Abram and Lot Separate (Genesis 13)

"The Lord said to Abram, after Lot had separated from him, 'Now lift up your eyes and look from the place where you are, northward and southward and eastward and westward; for all the land which you see, I will give it to you and to your descendants forever.'"
-Genesis 13:14-15
      After Abram escapes from Egypt through God's intervention, he settles down and becomes very rich in livestock and gold. Lot, Abram's nephew, follows Abram and settles down with him. Both Abram and Lot are now very rich, and it becomes difficult for them to live together because the land cannot support both of their livestock. Abram realizes this, and he comes up with a plan to avoid conflict between Lot and himself. Abram allows Lot to choose where he would like to live, and Abram would live elsewhere. Lot agrees to this, and so they separate.
      Lot's decisions reflects his heart and his mindset. First of all, he does not allow Abram to choose where he will live, even though Abram is older. Even if Abram refused to choose where to live, Lot could have come up with a different solution, such as flipping a coin to make the selection fair. Instead, Lot takes advantage of Abram's kindness and chooses to live in the valley of the Jordan, near Sodom. Lot sees that this land is very good, so he takes it for himself. This eventually becomes a disaster because Sodom is a very sinful and wicked place, but that is for a later time.
      Abram's decisions show how he changes from who he was in the previous passage. Abram sees that the valley of the Jordan is a good land, and if he allows Lot to choose, Lot will most likely choose that land. Despite this, Abram gives the choice to Lot, because he knows that fighting for this better land is not beneficial to either of them. Abram's priority was to preserve peace in his relationship with Lot, so he sacrifices the better land.
      In this passage there are two different kinds of people. Lot makes his decisions based on what he wants. He's looking out for his own interests and well-being. He sees that the land is good, and he takes it for himself. On the other hand, Abram makes his decisions based on faith. He knows that Lot will choose the better land, but he has faith that God will bless his decision. Instead of looking out for himself, Abram is looking to keep peace with his nephew Lot. In the previous passage Abram lies to protect himself, but here he sacrifices material possessions to protect his relationship with Lot.
      It's very easy to do things just for our own benefit and well-being, even at the expense of others. When we see something we want, we want to take it for ourselves. However, we have to realize that having things for ourselves should not be our top priority. Our top priority should be to love God and love other people. True love demands sacrifice, as demonstrated by Abram in this passage. Even though Abram lost the better land, later God blesses him and reminds him of the promise He gave to him. When we do our best to love others, that is when God is glorified. Don't live for yourself, live for Christ.
-Smart