down with the lamb, but that’s not happening right now. When the lion sees the lamb, he says breakfast. Most things do not change in this life until you put your foot down. So in the 13th year, they rebelled. 13 years a slave was more than enough, and finally they stood up for themselves. And for a year they didn’t pay protection anymore. They stopped paying the money. And finally the kings of the East said, «No no no, this is not the way this is gonna happen».
So in the 14th year, again the kings from the East, Shalamar and Hewitt and all those people came and the kings… No, that’s not in the Bible. That were with him, came and attacked the Rephaim in Astheroth Karnaim, the Zuzim in Ham, the Emim in Shaveh Kiriathaim and the Horites in the mountain of Sier, as far as the El Paran, which is by the wilderness. Now another long list, but what the bible’s showing us here, this is a list of the villages that the eastern kings sacked on the way to the battle with the five kings. And archeologists tell us that whole populations were were completely wiped out or enslaved as these four kings made their way to fight this big battle.
And here’s what I know, left to itself, war is just basically survival of the fittest. Its seldom settles the question who is right, only who will be left. And this is what’s happening here. The bad guys win so far, verse seven. «Then they turned back and came to En Mishpat, that is Kadesh, and attacked all the country of the Amalekites and the Amorites who dwelt in Hazezon Tamar». If we had a map, you’d see that the four kings attacked from the north to the south initially but then they make a U-turn to come up to fight the five kings in the Jordan Valley. So at this point, the Eastern kings have gained so much momentum that they were virtually unstoppable. I mean, there was a head of steam behind them, and they were terrifying. Verse eight, «And the King of Sodom».
Now, in a moment the name of that city will matter. «And the king of Gomorrah, the King of Admah, the king of Zebobaiim and the king of Bella, that is Zoar, went out and joined together in battle in the valley of Siddim». So here we have it. The battle is on the four kings against the five kings. You know, swords are drawn, blood splattered skulls are crushed. And the four kings from the east totally defeat the revolting kings from Canaan lands. Now, I said to you that the five kings finally had enough, but I didn’t say to you it would be easy. If you have a minute, I’d like to let you in on a secret. If you’re gonna win, you gotta first learn how to deal with losses. Maybe you’re better than me. Maybe, you know, God loves you more than me.
I don’t know, but I’ll tell you, for my life, I did a lot of losing before I began to win. Verse 10. «Now, the Valley of Siddim was full of asphalt pits, or tar pits, and the kings of Sodom and Gomorrah fled. Some fell there and the remainder fled to the mountain». So what what happened here is the five kings' soldiers not only died on the battlefield, they they couldn’t even run away without falling into pits and dying. I mean, these kings couldn’t win for losing. The worst things kept happening at the very worst possible times. And if it wasn’t one thing, it was another. Anyone that have days like that in your life? Yep. Then they took all the goods of Sodom and Gomorrah, which was a rich city, and all their provisions, and they went their way.
So that was a summary way of saying that it was a total smackdown. But the kings of the East made one fatal error. They messed with the wrong one. Verse 12. «They also took Lot». You see, initially the battle was just about facts and chance. The battle of the fittest. Maybe just another game of chess, until they took one of God’s kids. They also took Lot. They mess with the wrong one. Because God still knows how to rescue his own. Now, if you know your Bible, you know that Lot made some bad choices in his life. But Lot still belonged to God. You may not get everything right in your life but you still belong to God. I might not always have all the answers to all the problems but I still belong to God. Lot was not necessarily the sharpest knife in God’s drawer, but he belonged to God. «They also took Lot, Abram’s brothers son».
Now, the last time we see Lot in the Bible, the tension between him and Abe was so great that they split up. You see, the two men had their conflicts, but they were still family. You know, home is where you’re loved the most, but it’s often where you act the worst. «They also took Lot, Abram’s brother son, who dwelt in Sodom». This is important because when we left chapter 13, the Bible says he just pitched his tent towards Sodom, meaning the Bible says he selected that area 'cause it was beautiful, it was a great agricultural climate, but it wasn’t a good spiritual climate. And a lot of us pick places we go based on the job and the money and all that, but we miss the most important stuff. Is there a good church there? Are god’s people there? Is the climate healthy for your childrens?
So in chapter 13, he just pitched his tent towards Sodom so he could kind of look out of his tent and see Sodom. But by our chapter, we find him living or dwelling in Sodom. Then by the time we get to chapter 19, he’s not just living there, but he’s serving in the gates of the city as a city leader. Only the leaders stood at the gate. So like boiling a frog, the surest road to hell is gradual. But even in all his bad decisions, he still belonged to God. All six of you, hallelujah. Well, they took Lot, Abram’s brothers son, who dwelt in Sodom and his stuff, his goods, and departed. Many of us in this room have family dwelling in Sodom. Perhaps you live there occasionally yourself. But what I want to tell you today, God still cares. God still knows how to deliver a brother. God still knows how to set his children free. «Then one who had escaped came and told Abram the Hebrew».
Now this is the first use of the term Hebrew in the entire Bible, and the law of first mention matters here. And the word Hebrew literally means «from the other side». And scholars think that this is pointing to the facT that Abraham was from Mesopotamia, which is the other side of the Euphrates. So he got this name, the brother from the other side. You know, Abraham still had a lot of growing before he received the promise. And if you watch his journey, he didn’t come into this thing perfect. He was trading wives and swapping wives. He was doing all types of stuff early on. But he gets a little better as he gets older. Thank God some of us are getting older. Amen. Hallelujah, thank you Jesus.
So Abraham is growing and he had to grow before he received the promises of God. But despite the fact that, you know he was still in progress, people still recognize, you know there’s something different about Abraham. You know, I may not have arrived but anyone who who knows me gotta admit I’m on my way. And Abraham, he had not arrived, but there was still something different about him. I remember the chaplain of the Senate telling us the story of how he was trying to, you know, he was raised in the church, mama was in church, you know grew up in the church pews, all the rest, and he was out in the club trying to do his thing. And people, while he was dancing, all the rest started looking at him all crazy, and said, «This don’t fit you».
You see, even in his backsliding, God’s hand was on his life and it just didn’t fit right and sit right. And even those who, you know, he should have been able to fool, he could not fool. It said «They were allies with Abram».
See, you don’t need a lot of friends, just the right friends. Now, when Abraham or Abram heard, he becomes Abraham later, «that his brother was taken captive,» watch this though, he didn’t judge Lot. He didn’t say, «Well Lot, you got your comeuppance. Lot, you know, you finally got what was coming to you. After all Lot, you know, all that strife, all that. You know, man, I raised you from a child and then you gonna pick the best spot for you and leave me all the rest. You know better than that. I’m the oldest. You’re supposed to honor me You’re supposed to salute me. You know our culture, but you gonna still pick the best ground and you gonna cause all that pain and anguish. And I’m thinking about you, worried about you at night and all the rest».
But we don’t see any of that in Abram’s response. You see, godly people don’t gloat over the misfortunes of of the people they love. They just try to help. So watch what Abram did. He didn’t say, «Well Lot, you know, you got what’s coming to you. You figure it out». He armed his 318 trained servants. Now the Bible doesn’t just say they were servants. He said, what? Trained servants. So here’s the deal, here’s the pattern. God was doing a work in Abe’s life. So Abe also did work in the lives of his men. So the pattern is God does it in me and then uses me to help do it in you. God must do two works in every successful family, in every successful army, in any successful unit, no matter the size. He must do a work in me and a work in us. A work in me, and a work in us. Say that with me. A work in me, and a work in us. A work in me and a work in us. So he armed his 318 servants.
Now for Abraham to have 318 armed militia was a big deal. Abraham had grown very, very powerful. This is not just some joker walking across the the desert with a couple goats. This is a guy with a small militia, but still, you know, what’s that to four armies coming in his direction. But here’s what I know, when the Lord is at work in me, he’s at work in us. When the lord’s at work in me, he’s at work in us and nothing is impossible. Joshua said, «One man shall chase a thousand».
You see, like Abraham, it’s not about judgment, it’s about rescue. I mean it’s easy to complain about the world going sideways but what are you doing? What are you doing to make a difference? Thank God for all this world you swallow up every week. Thank God for how long you’ve been in church but what are you doing in the lives of others is a $6 million question. So his nephew was in trouble. And what he did is he armed his 318 trained servants, watch this, who were born in his own house. Everything Abraham needed was already in his house. Everything we need to reach and rescue is already in this house. Jesus said, «We are the salt of the earth».
But to be effective salt, we gotta get out of the salt shaker, into the stew. Thank God for us coming together on Sundays. But what’s powerful is when the salt in this room gets into the decay that’s in the world on Monday Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, that’s when we become powerful. That’s when we become a preservative. That’s when we make change. Henry Ford said it this way. «The only thing worse than training employees and have them leave is not training them and having them stay».
So do I have, out of 6,000 people, 318 people who aren’t too scared to say to somebody, can I pray for you? He’s not asking us to go to prison. He’s not asking us to walk a mile on glass. But do I have 318 people who care enough to say, sister, you look a little bit down. Can I pray for you? Brother, I hear what’s going on with your children. Do you mind if I pray for you? Do I have 318 people who aren’t scared to say, well if you’re free next Sunday, would you come to church with me? Now I know how I invite you to lunch, I’ll invite you to the bar, I’ll invite you to all, but I want to invite you this Sunday to the house of the Lord. Do I have 318 people that after all this teaching, all this preaching, are finally ready to do a little something to change the lives of the people that we love?