Nepaug Bible Church - http://www.nepaugchurch.org - Pastor's Evening Sermon Notes - http://www.nepaugchurch.org/ev/ev20070225.htm

THE PREINCARNATE MINISTRY OF JESUS CHRIST
Part XXVI: Other Reputed Theophanies Of The Preincarnate Christ
A. Christ's Work With Abraham: Blessing For Holy Relationships Versus Denying It For Unholiness
(Genesis 18:1-19:38)
  1. Introduction
    1. God calls us to be holy as he is holy, or to be separate from sin and sinners like He is, 1 Peter 1:15-16.
    2. As motivation to that end, the Preincarnate Christ's ministry to holy Abraham in contrast to unholy Lot reveals the contrast in blessing or its loss that is based on the choices we make on heeding this command:
  2. Christ's Work With Abraham: Blessing For Holy Relationships Versus Denying It For Unholiness.
    1. Besides appearing as the "Angel of the Lord", the Preincarnate Christ is believed by reputed theologians to have appeared in other Old Testament "theophanies" (John F. Walvoord, Jesus Christ Our Lord , p. 54).
    2. One such passage is Genesis 18 (Ibid.), and since it contrasts with Genesis 19 (J. Vernon McGee, Thru The Bible, vol. 1, p. 77), we view both chapters that contrast divine blessing versus its lack due to whether one separates from evil or whether he tolerates or embraces it (as follows):
      1. Before this event, Lot had chosen to associate with evil Sodom as the land there was luxurious for the feeding of his herds, and Abraham had chosen to stay away from the city, cf. Genesis 13:8-12, 13.
      2. These choices by these men led to great contrasts in the degree of divine blessings they came to know:
        1. Abraham and his family enjoyed great divine blessings: (1) God appeared to Abraham in the plains of Mamre about 22 miles south of Jerusalem, Gen. 18:1; Ryrie Study Bible, KJV, ftns. to Gen. 18:1 and 13:18. Since two angels proceeded from this meeting to walk down to Sodom to meet Lot (Gen. 19:1 with 18:16), one of the three "men" who appeared was the Preincarnate Christ and the other two were angels, Ibid., ftn. to Genesis 18:2. (2) Hence, Abraham enjoyed great fellowship with the Preincarnate Christ as ((a)) he ate with Him (Gen. 18:3-8), ((b)) he was promised the son Isaac through wife Sarah in his old age (Gen. 18:9-15), ((c)) he was given insight into God's future plans to destroy Sodom so he could intercede to save Lot's family from judgment (Gen. 18:16-22) and ((d)) he was heard by the Preincarnate Christ as he interceded to Him for Lot's kin, 18:23-33).
        2. In great contrast, Lot and his family suffered various degrees of a lack of divine blessing due to various degrees of failing to keep separate from Sodom's evil men: (1) Instead of God's appearing to Lot, only the two angels who had appeared with the Preincarnate Christ to Abraham continued on toward Sodom to Lot, Gen. 18:1-2, 16 with Gen. 19:1. (2) Though the Preincarnate Christ and His two angels immediately agreed with holy Abraham's request to eat in fellowship with him, the two angels had to be pressed by the less holy Lot to dine with him, Gen. 18:3-5; 19:1-3, (3) Yet, so vile were the men of Sodom in trying to force Lot to give God's angels to them for their sexual pleasure, God's angels had to strike these men with blindness to keep them from forcibly entering Lot's home to get them, Gen. 19:4-11. (4) Such evil led the angels to urge Lot to leave Sodom with his family as God was about to destroy the city, Gen. 19:12-16. (5) In contrast to the blessing of a supernatural childbirth for holy Abraham's wife, Sarah (Genesis 18:9-15), Lot's wife was doomed to turn into a pillar of salt for looking back longingly to wicked Sodom since the family was to leave and not look back, Gen. 19:17-25, 26. (6) In contrast to the holy blessing of holy Abraham's fathering Isaac through proper relations with his wife Sarah (Genesis 21:2), upon the death of Lot's wife, his unholy daughters who had embraced the immoral values of Sodom got Lot drunk and slept with him to produce by incest sons for Lot, Genesis 19:30-38. (7) In Genesis 18:32 and 19:29, we learn that the kindness Lot received from God was due not so much to his holiness as to the intercession of his holy relative, Abraham! (8) Abraham escaped the stress of contact with evil people and the pain of their judgment while Lot was daily stressed over Sodom's sin and lived to see his wife's tragic end and know the shame of producing offspring by drunkenness and incest, 2 Peter 2:7-8 ESV.
Lesson: The DEGREE Abraham and his kin versus Lot and his kin SEPARATED FROM the evil men and sin of Sodom determined HOW MUCH EACH PARTY knew of God's BLESSING in experience!

Application: In viewing the CONTRASTS in Genesis 18 and 19, may we SEPARATE from wicked people and their sin in life and devote ourselves to the will and fellowship of a separate God!