“I’d rather be lucky than good.”
I laughed out loud at that one. We were stuck with a piece of hardware. It wasn’t cooperating, and the man I was working with restarted it on a whim. Like magic, it came to life and started working.
I remarked how good he was with this equipment, and he quipped, “No. Just lucky, I guess. And I’d rather be lucky than good.”
Being good at something doesn’t always mean you can make things work. Sometimes, you just need the odds to be in your favor.
On a deeper level, we ultimately need the Lord’s favor. No matter how much we think we know or how much we think we can do, there will come situations when none of that matters. You can be very good, but you’ll need the Lord’s favor to succeed in this life.
Abram was really good at what he did. He was smart. So was his nephew, Lot.
Last week in Genesis 13:1-13, we found Abram and Lot were at an impasse. The Lord’s blessing to Abram was so great that he and Lot had grown wealthier than what the space in the land could accommodate. Something had to be done, and Abram offered Lot a choice of where he wanted to go. We saw that Lot chose to go East and pitch his tents near Sodom, while Abram went West to the land of Promise.
We continue the story in Genesis 13:14-18.
14 The Lord said to Abram after Lot had parted from him, “Look around from where you are, to the north and south, to the east and west. 15 All the land that you see I will give to you and your offspring forever. 16 I will make your offspring like the dust of the earth, so that if anyone could count the dust, then your offspring could be counted. 17 Go, walk through the length and breadth of the land, for I am giving it to you.”
Genesis 13:14-18, New International Version
18 So Abram went to live near the great trees of Mamre at Hebron, where he pitched his tents. There he built an altar to the Lord.
After Lot departs to the East, Abram receives another powerful vision from the Lord.
This reaffirmation of the promise of the land differs from the earlier formula. This time, it has much greater explicitness. First, the land is more precisely defined. The Lord tells Abram that the land he will receive will be “all the land that you can see” (verse 15).
Second, it is given to Abram as well as to his descendants. Not only will this promise extend to the future sons of Abram, but it will also extend to Abram’s legacy. This includes his children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren, great-great-grandchildren, etc.
And third, it is given in perpetuity. The Lord says this gift and blessing will be with them forever. That’s a very long time.
After the vision ends, Abram again moves in faith. He trusts the Lord more than before and moves toward the great trees of Mamre at Hebron. Lot looked at the land and wanted the best land for himself out of greed. Lot didn’t consider his uncle (Abram) and the fact that it was the blessings given to his uncle that made Lot great. Lot acted in pride and pragmatism. Abram acted in humility and faith.
Abram obeyed the Lord in faith; therefore, the site of surrender became a place of possession through his already growing faith.
Among the great trees of Mamre at Hebron, Abram built an altar to the Lord. An altar was more than a place of worship of the Lord. It was also a place of remembrance. This pile of stones would be a landmark of Abram’s vision from the Lord. It would remind those who saw it that the Lord appeared to Abram there. It would remind those who saw it that the Lord was worshipped there.
As we’ve seen in this passage for two weeks, our choices have consequences—hopefully more good than bad. When we trust the Lord in faith, He will lead us through the valleys into His promises for us. The road may have “many dangers, toils, and snares.”1 We will stumble on the way. Yet, when the sum of our choices is calculated, may those behind us find us faithful to the Lord.
And when we celebrate His faithfulness and favor to us, may we set up markers to remind those behind us of the Lord’s faithfulness.
We’ll be taking a break from Genesis for December as I release Advent blogs starting on Sunday. See you then!
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1 “Amazing Grace” Words: John Newton | Music: Folk Tune
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