"And while he
lingered, the men laid hold upon his hand, and upon the hand of his wife, and
upon the hand of his two daughters; the Lord being merciful unto him: and they
brought him forth, and set him without the city" (Gen. 19:16).
The crowd had
already gathered around Lot's house and been struck with blindness. Two
visitors, brought into the safety of a God-fearing man's home, had shown
themselves to be messengers of the divine judgment that was soon to be rained
on Sodom and Gomorrah. Lot had pled with his sons-in law and married daughters
to flee--and they had refused. Called him crazy. Now the remaining four were
bidden to flee the city.
And they lingered.
In a city filled
with wickedness, filled with crime and vice and disgustingness of all sorts,
they lingered.
Because they liked
the sin? No.
"Lot delayed.
Though daily distressed at beholding deeds of violence, he had no true
conception of the debasing and abominable iniquity practiced in that vile
city….
"Some of his
children clung to Sodom, and his wife refused to depart without them. The thought of leaving those whom he held dearest on
earth was more than he could bear.
"It was hard to
forsake his luxurious home and all the wealth acquired by the labors of his
whole life, to go forth a destitute wanderer.
Stupified with sorrow, he lingered,…" PP 160
Because he couldn't
bear to leave those he loved. And it was hard to leave his things.
Goodbyes are never
easy. But eternal goodbyes are even harder.
And even though they
had been told to flee and lingered, God understood. He can sympathize with this
human sorrow at saying goodbye--He will someday say goodbye to many of those
that He loves, never to see them again. Yet, judgment could not be stayed. So,
the angels physically took the hands of Lot, his wife, and their two remaining
daughters, and led them out of the city.
Why?
The Lord was
merciful. Mercy abounded towards those who were faithful; even though they had
lingered, and even though they had dwelt in the middle of the doomed city
Sodom, and even though God's wrath could not be delayed.
Mercy in the midst
of judgment.
God's judgment upon
our earth will soon be uncontainable. We will have filled up the cup of
iniquity and the Lord will "descend from heaven with a shout," to
gather His children home.
But before that
happens, we will be called out of the doomed city, prophetic Babylon. Again,
mercy in the midst of judgment.
And I assure you,
you will leave some behind who you dearly love.
However, if you
linger, you may escape with your life, but you may lose another who would have
escaped had it not been for your lingering. For Lot's wife perished due to her
husband's example.
I beg of you, no
matter how hard the struggle, no matter how intense the pain at saying goodbye,
linger not.
In heaven, when all
is said and done, you may shed tears for those you loved. But the Lord Himself
will cry with you and comfort you. He will miss them more than you do.
No, goodbyes are
never easy. And eternal goodbyes much less so.
But linger not as
Lot. It will cost you, though the Lord lays hold of you and pulls you out of
the very jaws of death.
Lord, keep me strong and faithful...and if I linger, lay hold of me and pull me
out...
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