“Just as it was in the days of Noah, so also will it be in the days of the Son of Man. People were eating, drinking, marrying and being given in marriage up to the day Noah entered the ark. Then the flood came and destroyed them all.
“It was the same in the days of Lot. People were eating and drinking, buying and selling, planting and building. But the day Lot left Sodom, fire and sulfur rained down from heaven and destroyed them all.
“It will be just like this on the day the Son of Man is revealed. On that day no one who is on the roof of his house, with his goods inside, should go down to get them. Likewise, no one in the field should go back for anything. Remember Lot’s wife! (Luke 17:26-32)
In what is one of the shortest verses in the Bible, Jesus tells his disciples to “Remember Lot’s wife!” He is reminding His disciples about the story in Genesis 18-19 about the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah. This story is where we get the expression “fire and brimstone.” And yet this story is much more a story about God’s merciful salvation of his people than it is of just judgment. God sent His angels to warn Lot and his family to get out of Sodom before He destroys it.
Lot’s sons-in-law thought it was a joke and they perished with the city. Lot himself hesitated, perhaps wondering if he still had time to come up with his own plan. But Genesis 19:16 says: When he hesitated, the men grasped his hand and the hands of his wife and of his two daughters and led them safely out of the city, for the LORD was merciful to them.
All of us can recall the times that we recognized that we needed a Savior. And as we look at our lives, we see that Jesus literally grasped our hands and led us out of the destruction that would come if our sins were judged.
The only question for us now is where are we looking? Forward or backward? Lot’s wife’s failure was that she looked back. “But Lot’s wife looked back, and she became a pillar of salt.” Why did she look back? Because her heart was still in Sodom. Maybe she was thinking about her house and possessions that were being burned up. Or her future sons-in-law that thought the angels’ warnings were so funny. Maybe she was reminded of the good times in Sodom. The message from the angels was clear: Don’t look back! Jesus had the same message for His disciples then and now: “No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for service in the kingdom of God.” (Luke 9:62)
How do we “look back”?
One of the great hallmarks of the people of faith is that they look forward. In Hebrews 11, it says of Abraham, “For he was looking forward to the city with foundations, whose architect and builder is God.”
2 Peter 3:13 says, “But in keeping with his promise we are looking forward to a new heaven and a new earth, the home of righteousness.”
Let’s not make the mistake of Lot’s wife. Let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith!
Elder Scott Ashman
When: Friday, May 9th 7-9 pm All kids in grades 1-5 are invited…
Wednesday, May 21st at 7 pm
Saturday, June 21st—11 am to 6 pm Save the date! This year’s picnic…
Service Opportunities