“What was the problem with Sodom?”
Genesis 19

Pastor Nate Herrlin

How many times in human history did God destroy an entire group of people?

The Neo-Assyrian Empire: (900-600 BC)

Widely regarded as one of the most brutal, the Assyrians used terror as a primary weapon of control. Their kings proudly documented their cruelty in palace reliefs and inscriptions, which included flaying enemies alive and nailing their skin to city walls, mass executions, cutting off limbs, gouging out eyes, and building pyramids of human heads outside conquered cities. They also practiced mass deportation of entire populations to break cultural ties and prevent uprisings.

The Mongol Empire: (1206-1368 AD)

While technically a medieval power, the Mongols under leaders like Genghis Khan were infamous for their genocidal tactics and widespread devastation. If a city resisted, the entire population would often be massacred, with estimates suggesting their conquests may have reduced the world's population by as much as 11%. They employed psychological warfare, such as building towers of skulls and even catapulting plague-infected corpses into besieged cities to spread disease.

(source: Google/AI)

Early American settlers: (1600’s & 1700’s AD)

Nazi Germany: (World War II)

Russian government: (Today)

Isn’t it a better question to ask why God hasn’t brought decisive judgment against wicked people MORE OFTEN?

The main offenses of Sodom:

1. Sexual perversion
2. Arrogance
3. Self-indulgence (gluttony)
4. Ignoring the needy

Let’s live lives…

…not of SEXUAL PERVERSION, but of SEXUAL INTEGRITY.

Let’s live lives…

…not of BOLD ARROGANCE, but of GOD-CENTERED HUMILITY.

Whoever does not receive GRACE from God through faith in Christ -
will receive CONDEMNATION and DAMNATION based on their own record, good and bad.

Let’s live lives…

…not of SELF-INDULGENCE, but of SELF-SACRIFICE.

Let’s live lives…

…not of IGNORING the NEEDY, but of COMPASSION TOWARD THEM.

Which aspect of the moral decay in our own culture saddens you the most?

Group prayer time:

Pray for our country – that we will come to our senses and listen to our Maker

Pray for our church – that we will look more like Jesus’ Bride than the culture around us

Pray for each one of us – that God gives us the power we need to resist the pull of the culture, so we can better reflect the light of Christ.