Continuing on with my quiet time in Genesis – Abraham and Lot.
“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 Lot 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.” Genesis 19:15-16
What stands out to me are two things: Lot hesitated, and the LORD was merciful to them.
Sodom was their home and home is hard to leave (especially for a woman), no matter how bad it is. I’m reminded of how our Lord Jesus, Savior of this world, left home to come into a world that is nothing like the perfect home He left, but He did to redeem us to our Father.
God in heaven saw how bad it was in Sodom where Lot and his family lived. I wonder how much contact Abraham had with his nephew Lot, and how often Lot had talked to his uncle about the evil in Sodom. Somehow I don’t think that Abraham was ignorant of Lot’s adversities living there because of how the LORD (the 3 men) came first to Abraham’s place and how the LORD (one of the 3 men) stayed with Abraham while He sent His two angels (two men) on to Sodom. I love that about our LORD; that He cares about the families of His faithful servants; He watches out for those the children they love and pray for. The LORD showed Abraham honor by staying with Abraham in conversation about it, and reassuring Abraham that his nephew and family would be taken out before the city was destroyed by fire.
It is stated that Lot was righteous, not because he was a perfect man without sin, but because of who he trusted in and obeyed: the God of Abraham. “Abraham obeyed God and it was credited to him as righteousness.” We are called “the righteous of God” when we trust in God’s Son – Jesus Christ for what He did on the cross for us with His own body and blood, and keep our hearts right with Him in what He instructs us to do, both when we sin against each other, and in doing what He gives us to do for Him. When we sin against each other first we acknowledge it and confess it to God, and then make restitution with whom we have sinned against.
My sin only affects people, not God. God can not be influenced or changed by our wicked ways and thoughts. (Job 35:5-8) Father God watches how His children treat each other. He’s delighted and honored when we love one another and have a genuine interest in the welfare of others. He’s grieved and even angered when we don’t. His painful discipline shows up then, and it comes in all sorts of ways to make us more like His Son Jesus. This is for our good future.
I have to admit that with the way our culture in America seems to be headed – we need to be prepared for what is coming. And, unlike Lot, not hesitate when given the warning from the LORD. And, unlike Lot’s wife who preferred to stay in Sodom, her home, was left behind and turned into a pillar of salt.
The LORD expects us to be pillars in society of His righteousness and salvation, and not become ‘emotionally’ involved – attached and committed to this world – preferring this temporary life to eternal life with our Savior, and looking to take others with us into GLORY!
“God is mighty, but despises no one; He is mighty, and firm in His purpose. He does not keep the wicked alive but gives the afflicted their rights. He does not take His eyes off the righteous; He enthrones them with kings and exalts them forever. But if people are bound in chains, held fast by cords of affliction, He tells them what they have done – that they have sinned arrogantly. He makes them listen to correction and commands them to repent of their evil. If they obey and serve Him, they will spend the rest of their days in prosperity and their years in contentment. But if they do not listen, they will perish by the sword and die without knowledge……HOW GREAT IS GOD – BEYOND OUR UNDERSTANDING!” Job 36:5-12