A few years ago Diane Alm introduced me to a book that I’ve
passed on to others ever since I read it. The book is A Grace Disguised: How the Soul Grows through Loss. It’s written by
Gerald Sittser, a man whose wife, mother, and young daughter died in a car
accident in the Pacific Northwest.
The dustcover reads, “While most of us will not experience
such a catastrophic loss in our lifetime, all of us will taste it. And we can,
if we choose, know as well the grace that transforms it. A Grace Disguised plumbs the depths of sorrow, whether due to
illness, divorce, or the loss of someone we love. The circumstances are not
important, what we do with these circumstances is. In coming to the end of
ourselves, we can come to the beginning of a new life – one marked by spiritual
depth, joy, compassion, and a deeper appreciation of simple blessings.”
This week we travel back in the Scriptures to the time when
God’s grace and justice converge on the town of Sodom. For most who recall the
story of God pouring out fire and brimstone on the cities of Sodom and
Gomorrah, the justice is in full view, but the grace is hidden. It’s the grace
that we want to unmask this Sunday in a message entitled, “Salvation at Sodom”.
In all the Old Testament few accounts are more grace-filled than this one.
God’s grace is freely dispensed, but the principle recipient doesn’t see it
very clearly. In fact, in many ways it’s completely disguised to him, though
he’s a chosen, righteous child of God.
The study of Lot and his reaction to God’s grace is a
challenge to all believers who dig into Genesis 19:15-30. I hope you will come
to Hebron this Sunday fully prepared to dig in.
In preparation for Sunday you may wish to consider the
following:
1.
What is the difference between money and grace?
2.
How does God give both to Lot in Genesis 19?
3.
What do you make of God’s statement to Abraham
in Genesis 18:20? Who is it who cries out?
4.
How is God’s action in Lot’s life in verse 16
analogous to what He’s done for us and reflected in Jesus’ words in John 6:44?
5.
How is God’s grace seen in verse 17 and God’s
command to Lot?
6.
What is the theological significance of
“escaping to the hills” in verse 17?
7.
What does Lot mean by his “request” in verse 18?
8.
What is the meaning of “Zoar”?
9.
How is Lot settling for less than God desires
for him?
10. What
do you think of this quote from Gerald Sittser?
“The
quickest way for anyone to reach the sun and the light of day is not to run
west, chasing after the setting sun, but to head east, plunging into the
darkness until one comes to sunrise.”
See you Sunday!
