Genesis 18:16-33 (ESV)
v. 16-19 – With the meal and family conference over, the three guests rose from supper and looked toward Sodom. Perhaps, Abraham could discern Sodom’s doom. As the four walk toward the cursed city, the LORD hesitated, looking to Sodom and to Abraham. The Holy Spirit revealed the thoughts of God on this matter. God invested the unfolding of history in this one elderly man. Abraham was in control of his family and exercised authority over everyone who owed their allegiance to him. The LORD said to Himself: “I have chosen him…..I know him….I have known him….” The LORD was making him the man of His choosing and delight.
v. 20-22 – After taking counsel with Himself, the LORD disclosed to Abraham what He was about to do with Sodom. Their sins were so offensive, the stench had reached up to heaven, and God came down in person to investigate the nature and extent of their godless defiance. What were their sins? The prophet Ezekiel (over 1000 years later) listed the 5 count indictment against the Sodomites. Found in Ezekiel 16:48-50….pride, abundance and carefree ease, neglect of the poor and needy, haughtiness (e.g. arrogance), and sexual abominations. God shares His intent with Abraham, lingering with His chosen man, perhaps even as the two other heavenly visitors disappear in the distance continuing toward Sodom. And Abraham took up a position before the LORD, perhaps distressed over Lot being in that place. He stood between the living and the dead, prepared to plead for Sodom because of Lot. It was holy boldness. Abraham is now more Christlike than ever. He had become a mediator between God and men. I imagine Abraham standing there, arms outstretched to block His way to Sodom.
v. 23 – A brief Christian history lesson….it was studying Genesis 18 that taught George Muller, one of the important keys of prayer, which he deployed for decades in the establishment of a ministry to house, educate, and evangelize 10,000 orphaned children. He never asked anyone for money. He only pleaded the needs of the ministry to God. He constantly reminded the Lord that the children belonged to the Lord and were His responsibility, as the Father of the fatherless. Since it was God’s work, He was bound to provide for it. Failure to provide would diminish the glory of the Lord. So, he prayed and prayed and prayed and received the currency and inflation-adjusted equivalent of many millions of dollars, solely in answer to prayer. And so Abraham prayed!
Follow Abraham through this chapter…first, he fell on his face (v.2), then he stood before the LORD (v.8), now he drew near! Abraham anticipated the age to come, to enter with boldness into the holiest of all. There were no legal restrictions of the Mosaic Law barring his way.
v. 24-32 – Abraham bargained with God. “God, what will it take? How many souls would be needed to save Sodom?” It was done with great daring, but also with very great dignity and awe. With each offer, the LORD graciously condescended……until Abraham reached ten.
v. 33 – Abraham went no lower. The LORD Himself went on His way, meaning that’s it. That’s the bottom line. Turns out, there weren’t even five. There were only 4 who responded in the crucial hour of judgment and decision. Lot’s sons-in-law perished in the fiery judgment. Perhaps, Abraham presumed Lot’s witness would have produced at least 10. But there’s a sound biblical precept here….hang out with the world all the time, live like it too, and no one will notice or care about your Savior. God had His way, and marvelously, Abraham had his way. Lot and his family were spared. The righteous were saved, and God’s great character was on full display.
To the Sodomites, Abraham was odd, perhaps even a fanatic, with his rigid discipline of separation and sanctification. They learned to respect him, but surely they ridiculed him too. Christ-followers will always be marked and mocked by those who live for this present age. And just like the people of Sodom, our world will never know what it owes to the presence of godly men and women on the earth today.
Key Takeaways:
– There are times when the Lord reveals His secrets to His people. (Psalm 25:14 – the Lord reveals His secrets to those who fear Him; Amos 3:7 – the Lord reveals His secrets to His servants the prophets.) That we may know His will, then speak and act to rightly represent His interests in the world.
– We are appointed to the ministry of reconciliation. (II Cor 5:18-20). Just as Abraham mediated for the corrupted city of Sodom, the Lord mediated salvation for corrupted souls, reconciling souls to Himself by means of His own sacrifice and precious blood. So now, we also must commit to the message, ministry, and prayer of reconciling people to God. “We implore you on Christ’s behalf; be reconciled to God.”
– When we pray, ask God to do what only He can do. Trust God to provide for the work He authorizes. Expect God to defend His own reputation against accusations of infirmity or indifference.
– We live in the world, but to be effective messengers of salvation, we cannot live like it too. When the Lord is not seen or heard in us, the people around us perish.