20 Then the LORD said, "The outcry against Sodom andGomorrah is so great and their sin so grievous - P26
24 What if there are fifty righteous people in the city?
Will you really sweep it away and not spare the place forthe sake of the fifty righteous people in it? - P27
32 Then he said, "May the Lord not be angry, but letme speak just once more. What if only ten can be foundthere?" He answered, "For the sake of ten, I will notdestroy it." - P29
In a remarkable display of trust and respect toward His servant Abra-ham, the Lord reveals His inner thought process concerning the sinfulcities of Sodom and Gomorrah. - P30
First, God reasons that Abraham will
surely become a great nation and, therefore, needs to learn His ways.
Then, God tells Abraham about the judgment that will come upon the wicked cities. - P30
As we grow in our friendship and intimacy with the Lord, He invites us to understand
more of His will and the desires of
His heart. - P30
Although God sovereignly rules over His entire creation, He employs the prayers
and efforts of His people to execute His purposes.
- P30
Let us hear and see what God is doing and join Him in His work. - P30
While on the surface this conversation
may look like a negotiationwhere Abraham is bargaining with God, it is really a
gracious act of God toward Abraham. - P30
It is an opportunity for him to explore the
depths of God‘s mercy and to learn
firsthand that God truly listens to His
peopleand responds to their petitions. - P30
As Abraham applies his own inherent
sense of justice, he comes to realize
through this conversation that his
righteous desires were written on his
heart by the Creator. - P30
Although God‘s nature is incomprehensible and
His knowledge unsearchable,
we can come to know Him because we are created in His image. - P30
Let us imitate Abraham‘s humble attitude
of pressing in to know God more. - P30
"What were we made for? To know God. What aim should we have in life? Toknow God. What is the eternal life that Jesus gives? To know God. What is thebest thing in life? To know God." - J. I. Packer - P30
Just as human beings have learnable
patterns of behavior, the characterof God is stable, unchanging, and He constantly
does things in similarways, for similar
reasons. - P31
Although He does not need to, He stoopsdown to show us what He is like, and He makes it easy for us know Him if we desire
to do so.
- P31
Let us discover the joy of knowing God,
even in the small, quiet, mundane moments of life. - P31
Lord God, You have made me in Your image and You have saved me for friend-ship with You. - P31
Help me to use every opportunity and resource You give me toknow You more. In Jesus‘ name, amen. - P31
5 They called to Lot, "Where are the men who came toyou tonight? Bring them out to us so that we can havesex with them." - P32
11 Then they struck the men who were at the door ofthe house, young and old, with blindness so that theycould not find the door. - P33
Even in our increasingly wicked and perverse world, it is truly shocking to read of the vile intentions that the men of Sodom had toward Lotand his angelic
visitors. - P34
As we saw earlier in Genesis, when the world was reaching its climax of human
depravity, violence and sexual sin
were among the key indicators that things had gone horribly wrong.
- P34
Lot tries to protect his guests by attempting to persuade the men against
their vicious intentions, although this puts his own life and safety at risk. - P34
May we as Christians also seek to protect
the decency and honorof our fellow believers as the culture around us fiercely opposes us andattacks our faith. - P34
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