JUDGMENT DAY FOR SODOM

Transcription

1 1 Dear Friend, this is a transcript of a sermon preached by Pastor Jeremy Tan from the pulpit of Amazing Grace Baptist Church Singapore. We are committed to expository preaching because we believe it is the most effective way to expose, explain and expound the Holy Scriptures. And beginning at Moses and all the prophets, [Jesus] expounded unto them in all the scriptures the things concerning himself (Luke 24:27). Through careful systematic and sequential exposition, the preacher is able to declare unto you all the counsel of God (Acts 20:27), and Christians are blessed with a regular, well-balanced diet of God s Word. Expository preaching also helps us to have a high view of Scripture. We wish to extend a warm welcome to you to join us in our church services for a time of uplifting worship and helpful Bible study, which will bring rejoicing and refreshment to your soul. Do visit our church website at or write to us at amazingracebc@gmail.com. JUDGMENT DAY FOR SODOM Genesis 19:1 29 Genesis 19 is about the judgment of God on the wicked Canaanite cities. This chapter gives us warning against following the lifestyles of the Sodomites. We are astounded that God inflicted severe punishment on such an awesome scale by obliterating Sodom and Gomorrah, but the judgment is appropriate to the sins. At the same time, we are amazed at the difficulty of the angels to rescue Lot and his family from Sodom. In the end, they escaped the judgment of God against Sodom, but the influence of Sodom lingered in them. In Genesis 19, we have a superb study of the two aspects of judgment: the cataclysmic, as the cities disappear in brimstone and fire, and the gradual, as Lot and his family reach the last stages of disintegration, breaking up in the very hands of their rescuers. (Derek Kidner, Genesis: An Introduction and Commentary, p ). Lot wanted the best of both worlds: fellowship with God and friendship with the world. In the end, he lost almost everything that he valued. In Lot, we see the spiritual decline of a believer who refused to be a pilgrim, even when God prepared to destroy the cities. Fire and brimstone could not make Lot a pilgrim! Before this chapter, three heavenly visitors had spent an afternoon in Mamre with Abraham. At dusk, they stood up and headed toward Sodom. As the host, Abraham escorted them until they arrived at the high ground which overlooked the plain of Jordan. As they walked together, the LORD revealed to Abraham that He had heard the cry of wickedness from Sodom and Gomorrah, and He intended to go down, and see the sins of those cities (Genesis 18:21). But God s investigation does not mean He needed to collect evidence. Rather, the statement means that He administers justice with full and accurate information. Already in Genesis 13, Moses the narrator had indicated God s full knowledge of the sins in Sodom. Genesis 13:13 But the men of Sodom were wicked and sinners before the LORD exceedingly.

2 2 Realizing that God was about to destroy these cities, Abraham stood before the LORD and interceded for the righteous people living there. He was convinced there were righteous people in those cities, not least his nephew Lot and his family; but he did not know the number of them. So he began by interceding for fifty people. Would God destroy the city if there were fifty righteous people living there? How about forty? How about thirty? As he continued whittling the number down to ten, he seemed to be haggling and bargaining with God. But with humility and reverence, Abraham persisted because he longed for God to be glorified and honoured as the righteous Judge. Thus in Genesis 18:25 he asked God the question, Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right? God patiently allowed Abraham to continue interceding until the number stopped at ten, thus proving Himself as the righteous Judge of all the earth. There were not even ten righteous people in these places, and Abraham was left in no doubt that the cities in Jordan were thoroughly wicked. Then the LORD left Abraham, and we now find ourselves in Genesis 19. We have divided Genesis 19:1-29 into three sections. I. The Deliverance of Lot. Genesis 19:1 And there came two angels to Sodom at even; and Lot sat in the gate of Sodom: and Lot seeing them rose up to meet them; and he bowed himself with his face toward the ground; For the first time, the two heavenly visitors beside the LORD are identified as angels. They arrived in Sodom on the same evening that they had left Mamre, no doubt at supernatural speed. They found Lot sitting in the gate of Sodom. The narrative does not indicate that Lot knew they were angels when they first met, but he greeted them in the same manner as Abraham, with a bow and his face toward the ground. Perhaps Lot sensed a supernatural and a moral quality about their conduct that was unlike the people of Sodom. There are contrasts between their visits to Abraham in Mamre and to Lot in Sodom. When the heavenly visitors approached Abraham in Mamre, it was in bright daylight, and they announced to Abraham and Sarah the beginning of life in the birth of Isaac. But in Sodom, it was dark at night when the angels arrived to pronounce God s judgment, which is death and destruction for the city. So the contrasts between Abraham and Lot are light and darkness, and life and death. We notice also that aged Abraham, almost a hundred years old, quickened his steps to greet the heavenly visitors, whereas Lot merely rose up to meet them. Is there any significance in their receptions? Yes, according to the preacher Donald Grey Barnhouse, who noted that, The difference between the believer who walks by faith and the one who is walking in the world is evident by the manner in which each receives the Lord. Abraham, separated from the world, had no other Master but the Lord. There was nothing to preoccupy his attention, and when the Lord appeared, he ran to meet him. The Holy Spirit upon Abraham drew him immediately to the Lord. Lot was preoccupied with worldly things. (James Montgomery Boice, Genesis: An Expositional Commentary Volume 2, p. 629). Lot was so busy and preoccupied with the cares of the world, that he became dull and insensitive

3 3 to the spiritual and the supernatural. There was no urgency about him to receive the two angels. Angels are the messengers of God. They do not make frivolous or useless visits to people, so Lot s life was about to change forever. Likewise, the preachers of the Bible bring something important to us from God. Are we responsive to the preached Word of God? Are we urgent about God s truths and spiritual matters? In ancient times, the gate or gateway of the city was the place of public activity. The elders held court at the gate of the city to administer the law (Deuteronomy 21:19; 22:15; 25:7). The market was also located at the gate (2 Kings 7:1). For Lot to be seated at the gate means that he had now become a prominent citizen of Sodom, occupying a position of power and privilege. By all appearances, he was a successful man, but not all is well with him because appearances are often deceptive. Lot did not make the journey to Canaan because he obeyed God. The LORD God had called Abraham to the Promised Land, but Lot did not have the same command. Lot merely followed his uncle. There was no personal conviction about obedience to God. Later he left the Promised Land, the place of God s blessing, to live in the lush plain of Jordan. He was attracted to the well watered land, and he moved there with his household (Genesis 13:10). When he arrived in the plain, he first pitched his tent toward Sodom (Genesis 13:12). But for the sake of convenience and commerce, Lot and his family soon moved into Sodom (Genesis 14:12). From a tent outside the city, he now lived in a house in Sodom. He had made his stay in Sodom permanent. Even the harsh experience of war and pain as a prisonerof-war did not deter him. After Abraham defeated the enemy kings and rescued him, Lot could have started over by returning to Canaan. Instead, he went back to Sodom. Now as the angels found him in Sodom, Lot had become the civic leader. However, we must not hold Lot s public office against him. It is not unique for God s people to be in public service. Joseph, Daniel, Nehemiah, and David all served kings that were unsaved people. Yet they all served with distinction, without compromising their faith and obedience to God. Their steadfast faith in God often put them in conflict with the world, but God blessed them. Unlike these men, Lot was a compromiser who immersed himself in Sodomite society. If we only have the book of Genesis to tell us about Lot, we would hardly know him as a believer in the Almighty God. But the apostle in 2 Peter 2 declares Lot as a righteous man. Lot believed in the true and living God, no doubt because of his uncle s influence. Abraham had blessed his nephew in so many ways. Lot s salvation, protection and provision, and his wealth were all God s blessings through Abraham. It is possible that even his promotion as a civic leader of Sodom was due to his relationship with his uncle. Abraham was the deliverer of Sodom, so the nephew benefited from the relationship. We read in 2 Peter 2:6-8 6 And turning the cities of Sodom and Gomorrha into ashes condemned them with an overthrow, making them an ensample unto those that after should live ungodly; 7 And delivered just Lot, vexed with the filthy conversation of the wicked: 8 (For that righteous man dwelling among them, in seeing and hearing, vexed his righteous soul from day to day with their unlawful deeds;) The words translated just and righteous are the same Greek word dikaios, which has the meaning of holy. When applied to Lot, being holy or righteous certainly does not

4 4 mean being perfect! Although imperfect as all of God s righteous people are, Lot was vexed or distressed by the sin of the Sodomites. God s people have a regenerated conscience that makes them sensitive to sin. If you are a believer and sin does not matter to you, you need to re-examine your conversion and profession of faith, and repent! After greeting the two men at the gate, Lot invited them to his home for the night. Genesis 19:2-3 2 And he said, Behold now, my lords, turn in, I pray you, into your servant s house, and tarry all night, and wash your feet, and ye shall rise up early, and go on your ways. And they said, Nay; but we will abide in the street all night. 3 And he pressed upon them greatly; and they turned in unto him, and entered into his house; and he made them a feast, and did bake unleavened bread, and they did eat. Lot knew that the streets of Sodom were unsafe, especially at night. So he was horrified when the angels declined his hospitality. He pressed upon them greatly, which means that he insisted strongly until they relented and accepted his invitation. But unlike Abraham, Lot prepared a hurried meal for his guests. Unleavened bread did not take a long time or much effort to bake. By this time, news about Lot s visitors had spread throughout the city; and Lot s fear of his neighbours wickedness was about to be realized in the commotion outside his house. Genesis 19:4-5 4 But before they lay down, the men of the city, even the men of Sodom, compassed the house round, both old and young, all the people from every quarter: 5 And they called unto Lot, and said unto him, Where are the men which came in to thee this night? bring them out unto us, that we may know them. In Sodom, homosexual practice was the dominant lifestyle. Any stranger entering Sodom faced the danger of being accosted, molested, and sexually abused. Now, angels are creatures of beauty. They possess uncommon good looks and are well built. No wonder then, that they incited the evil desires of the Sodomites. The mob that surrounded Lot s house are the old and young, all the people from every quarter. Moses description means that all the people of Sodom were wicked. These details are necessary to show that everyone destroyed is wicked. (Genesis: A Commentary, Bruce A. Waltke with Cathi J. Fredricks, p. 276). They wanted to know Lot s visitors. What does this mean? One common defence for their conduct is that they wanted to show hospitality toward the two men. One writer did a study of the word know in the Old Testament, and he concluded that the overwhelming usage of the word means to make an acquaintance (D. Sherwin Bailey, Homosexuality and the Western Christian Tradition). However, Scripture is not interpreted according to statistic, but to context. The word translated know in Genesis 19 has a sexual meaning. These people were seeking the angels to engage in homosexual activity. How do we know? We know because in Genesis 19:8, Lot offered his virgin daughters to the crowd as girls who have not known man. Another excuse sometimes offered is that the Sodomites wanted to know the visitors in order to check their credentials. But this excuse does not make sense because Lot offered his daughters to the crowd, for them to do as they pleased. Why offer his daughters to the Sodomites, if sex was not their intention?

5 5 Now, homosexuals insist that they are like everyone else, except that they want to have sex with the same gender. But the Bible always treats this sexual desire as perversion, and it is a capital offence in the Old Testament. Let us look at some places in the Bible that condemn homosexuality as sin. Leviticus 18:22 Thou shalt not lie with mankind, as with womankind: it is abomination. Leviticus 20:13 If a man also lie with mankind, as he lieth with a woman, both of them have committed an abomination: they shall surely be put to death; their blood shall be upon them. According to Leviticus 18:27-30 and 20:23, homosexuality was a common perversion among the Canaanites. Then in Romans 1, the apostle Paul named homosexuality as a sin. Romans 1: For this cause God gave them up unto vile affections: for even their women did change the natural use into that which is against nature: 27 And likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust one toward another; men with men working that which is unseemly, and receiving in themselves that recompence of their error which was meet. In 1 Corinthians 6:9 the apostle states very clearly that those who are abusers of themselves with mankind will not inherit the kingdom of God. In 1 Timothy 1:10 we read about them that defile themselves with mankind. We often hear the argument that people in ancient times did not know as much about homosexuality as people do today. In olden days, people supposedly were ignorant about those born in a certain way, or about a gay gene that predisposes them to homosexual conduct. If this argument is true, then God does not have perfect knowledge of humanity that He created, and what He called an abomination is really not an abomination at all. Friend, God knows what He said and He means what He said. Do not try to secondguess His meaning. If God is wrong about homosexuality, then He had committed a grave miscarriage of justice by destroying all the people in Sodom and Gomorrah. Abraham s rhetorical question in Genesis 18:25 bears repeating, Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right? If God was wrong about homosexuality, what else is there that He is wrong? If God was wrong about the Sodomites and their way of loving people, then this God is not worthy of our worship! However, we read in Romans 3:4, Let God be true, but every man a liar. We have already cited the Bible verses where God called homosexuality an abomination. The city is guilty here of two crimes: violation of guests and unnatural lusts. The men of the city cry not just for homosexuality but for rape. Elsewhere the other noted sins of Sodom and Gomorrah are social oppression (Isa. 1:10, 17); adultery, lying, and abetting the criminal (Jer. 23:14); and arrogance, complacency, and showing no pity on the needy (Ezek. 16:49). (Waltke, p. 276). In Ezekiel 16:50, God also said that Sodom committed abomination before me. Undoubtedly, the abomination is a reference to homosexuality, the prominent sin in Sodom and Gomorrah. But these were just two cities. Today all over the world, there is a surge in homosexual conduct expressed and declared openly. In a number of places, same-sex marriage is worked into the law and made legal. The increase of homosexual conduct only

6 6 means that the whole world is now standing on the brink of judgment. We are in the last days before judgment falls from God! We continue in Genesis 19:6-8 6 And Lot went out at the door unto them, and shut the door after him, 7 And said, I pray you, brethren, do not so wickedly. 8 Behold now, I have two daughters which have not known man; let me, I pray you, bring them out unto you, and do ye to them as is good in your eyes: only unto these men do nothing; for therefore came they under the shadow of my roof. It was customary of the host to protect his guests, so Lot stepped outside his home to plead with the people to spare the two angels. Notice that he addressed them as brethren, which reveals his accommodation to the Sodomites. He shut the door after him because they might swarm over him and break into his home. But to shut the door also means that Lot exposed himself to danger. Instead of his guests, Lot offered his virgin daughters to the Sodomites. It was noble of Lot to protect his guests, but it is a different matter to sacrifice one s daughters for a social custom! See how Sodom had impaired his moral standards! Lot was willing to sacrifice his daughters to be ravished and raped by these violent and utterly depraved men! It suggests that in any age human conventions will be a most fallible guide. (Kidner, p ). In Judges 19:16-30 we find a similar incident of the Benjamites in Gibeah. There the host, an old man, cautioned his guest about the peril of spending the night outdoors in the city square. Like the Sodomites, the men of Gibeah wanted to know the old man s guest. Like Lot, the old man offered a replacement, his concubine; but in this case, they brutally raped and abused the woman until she died. Genesis 19:9 And they said, Stand back. And they said again, This one fellow came in to sojourn, and he will needs be a judge: now will we deal worse with thee, than with them. And they pressed sore upon the man, even Lot, and came near to break the door. When Lot exposed their wicked intentions, the people became angry and threatened to hurt him. The word wickedly clearly means that they were not thinking of hospitality. Who are you to judge us? They called him a sojourner. Lot was not one of them. They did not take no as an answer. The situation had become ugly and out of Lot s control. Genesis 19: But the men put forth their hand, and pulled Lot into the house to them, and shut to the door. 11 And they smote the men that were at the door of the house with blindness, both small and great: so that they wearied themselves to find the door. The angels pulled him into the house and at the same time, they struck the men outside with blindness. Their confused state is akin to partial blindness and mental bewilderment. (John J. Davis, Paradise to Prison, p. 201). If Lot ever suspected that his guests were angels, now all doubt is removed. It is interesting to note here that the men of Sodom should rebuke Lot for judging them. The LORD had sent the two angels as His witnesses against Sodom, and now they have all the evidence of their utter depravity and violent conduct. When the angels pulled Lot into the house and shut the door, the door of God s grace was also shut to the Sodomites. God had

7 7 been longsuffering toward them, but now the time of His grace is ended. The judgment of God is at hand! Genesis 19: And the men said unto Lot, Hast thou here any besides? son in law, and thy sons, and thy daughters, and whatsoever thou hast in the city, bring them out of this place: 13 For we will destroy this place, because the cry of them is waxen great before the face of the LORD; and the LORD hath sent us to destroy it. Angels do not have the perfect knowledge of God, so they do not know if Lot had any sons. But God had informed His angels about their rescue mission, so they would have known all the people in Lot s family. Therefore, their question about Lot s family members is God s final call to all in his household to get out of Sodom while there was time. This brings us to II. The Declension of Lot. This word is a fitting description of the life of Lot, for declension means a condition of decline or moral deterioration. Lot had been in spiritual decline ever since he left Abraham and Canaan for Sodom. Now we will see his attitude, and that of his family, toward God s judgment of Sodom. Genesis 19:14 And Lot went out, and spake unto his sons in law, which married his daughters, and said, Up, get you out of this place; for the LORD will destroy this city. But he seemed as one that mocked unto his sons in law. Although Lot was vexed by the sin that he saw all around him, he had compromised himself too long with the Sodomites to be an effective witness to them. None of his friends believed a word he said about God, righteousness, and judgment to come, so none of them were saved. Even his sons-in-law to whom his daughters were betrothed in marriage laughed at him for his warning of judgment. Perhaps they had never heard Lot speak about God until now! In Genesis 19:4, we read that the men of Sodom were all the people from every quarter. From this statement, we think it is possible that Lot s sons-in-law were bisexual, if not outright homosexual men. Genesis 19: And when the morning arose, then the angels hastened Lot, saying, Arise, take thy wife, and thy two daughters, which are here; lest thou be consumed in the iniquity of the city. 16 And while he lingered, the men laid hold upon his hand, and upon the hand of his wife, and upon the hand of his two daughters; the LORD being merciful unto him: and they brought him forth, and set him without the city. The angels were in a hurry to leave Sodom. They hastened Lot, but he lingered. Lot was hesitant about leaving Sodom, so the angels had to drag him and his family out of the city. Lot dragged his feet, but the LORD [was] merciful unto him. Genesis 19: And it came to pass, when they had brought them forth abroad, that he said, Escape for thy life; look not behind thee, neither stay thou in all the plain; escape to the mountain, lest thou be consumed. 18 And Lot said unto them, Oh, not so, my Lord: 19 Behold now, thy servant hath found grace in thy sight, and thou hast

8 8 magnified thy mercy, which thou hast shewed unto me in saving my life; and I cannot escape to the mountain, lest some evil take me, and I die: For the angels to tell them to flee to the mountain means that God ensured their safety to get there. Yet, Lot argued against the command and tried to bargain for another way. Like Lot, many of God s people do not think seriously of judgment, so they look for some other way, usually a worldly one. Genesis 19:20 Behold now, this city is near to flee unto, and it is a little one: Oh, let me escape thither, (is it not a little one?) and my soul shall live. The city that Lot chose to flee unto is near. But near to what? They were fleeing Sodom, so this city was not far from Sodom. It is clear that Lot did not want to run too far away from Sodom. Genesis 19: And he said unto him, See, I have accepted thee concerning this thing also, that I will not overthrow this city, for the which thou hast spoken. 22 Haste thee, escape thither; for I cannot do any thing till thou be come thither. Therefore the name of the city was called Zoar. Zoar was one of the small cities in the plain. It existed in the shadows of Sodom and Gomorrah, but it was close enough to be a little Sodom. It is just like our Little India in Singapore, where in a small area we can have a taste of India. Here in little Sodom, Lot would rebuild his life. But what amazing condescension that the angels would agree to Lot s request. III. The Destruction of Sodom. Genesis 19: The sun was risen upon the earth when Lot entered into Zoar. 24 Then the LORD rained upon Sodom and upon Gomorrah brimstone and fire from the LORD out of heaven; 25 And he overthrew those cities, and all the plain, and all the inhabitants of the cities, and that which grew upon the ground. The cities in the plain burned up as brimstone and fire fell from the sky. Genesis 19:26 But his wife looked back from behind him, and she became a pillar of salt. In Luke 17:32 the Lord Jesus said, Remember Lot s wife. This is a short statement, but it is not a cryptic one. This is a clear warning to God s people not to turn back to the world. We are to flee from the judgment to come. Lot s wife was more concerned about what she had left behind than being left behind! She had left her heart in Sodom. Despite the warning of God s judgment, the family were reluctant to leave. Genesis 19: And Abraham gat up early in the morning to the place where he stood before the LORD: 28 And he looked toward Sodom and Gomorrah, and toward all the land of the plain, and beheld, and, lo, the smoke of the country went up as the smoke of a furnace. Only a few hours before, Abraham had stood with the LORD and interceded for the righteous people in Sodom. Surely now as he stood at the same place and surveyed the burning plain of Jordan, his thoughts must have been on Lot and his family. A moment ago,

9 9 there were proud and prosperous cities in the lush and well watered plain, but now Abraham saw only smouldering ruins. Plumes of dense smoke billowed to the sky, and sulphurous fumes filled the air. Nothing in the narrative indicates that Abraham knew of Lot s deliverance, but he trusted the Judge of all the earth to do right. As for a believer like Lot who walked in the ways of the world, it is difficult for anyone but God to know the true state of the soul. We think of 1 Corinthians 3:15 for a believer like him, one who is saved by the skin of his teeth: he himself shall be saved; yet so as by fire. Genesis 19:29 And it came to pass, when God destroyed the cities of the plain, that God remembered Abraham, and sent Lot out of the midst of the overthrow, when he overthrew the cities in the which Lot dwelt. Abraham did not intercede in vain for the righteous. As much as God sent His angels to be witnesses of the sins of Sodom and Gomorrah, they were also sent on a rescue mission to save Lot and his family. That God remembered Abraham is an encouragement to us about the power of prayer. God hears our prayers, He remembers our prayers, so we must continue to pray for those who are yet to be saved from their sins. Conclusion The utter destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah is God s judgment against the wickedness of the Sodomites. According to Genesis 13:13, the men of Sodom were wicked and sinners before the LORD exceedingly. In Genesis 18:20, we read that the sins of Sodom and Gomorrah were very grievous to God. Genesis 19 describes a particular sin of the Sodomites. According to the Scriptures, homosexual sin is abominable to God. Do you believe God at His Word? If God does not mean what He said about homosexuality, then we should also not treat all the other sins of the Canaanites seriously, such as bestiality and incest. If we have no guidance from God for sexual conduct, then we can do whatever we please, and live according to the lust of our flesh. Friend, God does not exaggerate. An abomination is an abomination. God also does not change His mind about sin. He did not judge homosexuality as a capital offence in the Old Testament, only to change His law for our day and age. If God is wrong, what about all those who perished in Sodom and Gomorrah? No! God is not wrong. The Judge of all the earth is righteous in all His ways! As the descendants of Adam, we all have Adam s sin nature. Our sin nature predisposes us to sin. We do not all sin in the same way; some people express their sin nature through lying, others through murder, thievery, gossiping, and so on. Being a homosexual is one of the ways the sin nature is expressed. But by God s grace, we can repent of our sins, and there is forgiveness of sins with God. In his letter to the church at Corinth, the apostle Paul wrote about those who will not inherit the kingdom of God, which means that these people are not saved. 1 Corinthians 6: Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor

10 10 effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind, 10 Nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God. But then we notice the next verse 1 Corinthians 6:11 And such were some of you: but ye are washed, but ye are sanctified, but ye are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God. The words such were some of you is the great hope of God s grace! Sinners can repent of their sins, including the sin of homosexuality; and God will forgive them of their sins through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ as personal Saviour. Through Christ, there is change for all sinners! 2 Corinthians 5:17 Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new. With faith in Christ and by the repentance of your sins, God will save you and make you His new creature! As for Lot, he is the antithesis of the blessed man in Psalm 1:1. He walked in the counsel of the ungodly, he stood in the way of sinners, and he sat in the seat of the scornful. By accommodating sin, he and his family lost their credibility as witnesses for the LORD. Even his sons-in-law mocked him. Have we ever shared the Gospel of Jesus Christ with people, and they laughed us to scorn because we have compromised our faith in Christ and our lives are contrary to the Scriptures? Are we living in a spiritual Sodom? If we have compromised the Gospel of Jesus Christ with the world, let us seek God for His grace to help us repent of our sins, so that we will live up to our calling as believers in Christ! Permission: We share our materials with you as a blessing from the ministry of our church. You are permitted and encouraged to reproduce and distribute this material in any format, provided that you do not alter the wording in any way and you do not charge a fee beyond the cost of reproduction. For web posting, a link to this document on our website is preferred. Any exceptions to the above must be explicitly approved by Amazing Grace Baptist Church. Please include the following statement on any distributed copy: Copyright: Amazing Grace Baptist Church Singapore. Website: Used by permission as granted on website.