Genesis 18:23-32 – For Ten’s Sake – Bible study

Gen 18:23-32 For Tens Sake In \#32\, Abraham moved God to spare the city of Sodom if there were but 10 righteous people living in it. Abraham is not bartering with God. He is pleading for the mercy of God. There were many citizens in Sodom when the angels came. No doubt that among the many, there were some who would claim to be religious. Yet, based on the end results, there were not ten whom God called righteous! There is a lesson there. It really does not matter what man thinks of his relationship with God. It only matters what God thinks of mans relationship with Him. I. Why werent there at least ten righteous people in Sodom? A. Because Men failed. 1. When destruction is imminent, there is little time for blame fixing, but, for the record, God always places the responsibility of leadership upon the men. 2. If there is a failure, the men are responsible. a. Lot failed. 2Peter 2:7 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) The Bible says Lot was a just, righteous, vexed man. (2) That makes Lot a compromising man. (a) Lot was either living in the wrong place or in the wrong way. i. Righteous Lot had no business living in wicked Sodomat least not like he was living. ii. God does not call His people to be tourists, sight seekers, thrill seekers, or opportunists. iii. Christians, there are some places you just shouldnt be unless it is to be a witness. Mt 5:13 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. Mt 6:24 No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon. Jas 4:17 Therefore to him that knoweth to do good, and doeth it not, to him it is sin. Lu 10:27 And he answering said, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy strength, and with all thy mind; and thy neighbour as thyself. iii. If you are, you have compromised. iv. Compromise is a serious business. aa. A Christian has compromised when they conform Bible beliefs or behaviors to be acceptable to the world. bb. This defeats the whole purpose of the Christian being on the earth. (b) Lot was living in silence. i. You can tell by the anger of these sinful people that were not used to being corrected. Ge 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. 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. ii. They were unfamiliar with rebuke because Lot, who was a leader among them, never gave any out! iii. It is strange how sinners like to call the saints intolerant. Our words arent nearly as intolerant as their actions! (3) If Lot had been more concerned with the city accepting God than accepting him, he might have saved the whole city. (4) If Lot had been more concerned with his children believing than belonging, he might have, at least, saved them. b. But it wasnt just Lot who failed. Every other man (every husband, every father, and every son) also failed. (1) No persons heart is naturally as dark as those of Sodom. (2) And no city can be so devoid of a witness from God. (3) A person must push himself toward evil to so despise the natural understanding of God and mankind. B. Not only did the men failed, but the woman did as well. 1. God gave men the authority of the home, but God gave women the heart of the home. 2. The only thing sadder than men who wont lead in the right direction is women who wont love in the right direction! 3. We dont have one single word recorded in the Scripture by Lots wife, but we know from her two actions what kind of heart she had. a. Action #1 – How her children turned out. (1) Children reflect the image of their parents and there had to be a lot of mom in those kids, especially the girls. (2) \#Gen 19:30-38\ I wont read the verses but you can read them. (3) Her daughters were immoral and manipulative. (4) That is, they had no concept of right and wrong and they would do anything to get what they wanted. b. Action #2 – She looked back to Sodom. Genesis 19:26 But his wife looked back from behind him, and she became a pillar of salt. (1) Her sin was not so much with her eyes but with her heart. (2) Mrs. Lot loved Sodom. (3) I dont think it bothered her that it was a wicked place. (4) She must have enjoyed some kind of prestige there. (5) I have often thought that it was Mrs. Lot who wanted to live in Sodom since the Bible tell us that Lot was vexed over it. 4. Here was a woman who loved possession and position more than she loved God or her family. a. A righteous woman wouldnt have pushed her husband into Sodom but out of Sodom. b. If they were going to live in Sodom, a righteous woman would have loved her children and brought them to Jesus. c. And a righteous woman would have done her best to change the wickedness of her city by seeing souls brought to the Light. d. Do you realize, that if Lot, his wife, at least their 2 sons-in-laws and 4 daughters \#Gen 19:14\ had been righteous, that would have been 8 righteous people in the city? e. The Bible alludes to those. I wonder if there werent at least two more children or servants or friends or close neighbors or co-workers that Lot and his wife could have influenced?! f. If so, they could have saved the city from annihilation! II. What happens when there are not even ten righteous people? A. Sin spreads. 1. There are several amazing aspects of this story. One is how far the sin of Sodom had spread. Ge 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: 2. The Bible says BOTH OLD AND YOUNG, ALL THE PEOPLE FROM EVERY QUARTER! 3. Where was the counter-trend? Where were the godly? Where were the wives? Where were the decent? Where were the officials? 4. I would have to conclude that there was not even one person left in the whole of the city who, if they had not practiced the sin, at least had given mental assent to it! B. Sin grows. 1. The predominant sin in Sodom was homosexuality. a. If Sodomy was there, certainly there were other sins. b. Homosexuality seems to be a pinnacle sin. (1) Gods opinion of it seems obvious in this Bible passage. (2) It is listed as a major step in the decline of mans ability to comprehend and worship God \#Romans 1:24\. (3) In our nation, it acceptance has demonstrated a public denial of Gods existence and rule over us. (4) It would seem that such is always the case. c. That would mean most all sins would be accepted and practiced. (1) Theirs was a perverted sex appetite. (2) They would surely be practicing multiple partners, transsexual relationships, bestiality, relations with children, violent relationships, and on the list goes. (3) Likewise, unbridled anger, blasphemy, pride, thief, and any and every other sinful habit. d. Consider the offer even righteous Lot made of sacrificing his daughters to this wicked and perverse crowd \#Ge 19:8\. (1) As a younger Christian, I read and heard preachers try to give some justification to Lots actions. (2) They used the culture of those ancient people to explain how responsible a host was to his guests. (3) No culture in any time period would ever expect or accept what Lot did! 2. When there are no righteous people in an area, there is no conscience, no checks and balances, no dam to hold back the floods of wickedness and perversion. C. God knows. 1. There is nothing done in secret. Luke 12:2 For there is nothing covered, that shall not be revealed; neither hid, that shall not be known. 2. There is nothing done that is unimportant. Luke 12:6 Are not five sparrows sold for two farthings, and not one of them is forgotten before God? 7 But even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear not therefore: ye are of more value than many sparrows. 3. There is nothing that shall be overlooked. Every word, every action, every thought. Matthew 12:36 But I say unto you, That every idle word that men shall speak, they shall give account thereof in the day of judgment. D. Judgment comes. 1. God is a righteous Judge who will not let sin go unpunished. Ge 19:24 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. 2. There is judgment in this life and in the life to come. III. Can we make ten righteous people? A. I dont mean, "Can we build them." I mean, "Can we win them?" 1. Sodom became the wicked place that it was for a lack of righteous people. 2. In the end, Sodom was destroyed for lack of righteous people. 3. You may think me a defeatist but I believe America is on the same path! B. Most discerning Christians know that America is headed in the wrong direction. C. Three barometers of Americas walk with God have been alcohol, sex, and drugs. How are we doing? 1. In 2013, 47% of high school students reported having sexual intercourse. 15% of high school students reported having already had four or more sexual partners. http://recapp.etr.org/recapp/index.cfm?fuseaction=pages. StatisticsDetail&PageID=555 2. It is estimated that there are nearly 125 million abortions every year. http://www.guttmacher.org/pubs/fb_induced_abortion.html 3. The 2013 Youth Risk Behavior Survey found that among high school students, during the past 30 days: a. 35% drank some amount of alcohol. b. 21% binge drank. c. 10% drove after drinking alcohol. d. 22% rode with a driver who had been drinking alcohol. http://www.cdc.gov/alcohol/fact-sheets/underage-drinking.htm 4. In terms of illicit drugs, teens use marijuana the most. More high school seniors smoke pot than smoke cigarettes. As of 2015, high school seniors are about as likely to smoke weed as they are to drink. https://www.teenrehabcenter.org/resources/high-school-drug-use/ D. Since 9/11, we can add false worship to it. 1. This past week, in a 6 to 5 vote, Baltimore County voted NOT to let school out for Muslim holidays. http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/maryland/education/bs-md-co-school- board-muslim-20160823-story.html 2. New York was going to build an arch to Baal! http://www.charismanews.com/opinion/56398-temple-of-baal-arch- canceled-for-new-york-city a. Baal worship today is just as alive as it ever was. b. Baal was a sex god. The worshipers would drink themselves into a stupor, fulfill their sexual fantasies then kill the children produced by them on their altars. 3. Prayer and the Bible have been removed from almost every government organization, as well as, many private institutions while paganism, atheism, and humanism been elevated and encouraged. 4. On May 6, 2016, for the second time, Judge Roy Moore was removed as Alabamas Chief Justice (the first time being November 13, 2003). This time for refusing to allow illegal and sinful same-sex marriage from being forced on Alabamians. 5. Nudity, profanity, gambling, drunkenness, and perversion of every kind is advertised and encouraged as a legitimate. money-making, economy building enterprise. 6. Our economy is as fragile as a house of cards, built on policies of credit, a dependency on foreign supply, and payments for work NOT rendered. a. As of 8/27/16, the national debt was $19,437,565,000,000. b. That is an individual debt of $59,943 per citizen, but a debt of $162,433 per tax payer. http://www.brillig.com/debt_clock/ E. These and the many other problems plaguing our country which will not be fixed by elections, or education, or Euros. F. What we need are 10 righteous people! 10 over here and 10 more over there and 10 more over yonder until we have turned this country back to the God who gave it to us. Remember Abrahams plea: "Peradventure ten shall be found there?" Remember Gods answer: "I will not destroy it for tens sake."