21 Now the king of Sodom said to Abram, “Give me the persons, and take the goods for yourself.”
22 But Abram said to the king of Sodom, “I have raised my hand to the Lord, God Most High, the Possessor of heaven and earth,
23 that I will take nothing, from a thread to a sandal strap, and that I will not take anything that is yours, lest you should say, ‘I have made Abram rich’
[Genesis 14:21-23]
Abraham was such a man of faith and discipline. He was able to conquer greed. As we said previously, the booty he got through the conquest of Lot’s captors legitimately belonged to Abraham. The King of Sodom knew this. That’s why he was asking Abraham to give back to him only the people of Sodom. It was a humble request, lest he becomes a King without subjects. Abraham could have kept even the people as his slaves.
Look at Abraham’s reaction. He didn’t allow the riches to derail his heart from God. God had promised to make him rich and he was simply waiting upon God. He didn’t try to rationalize it in order to keep the riches of Sodom. Abraham didn’t want the King of Sodom to take the place of God by boasting that he made Abraham rich. Good things are not always right, according to Myles Munroe. Keeping the goods would be the good thing. However, giving them back to the King of Sodom is the right thing. Abraham overcame by doing the right thing- refusing to appropriate the riches of Sodom to himself.
If it were some of today’s Christians, I know the scriptures that’ll be used to justify laying claims to the riches of sinful Sodom. Proverbs 13:22 would come handy. It says “…The wealth of the sinner is stored up for the righteous“. This will further be fortified with Job 27:17, which says, “He [the wicked] may pile it up, but the just will wear it, and the innocent will divide the silver”. Abraham chose to be different.
Look at Abraham’s boast in God. He calls God “The Lord, God Most High, the Possessor of heaven and earth. Wow! May we also know God as such.
King David, the Psalmist says, “I will lift up my eyes to the hills— from whence comes my help? My help comes from the Lord, Who made heaven and earth” (Psalm 121:1&2)
May our help come from the Lord. May our righteous expectations come to pass, as we look up to God, as Abraham did. Amen
