God Running

Genesis 19:1-29 Hurry and get out of this place, because the LORD is about to destroy the city!

Jesus said, “Remember Lot’s wife.” (Luke 17:32) (Photo courtesy of devotionalonjesus.blogspot.com)

Read Genesis 19:1-29

Verse 1: The two angels arrived at Sodom in the evening, and Lot was sitting in the gateway of the city.

The two angels who we saw in our last couple of posts departed from the Lord and from Abraham and made their way to Sodom where they found Lot sitting in the gateway of the city. Keep in mind that these angels have no distinguishing physical characteristics that would indicate that they’re angels. No wings, no glow, no halo. As it was with Abraham, for all Lot knows, they’re just a couple of travelers.

In our story Lot begins well. He says to the two angels, Stay at my place tonight. You can wash up, spend the night in a comfortable bed. Then tomorrow you can be on your way. After some conversation that might be typical of a situation like this one: “Oh I wouldn’t dream of it.” And, “Please, I insist.” And, “I won’t take no for an answer.” They wind up at Lot’s house where Lot feeds them.

But before they go to bed, all the men from every part of the city of Sodom—both young and old—surrounded the house. All the men! The whole town comes out and surrounds Lot’s house. Can you imagine? Close your eyes and imagine your house in the middle of the night surrounded by all the men in your town. God help Lot! These men began making demands. They hollered at Lot for him to let out the two travelers so they could sexually abuse them. The Bible is very specific about what they demanded. They said, “Where are the men who came to you tonight? Bring them out to us so that we can have sex with them.”

So Lot tries to appease them. He opens his front door, slithers through, and then quickly shuts the door behind him, the crowd pressing him, wanting to break through the door. Lot says to the crowd, “No, my friends. Don’t do this wicked thing. Look, I have two daughters who have never slept with a man. Let me bring them out to you, and you can do what you like with them. But don’t do anything to these men, for they have come under the protection of my roof.”

In his desperation, Lot offers his daughters to the mob. That’s so appalling!

And also ineffective besides. Because the mob says, This outsider comes into our town and is now judging us! Who are you to judge? We’ll do to you worse than what we intended to do to them.

But the travelers weren’t ordinary travelers. They were angels. They reached out and quickly pulled Lot back into the house. Then, in the first revelation to Lot of their true nature, they struck the entire mob with blindness.

Then the two asked Lot, Do you have any people here, family, sons-in-law, sons, daughters, anyone? Get them out of here because we’re going to destroy this place. The outcry of the Lord against it is so great that He has sent us to destroy it.

So Lot sneaks out of his house, past that blinded mob, and finds his sons-in law. He warns them. He pleads with them to “Hurry and get out because the Lord is about to destroy the city!”

But his sons-in-law don’t heed his wisdom. They respond, What’s the big deal? Your view on this issue is a joke. They decide to risk staying in the city. Lot, through God’s grace, is being delivered out of sinful Sodom, and therefore it’s his duty to do what he can for the deliverance of others, especially his relations. You and I are, by God’s grace, delivered from our sin, and even as Lot did what he could to help deliver others, you and I must do what we can to bring others to Christ, especially our relations, that they too are delivered from their sin.

As dawn approached the angels are now becoming agitated and behaving more urgently. Take your wife and daughters, they say, or you’ll be wiped out when the city is destroyed!

And here Lot wavers. He hesitates. So, in God’s mercy verse 16 says, the angels take the matter into their own hands and grab Lot, Lot’s wife, and Lot’s daughters and they lead them quickly out of the city. In a way, this is a picture of salvation. Lot, who’s called a righteous man in 2 Peter 2:7, isn’t saved from the sinful city by his own actions but by God’s grace. And you and I are the same. We don’t come to Christ on our own merit, but it’s by God’s grace we’re saved.

As soon as they’re clear of the city one of the angels instructs Lot to flee further away, to get out of the plain to the mountains. And he also instructs them not to look back. These warnings also speak of our salvation. We’re to remain clear of sin, for that’s the same as looking back at Sodom. We’re to lean not on ourselves or the world, for that’s the same as remaining in the plain. And we’re to go to Mount Calvary, the place where our savior died for our sins, as Lot was to go to the mountains.

Lot, begs and pleads with them, No! Not the mountains, please let us run over to that little town over there. It’s a town sure but it’s a small town.

The angels respond, “Very well, I will grant this request too; I will not overthrow the town you speak of. But flee there quickly, because I cannot do anything until you reach it.”

So Lot, Lot’s wife, and Lot’s daughters flee to Zoar. By the time they got there the sun was high over head. Then the Lord rained down burning debri on Sodom and Gomorrah. He destroyed the cities and all the surrounding vegetation. But He preserved Lot and Lot’s daughters. And He preserved Lot’s wife, until she turned around and looked back. Whatever supernatural destruction that God rained down upon Sodom and Gomorrah had the effect of destroying anyone who looked upon it. Filled with longing for her old life, Lot’s wife disobeyed the instructions from the angels. She looked back and she perished. (Luke 17:32)

The next morning Abraham returns to the place where he stood before the Lord. He looks down upon the plain at Sodom or Gomorrah and he sees that the cities are destroyed,  a dense column of smoke rising from the land. Today many archaeologists believe that the ruins of the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah lie at the bottom of the Dead Sea. In fact the locals don’t call it the Dead Sea but for centuries have called it the Sea of Lot. Check out the satellite view of the Dead Sea on Google Maps:

Lot in Sodom and Sodom in Lot:

There’s something in this passage of scripture that’s so important, I can’t end the post without addressing it. At the beginning of our story, the two travelers find Lot sitting in the gateway of the city. In that time, in that culture, when a man sat in the gateway of the city it meant he was a part of the leadership of that City. The gateway of the city is where the leadership met to make policy decisions or to hold hearings. It was sort of like a city council chambers and a municipal court combined. The fact that Lot was seated there means he served as the mayor or perhaps as a councilman — he was a part of the leadership of the city of Sodom.

That’s interesting because when Lot first decided he wanted to dwell in the region of Sodom he began by first looking at Sodom. Then pitching his tent toward Sodom, he began to orient himself and his family toward the city so to speak. The New International Version says, he pitched his tent near Sodom. Then later, during the time when Abraham rescued Lot from the invasion of the five kings, we saw that Lot had moved into the city and was dwelling in a house there. (Genesis 14)

Now we see Lot has become further engaged in the culture of Sodom. He’s a part of their leadership. No doubt, with good intentions, wanting to influence the culture of the city for God’s kingdom.

That’s a noble cause. The question is though, how much of Lot’s influence found its way into Sodom, and how much of Sodom’s influence found its way into Lot?

Let’s have a look at how much success Lot had influencing Sodom. Verse four tells us that all the men in the city surrounded Lot’s house and demanded that Lot allow them to sexually abuse his guests. “All the men,” apparently not one was influenced by Lot for God’s kingdom. And when Lot addressed the mob to influence them to leave his guests alone, they responded by telling him they’d do worse to Lot than they would to his guests!

When Lot approached his sons-in-law to warn them to leave the city they thought he was a joke! They didn’t respect his warning. They disregarded his counsel, wise though it was.

In our story, Lot’s influence on Sodom never materializes. We don’t see converts. We don’t see people following Lot out of Sodom.

And how much was Lot influenced by Sodom? To Lot’s credit he took in the two strangers and even tried to protect them from the angry crowd. But he did so by offering his daughters! The value he assigned to his daughters’ purity and safety was apparently eroded away, influenced by the culture of Sodom. He had such a disregard for his daughters sexual purity that he offered them to the mob outside his house. “Let me bring them out to you, and you can do what you like with them,” he said.

And Lot’s wife, she was also influenced by Sodom. She longed for her old life there. She longed for the familiar culture there in Sodom. And as a result she perished. Lot’s family was influenced by Sodom to the point of death, at least for Mrs. Lot.

We also see Lot’s hesitation to obey the instruction that he received from God’s messengers to escape the city. Then he argues with the angels when they direct him to flee to the mountains. He pleads with them to go to the little town of Zoar instead.

Later in this chapter we’ll see Lot become entangled in incest.

How much of Sodom was in Lot? Too much.

Where are you at in relation to the culture you live in? How much of your godly influence is finding its way into the culture around you and how much of the culture around you is finding its way into you?

There’s a great truth to be learned from Lot’s story. I hear people say they want to hit the bars so they can influence people for Christ. I hear people say they want to go to the big party because they want to shed a light in a dark place. I hear people say they want to live in a certain city because that city needs God’s influence. But more often than not, they’re like Lot. They’re walking into a situation where they’ll be influenced, more than they will influence others for Christ.

When’s the last time you sought the Lord in prayer on behalf of others? When’s the last time you took someone to church? When’s the last time you shared something from the scriptures with a friend?

When’s the last time you saw evidence that someone in your circle was influenced by you, for Christ?

And what of our culture’s influence on you? When’s the last time you’ve been to church yourself?

“Yea but most of my friends don’t go to church.” You’ve been pulled away! Influenced away from your Father who wants to enjoy intimate fellowship with you. Go to church and influence your friends to go with you!

How much time are you spending in God’s word?

“Yea but I found this scripture that I don’t think could be true.” You’ve been distracted from your relationship with the One who loves you so much He died for you. Don’t let that one scripture distract you. Even the most godly have moments of doubt. Spend time in God’s word–daily.

When’s the last time you took in music that edifies God?

“Yea but secular music is so much better, that’s what me and all my friends listen to.” I’m not saying you should avoid all secular music. I’m just saying you have been drawn into the world and away from that which will draw you closer to Him. Be wise and take in that which will inspire you for Jesus Christ.

Jesus said of God’s scriptures, “…until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear…” (Matthew 5:18) Trends in culture over the last couple of millenia have come and gone and come back again. But the newest writings of the Bible are  2,000 years old yet remain true and timeless.

It’s alarming but true never the less that Jesus said, “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father…” (Matthew 7:21)

On that day I guarantee you, you won’t care about one single cultural trend. You won’t care about what your friends are doing. You’ll only care about Jesus’ opinion. You’ll only care about hearing the words, “Well done good and faithful servant.”

Your faith must become your own. Make changes. Make changes now. Martin Luther said it well when he proclaimed, “How soon ‘not now’ becomes ‘never’.” Start today. Draw near to God.

Come near to God and he will come near to you.

James 4:8

Genesis 19:1-29

The two angels arrived at Sodom in the evening, and Lot was sitting in the gateway of the city. When he saw them, he got up to meet them and bowed down with his face to the ground. “My lords,” he said, “please turn aside to your servant’s house. You can wash your feet and spend the night and then go on your way early in the morning.”

“No,” they answered, “we will spend the night in the square.”

But he insisted so strongly that they did go with him and entered his house. He prepared a meal for them, baking bread without yeast, and they ate. Before they had gone to bed, all the men from every part of the city of Sodom—both young and old—surrounded the house. They called to Lot, “Where are the men who came to you tonight? Bring them out to us so that we can have sex with them.”

Lot went outside to meet them and shut the door behind him and said, “No, my friends. Don’t do this wicked thing Look, I have two daughters who have never slept with a man. Let me bring them out to you, and you can do what you like with them. But don’t do anything to these men, for they have come under the protection of my roof.”

 “Get out of our way,” they replied. “This fellow came here as a foreigner, and now he wants to play the judge! We’ll treat you worse than them.” They kept bringing pressure on Lot and moved forward to break down the door.

But the men inside reached out and pulled Lot back into the house and shut the door. Then they struck the men who were at the door of the house, young and old, with blindness so that they could not find the door.

The two men said to Lot, “Do you have anyone else here—sons-in-law, sons or daughters, or anyone else in the city who belongs to you? Get them out of here, because we are going to destroy this place. The outcry to the LORD against its people is so great that he has sent us to destroy it.”

So Lot went out and spoke to his sons-in-law, who were pledged to marry his daughters. He said, “Hurry and get out of this place, because the LORD is about to destroy the city!” But his sons-in-law thought he was joking.

With the coming of dawn, the angels urged Lot, saying, “Hurry! Take your wife and your two daughters who are here, or you will be swept away when the city is punished.”

When he hesitated, the men grasped his hand and the hands of his wife and of his two daughters and led them safely out of the city, for the LORD was merciful to them. As soon as they had brought them out, one of them said, “Flee for your lives! Don’t look back, and don’t stop anywhere in the plain! Flee to the mountains or you will be swept away!”

But Lot said to them, “No, my lords, please! Your servant has found favor in your eyes, and you have shown great kindness to me in sparing my life. But I can’t flee to the mountains; this disaster will overtake me, and I’ll die. Look, here is a town near enough to run to, and it is small. Let me flee to it—it is very small, isn’t it? Then my life will be spared.”

He said to him, “Very well, I will grant this request too; I will not overthrow the town you speak of. But flee there quickly, because I cannot do anything until you reach it.” (That is why the town was called Zoar.)

By the time Lot reached Zoar, the sun had risen over the land. Then the LORD rained down burning sulfur on Sodom and Gomorrah—from the LORD out of the heavens. Thus he overthrew those cities and the entire plain, destroying all those living in the cities—and also the vegetation in the land. But Lot’s wife looked back, and she became a pillar of salt.

Early the next morning Abraham got up and returned to the place where he had stood before the LORD. He looked down toward Sodom and Gomorrah, toward all the land of the plain, and he saw dense smoke rising from the land, like smoke from a furnace.

So when God destroyed the cities of the plain, he remembered Abraham, and he brought Lot out of the catastrophe that overthrew the cities where Lot had lived.

References:

Bible Gateway

Ben Courson

Blue Letter Bible

Matthew Henry

Ray Stedman

Jon Courson