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By
Constance Darnell August 15,1999
There I was, 16 years old, Grand
Valley Mustangs Girls’ Track
emblazoned across my T-shirted chest. Coach Vilk had been
working with us for several weeks of training to whip us
into shape for our first meet. His favorite exhortations
came in short, passionate bursts:
“Run
your race!”
“Stay
in your lane!”
“Don’t
Look Back!”
If he said those words once, he said them ten thousand times. I felt ready
to run my race when the 100-yard dash was called. I got off to a great start
out of the blocks, was stretching out my stride and found myself in front.
That was good. I was in my lane. That was good. I was running my race. All
I could hear was the sound of my feet hitting the ground and the sound of my
own breathing. Coach Vilk’s words echoed in my brain as I neared the finish
line:
“Run
your race!”
“Stay
in your lane!”
“Don’t
Look Back!”
As I moved into my kick for the last few yards another sound intruded. It was
the sound of someone else’s feet hitting the ground right behind me! Coach
Vilk’s words flew out of my brain as I glanced back to see how close those
footsteps really were. I didn’t have to look back for long because Earlene
Hill (an incredibly tall brown-skinned girl with processed hair standing straight
up in the air and a wild look in her eye) was no longer behind me, she was
beside me; and then she was in front of me. Her long, brown leg and her T-shirt-clad
chest crossed the finish line first.
When the race was over, Coach Vilk came up to me. I expected him to chew me
out but he didn’t. He just said three words to me: “Don’t look
back”. That is the title of today’s teaching.
God Almighty always has your best interests at heart. Acting on God’s
will brings immediate and long-term profit. Only God sees the entirety of His
purposes from beginning to end. The scriptures contain all things that pertain
to life and godliness.
We will be looking today at one little scripture about one little person. Then,
we will go to the Old Testament to learn the background of that scripture.
After that, we will tie in the New Testament record, which makes this little
verse pertinent to our administration and our lives. Our key scripture is found
here in Luke 17:32.
Luke 17:32: -
Remember Lot’s wife
This verse of scripture is a figure
of speech: Exemplum Figures
of speech in the scriptures are God’s neon signs.
If your bible were equipped with computer graphics there
would be big explosions and flashing lights all around
this little verse. The figure, exemplum is an allusion.
Here, Jesus used it in reply to a question regarding when
the kingdom of God would come. It makes indirect reference
to an Old Testament story which Jesus’ listeners (the
Pharisees) were very familiar with. Let’s read the
immediate context:
Luke 17:28:
Likewise also as it was in the days of Lot; they did eat, they drank, they
bought, they sold, they planted, they builded;
29 But the same day that Lot went out of Sodom it rained fire and brimstone
from heaven, and destroyed them all.
30 Even thus shall it be in the day when the Son of man is revealed.
31 In that day, he which shall be upon the housetop, and his stuff in the
house, let him not come down to take it away: and he that is in the field,
let him likewise not return back.
While there is no doubt the Pharisees were very familiar
with the scriptures Jesus referred to, we would be wise
to look carefully into these Old Testament verses which
are for our learning:
Lot was Abram’s nephew
Genesis 12:1-5:
Now the LORD had said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy
kindred, and from thy father's house, unto a land that I will show thee:
2 And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make
thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing:
3 And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee:
and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed.
4 So Abram departed, as the LORD had spoken unto him; and Lot went with him:
and Abram was seventy and five years old when he departed out of Haran.
5 And Abram took Sarai his wife, and Lot his brother's son, and all their substance
that they had gathered, and the souls that they had gotten in Haran; and
they went forth to go into the land of Canaan; and into the land of Canaan
they came.
Abram (age 75) and his nephew Lot
set off on their journey. While Sarai was noted as Abram’s
wife, there is no mention of a wife for Lot. After a
foray into Egypt, it is noted that Abram is extremely
rich in livestock and in silver and in gold. Lot also
had flocks and herds and tents. Their wealth was such
that the land was not able to nourish and support them.
Because their possessions and herds were too great for
them to live together, there was strife between their
herdsmen. Abram suggested Lot separate himself. This
was a practical consideration, which was simply the most
logical course.
Abram was magnanimous with Lot. Lot looked and saw that everywhere the Jordan
Valley was well watered. The Amplified Bible says the area was, like the garden
of the Lord at that time. He went east, toward Sodom. Sodom means burning (and
they were). Verse 13 states...the men of Sodom were wicked and sinners before
the LORD exceedingly.
Lot’s senses assessment of the area set him on the path of least resistance.
It seemed the best course in the beginning.
Had we kept reading to Gen. 18:20, we would have read that God told Abraham, “the
cry of Sodom and Gomorrah is great.” This is another figure of speech
(personification), the people were not crying, the PLACE was (figuratively)
shrieking of the wickedness of the people. (Bullinger and the Amplified Bible).
II Peter 2:6
And turning the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah into ashes condemned them with
an overthrow, making them an ensample unto those that after should live
ungodly;
7 And delivered just Lot, vexed with the filthy conversation of the wicked:
8 (For that righteous man dwelling among them, in seeing and hearing,
vexed his righteous soul from day to day with their unlawful deeds;)
9 The Lord knoweth how to deliver the godly out of temptations, and to reserve
the unjust unto the day of judgment to be punished:
Lot was a righteous man. He was
greatly worn down by the insatiable wickedness of the
people of Sodom. Perhaps you have found yourself in a
situation at times in life, which seemed, at first, to
be right and good but which later became evil. It is
always your decision to turn from the path of least resistance
or conflict when that path diverges from God’s will
for your life. God is able to set before you a path of
righteousness for a clean escape from temptation no matter
what form it takes.
Psalm 52:1 states the goodness of God
endureth continually
Rom. 2:4 tells us the goodness of God
leads men to repentance
The name “Lot” means
covering. That is what God, in His goodness, did for
Lot and for his family. God has been covering and clothing
people since Adam sinned.
(i.e. animal skins in Eden, covering over the ark, cloud by day was a covering
for the children of Israel in the wilderness, sacrifices provided for covering
sins, Jesus Christ not only covered our sins with his life, death, and resurrection,
he paid the price for our sins and our sicknesses and covered us once for all
time.)
In Genesis 19, two angels come to town. Lot was a good host.
Gen. 19:1-10:
19:1 And there came two angels to Sodom at even; and Lot sat in the gate
of Sodom: and Lot seeing them rose up to meet them; and he bowed himself
with his face toward the ground;
2 And he said, Behold now, my lords, turn in, I pray you, into your servant's
house, and tarry all night, and wash your feet, and ye shall rise up early,
and go on your ways. And they said, Nay; but we will abide in the street
all night.
3 And he pressed upon them greatly; and they turned in unto him, and entered
into his house; and he made them a feast, and did bake unleavened bread,
and they did eat.
4 But before they lay down, the men of the city, even the men of Sodom, compassed
the house round, both old and young, all the people from every quarter:
5 And they called unto Lot, and said unto him, where are the men, which came
in to thee this night? bring them out unto us, that we may know them. (Fresh
Meat)
6 And Lot went out at the door unto them, and shut the door after him,
7 And said, I pray you, brethren, do not so wickedly.
8 Behold now, I have two daughters which have not known man; let me, I pray
you, bring them out unto you, and do ye to them as is good in your eyes:
only unto these men do nothing; for therefore came they under the shadow
of my roof.
9 And they said, Stand back. And they said again, This one fellow came in
to sojourn, and he will needs be a judge: now will we deal worse with thee,
than with them. And they pressed sore upon the man, even Lot, and came near
to break the door.
10 But the men put forth their hand, and pulled Lot into the house to them,
and shut to the door.
11 And they smote the men that were at the door of the house with blindness,
both small and great: so that they wearied themselves to find the door.
After this, the angels warned Lot to get himself and his
family out of Sodom. Lot went to his sons-in-law. They
thought he was talking nonsense because he was a pillar
of the community. He sat in the gate of Sodom as a judge.
He was a wealthy man with the admiration of the city. Why
would he ever want to leave all that?
Genesis 19:15-26:
15 And when the morning arose, then the angels hastened Lot, saying, Arise,
take thy wife, and thy two daughters, which are here; lest thou be consumed
in the iniquity of the city.
16 And while he lingered (dawdled), the men laid hold upon his hand, and
upon the hand of his wife, and upon the hand of his two daughters; the LORD
being merciful unto him: and they brought him forth, and set him without
the city.
17 And it came to pass, when they had brought them forth abroad, that he
said, Escape for thy life; look not behind thee, neither stay thou in all
the plain; escape to the mountain, lest thou be consumed.
(The angels were urgently pulling
them out the door and Lot starts STALLING! It had to
be a little like getting the kids out the door in time
for school in the mornings. “Let’s
go!” “Where are my shoes?” “I
need lunch money” “I forgot my saxophone!”)
18 And Lot said unto them, Oh, not so, my Lord:
19 Behold now, thy servant hath found grace in thy sight, and thou hast magnified
thy mercy, which thou hast showed unto me in saving my life; and I cannot
escape to the mountain, lest some evil take me, and I die:
20 Behold now, this city is near to flee unto, and it is a little one:
Oh, let me escape thither, (is it not a little one?) and my soul shall
live.
21 And he (the angel) said unto him, See, I have accepted thee concerning
this thing also, that I will not overthrow this city, for the which thou
hast spoken. (“OK, Get the saxophone, but hurry!”).
22 Haste thee, escape thither; for I cannot do any thing till thou be come
thither. Therefore the name of the city was called Zoar (little).
23 The sun was risen upon the earth when Lot entered into Zoar.
24 Then the LORD rained upon Sodom and upon Gomorrah brimstone and fire from
the LORD out of heaven; figure of speech: idiom of permission)
Note: The result of the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah has been
compared to the impact of a nuclear bomb. Geologists Graham Harris and Anthony
Beardow wrote in the December, 1995, Quarterly Journal of Engineering Geology
that the area was probably destroyed after an earthquake liquefied the rocks
and soil the cities were built on. Mr. Harris is also quoted, “The only
way you can really lose whole cities and whole tracts of land fast is by liquefaction..”.
Mr. Harris and Mr. Beardow theorize the large deposits of bitumen ignited during
the earthquake and the fire helped to destroy the city[1]
Young’s Concordance defines “brimstone” as “flaming bitumen”.
I have no problem with the findings of the geologists. They are not measuring
an act of the true God. It’s the idiom of permission. They are measuring
and observing the works of the adversary after the true God’s people and
protective covering had been removed from the evil cities.
II Peter 2:6
And turning the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah into ashes condemned them with an
overthrow, making them an ensample unto those that after should live ungodly;
The words “turning to ashes” are one word “tephroo”,
which means “to incinerate”.
Genesis 19:25
And he overthrew those cities, and all the plain,
and all the inhabitants of the cities, and that which
grew upon the ground.
26 But his wife looked back from behind him, and she became a
pillar of salt.
God’s messengers had taken Lot and his wife and his daughters by the
hand to bring them out of the evil city of Sodom. They specifically told them
to get moving and DO NOT LOOK BACK. Lot’s wife had been led out of Sodom
by the hand by angels who had, just
hours before, proven their tremendous power by dazzling the Sodomites to blindness
and saving her husband and daughters from them. Those same angels enthusiastically
encouraged Lot and his family along the path to Zoar and unmistakably exhorted
them to escape for their lives. Lot was already in Zoar. Mrs. Lot was lingering
behind--somewhere between “the grave and the glory” in the misty
salt flats between the outskirts of Sodom and Zoar. Despite what the angels
had said, she just was not sure this could possibly be God’s will for
her life. She heard the explosions, perhaps felt the heat on her back, perhaps
even heard the cries of her neighbors. Mrs. Lot was at the crossroads of her
life. This was the defining moment in her story. She could have come out of
the crucible of this experience refined, as pure gold, precious in the sight
of God.. But, instead of obeying God’s messengers and getting on with
the rest of her life honorably, Lot’s wife looked back longingly to where
her heart’s interests and desires truly lay...BOOM!
The word “pillar” is also translated “monument”. Lot’s
wife was already out of the evil city. Had she kept moving ahead as God’s
messengers had clearly directed, she would have remained under the protective
covering of her loving heavenly father. Instead, she “forgot” the
word of God and took herself out from under His loving protection. Lot’s
wife became a monument to her lack of commitment to the true God, and an example
for all time of one who refuses to move ahead when the time for decisive action
has clearly come.
I will never know if I could have won the 100-yard dash that day back in Grand
Valley. I looked back, and I lost. I do know, however, that had Mrs. Lot kept
her thoughts on the word of God, which His messengers had clearly delivered,
she would have won her dash across those ancient plains.
From Zoar, Lot and his daughters fled to the mountains where their incestuous
relations led to the conception of the Moabites and the Ammonites. One may
conjecture that had Lot’s wife obeyed and lived, she would have thought
of some more conventional way to keep Lot’s bloodline alive. From the
bloodline of the Moabites eventually came Ruth, a truly stellar woman. Ruth
reunited the Christ line with Israel when she followed her mother-in law, Naomi,
back home from Moab and married her kinsman redeemer, Boaz, in the Book of
Ruth.
Mrs. Lot was still a part of the Christ line via her daughters. However, she
was on the “knucklehead” side of the ledger. God’s purposes
will come to pass with or without your help. However, God’s instruction
is always that we choose life
Deuteronomy 30:19:
I call heaven and earth to record this day against
you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing
and cursing: therefore choose life, that
both thou and thy seed may live:
v.20 That thou mayest love the LORD thy God, and that thou mayest obey his
voice, and that thou mayest cleave unto him: for he is thy life, and the
length of thy days: that thou mayest dwell in the land which the LORD sware
unto thy fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, to give them.
Life is so much sweeter when we
walk hand in hand with our heavenly Father. Only God sees the entirety of
His purposes from beginning to end. You have been covered
by the good God who so loved you that He gave His only
begotten son that you might have life and that you might
have it MORE abundantly. God never takes off that
covering. Only you can remove it by dwelling on the past;
by fear, doubt and worry; by grieving over “what might
have been”. Then you find yourself out in the misty
salt flats with the statue of Mrs. Lot shouting, “I
could have been a contender”.
It’s not too late for you to be a contender. Today is a new day. Thought
by thought, the time for decisive action has clearly come. Our lives have everlasting
impact when we continue to press toward the mark
Philippians 3:12-13.
Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended:
but this one thing I do, forgetting those things, which
are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which
are before,
v14 I press toward the mark for the prize of the
high calling of God in Christ Jesus.
That’s our calling. We put on the mind of Christ
and keep putting one foot in front of the other. When you
remember Lot’s wife you remember that your responsibility
is to turn your thoughts to God’s will and it is God’s
responsibility to turn even the course of nature if necessary
to provide you a path of safety and plenty. (Your thoughts,
God’s power) God Almighty always has our best interests
at heart. You are pure gold to Him. And only God sees the
entirety of His purposes from beginning to end. The value
of our faithful adherence to the truth will be a benefit
immediately and ultimately.
Remember Lot’s wife and DON’T LOOK BACK!
[1]
The Capital January, 1996 London (AP) Earthquake
hit Sodom, Gomorrah
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