A Contrast in Choices

Genesis 13-14, 19 : A Contrast in Choices

a. Read Genesis 13:10-12; 14:1-12; 19:1

•   Why do you think Lot chose to live where he did?

It says that he looked around and saw that it was "well watered" and would be good fertile area.

•  What do you think it meant that Lot pitched his tent "toward" Sodom?

He faced it in the direction of Sodom.  When I first read it, I thought of King Benjamin's people who pitched their tents towards the temple so they could hear his words and I thought how different and opposite of a choice was Lot making.  I think it shows where his interest lay at that time.

• At first Lot lived outside the city of Sodom with his tent pitched towards it, and then he later lived in the city of Sodom itself.  In what ways today do people "pitch their tents toward Sodom"?

Well I think it is shown how people pitch their tents towards Sodom today by the way they live their lives.  A common saying that describes it well to me is "Being OF the world".  We can live in this world that is full of evil and enticings of the devil, but not be partakers and the problem is that so often we do not disconnect ourselves from the evil...instead we walk the fence and are far closer to it than we should be.

• Explain in writing the sins of Sodom & Gomorrah.  Write list of words from the scriptures and Institute Manual describing how the Lord feels about homosexuality.

Sins of Sodom & Gomorrah: homosexuality, bi-sexuality, masterbation, rejection of those who were poor and in need.

List of words used by Lord to describe His feelings about homosexuality: evil, depraved, abomination, immorality, filthiness, wickedness.

b. Contrast Lot's choices with Abraham's choices (Genesis 13:7-9, 18; 14:13-16, 21-23)

• Where did Abraham choose to live?

Abraham dwelt in the plain of Mamre and built an altar unto God.

• What did he do when he heard Lot had been captured?

He armed his servants and pursued them; they split up and went in at night and smote them and chased them away and brought Lot and his people and goods back.

• What does Genesis 14:22-23 reveal about Abraham's values and commitment to God?

It says that he worshipped and obeyed God first and would not take anything that wasn't his or given to him from God.

• The city of Sodom was known for wealth, worldly pleasures, and great wickedness.  What could Abraham have gained from the King of Sodom?  How does Moroni 10:30 relate to Abraham's actions?

The King offered him wealth and he could have had all that.  Abraham knew that what the King offered him was unclean and evil and he wanted to stay clean, therefore he could not and would not touch or possess it.

• What can I do to be more like Abraham, who did not even desire a "thread" of what the King of Sodom had to offer?

This whole lesson I have read many things about Abraham and learned more about him than I knew before and I feel like to be more like him means I need to be more obedient and closer to God.  That I feel is the secret.  Abraham was so close to God that he heard when God spoke to him and he obeyed without questioning.  If I want to live a life more like his, then I need to cultivate in myself the same traits and habits.  I need to make sure that my tent is pitched towards the Lord and the temple and not towards the modern-day Sodoms that look so enticing.  I need to be more clean and pure and I need to be unwavering in my dedication to the gospel and the commandments.