Sermon Outlines

By Frederick F. Schwindt, Evangelist

"REMEMBER LOT'S WIFE"

1. Is very brief:
   1. It covers twenty-six verses in Gen. 19:1-26
   2. It should be noted that the very brief record of Lot and his family is found in what is called the Old Testament. If we reject the Old Testament, we have no information about Lot's wife.
2. When we think of Lot's wife, we see a terrible tragedy that came to that family:
   1. Our Saviour calls our attention to this sad experience in that family.
   2. He does so because many of God's children are in similar danger in the last days. "as it was in the days of Lot . . . even thus shall it be in the day when the Son of man is revealed" - Luke 17:28- 30

1. She and her family lived in Sodom:
   1. A very wicked city.
   2. This is evident from the way they attempted to treat Lot's guests and him too! Gen. 19:5-10
   3. The people in Sodom practiced Sodomy - Rom. 1:26
2. Sodom and its inhabitants were under God's judgment:
   1. That is why the two angels came to make a final investigation - Gen. 18:17-31
   2. But those heavenly messengers had still another mission -
      1. They came to rescue Lot and his family.
      2. Lot and his family were among those that Abraham prayed for - Gen. 18:17-29; 19:12-17
3. Lot's wife:
   1. Was one of those the angels came to rescue.
   2. But she made the mortal mistake when she disobeyed the rule of the Lord, stood still and looked back - Gen. 19:17, 26
   3. She became a pillar of salt - verse 26.

1. Lot was partially to be blamed for the calamity that came to his wife:
   1. He, as the head of the family, hesitated, lingered, when he should have moved forward - Gen. 19:16
   2. He would not have gone forward, had not the angel urged him on - verse 16.
2. Divided interest seems to have been responsible for her disobedience:
   1. It is possible that they had accumulated treasures in Sodom; and that she was unwilling to part with these treasures - Matt. 6:21; 19:16-20
   2. They had married children in Sodom, who refused to leave that city - Gen. 19:14
   3. She evidently was unwilling to leave part of her family behind; if that is not so, why did she look back?
3. The sad part of it all:
   1. She perished on the way of rescue.
   2. She was lost in spite of God's efforts to save her.
   3. What makes it still sadder, if that is possible, is that her loved ones were not permitted to bury her; no, not even to look back to see what had happened to her.
4. The important lesson for God's people in the last days:
   1. The judgment hour message is proclaimed in all the world - Rev. 14:7, 8
   2. We believe that we understand the implication of this message - 2 Cor. 5:10; 1 Pet. 4:17, 18
   3. We know that the world today is no better than Sodom was before it was destroyed - John 7:7; Luke 17:26-32; 1 John 5:19
   4. Paul confirms this fact - 2 Tim. 3:1-9
   5. We, too, have heard God's call of mercy - Rev. 18:1-4; Matt. 24:14
   6. We have made a good beginning; left the world, our relatives and friends - Mark 10:28-34; Rev. 18:4; 2 Cor. 6:17
   7. Are we going to be in the same danger that overtook Lot's wife? Are our affections divided between God and the world? WHATEVER OUR ANSWER MAY BE, LET US REMEMBER LOT'S WIFE.