July 15, 2001 Genesis 14
“Captive to sin”
INTRODUCTION
I need a volunteer. [have a volunteer come up, preferably a woman] I’m going to hand you an object, and I want you to describe it to everyone that is present here. [hand her a rock, and have her describe it, starting with what you call it] I need another volunteer. [preferably a child] I’m going to hand you something, and I want you to describe it. [hand him a peach, and have him describe it, starting with what we call it; have him bite into it to describe it further; make sure you have paper towel handy] I need one more volunteer. [get person out of the congregation, and have the people describe him] Now, I need you to describe one more thing for me. I need another volunteer. [have this final volunteer help you unroll and tape on the wall a banner on which you have printed the word “Christian”] In your head, describe what you think of as a Christian. Not necessarily Christians that you have known, but what would be true of a person who had Christ in their heart, and who was living in obedience to God. Take a minute to write at least 5 words for how you would describe a Christian. Write it down somewhere – on the back of a bulletin, a scrap of paper, your neighbor’s palm – somewhere. While you’re doing that, I want to tell you a story.
A lady came to a pastor’s office one day and said these words: “You have to help me!” She had called the pastor 20 minutes earlier on a friend’s recommendation, needing to see him. She was barely 20 years old. She started right into her story. “The man I’ve been living with moved out on me a month ago. To get back at him I’m having an affair with his best friend.” Tears began to flow down the girl’s face. She said, “I’m so torn up inside. I can’t sleep at night. I’ve got to find some peace.” The pastor asked why she had come to see him about her problems. Her reply shocked him. She said, “I’m a Christian.” When he asked what she meant by that, she said, “I love God, you know. Even went forward a couple of years ago to be born again. I believe he died on the cross and all that.” The pastor couldn’t believe his ears, especially since there seemed to be no repentance in the girl’s story and no shame about what she had been doing. He asked her if she saw any conflict between her confession of Christianity and the lifestyle she had been living. “Should I?” was her shocked response. She began to spout off excuses of why her life was the way that it was. The pastor tried to get her to see the disparity between the Christianity she professed and the life she was living. He offered her healing in Jesus from her hurts, but she didn’t want to give up her way of life. In the end, she decided she would find her peace another way. Does this woman’s life fit with your description of what a Christian is?
Every day there seems to be a new piece of information that comes out in the disappearance of Shandra Levy and her boss Rep. Gary Condit. I learned the other day that Condit was a member of one of the many Bible studies that was held there on Capitol hill. Then I learned that Mr. Condit had an affair years ago with the then 18 year old daughter of a pentecostal minister. I do not know this for a fact, but it may very well be that Mr. Condit used to go to that minister’s church. If asked, Mr. Condit would probably describe himself as a Christian. Does he fit with what your description of what a Christian is?
Bill Clinton, our former president, claims to be a Christian. He is even a member of a southern Baptist church. Knowing his actions while in office, does he fit with your description of a Christian?
I’ve got neighbors all around my house. One is on her second live-in boyfriend in the past three years. She claims to be a Christian. Another sent her two young children off to live with their grandmother and rarely ever sees them. She has men in the house all the time. It seems sometimes that there is a constant party that goes on there. She claims to be a Christian. Do these lifestyles fit with your description of a Christian?
And then there’s you. You claim Christ as your savior. You claim heaven as your home. But does your lifestyle fit with your own description or your neighbor’s description of what a Christian is?
But the fact of the matter is that you and all of these people that I have mentioned may be telling the absolute truth when they say that they are Christians. They may very well be on their way to heaven. How can I make such a bold statement? Because of the story of a man in the Bible whose name is Lot.
How can people live in circumstances that are completely opposed to the will of God and see the contradiction? How could Lot live in Sodom? Was he an unrighteous man who didn’t care about God? How do we get ourselves into situations like the one Lot found himself in, in Genesis 14?
This morning, I want us to see several descriptions of Lot found in the Bible. As we look at Lot, ask yourself if these descriptions of Lot describe you.
1. Lot was a righteous man. (2 Peter 2:7-8)
Of all the descriptions that we are going to look at this morning, this is the one that makes the least sense – the one that doesn’t seem to fit. The event that happened in his life in Genesis 13 that we looked at last week seems to give evidence to just the opposite. In fact, everything that we know about Lot would seem to give evidence to the fact that he was nothing but a wicked man, who was concerned only for his own self-interest and who ended up destroying himself and his family through his refusal of God’s direction in his life.
If it wasn’t for two verses in the book of 2 Peter, we would be safe in saying that we will never see Lot again because he is dwelling in hell today. But the Bible gives us a different picture of Lot. Look at 2 Peter 2:7-8. [read them emphasizing “righteous Lot” [“just Lot” in KJV] (2:7), “that righteous man” and “righteous soul”(2:8)] How could God call Lot “righteous” which is the Old Testament equivalent of calling him a “Christian”? I doubt that his character matches any of the descriptions for a Christian that you wrote down a few moments ago.
Lot, perhaps better than anyone else in the Bible, illustrates the fact that our righteousness before God is a gift that we receive because of our faith. It is not something that we earn through our works prior to salvation, nor is it something that we maintain through our works after salvation. I cannot earn a right standing before God. It is His gift to me based on my faith in what He says to be true. It is impossible for us to “be good”. The Bible says that there is none righteous, no not one. (Rom 3)
Lot also illustrates that once a person comes to God for salvation and is made righteous, he will never lose that righteous standing no matter what happens. Lot messed up big time, but God still claimed him as one of his own. My son may roll around in the mud and get so dirty that in my mind, I am embarrassed to call him my own. But no matter what, my son will always be my son. I will always claim him as my own.
At some point in Lot’s life, he had placed his faith in God for his means of forgiveness and salvation. But something had happened, or better put, something had failed to happen which meant that Lot never changed from the person that he was. He was righteous in his standing before God, but he was wicked in his lifestyle. He had been born again, but he had never grown up.
That brings us to our next description of Lot.
2. Lot was a carnal man.
Since righteousness is a grace gift and not a wage earned, it is possible to view Lot as a righteous man and yet call him a carnal man. “Carnal” is not a word that we use very much. The dictionary defines it as “in or of the flesh; bodily; material or worldly, not spiritual; having to do with or preoccupied with bodily or sexual pleasure” (Webster’s dictionary) It’s a person who is controlled by things of this world and particularly physical urges rather than being controlled by spiritual things. (Phil 3:19 NIV) Their destiny is destruction, their god is their stomach, and their glory is in their shame. Their mind is on earthly things. In another passage, Paul gave a verbal lashing to some Christians because they had never grown up in their faith. They were still spiritual babies. (1 Cor 3:1-3 NIV) Brothers, I could not address you as spiritual but as worldly--mere infants in Christ. I gave you milk, not solid food, for you were not yet ready for it. Indeed, you are still not ready. You are still worldly. For since there is jealousy and quarreling among you, are you not worldly? Are you not acting like mere men? It is possible to be a righteous believer – forgiven of your sins, cleansed, on your way to heaven, God as your Father – and still live a carnal life. Someone has wisely said, “You are only young once, but you can stay immature indefinitely.” [unknown] In the passage that I just read, Paul described the Carnal person as an infant in Christ – a baby. He or she is a person who took Jesus Christ as their savior but never grew up in their faith. Lot was like that. Do you remember the reason that he and Abram split up? It was because of quarreling over who was going to have the best land for their sheep to graze on. Jealousy and quarreling is a sure sign that someone is still immature in their faith. They have never grown up, so they still allow things of this world to control them. They act like spiritual babies. They want their own way, and when they don’t get it, they cry. Babies have to grow up.
A few weeks ago, I read the story of little girl who for the last 4 years has been locked in a closet. She was forced to live in the midst of her own urine and filth. She was locked in that closet by her own parents. She had other brothers and sisters that lived in the same house, but they were told to act as if their sister in the closet did not exist. Think of all the things that that little girl missed out on! She missed out on birthday parties, and learning how to read and write. She missed out on making friends, momma’s hugs, and daddy’s tickling. She missed out on mud-pies, puppy dogs, sunsets, fireworks – and she missed out on love. Think of how many problems she will have relating to people and her world. She was alive that whole time, but she didn’t live. It will be difficult for her to ever live. She was never allowed to grow up.
As sad as that story is, it is an accurate picture of what life is like for Christians who place their faith in Jesus, enter the family of God but who never grow up. They are alive, and they will be alive for all eternity. But they do not live. They cannot enjoy the abundant life that God offers them. They dwell in the midst of their own filth, and they will never on earth get to know what it is to bask in their Father’s love and presence. The only difference between their lives and the life of this little girl is that they choose their sorry condition rather than having it forced on them.
How do you know if you’re a carnal Christian – a Christian who never grew up? It’s not self-evident to the person who experiences it. Most children think that they are already adults and should already get to enjoy all the pleasures and privileges that adults do. The same is true spiritually. So how do you know? Ask yourself this question: “What controls me? Am I controlled by the things of God, or am I controlled by the things of this world?” Look at another passage of Scripture with me – Galatians 6:19ff. [read down through vs. 21] Some of those words are difficult for us to understand, so let me read the same passage from the New Living Translation. When you follow the desires of your sinful nature, your lives will produce these evil results: sexual immorality, impure thoughts, eagerness for lustful pleasure, idolatry, participation in demonic activities, hostility, quarreling, jealousy, outbursts of anger, selfish ambition, divisions, the feeling that everyone is wrong except those in your own little group, envy, drunkenness, wild parties, and other kinds of sin. Let me tell you again, as I have before, that anyone living that sort of life will not inherit the Kingdom of God. Maybe you didn’t find yourself in each of those characteristics mentioned, but you may have felt the sting of guilt a few times. Now here’s another list. This is what a person who is controlled by the Spirit and has his mind on the things of God is like. But when the Holy Spirit controls our lives, he will produce this kind of fruit in us: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Probably no one in here, fits completely into either of those lists. But the more that you fit into the second list, the more mature that you are. The more that you fit into the first list, the more carnal you are.
Lot was carnal. Lot didn’t participate in all the sins of Sodom, but he chose to stay there because it was economically advantageous to him. He, like a little kid, thought he could play with fire without getting burned. (Prov 6:27 NIV) Can a man scoop fire into his lap without his clothes being burned? If you think that you can play with sin without feeling the heat of God’s wrath and punishment, I have just two words for you: GROW UP!
Here in our church, this past Thursday night, we had 9 children pray to ask Jesus Christ to forgive them of their sins and become their savior. These children are now spiritual babies. Whose responsibility is it to help them grow up and make sure that they get the food that they need? Parents, that responsibility is yours. [call out the different parents of children who gave their lives to Christ] But church, it is our responsibility too. We must pray for them, encourage them, teach them, discipline them and love them. We don’t want them to remain as spiritual infants. We don’t want them to be a carnal Christian like Lot was.
The Bible says that (Rom 8:6 KJV) …to be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace. Since Lot was not spiritually minded, he had no peace.
That brings us to our 3rd description of Lot.
3. Lot was a troubled man.
According to Peter, Lot was not only a righteous man and a carnal man, but he was also a troubled man.
He was “distressed [or oppressed in KJV] by the filthy lives of lawless men” (2 Peter 2:7). “for that righteous man, living among them day after day, was tormented in his righteous soul by the lawless deeds he saw and heard” (2 Peter 2:8)
Peter uses two terms to describe the emotional state of Lot while he was living down there in Sodom – “distressed” or “oppressed” and “tormented”. One of the best tools that you have for understanding the Bible is the English dictionary. Make it a habit that when you read your Bible, you keep an English dictionary close by. Look up words that you think you know the meaning of. You’ll be surprised at what you find. How would you define “oppress”? The dictionary says this: “to crush or burden by cause of power or authority; to burden spiritually or mentally; to weigh heavily upon.” The idea is that you’ve got a heavy weight pushing down on you, so much so that it’s almost as if you can’t breath. You feel like you’re trapped, and you just want to run away and throw off that weight that is holding you down. You’re about to suffocate. Any of you feel like that?
The second word is “torment”. It comes from a word that means to twist. It creates “extreme pain or anguish of body or mind; agony”. Lot was all twisted up inside. He was tied up in knots. Does that describe you? Torment also is described as something which causes “severe usually persistent or recurrent distress of body or mind”. It’s not something that goes away. Day after day after day – no matter what you do or how you try to alleviate that twisted feeling inside that is making your life miserable, it just won’t go away.
We have a young man lying in a hospital bed in the Surgical Intensive Care unit at Ruby memorial hospital right now. His body is in distress. On Friday, he had a temperature of 104 degrees. He had something in his body that did not belong there – an infection, a strong infection. His body was calling upon all its resources and turning up the juice on all its systems to fight off that thing that didn’t belong. There’s a war going on within him right now over who is going to have control. His body cannot be at peace until what doesn’t belong there is destroyed and removed from all his systems.
When you took Jesus Christ as your savior, something wonderful happened. God’s Holy Spirit came to live inside of you. The Bible calls you “the temple of the Holy Spirit”. The Holy Spirit cannot abide with sin. Sin and the Holy Spirit are complete opposites. So when you allow sin into your life, it creates a conflict. Paul described it as a war. The Holy Spirit cannot leave. He is there for all eternity. Just as it is the job of Ryan’s white blood cells to destroy any enemy that comes into the body even if it means creating distress for the body for a while, so it is the job of God’s Holy Spirit to destroy sin within us. Those stabs of guilt, shame and uneasiness that you feel? Those feelings that you wish would go away? Those are God’s Spirit telling you that something is wrong, and you had better get it taken care of. The pain is only going to continue and get worse over time. The only way that you can find peace is to seek God’s forgiveness and start to live a different way.
According to the terms that Peter uses, Lot’s soul was in agony. By remaining in Sodom, Lot tormented his own soul – day after day after day. He was the source of his own pain.
Why didn’t he leave? Why didn’t he take his family and move out of town? That’s what Cassie Bernau’s parents did. Do you remember Cassie? She was one of those teenagers killed at Columbine high school several years ago. She was one of the ones who was in the library. When the killers put a gun to her head and asked her if she believed in God, she said “Yes”. Cassie hadn’t always been a strong Christian. Just a few years earlier, she had been part of the crowd that was into all the wrong things. She was headed for destruction. So her parents decided to move. They sold their house and moved to a completely different part of the city. It was a sacrifice, but it was worth holding onto their daughter.
What causes a person like Lot to live in a situation that is tormenting their very soul? They have no peace. They are void of joy. They can’t sleep at night. They are sickened and saddened. Lot knew there was a problem, but maybe he didn’t know what the source of his problem was. Maybe he couldn’t diagnose it properly. Diagnosis is key to solving any problem. David has been dealing with severe back pain for months now. He had another doctor tell him this week that he couldn’t find anything wrong. Couldn’t diagnose the problem. Jeanna’s nephew, Alex, was having some tests this past Friday because he’s having a lot of physical problems. Ryan’s doctors know what is happening to his body, but they don’t know why. Until they figure out the why, they will not be able to treat him properly.
I have a feeling that there are a lot of people out there and maybe some people in here who are dealing with some oppression and some torment – a weight on their shoulders and a knot in their stomach that just won’t go away – and you’re trying to deal with it in all kinds of ways but the right one. You diagnose it as a problem at the job or a problem with your finances. Or it’s because the car keeps breaking down, or because you’re worried that the kids are going to get sick. Maybe you think you can take care of by making more money or getting more relationships. You’re trying to deal with it through all kinds of things on the inside. But in reality, it’s an internal problem. It’s a sin problem. Until you get rid of the sin, you won’t get rid of the torment.
CONCLUSION
The story is told of Handley Page, a pioneer in aviation, who once landed in an isolated area during his travels. Unknown to him, a rat got aboard the plane there. On the next leg of the flight, Page heard the sickening sound of gnawing. Suspecting it was a rodent, his heart began to pound as he visualized the serious damage that could be done to the fragile mechanisms that controlled his plane and the difficulty of repairs because of the lack of skilled labor and materials in the area.
What could he do? He remembered hearing that a rat cannot survive at high attitudes, so he pulled back on the stick. The airplane climbed higher and higher until Page found it difficult to breathe. He listened intently and finally sighed with relief. The gnawing had stopped. When he arrived at his destination, he found the rat lying dead behind the cockpit!
Oftentimes we, God’s children, are plagued by sin that gnaws at our life simply because we are living at too low a spiritual level. To see sin defeated in our lives requires that we move up - away from the world - to a higher level where the things of this world cannot survive.
INVITATION
What’s gnawing at you today? What has you twisted up on the inside? You can find release today. You can be restored if you are willing to move out of Sodom and live in the community of faith once again.
