Choices and their Consequences on Others

There are times when you may be deliberately trying to set an example or deliberately trying to be a witness to someone where you are aware of what you are doing and you do your best to be a good example or witness to them. There are also times when you are an example or a witness when you don't even now it. Maybe you give a homeless person a dollar and the person in the car behind you sees you so they do the same. Your actions, whether you knew it or not, influenced someone else. However, if your good deeds, actions, and choices effect others then the same also holds true to the contrary. Your bad deeds, actions, and choices too influence and effect others as well. Whether you are aware of it or not, both your decisions, good or bad, play a significant role in the lives of others. Lot, the nephew of Abraham, was one person whose choices directly affected those around him, unfortunately, in a negative way. When we first read about Lot he is traveling to Canaan with his uncle. Disputes begin to arise between Lot's men and Abraham's men so the two decide to part company. Lot chooses to go East towards Sodom and Abraham thus goes West towards Canaan. At this point, Lot sets up camp near Sodom. This was Lot's first bad decision that would ultimately spiral out of control. The Bible says the people of Sodom were a wicked people and they were sinning greatly against the Lord. Lot was aware of this and yet he still decided to set up his home with his family right next door to this wicked place. This is what usually gets people into trouble in the first place. They think it is ok to just look and not touch because hey aren't hurting anyone, but eventually their sinful desires will grow, pushing them to take the next step on the path to destruction. When we next hear about Lot it is when several kings of the land go to war and Lot and his family are carried off as prisoners of war, interestingly, because he and his family now live in Sodom. This is the next bad decision that Lot makes. He is aware that Sodom is a sinful city, but he has now moved his family into the town. Because of this bad decision his family and he are taken captive. Thankfully, Uncle Abraham comes to the rescue and saves Lot and his family. After God appears to Abraham and tells him that he is going to destroy Sodom two angels head into the town to rescue Lot before the coming destruction (a prophecy of the future rapture. See next note). They find Lot sitting at the city gates, a place of importance where men of the city discuss issues. Lot has now become involved in the culture of the city. Lot invites the angels into his home and then the home is surrounded by men demanding Lot to send the men out (the angels) so that they can have sex with them. Lot then offers to send out his two virgin daughters instead! How crazy is that!?! Lot went from living on the outskirts of the town to now living within the city, being involved in the city, and having his mindset distorted by the wicked views of the city. Lot's bad decisions have definitely gone from bad to worse and have led him to compromise his faith and his family. When the coming judgment does begin to come on the city Lot hesitates in leaving. Even as the fire begins to rain down on the city Lot does not want to leave. He has become so enraptured in sin that the angels have to grasp the hands of he and his family members and drag them out of the city. Sadly, the lure of the glitz and glamour of the city are too much for Lot's wife and she looks back upon the destruction and is thus turned into a pillar of salt. The decisions that Lot made not only affected him, but his family as well. Instead of being a spiritual leader and leading his family closer to God, Lot instead led his family straight into sin. A result of these bad decisions was that Lot's wife and two daughters become enthralled with the lifestyle of Sodom. Lot's wife wanted to go back so bad that she died. What if Lot would have made a different decision, a God honoring decision? After Lot and his daughters were safely delivered from the destruction of Sodom, Lot's two daughters start thinking about children. They look around and realize that there are no men to have children with so they decide to get their father drunk, essentially rape him, thus having an incestuous relationship with him and ultimately having children by their father. If Lot's wife dying wasn't enough of a horrible consequence of his bad choices than this heinous act was definitely the worst of all. Because Lot made bad choices and decided to set up camp by Sodom and then move his family into Sodom, his family reaped the consequences of his decisions. Whether you are making good choices or bad choices, knowingly or unknowingly others will be affected by these decisions. Be wise and learn from the mistakes of Lot's choices that led his family and him down the slippery slope of sin. Be aware of the decisions you make and the consequences that they will have on others. Do you want to be remembered for making good choices and thus having a positive effect on others or for making bad choices and thus having a negative effect on others? The choice is yours.

Created 5 months ago