Sodom and Gomorrah occupy an infamous place in history. For their vile wickedness and the shameless sins they committed, God brought about their complete destruction.
These two cities became what they were through a process of time. Much like the rise and fall of great nations and empires, a kind of rottenness began to take hold until it just went too far.
Lot lived in Sodom, and Peter writes of him that he “was oppressed by the filthy conduct of the wicked (for that righteous man, dwelling among them, tormented his righteous soul from day to day by seeing and hearing their lawless deeds)” (2 Peter 2:7-8).
We who desire to live as godly examples in the world of the ungodly are also “oppressed” and “tormented” by what we see and hear! We know that our times are perilous and filled with unspeakable lawlessness: In the Western Nations, such as the United States, Great Britain, Canada, Australia and those of Europe, racial hatred gives way to murder; homosexuality and lesbianism are pushed in the media and through legislative acts as acceptable and normal, families are being shattered through divorce; abortions are commonplace; God is not honored—His Name is a vile expletive among youth and adults, nor are His laws known or obeyed; and the list of corruptions and pollutions of this world seems endless!
Things are getting worse—everything!
Just as happened to Sodom and Gomorrah, so sin will reach its full measure, and God will intervene. However, in the meantime, we face a challenge that has confronted every person who has sought to live a righteous life. Paul addresses this:
“Do all things without complaining and disputing, that you may become blameless and harmless, children of God without fault in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world, holding fast the word of life…” (Philippians 2:14-16).
For all the evil that we see and hear about every day of our lives, and although we sigh and cry over all the abominations that are done, we look forward—with ever-increasing hope—to the return of Jesus Christ and the part we will have with Him in the Kingdom of God (and that also, “from day to day”)!
