Tuesdays with Abraham

Read Genesis 19:27-29 – And Abraham went early in the morning to the place where he had stood before the Lord.Then he looked toward Sodom and Gomorrah, and toward all the land of the plain; and he saw, and behold, the smoke of the land which went up like the smoke of a furnace.  And it came to pass, when God destroyed the cities of the plain, that God remembered Abraham, and sent Lot out of the midst of the overthrow, when He overthrew the cities in which Lot had dwelt. (NKJV)

What do you suppose Abraham felt as he saw smoke rising from Sodom? Maybe a better question would be, “How do we feel when people get what they deserve?” Yes, God had rescued Lot so any anxiety Abraham might feel for his nephew would be answered with relief. But what about the guilty? Scripture is silent concerning Abraham’s response. Now there’s no question that God is righteous in His judgments. When we get what we deserve, well…we deserve it. But when we remember that our eternal hope is founded in a grace we could never deserve, shouldn’t we be quick to extend that same grace in our attitudes and actions toward other guilty ones? Many Christians celebrate the downfall of those whose life choices cross the line. Shouldn’t we celebrate grace instead and realize that the smoke rising above the enemy could just as easily be rising above us?

– Dr. Mike Clarensau serves as Senior Director of the Healthy Church Network of the Assemblies of God.