Who Did Hinder You?

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KJB Daily DevotionFollowing Jesus Through Every Chapter
Date: Wednesday, January 16, 2019
Chapters: Genesis 12-15
Message: Who Did Hinder You?

Hello My Friend,

I had a dream last night, and it was of all things a Bible lesson I was teaching the kids on how we hinder God. I guess God really does speak to us in our dreams, and have to say that for the past two weeks I have been hindered from doing things I was set on doing, and this week is quickly going in the same direction. And here it is Wednesday, and now I have to work the rest of the week so I may be hindered once again. You know, whether we realize it or not, and people will tell you all the time that your life was meant to go exactly as it has gone, that it was all planned by God, but let me tell you, everything is about freewill and our willingness to open our heart to God, and that determines the life we have. It is so true that we, by nature, do not do the things of God, we really do need someone to guide us or else we really will miss out on a lot of what God has predestined for us. And here is the question of the day, “Ye did run well; who did hinder you that ye should not obey the truth?” – Galatians 5:7.

After centuries of just handfuls of people worshiping God, He decided it was time to make His own nation, one that would only worship Him, one that all the other nations would see, and should one decide to follow them He would welcome them with open arms. There were other men that God considered as upright as Job, but He set His sights on one man, Abram, He had plan, and it was to start with Him. Now the LORD had said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father’s house, unto a land that I will shew thee: And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing: And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed. So Abram departed, as the LORD had spoken unto him; and Lot went with him: and Abram was seventy and five years old when he departed out of Haran.” – Genesis 12:1-4.

Get thee out of thy country,” This was Abraham’s first hindrance, he was told to leave his country and family, although he raised Lot and he was like a son to him, this would prove problematic later on. We often hinder God ourselves when we do not completely do what He asks. Do you see where God said for him to get out of the country? He did not command him, this was a choice that he had to make on his own. So, Abram took his wife, and everything they possessed, along with Lot, who did the same.

And Abram took Sarai his wife, and Lot his brother’s son, and all their substance that they had gathered, and the souls that they had gotten in Haran; and they went forth to go into the land of Canaan; and into the land of Canaan they came. And Abram passed through the land unto the place of Sichem, unto the plain of Moreh. And the Canaanite was then in the land. And the LORD appeared unto Abram, and said, Unto thy seed will I give this land: and there builded he an altar unto the LORD, who appeared unto him. And he removed from thence unto a mountain on the east of Bethel, and pitched his tent, having Bethel on the west, and Hai on the east: and there he builded an altar unto the LORD, and called upon the name of the LORD.” – Genesis 12:5-8.

and called upon the name of the LORD.Do you see that? He built an altar and called upon the name of the LORD. It does not matter what era we come from, we must believe, we must come to the altar of God, and we must call upon the name of the LORD to be saved. “For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.” – Romans 10:13.

Another way that we hinder God is by making decisions on our own instead of asking God how to handle them. Abram was dwelling in the land that God had promised He would give him and His entire family, which by the way, he had no children of his own. A famine came, and instead of asking God what to do they traveled and decided to stay in Egypt, but here was the thing, they were eyeing his wife, and would have taken her.

And there was a famine in the land: and Abram went down into Egypt to sojourn there; for the famine was grievous in the land. And it came to pass, when he was come near to enter into Egypt, that he said unto Sarai his wife, Behold now, I know that thou art a fair woman to look upon: Therefore it shall come to pass, when the Egyptians shall see thee, that they shall say, This is his wife: and they will kill me, but they will save thee alive. Say, I pray thee, thou art my sister: that it may be well with me for thy sake; and my soul shall live because of thee. And it came to pass, that, when Abram was come into Egypt, the Egyptians beheld the woman that she was very fair.” – Genesis 12:10-14.

Say, I pray thee, thou art my sister:Remember, this is Sarah, and she is sixty-five years old at this point, and this was Abraham’s second hindrance. Instead of trusting that God would handle it, he came up with his own reasoning and almost caused a heap of problems. Okay, first of all, we cannot lie, even if we fear for our lives, and second, we hinder God on so many levels when we try to handle things on our own. Do you think that God cannot provide for and protect you at all times? He does, and He will as long as we turn to Him. You know something happens the second we call upon Him, He will get us back in His will one way or another. It was time for Abram to do exactly what God had told him to do in the first place, get out of his country and away from his family, and as they left Egypt, headed back to Canaan, they finally separated, and we can understand why.

And Abram went up out of Egypt, he, and his wife, and all that he had, and Lot with him, into the south. And he went on his journeys from the south even to Bethel, unto the place where his tent had been at the beginning, between Bethel and Hai; And there was a strife between the herdmen of Abram’s cattle and the herdmen of Lot’s cattle: and the Canaanite and the Perizzite dwelled then in the land. 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.– Genesis 13:1,3,7-11.

Then Lot chose him all the plain of Jordan;Do you see why God wanted Abram to be separated from Lot? While Lot was well aware of God’s blessings, his faith was no further than his sight. And besides that he was worldly, as we are to remain separated from the world. You know, when God first told Abram what His plans were, He did not reveal everything, but as soon as they separated, God showed him everything. And the LORD said unto Abram, after that Lot was separated from him, Lift up now thine eyes, and look from the place where thou art northward, and southward, and eastward, and westward: For all the land which thou seest, to thee will I give it, and to thy seed for ever. And I will make thy seed as the dust of the earth: so that if a man can number the dust of the earth, then shall thy seed also be numbered.” – Genesis 13:14-16.

after that Lot was separated from him,While God does often separate us from family and friends, that does not mean He does not give opportunity for us to love them, care for them, and show them Christ through us by being there for them in times of distress. Lot probably thought that God blessed him with that beautiful land, he soon found out that that land was no blessing from God, it was so bad that he built on land away from it. He ended up being captured during a war. Abram, hearing of this, and being the nobleman that he was, gathered his army together to go after them, and was successful at retrieving them.

And when Abram heard that his brother was taken captive, he armed his trained servants, born in his own house, three hundred and eighteen, and pursued them unto Dan. And he divided himself against them, he and his servants, by night, and smote them, and pursued them unto Hobah, which is on the left hand of Damascus. And he brought back all the goods, and also brought again his brother Lot, and his goods, and the women also, and the people. And the king of Sodom went out to meet him after his return from the slaughter of Chedorlaomer, and of the kings that were with him, at the valley of Shaveh, which is the king’s dale. And Melchizedek king of Salem brought forth bread and wine: and he was the priest of the most high God. And he blessed him, and said, Blessed be Abram of the most high God, possessor of heaven and earth: And blessed be the most high God, which hath delivered thine enemies into thy hand. And he gave him tithes of all.” – Genesis 14:14-20.

And he brought back all the goods,” Showing kindness to others is always one of the best opportunities to show the existence of Christ, and what He has done in our lives. After that generous act of love, perhaps Abraham got a little scared about retaliation. It was then that he got a vision from God, first, He comforts him by telling him that He would always be there to protect him.

After these things the word of the LORD came unto Abram in a vision, saying, Fear not, Abram: I am thy shield, and thy exceeding great reward. And Abram said, Lord GOD, what wilt thou give me, seeing I go childless, and the steward of my house is this Eliezer of Damascus? And Abram said, Behold, to me thou hast given no seed: and, lo, one born in my house is mine heir. And, behold, the word of the LORD came unto him, saying, This shall not be thine heir; but he that shall come forth out of thine own bowels shall be thine heir. And he brought him forth abroad, and said, Look now toward heaven, and tell the stars, if thou be able to number them: and he said unto him, So shall thy seed be. And he believed in the LORD; and he counted it to him for righteousness.” – Genesis 15:1-6.

and he counted it to him for righteousness.When God told Abram that he was going to have so many children it would be like counting the stars, he did not quite understand, after all, he was seventy-five, and his wife was sixty-five, and he had no children of his own. However, he believed that God would give him at least one child, and that was counted for his righteousness. Do you see the key word here, “believed”, Abraham believed and that is why he too saw heaven when Jesus gave His life on the cross. Salvation has never been about our good works, it has been about believing in Him, naturally if one has faith they are going to be faithful to God. “and he counted it to him for righteousness.” This same verse reminds us of this. “And the scripture was fulfilled which saith, Abraham believed God, and it was imputed unto him for righteousness: and he was called the Friend of God.” – James 2:23.

Jesus Christ Magnified: “And Melchizedek king of Salem brought forth bread and wine: and he was the priest of the most high God. And he blessed him, and said, Blessed be Abram of the most high God, possessor of heaven and earth:” – Genesis 14:18-19.

Today’s Prayer: God, It is amazing how much You bless us just by receiving Your Son as our Saviour, but what You do after we are saved is hard to comprehend sometimes as we follow You by faith. You have a plan for us, and the second we call on Him as our Saviour you start executing that plan. The paths You lead us are often unknown and quite scary sometimes, and we do hinder You in our walk, but with our faith and faithfulness You not only get us back on track, You give us a blessed and victorious life, one that only You can give us. Lord, lead us and guide us, give us Your power and strength to walk by faith and remain in Your will even when we do not understand where we are going. I ask these things in Jesus’ name, Amen.

God Bless You, I am praying for you,

Christina

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