Day 24 – Abraham & His Three Visitors

• Today’s first passage has two distinct (although connected) sections, so let’s start with the first one, where we see Abraham working hard to welcome some unexpected guests. Before we dig into that, let’s once again set the scene. Abraham and his wife are still waiting on God for Him to start working out His promises in specific ways. God has promised them several times that they would father a great nation, but at the start of Genesis 18, that hasn’t yet materialised. Make sure that when you do your daily readings, you remember that this is all part of one big story, so keep in mind what has occurred so far, and think about the context.
• One seemingly random day, what happens to Abraham? How did Abraham react? Did he show respect to the strangers?
• As we see Abraham treating his guests very well, it’s worth thinking about who these guests are. Throughout history there has been quite a debate about it! Some think one of them may have been a physical image of God Himself, based on the words in Genesis 18:1. The other two visitors can be fairly confidently said to be angels. Genesis 19, which we’ll read tomorrow, opens by referring to the “two angels”. This is likely what it means in the passage in Hebrews where it talks about “entertaining angels unawares”. This is a clear biblical message that we, as Christians, should practise good hospitality. Are you good at welcoming people?
• Sarah is told by the visitors that she will have a baby within a year. Why did Sarah laugh at the news of the baby? I often smile about the little argument she has with God in verses 12-15. Did you?
• In the second part of the chapter, from verse 16 onwards, Abraham and his visitors set off on a walk towards the great city of Sodom. What does God plan to do to this evil place? If you can’t work it out, Abraham talks about it in his question in verse 23.
• Sodom was a city full of sin. It was dripping with evil, as was its sister city Gomorrah. As Abraham surveys the scene, he considers the punishment that God is planning on carrying out upon the city. Abraham decides to ask God a series of questions. What is Abraham asking God to do? By verse 32, what has God promised not to do if He can find at least 10 righteous people in the city?
• Was Abraham respectful in his repeated requests to God, and what was God’s response? Could the way Abraham spoke with God be helpful to how we speak, let’s say, to our parents?

We’re left on a bit of a cliffhanger today! Abraham walks back home in Genesis 18:33 after his discussions with God, and we’ll find out what happens to the evil city of Sodom on Monday. Abraham might have been worried about his nephew Lot who lived there. I wonder whether there will be at least 10 righteous people in the city, meaning God save it, or whether God will continue with His punishment. We’ll find out tomorrow.

Today’s passages talk about angels, which is a topic that some of you may be rather unfamiliar with. You’ll all have heard of angels, but you may struggle to explain what they are or what their role is. We’ll dig into this question and discuss it further later in the study plan, but you may want to do some further study online now if you would like. Feel free to ask me more about angels when we meet up, if you’d like.

For now, however, let’s keep our attention on Abraham and the way he acted with his visitors. Abraham was welcoming, and generous with his possessions and time. How are you at being generous and welcoming to all you meet? Is there, perhaps, something you can do this weekend to show hospitality, respect or kindness to someone that goes beyond what you might normally do?