Jesus wept over the unbelief in Jerusalem. Who weeps and prays over your city?
In our last study, we quoted the Lord’s words: “Shall I hide from Abraham what I am doing…?” The answer is obviously No, because He does tell him. There is a form of speech called anthropomorphism. It occurs when God changes His speech to talk like a man. Here’s one: “The Lord said, ‘Because the outcry against Sodom and Gomorrah is great, and because their sin is very grave, I will go down now and see whether they have done altogether according to the outcry against it that has come to Me; and if not, I will know.’” (Gen 18:20-21). Of course, God knew it all before His visit. But in this way He was saying this was no rush to judgment. God was giving the people of Sodom every chance to show any repentance, any expression of faith. It was like He would look through every closet, behind every door, in every heart, to see if there was anything He could salvage. Now Abraham asks, “Suppose there were fifty righteous within the city; would You also destroy the place and not spare it for the fifty righteous?” (v 24). No, says the Lord, for fifty I would spare the city. Abraham continues, What if there were forty-five? Forty? Thirty? Twenty? Ten? Each time the Lord says He would spare the city if He found that number. Don’t think that merciful Abraham was trying to hold back a wrathful God! God told Abraham what He was doing because He knew this man thought about Sodom like He did. Remember, Abraham had also gone to rescue these people. No, God wanted someone to plead for them, just as He’s looking for people today to pray for sinners around us who also need salvation. No need to change God’s mind; He is “not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance” (2 Pet 3:9). Will you be such a friend of God’s?