July 24, 2022
Pastor John Hering
Genesis 18:20-32
Genesis 18:20-32
20 So the Lord said, “Because the outcry against Sodom and Gomorrah is great, and because their sin is very flagrant, 21 I will go down now and see if what they have done is as bad as the outcry that has come to me. If not, I will know.”
22 The two men turned from there and went toward Sodom, but Abraham remained standing before the Lord. 23 Abraham approached him and said, “Will you really sweep away the righteous along with the wicked? 24 What if there are fifty righteous people in the city? Will you really sweep them away and not spare the place for the sake of the fifty righteous who are in it? 25 You would never do such a thing, killing the righteous along with the wicked, treating the righteous the same as the wicked. You would never do such a thing. The Judge of all the earth should do right, shouldn’t he?”
26 The Lord said, “If I find fifty righteous people within the city of Sodom, then I will spare the entire place for their sake.”
27 Abraham answered, “See now, I who am but dust and ashes have taken it on myself to speak to my Lord. 28 What if there are five fewer than fifty righteous? Will you destroy the entire city if the number is five short?”
He said, “I will not destroy it if I find forty-five there.”
29 He spoke to him yet again and said, “What if only forty are found there?”
He said, “I will not do it for the sake of the forty.”
30 He said, “Please, do not be angry, my Lord, but I will speak again. What if thirty are found there?”
He said, “I will not do it if I find thirty there.”
31 He said, “See now, I have taken it upon myself to speak to my Lord. What if there are twenty found there?”
He said, “I will not destroy it for the sake of the twenty.”
32 He said, “Please, do not be angry, my Lord, but I will speak just once more. What if ten are found there?”
He said, “I will not destroy it for the sake of the ten.”
As many of you know, our son Jake and his wife Lauren have moved to Austin. That means they also have taken our two grandchildren Luke and Jhett with them. This past week I treasured the pictures sent to us of the boys heading off to school at a place called Hannah’s World at Holy Word. Those boys are growing up fast- along with Bobby and Bennett. So, I want to be prepared for these boys when they come to visit. How am I going to be prepared? Well, I want them to learn how to ski. This requires kid’s skis. I thought to simply go on Amazon and purchase some. But, I am married to someone who has a talent at bargaining with people to get a great deal. So, she found a pair of skis on Facebook Marketplace and worked her magic. She texted the seller of the skis and made an offer. It wasn’t accepted. Then after a while she made another offer. This went on back and forth until it ended up that she bought the kid’s skis at a great price. She didn’t give up. Just Once More made an offer to get the deal.
Today we have Abraham standing in the presence of the Lord and asking Just Once More for the Lord to bring justice and mercy to the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah. Abraham was focused on praying for a blessing from the Lord and teaches us a great lesson. Today may we also learn to pray:
Just Once More
With Humble Submission
Today the Word of God comes from Genesis 18. Up to this point in the Bible we learn about the creation of the world, the Flood, the Tower of Babel, and the calling of Abraham by the Lord. I’m quite certain that Genesis 18 records the earliest prayer to be written down in the Bible. What may strike you is that this first prayer was not initiated by Abraham, but by the Lord. The Lord shared information with Abraham and left the door open for Abraham to reply.
20 So the Lord said, “Because the outcry against Sodom and Gomorrah is great, and because their sin is very flagrant, 21 I will go down now and see if what they have done is as bad as the outcry that has come to me. If not, I will know.” 22 The two men turned from there and went toward Sodom, but Abraham remained standing before the Lord. 23 Abraham approached him and said, “Will you really sweep away the righteous along with the wicked?”
The Lord God allowed Abraham to stand in his presence (a miracle!), listen to the Lord’s thoughts concerning Sodom and Gomorrah, and then pray for them. What was the flagrant sin God was referring to? This sin must have been really bad! Sodom and Gomorrah are mentioned in many other places in the Bible. The next chapter in Genesis records the following:
“The two angels came to Sodom at evening. Lot, who was sitting in the gatehouse of Sodom, saw them and got up to meet them. He bowed down with his face to the ground, 2 and he said, “See now, my lords, please turn aside into your servant’s house and spend the night. Wash your feet, and you can get up early and go on your way.”
They said, “No, we will spend the night in the street.”
3 But he kept urging them, so they came with him and entered his house. He made them a feast and baked unleavened bread, and they ate. 4 But before they lay down, the men of the city, the men of Sodom, surrounded the house, both young and old, all the people from all parts of town. 5 They called to Lot and said to him, “Where are the men who came to you tonight? Bring them out to us, that we may be intimate with them.”
6 Lot went out to them and shut the door behind him. 7 He said, “Please, my brothers, do not act so wickedly. 8 See now, I have two daughters who have not had relations with a man. Please let me bring them out to you, and you may do to them whatever seems good to you. Only do not do anything to these men, because they have come under the protection of my roof.”
9 They said, “Get out of our way!” They also said, “This fellow came to live here as an alien, and now he appoints himself as a judge. Now we will treat you worse than them!” They kept pushing Lot back and were ready to break down the door.”
The sin was rape and homosexuality. Jude 7 also records this commentary:
“7 Like Sodom and Gomorrah and the cities around them, who in a similar way indulged in extreme sexual immorality and pursued homosexual perversion, they serve as an example of those who are going to suffer the punishment of eternal fire.”
Jesus also made these comments in Luke 17:29 “but on the day when Lot went out from Sodom, fire and sulfur rained down from heaven and destroyed them all.” Sin is really bad. God’s judgment on sin is always just and deserved. God takes sin seriously. But, this isn’t the only sin that is really bad. As we continue to read the Bible we learn that there is a long list of sins that condemn us. Yes, finally we end up with the truth that every sin condemns and agree with St Paul, “For the wages of sin is death” (Rom 6:23).
Three men were with Abraham that day. Two of them continued on to Sodom and Gomorrah and we learn that they were angels. The Lord God remains with Abraham where the conversation between Abraham and the Lord suggests a relationship. God shared his word with Abraham and he responded. There are lessons to be learned. 1) An easy lesson is that I certainly don’t pray like Abraham prayed, and I should do better. But, there is a much deeper lesson to learn. 2) When we remember how our sins condemn us before a holy God, it impresses on us great humility and submission. Abraham caught the seriousness of sin before the Lord and expresses his humility, “27 Abraham answered, “See now, I who am but dust and ashes have taken it on myself to speak to my Lord. 28 What if there are five fewer than fifty righteous? Will you destroy the entire city if the number is five short?” Abraham knew he was created from dust, and after he died he would return to ashes. 3) But, we also know something else about Abraham that caused his prayers to be heard. He also believed God’s promise of a Savior. Abraham was declared righteous by God’s grace through faith in that promised Savior. It was on the basis of God’s promises that Abraham prays to the Lord Just Once More with an attitude of Humble Submission. And he also prayed Just Once More with
Confident Boldness
Abraham had a good handle on what was happening. He knew Sodom and Gomorrah were filled with sin. But, he also knew his nephew Lot and his family were living there. And while Abraham never mentioned Lot by name, we certainly get a sense of his Confident Boldness to appeal to God’s mercy on their behalf.
“Will you really sweep away the righteous along with the wicked? 24 What if there are fifty righteous people in the city? Will you really sweep them away and not spare the place for the sake of the fifty righteous who are in it? 25 You would never do such a thing, killing the righteous along with the wicked, treating the righteous the same as the wicked. You would never do such a thing. The Judge of all the earth should do right, shouldn’t he?”
Abraham shaped his prayers in line with what he knew about the grace of God. And while Abraham didn’t know exactly what to pray for, he prayed and the Lord answered, “26 The Lord said, “If I find fifty righteous people within the city of Sodom, then I will spare the entire place for their sake.” Amazing that Abraham’s target audience was not “Lord, please keep Sarah healthy for the next 9 months” or “Lord, please protect Lot and his family” for he didn’t mentioned them by name, but his target audience was people he knew where in big trouble! Abraham prays for justice and for mercy.
“27 Abraham answered, “See now, I who am but dust and ashes have taken it on myself to speak to my Lord. 28 What if there are five fewer than fifty righteous? Will you destroy the entire city if the number is five short?”
He said, “I will not destroy it if I find forty-five there.”
29 He spoke to him yet again and said, “What if only forty are found there?”
He said, “I will not do it for the sake of the forty.”
30 He said, “Please, do not be angry, my Lord, but I will speak again. What if thirty are found there?”
He said, “I will not do it if I find thirty there.”
31 He said, “See now, I have taken it upon myself to speak to my Lord. What if there are twenty found there?”
He said, “I will not destroy it for the sake of the twenty.”
32 He said, “Please, do not be angry, my Lord, but I will speak just once more. What if ten are found there?”
He said, “I will not destroy it for the sake of the ten.”
This seems to bring the conversation to an end. God seems determined to destroy Sodom, yet Abraham’s pray did not go unanswered. God did not “destroy the righteous with the wicked.” The angels in Sodom did get Lot and his family out of the area before the destruction came.
This raises an interesting question for us: When we pray, and we don’t know exactly what to pray for, should we pray humbly or confidently? And the answer is: Both. We approach God knowing that we are only dust and ashes, but we also approach God with bold confidence. It would be like a little child calling, “Mommy, Mommy! Mommy!” until she finally responds. Likewise, Just Once More, keep praying and God will keep listening. Now, I didn’t say God will give us what we prayed for. Actually, Abraham didn’t get what he prayed for either. Better than Abraham expected, God saved three people and destroyed the wicked. So, you can be humble and confident when you pray to the Lord Just Once More, too. Even when you don’t know what to pray for, we have his promise from Romans 8:26, “26 In the same way the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we should pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that are not expressed in words.” The Holy Spirit helps us in our weakness and intercedes for us. Therefore, dear children of God, it is okay to pray even when you’re uncertain what to pray for. After all, that is the example of the first recorded prayer in the Bible. God loves to hear us pray. He will take care of it. And for God’s children, everything is going to be okay because of Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior.
The cries of a broken world filled with sinful people still go up to heaven like the blood of Abel, or like the people of the Tower of Babel, or like the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah. Sinful people will continue to defy God’s will, and God wants us to learn today that he takes sin seriously—especially sin that causes human suffering. God has a personal stake in human suffering and has promised his children that he will bring it to an end. Let us never forget that God is just and demands righteousness, but that he also gives righteousness even if only for the sake of a few. It was the Lord Jesus Christ, who for the sake of us, gave his life on the cross so that all people on the earth would be blessed with forgiveness, life and salvation. Therefore, Just Once More, keep praying to the Lord in Humility and Bold Confidence. Luther summarized this attitude so well for us in the explanation to the 5th Petition of the Lord’s Prayer: “Forgive us our sins.”
We pray in this petition that our Father in heaven would not look at our sins, or deny our prayer because of them. We are neither worthy of the things for which we pray, nor have we deserved them, but we ask that He would give them all to us by grace, for we daily sin much and surely deserve nothing but punishment. So we too will sincerely forgive and gladly do good to those who sin against us.
You might be one of those people who is good at bargaining for kid’s skis, or maybe you’d rather just get it over and make your purchase on Amazon. But, when it comes to prayer, remember to pray confidently based on the relationship you have with God through faith in Jesus Christ. Then pray Just Once More with humble confidence as an opportunity to bring your life, the life of your loved ones, and the society who needs so desperately to bring our will in line with God’s will. Like Abraham, pray Just Once More in humility and boldness for God’s will to be done. Amen!
