Genesis 19:1, "And there came two angels to Sodom at even; and Lot sat in the gate of Sodom: and Lot seeing them rose up to meet them; and he bowed himself with his face toward the ground; 2 And he said, Behold now, my lords, turn in, I pray you, into your servant’s house, and tarry all night, and wash your feet, and ye shall rise up early, and go on your ways. And they said, Nay; but we will abide in the street all night. 3 And he pressed upon them greatly; and they turned in unto him, and entered into his house; and he made them a feast, and did bake unleavened bread, and they did eat."

A. Some people believe that the Scriptures indicate that Separation involves Fleeing From The City.

1. After he was told that he would be a Vagabond and Wanderer, Cain Built The First City, naming it after his first son, Enoch. --- (Gen. 4:12, 17)

2. In spite of the fact that man had been Commanded To Populate The Earth (9:7), fallen mankind Huddled Together and began to Build The City of Babel with its tower (11:4).

3. Abraham was call to Leave The Urban Life of the city and become a Sojourner (12:1-3).

4. Lot chooses to Live In The City of Sodom and is now about to Lose Everything.

a. However, Lot’s Downfall did Not Occur in the sick and secular society of Sodom --- but in a Secluded Cave.

b. The Problem Was Ultimately Not With The City --- But With His Heart.

5. In the church today, the "Lots" far outnumber the "Abrahams."

a. In Our Own Lives there is much more of "Lot" evident in us than there is of "Abraham", the friend of God.

b. This description of the destruction of Lot is a Warning For Every True Christian.

c. We need to Learn Lot’s Lesson from Literature rather than from Life.

B. The Elders of the city sat as Judges at the Gates of The City.

Job 29:7-12, "When I went out to the gate through the city, when I prepared my seat in the street! 8 The young men saw me, and hid themselves: and the aged arose, and stood up. 9 The princes refrained talking, and laid their hand on their mouth. 10 The nobles held their peace, and their tongue cleaved to the roof of their mouth. 11 When the ear heard me, then it blessed me; and when the eye saw me, it gave witness to me: 12 Because I delivered the poor that cried, and the fatherless, and him that had none to help him."

Psa. 69:12, "They that sit in the gate speak against me; and I was the song of the drunkards."

1. Lot had gained Prominence and Power in Sodom.

2. Lot was either the Mayor or a City Official responsible for city government and for settling disputes between citizens.

3. Lot had Compromised His Values and was now living with the worldly.

Psa. 1:1, "Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful."

4. Lot had made his Home With The Depraved and wicked of the earth, Becoming One With Them (called them Brothers, Friends) --- Lot's lifestyle shows us:

a. How utterly Depraved the human heart can become.

b. How far believers can Backslide.

c. How Carnal and Fleshly-Minded they can become.

C. Lot had Every Advantage Imaginable to live life to the fullest in the Knowledge of The Lord.

1. He was taken in and reared by Abraham.

2. He was given the first choice of land by Abraham.

3. He was rescued from enslavement when captured by the invading army.

4. However, Instead of Returning With Abraham, He Returned To Sodom.

a. Lot first lifted up his eyes and looked upon Sodom and the rich, fertile valley of the Jordan.

b. Lot then chose to move, pitching his tent toward Sodom.

c. Lot later moved into the city.

d. Lot finally is seen sitting at the gate of Sodom.

D. Lot Disregarded The Principle of:

Matt. 6:33, "But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you."

Matt. 16:25-26, "For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: and whosoever will lose his life for my sake shall find it. 26 For what is a man profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?"

1. Lot did exactly the Opposite --- placing Materialism First.

2. How has Your Choice of Life in this world affected Your Own Inner Life?

3. How much have You Influenced The City for good?

4. What Influence did the city’s life have On Your Own Family?

5. After all the foul orgy of drunkenness and incest is over --- Lot had Nothing But Heartbreak and Grief to show for all his years in Sodom.

E. Lot’s Soul was Continuously Vexed --- he was Discontent, Baffled and Frustrated.

2 Peter 2:7-8, "And delivered just Lot, vexed with the filthy conversation of the wicked: 8 (For that righteous man dwelling among them, in seeing and hearing, vexed his righteous soul from day to day with their unlawful deeds;)"

1. Lot had tasted enough of the Higher Things of Fellowship With God that he could never, Never Be Satisfied with these sordid, ugly obscene and lewd things of Sodom.

2. Even though Lot was Distressed by the filthy lives of the Sodomites --- he was Not Distressed Enough To Do Something About It.

3. What good is it to have Luxuries and Wealth and every material gain if the Heart Is Continually Filled With A Great Hunger That Cannot Be Fed or Satisfied?

4. Is You Life being Grievously Thwarted and Blighted by being part of this world.

F. The Hour of Danger is when you First Begin To Choose.

1. Young People, especially, often feel the Pull To Be Like The World:

a. Wanting to be Popular,

b. Wanting to Have what everyone else has,

c. Do what everyone else does,

d. Want to be Welcomed by their Peers and to be Christians as well.

2. They Desire Fellowship With Christ, and a Life of Joy And Power.

a. Many try to do exactly what Lot tried to do --- Compromise so as to Have Both.

b. The have chosen to put Popularity And Self First.

c. Some want to Drink, Gamble, Steal, Lie and play with Sex --- while at the same time they want to be in the church and have God’s Blessings And Fellowship.

d. You cannot do both --- No Man Can Serve Two Masters --- you will Lose It All, just as Lot did.

3. The hour of choosing is Now --- in Youth --- when you are young you are Setting The Direction of Your Life.

4. When you attempt to gain the Best of Both Worlds, you Destroy Others beside yourself.

a. What was the Greatest Pain In Lot’s Heart when he awoke there in the cave?

(1) Grief over the lost of his Wealth --- his vanished Honor --- his Troubled Mind?

(2) Recognition of what he had done to His Loved Ones --- his Wife --- his little Girls?

b. You, As Parents, Are Being Watched By Your Children --- they see:

(1) The deepest thing in your life is to get Gain or to enjoy Pleasure.

(2) You will quickly Sacrifice Worship Services for entertainment.

(3) They see what things you are Willing To Sacrifice For and Skimp and Save for.

c. Slowly, They Lose Interest in the Bible, Sunday School, and Church.

d. The Sorrow You Will Carry To Your Grave, the deepest sorrow of your heart is because of your compromise you have Lost Your Children.

5. Abraham’s whole life principle was to Let God Choose --- and then be Satisfied With That Choice.

a. I want Nothing To Do With anything that will Destroy My Fellowship With The Living God.

b. Abraham gained the Whole Land and all that Lot possessed.

Genesis 19:4, "But before they lay down, the men of the city, even the men of Sodom, compassed the house round, both old and young, all the people from every quarter: 5 And they called unto Lot, and said unto him, Where are the men which came in to thee this night? bring them out unto us, that we may know them."

A. The Motives of the men of the city were Corrupt and Unspeakablely Vile.

1. They were seeking Homosexual Sex Acts with these strangers.

2. V. 5, "Bring them out unto us, that we may know them"

B. Gen. 4:1, "And Adam knew Eve his wife; and she conceived, and bare Cain, and said, I have gotten a man from the LORD." --- V. 25, "And Adam knew his wife again; and she bare a son, and called his name Seth:"

Genesis 19:6, "And Lot went out at the door unto them, and shut the door after him, 7 And said, I pray you, brethren, do not so wickedly. 8 Behold now, I have two daughters which have not known man; let me, I pray you, bring them out unto you, and do ye to them as is good in your eyes: only unto these men do nothing; for therefore came they under the shadow of my roof."

Lot offers to Give His Two Daughters to the Appetites of these Depraved Degenerates.

Is there No Limit to which a backslidden Christian will go?

Genesis 19:9, "And they said, Stand back. And they said again, This one fellow came in to sojourn, and he will needs be a judge: now will we deal worse with thee, than with them. And they pressed sore upon the man, even Lot, and came near to break the door. 10 But the men put forth their hand, and pulled Lot into the house to them, and shut to the door. 11 And they smote the men that were at the door of the house with blindness, both small and great: so that they wearied themselves to find the door."

Psa. 91:11, "For he shall give his angels charge over thee, to keep thee in all thy ways."

Genesis 19:12, "And the men said unto Lot, Hast thou here any besides? son in law, and thy sons, and thy daughters, and whatsoever thou hast in the city, bring them out of this place: 13 For we will destroy this place, because the cry of them is waxen great before the face of the LORD; and the LORD hath sent us to destroy it."

Amos 3:7, "Surely the Lord GOD will do nothing, but he revealeth his secret unto his servants the prophets."

Genesis 19:14, "And Lot went out, and spake unto his sons in law, which married his daughters, and said, Up, get you out of this place; for the LORD will destroy this city. But he seemed as one that mocked unto his sons in law. 15 And when the morning arose, then the angels hastened Lot, saying, Arise, take thy wife, and thy two daughters, which are here; lest thou be consumed in the iniquity of the city. 16 And while he lingered, the men laid hold upon his hand, and upon the hand of his wife, and upon the hand of his two daughters; the LORD being merciful unto him: and they brought him forth, and set him without the city."

A. During the Rest of That Night, before sunrise, Sodom saw more Missionary Activity from Lot than in all the previous years combined.

1. Lot’s words were Not A Repetition of his life-long warning of sin and judgment --- they were Totally New and novel.

2. In Sodom there was No Prophet of God --- no place where God was worshipped.

3. Lot took great care to provide the best for his children in this world --- but he showed Little Concern For The Eternal Welfare of Their Souls.

B. Lot’s own family not only did Not Believe Him, they did Not Even Take Him Seriously.

1. It is one thing for people to Reject Our Message --- it is far worse for them to Not Even Consider Us Serious in our message.

2. Lot had Absolutely No Influence even with his own Sons-In-Law --- even his Daughters had to be Taken Out of Sodom By Force.

3. His own Example had Rendered His Words Powerless --- his own Personal Testimony was Meaningless --- he had live a Carnal, Worldly life too long before his family.

4. He had Not Followed the Commands of the Lord as had Abraham.

Deut. 6:7, "And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up."

Genesis 18:19, "For I know him, that he will command his children and his household after him, and they shall keep the way of the LORD, to do justice and judgment; that the LORD may bring upon Abraham that which he hath spoken of him."

C. The Reluctance of Lot Is Incredible --- never has anyone tried so hard to keep from being saved.

He hesitated --- the men seized His Hand --- the hand of His Wife --- the hands of His Daughters --- and Brought Them Out and Put Them Out of the city.

Genesis 19:17, "And it came to pass, when they had brought them forth abroad, that he said, Escape for thy life; look not behind thee, neither stay thou in all the plain; escape to the mountain, lest thou be consumed. 18 And Lot said unto them, Oh, not so, my Lord: 19 Behold now, thy servant hath found grace in thy sight, and thou hast magnified thy mercy, which thou hast shewed unto me in saving my life; and I cannot escape to the mountain, lest some evil take me, and I die: 20 Behold now, this city is near to flee unto, and it is a little one: Oh, let me escape thither, (is it not a little one?) and my soul shall live. 21 And he said unto him, See, I have accepted thee concerning this thing also, that I will not overthrow this city, for the which thou hast spoken. 22 Haste thee, escape thither; for I cannot do any thing till thou be come thither. Therefore the name of the city was called Zoar."

A. "Zoar" mean little --- it was a Small CanaaniteCity --- Zoar was:

1. One of the cities attacked and defeated by an invading army from the East, but it’s citizens were rescued by Abraham (14:2, 8)

2. One of the cities God had appointed to be destroyed along with Sodom and Gomorrah. However, it was saved in answer to Lot's prayer (V. 22).

3. A part of the promised land (Deut. 34:3).

4. Was one of the cities to which fugitives fled (Isa. 15:5).

5. Is to be judged and know the wrath of God (Jer. 48:34).

B. Lot Still Loved City Life.

1. Lot said, "Not So --- this city --- it is a little one --- is it not a little one"

2. Lot had Lost Everything, his peace, his influence, his wealth, his family --- Still He Longs For A City, even a little one.

3. The life of the city had so gripped hold of his own heart that He Had To Have A City.

C. While Lot was out of Sodom, Sodom Was Not Out of Lot.

1. Monasticism has never been the solution to Materialism,

2. Seclusion is no substitute for Sanctification.

a. We Cannot Save Our Children By Restricting Them To A Cave.

b. We shall see that many of the Sins of our children were Not Learned From The World but rather From The Father.

3. The World Without is not nearly so plaguing as the World Within.

Rom. 7:16-18, "If then I do that which I would not, I consent unto the law that it is good. 17 Now then it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me. 18 For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh,) dwelleth no good thing: for to will is present with me; but how to perform that which is good I find not."

D. The Sin of Lot was not being in Sodom --- but His Motivation for being there.

1. Living In The World is not wrong, but being Of The World is.

John 17:15-16, "I pray not that thou shouldest take them out of the world, but that thou shouldest keep them from the evil. 16 They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world."

1 Cor. 5:9-11, "I wrote unto you in an epistle not to company with fornicators: 10 Yet not altogether with the fornicators of this world, or with the covetous, or extortioners, or with idolaters; for then must ye needs go out of the world. 11 But now I have written unto you not to keep company, if any man that is called a brother be a fornicator, or covetous, or an idolater, or a railer, or a drunkard, or an extortioner; with such an one no not to eat."

2. May God Help Us To Live In The World Without Become A Part Of The World.

Genesis 19:23, "The sun was risen upon the earth when Lot entered into Zoar. 24 Then the LORD rained upon Sodom and upon Gomorrah brimstone and fire from the LORD out of heaven; 25 And he overthrew those cities, and all the plain, and all the inhabitants of the cities, and that which grew upon the ground."

A. The ruins of Sodom and Gomorrah have been discovered Southeast of The Dead Sea.

1. The Modern Names are:

a. Bab edh-Dhra, thought to be Sodom,

b. Numeira, thought to be Gomorrah.

2. Both places were destroyed at the same time by an Enormous Inferno --- The destruction debris was about three feet thick.

3. What Brought About This Awful Calamity?

a. Startling discoveries in the Cemetery at Bab edh-Dhra revealed the cause.

b. Archaeologists found that buildings used to bury the dead were burned by a Fire That Started On The Roof.

c. The Only Conceivable Explanation for this unique discovery in the annals of archaeology is that burning debris fell on the buildings From The Air.

B. The Devastation included the Four Towns and even the Soil on which they were built.

Deut. 29:23, "And that the whole land thereof is brimstone, and salt, and burning, that it is not sown, nor beareth, nor any grass groweth therein, like the overthrow of Sodom, and Gomorrah, Admah, and Zeboim, which the LORD overthrew in his anger, and in his wrath:"

The city of Zoar was also originally included for destruction but it was spared for Lot’s sake.

C. Go and stand on the shore of the Dead Sea and look over that Lifeless, Brackish, Waste, the Lowest and most Desolate spot on the face of the earth --- 1,300 feet below sea level.

1. Listen to the Lifeless Waves lap the beach in an unending monotone of death.

2. Nothing Grows there, nothing Lives, nothing Moves in all that forsaken valley.

Genesis 19:26, "But his wife looked back from behind him, and she became a pillar of salt."

A. Lot’s wife had Almost Reached The City of Zoar, the place of Safety, when she Looked Back.

1. The Israelites couldn’t enjoy their deliverance because their Hearts Were In Egypt --- they were Double-Minded.

a. Israel’s Difficulties led them to Glamorize The Past and thereby Turned Their Hearts Back to Egypt.

b. When We Glamorize The Past It Makes It Difficult To Move Forward.

2. Demas, a fellow-worker with the apostle Paul, Looked Back and Deserted Paul. (2 Tim. 4:9-10)

3. Luke 9:62, "And Jesus said unto him, No man, having put his hand to the plough, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God."

4. Heb. 10:38-39, "Now the just shall live by faith: but if any man draw back, my soul shall have no pleasure in him. 39 But we are not of them who draw back unto perdition; but of them that believe to the saving of the soul."

5. 2 Peter 2:20, "For if after they have escaped the pollutions of the world through the knowledge of the Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, they are again entangled therein, and overcome, the latter end is worse with them than the beginning."

6. Phil. 3:17-19, "Brethren, be followers together of me, and mark them which walk so as ye have us for an ensample. 18 (For many walk, of whom I have told you often, and now tell you even weeping, that they are the enemies of the cross of Christ: 19 Whose end is destruction, whose God is their belly, and whose glory is in their shame, who mind earthly things.)"

B. Regardless of her motive --- she Directly Disobeyed A Clear Command of God.

By living in Sodom Without Being Salty --- Lot not only failed to save others, he lost his own family.

C. Christians are to be Salt in the wicked society of which we live.

Matt. 5:13-16, "Ye are the salt of the earth: but if the salt have lost his savour, wherewith shall it be salted? it is thenceforth good for nothing, but to be cast out, and to be trodden under foot of men. 14 Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid. 15 Neither do men light a candle, and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are in the house. 16 Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven."

D. We are very Foolish if we live our lives as though there Will Always Be Enough Time to get right with God.

1. It is easy for us to feel Secure and Invincible.

2. However, We Do Not Know When God Will Say "Enough".

Genesis 19: 27, "And Abraham gat up early in the morning to the place where he stood before the LORD: 28 And he looked toward Sodom and Gomorrah, and toward all the land of the plain, and beheld, and, lo, the smoke of the country went up as the smoke of a furnace. 29 And it came to pass, when God destroyed the cities of the plain, that God remembered Abraham, and sent Lot out of the midst of the overthrow, when he overthrew the cities in the which Lot dwelt."

A. This reveals The Heart of Abraham in contrast to the Self-Interest of Lot.

B. Abraham went to the Same Spot as the day before in order to Watch God Answer His Prayer.

1. Lot was not saved for his own sake, he had not followed God nor been a witness for God.

2. Lot was saved for one reason and one reason only --- Abraham had prayed for him.

C. James 5:16, "Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much."

Genesis 19:30, "And Lot went up out of Zoar, and dwelt in the mountain, and his two daughters with him; for he feared to dwell in Zoar: and he dwelt in a cave, he and his two daughters. 31 And the firstborn said unto the younger, Our father is old, and there is not a man in the earth to come in unto us after the manner of all the earth: 32 Come, let us make our father drink wine, and we will lie with him, that we may preserve seed of our father. 33 And they made their father drink wine that night: and the firstborn went in, and lay with her father; and he perceived not when she lay down, nor when she arose. 34 And it came to pass on the morrow, that the firstborn said unto the younger, Behold, I lay yesternight with my father: let us make him drink wine this night also; and go thou in, and lie with him, that we may preserve seed of our father. 35 And they made their father drink wine that night also: and the younger arose, and lay with him; and he perceived not when she lay down, nor when she arose. 36 Thus were both the daughters of Lot with child by their father. 37 And the firstborn bare a son, and called his name Moab: the same is the father of the Moabites unto this day. 38 And the younger, she also bare a son, and called his name Benammi: the same is the father of the children of Ammon unto this day."

A. Why Did Lot Not Go To Be With Abraham?

1. Lot was Free To Choose where he settled, provided he did not stay in one of the condemned cities.

2. With Abraham there would be:

a. Fellowship and Encouragement,

b. The possibility of a New Wife for Lot,

c. Some God-fearing Husbands for his daughters.

d. He would be living under God’s Covenant Promise with Abraham.

3. Do you suppose Lot was not up to facing his uncle after all his folly.

B. Lot would Not Leave Sodom and go live with Abraham Because:

1. He had Too Much Invested in Sodom --- to leave would be too costly.

2. His Daughters had Married Into That Society.

C. Lot Is The Father of All Those Men Whose Righteous Souls Are Vexed With The Life They Are Leading But Who Keep On Enduring The Vexation.

1. Imagine Lot sitting in the entrance of his cave, of a warm evening, looking down over the desolation below him and thinking:

"The Saddest Things of Tongue or Pen, To Tell The Things That Might Have Been."

2. It has been said:

"Sin is a poison, but a Sweet-Tasting and Slow-Acting poison. One drinks with pleasure and only discovers that he has killed himself when it is too late."

"First he Sowed A Thought and then he Reaped A Deed; then he Sowed Some Further Deeds and Reaped A Habit; then he Sowed Some Habits and Reaped A Character and out of that character came Other Thoughts --- worse still --- and the Process Began Again taking you deeper and deeper into sin."

Woody Allen, trying to explain his affair with the young daughter of Mia Farrow, said:

"The Heart Wants What It Wants." If I want it, in other words, it must be good! And, if you don’t like what I’m doing, you must be evil.

3. One preacher put it this way:

"The greatest thing to fear in sinning against God is not what may come immediately from that sin --- bad as that may be. The greatest thing to fear by far is that by choosing to let that sin into your life you have let into your heart and your mind and your conscience a seed of corruption, a drop of poison that may, in time, carry you far from God and from righteousness, so far that you won’t even be able any longer to tell the difference between good and evil. You will be like the carnal Christian and be offended that Christian people condemn you for what you have done. Who are they to judge me, you will say, in that high tone of moral outrage."

4. God, many times, Visits Sin With Sin --- His punishment of those who rebel against him is to give them over to their rebellion and to Let Sin Run Its Course.

Rom. 1:24, "Wherefore God also gave them up to uncleanness through the lusts of their own hearts, to dishonour their own bodies between themselves:" --- V. 26, "For this cause God gave them up unto vile affections: for even their women did change the natural use into that which is against nature:"

"At first, Sin is like an occasional Visitor, then like a Guest who stays for awhile, and finally like the Master of the house."

D. There is a Great Difference between the Sincere Christian and the Religious Church Member:

1. He is more Serious about his Faith,

2. He is more Determined to live a Distinctly Christian Life,

3. He is more Interested in the Bible and a life of Prayer,

4. He is more Attracted to God’s House, Worship, and Fellowship with other Christians.

5. He Speaks more of God and His love for mankind.

6. Walking with God is the Highest and Happiest business of life.

E. In Contrast, the Religious Church Member:

1. Prefers to live in the valley of Sodom than in the hill country where the Godly live.

2. Content to be among those who are barely saved --- so as by fire,

3. Content with not calling on the Lord while He may be found,

4. Not Striving to make their calling and election sure,

5. Not Working out their own salvation with fear and trembling,

6. Not Forgetting what is behind and pressing on for the cause of Christ.

7 Prefers worldly prosperity and pleasure to the will of God and the Kingdom of God.

F. Lot’s failure in that cave was far More of His Own Making than most of us would like to admit.

1. There is Only One Place The Daughters Could Have Gotten The Wine to make their father drunk --- From Lot.

a. He must have Brought The Wine Out of Sodom when he fled the city.

b. Imagine! Fleeing For Your Life and being able to Save Only What You Can Carry And Choosing Wine.

2. It was Not that his daughters had Learned So Much Sin In Sodom --- they were Still Virgins.

3. The Real Problem was not with Sodom, but With Lot.

4. These same two girls had stood inside the door as they Overheard The Words of Their Father.

Gen. 19:8, "Behold now, I have two daughters which have not known man; let me, I pray you, bring them out unto you, and do ye to them as is good in your eyes: only unto these men do nothing; for therefore came they under the shadow of my roof."

5. From their father, his two daughters learned "Situation Ethics." --- Morality must sometimes be Sacrificed because of the situation.

G. Lot, the Carnal Christian, becomes the incestuous father of Two Nations (Moabites --- Ammonites) --- both of which Turned From God and was a Plague To Israel.

1. God, at first, Dealt Kindly with these nations because of their relationship to Abraham.

Deut. 2:19, "And when thou comest nigh over against the children of Ammon, distress them not, nor meddle with them: for I will not give thee of the land of the children of Ammon any possession; because I have given it unto the children of Lot for a possession."

2. Moab and Ammon provided the Worst Carnal Seduction in the history of Israel.

a. Baal-Peor --- Num. 25:1-9, And Israel abode in Shittim, and the people began to commit whoredom with the daughters of Moab. 2 And they called the people unto the sacrifices of their gods: and the people did eat, and bowed down to their gods. 3 And Israel joined himself unto Baalpeor: and the anger of the LORD was kindled against Israel. 4 And the LORD said unto Moses, Take all the heads of the people, and hang them up before the LORD against the sun, that the fierce anger of the LORD may be turned away from Israel. 5 And Moses said unto the judges of Israel, Slay ye every one his men that were joined unto Baalpeor. 6 And, behold, one of the children of Israel came and brought unto his brethren a Midianitish woman in the sight of Moses, and in the sight of all the congregation of the children of Israel, who were weeping before the door of the tabernacle of the congregation. 7 And when Phinehas, the son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron the priest, saw it, he rose up from among the congregation, and took a javelin in his hand; 8 And he went after the man of Israel into the tent, and thrust both of them through, the man of Israel, and the woman through her belly. So the plague was stayed from the children of Israel. 9 And those that died in the plague were twenty and four thousand."

b. Molech ---

1 Kings 11:7, "Then did Solomon build an high place for Chemosh, the abomination of Moab, in the hill that is before Jerusalem, and for Molech, the abomination of the children of Ammon."

Jer. 32:35, "And they built the high places of Baal, which are in the valley of the son of Hinnom, to cause their sons and their daughters to pass through the fire unto Molech; which I commanded them not, neither came it into my mind, that they should do this abomination, to cause Judah to sin."

Lev. 20:1-5, "And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, 2 Again, thou shalt say to the children of Israel, Whosoever he be of the children of Israel, or of the strangers that sojourn in Israel, that giveth any of his seed unto Molech; he shall surely be put to death: the people of the land shall stone him with stones. 3 And I will set my face against that man, and will cut him off from among his people; because he hath given of his seed unto Molech, to defile my sanctuary, and to profane my holy name. 4 And if the people of the land do any ways hide their eyes from the man, when he giveth of his seed unto Molech, and kill him not: 5 Then I will set my face against that man, and against his family, and will cut him off, and all that go a whoring after him, to commit whoredom with Molech, from among their people."

H. Eventually they would Suffer The Judgment of God as did Sodom and Gomorrah.

Zeph. 2:9, "Therefore as I live, saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, Surely Moab shall be as Sodom, and the children of Ammon as Gomorrah, even the breeding of nettles, and saltpits, and a perpetual desolation: the residue of my people shall spoil them, and the remnant of my people shall possess them."

I. Some of the Wives that led Solomon astray were Ammonite women.

Their religion was so Wicked and Depraved that in Deut. 23:3 we read in the law that no Ammonite or Moabite may enter the assembly of the Lord down to the 10th generation.

J. Is there really any Difference between Lot and most of Us?

1. Lot was, at best, a Half-Hearted Christian --- he was a man who was Worldly, Lukewarm and Weak in his Convictions.

Abraham had a Growing Intimacy With God.

2. Lot cared mostly for Himself --- even to the point of sacrificing his own daughters.

Abraham cared more for Others --- Giving Lot his choice --- Rescuing Lot --- Interceding for Lot --- etc.

3. Lot was a man who Failed To Learn From Divine Discipline.

Abraham made many mistakes (sins) but he Learned from them.

4. Lot was a man who Lived Only For The Present.

Abraham was a Stranger and a Pilgrim on the earth --- Looking For A City .....

K. There Seems To Be More of Lot In My Life Than of Abraham.

1. It was Not Lot’s Faithfulness, But Abraham’s which delivered him from destruction.

2. We are not saved on account of our faithfulness, but because of Him Who Intercedes For Us. --- Jesus Christ our Great High Priest.

L. The Similarities between Sodom and Gomorrah and Our Society Today are Distressing.

1. Colleges all across this nation are starting courses on so-called "Porn-Studies". They watch pornography day after day. Porn stars are popular lecturers on college campuses.

2. Extra Marital and Premarital Sex is Glorified on afternoon soap operas and prime time television.

3. Shows like Jerry Springer and others glorify Sickness and Depravity.

4. Lobbyists work to get Special Protection for those who engage in Perversion while Punishing those who have a Bible In School.

5. They have no idea how Offensive their Sin is in the sight of the Thrice Holy God.

6. We Laugh at things that use to make us Blush.

a. We treat Religion and the Truth of the Bible Lightly.

b. We Fail to take Sin and its Consequences Seriously.

c. We need to recover the Fear of God which is the Beginning of Wisdom.

M. Sodom & Gomorrah stands in Scripture as a symbol of Evil and Depravity --- they also stand as a Warning of God’s Judgment.

Ezek. 16:49-50, "Behold, this was the iniquity of thy sister Sodom, pride, fulness of bread, and abundance of idleness was in her and in her daughters, neither did she strengthen the hand of the poor and needy. 50 And they were haughty, and committed abomination before me: therefore I took them away as I saw good."

1. Pride – Arrogance --- They felt they knew better than God.

2. Abundance of Idleness --- They lived their lives on the basis of their Impulses.

3. Indifferent --- They were Unconcerned about each other, God, decency.

4. The did Detestable Things.

Deut. 29:23, "And that the whole land thereof is brimstone, and salt, and burning, that it is not sown, nor beareth, nor any grass groweth therein, like the overthrow of Sodom, and Gomorrah, Admah, and Zeboim, which the LORD overthrew in his anger, and in his wrath:"

Deut. 32:32, "For their vine is of the vine of Sodom, and of the fields of Gomorrah: their grapes are grapes of gall, their clusters are bitter:"

Isa. 1:9-10, "Except the LORD of hosts had left unto us a very small remnant, we should have been as Sodom, and we should have been like unto Gomorrah. 10 Hear the word of the LORD, ye rulers of Sodom; give ear unto the law of our God, ye people of Gomorrah."

Isa. 3:9, "The shew of their countenance doth witness against them; and they declare their sin as Sodom, they hide it not. Woe unto their soul! for they have rewarded evil unto themselves."

1. They Sinned Willfully, Joyfully, and with No Sense of Remorse at all.

2. They became Hard and Calloused.

3. They were Not Ashamed --- they took Pride in their Open-Mindedness!

4. What we call "Freedom of Expression" and "Freedom of Choice" is often an Abomination To The Lord.

5. Even though "Everyone Is Doing It" --- they are doing so to their Everlasting Destruction.

Jer. 49:18, "As in the overthrow of Sodom and Gomorrah and the neighbour cities thereof, saith the LORD, no man shall abide there, neither shall a son of man dwell in it."

N. We, who have More Spiritual Light than did Sodom and Gomorrah, will receive even Greater Judgment from God.

Matt. 10:15, "Verily I say unto you, It shall be more tolerable for the land of Sodom and Gomorrha in the day of judgment, than for that city."

O. However, "Where Sin Did Abound, Grace Did Much More Abound!"

1. The history of Moab is a Dismal History in deed --- However, there is a Bright Spot:

2. Centuries later there would be a Moabitess named Ruth who came to live in Israel.

a. She was a Woman of True Faith in God and of a Pure Conscience.

b. She married an Israelite man of good conscience himself and they had children.

c. From their Descendants would finally come Jesus of Nazareth, the Savior of The World!

P. Do Not Delay in trusting Christ --- Do Not continue to Assume That There Will Always Be Time.

1. It Doesn’t Matter What Your Sin --- you can find Cleansing and Forgiveness in Christ Jesus.

2. Christ Died In Your Place --- He Bore The Judgment That You Deserve.

3. He offers you a New Beginning --- He offers to Cleanse you and to Lead you.

Q. However, You Must Respond.

1. There is No Greater Sin than to Refuse the Gift that God Offers In Christ.

2. There is No Higher Act of Defiance than to Spurn The Offer of Salvation --- Purchased By His Son.

If You Are Not Saved, Nothing Else Matters