Please take your Bibles and open them up this morning to Genesis chapter 19.
! Genesis chapter 19.
And when you found it, if you would stand in honor of the reading of God's word.
Genesis chapter 19 this morning.
The two angels came to Sodom in the evening, and Lot was sitting in the gate of Sodom.
And when Lot saw them, he rose to meet them and bowed himself with his face to the earth and said,
My lords, please turn aside to your servant's house and spend the night and wash your feet.
Then you may rise up early and go on your way.
And they said, No, we will spend the night in the town square.
But he pressed them strongly, so they turned aside to him and entered his house.
And he made them a feast and baked unleavened bread, and they ate.
But before they lay down, the men of the city and the men of Sodom, both young and old,
all the people to the last man, surrounded the house.
And they called to Lot, Where are the men who came to you tonight?
Bring them out to us that we may know them.
Lot went out to the men at the entrance, shut the door after him, and said,
I beg you, my brothers, do not act so wickedly.
Behold, I have two daughters who have not known any man.
Let me bring them out to you and do to them as you please.
Only do nothing to these men, for they have come under the shelter of my roof.
But they said, Stand back.
And they said, This fellow came to sojourn, and he has become the judge.
Now we will deal worse with you than with them.
Then they pressed hard against the man Lot and drew near to break the door down.
But the men reached out their hands and brought Lot into the house with them and shut the door.
And they struck with blindness the men who were at the entrance of the house,
both small and great, so that they wore themselves out, groping for the door.
Then the men said to Lot, Have you anyone else here?
Sons-in-laws, sons, daughters, or anyone you have in the city, bring them out of the place.
For we are about to destroy this place, because the outcry against its people has become great before the Lord,
and the Lord has sent us to destroy it.
So Lot went out and said to his sons-in-law, who were to marry his daughters,
Up, get out of this place, for the Lord is about to destroy the city.
But he seemed to his sons-in-law to be jesting.
As morning dawned, the angels urged Lot, saying, Up, take your wife and your two daughters who are here,
lest you be swept away in the punishment of the city.
But he lingered.
So the men seized him and his wife and his two daughters by the hand, the Lord being merciful to him.
And they brought him out and set him outside the city.
And as they brought him out, one said, Escape for your life.
Do not look back or stop anywhere in the valley.
Escape to the hills, lest you be swept away.
And Lot said to them, Oh no, my lords.
Behold, your servant has found favor in your sight,
and you have shown me great kindness in saving my life.
But I cannot escape to the hills, lest the disaster overtake me and I die.
Behold, this city is near enough to flee to, and it is a little one.
Let me escape there.
Is it not a little one?
And my life will be saved.
He said to him, Behold, I grant you this favor also,
that I will not overthrow the city of which you have spoken.
Escape there quickly, for I can do nothing till you arrive there.
Therefore, the name of the city was called Zoar.
The sun had risen on the earth when Lot came to Zoar.
Then the Lord rained on Sodom and Gomorrah sulfur and fire from the Lord out of heaven.
And he overthrew those cities and all the valley and all the inhabitants of the cities
and what grew on the ground.
But Lot's wife behind him looked back, and she became a pillar of salt.
And Abraham went early in the morning to the place where he had stood before the Lord,
and he looked down toward Sodom and Gomorrah and toward all the land of the valley.
And he looked, and behold, the smoke of the land went up like the smoke of a furnace.
So it was that when God destroyed the cities of the valley,
God remembered Abraham and sent Lot out of the midst of the overthrow
when he overthrew the cities in which Lot had lived.
Now Lot went up out of Zoar and lived in the hills with his two daughters,
for he was afraid to live in Zoar.
So he lived in a cave with his two daughters,
and the firstborn said to the younger,
Our father is old, and there is not a man on earth to come into us
after the manner of all the earth.
Come, let us make our father drink wine,
and we will lie with him that we may preserve offspring from our father.
So they made their father drink wine that night,
and the firstborn went in and lay with her father.
He did not know when she lay down or when she arose.
The next morning the firstborn said to the younger,
Behold, I lay last night with my father.
Let us make him drink wine tonight also,
then you go in and lie with him,
that we may preserve offspring from our father.
So they made their father drink wine that night also,
and the younger arose and lay with him,
and he did not know when she lay down or when she arose.
Thus both the daughters of Lot became pregnant by their father.
The firstborn bore a son and called his name Moab.
He is the father of the Moabites to this day.
The younger also bore a son and called his name Ben-Ami.
He is the father of the Ammonites to this day.
The grass withers, the flower fades.
The word of the Lord endures forever.
Father God,
our sin is dark and it is deep.
Lord, it affects every part of us.
It affects our mind.
It affects our desires.
It affects our will.
It affects our flesh.
All of it is by nature corrupted by sin,
and we just see it so clearly here in our passage.
So Lord, we thank you even for the song that we sang this morning,
that our sins are many, but your mercy is more.
Lord, we thank you for Christ, who is the Savior of sinners,
and the grace that you've shown us in him.
So Lord, help us now, Father, to see our sin clearly,
and to see your grace for us in Christ afresh this morning.
We pray in Jesus' name.
Amen.
You may be seated.
The Bible is not shy about the reality of such a thing called sin.
We had two chapters in the Garden of Eden,
a long time ago now.
Two chapters in this garden paradise
where there was perfect relationship between man and wife,
perfect relationship between mankind and God,
perfect harmony between all things.
There's no sin, there's no shame, there's no guilt, there's no death.
In Genesis chapter 3,
comes, sin enters the world,
that crucial Jenga piece is pulled out,
and the tower comes crumbling down to the ground.
Now, we don't really like to talk about our sin.
You know, one of the blessings and challenges
of preaching through books of the Bible,
like we're doing now through Genesis,
is that I really can't pass over passages
that are hard or uncomfortable, can I?
We have to deal with God's Word as it stands.
We need to open it up and see it as it's written,
as uncomfortable as it may be.
This passage, as uncomfortable as it may be,
is a vivid illustration of the seriousness
and the ugliness of sin,
but not just sin in general,
and not just sin out there.
I hope what we'll see as we go through this together
is that this is a picture of our sin.
This is the seriousness and the darkness
and the ugliness of our sin.
We need to hold passages like this up like a mirror
so that we see ourselves in these passages.
It's important that we do this
because it's only against this dark, black backdrop of our sin
that we can see the light of the grace of the glory of God
shine forth clearly in the gospel of Christ.
So let's take a look.
Genesis chapter 19.
And what we'll see here this morning is three sins of Sodom.
Three sins of Sodom.
This will be our outline this morning if you're taking notes.
First,
First, we see sinful actions here.
Sinful actions.
And we can think about this in two categories.
Kevin DeYoung was helpful for me
in thinking through these two categories this week.
The first is social sin.
Look there with me, starting in verse 1.
Verse 1 says that
the two angels came to Sodom in the evening
and here's Lot sitting in the gate of Sodom.
Now notice the progression that Lot's made here
over the past several weeks.
You notice this?
At first, Lot lived near Sodom.
And then we saw him living in Sodom.
And now he's like the welcoming committee at the gate.
He's there right there,
the first thing you see when you come to the town of Sodom.
He has fully ingrained himself here in the community.
Lot sees these two angels coming,
these two men,
and he rises to meet them.
He bows himself down.
He invites them to come stay at his house,
but they politely decline.
They say, no, we're going to go stay instead.
Lot's head in the town square.
It's almost like you can see the alarm bells in Lot's mind
as they say this.
He says, no, no, no, no, no, no.
Whatever you do, don't do that.
He insists, you must come stay with me.
So, instead, they turn aside.
They come to him.
They go to his house.
And what we see happen here is that Lot,
just like Abraham before him in chapter 18,
Lot plays host to these two men.
He is a good, hospitable, welcoming host to these two guests.
He makes them a feast.
He bakes them bread.
He feeds them.
He gives them shelter.
He gives them food.
And all together, he is, I would say,
incredibly hospitable to these two men that he just met, isn't he?
And this is a good thing.
This is an important concept for Christians.
Christians are called to be hospitable.
And that word, when you break it down,
it simply means love of strangers.
It's not quite like Southern hospitality,
as you might read about in Southern Living magazine
or anything like that.
You don't have to make a pot of sweet tea
and set out the pies and make sure the house is clean.
It's not that type of hospitality.
It is simply welcoming others into your life,
into your home, providing shelter,
providing love and care for strangers.
And Christians are called to do this
because we understand that God has loved us.
When we were strangers and aliens from the household of God,
God has shown hospitality to us.
So Lot here, he's doing what all Christians are called to do.
He's going out of his way to love and to serve and to protect
and to show hospitality to others.
That's Lot.
But the men of Sodom, on the other hand,
are not as hospitable, are they?
And verse 4 says,
Before they lay down the men of the city,
the men of Sodom, young and old,
all the people to the last man,
they surround the house.
And Lot here, he protects them,
he shelters them,
but the men of Sodom,
they obviously,
they don't care about the well-being of these two men,
do they?
They want to use them for their own selfish purposes.
At a very minimum,
this is social sin on a social level.
In fact, Ezekiel 16,
if you go read in Ezekiel chapter 16,
it talks about Sodom,
it references this instance,
and it says about their sin,
that they had excess of food,
they had prosperous ease,
but they did not aid the poor and the needy.
So that's one issue.
But that's not the only issue, is it?
Now, it never ceases to amaze me,
as you read commentaries,
and kind of try to dig down into passages like this,
how modern critical scholars and commentators
can just twist themselves up,
all into different sorts of knots,
trying to avoid the obvious meaning of a passage.
Right?
And they try to explain it away,
any way they can,
to get around something that they don't like.
So, some scholars will read this,
and argue that, well,
social sin is the only issue going on here in Sodom.
It's just sin on a social level.
But of course,
we see another issue here, don't we?
There's also a second issue,
sexual sin.
Sexual sin.
The men here surround the house,
all the men, by the way,
young and old,
to the very last one,
they all surround the house,
they cry out to Lot,
bring those two men out here,
that we may know them.
That's sexual language.
They don't want to have a conversation
with these two men.
They want to get to know them
in an intimate way.
They surround the place,
they bang on the door,
they demand that Lot give up these two guests,
so that they can have their way with them.
Well, clearly, this is sexual sin.
And again, some would argue,
well, the sin here,
it must be that,
well, this is a group.
It's a group issue.
It's not a loving,
one-on-one,
committed relationship,
and so that's what's wrong here.
It's not the proper context
for sexual expression,
and we would agree with that, right?
That is true.
Yes, we agree.
God has designed sexual expression
for a committed,
one-to-one relationship
within the boundaries of marriage.
That's the context.
But that's not all that's going on here.
Still, some would say,
well, the sin here is that it's forceful.
It's aggressive.
It's selfish.
They're forcing this on these people
that they don't want it.
That's what's wrong here.
It's aggressive.
And again,
we would agree.
That is true as well.
God has designed sexual expression
to be mutual
and enjoyable for both partners.
It's an opportunity to serve,
not to just take.
But again,
that is not all that's going on here,
is it?
And you know,
often when you read comments like this,
it's ignoring
the pretty obvious
but uncomfortable truth
in this passage,
which is this.
It is also true,
alongside all the others,
it is also true
that the homosexual nature
of this sin
is wicked.
What begs these men,
don't act so wickedly,
take my daughters instead,
which is just a terrible thought, right?
I can't even imagine that.
But it is interesting,
isn't it,
that in Lot's calculations,
it would be less wicked
to take the daughters
than it would be
to take these two men.
He understands that
in the eyes of God,
same-sex relations
is especially sinful.
Jude chapter 7,
Jude verse 7 rather,
Jude verse 7,
says,
Sodom and Gomorrah
and the nearby towns
indulged in sexual immorality
and pursued unnatural desire,
it says.
And so we have to ask,
don't we,
well, what does that mean?
What is that unnatural desire?
And again,
yet again,
modern critics will say,
well,
it was unnatural
because these were two angels.
That's the issue.
It's unnatural
for men to have relations
with angels.
That's the unnatural disaster.
But ask yourself,
do you really think
these men of Sodom
knew that these were two angels?
All they knew
was that two new guys
had come to town.
That's it.
We have to be clear
where the Bible is clear.
Amen?
Church,
we have to be clear
where the Bible is clear.
And while our culture
may be very confused
on some of these topics,
the Bible is not.
Oh,
this is not a murky issue
in the Bible.
We may take issue
with what the Bible says.
We may disagree
with what the Bible
clearly says,
but we need to understand
what the Bible
clearly says.
The Bible's not unclear
about this.
Romans chapter 1
is not unclear at all,
is it?
Talking about those
who suppress the truth
about God,
here's what he says.
He says,
women exchanged
natural relations
for those that are
contrary to nature,
and the men likewise
gave up natural relations
with women
and were consumed
with passion
for one another.
Men committing
shameless acts
with men
and receiving
in themselves
the due penalty
for their error.
Friend,
we need to be clear
on this
because the Bible
is clear on this.
God has designed
sexual expression
to exist
only within
the boundaries
of one man
and one woman
in the covenant
of marriage.
Anything outside
of those good boundaries
is sinful
and wicked
in the eyes of God.
Our statement of faith
as a church,
this is what we confess
to believe
as a church family.
We have an article
in it at the very end
that I think really
clarifies this issue
for us well.
This is the understanding
of the church universal
for the past 2,000 years.
It says,
we believe that marriage
is the uniting
of one man
and one woman
before God
in covenant commitment
for a lifetime.
That God has established
marriage
as his only intended channel
for human sexual expression
and procreation.
and that God calls
all unmarried people
to celibacy
and devotion
to himself.
It goes on.
Departures
from God's design
for human sexuality
including
adultery,
fornication,
homosexual behavior,
and all other forms
of sexual immorality
as defined by scripture
are sinful.
You hear that broad category?
Don't stop there.
Keep reading.
In these matters,
God offers forgiveness
and restoration
for sin
through his son,
Jesus Christ.
And Christians
should always act
in the spirit of love
towards all people
without compromising
their loyalty
to Christ
and his truth.
Friend,
we believe
any departure
from God's design
for human sexuality
is sinful.
But praise God,
we also believe
there is hope
for sinners
like us.
We believe
Jesus stands
with arms open
wide,
ready and willing
to receive
and to forgive
and to wash clean
sinners of all kinds.
the hope
that we hold
out to the world,
the hope
that we hold
out to sinners
like us
is the gospel
of Jesus Christ.
And we don't
hold that hope
out as those
who are superior
in any way
to any sinner
on the earth.
We call out,
repent
and believe
the gospel
of Jesus Christ
and you too,
like me,
you too
can be saved.
how often
when we
hold out
that hope
and that good news,
how often
is that message
not well received,
church?
So second,
second,
we see here
sinful attitudes.
Look there
again to verse 9.
See,
the men of the city
are pressing hard
against Lot,
they're going to break
down the door
and just going to go
get those two angels,
but look here
at this act of mercy,
the two angels,
they reach out
their hands,
they bring Lot
back into the house
with them,
they shut the door,
they rescue Lot,
they strike all these
men with blindness.
It was a sort of
partial judgment here.
Partial judgment
and partial salvation.
But Lot's not
out of the woods yet.
The men of the city
are still,
even after being blinded,
they're still groping
at the door,
still chasing after
the desires of their flesh.
So these men,
the angels here,
they give a warning
to Lot.
They say,
have you anybody else
here?
Sons-in-laws,
daughters,
anybody else
that you have
in the city,
bring them out
of this place
because we're about
to destroy this place.
What's the warning?
Judgment is coming.
Judgment is coming soon.
It is imminent
and you need
to get yourself ready.
That's the warning.
How similar is that
to the message
that we proclaim?
We proclaim
salvation
in the name
of Jesus.
But we need
to ask again,
well salvation
from what?
We proclaim
that Jesus
is the Savior.
Well Savior
from what?
Why do I need
to be saved?
What am I being
saved from?
Well,
we hold out
Jesus Christ
as the Savior
of sinners
who saves us
from the wrath
of God
that we have
earned for our sin.
We proclaim
the bad news.
Judgment is coming
and we are
deserving of judgment,
every last one of us.
But we hold out
the good news
that Christ,
Jesus,
God has made
a way of salvation
in Christ.
And we have
to have both
as we proclaim
the gospel,
don't we?
But that bad news
is not popular
to put it lightly,
is it?
Look there
to verse 14.
And here,
I want us to see,
we see the first
of three sinful
attitudes here.
These are sinful
reactions to this
warning.
And I wonder
if you've ever
run into any of these
as you talk
about the gospel,
as you talk
about salvation,
as you share
the gospel
with others.
Three sinful
attitudes.
The first is
from Lot's
sons-in-law.
He goes out
to them,
verse 14,
and he says,
Up!
Get out of this
place!
The Lord is about
to destroy the city!
But he seemed
to his sons-in-law
to be jesting.
It's a joke.
That's the first
sinful attitude
towards the warning.
It's all just
a big joke.
This isn't actually
going to happen.
Are you kidding me?
You're just some
religious maniac.
That's hilarious.
What are you
talking about?
There's no judgment
coming.
My life is
great.
I got all the
money I need.
I'm happy.
I can do
whatever I want.
Some people
just hear this
and they laugh
it off.
You're just
some religious
nut talking
about judgment.
It's one
response.
It's another
here in verse
15.
Look here.
Morning comes
and Lot
is still there.
The sun
comes up
and judgment
is coming.
The angels
have warned him
but he doesn't
really seem to be
in any sort of
hurry,
does he?
The angels
go.
They're urging
Lot,
get up,
get your wife,
get your daughters,
get out of here.
Judgment
is coming.
How does he
respond?
Verse 16.
It says he
lingered.
The second
sinful response
to this warning
is it's not
urgent.
I hear you.
This warning
may be real.
Maybe it is,
maybe it's not,
but I have
all the time
in the world.
It's not
urgent.
I can go
about my
business as
usual.
I'll get
around to it
when I get
around to it.
This repentance
business,
sure,
I hear you.
That's good.
I'll get to it.
Let me live
my life first.
The truth is,
friend,
you do not
know when
you will meet
God.
You do not
know when
you'll die.
You do not
know when
you will stand
before the
judge.
You do not
know when
Christ will
return.
And it is
foolish to
just linger
in your sin
and to linger
with that
warning somewhere
there in the
back of your
mind thinking
I'll get
around to it
eventually when
I'm ready.
God may be
ready before
you are.
Don't linger.
Lot here
lingers,
but thankfully
the Lord is
merciful to him.
See,
the men
seize him
and his
wife and
his two
daughters by
the hand.
They bring
him out,
the Lord
being merciful
to him.
They bring
him out,
they set
him outside
the city
and as
they brought
them out,
one said,
this warning
again,
escape for
your life.
Don't stop,
don't look back.
Don't stop
anywhere in the
valley.
Escape to the
hills,
lest you get
swept away.
They bring
Lot out and
he goes and
he settles in
the land of
Zoar.
And again,
this is a
small picture
of salvation,
isn't it?
God's
elect is
plucked out
of the
fire,
preserved from
judgment,
kicking and
screaming it
seems in
Lot's case,
but God by
his grace,
he shows
mercy to
him,
he rescues
him from
the judgment
to come.
This is a
picture of
salvation,
isn't it?
But we
also see a
picture of
judgment,
the opposite
side of the
same coin
here in
verse 23.
Lot makes
it safely
out,
and the
Lord rained
on Sodom
and Gomorrah
sulfur and
fire from
the Lord
out of
heaven.
And he
overthrew
those cities
and all
the valley
and all
the inhabitants
of the
cities and
everything that
grew on
the ground,
Sodom and
Gomorrah
and everyone
in them,
everything in
them,
they're all
judged for
their sin.
the wrath
of God
is poured
out against
their sin.
It's just a
terrible thought.
Friend,
as we read
this,
don't make
the mistake
of reading
this just
as a
history lesson
of something
that happened
way back
then in
Genesis
that has
nothing to
do with
your life
now,
as if God
has maybe
somehow
mellowed
out towards
sin now.
He's kind
of calm
down here
in the
New Testament.
He's not
as angry
towards our
sin anymore.
2 Peter
tells us
that the
Lord
turned the
cities of
Sodom and
Gomorrah
to ashes
and condemned
them to
extinction,
making them
an example
of what
is going
to happen
to the
ungodly.
Jude,
again,
says something
similar.
Again,
in verse 7,
it says,
Sodom and
Gomorrah,
they serve
as an
example.
by undergoing
a punishment
of eternal
fire.
So,
we should
ask,
shouldn't we?
Well,
an example
for whom?
An example
of what?
And I think
you know
the answer,
don't you?
This terrible
judgment here
in Genesis
chapter 19,
fire and
sulfur,
complete
destruction,
all of this
is a
partial
pointer,
a picture,
is an
example of
an even
greater
destruction
yet to
come upon
the wicked
at the
return of
Christ.
We ought
to grieve
this truth,
church.
Does that
sit heavy
with you?
Look around
yourself and
ask,
is our
nation any
better off
than Sodom?
Are we
morally
superior in
any way
to the
men of
Sodom?
Are we
better off
than this
nation that
God
poured out
His wrath
and destroyed
with fire?
Billy Graham
wrote in a
book about
the moral
decay of
this nation.
This was
years ago.
And when
His wife
Ruth read
it,
she said,
you know,
if God
doesn't punish
America,
He's going
to have to
apologize to
Sodom and
Gomorrah.
God will
judge America
and every
other nation
of the
earth that
remains in
rebellion
against the
Lord.
The wicked
of the
earth are
storing up
wrath for
themselves by
rebelling
against the
Lord and
pursuing their
flesh,
pursuing
unnatural
desire,
suppressing
the truth
about God
and worshiping
and serving
created things
rather than
the Creator.
But you,
Christian,
like Lot,
do not belong
to this fallen
nation.
Praise God.
You,
Christian,
like Lot,
by the grace
of God
alone,
are being
plucked out
of this
place.
You do
not belong
here.
You may
live in a
wicked city
in a wicked
world,
but you are
not a
citizen of
this place
ultimately.
And when
judgment
comes,
you,
like Lot,
will be
preserved and
sheltered in a
place of
safety,
covered by
the blood
of Christ.
Christ.
But,
Christian,
as you
are journeying
out,
we must
not make
the mistake
of Lot's
wife.
Look there
to verse 26.
This is the
third sinful
attitude here.
The angels
gave this
command,
don't look
back.
Verse 26,
but Lot's
wife,
behind him,
she looked
back.
and she
became a
pillar of
salt.
The sons-in-law
said it's not
that serious,
Lot said it's
not that urgent,
and Lot's
wife,
by her
actions,
third sinful
response,
she says,
it's not
really what I
want.
Do I really
want to be
delivered from
this city of
sin?
This is my
home.
Now,
you probably
know what the
shortest verse
of the Bible
is.
What is it?
Jesus wept,
right?
John 11,
35.
There's one
that's not
too far off
from that,
Luke 17,
32.
Anybody know
what it is?
Remember
Lot's wife.
Remember
Lot's
wife.
And what's
the context?
Again,
it's the
return of
Christ.
Here's what
he says,
just as it
was in the
days of
Lot,
they were
eating and
drinking,
they were
buying and
selling,
planting and
building,
but on
that day
when Lot
went out
from Sodom,
fire and
sulfur rained
from heaven
and destroyed
them all,
so will it
be on the
day when
the Son
of Man
is revealed.
On that
day,
let the
one who
is on
the housetop
with his
goods in
the house
not come
down to
take them
away,
and likewise
let the
one who
is in
the field
not turn
back.
Remember
Lot's
wife.
Whoever
seeks to
preserve
his life
will lose
it,
but
whoever
loses
his
life
will
keep
it.
He
says
something
similar
in Luke
9
verse 32,
no one
who puts
his hands
to the
plow
and looks
back
is fit
for the
kingdom
of God.
You know,
when someone
is saved
by the grace
of God,
what happens
to them
is they're
brought out
of belonging
to the
kingdom
of darkness.
They no
longer belong
here.
They are
plucked
out
and with
that they
are brought
out of
slavery to
sin.
These old
patterns of
sinful behavior
and sinful
actions and
sinful attitude
sinful everything
we no longer
belong to
it.
We no longer
belong to
this fallen
world.
But sometimes
our eyes
can be
drawn back
and we can
say in our
hearts,
is this really
what I want?
This is the
Israelites in
the wilderness
looking back
to Egypt
and saying
was it so
bad there?
Church,
as we
journey
towards our
final salvation
we must
keep our
eyes fixed
on Christ.
Do not
look back.
Church,
we've been
warned,
clearly this
world is
one day
going to be
consumed
with fire.
Those who
are still
in their
sins will
suffer God's
wrath in
hell,
but those
who are in
Christ will
be plucked
out and
redeemed by
the grace
of God.
Don't make
this mistake
of thinking
it's not
serious,
it's not
urgent,
and don't
look back
and longing
for anything
that you've
been redeemed
from.
We see here
in verse
27,
Abraham,
the sun
comes up,
Abraham
comes out,
he gets
his morning
coffee,
he looks
down out
towards
Sodom,
and behold
the smoke
of the land
went up
like the
smoke of
a furnace.
He had
prayed in
chapter 18,
the Lord
had agreed
if there
were even
ten righteous
people in
that city,
he would
save the
whole place
for their
sake.
Well,
he got
his answer,
didn't
he?
So we
see sinful
actions,
sinful
attitudes,
and we're
left wondering,
aren't we?
Hopefully this
gets a little
better from
here,
right?
Hopefully
there's a
positive end
to this
story.
I got
bad news
for you.
Third,
we see
sinful
aftermath.
If you
thought that
we were
going to
get a
happy
conclusion
to all
of this,
sadly,
you're
going to
be
disappointed.
Look
there to
verse
30.
You know,
it's
interesting,
Lot doesn't
stay in
Zoar long,
does he?
And we
don't have
an explanation
of why
he left
outside of,
we just
know that
he was
afraid,
is what
it says.
And my
best guess,
and this
is a
guess,
my guess
is that
maybe he
realized the
people in
Zoar
weren't much
better off
than those
people in
Sodom.
And maybe
he didn't
want to be
around if
that fire
came again.
Zoar
probably
wasn't too
far away,
it's
possible that
they were
probably into
the same
stuff over
there,
and so we're
told that he
escapes,
he goes to
the hills
with his
two daughters
and he
thinks,
man,
wickedness
won't find
me here.
I'm just
going to
unplug,
get off
the grid,
and we
will be
safe if I
can just
get away
and get
away from
all the
wickedness
over there,
wickedness
won't find
me here.
But you
know the
story,
you heard
it.
Daughters
hatch up a
plan to
get offspring
by their
father,
so they
get him
drunk,
they take
turns,
they go
both
get
themselves
pregnant.
And we're
told,
actually,
this is the
origin story
for two
of Israel's
enemies,
the Moabites
and the
Ammonites
were told,
and so the
Israelites,
they would
read this
and say,
oh,
that makes
sense,
right?
These guys,
I can't
stand them,
that makes
sense where
they come
from.
No wonder.
But here,
we see Lot
has been
redeemed.
He's been
given a second
chance,
he's been
given a new
beginning.
This is a
clean slate
and a fresh
start for Lot.
He's been
brought out
of a sinful
place,
he's been
preserved
from God's
judgment,
he's been
shown God's
mercy,
and it kind
of reminds
you a little
bit of Noah,
doesn't it?
You remember
the story
of Noah?
Noah and
his family
are preserved
from the
wrath of
God.
God destroys
all the
wickedness
of the
world,
washes it
with judgment.
Noah comes
out,
they're given
this new
start,
and what
happens
immediately
once Boots
hit the
ground.
Sin still
remains.
The aftermath
of all of
it is still
sin.
Lot thought
that I can
just go
escape,
and maybe I
can just get
out of here,
but we see
maybe the
location wasn't
the main issue,
was it?
He's isolated
out in the
hills,
nobody else
around,
but they
carried their
sin with
them.
Sin still
remains.
You know,
sometimes I
think we
can fool
ourselves
into thinking
that the
solution to
our problems
is just a
change,
right?
So we
move jobs,
we move
cities,
we change
our location,
we change
our circumstance,
we change
our surroundings,
and all of
that may be
good.
I think you
would agree.
it was good
for Lot to
move on
from Sodom,
right?
But we
need to
recognize
that unless
the heart
is changed,
nothing
changes.
Sin
still
remains.
Unless
your heart
is changed,
you'll bring
your sin
with you
to your
new town,
and your
new job,
and your
new relationship,
and your
new church,
and your
new
neighborhood,
sin must
be dealt
with on
a heart
level.
Which
just shows
us that
all of
this from
beginning to
end,
it shows
us our
need for
a redeemer.
It shows
us our
need for
Christ.
Church,
the bad
news is
that all
of us
are sinners,
and we
see the
ugliness
of our
sin here
on full
display,
don't we?
And we
believe that
our sin
has earned
us the
wrath of
God.
That's
the bad
news.
The good
news of
the gospel
is that
Christ
Jesus
came to
save
sinners.
Jesus
came to
change us
from the
inside out,
and by
his spirit
to give
us a
new heart
that's no
longer bound
with shackles
and chains
to sin,
that's free
to love
him and
obey
him and
to seek
him and
pursue
him with
all of
our heart
and all
of our
mind and
all of
our soul
and all
of our
strength.
Christ
came to
bear the
full wrath
of God
against our
sin.
Do you
realize God
poured out
his wrath
against Christ
in your
place?
This picture
of judgment
in Genesis
19,
the wrath
of God,
we see that
and we say,
oh,
that's mean.
Do you
understand Christ
bore the
wrath of
God for
you?
So that by
faith in
him we
would be
washed
clean,
made new,
no longer
called sinners
but saints,
no longer
belong to the
kingdom of
darkness but
belong to
the kingdom
of God.
It's sobering
when you read
a passage like
this to see
the weight
of our sin
and the
severity of
God's judgment
against wickedness
but church,
I hope you
see it's
against this
black backdrop
that we see
the grace
of God
towards sinners
in the gospel
shine so
clearly.
Have you
heard the
warning?
Have you
heard the
invitation
this morning?
Come to
Christ.
Come to
Christ and
be saved.
Do not
turn back.
Fix your
eyes on
Christ.
God's
such a
terrible story
of sin.
You might
wonder,
maybe you'll
get a happy
ending.
No.
You might
wonder,
can it get
any worse
than this?
And actually,
yes,
church,
it does.
I want to
point you to
Matthew chapter
11 as we
close.
Jesus,
in Matthew
chapter 11,
he condemns the
surrounding areas
of Chorazin
and Bethsaida.
And listen to
what he says.
He says,
woe to you,
Chorazin,
woe to you,
Bethsaida,
for if the
mighty works
done in you
had been done
in Tyre and
Sidon,
they would have
repented long
ago in sackcloth
and ashes.
But I tell you,
it will be more
tolerable on the
day of judgment
for the land
of Sodom
than for you.
You hear that?
It will be
more tolerable
on the day
of judgment
for Sodom
than for you.
Why?
The English
Bishop J.C.
Ryle explains,
he says,
it will prove
more tolerable
to have lived
in Tyre,
Sidon,
and Sodom
than to have
heard the gospel
in England
and at last
die unconverted.
Do you get it?
As wicked
as the men
of Sodom
were,
Jesus says,
it will be
more tolerable
for these
great sinners
on the day
of judgment
than it will
be for you
who have
heard the gospel
again and
have yet
refused to
repent and
believe.
so hear it
again,
non-believer.
The invitation
to you,
turn to
Christ.
Would you
come to
Christ in
faith?
Would you
escape the
wrath of God
that you've
earned for
your sin?
Would you
look to Him
in faith and
trust that He
has borne
your penalty
on the cross?
Would you
come to
Christ?
And
Christian,
here's your
call.
Again,
I'll quote
from J.C.
Ryle in a
sermon called
Christ's
greatest
trophy.
He urges
us,
believer,
he says,
tell the
young,
tell the
poor,
tell the
aged,
tell the
ignorant,
tell the
sick,
tell the
dying,
tell them
all about
Christ.
Tell them
of His
power and
tell them
of His
love.
Tell them
of His
doings and
tell them
of His
feelings.
Tell them
what He
has done
for the
chief of
sinners.
Tell them
what He
is willing
to do
until the
last day
of time.
Tell it
to them
over and
over again.
Never be
tired of
speaking of
Christ.
Say to
them broadly
and fully,
freely and
unconditionally,
unreservedly
and undoubtedly,
come unto
Christ as the
penitent thief
did.
Come unto
Christ and
you shall
be saved.
Father,
as we
consider
such things
as this,
judgment
against our
sin,
Lord,
who can
stand before
a holy
God?
None of
us on
our own
right.
We are
all sinful.
Lord,
it's only
by your
grace in
Christ,
only by
Christ Jesus
alone,
that can
a sinner be
counted righteous
in your
sight.
We praise
you,
Lord,
for salvation
from the
judgment to
come.
And we
pray,
Lord,
would sinners
turn to
Christ Jesus
in faith
and be
saved.
And we
pray,
Lord,
that this
church be
a beacon
of gospel
hope to
the lost
and dying
around us.
We pray
this in
Jesus'
name.
Amen.