Pray For The Peace of Jerusalem(6/12/22)[Prayer]

The Holy Scriptures | 6/12/22 | left that other site

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Pray For The Peace of Jerusalem

Genesis 19

Sodom and Gomorrah Destroyed

19 The two angels arrived at Sodom in the evening, and Lot was sitting in the gateway of the city. When he saw them, he got up to meet them and bowed down with his face to the ground. 2 “My lords,” he said, “please turn aside to your servant’s house. You can wash your feet and spend the night and then go on your way early in the morning.”

“No,” they answered, “we will spend the night in the square.”

3 But he insisted so strongly that they did go with him and entered his house. He prepared a meal for them, baking bread without yeast, and they ate. 4 Before they had gone to bed, all the men from every part of the city of Sodom—both young and old—surrounded the house. 5 They called to Lot, “Where are the men who came to you tonight? Bring them out to us so that we can have sex with them.”

6 Lot went outside to meet them and shut the door behind him 7 and said, “No, my friends. Don’t do this wicked thing. 8 Look, I have two daughters who have never slept with a man. Let me bring them out to you, and you can do what you like with them. But don’t do anything to these men, for they have come under the protection of my roof.”

9 “Get out of our way,” they replied. “This fellow came here as a foreigner, and now he wants to play the judge! We’ll treat you worse than them.” They kept bringing pressure on Lot and moved forward to break down the door.

10 But the men inside reached out and pulled Lot back into the house and shut the door. 11 Then they struck the men who were at the door of the house, young and old, with blindness so that they could not find the door.

12 The two men said to Lot, “Do you have anyone else here—sons-in-law, sons or daughters, or anyone else in the city who belongs to you? Get them out of here, 13 because we are going to destroy this place. The outcry to the Lord against its people is so great that he has sent us to destroy it.”

14 So Lot went out and spoke to his sons-in-law, who were pledged to marry[a] his daughters. He said, “Hurry and get out of this place, because the Lord is about to destroy the city!” But his sons-in-law thought he was joking.

15 With the coming of dawn, the angels urged Lot, saying, “Hurry! Take your wife and your two daughters who are here, or you will be swept away when the city is punished.”

16 When he hesitated, the men grasped his hand and the hands of his wife and of his two daughters and led them safely out of the city, for the Lord was merciful to them. 17 As soon as they had brought them out, one of them said, “Flee for your lives! Don’t look back, and don’t stop anywhere in the plain! Flee to the mountains or you will be swept away!”

18 But Lot said to them, “No, my lords,[b] please! 19 Your[c] servant has found favor in your[d] eyes, and you[e] have shown great kindness to me in sparing my life. But I can’t flee to the mountains; this disaster will overtake me, and I’ll die. 20 Look, here is a town near enough to run to, and it is small. Let me flee to it—it is very small, isn’t it? Then my life will be spared.”

21 He said to him, “Very well, I will grant this request too; I will not overthrow the town you speak of. 22 But flee there quickly, because I cannot do anything until you reach it.” (That is why the town was called Zoar.[f])

23 By the time Lot reached Zoar, the sun had risen over the land. 24 Then the Lord rained down burning sulfur on Sodom and Gomorrah—from the Lord out of the heavens. 25 Thus he overthrew those cities and the entire plain, destroying all those living in the cities—and also the vegetation in the land. 26 But Lot’s wife looked back, and she became a pillar of salt.

27 Early the next morning Abraham got up and returned to the place where he had stood before the Lord. 28 He looked down toward Sodom and Gomorrah, toward all the land of the plain, and he saw dense smoke rising from the land, like smoke from a furnace.

29 So when God destroyed the cities of the plain, he remembered Abraham, and he brought Lot out of the catastrophe that overthrew the cities where Lot had lived.

_______________________________________________________

God Bless America.

ML/LTOS

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Pray For The Peace of Jerusalem

Almighty and Eternal God,
How Excellent is Your Name Over All The Earth!
You Alone Are Worthy of Praise,
For Your Alone Are Holy,
You Alone Are God,
You Alone Are The Most High!
Omnipotent,
Omniscient,
and Omnipresent,
You See The End From The Beginning
And The Beginning From The End.
We Thank You For Your Precious and Holy Word,
Which Gives Us daily Insight Into Your Eternal Mind, Your Righteousness,
and Your Love For Us.
Abba, Father! How Wonderful You Are!

Let all that has been Concealed
Be Revealed.

Father, We Pray For The Peace Of Jerusalem,
According To Your Will and Promise.
We Pray That You Will Forgive The Sins
of Our Own Nation,
and Lead us all to Godly Repentance.
Create in Us Clean Hearts, Oh LORD,
and Renew a Right Spirit Within Us.

This we Pray Together,
As We Await Your Messiah,
Blessed Be He,
To Set Up His Kingdom,
And Make All Things Right.

God Bless America.

ML/LTOS

[left that other site]

Pray For The Peace of Jerusalem

Genesis 19

Sodom and Gomorrah Destroyed

19 The two angels arrived at Sodom in the evening, and Lot was sitting in the gateway of the city. When he saw them, he got up to meet them and bowed down with his face to the ground. 2 “My lords,” he said, “please turn aside to your servant’s house. You can wash your feet and spend the night and then go on your way early in the morning.”

“No,” they answered, “we will spend the night in the square.”

3 But he insisted so strongly that they did go with him and entered his house. He prepared a meal for them, baking bread without yeast, and they ate. 4 Before they had gone to bed, all the men from every part of the city of Sodom—both young and old—surrounded the house. 5 They called to Lot, “Where are the men who came to you tonight? Bring them out to us so that we can have sex with them.”

6 Lot went outside to meet them and shut the door behind him 7 and said, “No, my friends. Don’t do this wicked thing. 8 Look, I have two daughters who have never slept with a man. Let me bring them out to you, and you can do what you like with them. But don’t do anything to these men, for they have come under the protection of my roof.”

9 “Get out of our way,” they replied. “This fellow came here as a foreigner, and now he wants to play the judge! We’ll treat you worse than them.” They kept bringing pressure on Lot and moved forward to break down the door.

10 But the men inside reached out and pulled Lot back into the house and shut the door. 11 Then they struck the men who were at the door of the house, young and old, with blindness so that they could not find the door.

12 The two men said to Lot, “Do you have anyone else here—sons-in-law, sons or daughters, or anyone else in the city who belongs to you? Get them out of here, 13 because we are going to destroy this place. The outcry to the Lord against its people is so great that he has sent us to destroy it.”

14 So Lot went out and spoke to his sons-in-law, who were pledged to marry[a] his daughters. He said, “Hurry and get out of this place, because the Lord is about to destroy the city!” But his sons-in-law thought he was joking.

15 With the coming of dawn, the angels urged Lot, saying, “Hurry! Take your wife and your two daughters who are here, or you will be swept away when the city is punished.”

16 When he hesitated, the men grasped his hand and the hands of his wife and of his two daughters and led them safely out of the city, for the Lord was merciful to them. 17 As soon as they had brought them out, one of them said, “Flee for your lives! Don’t look back, and don’t stop anywhere in the plain! Flee to the mountains or you will be swept away!”

18 But Lot said to them, “No, my lords,[b] please! 19 Your[c] servant has found favor in your[d] eyes, and you[e] have shown great kindness to me in sparing my life. But I can’t flee to the mountains; this disaster will overtake me, and I’ll die. 20 Look, here is a town near enough to run to, and it is small. Let me flee to it—it is very small, isn’t it? Then my life will be spared.”

21 He said to him, “Very well, I will grant this request too; I will not overthrow the town you speak of. 22 But flee there quickly, because I cannot do anything until you reach it.” (That is why the town was called Zoar.[f])

23 By the time Lot reached Zoar, the sun had risen over the land. 24 Then the Lord rained down burning sulfur on Sodom and Gomorrah—from the Lord out of the heavens. 25 Thus he overthrew those cities and the entire plain, destroying all those living in the cities—and also the vegetation in the land. 26 But Lot’s wife looked back, and she became a pillar of salt.

27 Early the next morning Abraham got up and returned to the place where he had stood before the Lord. 28 He looked down toward Sodom and Gomorrah, toward all the land of the plain, and he saw dense smoke rising from the land, like smoke from a furnace.

29 So when God destroyed the cities of the plain, he remembered Abraham, and he brought Lot out of the catastrophe that overthrew the cities where Lot had lived.

_______________________________________________________



If we are going to do an honest reading of Genesis, we can't leave anything out. The next few chapters are difficult to say the least, but I will do my best to share with you what God has impressed upon my heart for these chapters.

To try and pinpoint exactly WHAT sin caused the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah would be simplistic. As we can see by the actual story, there was an entire culture of sin and violence, and people were not even safe in their own homes. The people of Sodom and Gomorrah felt entitled to take what they wanted from whomever they wanted, and there were no societal restraints upon them. The text implies that there were roving gangs at night, causing mayhem on a citywide scale.

Believers are sinners too, saved by Grace. Yet, we still struggle with sin. While I am instant to forgive a person who apologizes, my steel-trap memory makes it very hard to forgive people, if they have not asked for forgiveness. The mental video plays over and over in my head, making it very hard to forgive. Jesus talked a lot about the sin of unforgiveness. He spoke very little about the sin we associate with Sodom and Gomorrah. And so, I have just as much need to repent of sin as they did.

Let's look at the way Lot and his family actually dealt with the sins of Sodom, based upon the Narrative.

1. Accommodation: Instead of leaving Sodom long ago, Lot and his family continued to live there, even though he knew what was going on. Lot was not poor, and he wasn't stuck in a bad situation without recourse. He continued to live there, and raise his two daughters in that horrible environment. If his motive for staying wasn't financial, why didn't he leave? Perhaps Lot, by accommodating the culture, was becoming influenced by it.

2. Avoidance: The first indication of Lot's knowledge of the sin surrounding him is when he advises the Two Angels to NOT spend the night in the public square. By offering the Angels his hospitality, he was actually admitting the truth about the city. So why on earth would he stay there himself? He was avoiding the truth.

3. Engagement: By betrothing his two virgin daughters to local guys, he was engaging in, and embracing the culture. Up till that point, we have seen the People of Shem marry within their tribe, and very precise genealogies (The Begats) outlined in Scripture. From this, we can infer that Lot wasn't planning on leaving Sodom at all.

4. Mockery: The local guys engaged to Lot's daughters think the whole thing is a big joke. They are so confident in their mockery that they stay behind as Lot's daughters flee. So much for "Romance".

5. Tradition: Hospitality is an enormous part of tradition in the Middle East. But, is it such an important tradition that a father would throw his two daughters to the wolves?Tradition can be a lovely thing that helps define a culture. But, carried to extremes it can be used to justify sin. If I am faced with a choice between Tradition and The Word of God, you KNOW which one I will choose.

6. Nostalgia: Many times in the Torah, after The Children of Israel were freed from slavery, we see Nostalgia which becomes a sin. "Why didn't we stay in Egypt?" , "At least in Egypt we had meat to eat!" and other complaints nearly drove Moses crazy. A couple of times Moses even complained to God that he was DONE. Yearning for the old life of sin after leaving it is a major problem. Thus we see Lot's wife, looking back at the burning city, and turning into a pillar of salt.

We can see how these 6 factors can reallly intrude upon our walk with God. As we shall see tomorrow, the survivors of the catastrophe are not so righteous either. God didn't save them because they were righteous. He saved them because Abraham prayed for them.

Come and Pray For the Peace of Jerusalem, For Our FRiends in Need, For Persecuted Believers, and For Our Beloved Nation.

"He was delivered up for our trespasses and raised for our justification." (Romans 4:25)

God Bless America.

Blessings To All Who Visit This Garden of Prayer.

Hallelujah and Amen

ML/LTOS

[metmom]

Very astute observations.

Thanks for posting this.

[left that other site]

Pray For The Peace of Jerusalem

Thank You, metmom, For Your Prayers For the Peace of Jerusalem, For Our FRiends in Need, For Persecuted Believers, and For Our Beloved Nation.

"He was delivered up for our trespasses and raised for our justification." (Romans 4:25)

God Bless America.

Blessings To All Who Visit This Garden of Prayer.

Hallelujah and Amen

ML/LTOS

[etabeta]

Your observations clarified for me Lot’s behavior which I never understood. Thank you!

Joining in prayer. God bless.

[blueyon]

Good lesson....Praying

[left that other site]

Pray For The Peace of Jerusalem

Thank You, Etabeta, For Your Prayers For the Peace of Jerusalem, For Our FRiends in Need, For Persecuted Believers, and For Our Beloved Nation.

"He was delivered up for our trespasses and raised for our justification." (Romans 4:25)

God Bless America.

Blessings To All Who Visit This Garden of Prayer.

Hallelujah and Amen

ML/LTOS

[left that other site]

I prayed a lot before posting today, as those things have puzzled me as well.

[left that other site]

Pray For The Peace of Jerusalem

Thank You, blueyon, For Your Prayers For the Peace of Jerusalem, For Our FRiends in Need, For Persecuted Believers, and For Our Beloved Nation.

"He was delivered up for our trespasses and raised for our justification." (Romans 4:25)

God Bless America.

Blessings To All Who Visit This Garden of Prayer.

Hallelujah and Amen

ML/LTOS

[2sheds]

Very good commentary. I pray we avoid the same fate here.

[DarthVader]

Amen !!! <><

Psalm 10

1 Why, O Lord, do you stand far off?
Why do you hide yourself in times of trouble?
2 In arrogance the wicked persecute the poor—
let them be caught in the schemes they have devised.

3 For the wicked boast of the desires of their heart,
those greedy for gain curse and renounce the Lord.
4 In the pride of their countenance the wicked say, ‘God will not seek it out’;
all their thoughts are, ‘There is no God.’

5 Their ways prosper at all times;
your judgements are on high, out of their sight;
as for their foes, they scoff at them.
6 They think in their heart, ‘We shall not be moved;
throughout all generations we shall not meet adversity.’

7 Their mouths are filled with cursing and deceit and oppression;
under their tongues are mischief and iniquity.
8 They sit in ambush in the villages;
in hiding-places they murder the innocent.

Their eyes stealthily watch for the helpless;
9 they lurk in secret like a lion in its covert;
they lurk that they may seize the poor;
they seize the poor and drag them off in their net.

10 They stoop, they crouch,
and the helpless fall by their might.
11 They think in their heart, ‘God has forgotten,
he has hidden his face, he will never see it.’

12 Rise up, O Lord; O God, lift up your hand;
do not forget the oppressed.
13 Why do the wicked renounce God,
and say in their hearts, ‘You will not call us to account’?

14 But you do see! Indeed you note trouble and grief,
that you may take it into your hands;
the helpless commit themselves to you;
you have been the helper of the orphan.

15 Break the arm of the wicked and evildoers;
seek out their wickedness until you find none.
16 The Lord is king for ever and ever;
the nations shall perish from his land.

17 O Lord, you will hear the desire of the meek;
you will strengthen their heart, you will incline your ear
18 to do justice for the orphan and the oppressed,
so that those from earth may strike terror no more.*

[TianaHighrider]

Blessings, Prayers up, and thank you. 🙏

Continuing Prayers for JR and family too 🙏❣

[redryder_90]

Amen

[left that other site]

Pray For The Peace of Jerusalem

Thank You, 2sheds, For Your Prayers For the Peace of Jerusalem, For Our FRiends in Need, For Persecuted Believers, and For Our Beloved Nation.

"He was delivered up for our trespasses and raised for our justification." (Romans 4:25)

God Bless America.

Blessings To All Who Visit This Garden of Prayer.

Hallelujah and Amen

ML/LTOS

[left that other site]

Pray For The Peace of Jerusalem

Thank You, DarthVader, For Your Prayers and Excellent Psalm For the Peace of Jerusalem, For Our FRiends in Need, For Persecuted Believers, and For Our Beloved Nation.

"He was delivered up for our trespasses and raised for our justification." (Romans 4:25)

God Bless America.

Blessings To All Who Visit This Garden of Prayer.

Hallelujah and Amen

ML/LTOS

[left that other site]

Pray For The Peace of Jerusalem

Thank You, TianaHighrider, For Your Prayers For the Peace of Jerusalem, For Our FRiends in Need, For Persecuted Believers, and For Our Beloved Nation.

Prayers for JR! Amen.

"He was delivered up for our trespasses and raised for our justification." (Romans 4:25)

God Bless America.

Blessings To All Who Visit This Garden of Prayer.

Hallelujah and Amen

ML/LTOS

[left that other site]

Pray For The Peace of Jerusalem

Thank You, redryder_90, For Your Prayers For the Peace of Jerusalem, For Our FRiends in Need, For Persecuted Believers, and For Our Beloved Nation.

"He was delivered up for our trespasses and raised for our justification." (Romans 4:25)

God Bless America.

Blessings To All Who Visit This Garden of Prayer.

Hallelujah and Amen

ML/LTOS

[NEWwoman]

Amen, left that other site

Love not the world.

Joining in prayer for the Peace of Jerusalem and for our beloved America.

[left that other site]

Pray For The Peace of Jerusalem

Thank You, NEWwoman, For Your Prayers For the Peace of Jerusalem, For Our FRiends in Need, For Persecuted Believers, and For Our Beloved Nation.

"He was delivered up for our trespasses and raised for our justification." (Romans 4:25)

God Bless America.

Blessings To All Who Visit This Garden of Prayer.

Hallelujah and Amen

ML/LTOS

[Jeanbl]

. . . others save with fear, pulling them out of the fire; hating even the garment spotted by the flesh. (like the angels with Lot)He saved them because Abraham prayed for them. Praying for yours, mine and ours in need of being saved. Thank you for this study. Praying for the Peace of Jerusalem.