“21 Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the mighty works done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes. 22 But I tell you, it will be more bearable on the day of judgment for Tyre and Sidon than for you. 23 And you, Capernaum, will you be exalted to heaven? You will be brought down to Hades. For if the mighty works done in you had been done in Sodom, it would have remained until this day. 24 But I tell you that it will be more tolerable on the day of judgment for the land of Sodom than for you.” ~ Matthew 11:21-24
Can you learn anything from Sodom? It is better to live in sin, without knowing the Truth, than to hear the Truth and refuse to change.
Sodom was such a wicked city that God Himself went down to see if the cries of the people, against Sodom, were true. When they were found to be true, He sent two angels to destroy Sodom and everything in it.
Imagine how wicked Capernaum must have been to have seen the miracles of Jesus, be face to face with God Himself, and yet refuse to repent. When He compared them to Sodom, He said Sodom would have repented. Then He took it a step further saying, Sodom would be better off on the day of judgment than them.
So where do we stand? Are we those who have seen the Truth, know the Truth, witnessed the Truth, but refuse to repent because of our fleshly desires? Or are we like Sodom would have been, filled with wickedness, deserving complete destruction, but hear the Truth, See the Truth, Learn the Truth, know the Truth, and repent?
The things of this world will not last. For even the Earth, skies, and seas will pass away, but our souls are eternal. We will spend eternity in one place, either the New Earth or The Lake of Fire. Right now, we can’t understand the pains of Hell, nor can we understand the renewal and peace of The New Earth. And even more so we can’t fathom eternity. We can’t understand a timeless place.
To put it into perspective, have you ever been burned? Have you ever felt the heat of fire on your skin? Imagine that pain that felt. The excruciating, nail-biting pain. Now imagine that pain lasting 30 seconds. Then 1 minute. 2 minutes. It becomes unbearable and if the flame is hot enough, you could pass out from the pain.
Those measly 2 minutes don’t even put a dent in eternity. Eternity has no end. Eternity there is no death. There is no passing out. There is taking a break. It’s like a constant fire that burns your entire body. You stay in constant torment. Your mouth thirsts for water, but it can’t have not one drop. What is a few years of giving up your fleshly desires that will never satisfy you, when it compares to eternity? Don’t give up your eternal peace, for a few moments of pleasure that won’t last. If Sodom were here during the time of grace, they would have repented when they heard the Truth.
Peace. Love. Go Forth and Be Like Sodom… Would Have Been.