Why Sodom Still Matters

Jeremy Duncan

Nov 16

Written By Kevin Borst

Sunday, November 16, 2025

Scriptures: Genesis 18, 19

Summary: In the fifth sermon of our series, Big Promises, Small Steps, Jeremy Looks at the infamous story of Sodom and Gomorrah and challenges its historical misuse—particularly against LGBTQ+ communities. Jeremy draws attention to the layered ambiguities found in Genesis, including the possibility that Abraham credits God with righteousness. This highlights how trust in divine goodness—not doctrinal certainty—is central to faith. Jeremy examines and reinterprets Abraham’s negotiation with God as a portrait of divine responsiveness, which, he says, emphasizes that God’s defining trait is love. Jeremy shows how the true greatness of God is shown in God's willingness to engage, listen, and invite human participation. The sin of Sodom, Jeremy argues, is multifaceted: arrogance, neglect of the poor, violence, and inhospitality. Jeremy reminds us that, while evil is real and judgment is serious, grace remains profoundly accessible. Distancing oneself from God’s grace takes sustained effort, not a single misstep.
Righteous Credit: Jeremy begins by exploring the ambiguity in Genesis 15:6, suggesting that Abraham’s faith may be less about his own righteousness and more about trusting in God’s. This shift from personal belief to divine reliability reframes our faith as grounded in God's character, rather than our ability to hold certainty.
Negotiation Tactics: Genesis 18 depicts Abraham challenging God’s justice, asking whether the righteous will be destroyed with the wicked and Jeremy highlights how this is an invitation from God to participate in divine discernment, showing that God’s primary posture is responsiveness, not punitive power.
The Sin of Sodom: Jeremy examines the sin of Sodom. He shows all the different sins that the Bible attributes to Sodom’s downfall: arrogance, greed, neglect of the poor, and violent inhospitality. This reframes the story as a warning against societal decay, not individual sexual morality.
Hidden Grace: Despite Sodom's destruction, Jeremy highlights how difficult it is to remove oneself from God’s grace. He emphasizes that divine judgment is not impulsive but slow, considering, and inviting into better living. Faith means trusting in a God who is persistently good, even in confrontation.
Community is shaped by the conversations we share. These questions and reflections are a tool to help you meaningfully engage with the themes of this week's teaching.
Connect: Since this sermon is focussed on the story of Sodom and Gomorrah, and Jeremy mentions some of the ways it has been used in church settings, it might be helpful to share the interpretations we bring to the text upfront.
Q: If you feel comfortable sharing, feel free to say how you’ve encountered this story in the past, and what ways you’ve had it explained to you.
Share: Share your thoughts on Abraham debating with God. There is a back-and-forth in this story between God and Abraham that some might find surprising to be in the Bible. You may find in your own life, the need to question God.

Q: Have you ever felt the need to question or debate with God?
Q: What value is there in a faith that openly acknowledges discussion—even pushback—to what God says?
Reflect: Reflect on the ambiguity around God waiting for Abraham’s reply. There seems to be an apparent expectation for Abraham to step in and say something about the situation unfolding with Sodom.
Q: What do you think the story could be saying about the practicality of our trust in God’s character, our honesty, and our boldness, in the face of matters of justice?
Engage: Engage with the idea of Sodom and Gomorrah being outrageous caricatures of evil people, an example of the type of situation where God’s grace has been actively fought and pushed back against over time, rather than a city destined for fire and brimstone because of an easily angered God. Consider the following quote,
“Sodom and Gomorrah are intended—throughout scripture—to be an image, a caricature almost, of the worst of humanity.
Like these aren't real people. They’re comic book villains, scaled up images of our failures, intended to warn us about what our worst impulses can do to us if we let them. And for me, that does nothing to diminish the seriousness of the story. Actually, it honestly makes it more grim.

Because if this tale was just about a few bad people who did a bad thing and met a bad end, then I could probably pat myself on the back, point the story at someone else, and move on with my day.
Which honestly, is what a lot of us have been taught to do with wild stories like this. I mean what else do you do with a story of fire and brimstone falling on a city of absolute hooligans.
But the truth is, this tale is actually about how desperately hard it is to remove yourself from God’s grace.”
Q: What are your thoughts on this quote?
Q: How does the idea that it’s hard to escape God’s grace speak to your fears or assumptions about divine judgment?
Take away: What is your takeaway from the message or today’s conversation?
Prayer from the sermon:
God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob,
as we open these ancient stories once again,
we ask that You would open us.
Open our hearts to trust Your goodness,
our minds to wisdom that is larger than we expect.
Open our imaginations to the possibility
that You are always more gracious, more patient, more faithful
than we expect.
As we read hard stories
and sit with complicated texts,
give us the courage to tell the truth about ourselves—our frailty, our fear,
And our longing for things to be made right.
give us the grace to see
that You are already at work within us,
calling us toward new steps,
In the strong name of the risen christ we pray,
amen.
CALL TO WORSHIP Psalm 91
MUSIC Curated by Kevin B.
Brooke Ligertwood - Banner
CityAlight - Yet Not I But Through Christ In Me
Worship Circle - Lord You Have My Heart
Commons Worship - Restore My Soul

EUCHARIST INVITATION
Written by Bobbi Salkeld
Today we celebrate the Eucharist together.
At the table of Jesus, we gather with our individual bodies – these mortal temples of the Holy Spirit. And together, we form the eternal body of Christ.
The invitation I point you toward in the sacrament is this: no matter what your body is going through – anxiety, illness, restlessness, fatigue, ache, or longing –
These spaces in our vulnerable bodies are also places of divine encounter.
And so today, as you come forward together to receive the elements of bread for the body and grape for the wine, eat to trust that this ritual imprints faith into our lives.
That is faith in your body where you need it,
And faith in our shared life as we gather.
God gathers us in.

This is the story of Jesus’ meal with friends.
On the night Jesus was betrayed,
He took bread, blessed it, broke it, and said,
This is my body – a body given for your healing and wholeness.
Eat to remember.
In the same way,
Jesus took the cup, blessed it, poured it out, and said,
This cup is filled with my life – and it is poured out for many.
Drink to reconcile.

As Jesus said a prayer before sharing, let us do that too.:
Creator God, present at this meal,
the bread that we break and the cup that we share
are places where our Saviour meets us.
Broken, we are being made whole.
Poured out, we are filled with joy once again.
Holy Spirit, bless these elements of community.
Amen.

SERIES BUMPER
Big Promises Small Steps