WHAT IN THE WORLD IS GOD DOING?
GOD COMES TO JUDGE AND TO SAVE
GENESIS 19:1-29

INTRODUCTION

Before I begin looking at Genesis 19 I want to say a few words about the necessity of warnings. Our children, when they go through driver’s education classes, are shown very graphic pictures of accidents that killed and maimed teenagers who were not wearing seat belts or who were driving while drunk. Why are these graphic images and stern warnings given to our children? Is it because we get our jollies out of frightening them? No it is because we want them to act so as to avoid being the victim of such an accident. We want them to fear being hurled from a rolling car and crushed under it so that they will wear their seat belts. When people foolishly refuse to wear their seatbelts, in spite of the warnings, do we assume it is useless to keep warning? When people complain about looking at such gruesome pictures and of the emotional distress they cause do we conclude their desire to not be upset is greater than the benefit of creating fear? No. We know that if people don’t fear the danger they will not apply the protection. It is the same in the Christian faith. If God permits me to do so I hope to frighten all of us because I believe Genesis 19 is in the Bible to frighten us. However, the fear this story ought to provoke is only useful if it moves us to action.

Hundreds of millions of people went to see the movie "Titanic" and additional tens of millions now own the video. It’s a little odd if you think about it because everyone knows the end of the movie even before it starts. Everybody knows that no matter how grand the ship is or how much everyone is enjoying the ride, it is going to sink at the end of the movie and lots of people are going to die. What makes the story suspenseful isn’t what happens to the ship but rather how it will happen. We know the ship is doomed but we don’t know when it will sink and more importantly, who will be saved and how they will be saved.

In our reading of Genesis we have known since chapter 13 that the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah were doomed. In Genesis 13 we are informed that Abraham’s nephew Lot goes to live near Sodom. V. 10 includes this cryptic note, "This was before the Lord destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah." We also know why they will be destroyed because 13: 13 says, "Now the men of Sodom were wicked and were sinning greatly against the Lord." In chapter 18 we listened to the LORD tell Abraham that he has come down from heaven to see if things are as bad in Sodom as he thinks they are. We have heard Abraham pray for God to spare the city for the sake of the righteous living in it. He has left us with this key question: "Will not the Judge of the whole earth do right?" So as we come to chapter 19 we want to know how will the Judge of the whole earth do what is right in regard to Sodom, this city that is sinning greatly but where Lot lives. We are certain they will be destroyed but how will the Judge of the whole earth wipe out an entire city? Will anyone be saved?

The story of Sodom and Gomorrah is referred to over 25 times in the rest of the Bible. Jesus talks about this story on at least three different occasions. Always it is used to show either the wickedness of people or the certainty and horror of God’s wrath against sinful people. It is a picture of what God is going to do to the world of human beings at some point in the future. We are all on the Titanic. It is headed for an iceberg. It is going down and many are going to perish but some will be saved. As Iain Duguid says, "On this excursion some may travel first class, living superficially wonderful lives, while others may travel steerage, eking out their days in misery. Either way, every person who has ever lived is on an inevitable collision course with judgment. Will anyone be saved out of the destruction of this doomed planet?"

MAIN POINT

The Judge of the whole earth does right by…

I. Exposing the sinfulness of the wicked (vv1-11)

Our story begins in the evening of the same day that three angels appeared to Abraham and he fed them lunch. We find out here in v. 1 that two angels were dispatched to Sodom to find out the condition of the cities in the plain. They are warmly greeted by Lot and he invites them to his house to spend the night. Surprisingly they refuse his hospitality and tell him that they intend to stay in the city plaza. At this point we get our first clue that things are not well in Sodom. Lot insists that they not stay in the plaza but that they come home with him. Sodom is a walled city that closes its gates every evening against the beasts and enemies on the outside. Lot’s insistence shows that he fears the danger in the city as much as that outside the city.

Lot’s hospitality is very warm and generous to these angels whom he regards as men. He includes in the meal bread made without yeast. Again, if we remember that the people for whom this was first written were the Israelites, we will be reminded that they ate bread made without yeast on the night the angel of death came through Egypt killing all the first –born men and animals. So, just like the modern film-maker who puts clues of the impending disaster in opening scenes, so Moses tells us a detail that is a sign that this night is far more momentous than Lot realizes.

As the evening wears on and darkness gathers, the feast is interrupted by a commotion outside the house. The sounds of angry men filter into the quiet domestic scene. All leap to their feet when a large, booming voice hurls this perverse demand through the windows of the home, "Where are the men who came to you tonight? Bring them out so that we can have sex with them!" At this statement, angry shouts demanding Lot send out the two angels grow loud. Lot goes out the door of his house and discovers that every man and every boy from every part of the city has surrounded his house. The unruly mob settles down long enough for Lot to address them gently, as brothers, imploring them not to do such a wicked thing. He reminds them of the ancient hospitality code that obligates the host family and city to protect and provide for visitors. In his fervent desire to protect his guests he resorts to making an offer he ought never to have made. He offers his own virgin daughters to the mob for them to do with as they please.

But the mob is full of only perverse desire and snarls at him to get out of their way. They insult Lot with racial slurs and accuse him of being self-righteous and judgmental. "Where do you get off saying we are doing a wicked thing? Who made you God? What right do you, a foreigner, have to tell us what is right and what is wrong? We’ll treat you worse than the two wimps that are hiding behind you if you don’t hand them over." The mob surges forward in its feverish lust and pushes Lot back against the door as they try to break it down. Suddenly the door opens and the two men reach out and grab Lot and at the same time reveal who they are by striking the entire mob with blindness. However, the blindness does not still their raging hearts and they continue to seek for the door in order to capture their prey.

It is clear from the beginning of the story that things are not good in Sodom. Lot’s insistence on not allowing the two visitors remain in the open is because he knows what kind of people live in his town. However, not even he is prepared for the wickedness of the onslaught that evening. God, in order to show his justice in the destruction of this city, removes all the restraints from these people’s sinful hearts. He allows them to pursue all of the desires of their heart to the full. What comes out of them is sexual perversion, anger, violence and insolent pride. The entire city is involved in this wicked action. It is clear that there is no one in this entire city, except for Lot, who has any concern for righteousness. They are not only wicked but they approve of their wickedness and disapprove of Lot’s righteousness. They are so blinded by their own desires that even when they are physically blinded they do not see the hand of God but persist in trying to find the men in order to abuse them. So the angels discover up close and personal what has been hinted at since chapter 13, there are no righteous people in Sodom, except Lot, and all the people of Sodom and Gomorrah are sinning greatly against the Lord.

People constantly want to know how it is right for God to send people to hell forever. Most will readily admit that there are probably a few people who deserve hell, like Adolph Hitler or Jeffrey Dahmer, but the majority of people are not like that. Most people are actually quite nice and respectable and willing to help others. Sure there are some communities like Sodom but most are not. Besides, how can we say that the folks in Sodom are really to blame? They probably had a religion that taught this kind of behavior was OK. Maybe they were ruled over by a wicked king who whipped people up into this kind of a frenzy, like Hitler did the Germans. I mean, come on, most people are just not like this.

You need to know that there is a day coming when God is going to fully expose the sinfulness of every human being. There will be no more hiding, no more excuses. He is going to reveal what true goodness is by showing us His Son and then forcing us to compare ourselves to him. Nothing is hidden from His eyes now and there is a day coming when all will be laid bare. At times, God does this even now. He removes his restraints from an entire people group and so we see the butchery of Nazi Germany or Rawanda or Kosovo. He removes his restraints from an individual and we see the result as in Columbine or with Jeffrey Dahmer or in this white guy who just shot 6 people of color in Pittsburg on Friday. Sometimes he removes his restraints in our lives and we engage in evil that we never knew we were capable of. We become addicted to drugs or sex or food. We yell and scream at our little children. We beat our wives. We shoplift. We’re hypocrites. Sometimes, if we’ll pay attention, God shows us our sin in all its ugliness so that we will fear it and him. He seeks to frighten us with the depths of our depravity now so that we will turn before it is too late. But too often we respond to these revelations of our sinfulness by telling those who rebuke us, "Who appointed you judge over me?" Rather than seeking to see the truth in the accusation we quickly blame the other person rather than humbly admit our own wickedness.

God chiefly exposes our sin by confronting us with his goodness as revealed in the Bible. If you want to know how wicked you truly are ask the Holy Spirit to reveal the evil that is within you and then read through one of the gospels and compare yourself to Jesus and to his teaching. Let me be very clear about this because the bible is very clear about it. There isn’t a person in this room that isn’t capable of the same level of evil exhibited by these men in Sodom. It is only God’s grace that keeps you from doing the same. It is God’s goal in your life to expose that reality so you will turn. But if you will not face it in this life, there is a day coming when you will know it in all its ugly truth, but it will be too late.

The Judge of the whole earth does what is right by…

• Exposing the sinfulness of the wicked
• And by…

II. Only punishing the wicked after being kind to them for a long time (vv. 12-14 & 23-28)

From the time we first learned of the sinfulness of those living in Sodom in chapter 13, at least 20 years has passed. God revealed himself to them numerous times during those years. They were rescued from destruction by Abraham in chapter 14. They saw Abraham offer a tithe to the king of Salem. They heard Abraham declare his allegiance to the God who made the heavens and the earth and then refuse the spoils of war that were his by right because of that allegiance. They had a daily reminder of Abraham in the person of his nephew Lot. In addition to all these special revelations they have the daily evidences of God’s existence and kindness in his providing them with food and sun and rain and family and joy in all these things. But instead of responding to all these kind reminders of God’s mercy they have persisted in sinning so that their sin has mounted up to heaven itself. Their sins are heaped up to the limit and cry out for God’s just retribution.

Now we find them directly confronted with an awesome display of God’s power in blinding them and they take no notice but press on in their sin. They assume that no one is paying attention to how they live. They assume they will wake up in the morning and continue to live as they have always lived. Finally, we discover that they are given an enormous expression of kindness when the angels tell Lot to go get everyone who belongs to him and take them out of the city. Read vv. 12-14. Lot goes to his son-in-laws that very night. They have but recently returned to their home from their part with the mob of rapists. They have experienced the blindness sent by the angels. Now, they are confronted by Lot who is talking to them in a manner they have never before seen. He is warning them that they will not wake up in the morning to "life as usual". Rather, this day the city will be destroyed. Lot pleads with them and urges them to flee with him from the city. But all they can do is mock him. They treat him as if he were a stand-up comic. They laugh at his suggestion that the city would be destroyed. They display the hardness not only of their hearts but also of the hearts of all who live in Sodom and Gomorrah.

How kind and patient God has been with these people. He has given them everything they enjoy in life. He has revealed himself in Abraham. He has shown his power in the blindness. He pleads with them to flee through Lot, but they remain indifferent to all God’s mercy. They presume they are safe and will never pay for their sins. Finally, mercy is over. The end has come. Judgement is at hand. Read vv. 15 & 23-28. Morning comes to Sodom and Gomorrah as it has every day for those who live there. By mid-morning people are about their daily tasks. Children play in the streets. Men barter in the market. Women gossip over cooking fires. Lovers embrace. Carpenters build homes. People make plans for the weekend. Then when Lot reaches Zoar and the sun is in the sky, God rains down fire and brimstone on the cities in the valley and on all its inhabitants and on the vegetation. All is gone in a moment. Where before stood bustling and prosperous cities surrounded by fertile cropland, now is only smoke and ashes.

Thus it always is with God’s judgment. We live our lives and it seems as though all will precede as it always has. We assume that today will be like every other day. We assume we have plenty of time to seek God, to trust Christ. But we fail to realize that the only thing that is keeping us out of hell at the moment is the mere pleasure of God. Did not Sodom and Gomorrah deserve to be punished 20 years earlier? Of course they did. God gave them 20 years of kindness they didn’t deserve. They presumed life would go on as always, but then God decided it was time to end it. Humans, especially those of us living in the technological wonderland of the United States, assume we are in control of our destiny. We are not. If you are outside of Christ, do you deserve to go to hell more now than you did 10 years ago? Of course not. There is no reason in you why God should not cast you into hell today. Listen to how Jonathon Edwards describes the condition of every person who has not trusted in Christ:

Now I want all of us this morning who profess to be Christians to look at v. 26. "Lot’s wife looked back and she became a pillar of salt." The actual language says that she looked back and gazed upon Sodom from behind Lot. Here we have a picture of the professing Christian who does not actually possess Christ. There are millions of these people in this world. There are probably some among us. She has fled from the city in response to God’s command and has begun the journey to safety but her heart is really in Sodom. Jesus says in Luke 17, "Remember Lots’ wife! Whoever tries to keep his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life will preserve it." In order to join in the saving work of God Lot’s wife had to abandon her life in Sodom and pursue a new life with God. She was unwilling to do so. Though she began in the company of the saved, her true love was revealed in her lagging behind her husband and her gazing back upon Sodom. Thus she, by not aggressively losing her life in Sodom and pursuing her new life in Christ, was swept away with the rest of those in Sodom. The only true faith is a persevering faith. Beginning the journey to Christ is not enough. You must abandon your life here and pursue it in Christ alone.

My dear friends, do not treat me as Lot’s son-in-laws treated him. I am not joking. This world is going to be destroyed. There is a day of judgment coming on the whole world. That day of wrath on Sodom and Gomorrah was but a small taste of the eternal wrath that is coming. You cannot pursue your life here and pursue Christ. I beg you to flee from the wrath that is to come and persevere in your pursuit of Christ as the only hope of escaping the coming wrath. If you have not been converted, if you have not had that great change of heart and life that is worked by God’s Holy Spirit, then you are today living but a step from hell. Turn now and flee from your sin and to Christ.

The Judge of the whole earth does right by…

• Exposing the sinfulness of the wicked
• Only punishing the wicked after being kind to them for a long time
• And by…

III. Graciously saving his people from the fire of his wrath (vv. 15-29)

While it is clear that Lot is vastly different from the men of Sodom, it is also clear that he is no saint. When we ask the question, why was Lot rescued, the answer we must come to is because of God’s unmerited favor, not because of his own goodness. Look at all the ways we are shown Lot’s sin. First, he offers his daughters to the lusting mob. This was a horrible thing to propose and shows the impact that living in Sodom has had on his soul. Second, in v. 16 he hesitates in the face of the angel’s urgent warnings to flee. He shows that while he believes the angels, yet his heart is drawn to this city. He’s leaving everything behind, including other daughters (show v. 15). He is losing his prosperous and comfortable life to flee into the mountains. So he hesitates, he’s not sure he wants to pay the price. Third, after being commanded to flee to the mountains he asks God for permission to flee to one of the cities of the plain, Zoar. According to v. 21 God had intended to destroy Zoar as well as Sodom and Gomorrah because it is one of the sinful cities of the valley. He actually tells God that if he goes to the mountains, the place God says is safe, he will perish there. While he believes the warning and the promise, his prayer shows a heart that is not entirely happy in this salvation. His faith is not the faith of Abraham, it is more like a mustard seed faith. This portrait of Lot is not meant to tell us that you can go to heaven without ever changing how you live. It is meant to show us that Lot was not saved because of his own righteousness. While he trusted the warnings of the angels and acted on them and while he was not as wicked as those in Sodom, yet he clearly is not righteous.

The emphasis of the story is on God’s saving Lot, not Lot saving himself. Let’s look at all the ways we see God’s work in rescuing Lot. First he saves Lot from the angry mob. Second, he tells Lot that he is going to destroy the city and then invites him to bring out all his family with him. Third, see how the angels seek to excite him to action. Their language is urgent and vivid (read vv. 15 & 17). Fourth, notice that when he hesitates, the angels actually grab the hands of all four family members and drag them out of the city. Imagine that picture. In the first grayness that precedes the dawn, while the unsuspecting city sleeps, the angels each have two family members in tow as they pull them through the streets out of the city. Fifth, we are told at the end of v. 16 that the reason God is saving Lot is his mercy. Sixth, Lot himself expresses his certainty that his life has been spared, not because of anything he has done but simply by God’s grace and kindness (v. 19). Seventh, in spite of Lot’s wrong motives for asking to go to Zoar and in spite of the wickedness of the people of Zoar, God allows Lot to flee there and does not destroy it. Eighth, God doesn’t destroy the cities in the plain until Lot is safely in Zoar. Finally, look at v. 29. Why does God save Lot? God remembers Abraham and so rescues Lot. He saves Lot because of the righteousness of Abraham and his prayers for Lot.

Here we see the good news of Jesus. Lot is not rescued because of anything he has done. He is saved because of God’s decision to have mercy on him and because of the righteousness of another, his uncle, Abraham. He is saved through his faith. He believed the angels and obeyed their command to flee and not look back. It is the same for us. God is having mercy on you today. He has warned you of the wrath to come. He has told you to flee from that wrath, from seeking your life here. He has told you that your righteousness cannot save you. But he also wants you to know that another, who is perfectly good, has given his life so that if you will flee to him you will not be swept away in God’s judgement. But remember, don’t look back! You must give yourself wholly to Christ and depend upon him for everything. You must give up your life here and seek your life in him. Only because of Christ’s obedience and his intercession on behalf of all his people will God bring you out from the catastrophe that is going to come upon this whole earth.

Let me close with the closing words of Jonathon Edwards from his famous sermon, "Sinners in the hands of an angry God". "Therefore let everyone that is out of Christ, now awake and fly from the wrath to come. The wrath of Almighty God is now undoubtedly hanging over a great part of this congregation. Let everyone fly out of Sodom, ‘Flee for your lives! Don’t look back…Flee to the mountains or you will be swept away!’"

The Judge of the whole earth does right by…

• Exposing the sinfulness of the wicked
• Only punishing the wicked after being kind to them for a long time
• And by graciously saving his people from the fire of his wrath

© Copyright 2000 John Swanson.
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