God Hears the Cry

God Hears the Cry

 

Have you ever wondered why God has held His judgment?

Maybe the answer has more to do with us than God.

Theologically, the 18^th chapter of Genesis

presents a challenge.

We are told that there was a cry that reached God

and God was coming down to earth to check it out.

The challenge is,

if God is all knowing

why did He have to check it out?

The answer is probably in

what is said;

not what is not said.

We are told God came

to check to see if the cry is just;

if the cry is as bad as it sounds.

A righteous judge does not act on hearsay,

 he checks out the claims for himself

before passing judgment.

We can also see that there was a cry that reached heaven.

Where did this cry come from?

Was it righteous martyrs,

like the ones we find in Revelation 6:10,

who cry out for their blood to be avenged?

Or, was it the people of the land crying in pain?

Or, was it prayers for help because of sin?  

Where ever the cry came from,

God heard it

and as a righteous judge,

He came to check it out.

God also confided in Abraham

maybe because this land was a part of the territory

God had given him.

Maybe because his nephew, Lot lived in the land.

God allowed Abraham to have a voice,

when it came to the judgment of Sodom and Gomorrah.

What is clear is this:

God hears the cry of those mistreated

and is willing to come to earth to avenge them.

His judgment is not based on hearsay,

but His own evaluation.

God does listen to us

and we can stand in the gap for the righteous.

Has anything ever mattered so much to you

that you cried out to God about it?

Do you realize that plays a role

in both judgment and mercy.

God is listening to you!   

Scripture Reading

Genesis 18:16-19:1 NIV

16 When the men got up to leave, they looked down toward Sodom,

and Abraham walked along with them to see them on their way.

17 Then the LORD said, "Shall I hide from Abraham what I am about to do?

18 Abraham will surely become a great and powerful nation,

and all nations on earth will be blessed through him.

19 For I have chosen him, so that he will direct his children and his household after him to keep the way of the LORD by doing what is right and just,

so that the LORD will bring about for Abraham what he has promised him."

20 Then the LORD said, "The outcry against Sodom and Gomorrah is so great

and their sin so grievous 21 that I will go down and see if what they have done

is as bad as the outcry that has reached me. If not, I will know."

22 The men turned away and went toward Sodom,

but Abraham remained standing before the LORD.  

23 Then Abraham approached him and said:

"Will you sweep away the righteous with the wicked?

24 What if there are fifty righteous people in the city?

Will you really sweep it away

and not spare the place for the sake of the fifty righteous people in it?

25 Far be it from you to do such a thing

— to kill the righteous with the wicked, treating the righteous and the wicked alike.

Far be it from you! Will not the Judge of all the earth do right?"

26 The LORD said, "If I find fifty righteous people in the city of Sodom,

I will spare the whole place for their sake."

27 Then Abraham spoke up again:

"Now that I have been so bold as to speak to the Lord,

though I am nothing but dust and ashes,

28 what if the number of the righteous is five less than fifty?

Will you destroy the whole city because of five people?"

"If I find forty-five there," he said, "I will not destroy it."

29 Once again he spoke to him, "What if only forty are found there?"

He said, "For the sake of forty, I will not do it."

30 Then he said, "May the Lord not be angry, but let me speak.

What if only thirty can be found there?"

He answered, "I will not do it if I find thirty there."

31 Abraham said, "Now that I have been so bold as to speak to the Lord,

what if only twenty can be found there?"

He said, "For the sake of twenty, I will not destroy it."

32 Then he said, "May the Lord not be angry, but let me speak just once more.

What if only ten can be found there?"

He answered, "For the sake of ten, I will not destroy it."

33 When the LORD had finished speaking with Abraham,

he left, and Abraham returned home.