Abide: “to accept without objection” – “to continue in a Place (Webster’s 7th Collegiate Dictionary)
Genesis 13:13 “But the men of Sodom were wicked and sinners before the Lord exceedingly.” In studying the scripture there is a principle called “The Law of First Mention.” Genesis 13:13 is the first mention of the word sinner(s) in the Bible. It references those abiding in the ancient city of Sodom. Sodom was one of the “cities of the plain” located somewhere around the Dead Sea. The city was infamous for its pagan worship and its depravity. Zondervan Bible Dictionary (M.C. Tenney) notes its name became synonymous with “vice, infamy, injustice, and judgement”.
As we live through a season of famous and powerful men being accused of sexual misconduct in varying degrees, it becomes increasingly apparent something is terribly wrong. How did we get to this place?
Truth be told, this is not a new place; it’s an old place. When God condemned the people of Sodom 4,000 years ago and labeled them sinners, the sin was sexual immorality and perversion. I Kings 14:24 informs that as the city of Sodom moved more and more away from the worship of Jehovah God they moved closer to the worship of man-made gods. The further away they drifted from God the deeper they sank into an immoral abyss. The obsession with sex and sexuality over time became how the people of Sodom identified themselves until the culture was completely immersed in finding new ways to satisfy an increasingly insatiable sexual appetite – nothing was out of bounds including violence and murder to achieve one’s lust. In that cultural climate, those who stood with Jehovah were the oddballs. Over time, however, their numbers diminished as they absorbed the norm in Sodom – “Everybody’s doing it”, “There are no rules except there are no rules” and “We are a sophisticated society living to assuage our desires.”
Our country’s biggest export around the world is Hollywood’s interpretation of life, love, right, wrong, people of faith and moral standards, as seen through the lens of a movie camera and projected on a bigger than life screen. The goal for all who view, to be seduced, to see things as men like Harvey Weinstein and Woody Allen see them. These two are examples of men without a moral compass who along with the everyday drip, drip, drip of men in media, entertainment and politics that felt entitled, by virtue of their power and position, to take advantage of the women who stepped into their grip. Now women are speaking out! Why now? Why not sooner when the events transpired? One answer might be because the “the Casting Couch” and the rights of the elite to abuse was without recourse or consequence. It was part of the Hollywood culture, accepted without objection by one and all! To quote N.Y.C. radio host Mark Simone (WOR Radio) “Everybody knew this was happening for years – Everybody knew about Harvey Weinstein, Charlie Rose, Matt Lauer. When the subject of Weinstein’s’ behavior came up in conversation, people laughed and said, “that’s just Harvey!”
Problem: Every American abides in this highly sexualized culture. It’s having an effect on all of us, especially our Youth! We have been drawn in by the delusion that sin has no consequences.
But the truth is, sin always has consequences: Numbers 32:23 “… behold, ye have sinned against the Lord: and be sure your sin will find you out.”
For all the “famed”, “respected”, “entitled”, “hypocritical” individuals who are being “outed”, that day has come. But if we miss being outed in this life we will all be judged by a just and Holy God in the next.
There is, however, a prescription by which sin is forgiven and neutralized – God does not leave us to ourselves to become slaves to our passions. He has provided a way out:
- Psalm 32:5 Acknowledge our sin
- 1 John 1:9 Confess it to God – Ask His forgiveness
- Psalm 38:18 Be sorry for your sin – Repent
- Romans 6:6 Don’t cater to your sin
- Hebrews 12:4 Resist! (with God’s help, fight back!)
- Psalm 19:18 Don’t go there!
If we learn from these ugly, disturbing events and, as individuals and as a nation, repent, reject this cultural rot and turn to Christ as Savior, there is a way out of Sodom!
God will heal our land. If not, if we continue to close our ears and our minds to all His warnings, ours will be the same fate as was Sodom: we will burn in the fires of our own lusts…and ultimately in the fires of Hell!