There was once a man who was an immigrant and a foreigner to his current city. He welcomed and cared for other strangers and foreigners whenever they came to town. But, one day, the leaders of the city came to his door and wanted to drag the foreigners out of the house and into the street. The men of the city wanted to harm the foreigners, but this hospitable man protected the foreigners. However, the men of the city were enraged that he wanted to protect the foreigners, so they attacked the man instead, intending to do worse to him than they had originally planned to do to the foreigner. This is a real story, but maybe not the one that you are thinking about. The story that I am talking about was recorded in Genesis 19, and it is a story about Abraham’s nephew, Lot.
Lot lived among some very wicked people. In fact, God was about to destroy the cities of Sodom & Gomorrah. Do you remember why God said that He destroyed Sodom & Gomorrah? I think most people will have answered the wrong thing just now. The story in Genesis doesn’t spell it out for us, but God does say that, “The outcry of Sodom and Gomorrah is indeed great, and their sin is exceedingly grave” (Gen. 18:20, NASB95). Now, their sins were many (including what you probably have in your mind), but God later specifies the reason that He destroyed Sodom & Gomorrah - “Behold, this was the guilt of your sister Sodom: she and her daughters had arrogance, abundant food and careless ease, but she did not help the poor and needy. Thus they were haughty and committed abominations before Me. Therefore I removed them when I saw it” (Ezekiel 16:49-50, NASB95). - The sins that God destroyed Sodom & Gomorrah for were arrogance and not using their abundance to help the poor and needy.
The prophets often talk about helping, welcoming, and protecting the poor and needy (as does Jesus), and they often specify some of those groups that they are talking about: ‘Cursed is he who distorts the justice due an alien, orphan, and widow.’ And all the people shall say, ‘Amen’ (Deut. 27:19, NASB95); “and do not oppress the widow or the orphan, the stranger or the poor; and do not devise evil in your hearts against one another’ (Zech. 7:10, NASB95); “For I was hungry, and you gave Me something to eat; I was thirsty, and you gave Me something to drink; I was a stranger, and you invited Me in” (Matt. 25:35; cp. Lk. 10:30-37; Matt. 25:31-46).
We, too, live among some very wicked people. People who are arrogant and have an abundance, but are unwilling to welcome, care for, and protect the foreigners. So, how should we live in the midst of this wicked world? Here are a few lessons that I think that we can learn from the way that Lot reacted to the abuse of foreigners that he lived among:
1) Do not join those around you in mistreating the foreigners - Lot lived among a city of people who even their leaders (the men at the gates) were the type of people who abused foreigners. Nevertheless, Lot did not take part in that behavior. The many many scriptures about caring for the foreigners and immigrants had not yet been written, but Lot understood that it was wrong to reject foreigners and especially wrong to drag them out of a house and abuse them in the streets. People today will try to convince you that this is the right thing to do, that it is ok, that it isn’t as bad as people are making it look. Don’t let the bad company that you keep (whether family, friends, neighbors, political allies, etc.) corrupt your good morals (1 Cor. 15:33).
2) Let your righteous soul be tormented day after day by their lawless deeds - Lot lived among this kind of attitude and culture, but he didn’t become desensitized to it. He kept daily feeling the torture that comes with knowing that those around him were mistreating the poor and foreigners. - “for by what he saw and heard that righteous man, while living among them, felt his righteous soul tormented day after day by their lawless deeds” (2 Peter 2:8, NASB95). Today, it might be easy to become desensitized to the constant atrocities that are being done around us, so that we eventually don’t even get angry, upset, or start to cry. Let us love the poor, widow, orphan, and foreigner so much and so deeply, that we are crushed when they are mistreated. Let us “abhor what is evil” (Romans 12:9, NASB95) so passionately that we join with God in being furious at the violent attackers.
3) Continue to welcome, care for, and protect the foreigners - Lot could have sat back content with the knowledge that he himself was not hurting/ killing the foreigners, but he didn’t do that. Lot sat in the gate and welcomed the foreigners, he invited them into his home, he recognized the danger that they would be in and begged them to take refuge in his house, then he risked his own life to reject the leaders of the city by protecting the foreigners. You may have read books about the underground railroad, where caring people helped hide and protect illegal run-away slaves from the corrupt government. Many of those people were Christians, who knew they ought to obey the government, but that they must obey God rather than man. So, they risked their lives to protect those who were being hunted down and killed, simply because of their skin color and their illegal fleeing for their lives. Today, I don’t know what exactly that looks like, but Christians have always been called to put their lives on the line for the sake of the oppressed (with Jesus as our example). When others around you verbally attack foreigners, protect the foreigners like Lot did. When others around you hoard their abundance, freely give to those in need. When others around you reject foreigners, welcome the stranger as Jesus instructed. When the culture around you is wicked, don’t be content to simply not hurt people, but continue serving and showing hospitality and love.
4) Don’t compromise and/ or sacrifice the children - Lot refused to hand over his guests to be raped, but he offered his daughters instead. That is a horrible and disgusting compromise. He was willing to protect the foreigners, but also willing to let the wicked city rape/ murder his children. Today, people will try to persuade you to mistreat the poor, widow, orphan, and/ or immigrant by convincing you that a minor abuse of justice is better than a major abuse. They will throw out outlandish ultimatums, so that you will settle for an injustice that you otherwise would never have considered. Don’t be deceived by that, but fully care for and protect the vulnerable without compromise. Also, issues like this get politicized, with one major party killing the foreigners and the other major party killing the children. There are good Christians in both major parties, but they adamantly condemn the sin of their own party, as well as the sin of the opposing party. But, there are people who call themselves “Christians” in both parties, who adamantly condemn the sin of the opposing party, but allow/ water down/ defend/ support the sin of their own party. Don’t compromise! Protect and care for the foreigner AND the children (born or unborn).
5) Don’t take your own vengeance, but leave room for the wrath of God - Lot didn’t slaughter the inhabitants of Sodom, he didn’t get even, and he didn’t fight fire with fire. Lot hated what was being done, was tormented by it, and protected those endangered; but, Lot left judgement up to God. And God did not disappoint. God brought such a massive destruction on Sodom and Gomorrah that it became the symbol of what judgement from the LORD would look like. Today, when we hate the violence being done/ said, it is tempting for us to want to get even, to fight fire with fire, etc. We need to hate the sin, pray for God to take vengeance, but leave the vengeance to Him. Meanwhile, we ought to show love, care, and protection to both the oppressed AND the oppressor. They were both made in God’s image. Rather than stirring up heated debates of vitriol, find ways to show love for your political rivals, in spite of the evil that they are doing/ supporting. Make peace with all men. - “Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse. Rejoice with those who rejoice, and weep with those who weep. Be of the same mind toward one another; do not be haughty in mind, but associate with the lowly. Do not be wise in your own estimation. Never pay back evil for evil to anyone. Respect what is right in the sight of all men. If possible, so far as it depends on you, be at peace with all men. Never take your own revenge, beloved, but leave room for the wrath of God, for it is written, “Vengeance is Mine, I will repay,” says the Lord. “But if your enemy is hungry, feed him, and if he is thirsty, give him a drink; for in so doing you will heap burning coals on his head.” Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good” (Romans 12:14-21, NASB95).
6) Come out from the evil city and look/ run to the mountain - Eventually, Lot (listening to God’s instructions from the angels) took his family (as many as were willing to listen) and they left the evil city. God told them to run to the mountains and not look back (they bargained and stopped briefly in a small town, but they ended up in the mountains). However, Lot’s son-in-laws would not believe his attempt to persuade them about the coming judgement, so they stayed in the wicked city. Lot’s wife came out of the city, but looked back and was turned into a pillar of salt. Today, I am not suggested fleeing the city/ country/ world to go to some isolated mountain. But, we ought to live like we are not of this world, coming out from the sin around us, looking to Mount Calvary and Mount Zion, and never look back with longing for the sinful life behind us. While doing everything that we can to persuade our friends and family to join us. - “I wrote you in my letter not to associate with immoral people; I did not at all mean with the immoral people of this world, or with the covetous and swindlers, or with idolaters, for then you would have to go out of the world” (1 Corinthians 5:9-10, NASB95). “Do not be bound together with unbelievers; for what partnership have righteousness and lawlessness, or what fellowship has light with darkness? Or what harmony has Christ with Belial, or what has a believer in common with an unbeliever? Or what agreement has the temple of God with idols? For we are the temple of the living God; just as God said, “I will dwell in them and walk among them; And I will be their God, and they shall be My people. “Therefore, come out from their midst and be separate,” says the Lord. “And do not touch what is unclean; And I will welcome you. “And I will be a father to you, And you shall be sons and daughters to Me,” Says the Lord Almighty. Therefore, having these promises, beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all defilement of flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God” (2 Corinthians 6:14-7:1, NASB95). “Therefore, since we have so great a cloud of witnesses surrounding us, let us also lay aside every encumbrance and the sin which so easily entangles us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. For consider Him who has endured such hostility by sinners against Himself, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart” (Hebrews 12:1-3, NASB95).
7) Trust in God’s ability to rescue the righteous from the hands of the wicked - “and if He rescued righteous Lot, oppressed by the sensual conduct of unprincipled men (for by what he saw and heard that righteous man, while living among them, felt his righteous soul tormented day after day by their lawless deeds), then the Lord knows how to rescue the godly from temptation, and to keep the unrighteous under punishment for the day of judgment, and especially those who indulge the flesh in its corrupt desires and despise authority” (2 Peter 2:7-10, NASB95). - God was able to rescue Lot from the wickedness that tormented his righteous soul, that he saw around him day by day. God is able to rescue you from the wickedness that torments your righteous soul, that you see around you day by day. And God is able to rescue the one being oppressed, even if that sometimes may be by allowing their pain to end through death. But, know assuredly that the wicked will not escape the judgement of God. God won’t always rain fire down on an arrogant city that abuses the foreigner, but eternal fire will be reserved for any unrepentant soul who has refused to welcome, care for, and protect the poor, widow, orphan, and foreigner.