I’ve been reading Elie Wiesel”s book, Night, which is an
account of a young Jewish boy questioning his faith and belief in God. He
witnessed the worst that man can dish out. It made him question his belief in
God. How could a merciful God allow such things? The prayers they would utter together were
just words. If there was a God, he wasn’t listening or didn’t care. There just
couldn’t be a God. It’s the same
question many ask today.
Today we live in very tolerant Sodom and it’s myriad of sister cities. We
like it here. Science has indeed made things easier; pleasure and leisure can be had at our whim.
I’m not saying no one has problems, but we live measurably better than our ancestors.
I’m really talking to Christian people. We enjoy the freedom that tolerance
gives us. We’ve become an accessory in mankind’s quest to make life better
instead of coming to grip with our sin.
Lot was a drunkard. He was vexed by
the depravity around him so I believe he drank to dull his mind. His wife loved
the place. Lot, like Adam, his mentor, succumbed to his wife’s desire for the
good life and stayed where she wanted to be: Sodom.
Don’t get me wrong, Lot loved much about Sodom too which is why the angels had to
almost drag him out of there. I’m sure he had much to leave behind on a moments
notice.
I’m not sure what was righteous about Lot but I have a
feeling it was Abraham’s righteousness that convinced God to save Lot just like it’s the righteousness of Christ imparted
to us that allows us to have a relationship with God. It’s
odd how two apparently opposite men, Noah and Lot,
did the same thing when the God-orchestrated event was over; they planted a vineyard of grapes for the
purpose of making wine and getting mind-numbing drunk.
The months Noah and his family spent on the ark had to have
been a terrifying experience and maybe being drunk for a bit seemed like a rational
way to cope with their Post Traumatic Stress. That’s one of the reasons
drinkers drink, to forget and ignore their problems for a while; the other is
to ignore their obligations.
For whatever reason, Lot
went a step further down the drunken path. I’ve known drunks and many get so
loaded they don’t know where they’ve been or what they’ve done.. This was Lot. He built his vineyard. He made his wine. He got so
stinkin’ drunk, he didn’t know when his daughters came into him for sex. They
were worried that their family was going to die off and figured they would
solve that problem.
From our point of view, this is at best a troubling story.
Women are by nature helpmates. What that means is, and wonderfully so, is that
women want life to be better. They want
to figure a way to solve problems. They
want to sooth the hurt and make sure things turn out well. Obviously this is a general statement; I’ve
met women of opposite desires. The
daughters of Lot lived in a far different
reality than we do now but I it doesn’t take too much looking to find acts as
horrible today. We haven’t changed,
really. We’re just better at hiding or
ignoring it.
The apostle Paul tells us that we are to wash our women with
the Word of God. We’re to initiate Bible study in our homes which is to remind
our women and ourselves what God has said. Adam and Eve both heard God tell
them what He expected from them, but because Adam didn’t remind Eve on a
regular basis, she became open to seduction. From the get-go, Adam shirked his responsibility
and in typical man fashion said: “Whatever you want honey.” I think
she was really wanting that apple and no doubt there was some sexual persuasion
going on with Adam, so it’s “anything” your pretty heart desires
babe.
And what did God say afterward? Adam, because you have listened to your
wife………Lot listened to his wife too.
Let’s just stay in Sodom
till the children are through school…………. This doesn’t mean we should
never listen to our wives. Every decision we make as a couple should be washed
with the Word of God. We’re to take every thought and make it accountable to
the Word of God. That was the job of Adam, it was the job of Lot,
and it’s our job too. We’re supposed to allow the Bible to guide us in our
decision making. This isn’t man ruling over woman; it’s God ruling over both.
When we marry, we become one flesh. Our lives are forever
entangled. It’s reading and practicing what the Bible says that makes us able
to become one before him. Love is
something learned. We’re to love one another and it’s love that covers a
multitude of sin. Husband and wife are both sinners. One is not better or more
valuable than the other. We must desire
God before we can properly desire each other.