LOT: AN EVER PRESENT LESSON

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LOT: AN EVER PRESENT LESSON

Genesis 13:10-13 NKJV

10 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.
11 Then
Lot chose for himself all the plain of Jordan, and Lot journeyed east. And they
separated from each other.
12 Abram
dwelt in the land of Canaan, and Lot dwelt in the cities of the plain and
pitched his tent even as far as Sodom.
13 But the
men of Sodom were exceedingly wicked and sinful against the LORD.

Backsliding, or what the Puritans called Spiritual
Declension, is an ever present reality to Christians. We see it around us and who can say they have
not – to some extent – experienced this dreaded fact.

In the Scriptures there is no better example of backsliding
than Lot. He, who began so well,
experienced such traumatic events and ended his life in shame. Genesis 13:10-13 gives a look at Lot’s
departure from God.

First Lot should never be considered separate from II Peter 2:7-8.
7 and
delivered righteous Lot, who was oppressed by the filthy conduct of the
wicked
8 (for
that righteous man, dwelling among them, tormented his righteous soul
from day to day by seeing and hearing their lawless deeds)—
Peter speaks of Lot as a righteous man. A man who never lived comfortably in a sinful
society. Whatever else we learn about
Lot this must be our consideration.
Lot’s conduct was the conduct of a believer. It is well if what Paul says, “Let him that
thinks he stands take heed lest he falls” is taken as a serious warning.

Secondly, Lot was a wealthy man, Genesis 13:5-6. With wealth comes responsibility, problems,
and temptations. When Christians wonder why
God does not give them wealth they
should consider what comes with it. Not
having wealth can be a greater blessing than having it. The writer of Proverbs gives us the formula
for earthly possessions, Proverbs 30:7-9
7 Two things
I request of You
(Deprive me not before I die):
8 Remove falsehood and lies far from me;
Give me neither poverty nor riches—
Feed me with the food allotted to me;
9 Lest I be full and deny You,
And say, “Who is the LORD?”
Or lest I be poor and steal,
And profane the name of my God.

Lot’s wealth was always a source of fuel for his
covetousness. He never used it to serve
God. He was controlled by his desire to
have things and to gain more. His
failure to understand, or at the best to heed the danger of love for material
possessions, was a plague in his life that separated from God’s covenant
faithfulness would have slew him.

Thirdly, we are warned by Lot’s choice, Genesis 13:11. Lot made two mistakes that are always present
to the backslider. He chose what he
wanted and what he thought was best for him by a faulty standard, Genesis 13:10. The beauty of Egypt was a seductive standard
and a bad choice.

His choice, for whatever reason, was a bad one because it
led him away from the church. When Lot
separated from Abraham his declension was such a force in his life he could not
stop short of Sodom. He went from going
in that direction to living in Sodom.
There is really no stopping place between Sodom and the church. For believers who fall away from God’s church
Sodom is their next residence. Though
their discomfort there may be as Lot’s was in Sodom, their residence is not in
question.

Application:
Prosperity never comes without danger.
True prosperity is to be
satisfied with God’s provision.