Topic: The Bible in Sodom that was never read
Textual Source: Luke 17:26-32
Introduction: God
reveals His will in different ways. Sometimes through His writers He speaks by
direct command, sometimes by approved example and sometimes by necessary
inference which must be based on known facts and conditions. The Bible must be
read, carefully studied and obeyed. This is how I will welcome you all to this
April Edition 2016 Touch me Special, where God awesomely manifest to give us life
through His words. That you are here, you shall receive a positive turn around
in Jesus name.
What is Bible
The
Bible is the world’s most wonderful book. It came bit by bit as God inspired
men with His words by the hands of the Holy Ghost. 2Pet.1:21. God used these
men to speak to His people and through them to the world, so that people
forever could have a knowledge of God and His will. 1Cor.2:13. The Bible was
written by some forty men over a period of approximately sixteen hundred years
from 1500 B.C to A.D 100. The bible is composed of two major divisions: The Old Testament and the New Testament.
The old Testament was written mostly in Hebrew, on scrolls, or rolls of
parchment, or papyrus. It was later translated in to Greek. The new Testament
was written in Greek since most of its writer speaks Greek. The first
translation was prepared by Jerome around 400 A.D. this was known as the
Vulgate or common version. The Bible contains 66 books, 1,189 chapters and
31,102 verses. The Bible was not always in its present form. It was divided into
chapters in 1250 A.D. the New Testament was divided into verses in 1551 A.D.
while the whole Bible was divided into chapters and verses first appear in
1560.A.D. it was known as “Geneva Bible” because it was prepared by reformers
in Geneva, Switzerland.
The
Bible is not only to be in your possession, but to be read and understand. It
is to be read with careful study. Eph.3:4, 2Tim.2:15, 1Cor.10:11. Today, in
this lecture, I will be presenting you as the Bible to your world which must be
read with reference to the mistake of the people in Sodom and Gomorrah who failed
to read through the Bible that was given to them. Remain blessed.
What
Paul said about Christian; the today’s Bible. 2Cor.3:2-3
In
v2, Paul said we are known and read of all men. We are not just a book but
collection of books comprises of norms and statutes of holiness and righteousness
of God. The kind of Bible we are is not the one written with paper and pen. We
are written with the Spirit of the living God. Our own kind of Bible is not
like that of Moses which was written on the tables of stone. It’s a Bible that
was written on the heart by the Spirit of God.
Our
purpose is to give life to those who readeth. We are to proclaim liberty given
by the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. 1Pet.2:9. Our content must
include the excellency of our God and the impending judgement upon all the
disobedient ones.
The
Sinful practices of Sodom and Gomorrah.
Gen.19:4-9
God
judges sin in everybody and metes out the right penalty for sin, even to His
own sons, whether angels (Mat.25:41; 2Pet.2:4; Jude 6-7; Gen.2:17; Rom.6:14-23;
Gal.5:19-21; Col.3:6-10). These are some of the sins that was found in Sodom
and Gomorrah.
1. Incest
2. Sodomy
3. They are Bitter people Deut.32:32
4. Rejecting truth
5. Pride, idleness, never ready to help the poor. Ezek.16:49-50;
Jude.7.
6. They forget God in their thought Rom.1:28
7. They are not ashamed of their sins Ish.3:9
8. They practice adultery Jer.23:14
9. They practice confusion and abominable practices
10. Strengthen the hands of evil doer Amos.4:1-11
11. Multiple sex Gen.19:5
12. Women turn the way of men vice versa. Deut.22:5
13. Seduction 2Pet.2:18; Jug.16:5
14. Indecent dressing
15. Waywardness
Lot: the only Bible in Sodom. Haran was the father of Lot. He died before Abram and Terah left
Ur of Chaldees. Abram and Lot continue to live together after the death of
Terah in a city called Haran. All the period that Lot lived with Abram, he had
been subjected to the ruling of Jehovah.
It
was confirmed by God, when He came with two Angels unto Abraham that he
(Abraham) would teach his children how to fear God. This is an indication that
Lot had well known Jehovah when he was living with Abraham.
In
spite of the situation in Sodom and Gomorrah, Lot maintained the standard of
holiness he had been taught in the house of Abraham. He separated his house
from others in the days of Sodom and Gomorrah before their destruction. Gen.19:1.
Abraham’s welcome to the three visitors was the same with how Lot welcomed
them. Gen.19:1-3; 18:1-5. Abraham pleaded before they agreed to come into his
house, Lot also pleaded too. Lot must have been practicing and demonstrating
God’s holiness in Sodom and Gomorrah before the cities were overtaken. If Lot
was not righteous, he would not have been rescued from that great destruction.
In Abraham’s prayer before the destruction, Abraham did not mention Lot’s name
to God whether to be rescued or not but he (Abraham) have the confidence that
the righteous cannot perish with sinners. People in Sodom and Gomorrah failed
to see God in the life of Lot. They choose to do evil and they perish likewise
according to their evil deeds.
Christians:
the present day Bible 2Cor.3:2-3,
We
are the light of the world which the world never recognizes. Mat.5:14-16. We
are the salt of the earth which the world never ready to use to seasoned
herself. Mat.5:13. Christian are the present day Epistle which must be read by
all. Our way of life as Christians and individual must showcase the content of
the gospel which we proclaimed. The standard of holiness which the Lord
expected from individual does not declined.
In
Sodom and Gomorrah, only Lot was found as the Epistle in Sodom that was
expected to be read, but due to lust, greediness and unregenerated heart, they
failed to read through the content of the Bible which God gave to them.
Our
character, attitude, behaviour and relationship with others must be Christ-like.
There is consequence if this world failed to understand us as their Epistle.
Danger looms if this world could not understand us as its Bible. Lot went out
of Sodom in rained fire and brimstone from heaven because the inhabitants of
Sodom and Gomorrah failed to read through the pages of her Bible. Jesus said if
our world refused to accept the gospel through us, we should dust our shoe on
the ground as evidence against them. Lk.9:5-6; 10:3-12. Our world is busy
entertaining herself with the things of the world. When God hath said love not
the world neither the things that are in the world. Those who give their love
for the things of this world, will never be able to practice the true love of
God unto holiness and righteous living. Eating, drinking, buying, selling,
planting, building among others, are what occupied the mind of people in Sodom
and Gomorrah. Lk.17:28. Our world today does the same. Our world is busy in all
area but never have time to read through its Bible, I mean, the Christians.
Destruction looms, danger looms, the day of the Lord is approaching. Who will
escape?
What we can do to make them read through us:
1.
Evangelize to people
around you
2.
Evangelize to people
that are faraway
3.
Seek the lost
4.
Seek the lost sheep of
the house of Israel (that is the backsliders)
5.
Live what you preach
6.
Let your daily life
win soul for Christ not only to praise God
7.
Pray for the lost and
unrepentant sinners
8.
Preach the truth and
live it
9.
Love and willing to
save those who are dying in sin
10.
Fight a good fight of
faith
11.
Be instant in season
and out of season
Conclusion: As God in the ages past speak to His people, He is
speaking to us today to repent and desist from evil. God’s anger will soon be
vexed upon this disobedient world. How many would escape? It is appointed unto
man to die once and after this, judgement. It is coming upon all the
disobedient ones. There is a bible very close to you which you can read. Open
it and find your way to eternal life. Christians, let people read through you so
that they can find their way to eternal life.
