16. Abraham’s Trying Challenge and Melchizedek’s Rich Blessing

This mosaic shows Melchizedek bringing bread and wine out to Abraham when the met.
A mosaic of the meeting between Abraham and Melchizedek

In post 15, I discussed how the flocks of Abraham and Lot grew so large that they had to separate. Abraham gave Lot first choice on where he wanted to settle. He chose to be close to the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah. Eventually we find him living in the city of Sodom.

Abraham Goes to War

One day, a messenger came running into Abraham’s camp with some very bad news.

A massive war had broken out in the Dead Sea region, probably one of the biggest wars ever. There were three kings against two, but the two were more powerful and they captured the city of Sodom where Abraham’s nephew Lot was living.

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15. Abraham Worships God in the Midst of the Canaanites

Ancient Altar in Mesopotamia similar to that which Abraham built to be a worshipper of God since he was the father of faith.
Ancient Altar

As mentioned in a previous post, after Abraham’s father Terah died in Haran, God renewed His call to Abraham to go to the land of Canaan. At that point, the text in Genesis 12:5 says:

“He took his wife Sarai, his nephew Lot, all the possessions they had accumulated and the people they had acquired in Haran, and they set out for the land of Canaan and they arrived there.” 

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14. God Makes a Covenant with Abraham

God Covenant
God makes a covenant with Abraham

“Now the LORD said to Abram, ‘Go from your country and your relatives and your father’s household to the land that I will show you. And I will make you a great nation and I will bless you and make your name great so that you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you and him who curses you I will curse and by you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.’”

-Genesis 12:1-3

The above promise to Abraham has seven parts to it. The significance of this number would not have been lost on Abraham. The number seven in the Old Testament represents the concept of covenant. It goes all the way back to the creation account in Genesis with the seven days of creation.1

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13. Abraham Called by God from Paganism to be a Blessing to the Nations

Abraham called by God
Abraham’s Counsel to Sarah, by James Joseph Tissot. c. 1898

Abraham left Ur at about the same time that wandering tribes were entering what would eventually become Greece. For reference, this was about 1200 years before Homer wrote the Iliad and the Odyssey.1 

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12. Abraham the Worshipper of Strange Idols

This is a cylinder seal that illustrates how the moon god was worshipped in Mesopotamia by people like Abraham before his conversion.
(Abraham idolatry) Worship of the Moon God, on a Cylinder Seal from Ur courtesy of pinterest.dk

Ancient Apostacy

Was Abraham an idol worshipper before he met God? The evidence seems to say yes to Abraham ‘s idolatry.

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11. Abraham, the Father of Faith

Abraham Faith:

The West considers Socrates the father of philosophy, just as the entire world regards Abraham as the father of faith. The three major monotheistic religions – Christianity, Judaism, and Islam – all claim Abraham as their forefather.1 

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10. Discover Abraham’s Birthplace of the Ancient City of Ur

Art of Ancient Ur, c. 2600-2400 B.C. (Post: Abraham of Ur)

Let us now leave 5th century B.C. Athens, Greece and take a trip back in time 1600 years to the city of Ur in Mesopotamia. A distance of 1400 miles separates the two cities. We leave the mild Mediterranean climate and the sophisticated life of the Athenians with their stately marble temples and travel to a semiarid climate in a much more rugged part of the world. As you can see from the map below, Ur was located in what is today southern Iraq. 

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9. Socrates and Jesus Compared

                               

This is a composite picture with the right side of the face of Socrates next to the left side of the face of Jesus - both statues. This picture illustrates how Jesus and Socrates are compared and contrasted in this post.
( Socrates and Jesus Compared ) courtesy of the-tls.co.uk

As we examine the life and impact of Socrates, we can see that there are many similarities between Jesus and Socrates. However, it’s important to note that the two men were not on an equal plane. According to Christian belief, Jesus is the Son of God, while Socrates was a mere man. In his Epistle to the Colossians, St. Paul states that “in Christ is hidden all of the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.” So if Socrates was wise, and Christ embodies all wisdom, he must have derived his wisdom from Christ.

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8. Socrates and the Unexamined Life

                                  

A bronze statue of Socrates shows him sitting and pondering for he always said that the unexamined life was not worth living.
The Thinker by Rodin

“The unexamined life is not worth living.”1

-Plato’s Apology, 38a

This now famous line, which Socrates spoke at his trial, has rippled throughout Western Civilization. If I could sum up Socrates’ legacy in one maxim, it would be this quote. We must know ourselves and by extension the reason why we are here.

Socrates may have gotten this idea from the phrase, “know thyself (γνῶθι σεαυτόν), that was inscribed on the temple of Delphi.2 Or he may have first learned it by reading the works of Heraclitus. Regardless, the important thing is that he burned this idea of self-examination into the collective conscience of Western Civilization by proclaiming. It’s non-negotiable as he faced death by execution.

The famous inscription on the Temple of Delphi was more than a maxim. It was a warning for those who wished to be initiated into the higher mysteries of the divine nature. One could not proceed into the higher mysteries without a proper self-understanding. Knowing thyself then was the doorway into union with the divine. And union with the divine was the catalyst through both divine and human universe myteries, would eventually unfold.

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7. Socrates a Philosopher of Virtue and Truth

This in an outer walkway of a monastery that is comprised of beautiful gothic architecture. This symbolizes the greatness of Western civilization and the legacy of Socrates

What is the legacy of Socrates? For not leaving any writings behind, he had a tremendous impact on those who followed him1.

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