And while he lingered, the men took hold of his hand, his wife’s hand, and the hands of his two daughters, the LORD being merciful to him, and they brought him out and set him outside the city. Genesis 19: 16, NKJV.
Gracious God, how often You have had to pull us out of the flames, we may never know, until we see You, face to face. Please teach us to be wise as we study Your Word, in the holy name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
I believe if the curtains of life were opened, and we could see behind the scenes the many times the LORD has had to pull us out of situations that threatened to destroy us, we would be shocked! Sometimes we may live in an unhealthy situation for such a long time that it becomes a normal way of life to us. We become so accustomed to the way things are, that we settle down into this certain way of life, and become comfortable.
Another reason that could cause us to feel comfortable in an unnatural situation might be, that it is all we know. Perhaps we were born into an unhealthy environment, and therefore, it feels natural to us. We would not change anything, even if we could! I believe both situations are at play in the life of Lot, his wife, and their children. But in the midst of this, God’s grace is going to be made manifest.
Lot had grown up with his grandfather Terah, and his uncle Abram, and other family members. Perhaps his earliest days were lived in an atmosphere that was not ideal. I suspect this because of the fact that God called Abram to “Go from [his] country and [his] kindred and [his] father’s house to the land that I will show you” (Genesis 12: 1). From some of the statements I read about Lot, he seemed to have been somewhat selfish. One example, is when his uncle Abram was gracious enough to allow him to have his pick of land in which to live. The story reads as follows: “And Lot lifted his eyes and saw all the plain of Jordan, that it was well watered everywhere (before the LORD destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah) like the garden of the LORD, like the land of Egypt as you go toward Zoar. Then Lot chose for himself all the plain of Jordan, and Lot journeyed east. And they separated from each other” (13: 10, 11, emphasis provided). He did not choose some, but “all the plain of Jordan[!]”
I do not see anything written about Lot’s wife until that fateful moment, when the angel drags the entire family out of Sodom and Gomorrah. Even though the angel managed to drag her body out, her mind remained behind; and it is recorded of her, “But his wife looked back behind him, and she became a pillar of salt” (19: 26). God had done all that He could. He had extended grace, a favor that they did not deserve (nor does any of us); and obviously, did not know how to appreciate.
We may look at Lot and his family and shake our heads at how dysfunctional they were, and that seems to be the truth. But how many times has the LORD had to rescue us from situations that, had He not rescued us when He did, we would have become as petrified as the wife of Lot. Some people argue whether she became a literal pillar of salt, or if it was figurative speech. Be it whatever it was, it is recorded in Scripture for a testimony to us, upon whom the end of the world has come.
If God is bringing you out of a situation, no matter how ideal it seemed to have been, it is time to, ” ‘ “Escape for your life! Do not look behind you nor stay anywhere in the plain. Escape to the mountains, lest you be destroyed” ‘ ” (19: 17b)! Notice that He is moving you up higher! For all these years you were living in the plain. Now it is time for your mountaintop experience to begin! Do not linger, and do not look back. Only trust God! What you consider to be a tragedy, might very well be, an act of grace!