I have two questions to ask you. It's very important to answer both honestly. The first will be easy, very easy in fact. But the second will likely be much more difficult.
Question 1: Would you choose Heaven over Hell?
Question 2: Would you choose Heaven over Earth?
Of course, we have no issue preferring Heaven over Hell. But most of us, if we are honest, sometimes wrestle with preferring Heaven over Earth. This is a problem, the Bible doesn’t leave room for divided hearts. Jesus said, “For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also” (Matthew 6:21). Paul instructed us to set our minds “on things that are above, not on things that are on earth” (Colossians 3:2). And the writer of Hebrews reminded believers that they were “looking forward to a better country—a heavenly one” (Hebrews 11:16).
When we left Lot last week, he and his family were being led out by the two Angels sent to destroy the city—the hands of judgment are also the hands of deliverance. His reluctance to leave revealed that he suffered with the same struggle, even though he knew that the city's fate was sealed.
In the New Testament, followers of Christ are told to live as sojourners on Earth. And while we are traveling through this life, we know we must serve, but can never settle, here.
Beloved, I urge you as sojourners and exiles to abstain from the passions of the flesh, which wage war against your soul. Keep your conduct among the Gentiles honorable, so that when they speak against you as evildoers, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day of visitation.
1 Peter 2:11-12
As we conclude our series looking at the life of Lot, we will once again turn to the Gospel message to discover insights for living in a world we are leaving.
We often imagine ourselves very different from the people of the Old Testament. But if you look closely, you’ll find their struggles look a lot like ours.
Take Lot, for example.
Abraham’s nephew is often overlooked, but his life stands as a mirror for ours. Peter tells us Lot’s soul was "vexed"—distressed—by the culture he lived in. And Jesus warned that the culture of the last days would look just like Lot’s.
Many of us believe those days are now.
That’s why we’re launching a new series called Vexed—an honest look at the temptations and torments of living in a prosperous, broken world.