THE HIGH VALUED MAN – GOD’S PERSPECTIVE!
Rank, Wealth, Power, and Worldly Honor do not count in how God values a man or woman. From God’s perspective, what makes a high-valued man or woman? Keep watching as we take a short walk through the life of the patriarch Abraham to determine what is a high-valued man or woman in the sight of God!
In this series of lessons, we look at the love of God and his plan (his mission) to bridge the gap between us and him. We look at his mission to bring us back into a relationship with him. In bridging the gap between us and Him, He calls for us to become His disciples and members of his family. But it does not end with his call; a call without a reaction from the one being called is of no use. How should we react to the call?
Review our past and present videos at SabbathSchoolDaily.com or visit my YouTube Channel, Sabbath School by Dr. Brenda Ware Davis
You also may obtain the study guide for this series at Sabbath.School or ssnet.org (Split)
Let Us Inviting God’s Presence:
Holy Father, thank you for valuing us enough to call us. Remove selfishness and those fears that keep us from taking action. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
God’s Mission, My Mission
(Lesson 4)
SHARING GOD’S MISSION
Part 1 of 6
Introduction
A high-valued man or woman is not based on how much they own or how much they have accomplished. A high-valued man or woman, by God’s standards, is based on how much love they show for others.
Jesus expresses it this way in John 13:34-35
34 A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another.
35 By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.” (John 13:34-35)
Abraham is an example of a High-valued man.
From the start, we see in Genesis chapter 18 that Abraham shows his value in his desire to work with God in His plan to redeem us sinners.
Read about what Abraham did in Genesis 18 when he discovered God’s plan to destroy Sodom and Gomorrah because of their sins.
But before God makes a move, he always gives warnings. Notice what it says in Amos 3:7
7 Surely the Lord God does nothing, Unless He reveals His secret to His servants the prophets. (Amos 3:7).
In the case of Sodom and Gomorrah, God’s prophet was Abraham.
Abraham was resting during the heat of the day when he saw three travelers. He invites these three travelers into his home to be his guests.
The book Patriarchs and Prophets highlights, saying, “Abraham had seen in his guests only three tired travelers. Patriarchs and Prophets, pp. 138, 139.
He, however, did not recognize that in the three strangers, in one of them, he was standing in the presence of God, the one worthy of his worship.
Abraham, nevertheless, got involved in God’s mission. How did Abraham get involved in God’s plan and purpose? He meditated for the people in Sodom and Gomorrah. With a determined hope that it might be possible, despite themselves, for them to be saved, he prayed for the people of Sodom and Gomorrah.
Surely, saving people is what God’s work, plan, purpose, and mission are all about. It is God’s mission to bring us back into a relationship with Him.
Thus, demonstrating his value and delight to be a part of God’s mission, Abraham, in Genesis 18, did three things:
- he showed his guests kindness and generosity.
- he showed love for sinners, and
- he prayed for the wayward people in Sodom and Gomorrah.
You see, for men and women professing to be Christians, our value can be seen in how we treat each other. The Book In Heavenly Places puts it this way:
He who claims to be a Christian should examine himself and see if he is as kind and considerate of his fellow beings as he desires his fellow beings to be of him. Christ taught that rank or wealth should make no difference in our treatment of one another and that in the light of heaven all are brethren. Earthly possessions or worldly honor do not count in God’s valuation of man. (In Heavenly Places, p. 287)
So, Abraham was deemed high valued. This is evident in his encounter with the three travelers. What was significant about his gestures during his encounter with the three travelers? Read Genesis 18:1-15, then continue to part 2 of this video: The Gift of Hospitality
God’s Mission, My Mission Lesson 4
‘God’s Call to Mission
Part 2 The Gift of Hospitality
Abraham was kind and generous. His high value is demonstrated in Genesis 18:1–10 in the form of hospitality.
Reading from the Clear Word Bible, it Says:
Gen. 18.1 Then the LORD appeared to him by the terebinth trees of Mamre, as he was sitting in the tent door in the heat of the day.
18.2 So he lifted his eyes and looked, and behold, three men were standing by him; and when he saw them, he ran from the tent door to meet them, and bowed himself to the ground,
Gen. 18.3 and said, “My Lord, if I have now found favor in Your sight, do not pass on by Your servant.
Gen. 18.4 “Please let a little water be brought, and wash your feet, and rest yourselves under the tree.
Gen. 18.5 “And I will bring a morsel of bread, that you may refresh your hearts. After that you may pass by, inasmuch as you have come to your servant.” They said, “Do as you have said.”
Gen. 18.6 So Abraham hurried into the tent to Sarah and said, “Quickly, make ready three measures of fine meal; knead it and make cakes.”
Gen. 18.7 And Abraham ran to the herd, took a tender and good calf, gave it to a young man, and he hastened to prepare it.
Gen. 18.8 So he took butter and milk and the calf which he had prepared, and set it before them; and he stood by them under the tree as they ate. (Genesis 18:1-8 Clear Word)
The Bible puts much stress upon the practice of hospitality. Not only does it demand hospitality as a duty, but it presents many beautiful pictures of the exercise of this act of kindness and the blessings it brings. (Split)
Foremost among these is the experience of Abraham.
At the time of day in summer, when the travelers came passing by, the sun was high in the sky. Abraham was sitting at the entrance of his tent under the shadow of the oaks of Mamre in the heat of the day. By this time of the day, everyone was looking to find a shady tree with a fresh breeze.
While Abraham sat at the entrance of his tent under the shade of the tree, three travelers passed by.
They make no appeal for hospitality solicit no favor, but Abraham does not permit them to go on their way unrefreshed. He is a man full of years, a man of dignity and wealth, one highly honored, and accustomed to command; yet on seeing these strangers he “ran to meet them from the tent door, and bowed himself toward the ground.” . . . With his own hands he brought water that they might wash the dust of travel from their feet.
He himself selected their food; while they were at rest under the cooling shade, Sarah his wife made ready for their entertainment, and Abraham stood respectfully beside them while they partook of his hospitality. This kindness he showed them simply as wayfarers, passing strangers, who might never come his way again.—Testimonies for the Church, vol. 6, p. 341.
Abraham knew what the Lord had appointed him to do. He knew his mission. The Lord wanted him to share with everyone His knowledge about God.
You see, the world then, as it is now, was filled with paganism, idolatry, and polytheism. People worshiped nature and many gods. We can see here why God’s valuation of Abraham was high. It was because he did the work God called him to do. In showing hospitality to these three strangers, he was fulfilling God’s mission.
Many people in the land learned about God from Abraham. Abraham “great household consisted of more than a thousand souls, many of them heads of families, and not a few but newly converted from heathenism. Such a household required a firm hand at the helm. No weak, vacillating methods would suffice. . . . Abraham’s influence extended beyond his own household. Wherever he pitched his tent, he set up beside it the altar for sacrifice and worship. When the tent was removed, the altar remained; and many a roving Canaanite, whose knowledge of God had been gained from the life of Abraham His servant…”—Ellen. G. White, Education, p. 187.
Thus, from the start, Abraham understood that God had a mission for him. He recognized that he wasn’t going to the Promised Land for a vacation. He went there to be a blessing to the people around him, and through his seed, the entire world would be blessed. (Split)
But evidence of Abraham’s high value did not stop there: Read Genesis 18:16-33 and watch my next video as we continue our short walk through the life of Abraham to see what God values in a man or woman. Watch Part 3: Abraham’s Love for Everyone
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