Genesis 10:8-11 (KJV)
And Cush begat Nimrod:
he began to be a mighty one in the earth.
He was a mighty hunter
before the LORD: wherefore it is said, Even as Nimrod the mighty hunter before
the LORD.
And the beginning of his
kingdom was Babel, and Erech, and Accad, and Calneh, in the land of Shinar.
Out of that land went
forth Asshur, and builded Nineveh, and the city Rehoboth, and Calah,
In Galatians 6:1 (KJV)
we read these words,
Brethren, if a man be
overtaken in a fault, ye which are spiritual, restore such an one in the
spirit of meekness; considering thyself, lest thou also be tempted.
I am intrigued by those
words, “ye which
are spiritual”
because it implies, insists really, that there are spiritual people and that they
can know who they are.
I can be spiritual and I
can know it.
So can you.
What we have undertake
to do this year is to go through the Bible looking at those persons that we
might rightfully assume are spiritual in the yes of the Lord and through them discover
what it means to be spiritual.
But to be honest, when I
read this verse, I am almost always prone to think back to an interview I heard
on the radio, probably in the mid-90’s.
I can’t remember who it
was now, some well-known entertainer, who was being interviewed.
At some point during the
interview he said, I am a very spiritual person.
It shocked me because I
knew his reputation to be absolutely not holy.
But then he went on to
explain what he meant by spiritual.
· He didn’t mean he was a Christian
· He didn’t mean he was a church-goer
· He didn’t mean religious
· He didn’t even mean he believed in a higher power
All he meant was
something to the effect that he believed living beings could connect on a level
deeper than physical.
We can love and we can
hate and therefore we are spiritual beings.
I think I am stating the
obvious when I say that it obviously not what the Bible means when it defines a
person as spiritual.
I don’t think it should
surprise us that unbiblical ideas of what it means to be spiritual have existed
for much longer than the last couple of decades.
What I want to do this
morning is present to you five personalities in the book of Genesis who, though
likely thinking they were spiritual, were not in the Biblical sense of the
Word.
It will get this
unpleasant topic covered in one fell swoop so we can move on to happier, if not
perfect subjects in the future.
I. NIMROD
Genesis 10:8-11 (KJV)
And Cush begat Nimrod:
he began to be a mighty one in the earth.
He was a mighty hunter
before the LORD: wherefore it is said, Even as Nimrod the mighty hunter before
the LORD.
And the beginning of his
kingdom was Babel, and Erech, and Accad, and Calneh, in the land of Shinar.
Out of that land went
forth Asshur, and builded Nineveh, and the city Rehoboth, and Calah,
Nimrod is the guy who is
going to try to get to heaven without God.
He’s going to try to do
it without any sort of religion.
The Bible says he was a
mighty hunter.
He reminds me of the
· self made,
· earthy
· man’s man,
sort of person.
He doesn’t need God.
He views religion as a
crutch.
He isn’t afraid of death
or hell or anything else.
On the other hand, it’s
not like he would mind having it better on the other side – if there is another
side.
This guy can call it
whatever he wants to call it.
He might not call it
heaven. It might be
· Nirvana
· Paradise or just
· Better than suffering here
Nimrod was that sort of
man.
Notice that the Bible
says the beginning of his kingdom was Babel.
Genesis chapter 11 tells
us where Babel came from.
Genesis 11:1-4 (KJV)
And the whole earth was
of one language, and of one speech.
And it came to pass, as
they journeyed from the east, that they found a plain in the land of Shinar;
and they dwelt there.
And they said one to
another, Go to, let us make brick, and burn them throughly. And they had brick
for stone, and slime had they for morter.
And they said, Go to,
let us build us a city and a tower, whose top may reach unto heaven; and let us
make us a name, lest we be scattered abroad upon the face of the whole earth.
Genesis 11:6-9 (KJV)
And the LORD said,
Behold, the people is one, and they have all one language; and this they begin
to do: and now nothing will be restrained from them, which they have imagined
to do.
Go to, let us go down,
and there confound their language, that they may not understand one another's
speech.
So the LORD scattered
them abroad from thence upon the face of all the earth: and they left off to
build the city.
Therefore is the name of
it called Babel; because the LORD did there confound the language of all the
earth: and from thence did the LORD scatter them abroad upon the face of all
the earth.
Because the beginning of
his kingdom was called Babel and because Babel was founded after God confounded
the languages of all the people, we can say that Nimrod was the leader of this
group.
Nimrod’s plan was to
unite the people together and work their own way to heaven.
Nimrod represents
someone like the guy I heard on the radio so many years ago.
· He was famous
· He was influential and
· He thought he could do with God
I know I can’t prove
this other than by simply believing what the Bible says, but I am convinced
that everyone wants something better on the other side of the grave.
Frankly, the Bible is
the only source we can turn to concerning the issues of what’s on the other
side that can prove what it teaches because it’s subject – Jesus Christ – died,
and rose again.
And did so in such a way
that it is irrefutable that he did it.
Nimrod is the guy who is
trying to get to heaven without God.
II. LOT
Genesis 13:8-13 (KJV)
And Abram said unto Lot,
Let there be no strife, I pray thee, between me and thee, and between my
herdmen and thy herdmen; for we be brethren.
Is not the whole land
before thee? separate thyself, I pray thee, from me: if thou wilt take the left
hand, then I will go to the right; or if thou depart to the right hand, then I
will go to the left.
And Lot lifted up his
eyes, and beheld all the plain of Jordan, that it was well watered every where,
before the LORD destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah, even as the garden of the LORD,
like the land of Egypt, as thou comest unto Zoar.
Then Lot chose him all
the plain of Jordan; and Lot journeyed east: and they separated themselves the
one from the other.
Abram dwelled in the
land of Canaan, and Lot dwelled in the cities of the plain, and pitched his
tent toward Sodom.
But the men of Sodom
were wicked and sinners before the LORD exceedingly.
Lot was the nephew of
Abraham.
He is the one member of
Abraham’s family[1] that was blessed to enter
into the Promised Land with him.
Remember how God made
Abraham stop in Haran before entering the Promised Land because his father was
with him?
· He couldn’t take his father or his brothers.
· He did get to take Lot into the Promised Land
And Lot was blessed
there. The Bible says, Genesis 13:5-6 (KJV)
And Lot also, which went
with Abram, had flocks, and herds, and tents.
And the land was not
able to bear them, that they might dwell together: for their substance was
great, so that they could not dwell together.
In fact, the Bible calls
Lot just and righteous.
2 Peter 2:7-8 (KJV)
And delivered just Lot,
vexed with the filthy conversation of the wicked:
(For that righteous man
dwelling among them, in seeing and hearing, vexed his righteous soul from day to
day with their unlawful deeds;)
In our terms, we would
say that Lot was saved.
But he vexed his own
soul.
The word vexed means, afflicted, cursed.
It doesn’t mean he lost
his salvation – it means he was a miserable man.
He vexed his soul by
joining up with
· filthiness,
· wickedness and
· unlawfulness
One of the jobs of the
preacher is to warn people not to get entangled with the things of this world.
It is very often the
most unpopular thing we do.
People call us:
· Judgmental
· Unloving and
· Legalistic
All we are trying to do
is keep people who are Christians from vexing themselves and making themselves
miserable.
Believe me, in 33 years
of pastoring, I have watched some very happy people become very unhappy, all
because they chose to give up what they knew the Bible taught them.
Lot is the Christian who
has compromised with the world and made himself miserable.
III. ISHMAEL
Genesis 16:3-11 (KJV)
And Sarai Abram's wife
took Hagar her maid the Egyptian, after Abram had dwelt ten years in the land
of Canaan, and gave her to her husband Abram to be his wife.
And he went in unto
Hagar, and she conceived: and when she saw that she had conceived, her mistress
was despised in her eyes.
And Sarai said unto
Abram, My wrong be upon thee: I have given my maid into thy bosom; and when she
saw that she had conceived, I was despised in her eyes: the LORD judge between
me and thee.
But Abram said unto
Sarai, Behold, thy maid is in thy hand; do to her as it pleaseth thee. And when
Sarai dealt hardly with her, she fled from her face.
And the angel of the
LORD found her by a fountain of water in the wilderness, by the fountain in the
way to Shur.
And he said, Hagar,
Sarai's maid, whence camest thou? and whither wilt thou go? And she said, I
flee from the face of my mistress Sarai.
And the angel of the
LORD said unto her, Return to thy mistress, and submit thyself under her hands.
And the angel of the
LORD said unto her, I will multiply thy seed exceedingly, that it shall not be
numbered for multitude.
And the angel of the LORD
said unto her, Behold, thou art with child, and shalt bear a son, and shalt
call his name Ishmael; because the LORD hath heard thy affliction.
God had made Abraham a promise that, when they got to the
Promised Land, God would make of them and great
nation and give them children as
many as the stars in the sky.
Trouble is, Sarah could not conceive.
They trusted the Lord
and waited on him for a time, but eventually they caved.
Sarah, so desperate for
a child, offered her handmaid to her husband. He could have relations with her
and, if they had a child, Sarah would claim it as her own.
Anyone could have
guessed that it wouldn’t work out.
Sarah got jealous of
Hagar and tried to run her off.
There was a child
conceived. God told Sarah to name him Ishmael.
While I used Ishmael’s
name as my heading title, the story is really more about Hagar because of Galatians
4:22-31 (KJV)
For it is written, that
Abraham had two sons, the one by a bondmaid, the other by a freewoman.
But he who was of the
bondwoman was born after the flesh; but he of the freewoman was by promise.
Which things are an
allegory: for these are the two covenants; the one from the mount Sinai, which
gendereth to bondage, which is Agar.
For this Agar is mount
Sinai in Arabia, and answereth to Jerusalem which now is, and is in bondage
with her children.
But Jerusalem which is
above is free, which is the mother of us all.
For it is written,
Rejoice, thou barren that bearest not; break forth and cry, thou that
travailest not: for the desolate hath many more children than she which hath an
husband.
Now we, brethren, as
Isaac was, are the children of promise.
But as then he that was
born after the flesh persecuted him that was born after the Spirit, even so it
is now.
Nevertheless what saith
the scripture? Cast out the bondwoman and her son: for the son of the bondwoman
shall not be heir with the son of the freewoman.
So then, brethren, we
are not children of the bondwoman, but of the free.
Ishmael represents religion – trying to be spiritual
by good works and personal effort.
You see, God had made a
promise to Abraham and Sarah; they would have children.
But God did not tell
them when.
When God did not give
them what God promised them when they thought God should give it to them, they
decided to keep God’s promise for Him.
And all it did is cause
problems.
In this world there are only two sorts of relationships with
God:
· That relationship which is build by trusting God and
· That relationship which is built by doing good things for
God
· The first one of those two is called faith
· The second is called works.
And you can name it
anything you want – any religions you want.
· It can be Islam, Buddhism, Hinduism
· It can be Mormonism, Jehovah’s Witness
· It can be trusting baptism, or catechism or christening
The Bible says to cast
all of that out and do just one thing, believe God’s promise for salvation
Romans 10:13
For whosoever shall call
upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.
Nothing else can make a
person right with God.
IV. ESAU
Genesis 25:24-33 (KJV)
And when her days to be
delivered were fulfilled, behold, there were twins in her womb.
And the first came out
red, all over like an hairy garment; and they called his name Esau.
And after that came his
brother out, and his hand took hold on Esau's heel; and his name was called
Jacob: and Isaac was threescore years old when she bare them.
And the boys grew: and
Esau was a cunning hunter, a man of the field; and Jacob was a plain man,
dwelling in tents.
And Isaac loved Esau,
because he did eat of his venison: but Rebekah loved Jacob.
And Jacob sod pottage:
and Esau came from the field, and he was faint:
And Esau said to Jacob,
Feed me, I pray thee, with that same red pottage; for I am faint: therefore was
his name called Edom.
And Jacob said, Sell me
this day thy birthright.
And Esau said, Behold, I
am at the point to die: and what profit shall this birthright do to me?
And Jacob said, Swear to
me this day; and he sware unto him: and he sold his birthright unto Jacob.
Esau and Jacob were
twins, though technically Esau was the older because he was born first.
Esau was his daddy’s
favorite.
· He was an outdoorsman
· Smelly
· A man’s man
He came from a good
family. Isaac, his father, was the promised child of Abraham and Sarah.
But Esau had a major
problem – he had no interest in spiritual things.
Being the oldest, it was
going to fall to him one day to lead God’s family.
That meant nothing to
him – he wanted immediate pleasure.
He sold to his brother
what was an eternal blessing, for one bowl of soup.
I see people all the
time who spoil the blessings God has for them for a moment’s pleasure – a one
time taste of sin.
· Nimrod is the one who wants heaven without God
· Lot is the one who vexes his soul with worldiness
· Ishmael is the one who represents religion instead of a real
relationship with Jesus Christ
· Esau is the one who throws all God’s blessings away for a
moment of sin
Finally there are
V. CHILDREN OF
KETURAH
Genesis 25:1-5 (KJV)
Then again Abraham took
a wife, and her name was Keturah.
And she bare him Zimran,
and Jokshan, and Medan, and Midian, and Ishbak, and Shuah.
And Jokshan begat Sheba,
and Dedan. And the sons of Dedan were Asshurim, and Letushim, and Leummim.
And the sons of Midian;
Ephah, and Epher, and Hanoch, and Abida, and Eldaah. All these were the
children of Keturah.
And Abraham gave all
that he had unto Isaac.
Abraham remarried after
Sarah died and had half a dozen children by this wife.
Frankly, nothing good
can be said of any of them.
These are the people who
bought Joseph when his brothers sold him as a slave.
These people were a
constant enemy against the Jews in the Promised Land.
They are, the
foundational families of Islam who all claim Abraham as their father – but not
Sarah and their mother.
What we learn from them
is this:
Nobody has a relationship with God just because their
parents do.
· Doesn’t matter if you grew up in church
· Doesn’t matter if you learned all the Bible stories
· Doesn’t matter if you could get up and preach better than I
can
What matters is your
heart.
Has there ever been a
time in your life when in the sincerity of your heart and soul you approached
the throne of God’s grace and
· Confessed to Him that you are a sinner
· Acknowledged to Him that you deserve judgment for that sin
· Believed in your heart the gospel of the death burial and
resurrection of Jesus and then
· Called upon Jesus Christ and asked him to save you?
Only those who have done that are the Biblical children of
God and
Only those have a certain claim to a home in heaven when
they die.
But even they can make themselves miserable by compromising
with the world or choosing the pleasure of a moment’s sin instead of the joys
of obeying God’s Word.
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