The Days of Lot and Recapturing True Values

That was a fantastic piece of special music, so thank you, Emil, for your service in that. And great to have Michael Ball in California, so that's super. Hopefully we'll have a chance to hear some more from Michael. Well, hello everyone. It's great to see you. I can't see you right now, but I hope to see you afterwards. Very sobering announcements regarding deaths of Mr. Spears and LaSalle, but also joyous to welcome Mrs. Tapia. We're thankful that we walk day by day here by faith, and I'm glad you could join us wherever you might be on that journey. Recapture true values. And if you remember that phrase, some of you might have been around a while ago have heard that. Recapture true values was a phrase used in the era of the worldwide Church of God in the 1960s, 70s, and 80s. Articles and sermons were given about the importance of true values. And I think even more in the 2020s than in the mid-20th century, it's important that as God's people we understand and guard true values, godly biblical values. When we say we live in the end times, which we do, many scoff and argue that people have been saying that for hundreds, even thousands of years, and each generation believes that they are the last.

Yet those same people who would scoff at what the Bible calls perilous times might also say that we are moving progressively through a climate disaster. That if we don't change would cause the end of our species. I think that's how it's been phrased as I've read it. Or they might point to the doomsday clock that is set to two minutes to midnight, and they would say that unless things change, humanity is destined for destruction.

And really, are these two points of view dramatically different? And when the time comes, will people really be able to tell the difference between the prophecies of the Bible and what seems to be just human foolishness?

Again, I'm not trying to take a position on any of the things people might say. Indeed, I think that we're seeing dramatic changes in our climate, and we are living in perilous times from the standpoint of tensions among nations. We've been so preoccupied with different things going on, but it wasn't too long ago that North Korea was pointing missiles at Hawaii. So we live in perilous times. Perilous as well for the values of God's people. Perilous because as stress increases, our ability to cope with stress is tested. In fact, that's what it's called. It's called stress test. You're stress testing something, and without God's Spirit to reveal to us our weak points, we may fail that test. We may be like the women in the parable waiting for the bridegroom without the oil of God's Spirit. I'd like you to turn to Luke 17 to begin the sermon here in the introduction. Luke 17 verse 20. Let's read how people of that time were also concerned in understanding when the end of this age would come and when God's kingdom would begin.

Luke 17 verse 20, if you'll turn with me there, it's a question that was posed by the Pharisees. Luke 17 verse 20 says, now when he was asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God would come, this was, you know, when will God's kingdom come was the question, he answered them and said, quote, the kingdom of God does not come with observation. The Greek phrase for what is translated here with observation is debated, as many things are, but one view as supported by the Expositor's Bible Commentary says it means it is not an observable process. This position seems to flow best with the examples that come next in Luke 17. That is to say, someone can't say that we're in step three of the five-step process for when the disasters of the end time will come. Now, we do have the sure word of prophecy and revelation that tells us a certain sequence of events as things get going, but really the point here is that this is going to come on suddenly and without warning. So the message Jesus is going to give as we go through this is be prepared. Be prepared. And then in verse 21, he says, nor will they say, see here or see there, for indeed the kingdom of God is within you. And he describes, you know, we study what this means about how it was among them versus within them. But Jesus was there among them, and he continues to share insights on the last days. And in verse 24, he says, for as the lightning that flashes out of one part under heaven shines to the other part under heaven, so also the Son of Man will be in his day. And then in verse 26, he gives them an example of what he's describing. He says, as it was in the days of Noah, so it will also be in the days of the Son of Man, they ate, they drank, they married wives, they were given in marriage until the day that Noah entered the ark, and the flood came and destroyed them all. And he then goes to give another example of a different time frame. Likewise, verse 28, it was also in the days of Lot. They ate, they drank, they bought, they sold, they planted, they built. But on the day that Lot went out of Sodom, it rained fire and brimstone from heaven and destroyed them all. Even so will it be in the day when the Son of Man is revealed. You know, we often focus and discuss how these last days are like the days of Noah, as there's a parallel count in the book of Matthew that describes the days of Noah. There was a topic in Beyond Today magazine article, an article about that last year. But interestingly, Luke adds that Jesus also made reference to these days being like the days of Lot. And we don't often talk about the days of Lot. That is, Luke is bringing up the imagery of Sodom and Gomorrah, the evil that was described in those cities, and he's comparing it to the time immediately preceding all the events that would lead to the kingdom of God these days. So today I'd like to explore this reference to the days of Lot by contrasting the values of the city of Sodom during the time of Lot with the values of God's people that we should be maintaining or perhaps recapturing. How do we remain faithful to our values, and what are the values to which we should remain faithful?

You know, if I were to ask you to think of Lot and the stories that you've heard and read, what comes to mind when you think of Lot? Is it that he offered his two daughters to the crowd so that they could be raped? That's often what comes to mind. That's described in Genesis 19. We're not going to read that story in this sermon. Do you think of his hesitancy to leave the city?

For those who might recall, he was finally taken out of the city by the hand of an angel who led him out. There was a certain hesitancy. What do you think of when you think of Lot? Well, let's turn to 2 Peter 2, and let's read the legacy that the apostle Peter describes here for Lot, who lived there in Sodom and Gomorrah, and who was there and taken out immediately before it was destroyed. That was described in Luke 17. 2 Peter 2 verse 7, you turn with me there. This is how Peter summarizes Lot. And as you read this, you can see the echo of Jesus's example in Luke. Let's start in verse 6, 2 Peter 2 verse 6, and turning the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah into ashes, condemned them to destruction, making them an example to those who afterward would live ungodly, and delivered righteous Lot, who was oppressed with the filthy conduct of the wicked. For that righteous man dwelling among them tormented his righteous soul from day to day by seeing and hearing their lawless deeds. Peter records that Lot was righteous, and he was oppressed by the conduct of what he saw around him. Peter holds up Lot as an example to follow, an example of a man whose values were tested as he lived in a society that rejected godly values. We live in a time and place like Sodom. That's what Luke says. Jesus told us this, and Peter builds on this teaching by encouraging God's people. Encouraging? Yeah, look at verse 9. Then the Lord knows how to deliver the godly out of temptation and reserve the unjust under punishment for the day of judgment. The lessons of the days of Lot are for us today. The lessons of how Lot guarded his values, even when he made bad decisions, and indeed he made some pretty bad ones. Nonetheless, they inform us of the complicated reality of living according to the guide star of God's Word. As we've said, Lot was a human being, just like us. We're messy, but God is true and fair and just to forgive and to work with us. The title of my message today, if you want to write down the title, is the days of Lot and recapturing true values. In this sermon, we are going to contrast the values of Sodom with godly values. There are five values which the prophet Iziko records for which God held Sodom to account, five things which led to their destruction. As we look at each of these values or indictments, really, we will ask if we have fallen for the lie as well and what godly values we should hold instead. When we're done, I hope that the phrase recapture true values can once again be something we discuss in God's church. Let's begin by turning to Ezekiel 16. Ezekiel 16 and verse 49. We're going to read here how God saw the sins of Sodom.

Excuse me. Ezekiel 16 verse 49. As you're turning there, let me share some context to Ezekiel 16. In this chapter, God reveals to the prophet the upset that he had over the unfaithfulness of Jerusalem. God contrasts Jerusalem with two other places. He calls them the sisters, Sodom and Samaria. Ezekiel writes of these three sisters, Jerusalem, Sodom and Samaria. Let's read God's judgment against Sodom in Ezekiel 16 verse 49. He says, look, this was the iniquity, the indictment here, the values, the sin of your sister Sodom. She and her daughter had pride, fullness of food, and abundance of idleness. Neither did she strengthen the hand of the poor and needy. In verse 50, and they were haughty and committed abomination before me. Therefore, I took them away as I saw fit. Five indictments, five iniquities, five sins, five, I would argue from their perspective, values, which led to their destruction. Let's look at each of them. Let's look at these five and contrast them now with godly values. The first value or indictment of Sodom was pride. I've shared this inside before that when we think of Sodom and Gomorrah and the city on the plains, we immediately think of sexual perversion. But sexual perversion is not the first thing God describes. In fact, it is the last of the five. Pride is that first indictment. It's the first false value. In our society, we're enthralled with celebrity, with fame, with personality, with talent. And often that's celebrity, that fame, that talent, that's accompanied by pride. Pride was the first sin, as Lucifer sought to be equal with God when he said, quote, I will ascend above the tops of the clouds and make myself like the most high.

Pride is the blind spot that we all have. I think I, you might recall, I gave a sermon called The Sermon That's Not For You, right? Pride is the problem of somebody else.

And as I described in my last sermon, pride has only grown greater as we have become more emboldened and amazed by our own capabilities with the power of YouTube videos and a Google search bar. We can be so certain and proud of our own opinions and even hold them in such high esteem that we start thinking surely others who have different views are not godly. And I think Mr. Chance made reference to the divisions in our country as we see. You don't need to turn there, but Proverbs 16 verse 5, you can note that, Proverbs 16 verse 5 says, everyone who is arrogant in heart is an abomination to the Lord. Be assured he will not go unpunished.

That's how God feels about pride. I'd like to read a short passage from C.S. Lewis in his book, Mere Christianity on Pride. Maybe you've heard this before. I think I first heard Bill Bradford read this many years ago. This is from page 121 in the chapter entitled The Great Sin.

The essential vice, I'm quoting now from C.S. Lewis, the essential vice, the utmost evil, is pride.

Unchacity, anger, greed, drunkenness, and all that are mere fleabites in comparison. It was through pride that the devil became the devil. Pride leads to every other vice. It is the complete anti-God state of mind. Does this seem to you exaggerated? If so, think it over. I pointed out a moment ago that the more pride one had, the more one disliked pride in others. In fact, if you want to find out how proud you are, the easiest way is to ask yourself, how much do I dislike it when other people snub me or refuse to take any notice of me or shove their oar in or patronize me or show off. The point is that each person's pride is in competition with everyone else's pride. It is because I wanted to be the big noise at the party that I am so annoyed at someone else being the big noise. Two of a trade never agree. Now, what you want to get clear is that pride is essentially competitive. It is competitive by its very nature, while the other vices are competitive only, so to speak, by accident. Pride gets no pleasure out of having something, only out of having more of it than the next man. We say that people are proud of being rich or clever or good-looking, but they're not. They're proud of being richer or cleverer or better looking than others. If everyone else became equally rich or clever or good-looking, there would be nothing to be proud about. It is the comparison that makes you proud, the pleasure of being above the rest. Once the element of competition is gone, pride has gone. That is why I say that pride is essentially competitive in a way the other vices are not. The sexual impulse may drive two men into competition if they both want the same girl, but it is only by accident. They might just as likely have wanted two different girls, but a proud man will take your girl from you, not because he wants her, but just to prove to himself he's a better man than you. Greed may drive men into competition if there's not enough to go around, but the proud man, even when he has gotten more than he can possibly want, will try to get still more just to assert his power. Nearly all those evils in the world which people put down to greed or selfishness are really far more the result of pride.

Look at James 4 verse 6. James 4 and verse 6. Now let's see what God says about pride here. James 4 and verse 6. It says, God resists the proud but gives grace to the humble. You see, the opposite of pride is humility.

We need to recapture the true value of humility. That is the godly value, and pride is the false value, the indictment, the sin of Sodom, the first sin of Sodom. God resists the proud but gives grace to the humble. Therefore, submit to God, resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded. Lament and mourn and weep. Let your laughter be turned to mourning, and your joy to gloom. Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and he will lift you up. I've gone through those verses before. There's a lot in there, but it's interesting how it begins and ends with a discussion of humility. If there is anything that God's church needs as we head down this path to the end of days, it's humility. This is the antidote to the first and most grievous sin of Sodom, and I dare say of human beings. You don't need to turn there, but Ephesians 4 verse 2 says that with humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, humility will allow us to grow together as the body of Christ. Proverbs 11 verse 2, you can write that down, says, when pride comes, then comes disgrace, but with the humble is wisdom. So humility brings wisdom. And finally, Proverbs 15 verse 33, you can write that down, Proverbs 15 verse 33 says that humility comes for honor. Humility is the first true value if we go by the contrast of Sodom to be recaptured. The second value or the second sin of Sodom was fullness of food. We won't turn back to Ezekiel 16 verse 49, but you can see it there. It says fullness of food. Most scholars believe this is a reference to materialism, the thirst for riches and wealth. The citizens of Sodom focused on getting as much as they could. Food at that time was the focus of all new civilizations. The more food you could produce and sell, the richer you became. And as has been said, whether you're rich or poor, it's always good to have money. Well, okay, that's a joke. Today our society around us often measures success and keeps score by how much money they have. The size and now location of our house, the type of car, the technology we can afford, and let us not forget the type of shoes we buy, all of it's a measure of money. Today it's not about saving, it's about spending. It's not about how much something costs, but about what monthly payment it's going to be, because we want to have it right away.

Instant gratification is another way of describing the attitudes that can develop with this fullness of food. We instinctively know that money can't buy happiness, and yet we easily fall prey to this view. Proverbs 28 verse 20, again we're going to see a lot of proverbs in this sermon. You can note it here. Proverbs 28 verse 20 says, a faithful man will abound with blessings, but whoever hastens to be rich will not go unpunished. Interesting, similar language there to the proud. They would not go unpunished if they hastened to be rich. The true value that we should be pursuing is laying up treasure in heaven. Let's look at Matthew 6 verse 19. Let's see that. Matthew 6 verse 19, the Sermon on the Mount. Matthew 6 verse 19.

We see here it says, do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, why neither moth nor rust destroys, where thieves do not break in and steal, for where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. You see, Sodom wanted treasure on earth, and God's people want treasure in heaven. These are the false values and the true values.

Luke 16 verse 19 says that no servant can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money.

As we call on God, he will bless us financially. The issue is when we confuse, as we often do, the blessings of God with this. See, we can start to think how brilliant we are with money, or incredible smart we are to get to the point where we are. Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, they were all rich. Lydia in the New Testament was rich. Joseph of Arimathea, who gave his tomb to Jesus, was rich. And yet he was also a follower of the way. There is nothing wrong with becoming or being rich. The issue is when it comes, it becomes our overarching goal. Gambling, theft, resentment towards those who have more than we do. These are all symptoms of some insecurity or misinformed view of money. Let's turn to 1 Timothy 6 verse 6 to 10. You know, some people might say, well, yeah, this is so obvious. But if we think about our society, the fact is this is what we're living. And, you know, we might look at Lot and say, how could he have possibly done that? And yet, who knows somebody, you know, reading of our story in these in days before everything blew up? They might look at us, and that story might be written about us in the book of Acts. Can you believe Tim Petworth did that? Wow! You call him a righteous man? You know, it can be told about us as well. 1 Timothy 6 verse 6 to 10. But godliness with contentment is great gain. That is a true value. For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out. In having food and clothing with these, we shall be content. But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and harmful lusts, which drown men in destruction and perdition. You know, this is pretty strong language. For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil, for which some have strayed from the faith in their greediness and pierced themselves through with many sorrows. It's interesting. Again, we might think that sexual perversion is on the top of the list, but pride and a lust for money are the top two. Let's recapture the true value of treasure in heaven and reject Sodom's value of treasure on earth. The third indictment against Sodom, and again you didn't need to turn there, was this false value described by Ezekiel as an abundance of idleness. That is, they valued leisure time. You're like, hey, you're messing with my leisure time. Who doesn't want leisure time? Well, this false value may not resonate in the same way with us. We might think that indeed we do need leisure time, and we do need some time to relax and recuperate. This is a kind of a crazy stressful world we live in, but that's not really what's being talked about. The false value can be understood by contrasting it with the true value of diligence. So I ask you to turn with me to Ecclesiastes 9 and verse 10.

Ecclesiastes 9 and verse 10.

And we can see here this contrast of what we might call laziness against diligence or a desire for leisure time against diligence.

It says here in Ecclesiastes 9 verse 10, whatever your hand finds to do, do it with your might, for there is no work or device or knowledge or wisdom in the grave where you are going.

The true value that must be recaptured is the value of being diligent.

Being diligent in our affairs, being present in what we do, recognizing that we have been called to develop our God-given talents. Laziness, or what the Bible calls slothful conduct, is a false value.

Proverbs 13 verse 4. You can note that. Proverbs 13 verse 4 says, the soul of the sluggard craves and gets nothing, while the soul of the diligent is richly supplied.

Colossians 3 verse 23, again you can note that, says, whatever you do, work heartily as for the Lord, and not for men. Second Thessalonians 3 verse 10, again another reference. Second Thessalonians 3 verse 10 says, for even when we were with you, we would give you this command. If anyone is not willing to work, let him not eat. That's Second Thessalonians 3 verse 10. Finally, Proverbs 18 verse 9. Proverbs 18 verse 9 says, whoever is slack in his work is a brother to him who destroys. So we have the false value of slothfulness and the godly value of diligence.

As our society declines, the number and types of work available is going to decline as well. By most measures, there is what economists call today an excess of human capital in the world. Now that's a fancy way of saying there's not enough work for the number of people on our planet right now. And as the population grows, and as automation occurs, and as we continue to have this free flow of capital around the world, we're going to continue to see jobs outsourced and offshored to India and China and other places.

We continue to see discrimination in the workplace against older workers. It's real. It's a very real thing. And opportunities go to the privileged class based on where they live and what chances they were given by their parents. There are many injustices now. And I'm sure back at the time of Sodom, there was as well. And there's an attitude that embraces the false value of Sodom that looks at these things and becomes discouraged, angry, and upset.

And after a while, just gives up and drops out. And so there's this concept of, I don't need to work. I don't need to do this. But the true value of diligence is rewarded no matter what rung on the ladder we might be on. And that's kind of hard to take because no one wants to be on rungs of ladders. But the fact is, our society is unequal and unjust. That is Satan's world. That is Satan's society. And certain people have opportunities and others don't. But no matter where we are, God is going to reward diligence.

And as He has called us into His church, He is going to be gracious to us and give us rich blessings, as I've described with the blessings that come from tithing. You know, I had a man come to my door last week, the week before it, and he asked if he could sell my home. First of all, I'm very lucky that I have a home.

That's an incredible blessing. But second, I was shocked that in the modern world, people still go door to door on that. You know, you get phone calls and emails and texts and instant messages and so forth. I told him no, and he left. It was a 15-second exchange. And later that week, I was talking with a friend who's a longtime real estate agent, and I shared that story with him.

And my friend, who's been in real estate for 30 years, and will tell you it's one of the hardest professions to break into, his comment was that the only people who are going to make it are those who are willing to go door to door.

He actually incredibly admired that person. He said, they are the people who face rejection and keep going. Those are the people who get advice, and they never give up, and they keep going, and they keep going, and they keep going. Those are the people, he said, who are going to make it. I thought that was interesting.

That's kind of worldly wisdom going, but it's the concept of diligence that no matter where you are, a diligent man is going to be rewarded, a diligent woman as well, obviously. Let's turn over to 1 Timothy 5 verse 8, and let's see again that Paul not only did he comment about money in chapter 6 there, but he also commented about something that he saw that was going on at the time, which I think reflects the fact that this value of whether it's slawfulness or you know, whatever it is, whatever we might describe it, certain upset or injustice, that it might have affected the people in the first century as well.

1 Timothy 5 verse 8 says, if anyone does not provide for his own, and especially for those of his household, he has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever. Isn't that incredible? You can, you know, this somebody might say, well, I study my Bible and I I'm strong in doctrine, but if they don't work and provide for their family, none of that counts, because that's just academic.

The rubber meets the road, as it were, when you actually have to get out there and just do what you need to do. And unfortunately today, many men, and I'm sorry to pick on men, but often that's the case, many men have just given up and they've let their families down and they've become so discouraged that they just they've given up looking for work.

Godly true values say we have to work, and sometimes we don't like the job we have, and we have to look for something else, and if we can't find something else, and if we have a family to support men specifically, then we have to do what it takes to support our families. We work to support ourselves. We work even through injustice, if that is our lot, as the slaves of the first century did as well. Talk about injustice. We don't become idle, and so discouraged that we spend hours on a computer playing games or social media to kill the time. We value activity, as Proverbs 12 verse 27 states. The lazy man does not roast what he took in hunting, but diligence is man's precious possession. Let's recapture the true value of diligence and reject slothfulness, even if that slothfulness comes from a depression or discouragement with the injustice that is the world today.

Continuing on to the fourth value, or indictment against Sodom, and let's just, because we haven't been there, let's go back to Ezekiel 16 and just read that again so we get the flow. Ezekiel 16 verse 49.

Ezekiel 16 verse 49. Maybe you already had your place there. I should have kept mine there. Look, this was the iniquity of your sister Sodom. She and her daughter had pride, fullness of food, and abundance of idleness. Neither did she strengthen the hand of the poor and needy. Sodom neglected the poor and needy. They closed their heart against the poor.

You know, we live in a time of incredible income inequality, terrible income inequality. You know, NBC News reported on December 30th, a few weeks ago, that since the start of the pandemic, a time of worldwide crisis where the U.S. is experiencing one of the worst economic crises since the Great Depression. In that period of time, there have been 56 new billionaires created. 56, I mean, a billionaire. We're not talking about millionaires. We're talking about billionaires. 56 new billionaires have been created since the beginning of the pandemic. I mean, what a contrast. And further, the world's billionaires, of which, you know, this is a very small club, you might ask yourself, have you ever met a billionaire? They're very rare. The world's billionaires have increased their wealth by a trillion dollars since the pandemic started. That's one with 12 zeros after. So over to 1 John 3 verse 17.

1 John 3 verse 17.

1 John 3 verse 17. When we think about the kind of inequality that goes on, and again, I'm not trying to go down some government policy route here. I'm just pointing out that it is a fact that many are getting richer. Those who have great wealth are accelerating that wealth in the midst even of an incredible crisis like we live in today. And if we think about how that wealth should be used, there are some like Warren Buffett who have challenged the world's billionaires to give away their wealth. And so there are those like Warren Buffett, Bill Gates, and others who are giving away enormous amounts of wealth through various foundations and philanthropic organizations. But let's look at, but unfortunately it's so rare that that's why we point at it. That's why we discuss it. If you look at 1 John 3 verse 17, it says, but whoever has this world's goods, those would be the billionaires, and for that matter the millionaires, but all the way down, it doesn't matter, all the way down, whoever has this world's goods and sees his brother in need and shuts up his heart from him, how does the love of God abide in him? This is interesting because even those who don't have a lot might still be classified under this world's goods. Indeed, I think most of us in the church would be classified in this category. Verse 18, my little children, let us not love in word or in tongue, but in deed and in truth.

This is what he's saying, to love indeed and truth we need to share. And this was one of the indictments against Sodom, as they were not willing to address the needs of the poor. Perhaps you've heard of the experiment with the board game monopoly. In 2012, Paul Piff at the University of Berkeley here in Northern California conducted an experiment whose results were shared in the prestigious Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. It was titled, Higher Social Class Predicts Increased Unethical Behavior, a pretty shocking title. Basically, the higher you climb in the social classes, which is typically associated with money, the more unethical you'll be. That got a lot of people's attention. Here's what he did.

He had an experiment where he asked two people to play monopoly. And before the game began, he had them roll the dice to see who would be the rich player and who would be the poor player. The rich player would receive $2,000 from the bank at the start of the game, and would receive $200 each time he went around and passed go. The poor player was given $1,000 at the start of the game and collected $100 every time he went around go. The rich player could roll two dice, whereas the poor player could only roll one die. And the students would play for 15 minutes while being observed by researchers and video recorded. The results were stunning. I won't go into all the details. You can look up the study if you'd like on your own. It's a very interesting story. Even though the rich player, quote-unquote, knows the only reason he's rich is because of the roll of the dice at the beginning of the game, by the end of the 15 minutes after he has crushed his opponent, the poor player, by buying property and accumulating wealth, the rich players would gloat, they would put their opponent down, and generally behave quite rudely towards the poor players who couldn't keep up. I think the phrasing that God shares in Ezekiel on this point is very interesting. He says they didn't strengthen the hand of the poor and the needy. He didn't say they didn't solve poverty. He didn't argue for some form of government that would address the plight of the poor. He said they just didn't strengthen the hand of the needy. Because in this experiment, the person who was lucky enough to roll the dice and be rich could have been gracious, could have recognized the fact that he or she had a completely unfair advantage, but time and time and time again, the person didn't. They just didn't. Even though it was just a 15-minute experiment, there was just this incredible gloating and dominating that went on from rich over poor. Now, the question is, do we look to strengthen the hand of those who by reason of the equivalent of the roll of a dice with their life, where they were born and the circumstances of their life don't collect as much every time they go around the board?

Turn with me to Matthew 20 in verse 26.

Matthew 20, verse 26 and 27.

And this verse is often described in the sense of authority and power, but I think the same thing comes with the benefits that certain people have based on the circumstances of their birth.

Verse 26, "...yet it shall not be so among you." Well, actually we'll go back to verse 25. "...but Jesus called them to himself and said, You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lorded over them, and those who are great exercise authority over them." This is what the rich players would do with the poor players in the monopoly experiment. "...yet it shall not be so among you, but whoever desires to become great among you, let him be your servant, and whoever desires to be first among you, let him be your slave." The citizens of Sodom didn't help those who were in need. For them, it was power over service. In the famous speech, I Have a Dream speech by Dr. King, Dr. Martin Luther King, he speaks of the concept of the table of brotherhood.

He says, I have a dream that one day on the red hills of Georgia, the sons of former slaves and the sons of former slave owners will be able to sit down together at the table of brotherhood. The table of brotherhood. You see, we're all in this together as brothers and sisters. And no matter what our circumstance, whether we have more or less, we can always help those who have more or less, and often those who have less need more help. Let's recapture the true value value of brotherhood by strengthening the hand of those who have less than we do. Let's sit at that table together. Finally, we come to the fifth false value of Sodom. They were haughty and committed abomination versus living by timeless biblical values of morality. Now this is the one that everybody goes to. Sexual perversion. That's right. It was a terribly perverse city, and that's described thoroughly in Scripture. Let's turn to 1 Thessalonians 4 verse 3 and read the contrast. Paul felt inclined to write this to the Thessalonians. Generally, 1 Thessalonians 4 is a chapter we go to when we think about the resurrection.

At the end of chapter 4, Paul says to comfort one another with the words of describing what will happen at the last trump, and we often go to that. He needed to encourage them in that way, but in the beginning of chapter 4, he needed to share something important. You might have imagined that this would have been an issue, otherwise he wouldn't have written it. 1 Thessalonians 4 verses 3 to 5. He says, For this is the will of God, your sanctification, he wants us to be sanctified, set apart, that you should abstain from sexual immorality. 2 That each of you should know how to possess his own vessel in sanctification and honor. There's some debate about this concept of the vessel. Some have argued this vessel is our own body, that is, we need to know how to possess our own body, and some have argued it refers to a man's wife. There's debates going back and forth. I'm going to take the position right now that it refers to our own body because it can. That is one understanding interpretation of this, that we need to know how to possess our own body. Not in passion of lust, like the Gentiles who do not know God, that no one should take advantage of and defraud his brother in this manner, because the Lord is the avenger of all such, as we also forewarned you and testified, for God did not call us to uncleanness, but in holiness. Therefore, he who rejects this does not reject man, but God, who has also given us his Holy Spirit. You see, when we reject sanctification and sexual honor, we reject God just as the people of Sodom rejected God. It's not about some ideas of the church, or some ideas of men, or some cultural values that might be ebbing and flowing. These are godly principles. These are true values to be recaptured.

Will Durant, writing about the early Christian church, quotes the Latin scholar Tertullian. Tertullian was often referred to as a church father. Those are Catholic fathers. He lived in the second century. Tertullian is quoted—again, this would be called 150 years after the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus Christ—so relatively close compared to where we are, describing the early Christians of that time. This would have been certainly long before the corrupting influences of Catholicism, although certainly things were already creeping in by that time. He writes—and I'm quoting now from Will Durant's third volume, Caesar and Christ, The Story of Civilization. This is on page 568. He writes, quote, homosexual practices were condemned—I'm sorry, this is Will Durant writing—homosexual practices were condemned with an earnestness, rare in antiquity. That is, describing the Christian church of that time. And then now he quotes Tertullian, so far as sex is concerned, the Christian is content with the woman. Now, that phrasing sounds very awkward to our 21st century ears, but that's a second century man writing, so obviously things were quite different at the time. But I want to share that because sometimes we tend to think, well, these values come and go, and there's a lot of Christians today who call themselves Christians who embrace the LGBTQ community in a way that we would not. The ancient world of Paul's time was influenced heavily by the Greeks and Greek thought, which had a very, very accepting view of homosexuality and sexual expression. And he had to combat that, just like we have to combat that today. For us as Christians, the teachings of the Bible guide a different way of thinking.

See, sexual values have changed unimaginably in the last 50 years. The explosion of confusion over gender and the changing views on homosexuality are things that would most frequently be associated with Sodom. But sometimes the first four are not enough top of mind, as I shared.

We in God's church must guard against the incursion of these false values.

We have to remain faithful and true to true values of sexual honor and integrity, as described here in 1 Thessalonians. And as we do this, I hope at the same time we are gracious to those who are not called at this time. And as much as we disagree with the LGBTQ lifestyle, we also must be aware that pornography is a curse among men in God's church, just as is a curse among men in society.

We must reject all forms of sexual immorality. And the adulterer should be careful in condemning the homosexual, because both will be judged by their works. Let's recapture the true value of sexual honor. You know, in conclusion, I'd like to turn this back to Luke 17, verse 32.

We go back to Luke 17, where we began. And I'd like to finish what Jesus said as he answered the Pharisees question about when the kingdom of God would come.

Luke 17, if you turn back there, after describing again the days of law and how suddenly things would come, he begins to give examples in verse 31. In that day, he who is on the housetop and his goods are down, excuse me, and his goods are in the house, let him not come down to take them away. And likewise, the one who is in the field, let him not turn back. We've got to have our values with us intact every second of every minute of the day. We don't have time to say we're going to get this fixed later, because we never know when our time is going to come. We always think we have more time, but we don't. And then he says, verse 32, remember Lot's wife. Isn't that interesting? He brought up Lot, and he brought up Sodom, and now he goes back to it again. Why would he go back to Lot's wife?

Well, we know she left. She left with Lot. Both she and Lot had to be taken by the hand with their two daughters, because they were hesitant to leave. They knew they had to leave, but they were still ensconced in that way of thinking. Those five iniquities, those five things that we read from the prophet Ezekiel, they had imbibed that culture. They were affected by that culture. In the case of Lot's wife, as she escaped the city, and as it was being destroyed, she just had to look back. Her heart was still in it. He says, remember Lot's wife. Our hearts cannot be in this society's values. They need to be in godly values, true values. Verse 33, whoever seeks to save his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life will preserve it. It's interesting that in our society today, we might just decide to just be connected in some way so that we can get ahead or save our life in some way, but yet the values of God might lead us in a different path. I tell you, in that night there will be two men in one bed. The one will be taken, and the other one will be left. And then he says two women will be grinding together. The one will be taken, and the other left. Two men will be in the field. The one will be taken, and the other will be left. You know, this is going to happen so suddenly that even those people we might be close to, even though people were with, one will be taken and the other one will not. And who would have thought that one would not be taken? And they answered and said to him, where, Lord? See, this is interesting. The Pharisees wanted to know when, but the disciples wanted to know where. Where are they going? And so he said to them, wherever the body is, there the eagles will be gathered together. A very interesting discussion of how you can interpret where they're going. And I'll leave that for the sermon chat because it's a subject for another time. See, the values of our pride, our wealth, our leisure, our indignation at those lazy poor people, and our fluid views of sexuality. See, those are the values of Sodom, and those are the values of society today. As a society, people can get hooked. And even maybe having to be taken by the hand by an angel before they'll leave. And we make serious mistakes, just like Lot made a serious mistake. Several, actually. This society's viewpoint can impact us. Let's recapture the true values of humility, of godliness with contentment, of diligence, of service to the poor and needy, and of sexual honor. We live in a world, but we should not be of the world, as Jesus said in John 17 verse 16. Let's live these values as we count down the days to Christ's return. Let's recapture true values.