Settle all your accounts
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Genesis 19:1 - 13
Genesis 19:1 - 13
Introduction: As we begin
This morning
Allow me
To show you
a picture
Of a dandelion
Now…
We know what
A dandelion is
And
I want you
to imagine
a strong gust
of wind
blowing through it,
sending dozens
of delicate seeds
floating into the air.
but
a moment before,
the flower
was perfectly
intact;
yet
a moment later,
it is gone,
scattered,
and out of sight.
and that
is exactly how
the Apostle James
describes
our lives:
it is
a mist
that appears
for a little while
and then
vanishes away.
And the point is…
Our time
on earth …
is not measured
in years,
but in quick,
fleeting moments.
so…
Because we don’t know
when
the wind will blow,
we must
focus our lives …
On The accounts…
We have with others.
And with that
in mind
Let’s read our text
For this morning
In Genesis 19
The Bible says
In Genesis 19:1–13 “And there came two angels to Sodom at even; and Lot sat in the gate of Sodom: and Lot seeing them rose up to meet them; and he bowed himself with his face toward the ground; And he said, Behold now, my lords, turn in, I pray you, into your servant’s house, and tarry all night, and wash your feet, and ye shall rise up early, and go on your ways. And they said, Nay; but we will abide in the street all night. And he pressed upon them greatly; and they turned in unto him, and entered into his house; and he made them a feast, and did bake unleavened bread, and they did eat. But before they lay down, the men of the city, even the men of Sodom, compassed the house round, both old and young, all the people from every quarter: And they called unto Lot, and said unto him, Where are the men which came in to thee this night? bring them out unto us, that we may know them. And Lot went out at the door unto them, and shut the door after him, And said, I pray you, brethren, do not so wickedly. Behold now, I have two daughters which have not known man; let me, I pray you, bring them out unto you, and do ye to them as is good in your eyes: only unto these men do nothing; for therefore came they under the shadow of my roof. And they said, Stand back. And they said again, This one fellow came in to sojourn, and he will needs be a judge: now will we deal worse with thee, than with them. And they pressed sore upon the man, even Lot, and came near to break the door. But the men put forth their hand, and pulled Lot into the house to them, and shut to the door. And they smote the men that were at the door of the house with blindness, both small and great: so that they wearied themselves to find the door. And the men said unto Lot, Hast thou here any besides? son in law, and thy sons, and thy daughters, and whatsoever thou hast in the city, bring them out of this place: For we will destroy this place, because the cry of them is waxen great before the face of the Lord; and the Lord hath sent us to destroy it.”
Let’s go to the Lord
In a word of prayer
(Pray)
I. The context
Declaration
Now then
The text
That we read
Just a few moments ago
Is one
Of the most terrifying texts
In all of the Word of God.
And you’ll notice…
I did call it
a story.
It is in fact
True!
And
As I thought about
That fateful day
That took place
So long ago.
I wondered
What must’ve been
going through
Lots mind...
As those terrible events
Transpired.
The threat
Of the destruction
Of Lots town.
Where again
We are told
In verses 12 – 13
That
(Genesis 19:12–13 “ the men said unto Lot, Hast thou here any besides? son in law, and thy sons, and thy daughters, and whatsoever thou hast in the city, bring them out of this place: For we will destroy this place, because the cry of them is waxen great before the face of the Lord; and the Lord hath sent us to destroy it.”
And as Lot
Heard
Those shocking words…
That the place
Where he made his home…
The place
Where he did his business.
The place
Where some of his daughters
Had gotten husbands.
Those
Angels sent from God
Told him…
We are about
To destroy this place.
And I just wonder
What Lot was thinking...
When he heard those words?
I just wonder
If he had
Any regrets.
I
Just wonder
If Lot
Had
Any unsettled accounts
In his life
With the people
That he had known.
And my guess is…
He did.
And
I wonder
What Surely
Must’ve been going through his mind
When the events
Of verse 23
Began to unfold.
Read it with me.
It says
(Genesis 19:23–26 “The sun was risen upon the earth when Lot entered into Zoar. Then the Lord rained upon Sodom and upon Gomorrah brimstone and fire from the Lord out of heaven; And he overthrew those cities, and all the plain, and all the inhabitants of the cities, and that which grew upon the ground. But his wife looked back from behind him, and she became a pillar of salt.”
As
All of that
Began to take place.
I wonder
if Lot
Had any regrets…
Had
Any unsettled accounts…
As those things....
Began to take place.
But
Be that as it may.
Let me
Share
A little context
If I may.
Lot
Was Abraham’s nephew.
And if you recall…
When
Abraham
left Ur
Of the Chaldees…
Some 24 years prior.
Lot
Was a young man…
Probably
In his 20s.
And
For the next 24 years
Abraham and Lot
Would have
Somewhat
Of a shaky relationship.
Because remember
At one time
They were dwelling together…
As they sojourned…
In the land of Canaan.
They
Both
Had been prosperous
In terms of livestock
Sheep and cattle.
And as a result
both had done well…
Financially speaking.
and the time came
In
Chapter 13
That
Because both men
had grown immensely wealthy
in livestock...
there was not enough
grazing land
to support them both
in the same area.
so
This resource scarcity
led to Conflict
In the home.
It led
to disputes
between their respective herdsmen.
And by the way…
Conflict in the home
It is not unusual.
so
To prevent further quarreling,
Abraham
demonstrated
Great humility…
And the desire
To be a peacemaker…
by allowing his nephew
to choose
where
he wanted to settle first.
And there is a lesson
Here
For all of us today.
That as believers…
We ought to endeavor
To be peacemakers!
To be willing
To take
Lesser opportunities
To make peace
Between us
And our loved ones.
But Abraham did.
And when he gave his nephew Lot
The option
Of making the first choice…
Well
The Bible tells us
That
Lot chose
the well-watered plains
of the Jordan Valley.
and pitched his tents
near Sodom,...
while Abraham
remained in the land
of Canaan.
And
Let me say
that Sodom …
was indeed
a highly prosperous Place.
Because again
It was located
in the well-watered
Jordan Valley.
which
was compared
to the Garden of Eden.
And Its wealth
was driven
by abundant agricultural resources
and trade.
And apparently…
Lot chose this place
With one thing in mind.
More wealth!!
All
He seemed to want
Was more!
And let me say
That
That is not the way
Those that are righteous
Ought to think.
And by the way
Lot
Was
a righteous man.
In fact
The Bible says
In 2 Peter 2: 7 – 8
It says that God
(2 Peter 2:7–8 “ delivered just Lot, vexed with the filthy conversation of the wicked: (For that righteous man dwelling among them, in seeing and hearing, vexed his righteous soul from day to day with their unlawful deeds;)”
So the truth is…
Lot…
Was a believer.
At a certain time…
the
Day came
When Lot believed God.
And his belief
Was counted for righteousness.
And I do hope
You have believed
As well.
I hope
The day has come
When
You placed your faith and trust
In Jesus Christ.
And He has saves your soul.
And if you haven’t…
I hope you will…
Before you leave your today.
But apparently
Lot had.
But
After some time...
Had elapsed
Lot
Just wanted more.
So the Bible says
(Genesis 13:10–11 “And Lot lifted up his eyes, and beheld all the plain of Jordan, that it was well watered every where, before the Lord destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah, even as the garden of the Lord, like the land of Egypt, as thou comest unto Zoar. Then Lot chose him all the plain of Jordan; and Lot journeyed east: and they separated themselves the one from the other.”
And thusly
Lot Made this home
In Sodom.
He
Became an influential man
in Sodom.
He raised his children
In the land of Sodom.
He became very successful
in business
In Sodom.
And for 20 years
He remained there.
Discussion
Till
Finally
those two angels
As we have previously read
But those two angels…
who previously
had visited Abraham...
they arrived in Sodom .
and …
When they did…
Lot
In typical Eastern fashion
Offered them hospitality
as a civic leader
at the city gate.
But as we read
A few moments ago…
We recall
That
The
situation
quickly turned hostile …
when a violent mob of Sodomite men
surrounds Lot's house.
Because see
Not only was Sodom
A very wealthy place
To call home.
Oh
But it was likewise
A very wicked place
To have to call home.
In fact
Listen again
To verse 13.
The Bible says
( Genesis 13:13 “But the men of Sodom were wicked and sinners before the Lord exceedingly.”
So
as Lot
Was entertaining these angels…
These sodomites show up.
demanding
to assault his guests.
So in an attempt
to protect his visitors...
Lot offered the mob
his pure daughters instead.
How shocking !
Oh but
The God whom we serve
The God
who Lot
Had believed in…
Is a merciful God.
Who enabled the angels
to strike
that violent mob blind …
In order to protect Lot
And his children.
And
That’s when
Back in our text
In Genesis 19
We read these words
(Genesis 19:12–13 “And the men said unto Lot, Hast thou here any besides? son in law, and thy sons, and thy daughters, and whatsoever thou hast in the city, bring them out of this place: For we will destroy this place, because the cry of them is waxen great before the face of the Lord; and the Lord hath sent us to destroy it.”
Oh
How very terrifying
Those words
Must have seemed.
And
As Lot Heard them.
I just wonder
What was going through his mind…
At that exact moment.
I wonder
what Lot
Was feeling
In his heart?
Was it
Regret?
Was it remorse?
Was it Holy Spirit conviction?
Or perhaps all three?
But nonetheless…
Because Lot
Was a righteous man…
\ Because he was a man
Who had believed in God…
He
No doubt
Experienced all three.
And unfortunately
Before the day was over.
Lot Lost his opportunity
To Settle some of the accounts
Between himself
And those he loved.
And Those…
With Whom he labored.
Deliberation
In fact
Consider
His precious daughters.
Can you imagine
A man
Who was willing to sacrifice
His children…
In the manner
That is described here?
But yet he did.
But
As you read
The rest of the story.
It seems
that Lot
Never made amends
For that terrible proposition.
He never said…
Daughters…
I am
So sorry
I was willing to trade your purity
For the sake of convenience.
I am so sorry
That I ever suggested
Such a thing.
I’m so sorry
That it even came
into my mind!
Yet
It seems
That he never did.
Because
After the angels
revealed to Lot
that they were sent by God
to destroy the city
on account of its rampant wickedness …
it
Seems that
Lot attempted
to warn his sons-in-law,
but they dismissed him
as joking.
so when morning breaks
and Lot lingers
In not leaving the city...
the angels
physically pulled Lot,
his wife,
and his two daughters
out of the city.
and they are strictly instructed
to flee to the mountains
and never look back.
so
Lot pleaded...
to go to a smaller,
nearby city called Zoar
instead,
and his request was granted.
And then
Once Lot
safely reaches Zoar…
God rained down
Fire and brimstone
on Sodom and Gomorrah,
utterly destroying the cities
and the entire plain.
And as we will see…
In just a little while here…
During their escape, ...
Lot’s wife disobeyed
the angels' warning
and
looked back ,...
at the burning cities.
And by the way
Many Jewish and historical traditions
view her looking back
as a symbol
of her lingering attachment
to her old way of life,
and
she is subsequently
turned
into a pillar of salt.
so
Fearing for his safety
in Zoar,
Lot retreated
to live in a cave
with his two daughters.
Seemed to believe
That…
the rest of the world
had been completely destroyed
and
Not seeing
Any other way
to continue the family line,
the daughters conspired.
To do the unthinkable
But be that as it may
That is the very last mention
of Lot
In the book of Genesis
Lot
Left the scriptural narrative
With unsettled accounts.
He never made things right
With his daughters.
And his relationship
With Them
Only became
Extremely complicated
To say the least.
Consider
Also Lots wife.
20 years earlier...
He took her
To the city of Sodom.
He gave her
The finest things
Materially speaking.
But he withheld from her
The best things
Spiritually speaking!
I mean
Yes it’s true
He took her to a place
Of extreme wealth.
But it was also a place
Of extreme wickedness.
And his dear wife
Got addicted
To the Wealth
And seemed oblivious
The wicked.
She
Became addicted
To the success
The notoriety
The possessions
And all came along with it.
Yet ignored
The sinfulness.
Now....
By the way
There
Is
Nothing wrong
With wealth.
With having money.
Just so long
as money
Doesn’t have you.
Let me
\ Say that again.
There
Is nothing wrong
With having lots of money.
Just so long
As the money…
Doesn’t have you.
And by that…
I mean simply…
Just so long
As
The money…
Or the desire
For money…
Doesn’t control your life.
see
Money
Or wealth
Should only a tool.
It
Is on loan…
To us from God.
And it is to be used
To enable us…
To assist us…
In fulfilling……
The will of God…
For our life.
see
God wants us
To serve him
In some way.
So He gives us resources
To do so.
But the Lord never intended
For us
To become fixated
On the resources.
Rather
He wants us to be founded…
On the Rock!
The Lord Jesus Christ!
but Lots wife
Had become fixated
On all those possessions.
And as he
His daughters
And his wife
Were
Being dragged
Out of Sodom and Gomorrah…
The Bible says
In verse 26
That Lots wife
(Genesis 19:26 " looked back from behind him, and she became a pillar of salt.”
And
As all these things
Were taking place.
The
Destruction
Of his home…
The decimation
Of his wealth.
The devastation
In his city...
Where he was a civic leader.
As all these things…
Were
Taking place around them…
And as he watched
His dear wife
Be turned into a pillar of salt.
I wonder
What was going through his mind.
Lot…
Being a righteous man…
Must
Have had sincere regret….
For ever
Having taken his family
To such a wretched place…
Just for the sake
Of getting rich.
Oh but
He
Never got the opportunity
To make amends
With his wife.
He never got the chance
To say darling…
I’m so sorry
I brought you
to this place.
I’m so sorry
I
Brought my children here…
Some.…
Who died in the fire.
I’m so sorry
I have put you through this.
but no…
Lots wife
Went out
into eternity,
Yet
He
Never
Got the chance
To tell her
He was sorry.
see
He had unsettled accounts
With his family members.
How very sad.
Delegation
Not to mention
With his own sons in law.
In fact
Read verse 12 again
With me if you would.
The Bible says
That those angels
(Genesis 19:12–14 “said unto Lot, Hast thou here any besides? son in law, and thy sons, and thy daughters, and whatsoever thou hast in the city, bring them out of this place: For we will destroy this place, because the cry of them is waxen great before the face of the Lord; and the Lord hath sent us to destroy it. And Lot went out, and spake unto his sons in law, which married his daughters, and said, Up, get you out of this place; for the Lord will destroy this city. But he seemed as one that mocked unto his sons in law.”
see…
Because
Of the way
He lived his life…
Not as one
Who was righteous…
But as one
who was just out to make a buck.
When he went to his sons-in-law
And told them
That the Lord
Will destroy this city...
They
Only thought
He was joking.
That he was kidding.
so those angels
Dragged Lot
His wife
And his daughters
Out of the city…
The unmarried ones.
Yet
Those sons in law’s
And their wives
And perhaps
Their children too..
Remained in Sodom
Till the fire began to fall…
From out of the sky.
And they were burned alive.
What an awful thing
But
Lot never Had the opportunity
Or should I say
He never took the opportunity
To settle his accounts...
With his sons-in-law
Who had married his daughters.
That is…
He never
Pulled them aside
In
The 20 or so years
He lived there.
he never pulled them aside
To tell them
About Jehovah.
He never told them
About the love of God.
Or about
The goodness of God.
And
When they died
Such a violent death…
Lot Lost his opportunity
To settle those accounts.
Oh
What an awful awful thing
That must’ve been.
And
As the smoke of Sodom
Rose in the air
As the memory
Of that awful day
No doubt
Haunted his mind
And because
According to the Bible
He was
a
Righteous man…
Because he was a believer.
He was no doubt riddled…
With regret.
Regret…
Over not settling accounts
With his children
With his grandchildren
With
His Sons-in-law
And his daughter’s
Who married them.
And over the loss…
Of his dear wife.
And I wonder
If
As he sat in that cave
If
He thought to himself…
I just wish I had
One more opportunity
To talk to my loved ones.
I just wish I had
Just one minute
To say I am sorry.
I wish I had…
Just a few moments.
Oh but
The events of that day
Would not allow it.
Because see…
The things that happened…
On that fateful day…
Ushered some…
Ushered in fact…
Most of his family…
Into eternity.
Before
He could ever talk
To his loved ones.
Before he could ever plead
For forgiveness.
Before he could ever settle
Any accounts
That were left undone.
And oh what we regret
He must’ve had!
II. The concepts
Declaration
And
I’ve said all that
To say this.
Like Lots family...
You are heading
Towards eternity.
That’s true
I am headed
Towards eternity.
We are all headed
Towards eternity.
In fact
Pastor James said
In James 4:14 “Whereas ye know not what shall be on the morrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapour, that appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away.”
He was talking to believers.
By the way
When he asked
What is your life?
he then
answered!
It is brief
It
Is only there
For little time
And then it is gone.
But you know…
In This life...
While we are living .....
We have the profound opportunity
To have relationships..
With many people.
For example
We are privileged
To have relationships
With a spouse
With our children
With grandchildren
Grandparents
Parents
And extended family.
And
Isn’t that a blessing?
Isn’t it such
A blessing
To have relationships
With loved ones?
To form those bonds
And to be close
With one another?
It sure is!
And
At the same time too…
We have an opportunity
To have Relationships
In God’s church…
What a blessing!
We can have relationships
With one another
Here at ABC.
We
Can serve together
sit
In the same pew together.
Sing in the choir
Together.
Sit beside each other
In Sunday school classes.
What a blessing it is
To have relationships
With one another!
But
I don’t have to remind you
That relationships
Take work.…
Don’t they?
They take
A lot of work.
And quite frankly
Sometimes in relationships
Things happen
don’t they?
Sometimes…
Offenses occur…
In families.
Sometimes
Feelings are hurt
Mistakes take place
In our relationships.
as
a
Matter of fact…
The Lord Jesus said
“ It is impossible but that offences will come:”
In Luke 17:1
And that was never more true…
Than in the relationships
That we all have
Between each other.
see
Sometimes
Being human…
We are unkind…
To one another.
We say an unkind word.
We commit
An unkind act.
And we Hurt those
That we love.
Have
You ever done that?
I know I have.
And I’m guessing
You have too.
But it is impossible
that offenses
Will come
Jesus said.
Offenses
In our families
and offenses
In our church.
Because sometimes
We are unkind
To each other.
And sometimes
We lie
To each other.
Sometimes
We gossip
About one another.
Sometimes We mistreat
Each other.
Its just going to happen.
It is just part
Of being human.
It’s
A part
of having to deal
With what
the Bible calls
The old man.
In fact
Paul said
in Ephesians 4:22 “That ye put off concerning the former conversation the old man, which is corrupt according to the deceitful lusts;”
The old nature
Discussion
But
When
Those kinds of things happen…
What should we do?
well
We certainly should not
Just ignore them.
We
Shouldn’t
Act as though
They
Didn’t happen
or That
They Weren't a big deal.
No
We should resolve them.
Right?
That’s what the Bible says.
In fact
Keep your place
Here
In Genesis 19
And turn if you would
To the Gospel of Matthew
Matthew 5.
Read with me
Versus 23 – 24
The Bible says
In Matthew 5:23–24 “Therefore if thou bring thy gift to the altar, and there rememberest that thy brother hath ought against thee; Leave there thy gift before the altar, and go thy way; first be reconciled to thy brother, and then come and offer thy gift.”
Now
Do you see the word
ought?
the word ought
There in verse 23
Means to have something
Against you.
Jesus was saying
If you come
before the Lord
Yet
Remember
That your brother in Christ
Has something against you…
Maybe
You’ve been unkind to them.
Maybe
You have gossiped
About them
Or hurt them
in some way
He said
so before you do anything else...
You go to your brother
And make amends…
With him or her.
And the point is…
And I need you to hear this.
But…
You cannot be right
With the Lord
If
You are not right
With your brother.
Let me say that
Again.
And please listen.
You cannot be right
With God…
Unless
You are right
With your fellow man.
That
If you Remember
Or if you become aware
That your brother in Christ
Has something against you…
If you have offended him
In some way…
And you know about it…
Then
Before
You even bring God
An offering
You better get it settled
Between the two of you.
You better strive
To be reconciled
With that brother in Christ
Or with that sister
In Christ.
Or
With that family member.
You better get it settled…
The Lord Jesus Christ said.
And by the way
That is not a request.
That is a command.
It is
An expectation…
That the Lord has…
For those of us…
Who are believers.
And why?
Well…
One reason is
God doesn’t want us
To have
Any unsettled accounts
Between us
And those around us.
He
Doesn’t
Want us
To have any unsettled accounts
Where are spouses
Are concerned.
Where our children
Our concerned.
Where our parents
Are concerned.
Where
Our grandchildren
Or grandparents
Are concerned.
And where our fellow church members
Are concerned.
And therefore
The Lord said
You seek
Reconciliation with them
But
The Lord
Went on to say
In chapter 18
turn there please
Matthew 18
Verses 15 – 17
Jesus
Went on to say…
( Matthew 18:15–17 “Moreover if thy brother shall trespass against thee, go and tell him his fault between thee and him alone: if he shall hear thee, thou hast gained thy brother. But if he will not hear thee, then take with thee one or two more, that in the mouth of two or three witnesses every word may be established. And if he shall neglect to hear them, tell it unto the church: but if he neglect to hear the church, let him be unto thee as an heathen man and a publican.”
So
If someone
Has offended you
You then
Have the responsibility
To go tell them
Their fault.
Tell Then
That they have offended you.
Somebody said
oh Pastor
That Won't do any good
So why bother?
Well
You bother
Because the Lord said so.
see
You can’t determine
What actions
Your offender
May or may not Take.
You can’t determine
How they may respond
But
You can determine
To follow the Lord.
And He said
(Matthew 18:15 “Moreover if thy brother shall trespass against thee, go and tell him his fault between thee and him alone: if he shall hear thee, thou hast gained thy brother.”
see
It is impossible
But that offenses
Will come
So
When they do.
We have an obligation
To confront those
Who offend us.
To seek reconciliation
From those
Who we have offended.
And
Do you know
What reconciliation is?
well
In the Bible
Reconciliation....
is the restoration
of broken relationships
to peace
and harmony.
and
It occurs
on two main fronts:
Number One
restoring humanity’s
fractured relationship
with God,
and Number 2
mending broken relationships
between people.
But
It is restoration
To peace and harmony
Between two people…
That’s God’s will…
For every relationship…
You have.
Whether it is the relationship
Between you
and a spouse..
The
Relationship
Between you and your children
Between you
And your parents
Or your grandchildren
Or your grandparents
Or even those
With whom you worship
Down at the church.
God
wants you
To settle
any accounts
Between you and them…
Whether you have been
The offender…
Or whether they
Have been
the offender!
Deliberation
But
Let me say
That because our life
Is but a vapor…
Because their life
Is but a vapor…
That appears
For a little time
And then vanishes away.
Then
We better Settle today
Any accounts
With our loved ones.
Because today
May be all we have!
See…
I Guarantee you...
Lot
Had
No idea
What was coming
When the fires of Sodom
Were about to come.
He had no idea
His sons in law’s
And his own daughters
Were about to go out
Into eternity.
He
Had no idea
That his wife
Was about to go out
Into eternity.
And when they did…
It was too late…
To settle accounts with them.
It was too late…
To make amends.
It
Was too late
To get things right
Without love ones.
And I don’t know
How long Lot Lived
In that cave…
But this I know…
As a righteous man myself…
And
Because I know…
Lot
Was a righteous man…
Then I’m certain
He must’ve had great regret…
Having never
Settled accounts
With his loved ones…
And those
With whom he had labored.
He
Must’ve been grief stricken
He might've even
carried that grief
To his Grave.
In all probability
He went out into eternity
Grieving
The loss of his family
And his failure
To make things right with them.
To
Just tell them
He was sorry…
And to ask them…
To forgive him…
For bringing them…
To a place like Sodom.
But unfortunately
Lot
Left
All those accounts
un-Attended to
They were unsettled.
Determination
But
Hear me please.
You don’t have too!
You can leave this Place
Today
Well on your way
To settling
All your accounts.
That
Maybe
There is something between you
and Some person
In your family?
Maybe it’s a spouse
A child
Or a parent.
Well
Life is too short.
Why don’t you determine
Today
To make things right with them?
Do whatever it takes
To reconcile
With those in your family
Before it’s too late.
Now
Lot Didn’t
But you can..
So why not determine
This morning ...
To make things right
Between you
And your loved ones?
Between you
And your fellow church member.
Because
Listen please
Life…
Is just too short
And
When it is gone
When you go out
Into eternity
When they do…
That’s it.
Which
Reminds me
of a story
I read
As I was preparing
For this morning.
For months,
Arthur and Clara
had been locked
in a cold,
silent war.
A
harsh,
thoughtless fight
over trivial finances
and forgotten anniversaries
had fractured
into weeks
of sleeping in separate rooms
and exchanging
only
brief,
pragmatic texts.
and
The last thing
Arthur ever said
to Clara
was a frustrated,
"Do whatever you want,"
before
slamming the front door.
But
He always assumed
there would be time
to fix it.
He thought
the weekend
would bring a natural
cooling-off period,
a moment
to sit down,
apologize,
and rebuild.
but
Instead,
Clara
suffered a sudden,
massive aneurysm
while
at work
on a Tuesday afternoon.
and
By the time
Arthur arrived
at the hospital,
she was gone.
AND
In
the wake
of her death,
Arthur was plunged
into a specific,
agonizing type
of mourning.
And his grief
was not just about
missing his wife;
it
was compounded
by deep remorse
and unfinished business.
And as result
He obsessed
over their last words,
replaying the argument
in his head
and
wondering
if she died
knowing how much he loved her.
What a sad story
But
My dear friend
God doesn’t want you…
And your loved one…
Or you…
And Your fellow parishioner…
God doesn’t want you
To be like Arthur
And Clara~
He
Doesn’t want you
And your loved one
Or you
And your fellow parishioner
To be like Lot
And His wife
or his children.
So
He has given you
The blessing
Of reconciliation.
see
This life is brief.
And in this brief life
God gives us opportunities...
To make amends
To
Resolve
Unfinished business
To settle
Our accounts
As we prepare for eternity.
But those opportunities
Will someday
Come to an end.
So
What about you?
And Your accounts?
Have you settled them?
Is there anything
Between you
And your family members?
Anything
at All?
is
There anything
Between you
And your fellow church member?
Anything in all?
Well
What is your life
What is their life
James asked
in James 4:11
Well
It is even a vapor
That appears
For a little time
And then vanishes away
Taking with it
Opportunities
To settle accounts.
So Christian
Do you have
Any unfinished business
With someone you love?
Then
In just a moment
When The piano
begins to play
I want to ask you
to
Come to the altar
And make a commitment
to God
to Settle Those accounts.
Would you do that?
Determination
Maybe
You’re not a believer
Maybe you haven’t personally
Believed in God.
Maybe you have not trusted
in Jesus Christ
As your Savior.
Well if not
When
the Piano
Begins to play.
I want to invite you
to Receive Jesus.
And if you’re not sure how
Then In just a moment
When the music begins to play
Would you walk down this aisle
and let us show you
How to come to Jesus?
If
You’re listening from home
Call us
and Let us help you
Come to Jesus
Conclusion: Let’s close in prayer
