Discussion Jumpstarter
Study leader reference - not a definitive answer
Question 3
The interview lists five “modern” explanations for why Lot is called righteous (late repentance, lower expectations, God/Peter “forgetting” Sodom, and especially “imputed righteousness”); which of these explanations have you personally leaned on, and what does Glenn’s rejection of them expose about modern evangelical instincts regarding grace, obedience, and moral evaluation?
Another way to ask: Which “modern” reason for calling Lot righteous have you tended to use (late repentance, low standards, forgetting Sodom, imputed righteousness, etc.)? If Glenn rejects these, what does that reveal about how many evangelicals think about grace, obedience, and judging someone’s life?
Discussion Jumpstarter
Direct Answer
The transcript doesn’t tell us which explanation any listener has personally leaned on, but Glenn’s rejection of all five suggests he thinks modern readers instinctively protect Peter’s label (“righteous”) while still assuming Lot’s life was basically unrighteous—especially by appealing to “imputed righteousness” instead of treating righteousness as visible obedience.
- Glenn lists “five different points” as “pretty modern views,” including: “Lot must have repented later,” “God’s expectations were lower,” “Peter forgot about Lot’s time in Sodom,” and “God forgets our sins.”
- He says the most common is that “Lot was not righteous in his actions, but… imputed righteous,” tied to “the Reformation with Luther’s teaching on imputed righteousness.”
- Glenn calls these “in error and unnecessary,” implying the plain reading can stand without special pleading.
- He pushes back on “lower expectations” by noting Lot “knew certain things are wrong… like homosexuality… and he stood up against that in the city.”
- He stresses Peter is speaking about “righteous Lot in Sodom,” not after Sodom.