Good morning!
Greetings in the name of Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
Praying for you, your family, your community, and the rest of the world. Right now, the whole world is suffering because of the Coronavirus (COVID-19). Let’s pray together to God, Our Ever-Loving Father, His mercy and protection on all, and God’s healing on those who are infected by the Coronavirus. We all believe God’s grace and love rest on all who look upon Him every moment with faith in Him.
God is light, and in him is no darkness at all. If we say we have fellowship with him while we walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth. (1 John 1:5b-6)
Abraham served angels without knowing who were strangers coming to his area. God richly blessed Abraham. However, the best gift of all was God’s promise to have a son, whom both Abraham and Sarah had waited for the entire period of their marriage. As Abraham received God’s promise to be the father of a great nation, Sarah felt more pressure. But she did not say anything but followed Abraham, who left his native countries per God’s promise. For 24 years, they had not had a son, who would be the seed for the great nation. As God promised, one year later, Abraham and Sarah received a son named Isaac, which means laughter. Isaac was so much joy to Abraham and Sarah. It was the visibly tangible proof of God’s promise and His faithfulness.
Lot, Abraham’s nephew, the only relative who followed Abraham, lived in Sodom at that time. Lot was separated from Abraham and went to the place that looked like God’s garden or Egypt’s beautiful land. Lot loved what he saw and hurriedly left to Sodom to settle without knowing what he and his family would become. The people of this area were extremely wicked and constantly sinned against God.
Did Lot know about this when he moved out to Sodom? Sure, he should have had known it, but Lot followed what looked good to his eyes. However, Abraham faithfully followed God. His place was not so attractive as Sodom, but Abraham was contented with what God provided.
We see two different lives. Lot’s life was attractive and looked good, while Abraham’s life was not so good as that of Lot, which was not so attractive and ordinary. However, it made a profound change on both of them. Abraham was getting closer and closer to God, but Lot was moving away from God while gradually and steadily getting closer to the world. Initially, both did not notice, but they soon lived two vastly different lives.
You adulterous people, don’t you know that friendship with the world means enmity against God? Therefore, anyone who chooses to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God. (James 4:4)
Then God revealed to Abraham about the impending God’s judgment. Abraham was greatly concerned because Abraham dearly loved Lot, although Lot abandoned and departed from Abraham. Abraham made the famous plea to God not to destroy Sodom together with the righteous people, that is, his nephew and his nephew’s family. Abraham started from 50, but he kept negotiating down to 10. Abraham boldly interceded with God on behalf of Lot and Lot’s family, and God was pleased with Abraham, who pleaded for Lot with such a loving heart. God left Abraham, and Abraham returned home after making the enormous bargain with God.
God loves our interceding prayer to others, whoever the person is, or the persons are. This act is the fulfillment of God’s second greatest commandment — “Love your neighbor as yourself.” Who is the closest neighbor? Our family members — wife, sons, daughters, nephews, and nieces. We think it is easy to love our family members as ourselves. Please examine carefully whether we truly love them as ourselves or not. Jesus Christ gave us the best example of how to love our neighbors.
People wrongly accused Jesus Christ and crucified Him on the cross. Then the people hurled insults at Him. Some of them enticed Him to come down from the cross so that they could believe Jesus. Some whipped and spit at Him. Devastatingly, His beloved disciples also abandoned Him. They ran away for their own lives. Peter, the best disciple, denied Him three times before a servant girl. Jesus saw one by one what was happening around Him, but He did not open His mouth. He was silent to those who did such terrible things to Him. He kept interceding with God on behalf of them for God’s forgiveness. This is the perfect example of how to love neighbors, including even enemies.
for they don’t know what they are doing.” And the soldiers gambled for his clothes by throwing dice. (Luke 23:34)
While living in Sodom, Lot was changed a lot, but he did not know because he thought that he was still a Godly man. Whatever he had a chance, he tried to do good, and he did. Thus, he thought that he was on God’s side. However, he was living in the wicked city of Sodom. Living in Sodom was so attractive because everything was so convenient, and there were plenty of goods. Whatever he wanted was readily available, not like where he used to live with Abraham in the wilderness. Sodom truly pleased Lot and his family. It was the reason why he lived in Sodom. Once he tasted the worldly sweetness, he could not leave. He became the slave of the worldly sweetness. Sadly, he did not know what was happening inside of him. He thought that he was still who he was when he lived with Abraham.
Lot, as soon as he saw God’s angels who just came into Sodom, invited them to his house. The angels were reluctant, but Lot insisted. So, at last, the angels went home with him. Yes, we can see the same pattern of what Abraham did. Abraham’s good deeds greatly influenced Lot.
Thus, we should not forget the eyes of our children, who watch all things that we do. Then they will imitate us whether we do good or bad. If we do good to strangers, then our children will do good to strangers. If we are generous, then they will be generous. If we badly behave before God and people, they will also badly behave to God and people.
However, that night, all the men of Sodom, young and old, came from all over the city and surrounded the house. They demanded the angels, whom Lot and the Sodom people did not know while shouting to Lot, “Where are the men who came to spend the night with you? Bring them out to us so we can have sex with them!”
So Lot stepped outside to talk to them, shutting the door behind him. “Please, my brothers,” he begged, “don’t do such a wicked thing. Look, I have two virgin daughters. Let me bring them out to you, and you can do with them as you wish. But please, leave these men alone, for they are my guests and are under my protection.”
Lot, out of his good heart, offered his two virgin daughters instead. His daughters had fiancés and were waiting to get married. What an unthinkable wicked suggestion! But Lot did without knowing it. He did not realize how much he was changed. It is the power of the world. When we become friends of this world, without knowing it, we are of the world. We talk and act like the people of the world, although we still think we are doing good before God.
Satan’s most subtle and powerful attack is the sweetness of the world — so convincing, readily available, and pleasing to our eyes. Then who will refuse? However, slowly and steadily, we are getting deeper into the world without knowing. Many of us know the story about a frog. If we drop a frog into hot water, it immediately jumps out of the water because it immediately recognizes the danger of the hot water, which will kill the frog. However, if we put a frog into cool water first and then slowly raise the water temperature, the frog is happily swimming in the water till it dies. Satan knows this secret, and Satan uses the same tactic for us to get killed like the frog joyfully swimming till dying in the boiling water.
The people of Sodom did not back down. They lunged toward Lot to breakdown the door. But the two angels reached out, pulled Lot into the house, and bolted the door. Then they blinded all the men, young and old, who were at the door of the house, so they gave up trying to get inside. Yes, our God is faithful to all His children. Sodom severely spoiled Lot, but God rescued Lot. Why? Was Lot righteous without sin? No, God loved Lot regardless Lot’s sin. Instead, God saw through Lot’s heart trying to be good before God.
Meanwhile, the angels questioned Lot. “Do you have any other relatives here in the city?” they asked. “Get them out of this place—your sons-in-law, sons, daughters, or anyone else. For we are about to destroy this city completely. The outcry against this place is so great it has reached God, and he has sent us to destroy it.”
So Lot rushed out to tell his daughters’ fiancés,
“Quick, get out of the city! The LORD is about to destroy it.” But the young men thought he was only joking. (Genesis 19:14b)
This is the typical response of the people of this world. However, regardless of the responses of the people of this world, God does what God plans to do. God is absolutely sovereign over all of His creation. Nobody can stop or alter His plan whether the people of this world think it is a joke or not. However, God’s judgment will surely come. All except His children will face His judgment, which is beyond our imagination. Jesus told about the judgment:
For then there will be great distress, unequaled from the beginning of the world until now—and never to be equaled again. (Matthew 24:21)
At dawn the next morning, the angels became insistent. “Hurry,” they said to Lot. “Take your wife and your two daughters who are here. Get out right now, or you will be swept away in the destruction of the city!”
When Lot still hesitated, the angels seized his hand and the hands of his wife and two daughters and rushed them to safety outside the city, for the LORD was merciful. (Genesis 19:16)
Unfortunately, Lot could not make his decision yet. The power of the world was that much strong. He saw the power of the angels — making all who pushed him blind, and he heard the impending judgment of God. However, the life of Sodom was so delicious, and Lot could not let go.
God could have had judged Lot and the people of Sodom together because both Lot and the people of Sodom equally loved the world. However, God treated Lot differently, and God was merciful to Lot. Again, Lot was His beloved child, not like the wicked people in Sodom.
What can we learn from God who separated Lot from the rest? God is always faithful to His children no matter what happens. Let’s think about this. Are there any parents who forget their children because they acted badly, not following what their parents ask them to do? Absolutely not! We parents love our children unconditionally.
Never! Can a mother forget her nursing child? Can she feel no love for the child she has borne? But even if that were possible, I would not forget you! (Isaiah 49:15)
It is unthinkable that a mother forgets her nursing child. However, even if it might happen, God will not forget us. Only can God say this because He is omnipotent, not like us. How many times have we experienced our inability, which saddened our hearts? We wanted to do good for our children, but we couldn’t. Again, God does not have this limitation. That is why we trust in Him and have assurance in Him. Most of all, Our God will not change forever, and always faithful to us because we are His believed children.
When Lot, Lot’s wife, and two daughters were safely out of the city, one of the angels ordered,
“Run for your lives! And don’t look back or stop anywhere in the valley! Escape to the mountains, or you will be swept away!” (Genesis 19:17b)
The angel ordered them to go far away from the wicked city of Sodom to be safe by being truly separated from the wickedness. Why? It is the only way for us to become true to God.
You adulterous people, don’t you know that friendship with the world means enmity against God? Therefore, anyone who chooses to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God. (James 4:4)
“Oh no, my lord!” Lot begged. “You have been so gracious to me and saved my life, and you have shown such great kindness. But I cannot go to the mountains. Disaster would catch up to me there, and I would soon die. See, there is a small village nearby. Please let me go there instead; don’t you see how small it is? Then my life will be saved.”
Lot made lots of excuses to the angel. Lot really did not want to go far away from the wicked city of Sodom. He still wanted to be near to the wicked city. At least he wanted to feel the city so much enticing him, even though Lot might not be able to live in the city anymore. How many times have we had the same temptation of Lot?
God loved Lot so much that God let Lot do what he wanted. Like most of us, Lot could not learn until he got a hard lesson. How many times we, as parents, let our children do what they want although it is not so good for them?
We give them what they want to learn the hard way by making their own mistakes and learning from their own mistakes. Sometimes, we parents know this approach is the only way to make our children learn. God, who dearly loves, is not so different from us, earthly parents. God let Lot stay close with the wicked city of Sodom to see what God’s true judgment on the wickedness.
“All right,” the angel said, “I will grant your request. I will not destroy the little village. But hurry! Escape to it, for I can do nothing until you arrive there.” (This explains why that village was known as Zoar, which means “little place.”) (Genesis 19:21-22)
Lot reached the village just as the sun was rising over the horizon. Then God rained down fire and burning sulfur from the sky on Sodom and Gomorrah. God utterly destroyed them, along with the other cities and villages of the plain, wiping out all the people and every bit of vegetation.
But Lot’s wife could not help herself not look back to Sodom, where she had many things. She so much loved them, and she missed the stuff that she left in the wicked city. As soon as she heard lots of thundering noises as God was judging Sodom and Gomorrah, she looked back, and she turned into a pillar of salt.
As a result, out of the big cities, only three survived, not because they were righteous, but because God dearly loved them by being merciful. However, Lot’s wife refused to keep God’s command, and she looked back because she loved things more in the wicked city than God.
But Jesus told him, “Anyone who puts a hand to the plow and then looks back is not fit for the Kingdom of God.” (Luck 9:62)
Abraham got up early and hurried out to the place where he had stood in God’s presence. He looked out across the plain toward Sodom and Gomorrah and watched as columns of smoke rose from the cities like smoke from a furnace. Abraham witnessed God’s judgment, but Abraham was comforted by God because he believed God’s faithfulness. Although he saw the ashes of Sodom, he trusted God. Abraham believed that God heard his interceding prayer, and Lot and his family were safe from God’s judgment.
Yes, God had listened to Abraham’s request and kept Lot safe, removing him from the disastrous judgment that engulfed the cities on the plain.
The earnest prayer of a righteous person has great power and produces wonderful results. (James 5:16b)
God loves to hear our interceding prayer for others. This is how we love others, who are our own families, our neighbors, and those who don’t like us and even hate and harm us. Jesus Christ showed the perfect example on the cross by loving all — His own disciples who abandoned Him and those who insulted, tortured, and nailed Him on the cross. Then what should we do? It will be impossible to be like Jesus Christ in one day, but we can start doing this — looking out and searching for those who are suffering and give our interceding prayer to God with our loving hearts, which genuinely pleases our Father in Heaven.
I urge you, first of all, to pray for all people. Ask God to help them; intercede on their behalf, and give thanks for them. (1 Timothy 2:1)