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The Cry of Sodom prayer campaign

Today is like the last day before the feast of Trumpets. Tomorrow is 7/1 on our calendar, and we have learned to watch for types and shadows at these appointed times.

Recently, the US Supreme Court has ruled that America is Sodom. While many see this only as a bad thing, making America worthy of receiving a destructive fire from heaven, we see hope from the Scriptures as well. The prophet Isaiah gives us hope in Isaiah 1:9. There is hope because there is a preserving remnant here that prevents the destruction of the nation, even as the presence of Lot in Sodom prevented the destruction of Sodom until he was removed from the city (Genesis 19:22).

Removing the Veils

Lot’s name means “veil.” When he left Sodom, the veil was removed and the fire of God came.

We find ourselves in a similar position as Lot. The main difference is that we live in different times, where the fire of God is applied in a New Covenant manner. Whereas the fire in Lot’s time manifested in a destructive way, the fire in our time is the all-consuming fire of God’s presence, designed to burn the flesh and dross, so that we may be set free of that which oppresses us.

In other words, the fiery judgment of God is designed to purify our hearts as individuals and to purify the nation(s) as well. As individuals, we have always had access to this fire of God, but today we stand at the end of the time of the rule of beast nations. The Dominion Mandate has been restored to the saints of the Most High (Daniel 7:22). This gives us greater authority to deal with national and international problems that we had no authority over in past years and centuries.

We are at a time when we may soon expect to see the unveiling (apokolupsis, “revealing, exposing, unveiling”) of the man of sin (2 Thessalonians 2:3, 8), as well as the unveiling of Christ in us, which is the manifestation of the sons of God (Romans 8:19).

These “veils” can also be seen as a way of hiding something. So veils are hindrances or impediments to manifesting that which is hidden. Lot was a hindrance in his day, and so he had to be removed before the angel could do his work (Genesis 19:22). Today, we too are impediments to the destruction of America (and other nations). This time, God does not intend to remove us from the nation, because it is His intent that we should be prevent destruction and (as it were) give God a reason to alter the nature of the fiery judgment. Thus, the fire that is coming is a spiritual fire that cleanses and purifies with mercy.

At the same time, we are to pray that God will remove the impediments that would hinder that divine fire from being poured out upon us. Yes, over the past decades, I have seen such impediments, and they have not been unbelievers. The unbelievers do not have a vote in this. It is the believers who have the right to vote, and many (often without realizing it) work to hinder this outpouring. God’s solution is either to change their hearts or to remove them from the situation. I have observed this in the past, and I see it again in the present.

Sodom’s Appeal to God

Years ago we took note of the story of Sodom and the legal process by which the city was overthrown. There is an important detail in the story that most people have missed. It is found in Genesis 18:20, 21. The angel told Abraham,

²⁰ And the Lord said, “The outcry of Sodom and Gomorrah is indeed great, and their sin is exceedingly grave. ²¹ I will go down now, and see if they have done entirely according to its outcry, which has come to Me; and if not, I will know.

The divine visitation (investigation) was sparked by “the outcry of Sodom and Gomorrah.” It was the people living in those cities who appealed to the divine court, because they were tired of living amidst such legalized immorality. This brought Jesus Christ Himself (the Judge) to investigate the charges personally, along with two other angels. If Christians in America today are making the same type of appeal, they should check first to see if they are part of the veil or part of the problem under the veil. Most of the people of Sodom—who appealed to the divine court—ended up consumed by the fire along with the wicked ones against whom they had lodged their complaint.

The heavenly company first stopped off at Abraham’s house, and Abraham saw “three men” (Genesis 18:2). This was the occasion where they gave Abraham and Sarah the promise of a son who was to be the heir of the (New Covenant) promises (Genesis 18:10). It is significant that the promise of a son would be given on the side trip during the divine investigation. I suspect that our prayer campaign today is also associated in some way with the promise of the manifestation of the sons of God.

After the negotiations with Abraham, “the two angels came to Sodom” (Genesis 19:1). Whereas they had been called “men” earlier, here they are clearly called “angels.” They were angels who took the form of men. It did not take long for the divine investigation to uncover the truth and to reach a verdict. The outcry of Sodom was indeed validated, and the charges were true. So the angel told Lot in Genesis 19:13,

¹³ for we are about to destroy this place, because their outcry has become so great before the Lord that the Lord has sent us to destroy it.

Here again, it was the outcry of the people of Sodom that brought about divine judgment. The accusers and the accused alike were judged. People need to be careful how they appeal to the divine court, because it may be that their petitions are answered. It is doubtful if the accusers in Sodom understood that they would be judged along with the city. If they had known this, they might have relocated to another country.

Our Appeal to God

Now that the Supreme Court has ruled that we are Sodom, we are all citizens of Sodom, whether we like it or not. We do not enjoy living in Sodom, but living here does give us certain rights. We have the right to appeal to the divine court, even as the people of Sodom did in the time of Abraham and Lot.

Yet because it is not the divine plan to make us leave the city (or country), we known that an alternate fire is coming in answer to prayer. We are to pray for the outpouring of the Holy Spirit, that baptism of fire which was foreseen by John the Baptist in Matthew 3:11, 12, who said,

¹¹ As for me, I baptize you with water for repentance, but He who is coming after me is mightier than I, and I am not fit to remove His sandals; He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. ¹² And His winnowing fork is in His hand, and He will thoroughly clear His threshing floor; and He will gather His wheat into the barn, but He will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire.

The baptism of the Holy Spirit goes beyond mere “repentance” that John preached. It is a baptism of fire that is pictured as a harvest of both barley and wheat. The “winnowing fork” suggests barley, which is winnowed (using wind) to remove its chaff. The threshing floor is needed to remove the chaff from the wheat.

In both cases, the chaff is burned in the fire, while the grain is stored in the barn. The fire is “unquenchable,” because it is the fire of God that no man can quench. When used of divine judgment, no man has the strength to put out the fire. Obviously, though, when all the chaff is finally consumed, the fire is then quenched. The idea here is to show that no man can quench the fire before Christ has thoroughly cleared His threshing floor.

Our appeal to the divine court, then, is done with greater knowledge than that which was done by the people of ancient Sodom. They did not have the revelation that we do today. Furthermore, we have the advantage of knowing about the New Covenant and the Holy Spirit. So our appeal is for an outpouring of the baptism of fire to cleanse the nation and remove the chaff in whatever way God sees fit.

In Lot’s time, the “grain” was removed. In our time the “chaff” will be removed.

Isaiah’s prophecy likens Israel to Sodom and Gomorrah (Isaiah 1:10), telling them that God was sick of their sacrifices and feast days. “I have had enough of burnt offerings of rams and the fat of fed cattle” (Isaiah 1:11). Likewise, He says, “I hate your new moon festivals and your appointed feasts, they have become a burden to Me, I am weary of bearing them” (Isaiah 1:14).

So what does God desire and require of us? Isaiah 1:16, 17 gives us the answer:

¹⁶ Wash yourselves, make yourselves clean; remove the evil of your deeds from My sight. Cease to do evil, ¹⁷ learn to do good; seek justice, reprove the ruthless, defend the orphan, plead for the widow.

Israel’s Old Covenant vow failed to produce the righteousness that God required of them. We, on the other hand, live under the New Covenant, wherein God has vowed to change our hearts by the baptism of fire, so that we will indeed do all that He requires. We will do it by nature, not by compulsion. This is what we are praying to experience. It is not about the old Adamic man of sin being forced to do good, but rather it is about the spiritual man within us being unveiled to do what comes natural.