Genesis 19
Teaching 4-29-10
- What does it mean to have faith in God?
- Convenient Faith
- We have control of our lives
- We control what we do, how we do it, who we’re doing it with
- We get to set up parameters
- Radical Faith
- We trust God to lead our lives
- We follow Him
- We give up control because we’ve decided that He knows best
- Genesis 12:1-3
- “The LORD had said to Abram, “Leave your country, your people and your father’s household and go to the land I will show you. I will make you into a great nation and I will bless you; I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse; and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you.”
- God called Abraham to leave EVERYTHING (money, home, children, wife)
- Abraham was pretty radical by doing what God says
- He was only doing what the Lord asked
- Hebrew 11:8
- “By faith Abraham, when called to go to a place he would later receive as his inheritance, obeyed and went, even though he did not know where he was going.”
- Totally by Abraham’s own faith in God
- If God came to you and said follow me (he didn’t tell you anything about where you’re going) would you do it?
- That seems like a lot to give up
- Why did Abraham do it?
- Hebrews 11:8-12
- “By faith Abraham, when called to go to a place he would later receive as his inheritance, obeyed and went, even though he did not know where he was going. By faith he made his home in the promised land like a stranger in a foreign country; he lived in tents, as did Isaac and Jacob, who were heirs with him of the same promise. For he was looking forward to the city with foundations, whose architect and builder is God. By faith Abraham, even though he was past age—and Sarah herself was barren—was enabled to become a father because he[considered him faithful who had made the promise. And so from this one man, and he as good as dead, came descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and as countless as the sand on the seashore.”
- The reason that Abraham could go was by faith
- He trusted God enough to lead him where Abraham needed to be
- It was going to be the best for his relationship with the Lord
- That’s radical faith!
- Hebrews 11:13-16
- “All these people were still living by faith when they died. They did not receive the things promised; they only saw them and welcomed them from a distance. And they admitted that they were aliens and strangers on earth. People who say such things show that they are looking for a country of their own. If they had been thinking of the country they had left, they would have had opportunity to return. Instead, they were longing for a better country—a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared a city for them.”
- Abraham understood his home wasn’t on Earth
- His home was with the Lord, that’s where his citizenship was
- He knew he was gonna leave at some time so why not leave now?
- It was no big deal for Abraham to leave home to follow the Lord
- But why does God want us to give up control of our lives so He can lead us?
- He sees the damage that control does to us and how it destroys us
- We focus on so many parameters and fortresses that we get anxious
- When our fortress meets the world it is broken
- We’re trying to pick the pieces back up but it’s not working
- We worry more and more and get more and more anxious
- We ignore others and can’t spend the time to invest in someone’s life
- God wants MORE for us than that
- He wants to take that burden off of our shoulders
- He wants us to love Him and others
- Philippians 4:4-7
- “Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”
- This is such a beautiful picture because it’s so calm, peaceful and joyful
- This relationship that we can have with the Lord is irreplaceable
- You can’t ever imitate that relationship anywhere else
- Our relationships amongst humans is an imitation of how our relationship is with the Lord
- We can have such awesome relationships if we base them off of our relationship with the Lord
- Abraham didn’t know how things would work out but he followed God
- Abraham knew that God knew what was best for him
- God knows what’s going to be best for us
- God makes our relationships work because we’re not worrying or being anxious
- It’s difficult to surrender our lives to the Lord
- We’re always in the process of giving our lives to the Lord then taking it back then giving it back
- But with God we can truly love our friends the right way
- Genesis 13:5-9
- Now Lot, who was moving about with Abram, also had flocks and herds and tents. 6 But the land could not support them while they stayed together, for their possessions were so great that they were not able to stay together. And quarreling arose between Abram’s herdsmen and the herdsmen of Lot. The Canaanites and Perizzites were also living in the land at that time. So Abram said to Lot, “Let’s not have any quarreling between you and me, or between your herdsmen and mine, for we are brothers. Is not the whole land before you? Let’s part company. If you go to the left, I’ll go to the right; if you go to the right, I’ll go to the left.””
- They’re having issues so Abraham is offering a solution
- Genesis 13:10-11
- “Lot looked up and saw that the whole plain of the Jordan was well watered, like the garden of the LORD, like the land of Egypt, toward Zoar. (This was before the LORD destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah.) So Lot chose for himself the whole plain of the Jordan and set out toward the east. The two men parted company:”
- Abraham gives Lot a choice of the desert or the green section
- Kind of selfish of Lot to choose the better area for self
- Lot’s perspective is totally different from Abraham’s perspective
- Genesis 13:12-13
- “Abram lived in the land of Canaan, while Lot lived among the cities of the plain and pitched his tents near Sodom. Now the men of Sodom were wicked and were sinning greatly against the LORD.”
- Sodom was into human sacrifice and full of sexual immorality
- Lot moves himself and his family into the city of Sodom
- Genesis 19:1-11
- “The two angels arrived at Sodom in the evening, and Lot was sitting in the gateway of the city. When he saw them, he got up to meet them and bowed down with his face to the ground. “My lords,” he said, “please turn aside to your servant’s house. You can wash your feet and spend the night and then go on your way early in the morning.” “No,” they answered, “we will spend the night in the square.” But he insisted so strongly that they did go with him and entered his house. He prepared a meal for them, baking bread without yeast, and they ate. Before they had gone to bed, all the men from every part of the city of Sodom—both young and old—surrounded the house. They called to Lot, “Where are the men who came to you tonight? Bring them out to us so that we can have sex with them.” Lot went outside to meet them and shut the door behind him and said, “No, my friends. Don’t do this wicked thing. Look, I have two daughters who have never slept with a man. Let me bring them out to you, and you can do what you like with them. But don’t do anything to these men, for they have come under the protection of my roof.” “Get out of our way,” they replied. And they said, “This fellow came here as an alien, and now he wants to play the judge! We’ll treat you worse than them.” They kept bringing pressure on Lot and moved forward to break down the door. But the men inside reached out and pulled Lot back into the house and shut the door. Then they struck the men who were at the door of the house, young and old, with blindness so that they could not find the door.”
- Lot has lived in Sodom for a while now and is on the town council
- Lot offers the angels a very lovely place to sleep but the angels say they don’t need royal treatment
- The men and boys went to Lot’s house and they wanted to rape the angels
- Lot tries to stop them, but are his intentions true?
- Lot offers his daughters to be raped instead of giving up the angels
- The angels blind the men and boys but they aren’t giving up on trying to get the angels
- Genesis 19:15-17
- “With the coming of dawn, the angels urged Lot, saying, “Hurry! Take your wife and your two daughters who are here, or you will be swept away when the city is punished.” When he hesitated, the men grasped his hand and the hands of his wife and of his two daughters and led them safely out of the city, for the LORD was merciful to them. As soon as they had brought them out, one of them said, “Flee for your lives! Don’t look back, and don’t stop anywhere in the plain! Flee to the mountains or you will be swept away!’”
- Lot hesitated when the angels tried to get him and his family out of Sodom
- The Lord was going to destroy Sodom
- Genesis 19:18-22
- “But Lot said to them, “No, my lords, please! Your servant has found favor in your eyes, and you have shown great kindness to me in sparing my life. But I can’t flee to the mountains; this disaster will overtake me, and I’ll die. Look, here is a town near enough to run to, and it is small. Let me flee to it—it is very small, isn’t it? Then my life will be spared.” He said to him, “Very well, I will grant this request too; I will not overthrow the town you speak of. But flee there quickly, because I cannot do anything until you reach it.” (That is why the town was called Zoar.)”
- Lot doesn’t want to go to the mountains
- He wants to go to the next town because he wanted to stay close to his possessions
- His heart was solidly landed in Sodom
- Genesis 19:23-26
- “By the time Lot reached Zoar, the sun had risen over the land. Then the LORD rained down burning sulfur on Sodom and Gomorrah—from the LORD out of the heavens. Thus he overthrew those cities and the entire plain, including all those living in the cities—and also the vegetation in the land. But Lot’s wife looked back, and she became a pillar of salt.”
- Lot obviously led his wife down the wrong path
- She longed to go back to Sodom so she was turned into a pillar of salt
- Genesis 19:33-38
- “That night they got their father to drink wine, and the older daughter went in and lay with him. He was not aware of it when she lay down or when she got up. The next day the older daughter said to the younger, “Last night I lay with my father. Let’s get him to drink wine again tonight, and you go in and lie with him so we can preserve our family line through our father.” So they got their father to drink wine that night also, and the younger daughter went and lay with him. Again he was not aware of it when she lay down or when she got up. So both of Lot’s daughters became pregnant by their father. The older daughter had a son, and she named him Moab; he is the father of the Moabites of today. The younger daughter also had a son, and she named him Ben-Ammi; he is the father of the Ammonites of today.”
- Both of Lot’s daughters had sex with their father when he was intoxicatedto continue their father’s line
- The story of Lot’s life is such a bitter tale
- He could not hold his spiritual relationship with God
- He was all in the flesh with his possessions and his seat of power in Sodom
- He had to impact on the city but the city had a HUGE impact on him
- You have a choice:
- Lot’s choice
- He lost his relationship with God
- He only wanted immediate gratification
- Abraham’s choice
- He kept his relationship with God
- He knew that he had something better than he would ever have on this Earth
- Hebrews 11:10
- “For he was looking forward to the city with foundations, whose architect and builder is God.”
- Abraham trusted God because he knew he was going to live with God
- Abraham did not believe in immediate gratification
- He knew that God would fulfill his promises
- Lot stands for the aim of people to figure out how little can I get away without giving to God and still be called a Christian?
- Lot just wanted to stay out of trouble with God
- How little can we do?
- Abraham on the other hand is a radical kind of guy!
- So… are you going to have a convenient faith like Lot or be like Abraham who had a sweet relationship with God?
- We can make that choice!
- We can have impact not for just this life but the next life also!
- Do you want to impact your world for Christ or will you let the worlld impact you?!
- 2 Chronicles 16:9
- “For the eyes of the LORD range throughout the earth to strengthen those whose hearts are fully committed to him.”
- The Lord is roaming the world for your hearts so He can strongly support it
- Hebrews 11:32-40
- “And what more shall I say? I do not have time to tell about Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, David, Samuel and the prophets, who through faith conquered kingdoms, administered justice, and gained what was promised; who shut the mouths of lions, quenched the fury of the flames, and escaped the edge of the sword; whose weakness was turned to strength; and who became powerful in battle and routed foreign armies. Women received back their dead, raised to life again. Others were tortured and refused to be released, so that they might gain a better resurrection. Some faced jeers and flogging, while still others were chained and put in prison. They were stoned; they were sawed in two; they were put to death by the sword. They went about in sheepskins and goatskins, destitute, persecuted and mistreated— the world was not worthy of them. They wandered in deserts and mountains, and in caves and holes in the ground. These were all commended for their faith, yet none of them received what had been promised. God had planned something better for us so that only together with us would they be made perfect.”
- What happened to them because they let themselves be tortured?
- God had a better life for them and made them perfect
- But you have to make a choice and you have to make it now…