The Holiness and Righteousness of Lot

We have seen in my other postings that the purpose of the sanctification process is to make one holy - not only holy, but also righteous. A holy person is also a righteous person. According to the Nelson's Bible Dictionary "righteous living" means "holy and right living according to God's standard".

Let us study the life of an Old Testament character.

Lot was quite a unique person. Abraham gave Lot the choice of land, and Lot chose the well-watered furtile land of Sodom as opposed to the rocky hill country where Abraham dwelled (read Gen. 13). This shows that Lot was a type of carnal, fleshly and worldly person, walked by sight and not by faith in contrast to Abraham, a man of faith. But, in the sight of God he was a righteous man.

"He (God) rescued Lot, a righteous man, who was distressed by the filthy lives of lawless men (for that righteous man, living among them day after day, was tormented in his rughteous soul by lawless deeds he saw and heard)" (2 Peter 2:7, NIV, emphasis added).

I believe Lot was considered righteous because he feared God and walked right with God. Lot was also considered godly because "the Lord knows how to rescue godly men (such as Lot) from trials" (2 Peter 2:9).

Lot did a few things that pleased God, but first let us look at the sins of Lot.

Lot's sins

1. Lot lived by sight and not by faith in contrary to 2 Cor. 5:7.

2. Lot gave in to temptation in the beginning because of his fleshly desire. At first the only "pitched his tent toward Sodom" (Gen. 13:12). But, later on he became comfortable and "dwelt" in Sodom (Gen. 14:12).

3. Lot "was sitting in the gateway" of Sodom (Gen. 19:1). In Old Testament time only a high government official had the authority to sit at the gateway of a city. In a sense, he was found "unequally yoked together with unbelievers" (2 Cor. 6:14). Lot must have compromised his standing with God - like a christian politician working in a wicked city or country at the present time.

4. Lot failed to obey God. He lived contrary to Psalms 1:1 "Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor stand in the path of sinners, nor sits in the seat of the scornful"

Paul said, "Do not be deceived: 'Evil company corrupts good habits.'" (1 Cor 15:33).

Lot's righteous acts

1. Lot showed hospitality to strangers and literally entertained the angels of God (Hebrews 13:2).

2. Lot offered to sacrifice his two virgin daughters' honour to save his special guests. Lot knew that they were angels because he "bowed himself with his face toward the ground" when he first met them (Gen. 19:1). To offer his daughters might not be the righteous act, but he knew those homosexuals would not harm his daughers. This was an act of mercy towards the angels that pleased God (James 2:13). His priority was right before God.

3. Lot walked right with God and pleased God while dwelling in Sodom. God knew Lot's heart because in the midst of the wicked, he was tormented but did not give in to temptation (2 Peter 2:8). A wicked person would give in to temptation.

God's mercy on Lot

1. God was faithful to Lot and provided him a way of excaping temptation while Lot was dwelling in Sodom (1 Cor 10:13).

2. God delivered Lot out of temptation (2 Peter 2:9).

3. God's mercy on Lot triumphed over His judgement because Lot had shown mercy to the angels of God (James 2:13).

Intercession of Abraham

Notice that both God and Abraham agreed that Lot was a righteous man. Genesis 18:22 says Abraham "stood before the Lord" while the two angels went on their way to judge Sodom. In other words, Abraham stood between the Lord and the city of Sodom, the object of God's impending judgement. This is a perfect example of intercession. Notice that intercession is very different from supplication and the prayer of petition. The real purpose of intercession is not for us to get God to do what we want. We intercede because we want to become instruments to God to do what He wants. Notice that Abraham did not beg for God's mercy on Lot - which is supplication. All Abraham did was reasoned with God (Isaiah 1:18) and God agreed with Abraham that Lot was righteous. What pleased God most was Abraham had conviction of God's absolute justice.

I believe the Lord knew the heart of Abraham and delighted in his intercession. The two angels were already on their way to Sodom to test Lot and to save him if he was found blameless. A law of God is - "The soul who sins shall die" (Ezekiel 18:20,21).

Finally, what I want to emphasize is that the whole episode of Lot, Sodom and Abraham's intercession paints an accurate picture of the real-life situation some christian families are facing now.

This is how I understand it:

Our son (or daughter) - a type of Lot - leaves home to study or work in a distant city that offers great opportunities - a type of Sodom. It is the responsibility of the father - a type of Abraham - to intercede for him whenever possible. There are many cities all over the world fit the description of Sodom and Gomorrah. Homosexual activities may not be the only sin. What about sexual immorality and other sins or moral blemishes listed in 2 Tim. 3:1 - 5? It is certainly very easy for a christian to fall and give in to temptation. Surely we want our children to walk in holiness and righteousness with the strength of God to resist all forms of temptations. The intercession of the father will certainly help.