Salty Sodom

She looked back, and turned into a salty statue, frozen in place...

But his wife looked back from behind him, and she became a pillar of salt (Genesis 19:26)

I love this story so much. Forgive me in advance for my glee? God was not messing around with His immediate judgment and condemnation of Lot's wife. This story is in Genesis, and what I appreciate most about it, is God's display of power: He, when all is said and done, is Sovereign over all flesh, and we learn this in the beginning. 

While Lot's wife had the privilege of being 1/4 family members that took the opportunity presented to her, to run to safety, before the town behind her was set aflame as a result of Gods righteous indignation, she preferred her wicked ways; in turning back, she garnered death:

But 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 (James 1:14-15)

And:

For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord (Romans 6:23). 

Current plague

We are currently in a plague of spiritual sin that will result, for many, in their physical demise:

And I saw another sign in heaven, great and marvellous, seven angels having the seven last plagues; for in them is filled up the wrath of God (Revelation 15:1)

NOTICE: it is Gods wrath that fills the plagues: the human element in all of this, is our turning away from Gods Word, His commandments, His will, His way. We, like Lots wife, are given an opportunity to run to safety without turning back, but many refuse to leave their life of sin behind, despite the fact that we are told we receive not her plagues if we refrain from being partakers of her sins

And I heard another voice from heaven, saying, Come out of her, my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not her plagues (Revelation 18:40)

God wants us to leave what threatens our eternal life with Him, and He gives us plenty of lead time to do this. In the case of Sodom and Gomorrah, the inhabitants wickedness was no longer tolerable to God, and His judgment was poured out upon them for their reprobate and blatant self gratifying indulgences:

 

Then the LORD rained brimstone and fire on Sodom and Gomorrah, from the LORD out of the heavens (Genesis 19:24)

1/4 choose not God

The thing is, as mentioned above, Lots wife was 1/4 that ran, but she was also 1/4 that choose not God when she turned back, bringing upon herself instant death because of her disobedience. Imagine, that in the city in which you live, only you and your immediate family are given the opportunity to escape sure death: 

• Would this not be a blessing to you? 
• Would this not cause you to thank God, and run as quickly as you possibly could, to the cover of safety that He and He alone offers?

Sinful selves

I am thinking about our here and now dear reader, how we are not so different from the people depicted in the Biblical stories we read about. We can all look back, see our sinful selves, and the hell that we lived through as consequences for some of our unsavoury choices. Perhaps, 1/4 of us, when given the chance to escape, will be just like Lots wife, turning back and longing for what was:

And I looked, and behold, a pale horse, and his name that sat on him was Death, and Hell followed with him. And power was given unto them over a fourth part of the earth to kill with sword, and with hunger, and with death, and with the beasts of the earth (Revelation 6:8)

Did you notice in the scripture directly above this writing, that power was given unto them over a fourth part of the earth to kill with sword, and with hunger, and with death, and with the beasts of the earth ... Yikes! I have heard some numbers regarding those that have accepted into their bodies the poison being administered in injurious and sometimes lethal doses: it would appear, that 1/4 of the population has succumbed to the seducing spirits that had them turn away from God, and toward worldly and deadly ways. 

Collective human past

As I consider the dots and try to connect them, I know that my vision is blurred, that I see dimly, and that I am doing a whole lot of speculating about what is to come based on what has happened in our collective human past. What I am completely confident of, is God sees and knows all, and He is well aware of what resides in each heart. The Bible is very clear on this: 

Then said one unto him, Lord, are there few that be saved? And he said unto them, strive to enter in at the strait gate: for many, I say unto you, will seek to enter in, and shall not be able. When once the master of the house is risen up, and hath shut to the door, and ye begin to stand without, and to knock at the door, saying, Lord, Lord, open unto us; and he shall answer and say unto you, I know you not whence ye are ... (Luke 13:23-25)

Back to Lots wife

That little lady, Lots wife, is a perfect representation of what God asks us not to do! She is forever nameless, and figuratively frozen in time as a pillar of salt. Our name, is either written into the book of life or alternatively, blotted out. Contrast and compare the scriptures below:

And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire (Rev 20:15)

He that overcometh, the same shall be clothed in white raiment; and I will not blot out his name out of the book of life, but I will confess his name before my Father, and before his angels (Rev 3:5)

Lots wife made a grievous forever error. By turning back to the sinful city of Sodom, she revealed the contents of her heart. She was not done with that place, or what she enjoyed there. Giving up sin for salvation isn't for everyone, and Lots family members were no different from regular people like you and me: we hem ha and hesitate until it's almost too late! Look at them dragging their heels in this next bit of the story, to the point where the angels laid hold upon his hand, and upon his wife, and upon the hand of his two daughters

NOTE: I encourage you to read the full story in Genesis for yourself; here is a tasty morsel for you to chew on until then:

  When angels say 

"Make haste", run!

And when the morning arose, then the angles hastened Lot, saying Arise, take thy wife, and thy two daughters, which are here; lest thou be consumed in the iniquity of the city. 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. And it came to pass, when they had brought them forth abroad, that he said: Escape for thy life; look not behind thee, neither stay thou in all the plain; escape to the mountain, lest thou be consumed (Genesis 19:15-17)

Then the LORD rained upon Sodom and Gomorrah brimstone and fire from the LORD out of heaven (Genesis 19:24)

Full circle

I will close with a return to the top, the beginning, the notice of warning that helps us see, that God determines our destiny.

But his wife looked back from behind him, and she became a pillar of salt (Genesis 19:26)

While the world turns, so do people. They turn away from God as their source of security and life, and toward themselves and what they can do to ensure their physical well-being, and in the case of those that lived in Sodom & Gomorrah, their hedonistic lifestyle that included sacrificing their own children to idol gods. They were wicked then and we as a collective human race, are wicked now... and God, well, He has a timetable for us, and the hourglass is running out of proverbial sand.

I encourage you to be a 3/4 kinda person. Lot and his two daughters were treated mercifully by God when they obeyed the angels that warned them of what was coming: they obeyed, keeping their eyes trained forward, without looking back. We too, have been amply warned of what is to come, and we all get to choose, salty Sodom, or Saviour of our souls, with a lifetime guarantee of eternity with the Sovereign of the universe, Jesus Christ💞