He knows how to deliver, cont.

Reading

Genesis 19:1–26 NKJV

1 Now the two angels came to Sodom in the evening, and Lot was sitting in the gate of Sodom. When Lot saw them, he rose to meet them, and he bowed himself with his face toward the ground. 2 And he said, “Here now, my lords, please turn in to your servant’s house and spend the night, and wash your feet; then you may rise early and go on your way.” And they said, “No, but we will spend the night in the open square.” 3 But he insisted strongly; so they turned in to him and entered his house. Then he made them a feast, and baked unleavened bread, and they ate. 4 Now before they lay down, the men of the city, the men of Sodom, both old and young, all the people from every quarter, surrounded the house. 5 And they called to Lot and said to him, “Where are the men who came to you tonight? Bring them out to us that we may know them carnally.” 6 So Lot went out to them through the doorway, shut the door behind him, 7 and said, “Please, my brethren, do not do so wickedly! 8 See now, I have two daughters who have not known a man; please, let me bring them out to you, and you may do to them as you wish; only do nothing to these men, since this is the reason they have come under the shadow of my roof.” 9 And they said, “Stand back!” Then they said, “This one came in to stay here, and he keeps acting as a judge; now we will deal worse with you than with them.” So they pressed hard against the man Lot, and came near to break down the door. 10 But the men reached out their hands and pulled Lot into the house with them, and shut the door. 11 And they struck the men who were at the doorway of the house with blindness, both small and great, so that they became weary trying to find the door. 12 Then the men said to Lot, “Have you anyone else here? Son-in-law, your sons, your daughters, and whomever you have in the city—take them out of this place! 13 For we will destroy this place, because the outcry against them has grown great before the face of the Lord, and the Lord has sent us to destroy it.” 14 So Lot went out and spoke to his sons-in-law, who had married his daughters, and said, “Get up, get out of this place; for the Lord will destroy this city!” But to his sons-in-law he seemed to be joking. 15 When the morning dawned, the angels urged Lot to hurry, saying, “Arise, take your wife and your two daughters who are here, lest you be consumed in the punishment of the city.” 16 And while he lingered, the men took hold of his hand, his wife’s hand, and the hands of his two daughters, the Lord being merciful to him, and they brought him out and set him outside the city. 17 So it came to pass, when they had brought them outside, that he said, “Escape for your life! Do not look behind you nor stay anywhere in the plain. Escape to the mountains, lest you be destroyed.” 18 Then Lot said to them, “Please, no, my lords! 19 Indeed now, your servant has found favor in your sight, and you have increased your mercy which you have shown me by saving my life; but I cannot escape to the mountains, lest some evil overtake me and I die. 20 See now, this city is near enough to flee to, and it is a little one; please let me escape there (is it not a little one?) and my soul shall live.” 21 And he said to him, “See, I have favored you concerning this thing also, in that I will not overthrow this city for which you have spoken. 22 Hurry, escape there. For I cannot do anything until you arrive there.” Therefore the name of the city was called Zoar. 23 The sun had risen upon the earth when Lot entered Zoar. 24 Then the Lord rained brimstone and fire on Sodom and Gomorrah, from the Lord out of the heavens. 25 So He overthrew those cities, all the plain, all the inhabitants of the cities, and what grew on the ground. 26 But his wife looked back behind him, and she became a pillar of salt.

Prayer

Gracious and merciful God

Our father in heaven, almighty, eternal, invisible. We praise you for your beauty and wisdom.

We thank you that you have not left us without hope, but in the cry of the baby and the whispering of the brook and the ripening of the harvest, we remember your goodness and give you praise.

It was you who reached into our darkness and pulled us into the light. It was you who breathed your spirit upon us and gave us light. It was you who defeated sin and shame and guilt and reconciled us to you.

When we sat in darkness, when hope seemed lost, you rose up like the Sun and brought healing and light and life.

Fill us again with that spirit. Give hope and rest and peace.

We know that the nations are as a drop in the bucket. We know that you have measured the waters of the earth in the palm of your hand. We know that those things that we fear, those things that we worry over, those things that cause us grief – are nothing to you. You breathe, and they are gone. You wave your hand, and they fade forever. He know what dwells in the darkness.

Teach us not to trust in uncertain riches. Teach us not to fear the powerful, the elite, the evildoers.

But teach us to rest and to serve – to look out from ourselves and our loves and hatreds and fears and longings – and to rest in your promises and to love our neighbor, without fear, without deceit, without manipulation.

Forgive us our many sins. Forgive us for evil-speaking, for words that devour and destroy, for the lusts of the flesh and the pride of life. Teach us to be quick to hear and slow to speak and slow to wrath.

And send peace and justice to our state and our nation. Guide us to quiet waters ourselves and give us the grace to lead others there – waiting for you, trusting in you. And while we wait, teach us to listen to those who have different views. Teach us to be patient with ourselves and with others. Teach us humility – that perhaps we don’t know everything that we think we know. So that we might grow in the knowledge of the Son of God

And above all, father, cause us more each day to know the love of Christ which passes all understanding. That we might more fully know the depth of the riches of your love for us, dearest Lord Jesus. And as our knowledge of your love increases, give us peace in our consciences and rest in our souls – and may that light shine out of us. May our bellies overflow with the waters of the spirit and bring peace and joy to a thirsty world.

Give healing to Steve, we pray. Give peace and comfort to Bob and his family.

And, Dear Father, send rain. We are in trouble and you are the only one who can deliver us. Send rain and fill the reservoirs. Bless our crops. And send the rain of faithful preaching, for we have been consumed with false idols and false teachers.

Give us our daily bread and for what is future, teach us to trust in your almighty hand.

Give wisdom and justice to our governor and wisdom to our president, that we might live peaceably in all godliness – bless those whom you have placed over us and lift our eyes up to a better kingdom, where Christ reigns over all.

Deliver us from wicked men and women. Deliver us from those who only know destruction and rage. Deliver us from those who plot evil on their beds.

Deliver us from those who sow the whirlwind and reap destruction.

For we trust in you. We rest in you. Hide us under your wings and give us peace

In Jesus’ name

Text

Luke 17:31–37 NKJV

31 “In that day, he who is on the housetop, and his goods are in the house, let him not come down to take them away. And likewise the one who is in the field, let him not turn back. 32 Remember Lot’s wife. 33 Whoever seeks to save his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life will preserve it. 34 I tell you, in that night there will be two men in one bed: the one will be taken and the other will be left. 35 Two women will be grinding together: the one will be taken and the other left. 36 Two men will be in the field: the one will be taken and the other left.” 37 And they answered and said to Him, “Where, Lord?” So He said to them, “Wherever the body is, there the eagles will be gathered together.”

Sermon

The destruction of Sodom

Last week, I preached on God knowing how to deliver the righteous from evil days. He will preserve and defend us.

The day is coming when the Son of Man will appear in great glory and the children of God will appear with him.

Those who are found in Christ will be vindicated when the King comes in glory, and they will be delivered from those who have sought their destruction.

But first, they will also suffer, just as Jesus suffered, before he was glorified.

Jesus reminds us of a familiar account in the history of the patriarchs - the destruction of Sodom.

It is the account of a righteous man - though brutally and truly flawed - living in the middle of great danger, great wickedness, and continuous struggle.

Why didn’t he just leave? That is a complicated question. Perhaps because his family was settled. His two daughters were getting married. His wife enjoyed the life there.

Perhaps it was because he was more afraid of the unknown than that which was known.

Israel experienced this. They were in the wilderness, finally free from the slavery of Egypt, but when the future was blocked, they longed for the slavery that they knew.

We struggle with change. But Sanctification is a process of change. Without it, we perish in Sodom. Without it, we cannot see the Lord. God is purifying and delivering us from the bondage of sin and misery, but we so often resist because we hate the idea of the unknown, of change, of being different than we are.

We were created and redeemed to become more and more like Jesus each day, dressed in his beauty, cleansed with his blood, and becoming more and more like him.

Which means, according to our confession, that we spend our whole lives taking off the old man, and putting on the new.

The Holy Spirit is making us beautiful, but that means we must shed our filthy garments. And that is terrifying.

We resist because it is really scary to think that maybe an idea that you cherished is actually contrary to scripture and wrong.

So we resist.

We resist because it is scary to live in an unknown world, where everything is dark.

It is easier to stay in Sodom. It is easier to hold onto those old ideas and old patterns of thought, even if they are destroying us.

But notice something here:

Genesis 19:16 NKJV

16 And while he lingered, the men took hold of his hand, his wife’s hand, and the hands of his two daughters, the Lord being merciful to him, and they brought him out and set him outside the city.

The angels warned him that destruction is minutes away.

Lot is divided. So, so hard. Leave everything behind. Maybe just a minute to walk through the house. Maybe convince my sons in law. Maybe try to get my wife on board.

JUST GIVE ME A MINUTE TO THINK!!!!! And the angels are saying, now, now, now, now, now, now...

The tension builds, the pressure builds and finally -

The angels grab their hands and drag them out. They dragged them out of the city.

Put yourself in Lot’s mind. Leaving everything behind. The decision is made for him. He is dragged out of the city...

But here is what I want you to see. Why did the angels drag them out?

Because the Lord had compassion on him. Compassion.

God knew everything that Lot was leaving behind. God knew everything about how Lot would never be the same after this. God knew all of that.

And it seems at the moment that God was being harsh. But Lot didn’t know about the exchange with Abraham. He didn’t know about the counsels in heaven.

So it would be quite simple for him to doubt the goodness and love of God. He is being dragged out of his comfort zone without any idea where he will go, how he will survive, what he will do, how he will eat...

And you say to yourself - well, maybe he should have thought all of that through...

That’s what he was doing!!! But God said, NOW.

Because God knows how to deliver the righteous.

Jesus reminds us of this account when he talks about the suddenness of God’s deliverance. When salvation comes, the wicked world will be living like they always lived. Dancing, eating, drinking, feasting, working...

But God is dragging his children out of the city, and it hurts.

Lot’s wife fought back, and refused to be delivered. Change was too hard for her, because she didn’t know where she was going, or whether God would be good, or whether it was worth it to be free from Sodom.

Lot’s wife

In verse 31, he repeats what is recorded in Matthew and Mark. But in the context of those passages, he is speaking of the destruction of Jerusalem. If you want to live, he says, you have to leave everything behind and go.

In our text, the context isn’t the destruction of Jerusalem, but the second coming, and in general, God’s acts of salvation in the church, in history and in all of our lives - we get glimpses of the coming. Already, but not yet, as I said last week.

But the doctrine is the same. If you want to live, you have to leave everything behind and go.

And here, he illustrates his point with Lot’s wife. She loved the things of the world. Her home in Sodom. Her friends. Her things. Her security. Her future in Sodom. It wasn’t that she happened to glance back. It is that she chose in her heart the things of the world rather than the deliverance of God from the destruction to come.

We mourn loss. That is human. That isn’t what is condemned here.

The idea is this - there is a day that is coming when all wickedness and everything on this earth that we put so much hope in, will be burned with fervent heat and destroyed.

All of our opinions, loves, hatreds, worldviews, favorite foods, will all be consumed in fire.

But as the disciples of Christ, remember that God knows his own and knows how to deliver. And when we are taken and meet him in the air, this world and all of its glory will fade to nothing in our eyes. We will wonder why we put so much of our contentment onto those things, when the tremendous treasure awaits us OUTSIDE of Sodom

For God knows how to save. He knows the longing of our hearts and he knows what we are seeking and he knows how to satisfy that thirst. And we have to get out of Sodom - out of this world, with its cares and toils and corruptions. We have to leave it behind, and he frequently will drag us out by the hand - because of his great compassion.

And the devil will continually tempt is in this life. “God doesn’t know. He won’t reward. You’ll lose everything. And then he’ll turn his back.”

Lot, you aren’t going anywhere special. Mrs. Lot, look at everything you have to give up. It won’t be worth it. Head back.

Israel, Moses just brought you out here to die. Head back to Egypt. At least you know where the water was there.

Jesus, command that these stones be made bread. Worship me, and i will give you everything you seek without a cross.

The test is always the same. Don’t go out from them. God doesn’t know what he is doing. Just stay a little longer. You’re safe here.

We are terrified of being free, even while we hate being in bondage. Homer Simpson wouldn’t let go of the candy in the machine and so he stayed locked there, unable to be free.

This is what Jesus is saying - you hold on to all of those things that hold you in bondage - the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life - and you’ll lose it all.

If you are too afraid to risk any change, if you are too afraid to change an idea to bring it in line with scripture, if you are too content with the things of this world...

Remember Lot’s wife.

The ancient Jews were terrified of any change at all. Salvation was grounded in tradition, and that tradition must never be broken.

But Stephen prophesied against them:

Acts 7:51–53 NKJV

51 “You stiff-necked and uncircumcised in heart and ears! You always resist the Holy Spirit; as your fathers did, so do you. 52 Which of the prophets did your fathers not persecute? And they killed those who foretold the coming of the Just One, of whom you now have become the betrayers and murderers, 53 who have received the law by the direction of angels and have not kept it.”

Every call to repent, to turn around, to change their minds, to think different thoughts, to wait for the salvation of God, was met with hatred, anger -

Because they were terrified of change. They knew Sodom. It was wicked, but at least they were familiar with it. It’s better than this wilderness. It is better than this ridiculous manna and lack of water.

But God called them stiff necked. Just like he did with Lot’s wife, he dragged them out of their filth over and over again, and they continued to look back longingly to the good-old days in Sodom, or in Egypt, where they had leeks and onions and feasts and dancing.

She looked back, and was overtaken by God’s judgment.

One Taken

And one more comment on this text- speaking of mysteries. I have many commentaries. There are two from Reformed writers that are almost identical, both with the same perspective, covenantal, not dispensational in their outlook, both with the same confessional background.

One says, It is clear from 1 Thessalonians 4:17

1 Thessalonians 4:17 NKJV

17 Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus we shall always be with the Lord.

that the ones left behind are the unbelievers while the righteous meet the Lord in the air.

The other says, it is clear from 1 Thess. 4:17 that the ones left behind are the believers, since that verse says that the believers are those who remain.

In other words, it isn’t clear at all who the one taken is and who is the one left behind.

We know, from the rest of the text, that he isn’t talking about a secret rapture, for the day of the son of man is not secret. Nor does this text imply two different second comings. The point is this:

God knows the difference between his seed and the seed of the serpent. He knows how to save the righteous and judge the wicked, and he knows the difference between the two. He will separate, he will divide the sheep from the goats and the wheat from the chaff.

In John’s parable, the wheat is gathered into the barn and the chaff blown away. In Jesus parable, the tares are gathered first, and then the wheat. The point is not the order of things. That will remain a mystery. It is this - there will be a separation, and God knows how to do it, so that not one of his sheep is lost.

Safety will not be found by proximity. You must flee to safety yourself. No one can do it for you.

There isn’t a secret society, or magic words, or rituals or works that must be completed to be safe.

Only one thing. Scripture says this, and it cannot be broken.

Call on the name of the Lord

Whoever will call upon the name of the Lord will be saved.

Romans 10:9–13 NKJV

9 that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. 11 For the Scripture says, “Whoever believes on Him will not be put to shame.” 12 For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek, for the same Lord over all is rich to all who call upon Him. 13 For “whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.”

Whoever will call upon the name of the Lord - that is, Jesus. The God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. The great Hashem - the name, above every name. He is the Lord and there is no other.

And what did he say: whoever comes to me, I will never, ever cast out.

All of us our dead in our sins. We all are separated from God and are as decaying corpses, unless he raises us from the dead.

And where the body is, the vulture of judgment is coming. Judgment will root out and find death and all who carry it and will cast it out into unquenchable fire. It is a terrible thing to fall into the hands of the living God for judgment.

But whoever calls upon the name of the Lord will be saved.

Forget everything else for a moment. Forget your accomplishments, your pedigree, your work, your organization, your memberships, your goals, your dreams, your loves, your hatreds, your families - there is only one thing before you now.

Call upon the name of the Lord and be saved.

And when you do, rest. In resting, we learn to love. Don’t fear the ungodly, even when you mourn the damage they leave behind. When you learn not to fear, you will learn compassion, for nothing will take you from the hands of God.

Don’t fear that you missed the notification about the kingdom, because no one will miss it.

Don’t fear change, because without change no one will see the Lord, as the scripture says,

Hebrews 12:14 NKJV

14 Pursue peace with all people, and holiness, without which no one will see the Lord:

In other words, pursue Christ, who is our holiness, given freely to us. Don’t resist the Holy Spirit, leading you out of the bondage of sin and conforming you to the likeness of Christ. Remember Lot’s wife.

Be patient with yourself and others and wait for the Lord.

And remember and hold to this promise - whoever will call upon the name of the Lord will be saved.