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REVIVAL CITY INTERNATIONAL RETREAT AND CONFERENCE CENTRE, IVA VALLEY ROAD AFTER NEW MRKET ENUGU

REFUSE TO LIVE A WASTED LIFE

REFUSE TO LIVE A WASTED LIFE

TEXT: GENESIS 13:1-20

INTRODUCTION

The bible character we shall be exploring through his life before we launch into prayers is Lot.

There is no better way to encourage ourselves and one another than by studying the lives of men and women who have served God in the past- lookup Romans 15: 4. This piece will bring us solemn warnings about the dangers and pitfalls which confront us in order to take necessary precautions.

The bible says,

1 Corinthians 10:11: [11] Now all these things happened to them as examples, and they were written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the ages have come.

So when we study the lives of these men of the past, it is not to judge and blame them but for us to pray and trust God to help our own life not to follow the way they followed. We begin with a word of warning, as we read and study the character of Lot. The scripture references we shall be visiting make a very sad reading. They tell us about a man (Lot) who was saved, as it was made clear when he was referred to as “That righteous man

2 Peter 2:7; [7] “and delivered Righteous Lot, who was oppressed by the filthy conduct of the wicked”

In the New Testament language, Lot was a saved man, but he was only just saved; he led a wasted life. We shall see as we progress through the scriptures. He was a worldly Christian who had a saved soul but a waste life, because he lived for self and was in bondage to the things of his times and seasons so he became engulfed and succumbed to the evils of his time.

2 Peter 2:8: [8]”for that righteous man, dwelling among them, tormented his righteous soul from day to day by seeing and hearing their lawless deeds.”

One thing most of us have not realized is that worldly system torments the soul. Like Lot, if you don’t identify the pattern the world is taking in your life, you will soon end up in serious torment.

Anything that has the world pattern in it, has one assignment in your life which is to torment your righteous soul. But you may not notice it at first.

It is not just the intention of God to save you as one his/her life has not influenced anyone for the kingdom. Yes it’s possible to be saved at age 60, but it’s still possible that out of that 60years, 50years was wasted.

You see, people do say, “heaven at last”, as much as it may sound good, am really not comfortable with it. You were not sent here just to finally make heaven. God wants men that will do great and mighty things for the kingdom and still be saved. Not those that will waste their lives and end up being saved. The two are totally different, Such was the life of Lot. Yes, he was saved, but his life was more of a waste. His life seems to have no kingdom influence. There was no track record of what he achieved for the kingdom.

 

Now let me begin to show us the pitfalls of Lot, so we can see, learn and properly adjust our lives.

  1. Lot walked by sight and not by faith.

The true hallmark of the believer is that he walks by faith and not by sight ( 2 Corinthians 5:7 ), but the worldly believer reverses the order. Lot lived by sight, and this is most of all apparent in the selfish, carnal choice he made.

See Genesis 13:10-11;

Genesis 13:10-11: [10] 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.[11] Then Lot chose for himself all the plain of Jordan, and Lot journeyed east. And they separated from each other.

If you observe well you will discover that Lot chose by sight. Now, remember the bible says whatsoever that is done outside faith is sin. Heaven detests believers that take decisions in the flesh. Lot made his choice in the flesh based on what he saw. That is not the pattern of God for us. You can’t make tangible spiritual progress by following your senses. That is what carnality is all about. To be carnal is to be sensual.

What does it mean to walk by sight? For instance,

  • When you choose a marriage partner as a result of just what you saw physically, you are moving by sight.
  • When you dive into a particular business because you saw that your neighbor is doing great in it, you’re walking by sight.
  • When you choose a location as a result of your physical assessment, you have missed the faith walk.
  • When you choose a course of study for your child in the flesh, you’re walking by sight.

That was the case with Lot. Life is highly spiritual. If you move by sight you will miss God and waste your life.

 

  1. Lot made his home and reared his children in Sodom.

He deliberately chose to do so, as we learn from Genesis 13:12-13. At first, Lot only pitched his tent towards Sodom;

Genesis 13:12: [12] “Abram dwelled in the land of Canaan, and Lot dwelled in the cities of the plain, and “pitched his tent toward Sodom”.

You see, he pitched his tent towards Sodom. What does that entail? A man that has an attraction for the world.

  • Towards Sodom means he may not be doing what they are doing but he wants to be seeing them.
  • Towards Sodom, means, Sodom has his focus.
  • A question I have for you is this, Towards where is the tent of your life pitched?

Is it towards God or towards the world? The actions of your life will answer this question perfectly. When the music on your phone is mainly worldly, you don’t need any man to tell you where your life is pitched.  If it is a mixture of worldly and godly music, it is worst, it shows how confused your life has become

  • Towards where is the tent of your desires pitched?
  • Towards where is the tent of your hunger pitched?
  • Towards where is the tent of your fashion pitched?
  • Towards where is the tent of your visions pitched?

We are living in the days that those that want to be a believer should be and those that want to be unbeliever should be, no middle stand. Sodomites were wicked yet Lot chose to pitch towards them… You know what it tells me? That a man may not be involved in evil but he can enjoy the evil around him. You don’t fornicate in your house but your friends can do it in your house. If your life is moving toward that angle, you’re leading a wasted life. Don’t be a Lot.

Many times we call Lot’s wife forgetting that the main problem here was Lot. Can I tell you the danger of pitching the tent of your life towards “Sodom“, when you do that it won’t be long, you will now start dwelling in Sodom. You will be so much influenced that you won’t know when you start dwelling among them. Lot was a typical example.

Before, the bible says Lot pitched his tent towards Sodom, but later he now dwelt in Sodom. Look at the scripture below:

 Genesis 14:12: [12] They also took Lot, Abram’s brother’s son who dwelt in Sodom, and his goods, and departed.

 

 New testament report

2 Peter 2:7-8 [7] And delivered righteous Lot, who was oppressed by the filthy conduct of the wicked. [8] (for that righteous man, dwelling among them, tormented his righteous soul from day to day by seeing and hearing their lawless deeds)—

You see, you think it will just end at just pitching towards…, very soon you will see yourself in it. That is a satanic strategy. Just avoid going towards it in the first place. It is only those the river sees their legs that it will drown. Be cautioned!

 

  1. Lot was out of touch with God.

He lost consciousness of the presence of God, look up Genesis 13:14, and notice the word “after”. How solemn!- lookup Job 23: 3. He lost the experience of God’s friendship. Remember, we were told that the wickedness of the Sodomites “distressed” the soul of Lot. Yes, his conscience was troubled and it “stung” him. How could he know peace in his heart when he was enmeshed by the world and by worldly people? He lost the power of God- if he had ever had it! Instead of being a power for God, he had become a weak, worldly, failing, disobedient man. His case was rather like that of Samson.. It is very dangerous to keep moving having lost the touch of God. Hear me you may still get results. You may still manifest power, you may still command authority, but it won’t be long all of that will fizzle out like fog. Don’t be deceived by your results. Your results are not guarantee that God is still with you. Lot had lost the touch of God, yet he was preserved from destruction.

 

  1. Lot had no influence for God.

He did not look, walk or act like a man of God, and nobody ever dreamed that he was one. The Sodomites saw him as one of them and addressed him like themselves. His life for once did not influence anybody for the kingdom. He is just a child of God by name and not by impact. He was a numenclative child of God. His office as a child of God was devoid of power, transformation and divine influence.

  • Who did he change for God?
  • How many turned to God because of his life?
  • Who amongst the Sodomites testified of his righteousness?

The truth is that all these questions above are the same question heaven is bringing before us, Is your life impactful?

  • How many people have your words convinced to serve God?
  • Who and what are you influencing for the kingdom?

Or are you a Lot?

  • Lot didn’t influence the Sodomites
  • He didn’t influence his daughters and sons-in-law, because later we saw that his daughters were depraved through their acts of incest
  • He didn’t influence his wife

So who did he influence? Was it not a wasted life?

 

  1. Lot went from bad to worse and he became hardened by the deceitfulness of sin.

In Genesis 19: 15-16, we read that Lot “hesitated”- which tells us that his conscience was seared. How slow he was to obey God, even when God had warned him of impending judgment! These are some of the most solemn words in the Bible. Lot was still lingering behind in the midst of danger. Read that passage below…

Genesis 19:16:[16] “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.”

That was not just a physical lingering… It .\was his spiritual state.  That was actually the state of his heart. He has become so dull, lethargic in obeying God. Obeying God has become a very hard thing for him. He had considered the worldly things he was to miss, so it wasn’t easy for him to obey. That was the reason for his hesitation.

Genesis 19:29:[29] “And it came to pass, when God destroyed the cities of the plain, that God remembered Abraham, and sent Lot out of the midst of the overthrow, when He overthrew the cities in which Lot had dwelt. The Descendants of Lot”

It was Abraham that God remembered that made Him save Lot. Lot had no reason in the archive of God why he should be saved. Don’t be a Lot!!! 

PRAY NOW

  1. O Lord my God I ask that you forgive me of my spiritual decadence
  2. Father stir me up to the place of usefulness for the kingdom
  3. O Lord deliver me from being a waste to my generation and to the kingdom
  4. Lord Jesus, I ask that you restore my saltiness, help me not to be trampled upon.
  5. I rebuke every force that has made me become lethargic and dull to the things of the Spirit
  6. O Lord I ask that you rekindle your fire in my heart for kingdom exploits in the name of Jesus
  7. In that name of Jesus, I break free from every Sodomic spirit that has captured any area of my life.
  8. In the name of Jesus, I declare that I shall grow from strength to strength in serving the Lord