HE IS IN CONTROL OF EVERYTHING
When you give your heart to Jesus, you win a great battle. The powers of hell are defeated, robbing Satan of the spoil he took from you when he ruled your life. But afterward, as you are still glowing with spiritual victory and freedom, two kings await you—the same two kings that awaited Abram in Genesis 14:17-24.
Abram faced as strong a temptation as any human being ever experienced. Before him was an offer of riches, material goods and fame, but he did not have to think twice about his decision. His response to the king of Sodom’s offer was a quick and clear NO. Why? Because what mattered most to Abram was preserving God’s reputation, not his own. In effect, he was telling the king of Sodom, “I’m returning all these things to you—the people, the riches, everything, because my Lord owns it all, anyway. If He decides to make me wealthy, so be it. But I don’t want you to be able to brag that you made me rich.”
Where did Abram get such detachment from the world, such independence that he was able to reject outright the devil’s offer of material blessing? It is clear from Scripture that Abram derived his strength from a fresh revelation of who God is. Melchizedek had opened Abram’s eyes to an amazing vision of God’s character: “[Melchizedek] blessed him, and said, Blessed be Abram of the most high God . . . which hath delivered thine enemies into thy hand” (Genesis14:19-20).
Embedded in this verse is a name for Jehovah: El Elyon. It means, literally, “God most high, creator and possessor of heaven and earth.” Melchizedek was declaring to Abram, “Your Lord is not just a God above all other gods, He is the creator of the entire universe. Everything in it belongs to Him—all wealth, cattle, possessions. He is in control of everything you see around you.”
Abram faced as strong a temptation as any human being ever experienced. Before him was an offer of riches, material goods and fame, but he did not have to think twice about his decision. His response to the king of Sodom’s offer was a quick and clear NO. Why? Because what mattered most to Abram was preserving God’s reputation, not his own. In effect, he was telling the king of Sodom, “I’m returning all these things to you—the people, the riches, everything, because my Lord owns it all, anyway. If He decides to make me wealthy, so be it. But I don’t want you to be able to brag that you made me rich.”
Where did Abram get such detachment from the world, such independence that he was able to reject outright the devil’s offer of material blessing? It is clear from Scripture that Abram derived his strength from a fresh revelation of who God is. Melchizedek had opened Abram’s eyes to an amazing vision of God’s character: “[Melchizedek] blessed him, and said, Blessed be Abram of the most high God . . . which hath delivered thine enemies into thy hand” (Genesis14:19-20).
Embedded in this verse is a name for Jehovah: El Elyon. It means, literally, “God most high, creator and possessor of heaven and earth.” Melchizedek was declaring to Abram, “Your Lord is not just a God above all other gods, He is the creator of the entire universe. Everything in it belongs to Him—all wealth, cattle, possessions. He is in control of everything you see around you.”