In this sermon, the preacher discusses the story of Abraham and how God revealed his plans to him regarding the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah. The preacher emphasizes that God chose to inform Abraham because he knew that Abraham would command his children and household to follow the ways of the Lord. The preacher highlights the importance of discipline and justice in Abraham's household. God's decision to reveal his plans to Abraham was also influenced by the fact that Abraham would become a great and influential nation, blessing all the nations of the earth. The preacher emphasizes that God's revelation to Abraham allowed him to correct his distorted view of God and understand the situation in Sodom and Gomorrah more accurately.

Now, will you notice, the Lord said, Shall I hide from Abraham that thing which I do? Now, up to this point, the Lord has not revealed to Abraham what he's going to do with Sodom and Gomorrah. He's going to destroy them. Shall he hide from Abraham that thing which I do? And will you notice the reason now God's not going to hide it from Abraham. Verse 18, Seeing that Abraham shall surely become a great and mighty nation, and all the nations of the earth shall be blessed in him. Now, Abraham's going to have a tremendous influence. He's going to influence multitudes of people, and succeeding generations will be influenced by him. And that's true right here today on this radio. We're talking about Abraham. He's influencing all of us, friends. We can't avoid it. Now, God says, I better not hide it from him, because he'll get a wrong impression of me. Verse 19, For I know him, that he will command his children and his household after him, and they shall keep the way of the Lord. This man Abraham, by the way, had discipline in his household to do justice and judgment that the Lord may bring upon Abraham that which he hath spoken of him. Now, he said, I better tell Abraham. And the Lord said, Because the cry of Sodom and Gomorrah is great, and because their sin is very grievous, I'll go down now and see whether they've done altogether according to the cry of it which is come unto me, and if not, I will know. In other words, God is saying now to Abraham, Abraham, I know the situation there, but I'm going down to investigate. And God never does anything hurriedly or hastily, and I'm going to destroy the city. It's a good thing God told Abraham this, because Abraham would have got a wrong impression of God, and that is that God was rather dictatorial than dictative, and that he was one that apparently showed no mercy at all or consideration of those that were his. Abraham would have really had a distorted and warped view of God. And so what happened was that God lets him know now what he's going to do, and Abraham has the time now to turn this over in his mind. And it's a good thing God told him, because he did have a wrong idea of God and of Sodom and Gomorrah. He was wrong about many things, and that's one of the reasons that God is telling us as much as he tells us. A lot of things that he doesn't tell us, but he's told us enough. Though a man be a fool and a wayfaring man, he needn't err therein.