Great Outcry

Have you ever given much thought to the story of Sodom and Gomorrah? These are the two cities that God destroys because of their incredible sin. Before deciding what to do with the cities, God says these words in Genesis 18:20-21:

“Then the Lord said, ‘The outcry against Sodom and Gomorrah is so great and their sin so grievous that I will go down and see if what they have done is as bad as the outcry that has reached me. If not, I will know.’”

There are two things I get from this passage. First, if you are in a place of helplessness or abuse and are crying out to the Lord but feel as if your situation isn’t changing, remember that it was because of the outcry from these cities that God chose to personally investigate. God hears your cry and is sympathetic to your situation. God loves you and will not leave you in that place if you put your trust in him. And if you are away from him, even if you have a bitter attitude, I implore you to turn to him. Secondly, have you heard preachers say, “If God doesn’t punish America for all of its sins then he will have to apologize to Sodom and Gomorrah?” I’ve heard that said. And I’m not saying that America isn’t in a bad place and getting worse every year, but I would argue that we aren’t as bad as Sodom and Gomorrah… at least not yet. If you don’t believe me, read the story. Men from all throughout the city saw two innocent foreign men enter and they gathered to forcefully break down the door and gang rape these men. Think about it… our word Sodomy comes from the story of Sodom. This was evil to the extreme, and as you read the whole story it gets even worse. Tell me, where in America do we condone that type of behavior? We don’t. I’m not saying that we are a Godly nation with Godly leaders, but to compare us to Sodom and Gomorrah is misleading at best. We need to continually pray for our leaders and lawmakers, so that we don’t go so far off the tracks that we ever consider condoning the public evils that we read about in this story.

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The story of Sodom and Gomorrah is an interesting one. In it, we learn that God is well aware of what’s happening on his planet and hears the cries of the abused and broken hearted. We also learn that the evil condition of those two cities is at a level that I haven’t seen in my lifetime; at least not in America. Rape is still against the law even if sodomy is not. Maybe their condition is more comparable to Hitler and the holocaust, or nations where worshipping Jesus can mean your death, but not America. Yes, evil happens in America, but in general, the inhabitants of our country do not condone it. And the level of public abuse that we read about in Sodom and Gomorrah are currently rejected in the United States. So, comparing our nation to those cities, yes, even Las Vegas, the acclaimed “sin city”, in my opinion, does not compare to the biblical account of those two cities.

Rule Over It

I’m in the process of reading through the Bible again. And as I began, a verse from Genesis 4:7 got my attention. It says:

“If you do what is right, will you not be accepted? But if you do not do what is right, sin is crouching at your door; it desires to have you, but you must master it.”

Another version says, “but you must rule over it”. Even as early as the days of Cain and Abel, God explains about sin. If it were easy to control our sinful desires, most everyone would be sin free. But the truth is that it isn’t easy, especially for those of us who are being mastered by it. God tells Cain that he must master, or rule over, sin; that it is crouching at his door and that it desires to have him. Although it isn’t easy to rule over sin, at least we know where it is. It is at our door step. I believe there is truth to the phrase, “knowing is half the battle”. Sin shouldn’t always take us by surprise. If we know where it is, we should be able to prepare for it. And if we can prepare for it, we should be able to rule over it. I don’t believe that we can, or even have to, do this on our own. The Holy Spirit is there to help us every step of the way.

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God tells Cain that sin is crouching at his door, that it desires to have him, but that he must master, or rule over, it. I believe this is a verse that we can apply to our lives as well. Right after this verse we read that Cain kills Abel out of envy. Let us not have these words fall on deaf ears, but let’s take them to heart. God wouldn’t tell us that we must rule over sin if it weren’t possible. Even if it feels impossible through your own efforts, remember another biblical truth; that nothing is impossible with God. I encourage you to pray to him about any sin that has mastered you. The Holy Spirit can help turn the tables if you really want things to be different.

Disgrace For The Name

If you have the choice of being disgraced or not, you’d probably choose not. But what if you are disgraced because of your belief in Christ? Disgrace is not such a bad thing if it is for the right reason. In Acts, after the apostles defended the spreading of the gospel, ultimately following what God wanted them to do over what the Pharisees wanted them to do, chapter 5, verse 41 says this:

“The apostles left the Sanhedrin, rejoicing because they had been counted worthy of suffering disgrace for the Name.”

And that name, of course, is Jesus. One of my favorite portions of scripture supports this notion. It’s found in Matthew chapter 5 verses 11 and 12 which says:

“Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.”

The apostles knew that they would be counted blessed when suffering disgrace for the name of Jesus, because he had revealed this to them earlier. I think we need to remember that as well. It is human nature to want to keep ourselves from persecution. Though when it is for Christ’s sake, it can be a good thing. When we are treated badly because of our belief in him we should rejoice, because great is our reward in heaven.

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The apostles rejoiced for being counted worthy to suffer disgrace for the name of Jesus. We hear all of the time about the consequences for doing something wrong. But sometimes there are consequences for doing what is right. The difference is that when you do something wrong, you most likely deserve your punishment. And when you do something right, especially if ends in disgrace for the name of Jesus, you are rewarded.

In Jesus' Name

Have you ever wondered why some people end their prayers with, “in Jesus’ name I pray”? If you read John chapter 16, verses 23 and 24, you’ll learn that this practice is biblically based. In it, Jesus says: 

“I tell you the truth, my Father will give you whatever you ask in my name. Until now you have not asked for anything in my name. Ask and you will receive, and your joy will be complete.”

Jesus tells us that God will give us whatever we ask in his name. He continues by saying, “Until now you have not asked for anything in my name. Ask and you will receive.” Some people who pray in Jesus’ name may be doing so because that is the way they have been taught to pray, but those of us who are familiar with these verses realize that there is scriptural support for praying this way. Does this mean that if we don’t pray in Jesus’ name that our prayers won’t be answered? I doubt it. But I’d be the wrong person to ask because I always end my prayers “in Jesus’ name”, almost like a stamp you’d put on a letter. The postage ensures that your letter will get to its destination. And whether right or wrong, I plan to continue to seal my prayers by praying “in Jesus’ name”.

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Jesus, himself, supports the idea that when we pray, we should pray in his name. He mentioned this when he was telling his disciples that he would no longer be with them. If he told his disciples to pray in his name, don’t you think it might be a good practice that we should follow as well? If you’ve been praying this way, then great. But if you haven’t, I challenge you to begin praying in Jesus’ name. It is just another form of obedience spoken to us, by Jesus himself.

Falling Pride

You may have heard the phrase, “pride comes before the fall”. If you have, you may be surprised to know that it is actually a biblical proverb from the book of Proverbs. In chapter 16, verses 18 and 19 it says: 

“Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall. Better to be lowly in spirit and among the oppressed than to share plunder with the proud.”

Have you ever wondered why this is true? Why pride can bring someone down? I think it is because we, as believers, should know that every good thing in our lives comes from the Father. And no one can share glory with the Father. If you read the Bible, you’ll realize that several people, even kings, when they tried to take credit for something God did died, or was severely punished, because of it. When we are prideful, we are taking credit for something that we have no right to claim. We puff ourselves up believing that it was our effort and ingenuity that brought about something good in our lives when in fact, God is the one to be praised because of it. Just as quickly as God can bring something wonderful in our lives, he can also take it away. And there is no greater humbling than to fall from a place of pride.

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We shouldn’t minimize the danger of pride. It is an unassuming sin because it doesn’t seem to affect anyone else or stand out among the more grievous sounding sins. But God hates a prideful heart, and he will share his glory with no one. So I encourage you to remember that when something good happens in your life, either as a result of something you’ve done directly or indirectly, give God the praise. He is the author of our destiny and the bringer of all that is good. To believe that the blessings given to us occur because of our own efforts is arrogant, prideful, and contrary to what the Bible teaches us. By recognizing God when things go well, we keep our pride in check, and we give glory to where glory is due.