Devotional on Genesis

2013 – Shenandoah National Park, VA – Skyline Drive

Shocking intercession
Genesis 18: Abraham stood in God’s path, blocking the way.
I can’t imagine a more shocking description of how Abraham begins his intercession for the wicked cities of Sodom and Gomorrah than this statement. I’ve read this passage countless times and never realized what it meant for Abraham to, in the language of the NIV, “Stand before the Lord.” The Almighty has graced Abraham with a unique visitation. The Lord has made a wonderful promise to him. Now, he’s honored him by giving him advance knowledge of what he’s about to do. As the Lord prepares to depart on this mission, Abraham stands before him, ready to plead for mercy in one of the best known prayers of intercession in the Bible. It’s pretty clear that the Lord welcomes Abraham’s involvement in this. For one thing, had the Lord not told Abraham what’s about to happen, he would have found out about it after the fact like everyone else. For another, when Abraham stands in God’s path it’s akin to my going out to the interstate and “standing in the path” of a Mac truck. The only way Abraham survives this shocking event is that the Lord allows it. As I look for an application to my life from this passage I don’t want to go overboard here. I need to remember that Abraham’s pleading a case and not insisting that things go his way. Still, it’s enlightening for me to realize that the Lord sometimes welcomes me into the conversation about what he’s doing in the world. It seems to me that this is the key is the Lord’s informing Abraham of his intention. In that, I get the feeling that Abraham’s being given permission to respond from his own perspective. When the Lord gives me a burden, or even a unique insight into something, I can take that as being granted permission to respond in prayer from my own perspective and maybe to even “stand in God’s path” in a reverent and respectful way as Abraham did.
Take away: As amazing as it is, sometimes God welcomes me into a conversation concerning his intentions.