The Perfect Judge

Thank you very much Fiona and thank you Alistair for reading such a long and difficult passage.

So I have the great task of speaking on this passage for 30 minutes.

It will not be longer than that, do not worry.

Thank you all for coming out tonight, it's great to see you.

It would be really helpful if you had that passage open in front of you

as we think about what God has to say to us through his word.

But let me just pause very quickly and pray before we begin again.

Father as we come to your word we ask that you would give us soft hearts and open ears

to hear what you have to say and that we would learn what your word has to say to us.

In Jesus name, Amen.

So keep Genesis 18 and 19 open in front of you and I want to ask us a question as we begin.

What does it take to be a judge?

And if you're a judge, what does it take to be the best judge in the world?

Now there is no official best judge in the world award, but I think if there were,

Frank Caprio would be in the first place.

Now maybe you've heard of this judge.

He is an 80 year old judge who is sitting in,

he was a sitting judge in the city of Providence in Rhode Island in the United States.

Now maybe you've never heard of this judge.

But he is famous all over social media because of some short videos that came out in 2016,

which are filmed in his courtroom.

Now this judge is so popular because of his wittiness and because of his humour and his care

for the people who come into his court.

So for example, one short video shows the case of a father and a young son who come in

and the father's been given a fine for a parking ticket.

And instead of the judge telling this five-year-old boy to sit down and be quiet

because the court is in session, he says, come up.

So the son gets up and goes up to the stand and the son gets to decide his father's fate.

Now you can imagine what the fate was.

It was that he had to buy, his dad had to buy him breakfast.

That was all the punishment that was required.

But the judge also deals with some horrible cases.

It's not all fun and games.

Some people come in in terrible situations and the judge listens to their case

and he is why their situation is so bad.

And often he will say to them, if their situation is terrible, you can go.

No punishment is required.

Life is hard enough as it is.

Sometimes he is more humorous and he'll say, you can leave as long as you promise never to do it again.

Or you can leave if you promise to go to university one day.

But if this judge was like this in every single case, he wouldn't be a very good judge, would he?

So whilst it's necessary for a judge to be gracious and forgiving,

a judge must also do what his job title demands, mustn't he?

If a judge always shows grace and never punishment, can he really be a good judge?

So whilst Judge Caprio is a very likable and popular judge,

I don't think we can say that he's the perfect judge.

But in the passage that was read to us earlier on by Alistair,

we see God being described as the perfect judge.

The judge, the rightful judge of all the earth, who is both abundant in grace and who also shows divine justice.

And the key verse in these whole two chapters,

which give us the right focus on this whole Sodom and Gomorrah narrative,

is in 18 verse 25, where it says,

Will not the judge of all the earth do right?

Will not the judge of all the earth do right?

So let's look at this passage and see how God is the perfect judge.

The first thing that we see is that God has abundant grace.

Chapters 18 verses 16 to 33, abundant grace.

So at the beginning of chapter 18, Abraham's visited by three people,

one of whom is described as the Lord.

And it's believed that these people are God and two angels.

That's what the text seems to be saying.

And in verse 16 and 17, we see the beginning of a very interesting conversation between Abraham and God.

In verses 17 to 19, God seems to be bringing Abraham into his decision of whether or not he should destroy Sodom and Gomorrah

because of the outcry on account of their evil.

Now, what do you think God's expecting at this point?

Is God expecting Abraham to say, yes, God, destroy them?

No.

God is encouraging Abraham in these verses to plead for the people of Sodom.

God is challenging Abraham to act wisely and nobly for justice's sake.

God says these things so that Abraham is invited to intercede to pray for the people of Sodom.

And God gives Abraham this opportunity because of who he is.

Look at verse 19.

Abraham is described as God's chosen one.

He is the one who will direct his children,

teach them the way that they should live and direct them not to live in a certain way.

Abraham will encourage his whole family to keep the way of the Lord by doing what is right

and by doing what is just.

And so Abraham will be influential.

And God says, pray for the people of Sodom.

And Abraham accepts this invitation and he intercedes for them.

And some of the stuff that he says is rather bold.

So look at verses 23 to 25.

Then Abraham approached him, that is God, and said,

Will you sweep away the righteous with the wicked?

What if there are 50 righteous people in this city?

Will you really sweep it away and not spare the place for the sake of the 50 righteous people in it?

Far be it from you to do such a thing.

To kill the righteous with the wicked, treating the righteous and the wicked alike.

Far be it from you.

Will not the judge of all the earth do what is right?

That's some pretty bold stuff to say to the God of the universe, isn't it?

And maybe you remember the times when you were a kid

and your teacher or your parent told you that something was going to happen

and you sat down and took it because you were frightened of the consequences.

You wouldn't dare answer back.

Well, not Abraham.

See, he intercedes for the people of Sodom.

Abraham can be bold because he knows who he is speaking to.

This is the God who chose him.

The God who singled him out to receive the amazing promises of a people, of a land,

and that he would be a blessing to the whole world.

God has chosen him and made a covenant with him.

God has seen Abraham's ups and his downs.

Abraham has been faithful and obedient,

but God has also seen Abraham's doubts and failings.

God knows Abraham and Abraham knows God.

And this is the setting of the courtroom style discussion that we see in the following verses.

Abraham is presenting his case before the judge of all the earth.

It's like a scene from the movie Twelve Angry Men.

Maybe you've seen it.

If you haven't, it's a good movie to go and watch.

It shows a murder trial where 11 out of 12 jurors convict an accused teenager of murder.

But one juror, juror number eight, says no.

And he votes not guilty.

Because he says that they haven't reviewed the evidence enough.

And so the movie clearly lays out this courtroom discussion

where evidence is brought before the jurors

so that they can make an informed finding of guilty or not guilty.

Abraham is pleading with God, saying,

Far be it from you, God, to destroy a whole city

if some of your people live there.

Far be it from you.

Won't the judge of all the earth do what is right?

And the answer is yes.

The judge of all the earth will do what is right.

And so Abraham begins with his list of questions.

What if you find 50 righteous people in this city?

Now, a righteous person is someone who's walking in line with God,

someone who is in a right relationship with God.

If you find 50 people, God, surely you won't destroy Sodom.

And God answers in verse 26 and says,

If I find 50 people in that city, I will not destroy it for their sake.

Do you see God's abundant grace?

God listens to Abraham's case

and he communicates with a fallen, corrupt human being.

God doesn't have to have this discussion.

God didn't need to listen to Abraham's intercession, but he does.

Abraham knows that he is absolutely nothing in comparison to God.

All of these lists, these questions that he asks

are all coming from a position of self-recognition in verse 27.

Abraham knows that he is dust before God.

And from this place of self-awareness,

he pleads for the other people who were but dust in Sodom and Gomorrah.

And so Abraham goes from 50 righteous people all the way down to 10.

What is the constant refrain we hear from God?

Verse 26, 27, 29, 30, 31 and 32.

If you find that many people in the city, then surely I will not destroy it.

So whilst this conversation highlights the abundant grace and mercy of a loving God,

it also highlights the depravity of Sodom.

There aren't even 10 righteous people living there.

And yet Abraham intercedes for them, even though he doesn't know them,

because he cares and fears for their souls.

Abraham knows that the whole world is sinful and naturally deserving of God's wrath.

Yet God encourages him to pray.

And that's what he does.

Now, what does this whole conversation mean for us?

Does it have any bearing on our lives?

Well, friends, I would definitely say that it does.

Because the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah is to serve as a reminder to Abraham

and all of his descendants,

just how serious sin and rebellion against God are.

So Abraham is to instruct his children and his whole household to keep the way of the Lord.

And the destruction of Sodom is to be a practical reminder to him and to us of the seriousness of sin,

because we are descendants of Abraham through God's covenant and God's promises.

The destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah should remind us of the seriousness of sin

and the serious spiritual condition of the people around us.

The New Testament explains that this destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah

is an example of what will happen to those who do not trust in the judge of all the earth.

So let me ask us a difficult question this evening.

How many times do we consider the eternal consequences of the sins of our loved ones?

Our desire should be to warn them,

to tell them the good news that forgiveness for their sins is possible

and to do as Abraham did and intercede for them before the living God.

We have a gospel to proclaim.

But for us to do that, we need to have a deep care and love for the lost people of this world.

Charles Spurgeon, a well-known pastor, once said,

If sinners be damned, at least let them leap to hell over our dead bodies.

And if they perish, let them perish with our arms wrapped around their knees,

imploring them to stay.

If hell must be filled, let it be filled in the teeth of our exertions

and let nobody go unwarned and nobody go unprayed for.

We need to start on our knees before God.

We need to be praying for people,

praying that they would see the seriousness of their rebellion against God

and ask that God would open their eyes

and give us opportunities to speak to them about Jesus.

Today, so many people become Christians because they have contact with a friend or a family member

who's been praying for them for years.

Our temptation would be to give up and stop praying

or maybe to pray less regularly when we see no fruit.

But Genesis 18 should give us the encouragement to keep on praying regardless of how we feel.

Maybe you've been praying for a friend, a sibling, a parent or a son or a daughter for many years

and you haven't seen any fruit from those prayers.

Do not be discouraged.

And do not ever stop praying for them.

When you feel discouraged and feel down,

please speak to brothers and sisters here and get them to pray with you.

Bring these people before God in prayer together.

Bring them before the perfect judge with abundant grace

that he might open their eyes and hearts.

Don't let your feelings of disappointment

stop you from doing the most important thing you can do for people.

Pray.

Our feelings don't matter.

People's eternal state before God does.

We need to pray for a burden for the people around us.

Pray that God would help us look over the city that we live in and weep

because there are people who are lost without God

and who are on a path which will lead them to destruction.

Let us keep praying to the perfect judge of all the earth

because he will do what is right.

And let's be thankful that we have been shown abundant grace.

The grace which allows us an unholy, sinful people

to come and pray to a holy and pure God.

That is abundant grace from the perfect judge.

But for God to be the perfect judge,

justice also needs to be done.

And so not only do we see abundant grace,

but we see divine justice.

Chapters 19 verses 1 to 29.

Divine justice.

So the two angels arrive in Sodom

and as they approach the city, they see Lot

and he begs them to come and spend the night in his house.

But this isn't just the casual invite

that you used to give your friends when you were a kid.

Fancy having a sleepover at mine?

No.

He is urging them, insisting them very strongly

that they should come and stay with him.

They wanted to stay in the city square,

but Lot knew that that wasn't a good idea.

How did he know this?

Well, he'd lived in Sodom for a while now.

He knew what happened to strangers

who slept in the square

when they visited Sodom at night.

And he didn't want the same fate to happen

to these two people.

So they go to Lot's house.

Now notice some contrasts

if you have your Bible open there at chapter 19

between Lot and Abraham.

So in the beginning of chapter 18,

Abraham is sitting at the shade of his tent.

He sees three people.

He rushes to them, bows down,

begs them to stay for a meal,

and they go and eat together.

And now in chapter 19,

Lot is sitting at the city gate.

He no longer lives in a tent.

But he rushes to the angels,

begs them to stay,

and has a meal with them.

The author is bringing out these similarities

between Lot and Abraham

to show us that Lot has not turned his back on God.

Lot is definitely more righteous

than the inhabitants of Sodom.

And the writer wants us to see

that even though Lot is amongst wicked people,

he himself has not turned against God.

Now when Lot first moved to Sodom in chapter 13,

he lived in tents,

as Abraham and his forefathers.

But he's now forsaken that lifestyle

for a more comfortable lifestyle in the city.

He seems to have married a local Sodomite woman as well.

Life is comfortable in Sodom.

But he obviously isn't happy

with the lifestyle of some of the people in the city.

Now Lot is by no means a perfect man,

and we'll see that as we get further in the chapter.

But the writer wants us to see

that he hasn't completely abandoned God.

And so these men come and stay with Lot

and his fears come true.

The men of Sodom come

and they knock on Lot's door

and demand these two visitors be handed over

so that they can have sex with them.

Now at this point,

I would like to say

that the pending judgment

which will befall Sodom and Gomorrah

is not a direct result of this particular sin.

But this situation is being used

to show the general sinfulness

which is part of normal life in Sodom.

So Lot goes out

and tries to calm down this angry mob.

And in verse 8,

he offers them a horrifying,

horrifying alternative.

Lot is more concerned

with these travelers,

with his reputation,

by not letting these travelers being harmed

than he is with the welfare

of his own daughters.

So even though Lot

is not as openly rebellious

as the people of Sodom,

he is by no means perfect.

So even in God's judgment,

can you see God's grace?

God sent these angels

to save Lot and his family

even though Lot was not living righteously.

Even though his witness

among the people in Sodom

is not what we would expect.

Why does God save Lot?

Well, the only explanation

we see in the text

is in verse 16

that God is merciful.

Apart from that,

we don't know.

Just like we don't know

why God chose Abraham

to be the father

of a great nation.

We don't know

why God saves Lot,

but even in God's judgment,

we see God saving grace.

So Lot runs and tells

his sons-in-law

of the coming destruction

of Sodom.

And here we see

a little taster

of how weakened

Lot's witnesses

by his stay in Sodom.

What do his sons-in-law do

when they hear

of the coming judgment?

They laugh.

They think it's a joke.

Lot and his family

receive the invitation

of salvation

and they respond.

Lot's sons-in-law

receive the invitation

and they think

it's a joke.

Lot and his family

accept the invitation

and leave,

but not right away.

The angels literally

have to take him

and his family

by the hands

and take them out.

And in verses 23 to 26,

we see the severity

of God's judgment.

The whole plane

is destroyed.

All of its inhabitants

have perished

because of their

sinfulness and disobedience.

Even all the vegetation

and plants

are destroyed.

God's judgment

is all-encompassing.

Lot's wife turns around

to see the fate

of her hometown

and she disobeys

the angel's command

and she suffers

the same judgment

and dies.

Her longing

for her home

pulled her attention

away from God's grace

and protection.

She focused on

the things of this world

and not the protection

of the creator

of this world.

Now this judgment

of Sodom and Gomorrah

is often upheld

and used to argue

that God is a dictator.

Someone who punishes

and destroys

all those who don't

agree with him

and do things

the way he wants.

But the truth is

that even in God's judgment,

grace is woven throughout.

See, the decision

to destroy Sodom and Gomorrah

did not happen overnight.

But God has been

patiently waiting

and listening

to the immense outcry

against these cities.

God didn't judge

in a rash, angry manner,

but he was patiently waiting.

And even since the beginning

of our studies

in the life of Abraham,

clues have come up

again and again

of the sinfulness

of Sodom.

God's justice

is right.

The judge of all the earth

has done what is right.

Doesn't that make sense?

If God didn't,

if God doesn't punish,

does God really care?

And if God doesn't care,

then can we really say

that he is a loving God?

We know that God's attributes

work in harmony.

And yet in our minds,

the idea of justice

and love often appear

in conflict.

This is the result

of seeing these attributes

and defining them

in isolation

from one another.

So in other words,

in order to understand

God's justice,

we need to understand

God's grace

and God's love.

In order to understand

God's love

and grace,

we need to understand

God's justice.

justice.

In our culture today,

divine judgment

is one of Christianity's

most offensive doctrines.

People don't like the idea

of a loving God

bringing judgment.

But without judgment,

we would have no gospel

to proclaim at all.

So what should our reaction be

after seeing such a severe act

of divine justice?

Surely,

if Sodom is to be an example

of what will happen

to those who reject God,

then our reaction

should be to warn them.

We should be taking

every opportunity

to tell people

of their need

for forgiveness,

of their need

to be made right

with God.

That's what you'd expect

to see from Lot

and his daughters,

wouldn't you?

They have seen,

they have been recipients

of God's abundant grace.

They have seen God's justice.

They've just been saved

from death.

Surely,

they will never be

the same again.

Last year,

my wife Sabina

was on jury duty

in the high court

and a teenager

was being accused

of a crime

and the accusations

altered his life

from the moment

he was first arrested.

His life would never

be the same again.

And so you can imagine

this boy's relief

when he heard the verdict,

not guilty.

It's highly emotional.

Him and his family

were in tears of joy

because the boy

had been declared free.

The decision was not

in his hands

and yet the declaration

was that he was free

to go home.

That boy will never

be the same again

because of that decision.

Now we'd expect

the same reaction

from Lot and his daughters,

wouldn't we?

To never be the same again?

You'd expect them

to be on their knees

thanking God

every second

that they're alive

because of his grace.

And you'd expect them

to be in awe

for the rest of their days

of the God

who is so powerful

that he can destroy

a city in seconds.

But instead,

what do we see?

Well, verses 30 to 38,

we see that you can take

the people out of Sodom,

but you cannot take

Sodom out of people.

Even after being recipients

of God's grace

and seeing the severity

of God's judgment,

Lot and his daughters

continue in terrible sin.

Lot's daughter devises

a plan to sleep.

Lot's daughters devise

a plan to sleep

with their father.

They get him drunk

and the children

that are a fruit

of this sin

will become the Moabites

and the Ammonites,

the enemies

of the people of Israel

when they get

to the promised land.

Isn't this shocking?

Hasn't the goodness

of God

and the severity

of sin

left any lasting impression

on these people?

Well, I definitely

think it did.

You can't walk away

from seeing a sight

like that

and not be changed.

But I think

that they live

in their sin

because that is exactly

who they are at heart.

So while Sodom and Gomorrah

was a sinful place,

it was just

a larger picture

of the sinfulness

of every single

human heart.

Lot and his daughters

have seen

the perfect judge.

They've been recipients

of his grace

and they've seen

his divine justice.

justice.

Haven't we seen

the same?

The very place

where you see

God's abundant grace

and divine justice

together

is at the cross

of Jesus Christ.

Abundant grace

because the Son of God,

God himself

took the place

of sinful people.

He took our place

so that the judgment

would fall on him

and not on us.

God chose

to make it possible

for the world

to be reconciled

to him

by going to the cross

and suffering

his own judgment.

That is true,

undeniable,

abundant grace.

And at the cross

we see divine justice.

A judgment

that was so painful

that Jesus asked

in the Garden of Gethsemane

for it to be removed

from him.

Yet not my will,

he said,

but yours be done.

The judgment

was so severe

that Jesus feared

being under it

and yet by God's grace

Jesus cried out

on the cross

it is finished.

The punishment

for sins

was complete.

Jesus paid

the price,

he took the pain,

he laid himself

bare

so that all those

who call on his name

could gain life

and that they could

be declared

free.

So we've seen

God's abundant grace.

We have seen

God's divine justice.

What will we do

in light of it?

Will we ignore

the immense sacrifice

of Jesus?

Will we live

as if the Son of God

didn't offer himself

as a sacrifice

so that people

can be forgiven?

Or

will we rejoice

in being called

righteous?

will we call

on the name

of Jesus

and be thankful

for the forgiveness

of sins

that he offers

to the world

and rejoice

with the privilege

of being called

children of God?

Now you might be

thinking that

surely I'm not

as sinful

as the cities

of Sodom and Gomorrah.

Surely I'm not

deserving of such

a severe punishment

as they are.

Well in Romans

Romans 3 · chapter mention

chapter 3

this is

this is what

Romans 3

has to say

about the spiritual

state of humanity.

For all

have sinned

and fall short

of the glory

of God.

All have sinned

there is no

exception.

Each and every

one of us

has rebelled

against God

and each of us

has Sodom

in our hearts.

In and of ourselves

we are deserving

of the same judgment

that befell

Sodom and Gomorrah.

every single

person in this

world is naturally

in opposition

to God

but further on

in Romans 3

we read

and all are

justified freely

by his grace

through the

redemption that

came by Christ

Jesus.

God presented

Christ as a

sacrifice of

atonement

through the

shedding of his

blood to be

received by

faith.

So the truth

is that despite

our sinfulness

God in his

sovereignty

in his

abundant

grace

gave up

his son

to his

divine justice

so that

redemption

is free

to all

those who

call on

his name.

this is the

perfect judge

of all

the earth.

Are you

trusting in

this judge?

We're going to

close our

service now by

singing these

words and I

want you to

really think

about them.

Amazing grace

how sweet the

sound that

saved a wretch

like me.

I once was

lost but now

I'm found.

Was blind but

now I see.

can you sing

these words and

know that you

are trusting in

the judge?

If you can't

make them your

prayer this

evening.

Ponder the

abundant grace

and divine

justice of

God.

The only

perfect judge.

Let's pray

together.

maybe you'd

like to take

just a few

seconds to

come before

God in the

silence of

your own

hearts.

Heavenly

Father we

thank you

that we

have the

privilege of

being able to

come before

you in

prayer.

Lord we

pray that you

would give

us a burden

for the

world around

us.

Help us

remember the

seriousness of

sin but also

the abundance

of your

great grace.

Thank you

that we have

received your

grace and

help us as

we leave this

place to go

out and share

the good news

of your son

Jesus.

The one who

took the

divine judgment

for all those

who call on

his name.

thank you

for your

grace.

Thank you

that once we

were lost but

now we can

say that we

are found.

That we were

blind but now

we can see.

Thank you

that we are

declared

righteous and

free through

the sacrifice

of your son

Jesus.

And it is in

his powerful

and glorious

name that we

pray.

Amen.

Amen.