Almost every Christian is familiar with the story of Sodom and Gomorrah and knows what happened in Sodom and Gomorrah. The inhabitants of Sodom were wicked and great sinners against God. The sin in Sodom and Gomorrah was so grievous that the cry of Sodom and Gomorrah reached heaven. The Lord came to the earth to see if the people of Sodom had done according to the cry. በዛሬው ዓለም, the sins and iniquities abound and reign in many people’s life. Many people are grafted in the vine of Sodom and live in the fields of Gomorrah. ስለዚህ, the earth mourns and cries and waits for the manifestations of the sons of God (ኢሳያስ 24:4-6, ኤርምያስ 23:10, ሆሴዕ 4:1-3, ሮማውያን 8:19).
The Lord revealed His plan for Sodom and Gomorrah
The Lord didn’t hide His plan regarding the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah, but He revealed His plan to Abraham. When Abraham heard about God’s plan and what would happen with Sodom and Gomorrah, he asked God for mercy. Abraham wanted to prevent that the righteous would perish with the wicked. Therefore he asked the Lord to spare Sodom if there would be 50 ጻድቅ.
God granted Abraham’s request and promised Abraham to spare Sodom if there would be 50 ጻድቅ. Then Abraham asked God if He would also spare the cities if there would be 45 ጻድቅ. God promised Abraham again that He would spare the cities if there would be 45 ጻድቅ. And so Abraham continued until he asked God to spare Sodom and Gomorrah if there would be 10 ጻድቅ. And God promised Abraham to spare the cities if there would be 10 ጻድቅ.
The angels went to Sodom
But since there were no 10 ጻድቅ, God sent His angels, who came to the earth as men, to Sodom to fulfill His plan and destroy Sodom and Gomorrah. When the men arrived in Sodom, Lot sat in the gate. As soon as Lot saw the men, he rose up to meet them and bowed before them, with his face towards the ground.
Lot asked the men to come to his house and stay the night. But they didn’t accept his offer, because they wanted to abide in the street.
But Lot didn’t give up and he pressed upon them. በመጨረሻ, the men gave in and went to his house.
Lot prepared a meal for the men. After their meal before they went to bed to lay down, the sin and iniquities were revealed in Sodom.
The men of Sodom, both young and old, were evil and compassed the house of Lot. They came to get to know the men, who entered Lot’s house. They wanted to be intimate with the men. Which is an abomination to God (እንዲሁም አንብብ: What does the Word say about homosexuality?).
Some people say, that the men of Sodom just wanted to ‘get to know’ the men and that this had nothing to do with sexual intimacy between men. ግን ያ እውነት ቢሆን, then why did Lot offer his daughters? Since the men already knew the daughters of Lot. ቢሆንም, they didn’t know his daughters in a sexual way and had not been intimate with them.
The angels had seen enough and they smote the men at the door of Lot’s house with blindness.
Saved from the destruction
The following morning, the angels took Lot, his wife and his two daughters and saved them from destruction. Lot’s son in laws stayed behind. Since they saw Lot as one that mocked and didn’t believe that Sodom would be destroyed.
Although Lot, his wife and daughters were saved from destruction, not all of them arrived at their destination. During their journey, Lot’s wife changed into a pillar of salt, because she didn’t obey God’s commandment to not look behind her. ይህ ያሳየናል።, that someone can be saved from destruction, but it depends on a person’s obedience to God, whether a person stay saved or not (እንዲሁም አንብብ: አንዴ ከተቀመጠ ሁል ጊዜ ተቀምጧል).
The mischief and destruction, which Sodom and Gomorrah brought upon themselves
እነሆ, this was the iniquity of thy sister Sodom, pride, fulness of bread, and abundance of idleness was in her and in her daughters, neither did she strengthen the hand of the poor and needy. And they were haughty, and committed abomination before Me: therefore I took them away as I saw good (ሕዝቅኤል 16:49-50)
The inhabitants of Sodom and Gomorrah had brought their own mischief and destruction upon themselves, by going their own way and separate themselves from God and His Word and do all those things that were an abomination to God.
They had no knowledge and understanding of God and didn’t know የእሱ ሀሳቦች እና የእሱ መንገዶች. ይልቁንም, they relied on their own knowledge, ጥበብ, መረዳት, and insights. They were full of pride, haughty and selfish. While they lived in comfort and abundance, they didn’t look after the poor and needy and didn’t strengthen them. They were haughty and committed abominations, which eventually caused the Lord to destroy them.
The vine of Sodom and the fields of Gomorrah
For they are a nation void of counsel, neither is there any understanding in them. O that they were wise, that they understood this, that they would consider their latter end! How should one chase a thousand, and two put ten thousand to flight, except their Rock had sold them, and the Lord had shut them up? For their rock is not as our Rock, even our enemies themselves being judges. For their vine is of the vine of Sodom, and of the fields of Gomorrah: their grapes are grapes of gall, their clusters are bitter: Their wine is the poison of dragons, and the cruel venom of asps (ዘዳግም 32:28-33 Read also the whole chapter 32)
Many churches are grafted into the vine of Sodom and live in the fields of Gomorrah. Instead that the churches bend her roots to God and live and act from the living Source Jesus Christ, many churches have bent her roots towards another source.
Therefore many churches don’t belong to the Kingdom of God anymore, but to the kingdom of darkness; ዓለም.
They are not grafted into the Vine of Jesus Christ by faith through እንደገና መወለድ and don’t live from Him, but they are grafted into the vine of Sodom and live from the vine of Sodom.
Therefore many believers bear the same fruit as the people of Sodom.
Many pastors have destroyed my vineyard, they have trodden my portion under foot, they have made My pleasant portion a desolate wilderness. They have made it desolate, and being desolate it mourneth unto Me; the whole land is made desolate, because no man layeth it to hearth (ኤርምያስ 12:20-22)
Many pastors, who are responsible for the spiritual state of the church and should have taken care of the believers by feeding them with the truth of God and disciplining and correcting them, so that they will stay in God’s way of righteousness and walk in His will, have failed.
They have left the fear of the Lord and have departed from the truth of God and relied on their own knowledge, ጥበብ, and understanding. Through their liberal ideas, ግንዛቤዎች, አስተያየቶች, and philosophies they have led many believers astray.
Instead of taking care of the vineyard of God, they have destroyed the vineyard of God and changed it into a wilderness, like the vineyards of Gomorrah.
በእግዚአብሔር ቸርነት, you may enter His Kingdom
በእግዚአብሔር ቸርነት, you may enter the Kingdom of God, by faith in Jesus Christ and by becoming born again በእርሱ. ነገር ግን የእግዚአብሔር ጸጋ is not a free letter and doesn’t give permission to live as the generation of fallen man and keep living in sin.
As long as you live as the generation of fallen man, as the old man, your life and the things you do prove that nothing has changed and you are not saved, but that you still belong to the generation of fallen man.
You may say, that you believe and that you are born again, but your actions, በሌላ ቃል, የእርስዎ ስራዎች, say and prove something else.
Because if you are truly born again in Jesus Christ, then a transformation has taken place in the spiritual realm.
You are no. longer a son of the devil and don’t belong to the kingdom of darkness and to the generation of fallen man anymore. But you have become a son of God and have entered the Kingdom of God and belong to the generation of the new man. እንደ እግዚአብሔር ልጅ, you shall no longer walk as a son of the devil.
Since you are taken from the vine of Sodom and grafted into the true Vine; እየሱስ ክርስቶስ, you shall no longer bear the fruit of the flesh, but you shall bear the የመንፈስ ፍሬ.
What are the fruits in someone’s life?
When someone claims to be a Christian and visits a church, but keeps doing the works of the flesh and keeps living in rebellion and disobedience to God, and doing those things, which are an abomination to God, then the person still belongs to the generation of the old man and is still grafted into the vine of Sodom.
Because of the fact that the person is still grafted in the vine of Sodom, death still reigns in the life of the person and therefore the person bears the fruit of death, ይህም ኃጢአት ነው።.
The person keeps doing those things, which the devil loves, but are an abomination to God and go against የእሱ ፈቃድ.
The person may be friendly and nice to people, and do charity work, but that doesn’t prove if the person is a Christian.
Maybe it convinces the world and the carnal Christians, who don’t read and study the Word and don’t apply the words of God to their lives and don’t have an experiential relationship with Jesus Christ, but are led by the carnal knowledge and wisdom of the world and by their own insights, ስሜት, ስሜቶች, እና ስሜቶች.
But born again Christians, who walk after the Spirit in obedience to God and His Word, know the will of God and discern the spirits, and therefore they shall not be fooled.
Only when you deal with the death, who reigns in the flesh andሥጋን ስቀሉ through regeneration in Jesus Christ, you no longer belong to the death and are no longer a servant to death. You shall no longer obey the death and bear the fruit of death, ይህም ኃጢአት ነው።. Because your spirit has been raised from the death and the life of God and His nature dwells in you. ስለዚህ, you shall bear the fruit of righteousness.
You shall recognize the tree by its fruits
For a good tree bringeth not forth corrupt fruit; neither doth a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit. For every tree is known by his own fruit. For of thorns men do not gather figs, nor of a bramble bush gather they grapes. A good man out of the good treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is good; and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is evil: for of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaketh (ሉቃ 6:43-45)
ኢየሱስ እንዲህ ይላል።, that you shall know the tree by its fruits. እና አሁንም እንደዛ ነው።. The Bible reveals to us the truth of God and exposes the lies of the devil. እነዚያ, who are born again in Jesus Christ and belong to Him shall serve Him and the Father through obedience.
ለቃሉ በመታዘዝ, ትገባለህ ፍቅር and bear the የመንፈስ ፍሬ.
Your ለእግዚአብሔር መታዘዝ proves that you love Jesus and the Father above all and the fruit of the Spirit proves that you belong to Him and live in Him.
As long as someone keeps living in rebellion against God and keeps sinning and even approves and endorses sin, then the person is still grafted into the vine of Sodom.
The ruler of this world, ሰይጣን, is his father and master. Therefore he obeys him by walking after his will and his nature, causing him to bear the fruit of death, ይህም ኃጢአት ነው።.
For this cause God gave them up unto vile affections: for even their women did change the natural use into that which is against nature: And likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust one toward another; men with men working that which is unseemly, and receiving in themselves that recompence of their error which was meet. And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a reprobate mind, to do those things which are not convenient; Being filled with all unrighteousness, ዝሙት, ክፋት, covetousness, maliciousness; full of envy, ግድያ, debate, deceit, malignity; whisperers, Backbiters, haters of God, despiteful, proud, boasters, inventors of evil things, disobedient to parents, Without understanding, covenantbreakers, without natural affection, implacable, unmerciful: Who knowing the judgment of God, that they which commit such things are worthy of death, not only do the same, but have pleasure in them that do them (ሮማውያን 1:26-32)
Woe to the rebellious children, ይላል ጌታ, that take counsel, but not of Me; and that cover with a covering, but not of My Spirit, that they may add sin to sin: That walk to go down into Egypt, and have not asked at My mouth; to strengthen themselves in the strength of Pharaoh, and to trust in the shadow of Egypt! Therefore shall the strength of Pharaoh be your shame, and the trust in the shadow of Egypt your confusion (ኢሳያስ 30:1-3)
The righteousness of God
Sodom and Gomorrah are mentioned several times in the Bible as an example for those who live ungodly and to show God’s righteousness and His judgment (ኦ. 2 ጴጥሮስ 2:6-10, ይሁዳ 1:4-7).
When the fear of God and the submission to God and an experiential relationship with Him is no longer present, and the people have left the way of righteousness, then sin and iniquities shall abound and reign in the lives of the people, just like Sodom and Gomorrah.
Let he which is filthy, let him be filthy still and he that is holy, let him be holy still
He that is unjust, let him be unjust still: and he which is filthy, let him be filthy still: and he that is righteous, let him be righteous still: and he that is holy, let him be holy still (ራዕይ 22:11)
የምንኖረው ዘመን ላይ ነው።, in which the people who are righteous be righteous still, and therefore those, who are holy will be holy still, and in which the people, who are unjust will be unjust still and therefore those, who are filthy, will be filthy still.
Pride, ራስ ወዳድነት, አመፅ, አለመታዘዝ, infidelity, ሕገ-ወጥነት, ሴሰኝነት, ጥላቻ, ልዩነት, ማስመሰል, ቁጣ, ጠብ, ብጥብጥ, መናፍቃን, ምቀኝነት, filthy communication, ስድብ, lying, ስካር, ዘፋኞች, የጣዖት አምልኮ, ጥንቆላ, ዝሙት, ምንዝር, ወሲባዊ ርኩሰት, ሁከት, ግድያዎች, ወዘተ. abound and reign in the lives of many people.
What used to be unthinkable has become very normal. ቢሆንም, all these carnal works and these iniquities already took place in the Old and New Testament. In both the Old and the New Testament, እግዚአብሔር, የሱስ, and the Holy Spirit have made known the የእግዚአብሔር ፈቃድ regarding these carnal works and uncleanness.
God is a clear and transparent God and Father. He didn’t hide anything and didn’t keep any secrets, but God revealed everything, that the people should know, through His Word.
Those believers, who don’t read and study His Word don’t know Him. They are not familiar with His will, His ሀሳቦች and His መንገዶች.
They are not circumcised in Jesus Christ, በ laying down the flesh, and therefore they are not grafted into Him, but they are still grafted in the vine of Sodom and live in the fields of Gomorrah.
They don’t do what the Word says, but they go their own way, just like the people of Sodom and Gomorrah, and therefore their wages will be the same.
‘የምድር ጨው ሁን’
