Good
Morning Friends,
Abraham
interceded on behalf of Sodom and Gomorrah and God agreed to exercise mercy toward
those cities and not destroy them as had been His plan – if just ten righteous
people could be found in the cities. Unfortunately, Abraham’s prayers made no
difference in the final outcome for Sodom and Gomorrah – not even ten righteous
people could be found in the cities and God carried through with His plan to
destroy them.
The
wickedness of the city of Sodom was made clear in their response to the angelic
visitors as they arrived in the city. What followed was the dramatic and
complete destruction of both Sodom and Gomorrah.
“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.” (Genesis
19:24-25)
The
cities, their inhabitants, the area around the cities, and even the vegetation
were all destroyed. In fact, archeologists believe the cities of Sodom and
Gomorrah were located underneath what is now the Dead Sea. Those areas have
never been inhabited since God destroyed them thousands of years ago – that’s
how complete God’s punishment was.
It
was punishment that was deserved. God had already exercised patience with Sodom
and Gomorrah despite their wickedness and their unwillingness to listen to His
voice. God’s patience ran out and judgment came without warning and with great
force.
Jude
wrote in the New Testament, “Sodom and Gomorrah and the surrounding towns gave themselves
up to sexual immorality and perversion. They serve as an example of those who suffer
the punishment of eternal fire.” (Jude 1:7) The same kind of sudden, forceful
and complete judgment will come upon the world one day. It’s not that God
hasn’t been patient – His patience is measured in thousands of years. Rather,
it is that God’s patience has a limit and one day it will run out.
There
is another side to the story, however. Before judgment literally rained down on
Sodom and Gomorrah, God warned Abraham’s nephew, Lot, and his family. They were
given an opportunity to flee and were saved from the destruction.
Peter
reminded us, “God condemned the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah by burning them to
ashes, and made them an example of what is going to happen to the ungodly; and
if he rescued Lot, a righteous man, who was distressed by the filthy lives of
lawless men.” (2 Peter 2:6-7) And so the lesson is, “The Lord knows how to
rescue godly men from trials and to hold the unrighteous for the day of
judgment, while continuing their punishment.” (2 Peter 2:9)
Punishment
– sudden, severe and complete – will come upon those who continue in their unrighteousness.
Rescue from that punishment will come for God’s people. That is God’s warning
and God’s promise.
His,
by Grace,
Steve
No comments:
Post a Comment