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The Life of Abraham #5: Sodom Destroyed

CCEA School of Discipleship

April 13, 2025

In Class

Take three minutes, get in groups of three or four, and share one thing you got out of reading Swindoll’s: Chapter 12: Overcoming Depravity’s Dangerous Undertow

Let’s recite Hebrews 11:6 together:

(Hebrews 11:6 NKJV) But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.

Now let’s recite read to Hebrews 11:8,9 together:

(Hebrews 11:8 NKJV) By faith Abraham obeyed when he was called to go out to the place which he would receive as an inheritance. And he went out, not knowing where he was going.

(Hebrews 11:9 NKJV) By faith he dwelt in the land of promise as in a foreign country, dwelling in tents with Isaac and Jacob, the heirs with him of the same promise;

Next week is Easter (April 20), and we will have the week off. Class will resume again on April 27 with class #6.

Sodom Destroyed

Genesis 19-20

Introduction

Abraham was hanging out at his tent when three strangers had approached. Abraham served them a fine meal and it turned out that one of the three was the Lord, and the other two were angels. The Lord hung around after the meal to talk with Abraham while the two angels made their way down the hills toward the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah. The Lord told Abraham that judgment was going to be coming on these wicked cities. Abraham did a bit of reverent bartering with the Lord, asking for the Lord’s mercy on Sodom if there should be some righteous people living in the cities. Their discussion ended with the Lord promising not to bring judgment if there were ten righteous people in Sodom.

Sodom is about forty miles from Hebron. We now switch to the camera in Sodom as the angels arrive.

19:1-26 Escape from Sodom

: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.

:1 the two angels came to Sodom

It has long been taught that we don’t know where Sodom was.

Play Sodom Map video

It is not yet a universally accepted fact, but I think it’s possible that the location of Sodom has been found. We visited the location in 2015 with my friend Jay McCarl, when the latest discovery was pretty new (if your commentaries are older than 2015, they will say that the location of Sodom is unknown, or else somewhere south of the Dead Sea).

The site is called “Tell-el-Hammam”, located in Jordan, northeast of the Dead Sea.

One of the archaeologists found samples of a glassy material later identified by a laboratory as “trinitite”, which is formed by the high temperatures and pressures of a nuclear explosion.

If you look this up on Wikipedia, you will see that some scientists and archaeologist dispute this discovery, but it seems their main problem is that it proves the reliability of the Bible.

Here are some shots we took on the site. (six slides, end with pottery in hand)

:1 Lot was sitting in the gate

Among other things, the city gate was like city hall, where the leaders of the city hung out, where legal decisions were made.

Lot had been with his uncle Abraham since Ur of the Chaldees. When they got to the “Promised Land”, they eventually split up because they realized that their flocks had grown too large for the land to sustain them.

Abraham gave Lot the first choice of where to go, and he chose Sodom because it looked so good.

(Genesis 13:10 NKJV) And Lot lifted his eyes and saw all the plain of Jordan, that it was well watered everywhere (before the Lord destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah) like the garden of the Lord, like the land of Egypt as you go toward Zoar.

Lot based his decision on what he saw (which is not always a good thing)

Lot liked the area of Sodom because it reminded him of Egypt.

So Lot settled down close to Sodom (Gen. 13:12)

In chapter 14 we found Lot living “in” Sodom and he was captured along with the rest of the city.

Now, in chapter 19, Lot is “sitting in the gate”, the notion is that Lot is considered one of the leaders of Sodom.

I wonder if his position among the city elders was due to his uncle Abraham rescuing the city.

Quiz Alert #1!! (There will be three today)

Lesson

Be an Influencer

Was it wrong to live in Sodom? Was it wrong to be a leader in Sodom? Is it wrong to live with “worldly” people? Is it wrong to be a leader or a boss in secular society?

The issue boils down to this – who is going to influence who?

God doesn’t want His people to be totally isolated from the world. He wants us to be salt and light. He wants us to be an influence on the world around us.

Joseph was sold to be a slave in Egypt. He lived in an immoral society, but remained a moral man. He ended up becoming the number two man over all of Egypt and he became the one who influenced the Egyptians. Joseph saved the known world through his position in Egypt.

Daniel lived in an incredibly worldly situation, in the capital of the Babylonian empire. Daniel also rose to the position of being the number two man in the empire. Daniel became an influence in his society, being used to direct wicked Nebuchadnezzar towards worshipping the God of heaven and being used in the lives of Belshazzar and Darius.

But you don’t have to become a world leader to be an influencer.

You just need to share your faith.

You can have the ability to do that when you are filled with the Spirit. This is truly where it starts. Jesus told the guys before He ascended to not go anywhere until they were filled with the Spirit.

(Acts 1:8 NKJV) But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”

Let the Spirit work through you.

Which direction does the influence flow?

Do you affect your world or does the world affect you?

Are you in the world or is the world in you?

:1 he bowed himself

Lot sees something in these visitors that causes him to show respect to them. (there’s more in my notes…)

Last week we saw Abraham “bow” before his three visitors in Hebron (Gen. 18:2).

This is the same word used here.

I said that the Hebrew verb was shachah, but apparently things have changed in Hebrew translation in the last forty years, and now scholars say this isn’t from shachah, but from the Hebrew verb hawa.

I’m not sure it makes much difference in our translations.

The word is used to describe the worship of God.

When Abraham’s servant finds a bride for Isaac, he “worships” the LORD (Ge. 24:52).

When God shows Moses His glory, Moses “worshipped” (Ex. 34:8)

The word is also used to describe a human “bowing” or showing respect to a another human.

Abraham will “bow” before the Hittites when he buys a cave for them to bury Sarah (Gen. 23:7, 12)

Jacob will “bow” himself seven times when he meets Esau (Gen. 33:3)

: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."

Lot offers similar hospitality to what Abraham did, washing their feet.

The angels initially turn down Lot’s hospitality, but perhaps this is due to their mission, to find out if Sodom is as bad as the reports have been. Perhaps they are testing Lot to see where his heart is at.

: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.

:3 he insisted strongly

Lot knew he didn’t want these fellows spending the night in the open square. Lot knew how wicked the people of Sodom were. (2Pet. 2:8)

:3 and baked unleavened bread

unleavened bread – matstsah – unleavened (bread, cake), without leaven.

This is the first time we read of “unleavened bread” in the Scriptures. The next time will be in Ex. 12:8, as Israel is preparing to flee Egypt at the Passover.

: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.

The angels aren’t going to have to spend the night out in the open square to find out about the inhabitants of Sodom. The people from all over the city are going to come to them. This is the earliest occurrence of “Door Dash”, Sodom style.

: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."

:5 that we may know them carnally

We get our word “sodomy” from the sexual sin that was practiced in the city of Sodom.

Jude was writing about the coming day of judgment when he wrote,

(Jude 7 NKJV) as Sodom and Gomorrah, and the cities around them in a similar manner to these, having given themselves over to sexual immorality and gone after strange flesh, are set forth as an example, suffering the vengeance of eternal fire.

Lesson

Homosexuality

The Bible clearly calls homosexuality a sin.

The world wants to tell us that a person is born as a homosexual, they have no choice in the matter, so God shouldn’t be so tough on them.

I’m not sure I’ve ever seen any convincing scientific evidence backing that up (but I may be wrong).

Even if it were true, just because I was born a heterosexual doesn’t mean it’s right that I break God’s sexual laws concerning sex, like adultery.

Old Testament:

(Leviticus 18:22 NKJV) You shall not lie with a male as with a woman. It is an abomination.

The word for “abomination” (to-ay-bah) means “abhor, loath, detestable”. It can mean something is disgusting, but doesn’t mean this is the absolute worst sin that could ever be committed.

The word is also used like this:

When Joseph was ruling in Egypt, his brothers had to eat separately from the Egyptians, because the Egyptians considered it “an abomination” to eat with Hebrew shepherds (Gen. 43:32)

(Genesis 43:32 NKJV) So they set him a place by himself, and them by themselves, and the Egyptians who ate with him by themselves; because the Egyptians could not eat food with the Hebrews, for that is an abomination to the Egyptians.

Levitical law required divided food into two groups, clean and unclean. Things that were unclean (like pigs, shrimp, bats…) were considered “detestable” (our Hebrew word) (Deut. 14:3)

(Deuteronomy 14:3 NKJV) “You shall not eat any detestable thing.

New Testament:

(1 Corinthians 6:9–11 NKJV) —9 Do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived. Neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor homosexuals, nor sodomites, 10 nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners will inherit the kingdom of God. 11 And such were some of you. But you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus and by the Spirit of our God.

Is homosexuality wrong? Yes.

But so are all the other things listed here.

And God can redeem us from any sin.

Does God love a person who is caught in homosexuality? Absolutely.

God loves sinners. God loves sinners so much that He sent His Son to die on a cross to pay the penalty for our sin.

God wants sinners to come to Him. He wants sinners to turn around. He can change our lives.

I’ve known people who were caught in the trap of materialism, and He’s changed them.

I’ve known people who were caught in alcohol and drug abuse, and He’s changed them.

I’ve known people who were caught in pornography and heterosexual sin, and He’s changed them.

I’ve known people who were caught in homosexuality, and He’s changed them.

I want to show you a clip of someone getting radically changed. What you see happen to this next guy on the outside is what Jesus can do on the inside…

Play “Homeless Makeover” clip

If you are feeling far from God, turn to Jesus, He will forgive you and help you change.

Just tell Him that you need Him.

: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."

:8 I have two daughters

Some say that Lot is simply being a good host, protecting his guests at all costs.

But no matter how I look at it, I see no justification for what Lot is doing. He’s willing to sacrifice his own daughters to this angry mob.

These are the same two daughters that will have perverted ideas at the end of the chapter.

He and his family have been twisted by the morality of Sodom.

: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.

Would you say that Lot has influenced his world, or that the world has influenced Lot?

:10 But the men reached out their hands and pulled Lot into the house with them, and shut the door.

The angels rescue Lot from the angry mob.

: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.

:11 struck … with blindness

The Hebrew word for “blindness” (sanwerim) is only found here and 2Ki. 6:18 when Elisha asked God to “blind” the Syrians. It carries the idea of “dazzling, or deception”, and in both places it doesn’t seem to be physical blindness as much as mental confusion and disorientation. Perhaps like having a camera flash in your eyes.

(2 Kings 6:18 NKJV) So when the Syrians came down to him, Elisha prayed to the Lord, and said, “Strike this people, I pray, with blindness.” And He struck them with blindness according to the word of Elisha.

: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!

This is the angels speaking, not the people of Sodom.

: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."

The angels reveal their mission to Lot.

: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.

:14 he seemed to be joking

I know that not everyone is going to listen to us when we talk about God.

But I can’t help grieve at what happens here. Lot’s witness to his own sons-in-law is so tarnished that they don’t take him seriously.

His sons-in-law won’t be leaving Sodom.

Quiz Alert #2!!

Lesson

Witness = Words + Example

Play Michael Jr clip on Speaking English

I have to admit that sometimes Christians can be “dumb” in the way they communicate the gospel.

People around us are going to be influenced by two things in our lives:

1. The words we say

2. The life we live

Some people say that they don’t need to talk much about the Lord but they just let their life speak for them. I don’t think the Lord expects us to be silent – we need to speak up.

(2 Timothy 4:2 NKJV) Preach the word! Be ready in season and out of season. Convince, rebuke, exhort, with all longsuffering and teaching.

Some people are good at talking about the Lord, but their life is all messed up. This is just as much of a problem as the person who never speaks up.

(Matthew 5:16 NKJV) Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.

You may talk a lot about the Lord, but if your friends see you still caught in drugs, getting angry all the time, hooked on pornography, or having a lousy marriage, I don’t think they’re going to take you too seriously.

Jesus is in the business of changing lives.

People need to hear that their life can change.

People need to see that your life has changed, or at least is changing. It’s not that God can’t use an imperfect person, but don’t hinder God’s work either.

When my witness is all of one and not the other, my witness loses its edge.

: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.

:16 while he lingered

For some reason there seems to be reluctance in Lot and his family to leave.

Are you ready to leave?

When the trumpet sounds and we are caught up to heaven, will you regret leaving?

Many years ago, Keith Green wrote an article in his “Last Days Ministries” newsletter titled “Will you be bored in heaven?”

In the article, there was a cartoon of some guys up in heaven. One guy had tears running down his cheeks, while the second guy was telling a third person, “He’s depressed because it’s eight o’clock and he’s missing the TV show “Love Boat”” (notice they changed it to “Monday Night Football”)

And yet with God’s mercy, even though Lot seems reluctant, God still rescues Lot.

Lesson

God can rescue us

Don’t think that because you might be a tad reluctant, that God is going to leave you behind.

I do not hold to the idea that some people are going to be “left behind” in the Rapture because they weren’t living good enough lives.

The Rapture, just like salvation, is dependent upon God’s grace. Period.

Peter turns to some Old Testament stories to talk about how God handles judgment between the godly and the unjust…

(2 Peter 2:6–9 NLT) —6 Later, God condemned the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah and turned them into heaps of ashes. He made them an example of what will happen to ungodly people. 7 But God also rescued Lot out of Sodom because he was a righteous man who was sick of the shameful immorality of the wicked people around him. 8 Yes, Lot was a righteous man who was tormented in his soul by the wickedness he saw and heard day after day. 9 So you see, the Lord knows how to rescue godly people from their trials, even while keeping the wicked under punishment until the day of final judgment.

He knows how to deliver us. He delivered Lot.

: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."

Lot is warned to get out of the valley and up into the mountains. He’s warned NOT to look back.

: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."

:20 please let me escape there

I wonder why Lot doesn’t think about running to Abraham? Abraham lives in the mountains. Yet Lot would rather stay close to Sodom. He doesn’t seem to want to get too far from Sodom.

: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.

Zoar – Tso‘ar – “insignificance”, this is the “little” city, 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.

:24 rained brimstone and fire

Just what happened? It might have been volcanic. Others suggest an earthquake with lightning igniting gases in the area. Some have suggested it might have been a meteorite or even a comet exploding in the atmosphere above the cities.

It could have simply been supernatural.

: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.

:26 his wife looked back

The angels warned them not to look back (vs. 17).

But it seems that Lot’s wife just couldn’t let go of the influence that Sodom had become in her life.

You could take the girl out of Sodom, but you couldn’t take Sodom out of the girl.

Jesus said that the times of the end would be similar to those of Lot, and He said to remember Lot’s wife (Luke 17:28-33).

(Luke 17:28–33 NKJV) —28 Likewise as it was also in the days of Lot: They ate, they drank, they bought, they sold, they planted, they built; 29 but on the day that Lot went out of Sodom it rained fire and brimstone from heaven and destroyed them all. 30 Even so will it be in the day when the Son of Man is revealed. 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.

In these last days the warning is clear – don’t get so caught up in the things of the world that you get caught in the judgment that is coming. Can you let go of the world?

We now switch back to the camera at Abraham’s tent…

19:27-29 Abraham Watches

:27 And Abraham went early in the morning to the place where he had stood before the LORD.

:28 Then he looked toward Sodom and Gomorrah, and toward all the land of the plain; and he saw, and behold, the smoke of the land which went up like the smoke of a furnace.

It kind of reminds me of the pictures we saw of the smoke coming from the towers on 9/11.

:29 And it came to pass, when God destroyed the cities of the plain, that God remembered Abraham, and sent Lot out of the midst of the overthrow, when He overthrew the cities in which Lot had dwelt.

:29 God remembered Abraham

The phrase reminds me of…

(Genesis 8:1 NKJV) Then God remembered Noah, and every living thing, and all the animals that were with him in the ark. And God made a wind to pass over the earth, and the waters subsided.

Abraham’s prayer resulted in God rescuing Lot. Don’t stop praying for people you know who are living in Sodom.

19:30-38 Lot’s family

:30 Then Lot went up out of Zoar and dwelt in the mountains, and his two daughters were with him; for he was afraid to dwell in Zoar. And he and his two daughters dwelt in a cave.

Lot finally decided to take the angel’s advice seriously. The angel said to go up into the mountain, and that’s what Lot decides to do.

:31 Now the firstborn said to the younger, "Our father is old, and there is no man on the earth to come in to us as is the custom of all the earth.

Lot’s daughters are afraid that the whole world has been destroyed.

They have a pretty small view of the size of the world.

:32 "Come, let us make our father drink wine, and we will lie with him, that we may preserve the lineage of our father."

Summary:

So the two daughters get their dad drunk, and on two successive nights they take turns having sex with their father. He apparently was unaware of what was happening.

:33 So they made their father drink wine that night. And the firstborn went in and lay with her father, and he did not know when she lay down or when she arose.

:34 It happened on the next day that the firstborn said to the younger, "Indeed I lay with my father last night; let us make him drink wine tonight also, and you go in and lie with him, that we may preserve the lineage of our father."

:35 Then they made their father drink wine that night also. And the younger arose and lay with him, and he did not know when she lay down or when she arose.

:36 Thus both the daughters of Lot were with child by their father.

:37 The firstborn bore a son and called his name Moab; he is the father of the Moabites to this day.

:38 And the younger, she also bore a son and called his name Ben-Ammi; he is the father of the people of Ammon to this day.

:36 were with child by their father

We have the origin of the Moabites and the Ammonites – they were descended from Lot’s incestuous relationship with his own daughters.

Moab = “from the father”

Ben-Ammi = “son of my people”

The Moabites and Ammonites would settle on the eastern side of the Jordan and would be enemies of the Israelites.

I guess you could say they had a “Lot” in common.

The capital of Jordan today, Amman, gets its name from these people.

Lesson

The life of compromise

It seems to me that Lot’s life is a picture of the life of compromise.

He might have been “vexed” with the wickedness of Sodom, but it appears he did nothing about it.

I can’t understand a willingness to sacrifice your daughters like Lot offered to do.

When it comes time to leave Sodom, he’s reluctant to go.

It’s the life of compromise that says “please, no my lords” (vs. 18).

It would seem to me that if two angels show up to rescue your family, you ought to do everything they ask.

Yet Lot seems to feel it necessary to only go part way.

Lesson

The effects of compromise

Compromise comes with a high price.

Lot started as a wealthy man and ends up in a cave

He loses his wife

Lot’s lifestyle has polluted his daughters – he had been willing to give them to the angry mob in Sodom, and now they’ve committed incest with their father.

This is the last we hear of Lot.

Are you ready to leave Sodom?

Genesis 20

Illustration

Jim and Edna were both patients in a mental hospital. One day while they were walking past the hospital swimming pool, Jim suddenly jumped into the deep end. He sank to the bottom of the pool and stayed there. Edna promptly jumped in to save him. She swam to the bottom and pulled Jim out. When the Head Nurse Director became aware of Edna’s heroic act she immediately ordered her to be discharged from the hospital, as she now considered her to be mentally stable. When she went to tell Edna the news she said, “Edna, I have good news and bad news. The good news is you’re being discharged, since you were able to rationally respond to a crisis by jumping in and saving the life of the person you love, I have concluded that your act displays sound mindedness. The bad news is, Jim, hung himself in the bathroom with his bathrobe belt right after you saved him. I am so sorry, but he’s dead.” Edna replied, “He didn’t hang himself, I hung him up there to dry. How soon can I go home?”

You know, sometimes people aren’t quite as “sane” as you think they are. We’ve come to know Abraham as the “father of faith”, one of the heroes of the Bible. But we’re going to see that he’s still a man with problems…

20:1-13 Mr. Abraham goes to Gerar

I want to simply summarize the next few verses.

Abraham will go on a journey with Sarah, we don’t know why, and spend time among the Philistines in the city of Gerar.

Old habits are hard to break, so Abraham once again tells a half truth that Sarah is his “sister”.

Abimelech the king takes Sarah, but God speaks to him in a dream some time later and tells him he’s a dead man if he doesn’t give her back, and tells him he needs to have Abraham pray for him.

When Abimelech returns Sarah, he asks Abraham why he lied, and Abraham gives a bunch of his standard excuses.

:1 And Abraham journeyed from there to the South, and dwelt between Kadesh and Shur, and stayed in Gerar.

South … Kadesh … Shurt – these are all places far to the south, almost to Egypt.

Gerar – a city on the plain between the Mediterranean and the hills, about 30 miles southwest of Hebron, about 11 miles east of Gaza. The archaeologists have uncovered Gerar and found that it was a large town built on merchandising – a great big Walmart.

:2 Now Abraham said of Sarah his wife, "She is my sister." And Abimelech king of Gerar sent and took Sarah.

Abimelech – “my father is king”; in David’s time, this seems to not just be a name, but a title for Philistine kings.

king of Gerar – he’s the ruler of the city.

This is what Abraham had done when they went down to Egypt back in Genesis 12 –

(Genesis 12:13 NKJV) Please say you are my sister, that it may be well with me for your sake, and that I may live because of you.”

Sarah – Sarah is 90 years old.

Abraham is doing this because he’s afraid that he’s going to be killed so they can take Sarah for the king’s harem.

Perhaps we shouldn’t be too critical of Abraham. Perhaps we would do the same thing if we were in his shoes???

Beloved, this clearly goes against the example that we’ve been given in the Bible regarding husbands and wives.

(Ephesians 5:25 NKJV) Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself for her,

A good marriage is not based upon survivor skills. It’s based on laying down your life for the other person.

Jesus said,

(John 15:13 NKJV) Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one’s life for his friends.

In context, Jesus isn’t talking about Him laying down His life as much as He’s talking about the disciples learning to lay down their lives for one another.

Our father of the faith, Abraham, is flat out wrong here.

:3 But God came to Abimelech in a dream by night, and said to him, "Indeed you are a dead man because of the woman whom you have taken, for she is a man's wife."

:4 But Abimelech had not come near her; and he said, "Lord, will You slay a righteous nation also?

Back in Genesis 18, Abraham was interceding, haggling with God about the issue of Sodom. Abraham was wondering if God was going to wipe out these cities if there were righteous people living in them.

(Genesis 18:23 NKJV) And Abraham came near and said, “Would You also destroy the righteous with the wicked?

Now these same words aren’t coming from Abraham, but from this pagan man Abimelech.

There’s a bit of irony here.

:5 "Did he not say to me, 'She is my sister'? And she, even she herself said, 'He is my brother.' In the integrity of my heart and innocence of my hands I have done this."

:6 And God said to him in a dream, "Yes, I know that you did this in the integrity of your heart. For I also withheld you from sinning against Me; therefore I did not let you touch her.

:6 in the integrity of your heart

integrity – tom – integrity, completeness; innocence, simplicity

This is the first time the word “integrity” is found in the Bible. And it’s being used to describe this pagan king.

Lesson

Kept from sinning

Abimelech was a man of integrity.

God responded to Abimelech’s integrity by further helping him and keeping him from blowing it big time.

I know that I sin a lot, but I’m not sure I’ve ever stopped to wonder just how much God has kept me from sinning.

Does God always keep us from sinning?

Obviously not. Because we do sin.

But sometimes God stops us enough to give us a warning.

When Cain got angry with his brother, God gave Cain a warning:

(Gen 4:6-7 NKJV) So the LORD said to Cain, "Why are you angry? And why has your countenance fallen? {7} "If you do well, will you not be accepted? And if you do not do well, sin lies at the door. And its desire is for you, but you should rule over it."

But Cain didn’t pay attention to God’s warning and he gave in to his anger and killed his brother.

With Abimelech, it seems that his “integrity” played a part in God keeping him from sinning.

Integrity causes me to set some boundaries in my life. It keeps me from going down streets I don’t belong.

It’s when I lack integrity that I find myself in places of temptation.

Illustration

Like the guy who blamed God for ruining his diet after said to the Lord, “Lord, if you don’t want me to get a donut, please don’t let there be a parking spot in front of the donut shop.” But sure enough, there was a parking spot right in front of the donut shop, the twelfth time around the block.

A man of integrity doesn’t drive near the donut shop when he’s on a diet.

Lesson

Integrity doesn’t equal knowing God

Integrity is important, but it’s not the same as knowing God.

Abimelech was a man of integrity, but he didn’t know God.

Abraham was currently lacking in integrity, but Abraham knew God.

Integrity alone isn’t going to get you to heaven.

You may be a good, moral person, but if you think that your morality is good enough for God, you’re not even close.

It’s like the athlete who feels good because he can long jump 18 feet, pretty good for an athlete.

But God’s standard isn’t for you to jump 18 feet to get into heaven. God’s standard is a little more like saying you must be able to jump to Catalina Island without getting wet, 26 miles across the bay…

Human style integrity is a good thing, but it’s far short of the standard that God sets.

The only way you are going to get to Catalina without getting wet is to have a boat or plane take you across the channel.

That’s what Jesus does for us. He does what we can’t. He owns the only charter boat service to Catalina.

When we couldn’t do anything to pay for our sins, Jesus died on a cross to pay for our sins.

Does this mean you can believe in Jesus and not have to have integrity?

God’s desire is that you be a person who knows God and who maintains integrity.

:7 "Now therefore, restore the man's wife; for he is a prophet, and he will pray for you and you shall live. But if you do not restore her, know that you shall surely die, you and all who are yours."

prophet – nabiy’ – spokesman, speaker, prophet; This is the first occurrence in the Bible of this word.

It’s an interesting thing to see how God has worked to protect Abraham, Sarah, and the promise of a special child.

And even when Abraham has been such a jerk!

(Psalm 105:12–15 NKJV) —12 When they were few in number, Indeed very few, and strangers in it. 13 When they went from one nation to another, From one kingdom to another people, 14 He permitted no one to do them wrong; Yes, He rebuked kings for their sakes, 15 Saying, “Do not touch My anointed ones, And do My prophets no harm.”

This is God’s gracious hand of protection on Abraham.

20:8-13 Abraham’s excuses

:8 So Abimelech rose early in the morning, called all his servants, and told all these things in their hearing; and the men were very much afraid.

:9 And Abimelech called Abraham and said to him, "What have you done to us? How have I offended you, that you have brought on me and on my kingdom a great sin? You have done deeds to me that ought not to be done."

:10 Then Abimelech said to Abraham, "What did you have in view, that you have done this thing?"

:11 And Abraham said, "Because I thought, surely the fear of God is not in this place; and they will kill me on account of my wife.

:12 "But indeed she is truly my sister. She is the daughter of my father, but not the daughter of my mother; and she became my wife.

:13 "And it came to pass, when God caused me to wander from my father's house, that I said to her, 'This is your kindness that you should do for me: in every place, wherever we go, say of me, "He is my brother."' "

:11 surely the fear of God is not in this place

Lesson

Excuses for sin

Abraham gives a couple of feeble reasons why he lied to Abimelech:

1. He was afraid they didn’t fear God in Gerar

In other words, he’s blaming Abimelech for the lie – it’s Abimelech’s fault.

2. It wasn’t all a lie, Sarah was his half-sister

Is a “half-truth” still a true?

On the witness stand you are asked to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth.

3. They had this long standing arrangement …

It’s such an old habit. Old habits are hard to break.

4. It’s God’s fault – “God caused me to wander …”

God’s the one that put us in this situation. We’re just doing the best we can with the hand God has dealt us.

God wants to help us with our sin. God wants to forgive us of our sins. But help and forgiveness don’t come until we stop making excuses and tell the truth.

(1 John 1:9 NKJV) —9 If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

John didn’t say we needed to “make excuses for our sins” or to “give reasons for our sins”. He said we needed to confess our sins.

I think that somewhere along the way we came up with the notion that we need to have a good enough reason for our sin in order to be forgiven. And so we work hard to make up quick excuses:

Illustration

There is a story about a new clerk in a supermarket. A customer asked him if she could buy half a grapefruit. Not knowing what to do, he excused himself to ask the manager. “Some nut out there wants to buy half a grapefruit...” he began, and, suddenly realizing that the customer had entered the office behind him, continued, “... and this lovely lady would like to buy the other half.” The manager was impressed with the way the clerk amicably resolved the problem and they later started chatting. “Where are you from?” asked the store manager. “Ontario, Canada,” replied the clerk, “home of ugly women and great hockey teams.” “Oh, my WIFE is from Ontario,” challenged the manager. Without skipping a beat, the clerk asked, “What team was she on?”

A good quote:

“He who is good at making excuses is seldom good for anything else.”

20:14-18 Restoration

:14 Then Abimelech took sheep, oxen, and male and female servants, and gave them to Abraham; and he restored Sarah his wife to him.

:15 And Abimelech said, "See, my land is before you; dwell where it pleases you."

:16 Then to Sarah he said, "Behold, I have given your brother a thousand pieces of silver; indeed this vindicates you before all who are with you and before everybody." Thus she was rebuked.

:16 a thousand pieces of silver

This is a huge amount of money. Note he gave it to “her brother”.

Joseph would be sold as a slave into Egypt for 20 pieces of silver, this is 50 times that amount.

:16 this vindicates

The Old King James is a little more accurate in the translation, though it’s a little more difficult to understand:

(Genesis 20:16 KJV) …he is to thee a covering of the eyes…

Apparently in Abraham’s day, a married woman put on a veil to cover her eyes. It was a sign of being married and also a way of not giving other men an excuse so lust after a woman.

It could be that Abimelech is using a bit of sarcasm, “Now, here’s some money so you can go buy a veil”

Another way of putting it: “If Abraham is stumbled because of your beauty, go buy a veil.”

:16 Thus she was rebuked

(Genesis 20:16 ESV) …It is a sign of your innocence in the eyes of all who are with you, and before everyone you are vindicated.”

Abimelech is making it public that he didn’t sleep with Sarah.

:17 So Abraham prayed to God; and God healed Abimelech, his wife, and his female servants. Then they bore children;

:18 for the LORD had closed up all the wombs of the house of Abimelech because of Sarah, Abraham's wife.

:17 So Abraham prayed to God

Remember, Abimelech was told he needed Abraham to pray for him.

It seems that this whole episode didn’t happen overnight. It takes time for people to realize that the entire household isn’t getting pregnant. Sarah might have spent several months in Abimelech’s harem.

Quiz Alert #3!!

Lesson

I’m restored by praying for others

Sometimes the thing that finally brings a breakthrough in our own lives comes when we learn to minister to others.

Job went through the most difficult of circumstances. He lost his kids, his property, his wealth, and his health. And to top it all off, when his friends showed up, all they did was try to figure out what Job had done wrong to deserve all that misery. Instead of comforting Job, they just made it worse. But in the end, God showed up and made things a little clearer, including a rebuke for Job’s friends. But God wasn’t finished until Job did something:

(Job 42:10 NKJV) And the Lord restored Job’s losses when he prayed for his friends. Indeed the Lord gave Job twice as much as he had before.

Job found himself blessed when he prayed for those who had given him a hard time.

What is the biggest thing that Abraham and Sarah have been wanting for the last 50 years? They want a kid. They can’t get pregnant.

I find it interesting that God would use this very same situation to get the attention of Abimelech.

And of all things Abraham is supposed to pray for, it’s for the women in Abimelech’s household to get pregnant.

If I were Abraham, I’d probably say to myself, “That’s not something I’m good at praying for!”

Yet God will not only use Abraham’s prayers for Abimelech, but God will answer the prayers for Abraham at the same time.

The very next couple of verses:

(Genesis 21:1–2 NKJV) —1 And the Lord visited Sarah as He had said, and the Lord did for Sarah as He had spoken. 2 For Sarah conceived and bore Abraham a son in his old age, at the set time of which God had spoken to him.

You might feel like you have nothing to give. You might feel that you’re the one who is needy. Don’t let that be an excuse for God to use you to reach out and help others, even if it’s “only” by praying.

Lesson

God uses flawed people.

It almost seems a bit backward. Abraham is the one who goofed up. You might think that Abimelech should be praying for him!

Yet Abraham is the one who actually knows God.

The people God uses are sometimes a bit flawed.

We have this notion that the people God wants to use are perfect people. Wrong.

For some of us, this issue affects how people influence us.

Some of us have been disillusioned when we find out that some of the people that were most instrumental in our life were in fact flawed people. One of the most influential people in the early Jesus movement was a fellow who struggled with homosexuality, and in fact died at an early age from AIDS.

Over the years, various TV preachers with great influence have fallen into various sins.

In truth, every person who has been used of God is flawed.

For some of us, this issue affects how we minister to others.

We have this notion that since God only uses perfect people, and I’m not perfect, that God can’t use me.

Paul wrote,

(1 Corinthians 1:27 NKJV) But God has chosen the foolish things of the world to put to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to put to shame the things which are mighty