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[0:00] The Lord's blessing will turn to the first part of scripture we read, the book of Genesis and chapter 19.

[0:30] And verse 24, Genesis 19 at verse 24. Then the Lord rained upon Sodom and upon Gomorrah brimstone and fire from the Lord out of heaven.

[0:46] And he overthrew those cities and all the plain and all the inhabitants of the cities and that which grew upon the ground. The Lord rained upon Sodom and upon Gomorrah brimstone and fire from the Lord out of heaven.

[1:06] Now as I indicated last week, I want to look with you at the destruction of the city of Sodom and indeed of the five cities of the plain.

[1:18] Sodom was one of five cities in a particular plain. And also at the two events associated with this destruction. First of all, there was Abraham's prayer for Sodom when he pled on behalf of the city with God.

[1:36] And secondly, Lot's remarkable deliverance out of Sodom. Lot was Abraham's nephew and he had made his home in Sodom. And before its destruction, God delivered him out of it.

[1:50] Now last week we looked to some extent at Abraham's prayer which he offered up for Sodom. And tonight I want to look with you as the Lord enables us at the destruction of this city by God.

[2:05] Now the destruction of Sodom and the deliverance of Lot from Sodom were both lessons for Abraham. God wished him to see both things in operation.

[2:18] The destruction of the city and also the deliverance of Lot. And there were two lessons there because God wished to impress firmly upon Abraham's mind what he wishes to impress on all our minds.

[2:32] And that is this, that he is determined to do two things. The Lord always has been and shall be determined to do these two things. First of all, to save his own people.

[2:43] And he will go to any length to save them. And also to destroy the wicked. Those who have not acknowledged him as God and King. These two things are in God.

[2:56] And always shall be to save and keep his own. And to condemn the wicked. And according to the New Testament, that is still what we are to learn from this incident.

[3:09] Because Peter says this, that if God turned the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah into ashes and delivered Lot, then he says, God knows how to deliver the godly out of trials.

[3:23] And also how to reserve the unjust to the day of judgment to be punished. In other words, the great principles of God's government of the world. And the great principles of his government of your soul and mine.

[3:38] Are seen in how he deals with that city. He destroys the wicked. And he delivers the godly. And that is God's work. And it shall be to the end of time.

[3:50] And that was an important lesson for Abraham himself to learn. I don't mean by that that he didn't know it before. But as I indicated in the morning, it's one thing to know something. It's another thing to feel it.

[4:02] And sometimes God brings a truth home to us which we knew with such power that it seems to be etched forever upon our minds. And I think for Abraham that came true when he stood that morning and looked at the smoking desolation that once was Sodom.

[4:19] And then he saw the salvation of his own nephew. Now I want to look with you at this condemned city. And to see why and how it is judged by God.

[4:33] Now I suppose the destruction of Sodom is something that we often hear about or think about. But always just in the passing. We never really give a sustained thought as to what was wrong with Sodom.

[4:46] And why it was the way it was. And why God sent this particular punishment upon it. So it might be profitable for us, especially in this day and age, to look more closely at what was wrong.

[4:59] Now Sodom, as I indicated, was one of five cities in the plain of the Jordan Valley. There was Sodom, Gomorrah, Seboam, Adma and Zohar.

[5:13] Five cities. The greatest of them by some way was Sodom. And the second greatest of the cities was Gomorrah. Now they were located in the very fertile plain of the Jordan Valley.

[5:27] Just to the south of the Dead Sea. And it was exceptionally fertile land. And Lot knew that some years before this. You remember when a strife came in between Lot's herdsmen and Abraham's herdsmen.

[5:42] They both became so wealthy and the amount of servants increased. And they began to fight. And Abraham said, there's no point in this. In case any strife comes between myself and yourself.

[5:53] You choose land for yourself. Take the land which you prefer. You choose it. And I will take the other land. And there you see the wisdom of Abraham. He's preventing strife before it happens.

[6:06] And Lot lifted up his eyes, we're told. And he immediately looked towards the Jordan Valley. And he saw the fertile, well-watered plains where Sodom and Gomorrah were. And we're told in chapter 13 that to him they looked like the fertile land of Egypt.

[6:22] Or even like Eden, the garden of God. Now it was very far from being Eden. But in terms of its land, that's how it looked. To Lot.

[6:33] Lot lifted up his eyes, we're told. Genesis 13.10. And beheld all the plain of Jordan. That it was well-watered everywhere. Before the Lord destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah.

[6:44] Even like the garden of the Lord. Like the land of Egypt. As thou comest unto Zoar. So it was very fertile land.

[6:56] Every city or all the five cities had kings set over them. And they were all kings who had to pay tribute to a Mesopotamian king.

[7:08] And at one point they rebelled. There was a rebellion. And the five kings of the cities grouped together. So that tells us that they were fairly close. And we'll come to that in a moment. They were fairly close.

[7:19] And they rebelled to throw off their tribute to this Mesopotamian king. And the leader of the kings. Or the chiefest of them all was King Bera of Sodom.

[7:31] Now this was a man that Abraham knew. He knew him personally. In fact when Sodom suffered a defeat at the hands of this eastern king. It was Abraham who went after these people.

[7:42] He took 300 of his own servants. And that tells you by the way the immense wealth that Abraham had. It tells you the standing he had in that place. He took 300 armed men. And chased the army.

[7:53] And delivered the men of Sodom. Including Lot. And the king of Sodom came to him. Offering him so many goods. And so many things. But Abraham said I won't take anything. He says.

[8:03] In case you say. That the king of Sodom. Has made me rich. So Abraham took nothing. But I'm sure he witnessed to that man there. So he knew him. He knew the king.

[8:15] And he knew many of the people. But of course Sodom. Became famous. Throughout the whole ancient world. Because of its sin. Not only was it the greatest of these five cities.

[8:28] In terms of what it was as a city. But it was the greatest in wickedness too. And when God judges Sodom. He judges it for its wickedness.

[8:40] And when God judges it here. He judges it as a signal. Or as a warning. Or a beacon. To you and to me. Because there's always a tendency in the heart of men.

[8:51] To think that God just doesn't mean it. When he says that he will judge. And it's remarkable how deeply ingrained that is in your heart. And mine. That God just will not judge.

[9:03] And that he does not know how to smite. And that's what Peter says in his second epistle. That this overthrow of Sodom. And the flood in Noah's day. Were brought on by God.

[9:16] To remind us that God's judgment is not lingering. And it is not sleeping. Anybody who thinks that God is asleep. And that he's letting so much go. And he will never deal with it. Is wrong.

[9:26] God will deal with it. He'll deal with me. And he'll deal with you. He'll deal with us all. And this overthrow of Sodom and Gomorrah. Is one shining beacon.

[9:37] In the history of the world. Which states that God will. And God must. Judge the world. And just sometimes. He breaks into history like that.

[9:48] Just to remind us. And so when we consider this. I want you not just to think of an old city long ago. But to think of a city today. And to think of a soul today.

[9:59] Because in the last analysis. What is a city. But a place full of souls. What is a group of people. But a collection of individuals. It was not a city that died.

[10:10] It was people. Individuals. That died. And they died under the judgment of God. So keep in mind. That we're talking here about death.

[10:22] And we're talking about God's judgment. Upon the wicked. Everywhere. Now I said Sodom is judged because of its sin. Now it was famous. Even in the old world.

[10:33] Because of its sin. Even when Lot chose Sodom. We're told. Straight away. That the men of Sodom. Were wicked. And sinners.

[10:44] Before the Lord. Exceedingly. And we're told. In chapter 18. And verse 20. That the sin of Sodom. Was very grievous.

[10:56] Now that word literally. In the Hebrew. Is heavy. Heavy. Their sin was heavy. I suppose in a way. It brings before us this idea. In Daniel.

[11:07] Chapter 5. Of things being put in the balance. When Sodom's sins were put in the balance. They were very heavy. And therefore they cried out to God.

[11:19] So Sodom. Had a kind of reputation. For sin. Just as some cities can have it today. For example. Amsterdam. Is known. To many people. Because of particular sins.

[11:30] Well that is the way that Sodom was. Even then. And the particular sin. For which it was renowned. Was of course. Sodomy. Or as Peter describes it.

[11:41] Or Jude it is. Going after strange flesh. Men burning in their lusts. For one another. That was the sin that particularly.

[11:52] Characterized Sodom. Now. When we say that that sin characterized this place. I think there are two things. That we have to notice about it.

[12:04] First of all. It was openly done. It was not done in a corner. But it was so much a part of their city life.

[12:15] That it was open. Out in the open. And the word of God is careful to tell us that. Because. In Isaiah. We're told this. And God is rebuking.

[12:26] His own people here. And he says this. They declare their sin. Like Sodom. And they hide it not. Now what does that tell you? Well it tells you not only that Sodom was full of sodomy.

[12:41] But that they boasted in it. Or they gloried in it. It was not something that they tried to hide. Or something that they felt at all ashamed about. But it was out. And it was out in the open.

[12:52] And then again you'll notice that not only was it out in the open. But it was prevalent. It was so widespread that we read this. In Genesis 19 verse 4 and 5.

[13:06] Now look at this. What it says here. Before they lay down. That's before they went to sleep. The men of the city. Even the men of Sodom.

[13:17] Compassed the house round. Both old and young. All the people. From every quarter. And they called to Lot and said. Where are the men which came to thee this night?

[13:28] Bring them out that we may know them. And of course you know that the word knowing is a euphemism. It means a physical knowledge. Or a carnal knowledge. They desired to bring them out to that end.

[13:40] Now notice how prevalent it is. It's said that all the men. From every quarter of the city. Both old and young. Gathered around the house of Lot.

[13:51] It brings before you a picture of a city that has lost control. Lost control. Lost control. There's no laws governing this kind of thing. If they were there they've gone.

[14:02] They've been written off the statute book. There's no one there who can control this kind of situation. It becomes lawless. As far as the lusts of the flesh are concerned.

[14:13] Now I want to stop there for a minute. Because this widespread nature of this sin in Sodom is very interesting. Because you hear as often as I do.

[14:24] That people can't help this. That people are born this way and that's just the end of it. Nobody can help it. Well I want to say a couple of things about that.

[14:36] First of all. Every sin is a complicated thing. Our souls are knit together to our bodies. In such a mysterious way that only God can join them.

[14:48] And only God can separate them. I cannot understand and neither can you the precise relationship between my body and my soul. My body is as corrupt as my soul.

[15:01] Sin is not just in one part of my being. Sin is in all my being. And you'll notice how often the apostle Paul speaks of sin as being in the body. He speaks of this body of sin.

[15:14] And the sin he says which is in my members. In other words my arms, my legs and every part of my body. The sin which is within me. Sin has devastated the whole man.

[15:26] Every part of me. My genetic structure. Everything. Sin has devastated me. As it has devastated you. And again we should remember this.

[15:37] That although the body and soul has such a close relationship. There is more to you than a body. Of course some people say that all that is in us is just a series of chemical reactions.

[15:51] We're just body. And we're all programmed by our genetic structures and so on. Well the word of God makes clear that we are more than just a body. You are more than chemistry.

[16:05] You are more than that. That God has breathed into your soul. Into your body as soul. As soul from himself.

[16:17] That is inside your body. And it is intertwined with your body. And you all have a soul. You all have a soul or spirit.

[16:28] And you stand before God with it. And you are accountable to God for what you do with it. If I was just blood and bones or chemistry.

[16:40] And if you were just that. Then nobody would be responsible for anything. You can see how that follows. If we're all just a whole series of chemical reactions. Then you can forget about law. Or about courts.

[16:51] Or about place. Or about blame. You can forget about love. Or about hatred. Or any of these things. Nothing matters anymore. If there is no value to what I do. There's no value to what you do.

[17:03] Then nothing means anything anymore. No. It does mean something. Because God has given us more than our body. We have our souls. And however closely related they are to the body.

[17:14] And however much the body affects my soul. And however much my soul affects the body. They are separate things. Only God knows how to join them. And only God knows how to separate them.

[17:27] And also this. The Bible teaches. That you can either resist sin. Or encourage it. However it appears. Or however it threatens in your body.

[17:40] However it manifests itself. God's word makes clear. That you can either resist that sin. Or you can encourage it. So that you are responsible. For what you do with the sin within you.

[17:52] If you see a sin arise. Or if you see anything arise. It's not enough to say. Well that's just my genetics. And I can't help it. And so here I go. That is not it. The word of God says that. Here is your standard of truth and righteousness.

[18:05] This is where you fell from. This is. In other words. We can abandon ourselves. And go head first into every kind of behavior. Or else we can resist it.

[18:18] And subdue sin. And the more you abandon yourself. The greater your condemnation. Now let's understand friends. That the Bible makes clear.

[18:29] That there are degrees. Of punishment. And there are degrees within a lost eternity. The more you reject. And the more you abandon yourself.

[18:40] And the more you resist God. And rebel against him. The greater your punishment. In a lost eternity. But there's only one thing. That will deliver you from sin.

[18:51] Not your own soul. It's not strong enough. Only the Holy Spirit of God. Coming into your life. Can give you the rule. Over sin. It won't eradicate it in this life.

[19:02] But it will give you the rule. No. Let's leave that there. And go to this. If. If.

[19:15] Our genes are responsible. For what we are. You explain to me. How come. The city of Sodom was like this. When other places weren't.

[19:27] How do you explain that? It seems to me quite obvious. That God has given us. This itself. To tell us. That it is not. Something. That we are just inevitably.

[19:38] Propelled into. But. That this homosexual behavior. Is an acquired behavior. That is encouraged.

[19:49] And flourishes. Under certain social conditions. That alone. That alone. Explains. How you have a city. Like Sodom.

[20:00] Or else. You explain it to me. That's the only explanation. That given a certain set of beliefs. And social conditions. This arises.

[20:12] And it flourishes. And it grows. And that is exactly. What we have. Before us here. In this city. We have.

[20:23] The breaking out. Of things. Of that kind. And I think it's important. To understand that. Because. Let's face it. If you just say. Well. People are born that way.

[20:33] Do you know what you're saying? You're saying that. It can never be me. It can never be me. Oh he's like that. Because that's the way he is. And that's it. Whereas if you look at it. The other way. Then again.

[20:44] You have to say. That there is nothing. Impossible. For a sinner. And that is what the Bible teaches. The Bible doesn't teach that here is a category of people.

[20:55] And they're so much worse than I could ever be. Bible never teaches that. The Bible always teaches. That without the grace of God. That is me.

[21:07] And that is the big difference between these two things. And it's very important that we understand it like that. That Sodom went this way. And it chose to go this way.

[21:17] And before it knew where it was. This was how Sodom existed. Now. You have to go back further. And you have to say. Well. What then were the conditions which gave rise to this.

[21:30] And I think this is where the whole thing becomes so interesting. And it becomes so revealing. Is there anything in the Bible to tell us. Anything about Sodom at all. Well the Holy Spirit scatters.

[21:42] Bits and pieces. Here and there through the scriptures. And I want to bring before you five or six things. That tell us. What Sodom was like. Or how Sodom got to this situation.

[21:53] First of all there's a verse in Ezekiel. Ezekiel 16 verse 49. And listen to what it says. This was the iniquity of Sodom.

[22:05] Pride. Fulness of bread. And an abundance of idleness. Neither did she strengthen. The hand of the poor and the needy.

[22:18] Notice. Doesn't there focus. On what I focused on a minute ago. Focus on something else. Pride. Fullness of bread. Idleness.

[22:30] And not strengthening the hand. Of the poor and the needy. No. I think the most logical place to start. Amongst all these. Is with fullness of bread. Prosperity. Now I'm not going to say that that's what caused Sodom to be like it is.

[22:44] But having an abundance of anything. Is always a dangerous thing. We always think of it as a good thing. But in the Bible. Not necessarily so. Friends. It depends what we do with it. Do we thank the Lord for what we have?

[22:57] Do we praise God for what he gives us? Do we acknowledge providence. And our goodness. And our mercy. And all the things that we enjoy. Very often not so. And it was not so with Sodom.

[23:08] They had fullness of bread. Now that means. That they had prosperity. But for them. That blessing. Became a curse. Now you remember.

[23:19] It was a well watered land. And it was very. Very fertile. And that meant that they didn't lack anything. They weren't dependent on. Any other place for charity or kindness.

[23:31] They were just extremely. Well off. And that leads us to something else. Ezekiel tells us there. Of their greed. They had no care.

[23:42] For the poor. And the needy. Now isn't that interesting. Along with the wealth. Which God gave them. This greed. This greed. Or selfishness. Came in.

[23:53] They became self. Centered. Obsessed with themselves. How I'm getting on. How I'm prospering. Never mind.

[24:04] Him out there. Or them. Over there. In that land. Or in that country. Just me. How can I advance. And how can we advance. And how can our children advance.

[24:16] And it's no surprise. That along with that. Ezekiel brings in. Pride. Pride. Pride in their achievements.

[24:27] And pride. In their wealth. As we have in another part of the Bible. By my strength. I have gotten these things. They began to feel this sense of independence. That they just didn't have needs.

[24:39] You know what that's like? Do we not see the same kind of characteristics in the world today? Do we not see it in our own cities. And in our own country? Just this sense of we've got everything.

[24:51] We don't really need. We're not dependent on charity. Or anything of that kind. We've got everything. And we'll be looked after. From the cradle. To the grave. By the strength of my hand.

[25:02] I have gotten these things. And all the time. There's this hard heartedness. At those on the outside. After all. What does it matter to us? That a lot of our wealth.

[25:15] Stems. From child labor. In other countries. What thought does that give us? When we buy our goods. And we buy them quite cheap. And we wonder how come.

[25:25] It's all so easy to come by. When there there are children. Six, seven, eight years old. Working 13, 14 hours a day. For a cup of rice. How much thought do we give to things of that kind?

[25:40] Well Sodom didn't care. Just didn't care. She was well off. And she was self-sufficient. And she didn't bother with the poor. Or with the needy. And then along with that.

[25:51] The Lord tells us a very interesting thing. An abundance of idleness. Now I'm going to get more personal in a while. But I want to keep it city-wide at the moment.

[26:02] An abundance of idleness. How does that come in? Well it came in like this. Along with their abundant wealth. There came increased time for leisure.

[26:16] They became lazy. To sustain their level. They just didn't have to work as hard. I mean we know. In our own island. There's been such a remarkable change.

[26:28] In a very short period of time. Things that came in. Perhaps over 50, 60 years. In other parts of the country. Seemed to come almost within 10 years here. You can all remember. How hard some people had to work.

[26:40] Just to live. But an abundance of idleness was found in Sodom. There was lots of spare time. Or lots of leisure. Now.

[26:52] It's interesting that when Christ is rebuking. The wicked servant. He calls him a wicked and slothful servant. Very often you find wickedness. And laziness.

[27:03] Going hand in hand. Now we seldom hear. As opposed to the sin of laziness. But laziness is a very dangerous sin. Why? Because it leads to other things.

[27:13] That's why. You look at the history of prosperous societies. And prosperous empires in the past. Look at Rome. Look at Greece. Look at how the opportunity for idleness arose.

[27:28] And the more time and the more leisure people had. The more they wanted to amuse themselves with it. Because the devil finds work. For idle hands to do. And as time went on.

[27:40] In these cities. Preeminently Rome. The amusements became more and more decadent. And more and more gross. The more you live for pleasure. The harder it is to please you.

[27:51] And that's the great conundrum at the end of the day. The more you yield yourself to the great God of pleasure. The more impossible you find it to serve him. More and more.

[28:01] And you need more and more. And the more debased the thing which pleases you. You've all heard of the bread and circuses in Rome. That's all they wanted. To be fed and to be amused.

[28:12] And at the end of the day they would be amused with nothing. But by real live people tearing each other apart. Torturing each other. And the crowds would roar their approval at that in the amphitheaters.

[28:25] And you wonder well how on earth did people get to such a state where they could be amused by that. Well because they just lived their lives in leisure. And for leisure. And you know personally friends I'm quite alarmed at the cult of leisure that is rising in our own nation.

[28:40] A cult. A leisure industry. As though people are living for time off. And time off becomes the big thing. Leisure becomes the end of the life.

[28:53] When it's so important what we do with the time and with the resources that God gives us. You know on news night recently I heard this man saying. He says he was relishing this.

[29:05] And this just shows you how far away people have gone from God. He says I'm looking forward to the day fairly soon. When almost everything will be robotic.

[29:16] And where we will have leisure all day round. Now my friends. He may have looked forward to that. But spiritually that's a disaster. For you or for me. A disaster.

[29:28] According to the scriptures. Work is for our good. And the moment a person lives for leisure. Leisure gets hold of him. Pleasure gets hold of him. And squeezes the life out of him.

[29:40] And there are people today who serve this great God. And you can never get satisfaction from him. Never. If you eat that bread. And if you drink that water. You'll forever thirst again.

[29:50] Forever. Unlike Christ. If you but come to the Lord Jesus Christ. You will never hunger and never thirst again. That is the answer.

[30:01] But so many people choose this path. And the problem is. Once you look to it. There's no end to where you go. And that is why eventually.

[30:12] You have this rise. In immorality and Sodom. Or sexual decadence. That took hold of the city. A gradual slide.

[30:23] Until you have this disaster. In the 19th chapter. Where the whole city. Gathers round the door. Banging at the door. Demanding for the men to be brought out.

[30:33] Is that some kind of perversion. That belongs to one or two people. Here or there. No. It is a possibility for everybody. And what is the doorway.

[30:44] That leads down to this. Well. You can go past idleness. Amusement. Entertainment. You can go to pornography. And when a person becomes a slave to that.

[30:57] Again. That is a slope. There's no sign. On that lifestyle. That says. No further. Stop here. No sign. It goes down.

[31:08] Down. Down. Until you read the list. In Leviticus 23. Of the things which are prohibited. And are abomination to the Lord. And here they are. In Sodom. And here they are.

[31:19] In our country. Are they legislated against? I'll come to that in a moment. The laws are disappearing. One by one. And last of all. They gloried. They declared their sin.

[31:31] And hid it not. And I think I should add this too. Along with all that. You know. Sodom had a contempt. For the Bible. Sodom had a contempt.

[31:43] For God. And a contempt. For the gospel. Abraham. Witnessed to the king. What did that change? Nothing. Went right to the top. And testified to God.

[31:54] Right to the top. With the king. Did it change anything? No it didn't. Lot went out at the last moment here. And he was preaching to everyone. To repent. And they seemed to him.

[32:05] Like one who mocked. He was like a madman. Even right at the end here. God smites the people. When they're going around the house. He smites them with a blindness. And it's an unusual Hebrew word.

[32:17] For a blindness. Which means to be dazzled. Confused. And even in that state. They still don't know. That God is speaking to them. They still can't hear the Lord. It's as though they've passed it.

[32:30] Insensible. And become hard. In their hearts. And notice. How you see all this here. Now we saw it in the narrative. The two strangers.

[32:41] Go down to Sodom. And they were the two angels. Who were with the Lord. Who appeared to Abraham. They make their way down. They go to the gates. Now here's Lot at the gate. And we'll come to Lot next week.

[32:52] But Lot's watching at the gate. And Lot takes these strangers. Immediately in with him. Because it's evening time. And Lot knows what the city is like. But it's too late.

[33:05] Before they retire to bed. Word has gone round. And I think by the way. That indicates that the people. At the gates of the city. Usually the most reliable. Were just as wicked as the rest.

[33:15] They say that the rulers. Often used to sit at the gates of cities. If so. Then the rulers were gone. They were a party with them. The wicked abound. The psalmist says.

[33:26] When vile men are exalted. Before it's time. To retire for the night. There's a lust. Ridden gang. Outside the door. And they're shouting at Lot.

[33:38] To release the two men. That they may. As I said. Know them. And as I said. It's widespread. Both old and young. All the people.

[33:49] From every quarter. Now this tells. Remember Abraham's prayer. If there are just ten. He says. Will you spare the city? God says. If there's ten. I'll spare the city. The fact is. That there's just no ten.

[34:00] Because very often. When God is going to judge a person. Or a city. Or anything. He removes things. He removes the gospel. And he removes his word. He removes witnesses away. And he just leaves the person.

[34:12] And there's a kind of mark of abandonment. Before God's hand strikes. And that's what you have here. There's no one left. One. And that one is about to be removed. They're all here.

[34:23] From every quarter of the city. All the men. They gather around the house. Notice how quick the word went round. From the gates. Through the city. Here are two men. Something new.

[34:33] Something different. Command them to come out. That we may know them. That is a city. Gone. And a city. Just about. God forsaken. And I'll tell you the saddest thing of all.

[34:45] It's that expression. That all the people. Old. And young. Came. From every quarter. Why is that so sad? Tell you why my friend.

[34:57] Because those who first went this way. Made sure that they brought up a whole generation like themselves. That's why it's sad. They brought up a whole generation. To be just like themselves.

[35:09] Both old and young. They came. To behave just like that. I just got a letter a couple of days ago. Saying that. Well. It's in the Queen's speech anyway.

[35:21] And it's. The bill is going there. And that's to lower the age. Of homosexual consent to 16. There's no stop signs here either. You. You get all the same old language.

[35:31] About we're all concerned. And all this. There's no stop signs on the road. How do I know that? Well. For a start. It's 12 in Holland. And I also know this. That the gay rights platform in America.

[35:42] Has written there. Into its very charter. That they wish to abolish. All ages of consent. For any homosexuality. Whatsoever. All ages of consent abolished.

[35:57] There's no stop signs. None. Both old and young. Gathered round the house. They raised up this generation. To be just like themselves.

[36:10] And is that not an alarming thought? Oh children. Oh children. The generation to come. Ourselves. We may have. Been taught differently.

[36:21] But what. Of the generation to come. What's going to happen. Will we not plead with the Lord. To change these things. Is it any wonder. That God just says.

[36:32] Enough. God says. Enough. It is time. And sure enough. His judgment falls. Now what about yourself my friend.

[36:43] You may have thought to yourself. Well. I'm not really like this. Well I know. Maybe not. But I want you to ask yourselves. These questions. With connection to Sodom.

[36:54] And to put them to your own life. For example. Has God given you a fullness of bread? If so. What do you do with it? Do you even do a simple thing. Like saying grace. Before your meal? Do you give God thanks.

[37:05] For what the Lord has given you. Fullness of bread. What about pride? What about self-sufficiency. And independence? Do you have sufficient respect.

[37:15] To desire to worship. And to know God. Or do you just live your life. Kind of independently. And you don't want God really. To interfere with your life at all. And you say to me. Well I wouldn't be here tonight. If I was like that.

[37:26] Well maybe you'll give the token. Part of coming to God's house. But are you really in it? I hope you are. And pray you are. Are you really in it. As someone who desires to be in it. And as someone desires to know.

[37:37] And to love. And to worship the Lord. That is the important thing. What about your leisure. That God has given you. Let's say he's given you an abundance. And maybe the constraints of work are not there.

[37:48] You have time. What is done with the time? What do you do with your time? Is it constant round of leisurely activity? Or is there a desire to pray.

[37:58] Or to glorify God. Or to read a good book. Or to talk to Christian people. Or to talk to an elderly Christian man or woman. Or to teach a young Christian boy or girl. Or to give your time to something in the church.

[38:10] Or something of that kind. Or is your leisure. Does it just increasingly consist of watching things. Getting videos. That are more decadent.

[38:21] The rating is higher. It's more explicit. And you can't be satisfied. You can't be satisfied. Are you not afraid that there's something growing in your heart. That is out of absolutely.

[38:32] Absolutely out of control altogether. Are you not afraid sometimes that you're ramping for the judgment. Of God? My friends. That was the path Sodom took.

[38:42] And it's a path. It's not just as though suddenly you come to a decision. That I'm going to be terribly wicked. It is a matter of just walking slowly. Down the broad road that leads to destruction. And like I say.

[38:53] There's just nothing on it. To tell you where it's ultimately going. But there's nothing stopping. The corrosive cancer of sin. Unless God in his grace. And in his mercy stops it.

[39:05] And above all. What is your attitude? To God. Is it hardening? Or is it softening? Are you just drifting away? Or are you coming nearer? To God. One day.

[39:16] God will say. It is enough. And he said it to Sodom. Now it's interesting. But Sodom. Was fertile. But it was sitting.

[39:27] In the midst. Of the seeds of its own destruction. And what I mean by that is this. There was danger. All around. All around. Right around the area.

[39:38] Of the fertile valley there. There was an abundance of brimstone. Now brimstone is an old word. It just means. Really sulfur.

[39:49] That's really what brimstone means. But particularly. The yellow. Sulfurous rocks. That were all around that area. Now you find that in areas of high volcanic activity.

[40:02] And the south of the Dead Sea is like that. It is a volcanic area. And there are yellow sulfurous rocks there. And big deposits of petroleum. Or bitumen.

[40:13] Scattered all over the place. And in these senses you see that in many respects. This was a time bomb. And God ordered that to be so. God ordered that to be so.

[40:24] Because he was going to do a great work of judgment here. In this particular area. God was going to show his judgment. One morning. The sun were told rose upon Zoar.

[40:38] Just like another day. But on that day were told that the Lord. Reigned upon Sodom and Gomorrah. Brimstone and fire out of heaven. The Lord.

[40:48] The Lord who sent fire upon the sacrifice of Elijah. The Lord who commanded fire to fall upon the sacrifice in the tabernacle. That God commanded fire. Fire went forth from him.

[40:59] And ignited these deposits. And ignited these rocks. So that there was a shower from God. That deluged the place. The whole place literally went up in flames.

[41:12] So that its smoke could be seen for days afterwards. And there was a horrible stench. You all know the smell of sulfur. Or many will have seen it in a science lab. The smell of sulfur. When it burns.

[41:22] How obnoxious the smell is. Well there was the smell of sulfur. And these deposits. Raining down upon the cities. So that all were destroyed.

[41:34] Except for Lot. And his two daughters. Who were taken out of the place. His wife you remember. Stopped. Looked back. We'll come to that next week.

[41:44] She was turned into a pillar of salt. That doesn't mean. Something like you'd see in a science fiction thing. Where she just changed into salt. What it means is that she was completely covered. By this ash.

[41:56] And she was just transformed in that kind of way. She was encased or enclosed. Into a pillar of salt. Because she stopped. And she looked. Her heart was in Sodom.

[42:07] It never got out of it. But Lot made it out. And so did his daughters. And they perished. And what is that a sign of for us?

[42:18] Well you'll notice in the Bible. That the fire. And the sulfur. Is always a sign. Of eternal judgment. From God. In fact.

[42:30] There's a verse. In Isaiah. And in chapter 30. That tells us that God's breath. Is sulfur. Isaiah 30.

[42:40] And verse. 33. It says this. Tophet. Now that is the pit. Tophet is ordained of old. God has made it deep.

[42:51] And large. The pile of it is fire and wood. And the breath of the Lord. Like a stream of brimstone. Doth kindle it. It is the breath of the Lord.

[43:04] That makes this pit. Burn. Burn. What is that telling us? Well it's telling us this awful truth. That a lost eternity. Is just experiencing the wrath of God.

[43:17] That is what it is. God's wrath. Against sinners. And make no mistake. That this is what the Bible teaches. For example. I'll bring before you some verses.

[43:28] In the revelation itself. We're told in Revelation 20. Verse 10. These things. That the devil was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone.

[43:40] Or fire and sulfur. Where the beast and the false prophet are. And they shall be tormented day and night. Forever and ever. Verse 15. Whosoever was not found written in the book of life.

[43:54] was cast into the lake of fire. The devil was cast into the lake of fire. Chapter 21. Verse 8. Listen to this. The fearful. The unbelieving.

[44:05] The abominable. Murderers. Whoremongers. Sorcerers. Idolaters. And liars. Shall have their part in the lake. Which burneth with fire and brimstone.

[44:17] And this is. The second death. The second death. Sodom and Gomorrah stands. As a great type. Of God's judgment.

[44:29] Upon the world. How different. How different to these. Listen. The tabernacle of God is with men. And he will dwell with them. And they shall be his people.

[44:41] And God shall be their God. And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes. And there shall be no more death. Neither sorrow. Nor crying. Neither shall there be any more pain.

[44:52] For the former things have passed away. You tell me. Why. You prefer. To go to the place of darkness. And sulfur and fire.

[45:04] Rather than to the place. Of blessedness. And of peace. No more sorrow. No more tears. You tell me why. Why is it? Christ is tonight.

[45:16] Stretching out his hands to you. Every one of you. Personally. And he is inviting you. To himself. Come unto me. He is inviting you.

[45:28] And if you are resisting that invitation. You are accepting another one. And you are accepting it. From those who have already. Made their home in that awful place. Tell me friend. Why.

[45:39] Why. Why. What is it? About this God pleasure. That makes you serve him. So slavishly. That you'll follow him. Right in there. The fact of the matter is.

[45:51] That if you live for pleasure. A day will come. When you'll never have any. But if you live for God. The day will come. When you will only have pleasure. Forever more.

[46:02] Now. Be wise. And be taught. All of us. Serve God. And kiss the sun. Before we perish. In his wrath.

[46:13] Now just. Finally. Abraham leaves. This place. And he has to command his children. With respect to what he sees. But he sees two things.

[46:23] He doesn't just see. Sodom destroyed. He sees his nephew. You saved. Now Abraham was worried about him. But God knows. How to deliver the godly.

[46:34] Even. When they have backslidden. And next week. God willing. We'll look. At how the Lord. Rescued Lot. And may he bless. This word to us. Let us pray.

[46:44] Our gracious God. We pray to recognize. That we live. In a great moral.

[46:55] And spiritual world. And that there is one over us. Who reigns. And who rules. Who has our own lives. And the world. In the very hand. And we pray.

[47:06] That we would yield ourselves. To thee. And come to a knowledge of Christ. That we might be saved. Why will ye die. O house of Israel. And we pray.

[47:17] That we would not perish. When we are surrounded. With bread. We ask thee to urge us. To make your calling. And election sure. And to strive. To enter in.

[47:27] At the straight gate. For Christ's sake. Amen. Amen. Amen.

[47:37] Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen.

[47:52]  Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen.