09/19/2024
Lot Character Bible Study
Read: Genesis 11:27-31, 12:4-5, 13:1-14, 19, 2 Peter 2:7-8
Meaning of name: Covering, veil
Ancestry and family life: Lot was a Semite. When and where he lived: Mesopotamia. It is the land of modern day Syria, Iraq, and Turkey. The Chaldeans were a people group who eventually established the Babylonian Empire. They came from what is now Southern Iraq.
Genesis 13:2-7 – Now Abram was very rich in livestock, in silver, and in gold. And he journeyed on from the Negeb as far as Bethel to the place where his tent had been at the beginning, between Bethel and Ai, to the place where he had made an altar at the first. And there Abram called upon the name of the Lord. And Lot, who went with Abram, also had flocks and herds and tents, so that the land could not support both of them dwelling together; for their possessions were so great that they could not dwell together, and there was strife between the herdsmen of Abram’s livestock and the herdsmen of Lot’s livestock. At that time the Canaanites and the Perizzites were dwelling in the land.
Lot was a successful self-employed entrepeneur, trader, and business owner.
Place in history:
Lot was the ancestor of two famous Biblical nations, Ammon and Moab.
Genesis 13:8-11 – Then Abram said to Lot, “Let there be no strife between you and me, and between your herdsmen and my herdsmen, for we are kinsmen. Is not the whole land before you? Separate yourself from me. If you take the left hand, then I will go to the right, or if you take the right hand, then I will go to the left.” And Lot lifted up his eyes and saw that the Jordan Valley was well watered everywhere like the garden of the Lord, like the land of Egypt, in the direction of Zoar. (This was before the Lord destroyed S***m and Gomorrah.) So Lot chose for himself all the Jordan Valley, and Lot journeyed east. Thus they separated from each other.
There are four life-saving lessons we can learn from Lot about the reality of sin and its consequences.
1. Beware of the progression of sin in your life.
Who do you really want to be? Where do you want to belong? If it’s with the world, go there 100 percent. If it’s with God, go with him 100 percent.
2. The coming judgment is real.
The greatest hypocrisy of all time is saying you believe in heaven and hell and not doing everything you can to keep those you care about from going there.
3. You cannot drift into godliness.
You’ll never drift into spiritual maturity. It takes daily, focused effort. To become what no one else is becoming, you have to do what no one is doing.
4. Become an Abraham to the Lots in your life.
Jesus prayed for you, and he came after you. Now, it’s your turn to do this for others.
God’s Great Grace –Ultimately this is not a story about Lot’s sin and the results of it. It is a story of God’s grace toward sinners. And that is the same story we see repeated throughout the Bible and in our own lives today.
