Lesson 8: Consequences In Rejecting Faith

A. SETTING - GENESIS 19:1-38

1. A Compromiser. How can we but describe Lot? First, Lot compromised with sin. Second, Lot compromised with God, even though he was saved. "God rescued Lot out of Sodom because he was a good man who was sick of all the immorality and wickedness around him. Yes, he was a righteous man who was distressed by the wickedness which he saw and heard day after day (II Peter 2: 7,8 LB).

2. Filthy. What was God’s description of Sodom? "The men of Sodom were wicked and sinners before the Lord exceedingly" (13:13). Hebrew "Very nasty sinners."

3. He followed money. What was Lot’s sin?

THE DOWNWARD SLIDE

a. Got rich off Abraham’s compromise. Poor example.

b. Chose well-watered plains (13:11). Disrespect for God’s man.

c. Decided to live near Sodom (13:12). Identification with evil.

d. Moved into Sodom (13:12). Compromised.

e. Leader in Sodom (19:1). Participated.

f. Couldn’t leave. (19:16). Addicted.

g. Incest with daughters. Destroyed.

B. PRACTICAL LESSONS TO TAKE AWAY

1. Lot lost everything. How far can a Christian backslide and still be called righteous by God?

a. He lost his money.

b. He lost his home.

c. He lost his position on the city counsel.

d. He lost his wife to addiction and death.

e. He lost his daughters.

2. Lot didn’t help Sodom. Can believers help the unsaved by living in their sin? Abraham did more for Sodom by being separated from Sodom, than Lot did by entering Sodom.

3. God took the initiative. Can you compromise with the world, then plan to return to God? No, Lot had to be dragged from the city. Backsliders never take the initiative to redeem themselves.

4. The evil influence on the family. What are the worst consequences to a backsliding believer?

a. Lot’s wife rebelled when made to leave. "Get out of here, run for your lives, you will be caught in the destruction of the city" (19:15 ELT). "Lot’s wife looked back with desire as she was following along behind Lot, and she became a pillar of salt" (18:26 ELT).

b. Lot’s daughters got him drunk and were guilty of incest.

5. They begged for more. What happens when sin is taken from a non-repentant backslider? "See here is a small village, please let me go there" (19:20 LB).

6. Prayer and amazement. What is the intercessor’s response when God punishes a backslider? "And Abraham got up early in the morning to the place where he stood before the Lord: and he looked toward Sodom and Gomorrah . . . and behold (with amazement), the smoke of the country went up as the smoke of a furnace" (19:27,28).

7. Look carefully. What should be our attitude when it seems God hasn’t answered our intercession for others. "God remembered Abraham (intercession) and sent Lot out of the midst of the overthrow" (19:29).

8. Is there any physical evidence that God destroyed these cities?

a. They existed. The names Sodom and Gomorrah were found written on clay tablets in Mesopotamia.

b. Deepest hole. With the exception of a couple of oceanic valleys, the Dead Sea has the deepest hole in the earth; suggests God could have rained fire out of heaven to destroy this area, previously called the Valley of Siddim, i.e., a green pasture valley.

c. Minerals. The high mineral concentration in the area could be the result of intense heat from a heavenly fire.

9. Negative example. What can be learned from Lot’s wife? "Remember Lot’s wife . . . whosoever shall seek to save his life shall lose it . . ." (Luke 17:32).

10. How can you protect yourself from the temptations that destroyed Lot?

a. Know you have two natures. "The good that I would, I do not; but the evil which I would not do, that I do" (Rom. 7:14).

b. Know your weakness. "Let him that thinketh he standeth, take heed lest he fall" (I Cor. 10:12).

c. Know victory is in God. "There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will . . . make a way of escape" (I Cor. 10:13).

d. Yield and do God’s will. "Neither yield your members as instruments . . . unto sin, but yield yourselves unto God" (Rom. 6:13).

*****

If you have never really accepted Jesus as your personal Savior, would you do it right now? Do not delay or put it off. If you would like to receive Christ by faith, pray this simple prayer in your heart:

Dear Lord, I acknowledge that I am a sinner. I believe Jesus died for my sins on the cross, and rose again the third day. I repent of my sins. By faith I receive the Lord Jesus as my Savior. You promised to save me, and I believe You, because You are God and cannot lie. I believe right now that the Lord Jesus is my personal Savior, and that all my sins are forgiven through His precious blood. I thank You, dear Lord, for saving me. In Jesus’ name, Amen.