Lot's Big Mistake

Introduction:

·         Lot is the nephew of Abraham (Gen. 11:31)

·         When Abraham was called by the Lord, Lot went with him (Gen. 12:4)

·         It is assumed that Lot went with Abraham down to Egypt during the famine in Gen 12 since Gen. 13:5 tells us that Lot was moving about with Abraham

Genesis 13

·         It seems as though Lot was trying to mooch off of Abraham’s success, it was like he was going with the flow, following Abraham

·         We don’t see Lot engaging with God, we don’t find him building altars to the Lord or calling on the name of the Lord like Abraham

·         Was Lot riding on the coat-tails of Abraham’s relationship with God?

·         Abraham recommends that they part ways because the land couldn’t support both of them if they stayed together (v. 6) and their herdsmen were quarrelling.

·         Abraham wanted to avoid fighting within the family (v. 8)

·         Abraham let Lot decide which land he wanted and Lot picked the best land (v. 10-11)

·          Lot then pitched his tent near Sodom (v. 12) even though Sodom was wicked and there was much sinning there (v. 13)

·         Did you note how Lot did not inquire of the Lord about this decision…he just chose based on the temporal, avoiding the spiritual ramifications of his decision

·         This decision put Lot in a place of temptation

·         Lot was playing with fire because Sodom was known for it’s wickedness

Lot in Danger

·         As a result of Lot’s living in Sodom, his very life came into danger on two occasions.

·         In the first, he was taken captive and saved by his uncle Abraham in Genesis 14

·         Look at verse 12 – Lot now LIVES in Sodom

·         He no longer lives near this wicked city, he now has moved right on in! 

·         In the second, he was also saved by his uncle Abraham’s prayers, in Genesis 19

·         Look at verse 1 – Lot was sitting in the gateway of the city

·         On a quick reading this may not mean anything to us but the more you read scripture the more you begin to recognize the significance of statements like this

·         Lot sitting at the city gate meant that Lot had probably become a member of Sodom’s ruling council, since a city gateway served as the administrative and judicial center where legal matters were discussed and prosecuted

·         Lot was infusing himself into the wicked culture of this city

·         So what’s the big deal?  As Christians, aren’t we supposed to be salt and light?  In the world but not of the world?

·         The thing is that Lot wasn’t having a positive effect on Sodom, Lot was not evangelizing

·         RABBIT TRAIL:  ice cube vs. iceberg

o   Ice cube:  If I hold an ice cube in my hand, I have enough heat to melt it, my hand will get a bit cold in the process by my body will be OK, I am not in danger. 

o   Iceberg:  there is no way that I will be able to melt an iceberg by holding it in my hand, I could try to wrap my body around the iceberg and use all my body heat to melt it but what will be the end result?  I will die of hypothermia! 

·         We need to think about the principle of the ice cube versus the iceberg when it comes to our  relationships

o   Are you having a positive effect on the other person?  Evangelism/discipleship?

o   Are you being dragged down by the other person

o   If you are being dragged down then you are not evangelizing or discipling, in fact, you are actually being damaged by the relationship

o   If your marriage is dragging you down then you need to talk to Tim Ryan

·         In the case of Lot, Sodom was like an iceberg, Lot had little effect on it but it had a huge effect on him

·         How do we know this? 

·         It’s because we don’t see a whole lot of fruit in Lot’s life

·         We can deduce this from other incidents in Genesis 19

·         First, Lot does good by being hospitable to the guests and inviting him into his home and making a meal for them (v. 3)

·         But then Lot makes a bad offer, in order to protect his guests (good) he offers his virgin daughters to the Sodomites (bad, v. 8)

·         There is nothing that could justify this proposal of Lot, it’s sickening and cannot be excused or overlooked

·         When the two visitors suggest that they leave Sodom immediately for it was about to be destroyed, Lot spoke to his daughter’s future husbands who thought he was joking (v. 14)

·         They thought Lot was telling some sort of ridiculous tale

·         This shows that they didn’t trust his judgment– the result was that they died!

·         The angels urged Lot to leave but he hesitated or lingered (v. 16)

·         Did you catch that!  Hell, fire and brimstone were about to be poured down on this city, and Lot lingered, he hesitated! 

·         This shows us something about his heart condition.

·         In fact, the angels actually grasped Lot’s hands and the hands of his wife and daughters and it seems as though they somewhat forced them out of the city

·         The angles had to urge them to FLEE and not look back

·         What is with this guy?  Why is he not eager to follow these visitors who are trying to save his life?

·         The action of Lot’s wife and daughters gives us more insight into the type of leader that Lot was

·         His wife looked back, towards Sodom, and became a pillar of salt (v. 26) – did she lack fear of the Lord?

·         His daughter’s show their depravity in getting their father drunk in order to have sex with him because they wanted a baby (v. 31-38)

·         It is obvious here that the influence of the culture of Sodom was stronger than the influence of their “righteous” father

·         Their desire for offspring was stronger than their desire to be holy

·         Now Lot had nothing to do with this but it does show that he was a failure as a father

·         Basically Lot reaped what he sowed

·         When you look at the fruit of his life, you see NOTHING worth mentioning

·         Lot had a virtually no positive influence on those around him (his wife, his children, the Sodomites)

·         Lot’s life produced little to no fruit, He produced nothing for God’s kingdom

·         He was considered by Peter to be a righteous man (2 Peter 2:7-8) but we really don’t see that he had all that significant an influence on anybody

·         At the end of your life, will you have fruit?  Or will you be fruitless like Lot?

·         We can do better than Lot! 

·         Let’s summarize what went wrong with him

·         KEY PRINCIPLE:  A little bit of sin can grab hold and more sin then creeps in little by little

·         With lot, it started with a little materialistic act and choosing the fertility of the Jordan valley instead of considering the character of his new neighbours, who were wicked (a little bit of sin)

·         He invited future temptations by dwelling near Sodom (a little bit of compromise)

·         It was only a short while later when we find that Lot was now living within the city  (a bit more compromise)

·         Finally, we find him sitting at the city gate which was reserved for the elders or judges of the city (even more compromise)

·         We see numerous compromises in Lot’s life

·         What danger was he ignoring in the process?

·         And it all started with a little bit of sin and a little bit of compromise

·         A little bit of sin and an little bit of compromise can have serious consequences

·         True freedom comes when we choose God’s path

·         Life comes when we turn from our sin and areas of compromise and follow Him wholeheartedly

·         The nature of sin is that it sucks us in, it often starts with just a little area of compromise and then grows to more and more and before we know it we have done something that we never thought we would have done

·         EXAMPLE: of teenage girls and sexual impurity

·         They start out with a firm desire to save sex until marriage

·         But one little compromise after, giving in just a little bit here and there, and wham, they go all the way

·         Many of these teens know that what they are doing is wrong but they rationalize and eventually, in order to alleviate the guilt, they harden their hearts towards God

·         Can you see how sin creeps in little by little?

·         We must get rid of sin while it is in infancy, before it gains control of our lives

·         This is why it is so important to confess sin regularly

·         There is no sin that is too little to confess

·         Confession frees us from the bondage of sin, from compromise and future temptation

·         If we truly repent and turn from our sin then we find freedom and true life in Christ

·         Confession is not a bad thing, it is lovely

·         David though so

·         Psalm 32:1-5  ¹ Blessed is the one whose transgressions are forgiven, whose sins are covered. ² Blessed is the one whose sin the Lord does not count against them and in whose spirit is no deceit. ³ When I kept silent, my bones wasted away through my groaning all day long. ⁴ For day and night your hand was heavy on me; my strength was sapped as in the heat of summer. ⁵ Then I acknowledged my sin to you and did not cover up my iniquity. said, “I will confess  my transgressions to the Lord.” And you forgave the guilt of my sin.

·         Lot started out with a little bit of sin, a little bit of selfishness, a little bit of greed and in the end he hesitated to flee from Sodom even though he knew God was going to destroy the city

·         We must get rid of sin and compromise NOW, while we can, before it’s too late

·         We must RUN, FLEE, get rid of sin! 

·         We can’t play with fire, we can’t dance with the devil

·         YOU CAN LEAD YOUR FAMILY BY WALKING IN HOLINESS AND TURNING FROM SIN AND COMPROMISE! 

·         You don’t need to preach it (although He may ask you to), YOU MODEL OBEDIENCE, you LIVE it

·         Holiness matters to God, we must obey and live according to His Word and according to His laws

·         Fence sitting is not an option, FLEE sin, don’t be indifferent towards it