REMEMBER

LOT’S

WIFE

Luke 17:32

 

Luke 17:32 isn’t a very long verse, but it contains a warning to saved people lest they be like Lot’s wife.

First of all, this verse began when Jesus answered a question from the Pharisees. In verse 20, they had asked when the Kingdom of God should come. Jesus told them that the kingdom didn’t come with observation, but that the kingdom was within them. In verse 22, Jesus began to explain to the disciples (apparently the Pharisees had left) that there would come a day when they would desire to see one of the days of the Son of Man, but they wouldn’t see it. He told them of a time when many deceivers would come into the world, professing that the kingdom was in this place or that place. Jesus told them not to believe these deceivers, but to understand that He would first be rejected by that generation, and there would come a time of great wickedness. The wickedness would be as it was in the days of Noah. People would be eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the very day that Noah entered into the ark, then destruction would come upon them. The wickedness would also be as it was in the days of Lot. The corruption in that day would continue until the very day Lot was taken out of the city and the city destroyed. In verse 31, Jesus warns the disciples that every true follower of God must be ready. The return of the Lord will leave no time for anybody to prepare. Next, comes the verse before us, "Remember Lot’s wife".

There is no doubt in my mind that we are living in the last part of the last days. The return of the Lord is very near, even at the door. It is at this time that the warning, "Remember Lot’s wife," is given to us.

Why should we remember Lot’s wife? What about her is to be a lesson for us today?

1. She belonged to an excellent family. As far as I can tell, there is no way of knowing exactly when she and Lot were married. It seems Lot was not married in Genesis 11:31 when Terah, Abraham, Sarai, and Lot left Ur of the Chaldees and went to Haran. In Genesis 12:5, Abraham, Sarai, Lot and the souls they had gotten at Haran left to travel to the land of Canaan. There are two reasons I believe Lot married at Haran or shortly thereafter.

(1) He had at least four grown daughters when he lived at Sodom. At least two daughters had married and two were unmarried. Gen. 19:14, Lot spoke to his sons in law who married his daughters. "And Lot went out, and spake unto his sons in law, which married his daughters, and said, Up, get you out of this place; for the LORD will destroy this city. But he seemed as one that mocked unto his sons in law." He didn’t speak to his sons, probably because he didn’t have any sons. These plural words (sons in law, and daughters) mean Lot had at least two married daughters. Gen. 19:8 states that Lot had two unmarried daughters. "Behold now, I have two daughters which have not known man..." This gives Mr. and Mrs. Lot at least four daughters and at least two sons in law, Gen. 19:12. All of his daughters were old enough to bear children. Two were already married and two bore children by Lot while they were in the mountain. The age of his children is unknown.

(2) Now notice the time period involved. When Abraham left Haran, he was 75 years old, Gen. 12:4. He was 100 years old when the promised child was born, Gen. 17:17. This makes 25 years between the time Lot left Haran with Abraham and the destruction of Sodom in Gen. 19. For Lot to have four grown daughters in this twenty-five year period indicates he probably married while at Haran, or very shortly thereafter.

All of this may seem very complicated and unnecessary to understand until we realize that Jesus said we ought to remember Mrs. Lot. Apparently He wanted us to learn all we could about her.

2. Mrs. lot had seen many blessings from God. She knew Abraham, had probably eaten at his table and heard devotions, for she was well acquainted with this holy family God had called to become the great nation of Israel. But in spite of this closeness with Abraham, she failed to understand the true meaning of faith.

3. There came a day when Lot and his wife made a decision that would affect their entire family. They looked on the well-watered plains of Sodom. They probably knew the wickedness of the city, but because of riches, the comfort of a lovely home, and social prestige they moved into a city known for its shameless, incontinent, impious, vile, rotten, immoral behavior. She decided to raise her children in the midst of this exceeding wicked city. Do you suppose she thought her children wouldn’t be exposed to its sin? Do you suppose she thought her children wouldn’t fall into the sin they mixed with every day? Lot and his family moved into the city, but it wasn’t long before the city moved into their hearts.

4. Mrs. Lot was warned. Abraham faithfully prayed that God would spare the city, even if there were only 10 righteous souls in it. The angels entered the city and showed their power by striking blind the homosexuals that surrounded the house that night. We cannot say she didn’t believe the warning given by the angels. She didn’t mock like her sons in law. She believed, but she lingered. As the destruction came closer and closer, she lingered. The only reason she left the city was because the angels took her by the hand and led her away.

Please, are you a believer in the coming judgment of God? Do you believe you will pay for all your sinfulness at the hand of God one day? Do you believe these things enough to come out of that wickedness and begin to serve the living God? Will you be like Mrs. Lot, who lingered while death was on her heeds?

5. Mrs. Lot had only one command from God. "Look not backward." This ought to be a very simple thing to do to save her life, but her heart was not in saving her life. Her heart was back in Sodom, back in her house, back with the chores she had planned to do that day, back with the pleasures that lifestyle offered.

Why did she look back? She had a divided will. She was still in love with Sodom, even though she knew God was going to destroy it because of wickedness. There were two voices calling her. The voice of God called her to the highlands, to liberty, to salvation, to purity of life. The voice of Satan called her to the sin of Sodom, to the popularity of society, to the destruction of God. She had been yielding to the voice of Satan, so she did the natural thing. She yielded to the voice she was in the habit of yielding to. She yielded to the flesh, forgetting the blessings of God.

We are now in a great day of testing. We are living in the very last of the last days. Christ will return at any moment. Destruction is before the wicked. What will you do? Will you continue in the way of sin, knowing and believing that sinners will be judged of God, yet lingering on the brink of death and destruction? Will you not listen earnestly to the warning given by God? Will you turn from your sins and begin to serve the living God in the way you know He desires you to? Will you confess the half heartiness that has come into your heart and life? Will you ask God to help you love righteousness and hate iniquity? Will you pray that God will open your eyes to the ruin of your life that he might bring true lasting happiness into the days you have remaining on this earth? Won’t you do this now?

Luke 17:32, "Remember Lot’s wife".

September 10, 1987

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