Genesis chapter 13 is one of the saddest, most troubling,
most distressing, and most shameful experiences in the lives of God's
people in this world. This chapter describes strife,
strife between Abraham and Lot, a strife which led to separation
and a separation which led to even greater sorrow. It was a
strife between members of the same family. Abraham was Lot's
uncle. It was a strife between brethren,
strife between two men who had enjoyed the closest possible
spiritual communion, fellowship, and company one with another.
Abraham was Lot's spiritual father. He was the instrument by whom
God had been pleased to reveal himself to Lot. That makes Lot's behavior all
the more reproachful. And this was strife within the
Church of God, because the Church of God at this time existed only
in the family of Abraham. The only people in the world
who knew God were these two men, their families. the only people
in the world. Nobody else, unless we consider
that Job was one who lived in this day. But so far as Revelation
is concerned, we have no indication that anyone else in the world,
except these two families, Abraham's family and Lot's, and actually
they were one, were members of the family of faith. Domestic trials, family quarrels,
strife in the house of God are difficult things to bear. We
would all prefer to live without them. We would all prefer to
pass through this world without such troubles. I don't know of
anyone who's experienced such things, who carries them in his
heart, who wouldn't rather lose and harm than endure them for
a season. Jacob would have much preferred
not to endure the loss and the pain he endured by his brothers
or his sons' envy against Joseph. David would have chosen, could
he have done so, to avoid the trials and the heartache caused
by Michael, his wife, Solomon's daughter, or Saul's daughter,
and Amnon and Absalom, his sons. Abraham, no doubt, would have
done anything possible to have avoided the conflict that arose
between he and Lot and is revealed here in this chapter. But it
must not be. God's people must all, through
much tribulation, enter into the kingdom of God. And much
of that tribulation comes from those dearest to us. Oh, what an evidence of the fall.
It began as you've been dealing with in Genesis. Eve blamed Adam,
Adam blamed Eve, and we've been doing so ever since. Why is this? Why do believers, men and women
loved of God, who love God, have to endure the domestic trials
particularly the strifes and quarrels and divisions that exist
in our homes and even in the Church of God. You can understand
somewhat the quarrels and strifes that exist between men who don't
know God, but between those who do. You might say, well, if you
know God, these things don't exist. They did with Abraham
and Lot. Basically, I think there are three reasons. Our faith
must be tried in all directions. Just as silver and gold must
be tried by fire, not to destroy it, but to separate the precious
from the vile. To separate that metal which
is worth something from the dross that's worthless. Just as a diamond
must be cut to shape it into a valuable gem. Our trials are
intended by our God to purify our hearts, and to mold us into
the image of his dear son. Second, our trials are designed
to make us long for heaven. God's going to fix it so that
we who are pilgrims here stay there. He's going to fix it so
that we whose citizenship is in heaven do not become terribly
comfortable in this world. I fear for myself when I get
too comfortable here. Those who are just nomads, pilgrims,
strangers in this hostile land, ought to always have their hearts
set upon the city of God which is above this, that to which
we're pressing. And third, painful, shameful,
difficult as domestic trials are, They are permitted by our
God, and I am reluctant to use the term permitted. They are
brought to pass by the wise, unerring, loving providence of
our Heavenly Father, so that we might learn by them, that
we might learn patience, that we might learn kindness one toward
another, that we might learn forbearance. that we might learn,
long suffer it, that we might learn, after all, we're nothing
on this earth but sinners saved by God's free grace. The only thing that holds us together
is the glue of grace, that's all. The only thing that holds
us together is the bond of peace and joy and faith and grace through
our Lord Jesus Christ. God permitted the strife between
Abraham and Lot to arise, not just to arise, but to finally
come to a head and to erupt in a permanent separation, shameful
as it was. And He has recorded it for us
here in the Holy Scripture for our learning and our admonition,
so that we might learn from their mistakes. Wise is that man who
learns from the mistakes of another man. Wise is that son who learns
from the mistakes of his father. Wise are those people who walk
through this world who learn from the mistakes of those who've
gone before them. May God make us wise today. Strife
between brethren is always shameful. There are no exceptions. No exceptions. It brings reproach upon the gospel. The gospel we believe and the
God we serve deserves better. You may ask, well, Don, why are
you bringing this message to us today? Well, we've come to
it here in Genesis chapter 13. But as I prepare the message,
I can't help but to think of the conference we're about to
host here. It involves considerable sacrifice,
considerable expense, considerable labor, considerable thought and
preparation. We do so hoping to promote the
unity and the fellowship of God's people. I want you who know God,
you who are my brothers and sisters in this place, to know our brethren,
particularly to know other faithful gospel preachers around the world,
and I want us to be one in heart, one in purpose, one in work with
them. And I know of a good many men
One in particular, dear friend, going through horrible difficulties. Pastoring a congregation that
I've been exposed to, I've known them for 25 years, and ever since
I've known them they've been bickering, fussing, fighting
folks. I wouldn't wish my worst enemy be pastor of them. And
they're going through some difficulties. But let's see what God will teach
them. Abraham and Lot were both saved men. There's no question
about that. Abraham was a righteous man and
so was brother Lot, a righteous man. Both were chosen of God,
redeemed by the precious blood of the Lord Jesus, and called
by his spirit. Both believed God, both were
justified, both were sanctified, both had the righteousness of
Christ imputed to them in justification and imparted to them in sanctification. Both today are perfectly united,
seated around the throne of God, worshiping Him, united in love,
united in blessed fellowship. But here was a terrible start. Let's see what we can learn.
First learn the shamefulness of their quarrel. Look at verse
7. There arose a strife between
the herdmen of Abram's cattle and the herdmen of Lot's cattle,
and the Canaanites and the Perizzites dwelled then in the land. Now let me give you the background
briefly so that you'll remember how this has come to pass. While
Abraham was yet in Mesopotamia, the God of glory appeared to
him. God had chosen Abraham. God said to Abraham, I'll be
your God, you'll be mine forever. God called Abraham and God made
a covenant with Abraham in which he blessed him and promised in
all things always to bless him. I don't know how much Abraham
knew and understood, I won't pretend to. But he was not a
spiritual dummy. Abraham, he had been taught some
things of God. He was 75 years old when God
promised to send his son into the world through Abraham's by
whom he would save his elect throughout all the world. Now
that's exactly the meaning of God's promises made to Abraham
in Genesis 12, and we know it is because the Holy Spirit tells
us so in Galatians chapter 3, verses 13, 14, 15, and 16. He tells us that Christ redeemed
us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us, that
the blessing of Abraham might come on the Gentiles. That the
blessing of Abraham might come on us. That is, that God's salvation
in Jesus Christ might be given to us. Abraham believed this
word from God. And his believing God, we are
told, that is the object of his faith in God, the Lord Jesus
Christ, was imputed to him for righteousness. That's exactly
how God saves sinners today. You believe God, and the object
of your faith, if you believe God, not your faith, but the
object of your faith, Jesus Christ the Lord, his obedience, his
blood, is imputed to you for righteousness. Now believe in
God, after the death of Terah his father, Abram left Herod
and came to Canaan and he pitched his tent at Bethel, the house
of God, between this heap of ruins called Ai. And there he
built an altar and worshipped God. After a while he left Bethel
because of famine in the land and went down to Egypt for a
season. God delivered But now Abram returned from Egypt with
Sarah, his wife, with all his possessions, with all his servants,
with all his cattle, and with Lot, his nephew. They all came
back to Bethel. And that's where Genesis 13 begins.
When he got back to Bethel, I'm sure Abram must have thought,
well, everything's all right now. I'm sorry I went down to
Egypt, but that trial's over. Things will be good from now.
We're going to have peace and harmony and fellowship. We're
going to walk with God. We're going to walk with God
in the blessed fellowship of worshiping him, in the blessed
fellowship of his spirit, in the blessed fellowship of the
gospel. But no sooner had he gotten settled, just begun to
gather his family again to worship God at Bethel, than strife broke
out between his herdmen and Lot's herdmen. The strife between Abraham
and Lot was a shameful thing for these reasons. They were
both blessed of God. In the chapter 13 verse 2 and
then in verses 5 and 6, we read that Abraham and Lot were both
wealthy men. They were both exceedingly wealthy
men. They were abundantly blessed
with all things material. They had as much of this world's
goods as they could possibly have. If one or the other of
them had been poor, If one or the other of them had been in
straits, if one or the other of them had had a tough time
putting food on the table, then we could understand something
of their strife. But these were both wealthy men. Let me tell
you a little something about riches. The word translated rich
in verse 2, as I've shown you before, has many shades of meaning. It certainly implies rich as
it's translated in our text. It also has the idea of honor. Abraham was honored of God, as
well as enriched by God, but it also has the idea of hedeh.
Hedeh. Hedeh. Hedeh. Burden. You see, riches are a burden,
and those who seek them, those who seek them. Now, I'll have
more to say in a moment, but listen to me. You men, I don't
care what reason you give for it. I don't care how you justify
it. I don't care whether you're talking
about, I'm doing this for my wife and children, my grandchildren,
my great-grandchildren. I don't care how you do it, you're
doing it for you. Don't set your heart on riches. Don't set your
heart on riches. Don't set your heart on it. Set
your heart on Christ. Set your heart on the Son of
God. Those who seek to load themselves with riches, we're told in Habakkuk
chapter 2 verse 6, seek to load themselves with heavy clay, that's
all. That's all gold is, it's just shiny thick clay, that's
all. It's totally relative, and we must understand that it's
relative in comparison with eternity and the things of God and righteousness
and peace and joy in Jesus Christ, all the wealth of the world,
is just a heavy burden. Matthew Henry put it this way.
He said there is a burden of care in getting them, in getting
riches. A burden of fear in keeping them. A burden of temptation in using
them. A burden of guilt in abusing
them, a burden of sorrow in losing them, and a burden of account
at last to be given up concerning them. That's a burden, father. That's a burden. Now riches may
indeed be a great blessing of God's providence. Abraham was
a rare man. He was rich in faith and rich
in this world's goods. David was a rare man. He was
rich in faith and rich toward God. But those are rare men. If well managed, earthly wealth
is a friend to faith. It furnishes men and women with
an opportunity to do much good in God's kingdom for the glory
of God. But very few human beings can
be both wealthy and useful. Very few. Very few. I've been around a while. I've
had some experiences. I've observed some things. I've
been around long enough to see a lot of my friends make tremendous
advancements in this world. I've seen a lot of them. But I'll tell you what I've observed. I have seen very few make advancements
both in riches and in grace. Very few. Oh, I know how people
think. I think the same thing. We think,
boy, if I had just a little more, if I had just a little more,
a little more money, a little more property, a little more
power, Look what I could do for the cause of Christ. Add just
a little more. Use what you've got for the cause
of Christ. Whether it be little or much.
Usually, this is the way things happen. The more men get, the
less they give. That's usually the way it happens. The more they get, the less they
attend the worship of God. We've got too many things to
take care of. The more they get, the less they do for Christ,
the less they do for his people, and the less they do for the
furtherance of the gospel, and the more they do for the destruction
of their souls and the destruction of those around them. How wise
is that man who has learned to pray, give me neither poverty
nor riches. Lord feed me with food convenient
for me lest I be full and deny thee and say who is the Lord
or lest I be poor and still and take the name of my God in vain
I warn you once more in the words of our Lord beware of covetousness
beware of the deceitfulness of riches all of lots woes Read
the chapter. All of Lot's woes began when
his herds and his golds got bigger. This was a shameful quarrel because
Abraham and Lot were friends and brothers. Abraham said, Lot, verse 8, he
said, Lot, let's not fight. Let's not fight, we're brethren.
We're brethren. They were physically related,
yes. Lot was Abraham's nephew, but more importantly, they were
spiritual brethren. Abraham was Lot's spiritual father. When he left his father's house,
Abraham told Lot, he said, let me tell you what happened to
me today. God Almighty appeared to me.
The Lord God Almighty revealed His Son in me. The Lord God Almighty
revealed His grace in me. And I'm going out to worship
Him. Come, come thou with us and we will do thee good. And
God revealed Himself to Lot. And Lot went out with Abraham.
They had walked together for years in the pursuit of God's
glory, in the pursuit of God's will. But now they had a falling
out. They were both chosen, they were
both called of God. They were both believers, indeed
they were. They were both heirs of eternal life, but they fell
into strife. There's something particularly
wicked about that. Lot owed everything he had, materially
and spiritually, to Abraham. He owed everything he had. If
he had any life, it was because God used Abraham to give him
life. If he had any knowledge, it was because God used Abraham
to give him knowledge. If he knew God, it's because God, through
Abraham, made himself known to him. If he had any cattle, it's
because God, through Abraham, gave him the cattle. Everything
the man knew and had that ought to have been a blessing to him,
he had because of Abraham. And he had, for years, followed
Abraham as Abraham followed God. But now he got big. Now he got to be a big fella.
He's bigger than Abraham. He's smarter than Abraham. And
he knows more than Abraham. How common this is. The Apostle
Paul at one time was so valued by the Galatians. You remember
what he said? He told them the gospel. He came and preached
the gospel to them. He'd given his life to preaching
the gospel to them. And they were so appreciative. That Paul wrote to him, he said,
you would have plucked your eyes out and given them to me. Whatever
is required, you would have given them to me. And now somebody's
come along and convinced you that I'm your enemy? Somebody's come along and convinced
you that I'm your foe? Paul and Barnabas labored together
in the cause of Christ for years. And then they had a falling out
over John Mark, strife between brethren and reproach. More than
that, strife between brethren is always petty. You see, men
and women who know God, believers, don't have strife over the gospel.
There's no such thing. Somebody talks about people getting
upset over the doctrine of election, or getting upset over the doctrine
of God's sovereignty, or getting upset over the gospel of God's
grace revealed in Christ, and effectual redemption, and effectual
atonement, and effectual grace, and effectual calling. Not God's
people. No, God's people don't have a
falling out over the gospel. There's no such thing as that.
If God's people have a falling out, it's pity. It's just pity. It's nothing. Brethren quarrel
about insignificant things. Things that really amount to
nothing but pride. What on earth could be more shameful?
What on this earth could be more shameful? Now if the gospel's
at stake, There's got to be a separation. Boy, the gospel's not at stake.
Anything else is just petty. It's just pride. And then we're
told that the strife between Lot and Abraham gave God's enemies
occasion to blaspheme. Look at verse 7. The Canaanite
and the Perizzite dwelled then in the land. the heathen observed what Lot
and Abraham did. And Lot and Abraham, that neighbor
said, come down here and worship with us. We're having a Christmas
play tonight down at our church. No, we don't do that stuff. We
worship God. Come down here and worship. Worship with us. We're
going to get together with all the churches around. We're going
to see what we can do in community-wide fellowship. No, we worship at
God's altar. We don't worship anywhere else.
Come down here. We're going to have some famous
athlete in to worship with us tonight. He's going to give us
a judo demonstration. Then he's going to talk about
how much he gave up for Jesus. And we're going to have a good
time. Everybody's following this fella. No. No, we worship God. We don't participate in that
nonsense. Come down here. We're going to grow this church
in town. No, we're not interested in that.
We worship God. And here are all these Arminian
freewill babbling idolaters around them. And Abraham and Lot split
up. You fellows worship God, do you?
What kind of God have you got? Look at us! We're walking together.
What kind of God have you got? These heathens had seen Abraham
and Lot worshiping at the same altar. And now they saw them
You know what they were fighting over, Muriel? Grazing rights. That's all. Sheep to blooming
cattle. Fighting over who gets what grass. Now then, look at Abraham's conduct. Oh, exemplary conduct. Look at verse 8. Abram said,
All right, Lot. Let there be no strife, I pray
thee, between me and thee, between my herdmen and thy herdmen, for
we're brethren. Is not the whole land before
you? Separate yourself, I pray you,
separate yourself from me. If you'll take to the left hand,
then I'll go to the right. If you'll depart to the right
hand, then I'll go to the left." Oh, what a magnanimous man. What
a great man. Abraham's behavior was conciliatory. He was ready, without a moment's
hesitation, to go to war to protect Lot. But he wasn't willing to go to
war with Lot. So what he did, he took up arms,
went to war for Lot, to protect him. But he said, I'm not going
to fight with you. Whatever it takes, I'm not going to fight
with you. You see, Abraham was a man of peace, conciliatory. It was in his heart as much as
possible to live peaceably with all men, especially with those
who believed. He knew the value and blessedness of peace. He
knew what the wise men taught, that the beginning of strife
is when one letteth out water, and once it begins, it's almost
impossible to stop. He had learned therefore to leave
off contention before it be meddled with. And though Abraham is the
one offended, though Abraham is the one against whom iniquity
had been done, though Abraham is the one against whom Lot had
sinned, Abraham takes the initiative. Oh, God give us grace to see
that peace between us and our brethren is more valuable than
our will. our wants and our ways. Abraham condescended to Lot's
pressure. Lot should have yielded to Abraham.
That just make good sense. God had given the land to Abraham,
it was all his. Abraham was the older, Lot the
younger. Abraham was richer and stronger,
Lot owed everything to Abraham as I've already showed you. Abraham
was God's spokesman. Abraham was the one through whom
God spoke. Abraham was the one by whom God
spoke to Lot. Lot should have yielded to Abraham.
But Lot was a petty little man. I don't care if he was ten feet
tall and he could bench press a thousand pounds with one arm.
He was a petty little man. A petty little man. Obstinate
and self-willed. And obstinate, self-willed, self-pleasing
men are petty little boys. Pity. Therefore Abraham said,
all right son, what you want? What's going to make you happy?
He was generous, magnanimous, even to his own hurt. The worldlings
look at Abraham and say, well, you fool, why did you do that?
He sought the glory of God. That's all. He turned the other
cheek. He took the wrong and allowed
himself to be defrauded. Man, I'd sue that rascal. Yeah,
the world would. Not Abraham. He made himself servant to Lot
willingly. Why? Why? because he loved God
and he loved Lot. That's it. That's it. He loved
God and he loved Lot. Just simple as that. You see,
that's what Christianity is. Christianity is more than doctrines
and creeds and ordinances. Christianity is Christ in you. Little girl once asked her daddy
on the way home from church, said, Daddy, how big was Jesus?
He said, I don't know, honey. I guess he's about my size. Why?
She said, well, if he's big as that and he's in me, wouldn't
he stick out? He said, I expect he would. And
Merle, I expect if he's in you and me, he'll stick out. And
the way he sticks out, the way he stuck out in Abraham. Magnanimous,
generous, caring man. I recall as a young believer, I kept it in my mind, I hope
honestly, not in any sense of ill feeling. But I was in a congregation
in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, and two men I loved dearly and
still love dearly, two men who had been so helpful to me, so
very helpful to me, my pastor and one of the deacons in the
church. There was a small congregation, both of them worked at the post
office. And they had a squabble one day
in the church about buying a lawn mower. $200. $200. You know, so far as I know, that
pastor and deacon have never spoken again. Never spoke to each other. A
fellow would come to church every Sunday morning, sit right there,
right there, and preach a good praying preach. Monday morning,
they worked post office, short and mail. Now I'm telling you
the truth. They worked post office, short and mail. This one here,
this one here, a fellow standing between them, and they wouldn't
speak to each other, they'd just talk to this fellow. So you tell him
that, you tell him that. Like you'd expect that little
boy to do, but he wouldn't behave that way. Grown men! grown men
who claim to know, worship, and serve God. What stupidity, what
pettiness, how it dishonors God. Abraham was generous. He waived
his rights cheerfully. He gave Lot whatever he wanted.
And he didn't just give him whatever he wanted, he seems to be happy
to do it. There's no indication here at
all that Abraham begrudged Lot of things. Lot said, well, man,
They say these days, that's no brighter. It's either that rich,
fertile, green grass down yonder, or these rocks and stubble. Yeah,
I'll take that. Abraham sounds so glad you went
that way. I'm so glad you took that. That's what I wanted you
to have. I wanted you to have the best
there is. He's Abraham. You see, Abraham believed God.
He loved the Lord. And though he was probably, if
not the richest, one of the richest men in the world, he was dead
to the world. It didn't matter to him. It just
didn't matter to him. Just didn't matter. Oh, how I want to believe God
like Abraham believed God. how I want to live before God
like Abraham did before God. Lot's choice was limitable. In verse 10 he lifted his eyes
and beheld all the plain of Jordan and it was well watered everywhere
before the Lord destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah. Look just like
Eden, like the garden of the Lord, like the land of Egypt
where we've been just a little while ago, as thou comest unto
Then Lot chose him, all the plain of Jordan. And Lot journeyed
east, and they separated themselves one from the other. Abram dwelt
in the land of Canaan, and Lot dwelt in the cities of the plain,
and pitched his tent toward Sodom. But, oh, what a but! The men of Sodom were wicked
and sinners before the Lord exceeded. Abraham and Lot are standing
on top of one of the mountains in Horeb, perhaps not Horeb,
one of the mountains in Canaan, and Abraham pulled Lot aside
and he said, let's go have lunch together, son. Let's go up here
on this mountaintop, visit awhile. Now, Lot, we got a problem. We got a problem. And we can't
have it. too much strife, fight. We can't
live like this. Lot said well I'm not going to
change. Abraham said well choose what you want. Lot standing with Abraham in
Canaan and he looks down towards Sodom and he said I believe I'll go
right there. He left the tents of Abraham
for the tents of Sodom. He left the altar of God for
the hills of Moab. He left the worship of Bethel
for the riches of the place, without regard for anything spiritual,
without regard for his own soul, without regard for the souls
of his wife and his sons-in-law and his daughters and all his
family, without regard for the souls of his servants. Without
regard for God's glory, he chose the rich plains of Sodom. Oh, what a sad choice. You see, there
was no prophet down there. There was no worship down there.
No worship of God. Plenty of churches, just no worship.
Plenty of places to go to church, just no place to go worship God.
Plenty of preachers, just no prophets. No one down there with
whom to walk together in the sweet fellowship of the gospel.
No one. No believers. Only worldlings. No altar, just land. No worship,
just riches. And from the moment he made his
choice, he began to decline. Oh, he didn't go directly to
Sodom? Wouldn't expect that. I'll tell you what, Ron, I've
been pastoring for 30 years, I've never seen anybody go directly
to Sodom. I've never seen it happen. Any
of you? I've never seen it happen. But I've seen lots of folks go
to Sodom. Step by step, he hardened his
heart. Step by step, he seared his conscience. Step by step,
he convinced himself. And I'm sure he convinced himself.
that he was doing the will of God and doing the best he could
for his family while he was doing his own will and the best he
could for his flesh, he thought. He lifted up his eyes and beheld
the land, and he chose the plains of Sodom. He separates himself
from Abraham and from all influence for good and godliness and worship
He dwells in the cities of the plains, that's where he makes
his home. Boy, there's a good life down here. Man, he wrote
back to Abraham and said, Dad! Boy, we've never had it so good.
Boy, come visit us sometime. He pitched his tent towards Sodom.
Then he moved to Taos. He was at last elected to the
city council in Sodom. Boy, it's good now. I don't care
what I've made for myself. I don't care what I've done. Boy, everybody in town knows
my name. Everybody in town knows who my family is. We live up
here on Big Shot Hill. Everybody knows us. They won't
be everywhere. Oh, Lott. Poor Lott. Oh, how sad. Bad choices. Listen to me now. God help you to hear me. You
children and young people hear me. Mamas and daddies and grandma
and grandpa hear me. Bad choices made early in life
will often cost you the rest of your life. Big price to pay. Look at the
costliness of his choice. I'll be very brief. But every
word may come into our hearts as barbed arrows. Lot's choice, in the end, cost
him everything he cherished, except his God and his soul. Everything. Everything. As a
man, I don't know of anything value more highly than the respect of my wife and
family. Do you men know anything you
value more highly? I don't know anything I value more highly.
He lost it all. He lost all spiritual communion
and fellowship with God. Lost all spiritual communion
and fellowship with God's people. He lost all opportunity for instruction
from God Almighty. All of it is gone. Gone. He never appears to have learned
another thing, spiritual and good, until God destroyed Sodom. Not another thing. And was totally
ignorant that he'd lost it all. He lost his daughters, his sons-in-law, and all his grandchildren to the Sodomites. Bad choices made early cost dear. He lost everything he possessed.
He went down to Sodom a rich man and just got richer and richer
and richer. Oh, got some fame, influence,
position, name, recognition. Mmm, boy, everybody wants to
marry into my family. And he lost it all. Everything. Everything. At last he lost his wife to the
judgment of God Almighty. and lost his only two surviving
daughters to his own drunkenness and incest. He lost his name. Have you ever heard tell of anybody
in history, anybody in history, naming their son Lot? totally. Let's forget him. Let's forget him. Let's forget
him. In a word, Lot lost everything, everything, everything but his
soul, everything. Now we won't look at verses 14
through 18, they'll come up again, but Abraham didn't lose anything. He said, Lord, what do you want?
Take it. Which car do you want? Take it.
What tent do you want? Take it. I want you to have it. I want you to have it. Which
pond and lake and river do you want? Take it. I want you to
have it. Yes, sir. You take it. Well, what about
you? I'll be all right. What do you
want? Take it. And he took it and left. And God came to Abraham. And said to Abraham what he repeated
to him over and over again. In the beginning he said it to
him. He said it to him after every
trial, after every difficulty, after every fall, after every
recovery. He said, I'm your Lord. I'm your God. You're mine. I'm
going to give you a family and a seed that will possess the
whole earth. And I'm going to bless you. And
Lot didn't take anything from Abraham. God blessed Abraham. God walked with Abraham. God
sustained Abraham. God kept right on making himself
known to Abraham. And Abraham kept right on worshiping
God. All children of God, keep the unity of the Spirit
in the bond of peace. in your house, in your home,
in the church of God, avoid strife at all costs. Love one another. Love one another. Love one another. Old John used
to tell his congregation, the Apostle
John, when he was an old man, too old to preach, too faithful
to give up. He could hardly get up the pulpit. Tradition tells us some of the
men would help him stand, and sometimes he just couldn't preach.
And he'd just say, Brethren, love each other, love each other,
love each other. That would put him into all strife.
Amen. All right, would you listen to
him, please?