When Abraham learned that Sodom would be destroyed, he bargained with God to spare the city if only a few righteous people lived there. Not even ten could be identified. In addition to out of control sexual impropriety, the people of Sodom made selflessness a capital crime! Anyone giving aid and comfort to the poor and needy received the death penalty.
Fireballs and sulfuric acid rained down on Sodom. Everyone perished except Lot and his daughters, who thought that they were the only humans left on earth. They assumed responsibility for re-establishing humanity by drowning Lot’s inhibitions in alcohol. They each produced a son, whose descendants became two of the Canaanite tribes destined to cross paths with the Israelites as they entered the Holy Land.
As promised, Abraham and Sarah produced a son, Isaac. When Isaac turned 38 years old, his father passed the ultimate spiritual test of faith and surrendered to God when he obeyed the order to sacrifice Isaac, just as he would an animal sacrifice. At the final moment, God stays the execution and Isaac was spared. Abraham experienced great joy in both his willingness to do God’s will and Isaac’s reprieve.
Abraham experienced powerful spiritual growth elsewhere as well. Shortly after God reveals His presence, three angels masquerading as men arrive on Abraham's doorstep. Abraham then prioritizes the needs of the visitors over spiritual self-interest. He leaves the presence of the Almighty to see to his guests.
How did God respond? He loved Abraham even more! The message is clear. Until we become willing to sacrifice our selfishness, a true relationship with our Creator – through selflessness – eludes us.
In Genesis 18:19, we are encouraged to act in a righteous manner according to Divine justice. It considers life the highest priority. We know this from the moral document that calls for the sanctity of the human being as made in God’s image. Divine justice is not served when people contribute time and money to help vulnerable parents destroy their pre-born babies. It is served, however, when people contribute time and resources to help vulnerable parents choose life. Everyone benefits. First the baby, then the family, the community, and the nation.
In 2 Kings 4, our spirit is nourished with stories of great faith and proof of God’s presence in our lives. The prophet Elisha helps a widow avoid indenturing her sons to pay her debts. He promises an elderly, married couple a baby; they conceive a son. Later, the toddler dies suddenly from what seems to us to be a neurological event and Elisha restores his life.
Elisha and Abraham both gave their time and resources to promoting and saving life. Death was not on the minds of these righteous men, nor should it be in ours. When godliness fills our minds, we can think and act only for life. When we do that, we give of self in order to promote it. Secular thinking, no matter how well intentioned, can turn deadly when used to justify killing babies in the pursuit of ‘saving lives’, ’alleviating suffering’, or ‘serving the needy.’
To earn God’s blessings, we must make efforts to help others according to Divine justice. Beyond that self-interested motive, we can rise to Abraham’s spiritual level by acting for life in joyful service to our Creator. It’s so simply stated in Micah 5:8 - He has told you, “O man, what is good, and what the Lord demands of you; but to do justice, to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God.”
Divining the meaning of divine justice starts with selflessness too.
Cecily Routmanis the President of the Jewish Pro-Life Foundation, an educational non-profit founded in 2007 to promote life-saving solutions to unplanned pregnancy in the Jewish community. www.jewishprolifefoundation.org