Remember Lot's Wife

Turning your Bibles to Luke chapter 17, we will be focusing on verse 32. But as I go through, you might want to keep your Bible open there because I'll be referencing the surrounding context quite a bit. So verse 32 of Luke 17 says, remember Lot's wife. Tonight, I want to share with you eight reasons that we should remember Lot's wife. The first is this, we should remember Lot's wife because we are in the very same situation. In verse 28, Jesus says that the days of the Son of Man will be as it was 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, it will be in the day when the Son of Man is revealed. Jesus is telling us that He is coming to bring judgment on our world in the very same way that God brought judgment on Sodom. The world will be unprepared and unexpecting because people will be preoccupied eating, drinking, building, planting, doing all the normal everyday worldly things. But that suddenly terrible judgment will come on us just like it did on Sodom. Paul says that on this day the Lord Jesus will be revealed from heaven with his mighty angels in flaming fire taking vengeance on those who do not know God and on those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. And in Revelation chapter 6 it says that the kings of the earth, the great men, the rich men, the commanders, the mighty men, every slave and every free man will hide themselves in the caves and in the rocks of the mountains and say to the mountains and rocks, fall on us and hide us from the face of him who sits on the throne and from the wrath of the Lamb. For the great day of his wrath has come, and who is able to stand? The scriptures paint a terrifying picture of this final day, but just like Lot's wife, we have not only been warned of it, but we have been offered a way of escape. The angels told Lot's wife that if she escaped to Zoar, she would be safe. In the very same way we have been offered a city of refuge and his name is Jesus Christ and Jesus says that all who come to me I will in no way cast out and Everyone who sees the son and believes in him has everlasting life and I will raise him up at the last day if we believe in Jesus Christ if we leave the world and go to him and We will be raised up on the last day and saved and protected from the wrath that will be outpoured. The second reason we should remember Lot's wife is because she and Lot lingered. After being warned by the angels that judgment was coming, they waited around. In Genesis 19, it says that when the morning had dawned, the angels urged Lot to hurry, saying, Arise, take your wife and your two daughters who are here, lest you be consumed in the punishment of the city. And while he lingered, the men took hold of his hand, his wife's hand, and the hands of his two daughters, and they brought them out and set them outside the city. Consider for a moment how dangerous it is to linger when judgment is looming. If you are here and you have not come to Christ, and you are lingering in the world, consider how dangerous that is. You may die any time. Christ may return later tonight. He could come at any moment. It is dangerous to wait. But the second thing about this is, think about for a moment, Why did they linger? Why did they wait? And surely I think it's because leaving meant leaving everything else behind. Surely they did not want to leave their sons-in-law, their wealth, their home, their possessions, their livestock, their very life. But what Jesus says to us in Luke 17, He says in verse 32 and then 33, He says, Remember Lot's wife, because whoever seeks to save his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life will preserve it. In order to come to Christ, we must lose our life. We can't take it with us. We have to leave everything else behind in order to go to Him. Jesus says, whoever does not forsake everything that he has cannot be my disciple. He says, he who loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me, and he who loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me. If there is anything that we are unwilling to give up, we cannot go to Christ. So that means that if we come to Christ, Our life isn't our life anymore. Our possessions are now His possessions. Our money is now His money. Our time is His time. Our relationships are now His relationships. And our work is now His work. We must give it all up. But it's worth it, because not only will giving it all up and going to Christ save your life, but Jesus promises us that everyone who has left houses, or brothers, or sisters, or father, or mother, or wife, or children, or lands, for my name's sake, shall receive a hundredfold and inherit eternal life. The third reason we should remember Lot's wife is because she fell behind. In Genesis 19, verse 26, it says, But Lot's wife behind him looked back, and she became a pillar of salt. So for whatever reason, she had fallen behind as they fled from the city. And perhaps she was trying to carry something with her, or perhaps she was simply reluctant to run away. And the question we need to ask ourselves is, what is slowing us down? What are you trying to carry with you? What worldly thing are you trying to take with you as you go to Christ? What worldly thing is consuming your money, your time, and your thoughts, and preventing you from serving Christ? Jesus says in verse 31 of Luke 17, In that day he was on the housetop, and his goods are in the house. Let him not come down to take them away. And the author of Hebrews tells us, let us lay aside every weight and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us. Consider also that when she fell behind, she became isolated. She was alone. She no longer had Lot next to her to say, keep focused on Zoar. Don't look back. Keep going. She was all by herself. Be sure that you do not put yourself in a situation where you become isolated when you are by yourself. Fourth, we should remember Lot's wife because she looked back. In Genesis 19 it says, but Lot's wife behind him looked back and she became a pillar of salt. She directly disobeyed the commandment of the angel who said, escape for your life. Do not look behind you nor stay anywhere in the plain. Escape to the mountains lest you be destroyed. Surely she thought, what harm can one glance do? Perhaps she just wanted one final glimpse of her old life before it was gone forever. And I think it's possible that she glanced back and at that very moment God turned her into a pillar of salt. But personally I think it's probably more likely that she glanced back and she saw that everything looked okay, that the sun was high in the sky, the city looked peaceful and it looked safe. And she began to question, is this judgment really going to come? It looks safe. And perhaps she just wanted to run back and get one last item or something. But in light of, especially verse 31, where Jesus says, and likewise the one who's in the field, let him not turn back. And then he says, remember Lot's wife. I think it's very possible that she actually went back. And the thing that we need to see is that one glance back to the world, one small sin, one act of disobedience has the power to destroy us. In James 1, it says that each one is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires and enticed. Then, when desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin. And sin, when it is full grown, brings forth death. In the same way, one look back at what you have left behind can entice you and lead you into greater and greater sin and death. Rather, let us heed the advice of the author of Hebrews, who says, let us run the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith. Let us fix our gaze on him. Fifth, we should remember Lot's wife, because when she looked, she received no second chance. It says that, but Lot's wife behind him looked back, and she became a pillar of salt. God had already shown her tremendous mercy. He had already sent angels to warn her and to lead her out, and they had gone to great lengths to save them. But she responded to this mercy by tempting God all the more. She disobeyed the command of the angel and looked back. And we need to take the warning from Hebrews chapter 10, which says, For if we sin willfully after we have received the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins, but a certain fearful expectation of judgment. I think the point here is that it is one thing to be a great sinner and to trust that in spite of you, God will still forgive you. But it is another thing to presume that you can sin and get away with it because of the grace of God. The first exalts the grace of God, but the second mocks it. Number six. We should remember Lot's wife. because she was Lot's wife. She was, after all, united in marriage to a man who had many faults, but the Bible calls him a righteous man. She was married to a man who was elect and saved. And the point to us is that marrying a godly spouse will not save you. Having godly friends will not save you. Joining a godly church will not save you. Jesus says in verses 34 to 36 of our chapter, I tell you, in that night there will be two men in one bed. The one will be taken and the other will be left. 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 left. You yourself must go to Christ. Number seven, we should remember Lot's wife because she actually made it partway. She made it out of Sodom, but not to Zoar. She was almost saved, but not quite. In the same way, it is not enough for us to come partway out of the world and partway to Christ. In verse 37 of our chapter, Jesus says, wherever the body is, there the eagles will be gathered together. And I believe that what he is saying is that no matter where you are, God's judgment will find you out. He's saying that in the same way that eagles find a carcass no matter where it is, When Jesus says He will send out His angels and they will gather out of His kingdom all things that offend and all those who practice lawlessness. It will not matter if you are in the church or you are so far out of the world to be united with God's people. That will not save you. In Matthew 22, Jesus tells a parable and there's a king who has this great wedding banquet. And it says that when the king came in to see the guests, he saw a man there who did not have on a wedding garment. This man had somehow made it all the way off the streets into the very wedding banquet. but he didn't have a wedding garment on. So the king said to him, friend, how did you come in here without a wedding garment? And he was speechless. Then the king said to his servant, bind him hand and foot, take him away, and cast him into outer darkness. In the very same way, it does not matter how close we have come to God, if we are not clothed in the righteousness of Christ, we will not be saved. The second reason that we should remember that Lot's wife actually made it partway is because even if you have lived part of your life for Christ, you must live the rest of your life for Christ. Jesus says that the love of many will grow cold, but he who endures to the end will be saved. We may face persecution. We may face loss of loved ones. financial distress, physical sickness, injury, but in the midst and in spite of all these things, we must persevere. Jesus says in Revelation chapter 2, be faithful until death and I will give you the crown of life. He who overcomes shall not be hurt by the second death. Eighthly, when we remember Lot's life, we should remember that she had not Jesus Christ at her side. It is true that we must persevere and we must forsake everything to be saved. And I think many of us, myself included, feel much like the disciples when they said to Jesus, who then can be saved? Who has the faith to do that? And Jesus responded, With men, this is impossible. But with God, all things are possible. And I just want you to notice, the angels, they took hold of Lot's wife's hand, and Lot and their daughters, and they led them out of the city. And then they let go, and they said, flee to Zoar, and you'll be saved. But we have a Savior who takes us by the hand. and leads us all the way home. He never lets go of us. Jesus says, My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me, and I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish, neither shall anyone snatch them out of my hand. My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all, and no one is able to snatch them out of my Father's hand. Our salvation does not depend on our grip on Christ, but on His grip on us. Paul says, Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? As it is written, For your sake we are killed all day long. We are accounted as sheep for the slaughter. Yet in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. And Isaiah says, have you not known? Have you not heard? The everlasting God, the Lord, the creator of the ends of the earth, neither faints nor is weary. His understanding is unsearchable. He gives power to the weak. And to those who have no might, he increases strength. Even the youth shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall. But those who wait on the Lord shall renew their strength. They shall mount up with wings like eagles. They shall run and not be weary. They shall walk and not faint." Praise God that when we are faithless, He remains faithful. When we are weak, He is strong. And when we cry out to Him, He hears us. Let's pray. Father, we praise you that when we remember Lot's wife, we know that we can remember that we have a Savior who holds us by the hand and never lets us go. But I pray that you would give us the faith to forsake everything for you, to trust that we have an eternal inheritance that is a hundredfold more valuable than anything on this earth. Lord, I pray that you would give us the strength, the ability to persevere in the midst of every trial and tribulation before us. For Jesus' sake. Amen.