Online Library: Remember-Lot's-Wife
by Joe Crews
bit.ly/lotswifeIntroduction "Remember Lot's wife," said Jesus. That is probably the most dramatic, potent illustration the Master ever used in a sermon.
As we read the context, it is very obvious that the words were being applied to those living on this planet right now. "In that day" refers to the "day when the Son of man is revealed." Here is what Jesus actually said:
"Likewise also as it was in
the days of Lot; they did eat, they
drank, they bought, they sold,
they planted, they builded; But the,
same day that Lot went out of
Sodom it rained fire and brim-
stone from heaven, and destroyed
them all. Even thus shall it be in
the day when the Son of man is
revealed. In that day, he which
shall be upon the housetop, and
his stuff in the house, let him not
come down to take it away: and
he that is in the field, let him
likewise not return back.
Remember Lot's wife." Luke
17:28-32.
What did Jesus mean by that cryptic expression "Remember Lot's wife"? What does that woman of long ago have to do with people who are watching the closeout of history? Why did the Master relate Mrs. Lot to our day? Jesus used her as a fearful warning. That woman became cold, careless, and disobedient. Finally the judgments of God fell upon her, and she became a pillar of salt on the plains of Sodom.
I gather that one of the most deadly perils for God's people in the last days will be to slowly slip away from the truth as Mrs. Lot did. Jesus warned that the loss of spiritual power takes place almost imperceptibly: "And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold." Matthew 24:12. As pressures of conformity and compromise crowd in, the faith gradually erodes and disappears.
I confess to you that this is the pastor's most perplexing problem today. Perhaps a newly baptized family in the church is bubbling with that wonderful first-love experience. They are willing to go anywhere and do anything for the Lord. Their contagious enthusiasm is a joy to behold. But soon the pastor notices that the ardor is beginning to wane a little bit, and the family is no longer excited about their faith. They slowly begin to withdraw from participation and even attendance at church. The pastor visits the family and tries to uncover the problem. To his surprise, he discovers that they still believe as much as ever, but they have lost their love for the truth.
How can we explain this slacking of spiritual power? How does the devil steal the very heart out of the Christian experience? One thing is certain: it does not happen suddenly or overnight. People lose their love for the truth by degrees. Little by little they lower the standards and compromise the faith, until nothing remains except a dead, empty formalism.
After reading all that Jesus said about those who are saved, we see one grand absolute truth standing out clearly. There will be no divided heart in heaven. There will be no half surrender on the part of the redeemed. Those who enter God's kingdom will be there because they wanted eternal life more than anything else in the whole world. The Lord Jesus used Lot's wife as an example of those in the last days who will not be single-minded for the truth; who will love material things more than the things of God. Christ said, "So likewise, whosoever he be of you that forsaketh not all that he hath, he cannot be my disciple." Luke 14:33.
Do you remember the story in the Bible about the businessman who went searching for the most priceless gem in the world? At last he located it and learned that it was for sale. But the price was outrageous! In order to buy that pearl he would have to sell his home, his business, and use every penny of his lifelong savings. But mark this: The man's desire for that pearl was so deep and compelling that he did not argue about the cost. He did not consider waiting until he could better afford the purchase. Nor did he attempt to bargain for a lower price. Immediately and eagerly he hurried away, sold everything he had, and brought the money back to buy the gem from the owners. The pearl, of course, represents eternal life, and those who desire it must be prepared to invest everything they have in order to obtain it.
Lot's Good Intentions But let's come back to the story of Lot's wife and try to understand what Jesus wants us to learn from her example. According to the Bible record, she belonged to one of the finest families in the East. As the nephew of Abraham, Lot shared the tremendous faith of his uncle and prayed at Abraham's altar. When God's call came to get out of Mesopotamia, Lot went right along with Abraham, not knowing where the call might lead. Together they brought their families to the entering place of the Promised Land and offered their sacrifices of thanksgiving.
Then dissension erupted between the herdsmen of the two wealthy kinsmen. Their vast combined flocks and herds didn't have enough room to graze in such a restricted area, and they had to separate. Lot was given the choice of direction as the whole land stretched out before him. On one side lay the verdant hills with their lofty trees; the other led down into the crowded centers of commerce and trade. The materialistic appeal of the prosperous cities had an immediate impact on Lot, and the Bible records very simply that he "pitched his tent toward Sodom." Genesis 13:12. The predictable pattern of future tragedy was settled by that early decision to move near those wicked cities.
Lot stands forth as a man of good intentions. Quite obviously he did not actually plan to take his family into the urban environment of sinful Sodom. He would only live in the vicinity, where he could take advantage of the economic opportunities of such a bustling trade capital. Very likely he made special mental reservations about letting his family mingle with the degraded inhabitants of Sodom and Gomorrah. In fact, he had no idea at all of giving up his religion. His move was prompted by selfish concern over temporal advantages, and he had no intention of losing anything.
But what happened in spite of all the wonderful intentions? Poor Lot lost his wife, his possessions, and almost his own life. Good intentions were not good enough. He moved closer and closer to the cities until finally he actually moved in to dwell with the Sodomites. His plans to guard the spiritual interests of his children failed to materialize. All his rationalization about counteracting the wickedness with stricter prayer schedules and family-altar religion just didn't seem to work out as planned. He gradually compromised with the environment and watched his children slowly assimilate the ways of their heathen neighbors.
I'm sure Lot did not feel at ease when he first settled among the evil citizens of that abominable place. Every day he heard news of the mushrooming crime rate. He must have been repulsed and even horrified by the vile jokes and obscene language. Then he had to watch with alarm the growing fascination of his family for the perverted lifestyle of their friends and associates.
Finally, his daughters fell in love with worldly men and married them. Outside of the home, united with the enemies of God, they lost all faith in the ancestral religion of their childhood and youth. They began to look upon Lot as narrow and bigoted and soon expressed their extreme loathing of his half-hearted appeals to establish true worship in their homes.
Nevertheless, we still tend to sympathize with Lot in his frustrated attempts to hold the reins on his unregenerate wife and children. He had much against him, but most of it had been created by his own weakness and indecision. One compromise led to another, until finally he must have become totally demoralized over the rebellion of his worldly family.
Mrs. Lot's Response to Sodom Still, it was an act of flagrant presumption when Lot actually settled within the city. The society there was shameless, degenerate, and entirely sex-perverted. Mrs. Lot not only moved into Sodom, but Sodom moved into her. She was the type who loved fine things, and the mad whirl of social activities fascinated her from the beginning. She was soon caught up in the excitement of party rounds of pleasure, and the evidence seems to indicate that she eventually shared much of the materialistic mind-set of the Sodomites.
Can we analyze the cause of such a shocking turnabout? How could it happen to the wife of Abraham's relative? Was it, perhaps, because no one was praying for her in that provocative situation? No, indeed. Abraham was pre- senting his prayers and sacrifices night and morning for his nephew's family. Was it because no warnings were given concerning the spiritual dangers? We cannot believe that those angel messengers left them without full information concerning the snares of Sodom. Then what brought terrible soul–ruin to this woman? Was it because she disbelieved the call of God to get out? No. She did not mock the message as did her married daughters and their husbands. She believed the warning and actually started on her way to safety.
But mark this – there was no eagerness in her heart and no enthusiasm for the program. She was so reluctant to leave the fine appointments of her affluent Sodom home that she lingered. Her heart and life had been so bound to material things that she could hardly pull away from the accumulated treasures of those finely furnished rooms. With death at her heels, she lingered. With life and security awaiting her on the mountaintop, she lingered. What was wrong with the woman? She loved the world more than she loved God. She still believed the truth; she knew what she ought to do; she wanted to be saved–yet she lingered.
We still find many people exactly like Mrs. Lot. They also believe the truth, know what they ought to do, and want to be saved. They linger, too, just as she did. Like Lot's wife, many of them wait until the pull of the world overpowers the will to act, and they are not able to let go of "things." Why will people linger over the call of God? Have you ever done it? Millions have lingered until the best years of their life are gone. They linger until their children grow up and are lost in the world. They linger until the world holds them with bands of steel and the voice of God dimly fades away.
But at last Mrs. Lot began to move. The record describes how angels had to take hold of their hands to hurry them out of the doomed city. The angels cried, "Escape for thy life; look not behind thee." Genesis 19:17. But Lot's wife did not reach the safety of the mountains. Why? The Bible tells us that she "looked back," and immediately she was turned into a pillar of salt. Why did God deal with her so severely? Was it not the smallest offense of all just to move the head slightly? The Word of God has a name for that type of action: sin. She disobeyed the commandment of the Lord, and her judgment underlines the urgency of obedience. God means what He says. There is no excuse for sin, and God cannot overlook it.
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