Why So Many Fail

 

Why So Many Fail

GEN. 13:8-13

SUBJECT: Carnality/Emotional Orientation

THEME: the Believer persisting in carnality ignoring the leadership of our Lord is destined for spiritual failure.

RELEVANCE: So many people rely on their feelings, thoughts, intuition, families, and experiences far more than God, His Spirit, or Word for guidance and decisions. No doubt we all want to be spiritually successful like Abraham and avoid the miserable catastrophes of Lot’s failures! Consider the elements that make spiritual failure; they must be avoided to be successful in fulfilling God’s plan for our lives!

INTRODUCTION:

Lot was a failure because of his carnality…he remained a feeling dominated person and never became a Spirit and Word obedient person! But how does a carnal believer think? What is his attitude toward life’s problems and perplexities? The carnal believer’s approach to life is quite different from that of the spiritual believer. Lot reminds us of carnality and Abraham of spirituality, standing in stark contrast with each other through the events recorded in this passage. We will learn “How to live by faith to fulfill God’s plan for our lives” from the life of Lot.

The revived Abraham had learned to follow God by faith and lead a spiritual life, but Lot persisted in carnality and choose his own way walking merely by sight. Because Abraham walked by faith, he received direction and comfort from the Lord; as a result, he led a successful spiritual life. Lot, on the other hand, experienced one disaster after another because he chose to live by his own ideas and persisted in his carnality.  He was without divine direction and comfort; he died a complete spiritual failure. The comfort for Abraham is the fact that he was led by the Lord and the catastrophe for Lot is the fact that he was not!

Prov 14:12, There is a way which seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death. (Prov. 16:25) This is a summary verse for the life of Lot!

Our Prayer is, “Lord lead me by your precious Word! May it be my plan, my compass, my guide, my leader to spiritual success, and my restrainer from all evil!” Ps 119:133, Order my steps in thy word: and let not any iniquity have dominion over me.

MESSAGE:

The Disaster of Feelings Oriented Believers (Gen. 13:9-13).   

Lot's character is revealed by the major decisions he made throughout his life. He chose to pitch his tent with godless SODOM, seeking riches and a life of ease rather than a path of obedience to God. He prospered for a while, but this decision eventually led to his humiliation and the tragic loss of his wife and other members of his family.

• Gradual Compromise: Lot's action is a slow, incremental moral compromise. It starts with looking at material and financial advantages, moving close to a bad environment (“pitching a tent toward”), and eventually leading to living inside the corrupt city itself.
• Consequences: Lot moving from living near Sodom to living in Sodom, facing severe personal, family, and material loss when the city was eventually destroyed.

Lot’s life as a believer was a catastrophe because he never knew the will of God for his life, he never took many spiritual steps after his salvation and finally he made a shipwreck of all his potential to bring glory to God! That is a total waste of life! The “will of God” should be our priority!

“WHERE IS HAPPINESS?”

“Not in Unbelief---Voltaire was an infidel (God Denier) of the most pronounced type.  He wrote: “I wish I had never been born.”

Not in Pleasure---Lord Byron lived a life of pleasure if anyone did.  He wrote: “The worm, the canker, and grief are mine alone.”

Not in Money----Jay Gould, the American millionaire, had plenty of that.  When dying, he said: “I suppose I am the most miserable man on earth.”

Not in Position and Fame--Lord Beaconsfield enjoyed more than his share of both.  He wrote: “Youth is a mistake; manhood a struggle; old age a regret.”

Not in Military Glory---Alexander the Great conquered the known world in his day.  Having done so, he wept in his tent, because he said, “There are no more worlds to conquer.”

Where then is happiness found?—The answer is simple in Christ alone.”—The Bible Friend

What were the major contributing factors in Lot’s great catastrophe?  How can we avoid such failures?  What are the steps to spiritual catastrophe?

     A. THE ABSENCE OF PERSONAL SPIRITUAL INFLUENCE

There are basically three things that seem to be major factors in Lot’s Wrong Choice to move closer to Sodom and his ultimate failure in life.

           1. THE EVIDENCE OF LOW LOYALTY TO GOD

Gen 13:5, And Lot also, which went with Abram, had flocks, and herds, and tents.

Lot had flocks and tents, just as Abraham but Abraham had something that Lot didn’t.  Abraham had an Altar!  There is not even a hint that Lot had an Altar, nor is there any indication that he paused to inquire of the Lord for direction.  Lot never asked God, “Lord, this move is important to me and my family, what would you have me to do?”  Lot had no quiet time with the Lord, no devotions, no period of waiting on God and no direction from God!  He had no altar.  Therefore, he was weak in his devotions.

a)     Yes, Lot Was a Believer

2 Pet 2:7-8, And delivered just Lot, vexed with the filthy conversation of the wicked: 8, (For that righteous man dwelling among them, in seeing and hearing, vexed his righteous soul from day to day with their unlawful deeds;)

When and where Lot was saved, I am not sure. It could have been when Abraham disclosed his plans to leave Ur or it could have been when Abraham left Haran to come to Canaan (Gen. 12:4-5). I don’t know for sure, but I do know that he was a saved man.  It is an awful thing when people must try really hard to see that we really are Christians. It ought to be obvious to everyone around us that we love the Lord Jesus more than life itself!

Loyalty to God involves devotion, obedience, trust, and placing God above all else. Signs or ‘evidence’ of low loyalty typically manifest in a person’s priorities, behaviors, and inner attitudes. Matters like prioritizing the pursuit of money, possessions, or status over spiritual growth or ethical living. Relying entirely on one’s own power, intellect, or other people rather than trusting in God’s guidance or providence. Valuing the approval, opinions, or demands of family, friends, or societal figures above God’s commands. This is basically a form of idolatry! In the Bible, idolatry is the worship, service, or trust placed in any created thing, person, image, or concept in place of the one true God.

                    b) Yes, Lot Was Also a Betweener.

He loved bordering with the World.  He never really understood Spiritual Separation! Worldly influences will certainly contribute to Spiritual Failure.  Lot Never Grew Up in the Lord—He Remained Carnal (1 Cor 3:1-3)!  That within itself is a real tragedy!

1 Pet 2:2-3, As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby:  3, If so be ye have tasted that the Lord is gracious.

“MASSIVE JUPITER”

“On Jupiter, 318 times more massive than the earth, gravity at the surface is so intense that an astronaut in his space suit would weigh nearly half a ton.  Even if he could safely land, we cannot yet provide him with a propulsive force strong enough to get him off again.”

Beloved, we just do not have the capacity to become spirit-dominated individuals on our own!

Sometimes our Unsaved Friends, the things we Read, what we watch on TV, what we hear on the Radio, and the Goals we have set for our lives can cause us to become “Betweeners” instead of being “Distinctively Christian”.  The gravitational pull of some of these things is greater than that of Jupiter and the only thing that will give us the propulsion we need to break away from these harmful influences is the Power of God’s Word!

If you are having trouble with being a “Betweener,” then concentrate more on the Word of God—it will pry your heart,  mind, and soul from the World, Sin, and Satan. It will bring you into the reality of belonging exclusively to God and His Plan for your Life!

John 15:3, Now ye are clean through the word which I have spoken unto you.

John 17:17, Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth.

Ps 119:9, Wherewithal shall a young man cleanse his way? by taking heed thereto according to thy word.

Ps 119:11, Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee.

Ps 119:104, Through thy precepts I get understanding: therefore I hate every false way.

ALLOW GOD TO BRAIN WASH YOU WITH HIS PURIFYING TRUTH! For many, God will need to format your brain’s hard drive and reprogram your mind with pure truth.

ILLUSTRATION OF SPIRITUAL SUCCESS FROM THE LIFE OF JOSHUA

Josh 1:7-9, Only be thou strong and very courageous, that thou mayest observe to do according to all the law, which Moses my servant commanded thee: turn not from it to the right hand or to the left, that thou mayest prosper whithersoever thou goest. 8, This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein: for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success. 9, Have not I commanded thee? Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the LORD thy God is with thee whithersoever thou goest.

                    c) Therefore, Lot Was Hyper-Vulnerable to Demonic Appeals.

Lot followed a path designed by Satan to lure him off the course that God had for him through gradual compromises.  Notice the steps in his plunge into godlessness and spiritual failure!

                                1) He Was Weak in His Devotions, No Altar or Direction from God, Gen. 13:5

                                2) He Experienced Strife and Conflict, Gen. 13:7

                                3) He Walked by Sight instead of by Faith, Gen. 13:10

                                4) He Chose Selfishly and not Relationally, Gen. 13:11

                                5) He Pitched His Tent Toward Wickedness—No Separation from Evil, Gen. 13:12

                                6) He Stayed Away from God’s Man—No Spiritual Influence, Gen. 13:12 & 14:12 &13 (He would be the kind of Believer who stays away from Christ, the Word, and church far too often!)

                                7) He Sat in the Gates of Sodom (Political Power, local official), Gen. 19:1

In the New Testament, idolatry is more than physical statues, it involves our internal states of the heart. It plainly equates covetousness and greed with idolatry (Colossians 3:5, Ephesians 5:5), because loving or craving wealth or status more than God replaces God with those things!

• Idolatry occurs whenever a person looks to something limited (like money, power, career, romantic relationships, status, or self-exaltation) for ultimate security, identity, or satisfaction.
• It is essentially a transfer of trust and affection away from the Creator-God.

Colossians 3:5-7 states, Mortify therefore your members which are upon the earth; fornication, uncleanness, inordinate affection, evil concupiscence, and covetousness, which is idolatry: 6 For which things' sake the wrath of God cometh on the children of disobedience: 7 In the which ye also walked some time, when ye lived in them.

Ephesians 5:5-7 says, For this ye know, that no whoremonger, nor unclean person, nor covetous man, who is an idolater, hath any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God. ⁶ Let no man deceive you with vain words: for because of these things cometh the wrath of God upon the children of disobedience. ⁷ Be not ye therefore partakers with them.

Direct fellowship with God and treating relationship with Him as the highest treasure is anchored in several key scriptures.

• Matthew 6:21, For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.— What you value most claims your time, devotion, and affection.
• Matthew 6:19–20, Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth... But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven... — Shifting focus from temporary things to eternal communion with God.

By spending consistent time talking and listening to God, keeping His commandments as an expression of love and abiding in Christ the vine (John 15:5, 1 John 2:3–6), and forsaking hidden sin and living transparently before God we can maintain our fellowship with God as the primary priority in life.