The Spiritual Picture (Genesis 14:18–20)
Book of Genesis: The Book of Foundations
The Bible Teacher’s Commentary
Three Steps for a Growing Faith
Genesis 14:1-24
Genesis 13 setting | Step #1 Observe | God’s Protection | Application | Step #2 Utilize | Hebrew | Abram’s Decision | God’s Love | #3 Secure – 1 | Secret Prayer 2–3 | King Melchizedek 14:18–20 | Spiritual Picture | Melchizedek in Bible | Closing Application
Behind the scenes, we get the true spiritual picture of what really happened in Genesis 14:18–20 through the person of Melchizedek, who served as both high priest and king.
How does God fit into your life? Is He contained in a small compartment that fits neatly into Sunday morning, or is He the great God, possessor and controller of all things, who affects every aspect of your life?
The first picture is not the God of the Scriptures. When we think of God that way, we have formed an idol to protect our comforts.
If we carefully consider all the parts of this picture, we see that God is the almighty Creator and, by virtue of His being the Creator, He is also the possessor of everything, even the ground on which Abram stood. God’s immense power and His ability to intervene in any event on earth are clearly evident. If we could gain His favor, He would be the One we could go to with any need.
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Man, however, cannot go directly to God. God is too immense and holy. Man needs a priest to mediate between God and man. Melchizedek fulfilled this role. He could intercede on behalf of Abram. When Abram brought a request to God, Melchizedek would bring it before God.
There is no evidence that Abram went to Salem to gain Melchizedek’s help. Instead, he swore directly to the “LORD God Most High” (Genesis 14:22).
Abram no doubt did this on the spot where he lived, through prayer. But behind the scenes, God had mobilized the high priest to bring this prayer to Him and then mobilized this king to assist Abram in the battle.