At Home In A City Of Sin

Please take your Bibles and open them up this morning to Genesis chapter 19.

Genesis 19 · chapter mention

! Genesis chapter 19.

Genesis 19 · chapter mention

And when you found it, if you would stand in honor of the reading of God's word.

Genesis chapter 19 this morning.

Genesis 19 · chapter mention

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,

Genesis 3 · chapter mention

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.

Genesis 19 · chapter mention

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,

Ezekiel 16 · chapter mention

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

Romans 1 · chapter mention

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

Genesis 19 · chapter mention

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

Luke 9:32

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