When was the last time you were surprised? To be surprised is to experience an unexpected or astonishing event, fact, or thing. It has been said that there are three types of surprises we will experience. We are surprised when:
- Something happens that we don't expect.
- We expect something to happen, but something else happens instead.
- Expect something to happen, but nothing happens.
Surprise is one of seven universal human emotions that transcends language, regional, cultural, and ethnic differences. The other six universal human emotions are anger, contempt, disgust, enjoyment, fear, and sadness. We can tell by a person’s facial expressions which emotion they are experiencing, even if we do not know them or share their cultural history.
What are the sources of surprise? We can be surprised by some environmental conditions. We smell a flower and might be surprised at how sweet and attractive its scent is. We can be surprised by people. You step into a room and people shout, “Surprise – Happy Birthday!” Finally, and perhaps most importantly, we can be surprised by God. But is it God’s nature to surprise us, or is it our nature to be surprised by him? I would like us to consider that question today.
Our scripture reading today, from Chapter 14 of the Book of Genesis, concerning the life of Abram, contains a few things that might surprise us. Let’s take a moment and set the stage. War had broken out in the region near where Abram lived. Unfortunately, war is not an unusual occurrence. The war was described as being between five kings and four kings. The five kings represented the cities of Sodom, Gomorrah, Admah, Zeboyim, and Bela. The four kings represented the cities of Elam, Goyim, Shinar, and Ellasar. A climactic battle occurred in the Valley of Siddim, resulting in the defeat of the five kings by the four. We would read, “10 Now the Valley of Siddim was full of tar pits, and when the kings of Sodom and Gomorrah fled, some of the men fell into them and the rest fled to the hills. 11 The four kings seized all the goods of Sodom and Gomorrah and all their food; then they went away. 12 They also carried off Abram’s nephew Lot and his possessions, since he was living in Sodom” (Genesis 14:10-12).
We now see that Lot, Abram’s nephew, had been taken captive in the war, likely to become enslaved. “14 When Abram heard that his relative had been taken captive, he called out the 318 trained men born in his household and went in pursuit as far as Dan. 15 During the night Abram divided his men to attack them and he routed them, pursuing them as far as Hobah, north of Damascus. 16 He recovered all the goods and brought back his relative Lot and his possessions, together with the women and the other people” (Genesis 14:14-16). We see here some potential surprises. First, we are surprised because we did not expect Abram to have such an enormous household. There were at least 318 men born into the household who had been trained in warfare to accompany Abram in his effort to retrieve Lot. This means his household could have been a couple of thousand people. Secondly, we are surprised because we did not expect to see that when Abram attacked, he divided his forces. Usually, armies of that time did not divide because it was hard to maintain communications between army elements. Thirdly, we are surprised because we did not expect to see that Abram attacked at night. Armies at that time did not attack at night because it was too hard to understand what was happening and who was a threat and who was an ally. Nevertheless, Abram attacked and was successful in rescuing his nephew, their possessions, and all the other people who had been taken captive. This brings about a happy ending to the story of Abram, the warrior and savior.
Then we read earlier, “17 After Abram returned from defeating Kedorlaomer (K-door-lay-o-mor) and the kings allied with him, the king of Sodom came out to meet him in the Valley of Shaveh (that is, the King’s Valley)” (Genesis 14:17). That does not seem like a surprise. Now that the battle has been won, the king of Sodom, the king of a wicked city, reappears to meet Abram, who has recaptured the possessions and people of Sodom along with his nephew, Lot. The king of Sodom was likely coming to take back from Abram what the king believed belonged to him. And so we expect that the next thing we will read about is the encounter between Abram and the king of Sodom.
But we are surprised because that does not happen. Instead of the encounter between Abram and the king of Sodom, we read, “18 Then Melchizedek, king of Salem, brought out bread and wine. He was priest of God Most High” (Genesis 14:18). We expect something to happen, but something else happens instead. And what is the nature of our surprise? We want to know who Melchizedek is. What does it mean that he was the king of Salem? Where is Salem? And what does it mean that Melchizedek was a priest of God? Up until this point in the story of Abram, the only person associated with God was Abram.
What we learn is that Melchizedek is a name comprised of two Hebrew words: Melek, מֶלֶךְ, meaning “king,” and Tsedek, צֶדֶק, meaning "righteousness.” And so we learn that a person known as the “king of righteousness” sought out Abram. This king was from Salem. The ancient city of Salem, scholars believe, was the name of the place later and now known as Jerusalem. The king of righteousness came from Jerusalem. What does it mean that Melchizedek was a priest of the God Most High? In ancient times, there were three religious offices. There was a king, a priest, and a prophet. A king was to represent God to the people. A priest was to represent the people to God. A prophet was a messenger of God delivering words of divine revelation to the king, priests, and people. Melchizedek, as a priest, served as an intermediary between the people and God. He may also have served as an intermediary between God and the people as a king.
The priest Melchizedek's interruption of the expected encounter between Abram and the king of Sodom and Melchizedek’s existence as another authority under God must have surprised Abram. This was not what he expected. There would be more surprises coming for Abram.
The scripture says, “19 And he (Melchizedek) blessed him (Abram) and said: 'Blessed be Abram of God Most High, Possessor of heaven and earth” (Genesis 14:19). Melchizedek was acknowledging that he and Abram were spiritual brothers serving the same God Most High. God had called Abram into the Promised Land and had called Melchizedek into the priesthood, bearing the concerns of the people to God. This Melchizedek blessed Abram as a brother in faith. Abram was surprised as he had never been blessed by any earthly being before in his life.
Melchizedek had a little more to tell Abram. Scripture says, Melchizedek said, “And blessed be God Most High, who has delivered your (Abram’s) enemies into your (Abram’s) hand” (Genesis 14:20a). Well, that might have been a surprise to Abram. The victory of Abram over Kedorlaomer (K-door-lay-o-mor) and the kings allied with him did not come about because Abram divided his forces and attacked at night. The victory came about because God gave Abram the victory. God surprises people who are open to Him. God surprised Abram with a victory, and God surprised Abram with the presence of another called to God, a priest named Melchizedek.
Melchizedek had one more task to do, and that was to bring bread and wine to Abram. Bread and wine were the staples of life. As the faith practices of the Chosen People developed, a traditional prayer was offered for the bread: https://youtu.be/3gYwg9HOzb4?feature=shared "Blessed are You, Lord our God, Ruler of the universe, who brings forth bread from the earth.” And a traditional blessing of the wine was also offered: https://youtu.be/GH0ILq9vKao?feature=shared "Blessed are You, Lord our God, King of the universe, Who creates the fruit of the vine.” Melchizedek had instilled in the minds of Abram and all his descendants the significance of the bread and the wine as offerings to God.
Abram must have been overjoyed at the presence of Melchizedek and the institution of God’s praise in the form of the bread and wine. Scripture tells us that after spending time with Melchizedek, “And he (Abram) gave him (Melchizedek) a tithe of all” (Genesis 14:20b). In Abram’s giving of the tithe to Melchizedek, there is a suggestion that Abram saw Melchizedek as superior to himself.
After the surprise encounter between Abram and Melchizedek ended, Scripture returned to the story of Abram and the King of Sodom. “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 14:21-23a). Abram would have nothing to do with the wickedness of Sodom. He wanted to be clear that any blessing he had in life was due to his relationship with God. This is faith.
What then do we make of Abram’s developing faith? How does what Abram experienced and demonstrated relate to us? There are three things for us to consider today.
First, God does not intend to surprise us, but we are surprised by Him. Why is that? Historically, God has revealed to people what He is going to do before He does it, so that they know that what happened was because He ordained it. God had called Abram to the Promised Land and made Abram seven promises before Abram moved one inch toward that Promised Land.
- I will make you a great nation.
- I will bless you.
- I will make your name great.
- You will be a blessing.
- I will curse those who curse you.
- I will bless those who bless you.
- By you, all families will be blessed.
So when Abram’s nephew Lot was enslaved, a curse against Abram, it should not have surprised Abram that God would bless Abram with a successful rescue mission. So, when God later said, "This is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased” (Matthew 3:17) upon Jesus' baptism, and then said, “This is my Son, listen to Him” (Matthew 17:5) upon Jesus' transfiguration, we ought to believe God. We should not be surprised, then, by what Jesus was able to do and what Jesus promised. When Jesus promised salvation to all who would believe in Him, He meant it. So, when we see a man named Saul who persecuted Christians repent and receive forgiveness from Jesus, we should not be surprised that Jesus will forgive us. But many people do not consider themselves worthy of God’s forgiveness, and so, they do not accept God’s invitation. Don’t be surprised that God has said that He loves you and wants to bless you just as He had blessed Abram.
Second, we ought to expect God to bring into our lives people who will excite our faith, even if we did not expect them. Abram was journeying through the Promised Land, believing that he alone had a relationship with God. Surprise! Along came this mysterious character, Melchizedek, who interrupted Abram’s meeting with the king of the wicked city of Sodom. The joy Abram must have felt, knowing he was not alone, that there was another believer, must have strengthened Abram's faith. Every so often, I take the time to reflect on all the believers God has brought into my life through church, Bible studies, counseling sessions, lay study courses, fellowship dinners, funerals, weddings, and even fellow passengers on airplanes. God has used each one of them and each one of you to encourage me in my faith. The first Bible study I ever participated in as a student used the book by Charles Swindoll entitled “Hand Me Another Brick.” It is the story of Nehemiah, who led the effort to rebuild the wall around Jerusalem. I appreciate the imagery that each Christian God sends into my life and into yours, as a means to hand another brick to build up my faith and make me stronger. We ought to expect God to do that because he desires that we would be strong in our faith.
Third, we ought to expect God to speak to us using ordinary things in extraordinary ways. In our story today, Melchizedek brought ordinary things to Abram. He brought bread and wine to sustain Abram and those with him. Jesus used the same ordinary things — bread and wine — in an extraordinary way with his disciples. The bread and wine represented Jesus’ own body and blood. Jesus invited his disciples to eat the bread and drink the wine in advance of his death, so they would know that his death was not accidental; it was part of God’s plan to bless them. That in Jesus’ death, redemption was assured and forgiveness of all sins would be granted. Jesus served as the intercessor between them and God, representing them to God and fulfilling the office of a priest. The New Testament Book of Hebrews tells us, “7 During the days of Jesus’ life on earth, he offered up prayers and petitions with fervent cries and tears to the one who could save him from death, and he was heard because of his reverent submission. 8 Son though he was, he learned obedience from what he suffered 9 and, once made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation for all who obey him 10 and was designated by God to be high priest in the order of Melchizedek” (Hebrews 5:7-10). In a few minutes, we will take the ordinary bread and cup and remember the extraordinary things Jesus has done for us.
Abram’s faith and his sense of hope soared because of the provisions God had given to encourage him. That same God wants your faith and sense of hope to soar high through the believers and ordinary things of life that he will use in extraordinary ways in your life. Amen and Amen.