DCLM Daily Manna 30 March 2022
KEY VERSE: Genesis 13:8 “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.”
TEXT: Genesis 13:1-18 (KJV)
1. And Abram went up out of Egypt, he, and his wife, and all that he had, and Lot with him, into the south.
2. And Abram was very rich in cattle, in silver, and in gold.
3. 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;
4. Unto the place of the altar, which he had made there at the first; and there Abram called on the name of the LORD.
5. And Lot also, which went with Abram, had flocks, and herds, and tents.
6. 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.
7. 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.
8. 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.
9. 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.
10. 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.
11. Then Lot chose him all the plain of Jordan; and Lot journeyed east; and they separated themselves the one from the other.
12. Abram dwelled in the land of Canaan, and Lot dwelled in the cities of the plain, and pitched his tent toward Sodom.
13. But the men of Sodom were wicked and sinners before the LORD exceedingly.
14. 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;
5. For all the land which thou seest, to thee will I give it, and to thy seed for ever.
16. 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.
17. Arise, walk through the land in the length of it and in the breadth of it; for I will give it unto thee.
18. Then Abram removed his tent, and came and dwelt in the plain of Mamre, which is in Hebron, and built there an altar unto the LORD.
Read yesterday’s Daily Manna here
Telemachus was a monk who lived in the early 5th century. In prayer one day, he heard God saying to him, “Go to Rome”. When he arrived the city, he found people thronging to the Coliseum to watch the gladiators fight to kill each other for entertainment, despite Christianity being the religion of the Roman Empire for decades. He ran to the Coliseum and heard the gladiators say, “Hail Caesar, we who are about to die salute you”. Telemachus ran in between them and cried, “In the name of Christ, forbear”. But encouraged by the crowd who would have nothing interrupt their entertainment, Telemachus was stabbed to death by one of the gladiators. A hush came over the 80,000 people in the Coliseum, and within minutes, all had left. When the story of the monk was heard by Emperor Horatius, the games were permanently banned, and this incident became the last known gladiatorial contest in the history of Rome.
Abram, in our text, took the initiative to resolve a conflict that had the potential of causing a rift between him and Lot. He got the call of God. Lot, his brother’s son, was just to accompany him on his journey. Abram was so generous that He gave Lot a free hand to grow and prosper, which could not have been if he was selfish and wicked. There was a strife between his herdsmen and those of Lot, his nephew, over grazing rights, as their cattle and possessions increased. Abram, though the elder and leader of the pack, gave Lot the right of first choice. He had enough grace to mediate peacefully without allowing his own interests to prevail.
Abram knew what many do not know today – little is much when God is in it. We should be content with the things we have. We would not fight over properties, privileges and positions today if we understand that God rules over everything and owns all things.
THOUGHT FOR THE DAY: Are you a peacemaker or peace taker?
BIBLE IN ONE YEAR : Nehemiah 8-10
Thank you for studying today’s Daily Manna – Peacemaker or Peace Taker – by Pastor W.F Kumuyi
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Daily Manna 30 March 2022
