Impending Doom
Genesis 18:16-22
2. Secondly, God wanted to warn humanity against Sodom's sin.
The doomsday clock was about to strike midnight for the notorious city of Sodom. It's citizens had qualified themselves as moral trash and they were about to be discarded. There would be no wakes. No funerals. No burials. God was about to perform a mass cremation. In less then 24 hours the city would be reduced to ashes, both people and property.
But this was to be no secret operation. God wanted everyone to know about Sodom, beginning with His friend Abraham. In fact, God wanted all generations to know about His judgement on Sodom. Jude tells us why.
"As Sodom and Gomorrah, and the cities around them in a similar manner to these, having given themselves over to sexual immorality and gone after strange flesh (which means perversion), are set forth as an example, suffering the vengeance of eternal fire." (Jude 1:7)
Our permissive, tolerant culture needs to be reminded of the sobering example of Sodom. We are all free to choose the lifestyle we want to live on this earth but we'd do well to consider the final result of our choice. The Sodomites did whatever they wanted. They left no pleasure unsatisfied. They indulged every wild fantasy their twisted minds could conjure up. But they paid a price for it. A terrible, steep, costly price.
Death by fire and brimstone.
They gave themselves over to sexual immorality and they suffered the vengeance of eternal fire.
God didn’t want the destruction of Sodom to be a secret. He wanted it to be known to all generations so that people would take warning and not repeat the tragic mistakes that the Sodomites made. He couldn’t let all of us know about it, if He didn’t let His friend Abraham know about it.
He certainly didn’t want His people to fall into the sins of Sodom. He said in verse 18 that Abraham was to become a great and powerful nation and that all nations of the earth would be blessed through him. The only thing that could really throw a kink into that plan would be if Abraham’s descendants started sinning like the people of Sodom. Their sin would destroy them, just like it was about to destroy Sodom.
He said in verse 19 that He specifically chose Abraham so that he would command his children after him to follow the Lord by doing what is right and good. If you ever wonder why God selected Abraham over all the other men of his day, here is the reason. He knew that Abraham would command his children to follow the Lord. Abraham knew that if his children did what was right then they would be able to receive the blessing God wanted to give them and to be the blessing God wanted them to be.
Therefore, God wanted everyone to know that the destruction of Sodom was not just a natural catastrophe. When it comes to natural catastrophe’s today sometimes we just don’t know if it’s a natural occurrence, or a supernatural occurrence. Many people are asking the question today concerning the recent rash of Hurricanes that are wreaking havoc. Are they natural occurrences or are they supernatural judgements from God? In the case of Sodom, it was definitely a supernatural event, even if God may have used natural means to bring it about.
The Sodomites were to serve as an object lesson, as “an example of what is going to happen to the ungodly.” (2 Peter 2:6) Other examples include the people of Noah’s day and the rebellious civilization at Babel.
They gave themselves over to sexual immorality and perversion and they suffered the vengeance of eternal fire. Jude said, “they are set forth as an example.” In our society today, where anything goes, people need to be reminded of this sobering example from scripture.
We are all free to choose the lifestyle we want to live on this earth but we’d do well to consider the final result of our choice. According to scripture, and especially the example of Sodom, the choice to live a morally impure life results in death by fire and brimstone.
Sodom and Gomorrah were destroyed by fire and brimstone and according to Revelation 20, the ungodly will also be destroyed in the same way. Those whose names are not recorded in the book of life will be thrown into the lake that burns with fire and brimstone.
Scholars today debate what the actual sin of Sodom was. Even before Lot had moved in there, we are told in Genesis 13:13 that the men of Sodom were exceedingly wicked and sinful against the Lord. And in verse 20 of our text we are told that the outcry against Sodom was great and their sin very grave. The word grave means something very serious which threatens to produce a very bad outcome. And we know their sin did indeed produce an extremely bad outcome.
Some say it doesn’t matter because sin is sin. But the fact of the matter is that some sins are more serious than others. The sin of Sodom as proposed in Genesis 19 consisted of homosexual gang rape, which was considered very serious in those days (and would certainly be considered serious in our day). But even though the outcry against Sodom was great God didn’t judge them based on that outcry.
In verse 21 God says: “I will go down and see whether (the people of Sodom) have done altogether according to the outcry against it that has come to Me; and if not I will know.”
Now God is all-knowing so He knew what the Sodomites were up to but He says this to show that His judgement is never based on second hand knowledge. God doesn’t judge people or cities or nations based on the latest news reports, or on information supplied by outside sources. His judgements are not rash and sudden. He judges based on His own personal knowledge of the situation.
He heard the outcry against Sodom. He knew what people were saying about them. But He didn’t judge them based on any of that. He judged them based on His own eternal counsel.
The good news here is that we don’t have to be too concerned about what others think of us. God is not going to judge us based on other people’s opinion. God will judge us based on His own personal knowledge of us.
3. Thirdly, God was leading Abraham to Pray.
God knew Abraham’s heart. He knew Abraham would intercede on behalf of the people of Sodom. If Abraham didn’t know about the impending destruction of Sodom how could he intercede on their behalf?
Verse 22 says, the men (angels) continued their descent from the hills near Hebron to the city of Sodom, while Abraham remained standing before the Lord, overlooking the Dead Sea plain with the city of Sodom below.
Abraham belonged to that select group of God’s people known as intercessors, individuals like Moses, Samuel, Elijah, Jeremiah, the apostles, and our Lord Himself. In fact, our Lord’s ministry today in heaven is a ministry of intercession, according to Romans 8:34. We are never more like our Lord than when we are interceding for others.
C.H. Spurgeon said: “If they (lost sinners) will not hear you speak, they cannot prevent your praying. Do they jest at your exhortations? They cannot disturb your prayers. Are they far away so that you cannot reach them? Your prayers can reach them. Have they declared that they will never listen to you again, nor see your face? Never mind, God has a voice which they must hear. Speak to Him, and He will make them feel. Though they now treat you despitefully, rendering evil for your good, follow them with your prayers. Never let them perish for lack of your supplications.”
In the case of Sodom, it was too late. They were beyond repentance. But what would have happened to Lot and his family if Abraham had neglected to pray?
For us today, it’s not for us to say if people have passed the point of no return. Some will repent. Some probably won’t. But that’s no excuse for us to stop praying. There just might be someone like Lot, perhaps a family member, who will escape the coming destruction because of our prayers.
Genesis 18:16-22
2. Secondly, God wanted to warn humanity against Sodom's sin.
The doomsday clock was about to strike midnight for the notorious city of Sodom. It's citizens had qualified themselves as moral trash and they were about to be discarded. There would be no wakes. No funerals. No burials. God was about to perform a mass cremation. In less then 24 hours the city would be reduced to ashes, both people and property.
But this was to be no secret operation. God wanted everyone to know about Sodom, beginning with His friend Abraham. In fact, God wanted all generations to know about His judgement on Sodom. Jude tells us why.
"As Sodom and Gomorrah, and the cities around them in a similar manner to these, having given themselves over to sexual immorality and gone after strange flesh (which means perversion), are set forth as an example, suffering the vengeance of eternal fire." (Jude 1:7)
Our permissive, tolerant culture needs to be reminded of the sobering example of Sodom. We are all free to choose the lifestyle we want to live on this earth but we'd do well to consider the final result of our choice. The Sodomites did whatever they wanted. They left no pleasure unsatisfied. They indulged every wild fantasy their twisted minds could conjure up. But they paid a price for it. A terrible, steep, costly price.
Death by fire and brimstone.
They gave themselves over to sexual immorality and they suffered the vengeance of eternal fire.
God didn’t want the destruction of Sodom to be a secret. He wanted it to be known to all generations so that people would take warning and not repeat the tragic mistakes that the Sodomites made. He couldn’t let all of us know about it, if He didn’t let His friend Abraham know about it.
He certainly didn’t want His people to fall into the sins of Sodom. He said in verse 18 that Abraham was to become a great and powerful nation and that all nations of the earth would be blessed through him. The only thing that could really throw a kink into that plan would be if Abraham’s descendants started sinning like the people of Sodom. Their sin would destroy them, just like it was about to destroy Sodom.
He said in verse 19 that He specifically chose Abraham so that he would command his children after him to follow the Lord by doing what is right and good. If you ever wonder why God selected Abraham over all the other men of his day, here is the reason. He knew that Abraham would command his children to follow the Lord. Abraham knew that if his children did what was right then they would be able to receive the blessing God wanted to give them and to be the blessing God wanted them to be.
Therefore, God wanted everyone to know that the destruction of Sodom was not just a natural catastrophe. When it comes to natural catastrophe’s today sometimes we just don’t know if it’s a natural occurrence, or a supernatural occurrence. Many people are asking the question today concerning the recent rash of Hurricanes that are wreaking havoc. Are they natural occurrences or are they supernatural judgements from God? In the case of Sodom, it was definitely a supernatural event, even if God may have used natural means to bring it about.
The Sodomites were to serve as an object lesson, as “an example of what is going to happen to the ungodly.” (2 Peter 2:6) Other examples include the people of Noah’s day and the rebellious civilization at Babel.
They gave themselves over to sexual immorality and perversion and they suffered the vengeance of eternal fire. Jude said, “they are set forth as an example.” In our society today, where anything goes, people need to be reminded of this sobering example from scripture.
We are all free to choose the lifestyle we want to live on this earth but we’d do well to consider the final result of our choice. According to scripture, and especially the example of Sodom, the choice to live a morally impure life results in death by fire and brimstone.
Sodom and Gomorrah were destroyed by fire and brimstone and according to Revelation 20, the ungodly will also be destroyed in the same way. Those whose names are not recorded in the book of life will be thrown into the lake that burns with fire and brimstone.
Scholars today debate what the actual sin of Sodom was. Even before Lot had moved in there, we are told in Genesis 13:13 that the men of Sodom were exceedingly wicked and sinful against the Lord. And in verse 20 of our text we are told that the outcry against Sodom was great and their sin very grave. The word grave means something very serious which threatens to produce a very bad outcome. And we know their sin did indeed produce an extremely bad outcome.
Some say it doesn’t matter because sin is sin. But the fact of the matter is that some sins are more serious than others. The sin of Sodom as proposed in Genesis 19 consisted of homosexual gang rape, which was considered very serious in those days (and would certainly be considered serious in our day). But even though the outcry against Sodom was great God didn’t judge them based on that outcry.
In verse 21 God says: “I will go down and see whether (the people of Sodom) have done altogether according to the outcry against it that has come to Me; and if not I will know.”
Now God is all-knowing so He knew what the Sodomites were up to but He says this to show that His judgement is never based on second hand knowledge. God doesn’t judge people or cities or nations based on the latest news reports, or on information supplied by outside sources. His judgements are not rash and sudden. He judges based on His own personal knowledge of the situation.
He heard the outcry against Sodom. He knew what people were saying about them. But He didn’t judge them based on any of that. He judged them based on His own eternal counsel.
The good news here is that we don’t have to be too concerned about what others think of us. God is not going to judge us based on other people’s opinion. God will judge us based on His own personal knowledge of us.
3. Thirdly, God was leading Abraham to Pray.
God knew Abraham’s heart. He knew Abraham would intercede on behalf of the people of Sodom. If Abraham didn’t know about the impending destruction of Sodom how could he intercede on their behalf?
Verse 22 says, the men (angels) continued their descent from the hills near Hebron to the city of Sodom, while Abraham remained standing before the Lord, overlooking the Dead Sea plain with the city of Sodom below.
Abraham belonged to that select group of God’s people known as intercessors, individuals like Moses, Samuel, Elijah, Jeremiah, the apostles, and our Lord Himself. In fact, our Lord’s ministry today in heaven is a ministry of intercession, according to Romans 8:34. We are never more like our Lord than when we are interceding for others.
C.H. Spurgeon said: “If they (lost sinners) will not hear you speak, they cannot prevent your praying. Do they jest at your exhortations? They cannot disturb your prayers. Are they far away so that you cannot reach them? Your prayers can reach them. Have they declared that they will never listen to you again, nor see your face? Never mind, God has a voice which they must hear. Speak to Him, and He will make them feel. Though they now treat you despitefully, rendering evil for your good, follow them with your prayers. Never let them perish for lack of your supplications.”
In the case of Sodom, it was too late. They were beyond repentance. But what would have happened to Lot and his family if Abraham had neglected to pray?
For us today, it’s not for us to say if people have passed the point of no return. Some will repent. Some probably won’t. But that’s no excuse for us to stop praying. There just might be someone like Lot, perhaps a family member, who will escape the coming destruction because of our prayers.
Principles of Judgement (from Genesis course)
