Lot, Costs and Benefits
By Daniel Fleet
In the first book of the Bible, we read about a man named Lot, the nephew of one of the most important characters in history: Abraham. Lot was a good man, and his life was full of promise and opportunity, but he ended in disgrace and tragedy.
We don’t find overt sin in Lot’s life, but we do find a man with misplaced priorities and a failure to consider the costs of his decisions.
In Genesis 13, we find that Abraham and Lot had both been blessed by the Lord and had a good deal of property and wealth. The place where they were living could not support both of them, so they decided to divide the land. Abraham allowed Lot to pick where he and his family would live first.
Lot surveyed the entire land, chose the fertile Jordan Valley plains, and moved to Sodom. Lot could have deferred to Abraham as his uncle and chose the lesser land of Canaan, but the beauty of the land captured his attention.
While Lot considered the benefits of living in Sodom, he failed to consider the costs. Sodom was a wicked city, and its influence would eventually destroy his family and his future.
Years pass, and the story of Lot’s life picks up in Genesis 18, where we learn of God’s intent to destroy Sodom because of its wickedness. Two angels appear to Lot in Sodom and tell him to gather his family and escape the pending doom.
Lot believes the angels but can’t convince anyone else to believe him. His life reflected the worldly value system he had given himself to. Consider this sad interaction he had with his own family members:
And Lot went out, and spake unto his sons in law, which married his daughters, and said, Up, get you out of this place; for the LORD will destroy this city. But he seemed as one that mocked unto his sons-in-law (Genesis 19:14 KJV).
He wasn't a believable witness for God and had no spiritual influence on anyone, not even his sons-in-law.
Lot didn’t just lose his influence; he lost his entire family. His sons-in-law, his daughters, and his wife would die, and his other two daughters would later get him drunk and commit incest with him.
The world changed Lot, leaving its mark on him and hurting him deeply. The Apostle John warns us:
Love not the world, neither the things [that are] in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that [is] in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world. And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever (1 John 2:15-17 KJV).
You are always making choices in your life about what you value. There are many ways to apply this truth, but here are a few:
Don’t just consider the benefits of your kid's athletic team; also, consider how much it might pull you out of church and what that communicates to your child and all those watching.
Don’t just consider the benefits of a nicer home or car; also, consider what it might do to your finances and how it might limit you from being generous.
Consider not only the benefits of entertainment but also how it might make your life meaningless and steal precious time from you.
You can find your own application to this truth. While we aren’t told to hate the things of this world, we are simply warned not to fall in love with them. Why? Because the things of this world will lead us astray. When making decisions in your life, don’t just consider the benefits; consider the costs, too.