An Article of Faith

In the time of the Old Testament patriarch, Abraham, five cities known as the “cities of the plain” were situated at the south end of the Dead Sea (Genesis 14:2, 8). Because of their great wickedness, four of these cities – Sodom, Gomorrah, Admah, and Zeboiim – were destroyed by God:
“That evening the two angels came to the entrance of the city of Sodom. Lot was sitting there, and when he saw them, he stood up to meet them. Then he welcomed them and bowed with his face to the ground. ‘My lords,’ he said, ‘come to my home to wash your feet, and be my guests for the night. You may then get up early in the morning and be on your way again.’
“‘Oh no,’ they replied. ‘We’ll just spend the night out here in the city square.’ But Lot insisted, so at last they went home with him.
“Lot prepared a feast for them, complete with fresh bread made without yeast, and they ate. But before they retired for the night, all the men of Sodom, young and old, came from all over the city and surrounded the house. They shouted to Lot, ‘Where are the men who came to spend the night with you? Bring them out to us so we can have sex with them!’ So Lot stepped outside to talk to them, shutting the door behind him. ‘Please, my brothers,’ he begged, ‘don’t do such a wicked thing. Look, I have two virgin daughters. Let me bring them out to you, and you can do with them as you wish. But please, leave these men alone, for they are my guests and are under my protection.’
“‘Stand back!’ they shouted. ‘This fellow came to town as an outsider, and now he’s acting like our judge! We’ll treat you far worse than those other men!’ And they lunged toward Lot to break down the door. But the two angels reached out, pulled Lot into the house, and bolted the door. Then they blinded all the men, young and old, who were at the door of the house, so they gave up trying to get inside.
“Meanwhile, the angels questioned Lot. ‘Do you have any other relatives here in the city?’ they asked. ‘Get them out of this place – your sons-in-law, sons, daughters, or anyone else. For we are about to destroy this city completely. The outcry against this place is so great it has reached the LORD, and He has sent us to destroy it.’ So Lot rushed out to tell his daughters’ fiancés, ‘Quick, get out of the city! The LORD is about to destroy it.’ But the young men thought he was only joking.
“At dawn the next morning the angels became insistent. ‘Hurry,’ they said to Lot. ‘Take your wife and your two daughters who are here. Get out right now, or you will be swept away in the destruction of the city!’ When Lot still hesitated, the angels seized his hand and the hands of his wife and two daughters and rushed them to safety outside the city, for the LORD was merciful. ...
“Then the LORD rained down fire and burning sulfur from the sky on Sodom and Gomorrah. He utterly destroyed them, along with the other cities and villages of the plain, wiping out all the people and every bit of vegetation.
“Abraham got up early that morning and hurried out to the place where he had stood in the LORD’s presence. He looked out across the plain toward Sodom and Gomorrah and watched as columns of smoke rose from the cities like smoke from a furnace” (Genesis 19:1-28 NLT).
God will not treat America any differently. Like the patriarch, Abraham, we must pray for the U.S. Supreme Court and our country to reaffirm natural marriage not try to redefine it at this critical time in American history.

Jessie J. Charpentier Sr. is pastor of Jenkins Memorial Baptist Church in St. Martinville.