Maybe America is not Sodom

Photo by frank mckenna on Unsplash The statement that America is or has become Sodom does not sit very well with me, especially when coming from other nations. That’s because the statement is partially true. If we look at one side of the spectrum only, then we can agree that Sodom is America, but when we…

Photo by frank mckenna on Unsplash

The statement that America is or has become Sodom does not sit very well with me, especially when coming from other nations. That’s because the statement is partially true. If we look at one side of the spectrum only, then we can agree that Sodom is America, but when we consider the other side, America is no Sodom.

The most famous quote on this subject comes from Billy Graham’s wife (Ruth) and goes thus:

If God doesn’t punish America, He’ll have to apologize to Sodom and Gomorrah.

The central idea of the quote above is that America has committed much more sins than Sodom. The sins of Sodom are listed here below:

Behold, this was the guilt of your sister Sodom: she and her daughters had pride, excess of food, and prosperous ease, but did not aid the poor and needy. 50 They were haughty and did an abomination before me. So I removed them, when I saw it. — Ezekiel 16:49–50

Are these sins present in America today? sure! Is it worse than Sodom? maybe! Then America must be Sodom. No! Why? Because Sodom isn’t Sodom for the presence of sin only, but also for the absence of good. Remember when Abraham was interceding for the city, he said this:

“Will you indeed sweep away the righteous with the wicked? Suppose there are fifty righteous within the city. Will you then sweep away the place and not spare it for the fifty righteous who are in it? Far be it from you to do such a thing, to put the righteous to death with the wicked, so that the righteous fare as the wicked! Far be that from you! Shall not the Judge of all the earth do what is just?” — Genesis 18:23–25

Eventually God destroyed Sodom, which shows there were not even ten righteous people there. This means Sodom degenerated so much that the entire country was corrupt.

The idea that Africa is “Jerusalem” and America is Sodom is very shallow and laughable to me. Here are my reasons:

1. Sodom did not have this quality of teachers

The few new biblical churches we have in Nigeria and indeed Africa, has been from the faithful churches, ministries and seminaries of men like these. I doubt if Sodom had faithful preachers like these men.

When I was living in Dubai, I met a former RCCG brother, who shared with me that his eyes opened to the truth of God’s Word right there as he sat listening to expository preaching of the American pastor.

2. Sodom did not have biblical churches in all its cities

Sadly, it is easier to find gold on the street of Wuse II than to find biblical churches in each state in Nigeria, even in the South. When I was living in Ibadan, I suffered for lack of a biblical church to attend. And Ibadan is the third-largest city by population in Nigeria and the largest city in West Africa by land mass. Whereas in Sodomic America, you can literally move from New York to Texas and you’re 100% certain you will find churches faithfully preaching the gospel. Just check 9Marks directory and you’re good.

3. Sodom did not have solid theological seminaries like we have in US, UK

The few biblical churches we have in Nigeria have their pastors attend one or more seminaries or programs in Sodomic US or Europe. Why would people leave “Jerusalem” to receive biblical knowledge in Sodom? There is only one explanation, its no Sodom.

4. In Sodom, Trump would never even contest

Trump, who is unapologetically anti-LGBTQ and anti-abortion, is receiving massive support in his re-election campaign. In fact, he was nearly assassinated few days ago. Here is Trump publicly acknowledging the supremacy of Jesus —

Now whether he truly believes in Jesus or not, is another discussion. My point is, here is an open acknowledgement that would be rare in biblical Sodom.

5. In Sodom, there was no “battle” of good & evil

America’s constant battle against evil is a testament that it isn’t Sodom.

Talking about abortion, Roe v. Wade was effectively overturned by the U.S. Supreme Court on June 24, 2022, in the case of Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization. This ruling ended the nearly 50-year precedent that had established a constitutional right to abortion, returning the authority to regulate abortion laws to individual states.

Aljazeera reported on June 28, 2024 that Louisiana State passed a law requiring all state-funded schools to display the Ten Commandments, prompting lawsuits. I quote:

In Louisiana, a new law mandates that the 10 Commandments be displayed in all public school classrooms, and Oklahoma’s top education official has ordered that the Bible — including the 10 Commandments — be taught starting in the 5th grade. — URL

Does Sodom display the 10 commandments in every public school classrooms? Does Sodom overturn abortion laws? You know the answer.

Wrapping Up

Okay, I get it, America is not Sodom, now what’s your point?

My point is to correct the shallow thinking and to give thanks to God for the work He is doing in America and I pray for more faithful preaching in America and in Nigeria.

Hmmn, is this your pre-japa thesis?

No, but well, if God says I should japa, who am I… 🙂

What about the obvious evil in America today? For example, people are withdrawing their children from public schools?

The Devil is obviously doing a lot of work over there and of course everywhere. The increase in the number of homeschooling parents shows many people still care about moral/godly values. Also, the Louisiana news above is also quite a victory. Doug Wilson once said you don’t train your children to be brave like lions and then pray for no battles. They have to fight and they are fighting it. We can only pray for them.

Final thoughts?

Let me clarify here that I am not trying to make light of the open and terrible sins of America. I pray America repents and turn to God. I am here to say God has done great things in America.


Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *