FINAL
PLANS (GEN. 27)
1) According to the scripture reading Isaac was an old man.
2) He believed that he was close to death.
3) Before his death he said that he wanted to bless Esau.
4) This blessing was really the transfer of some family assets.
5) Notice what the 37th verse of Gen. 27 says, READ.
6) In our day and time an event similar to Gen. 37 occurs.
7) Before death arrangements are made concerning our estate.
8) Americans are often encouraged to draw up a will or some other type of legal document.
9) Some companies even advertise a do it yourself will kit for under $20.
10) Having a will helps dispose of what we have after our death.
11) Throughout time different means have been used to dispense personal assets.
12) In Gen. 27
the family property was divided up before Isaac died.
A hundred years ago things were done a little differently than now.
13) This past week I looked at some wills from the 1800’s.
14) Here is a how a typical will started off in the 1860’s:
15) “In the
name of God amen, I Thompson Enochs being weak in
body but of sound mind do
make and publish this
my last will and testament. Item
1: I will my soul to God and my body
to the dust out of which it was
taken.”
16) Few today would start off their will with, “In the name of God.”
17) Can we name any living person who has in their will, “I will my soul to God and my body…”?
18) Using these expressions would suggest to some that we do not have a sound mind.
19) Throughout time some things have changed regarding inheritances.
20) However, there are also some things that have not changed.
21) All die, Heb. 9:27.
22) When we leave this world we will leave behind some things.
23) It may be a little junk or it may be a lot of wealth…all leave something.
24) Even Jesus, as poor as He was, left behind clothing that soldiers gambled for.
25) The wise man Solomon gave some thought to death & inheritances.
26) Hear what he had to say in Eccl. 2:4-9; 18-19
27) When we die we leave behind all of our material goods.
28) Most if not all in this room are familiar w/ the principle of good stewardship in 1 Cor. 4:2.
29) It’s possible to be a good steward throughout our physical life.
30) That is, we use what we have in a good and wise way.
31) Yet, at the end of life we instantly become a bad steward.
32) We err in our stewardship if we fail to consider what will happen after we die.
33) As we look at Isaac we find that he had a plan for his family assets after his death.
34) Before he died he made plans for the wealth that he had accumulated.
35) We find that Solomon had thought about this same issue.
36) We too should plan for the disposal of our assets when we die.
37) The Bible teaches that this is the right thing to do.
38) Another instance of someone planning for death is found in Isa. 38.
39) This passage tells about a king named Hezekiah.
40) King Hezekiah got very sick. He was so sick that the prophet came to see him.
41) Here is what Isaiah had to say – Isa. 38:1.
42) Set thy house in order was the message that came from God.
43) Why was this to be done? The king was going to die.
44) We set our house in order at different times.
45) If we are preparing to do our income taxes, we set our records in order.
46) If we take an extended trip, we set our house in order before we go.
47) We take care of our obligations before we leave on the trip.
48) The Bible says that before we take the trip called death we need to set our house in order.
49) This principle of setting ones house in order is not limited to the Old Testament.
50) In 2 Tim. 4:6 Paul said, “the time of my departure is come.”
51) Had Paul put his house in order? Verse 7 implies that he had. Paul added,
52) “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the course, I have kept the faith.”
53) Paul was ready to leave this life.
54) As a good steward he had made whatever arrangements needed to be made.
55) Even the life of the Lord reflects this principle.
56) The Lord was on the cross. His mother was nearby.
57) Do we remember what the Lord said?
58) The Lord, most believe, spoke to John – Jn. 19:27.
59) The Lord entrusted the care of His mother to a disciple (presumably John).
60) Before Jesus died He made sure that His house was in order.
61) This same
principle needs to be applied in our lives.
62) SOMEONE
MAY ASK, HOW CAN THIS BE DONE?
63) Let’s take a second look at Isaac.
64) This second look comes from the next chapter (Gen. 28:1).
65) Before Isaac died he expressed concern over the well being of his children.
66) If we are a Christian, and we are trying to set our house in order before we depart,
67) Some consideration needs to be given to our children.
68) This is especially true if our children are under the legal age of adulthood.
69) What happens if we have children under the age of 18 and we die?
70) Who will care for our children? Who will raise our children?
71) Some use great care to specify who will get what family heirloom or bank account,
72) But the care and welfare of the children is of limited importance.
73) Isaac had a deep concern over the welfare of his boys.
74) He expressed this care before he died. Christians should do the same thing.
75) If we have a will drawn up, we can direct the attorney to insert certain provisions into it.
76) We can request that the guardians we select raise our children in the church built….
77) We can specify that we want our children brought to Bible class & worship on Sun. & Wed.
78) We can request that they worship in an environment which is as the NT describes.
79) We can go one step further.
a) About 15 years ago Teresa and I had wills drawn up by an attorney.
b) We had some of the provisions I just mentioned inserted into these wills.
c) We then gave a copy of the wills to the selected guardians.
d) The guardians knew the religious terms of the will in advance.
e) Were Teresa and I to die before we fulfilled our parental obligations,
f) The selected guardians had a clear understanding of their obligation.
80) We need to plan for the day that we will leave this earth.
81) If we have underage children, and there is the slightest question about their religious
82) Training in our absence, we can be like Isaac.
83) We can
address this matter while God still gives us life.
Not only can we instruct the
guardians about our wishes,
a) We can take the time to personally teach our children about NT Christianity.
b) If our children are young, 3, 5, perhaps 7 or 8 years old, teach them.
c) Let them know the truth of the gospel as soon as they can understand it.
d) It might be a while before they are old enough to obey the Lord; that’s okay.
e) We never know when the time for our departure will come.
f) If it is earlier than expected, and all will one day be sentenced to heaven or hell,
g) What parent wants to leave life with children who have not been correctly taught?
84) IN ADDITION TO MAKING ARRANGEMENTS FOR THE WELL BEING OF HIS CHILDREN ISAAC ALSO MADE SOME ARRANGEMENTS CONCERNING HIS PROPERTY.
85) This is one of the things that we can do as well.
86) When we die we all leave something behind.
87) There is no sin in leaving an inheritance to family members.
88) Some appreciate organizations like Hospice and include these groups in a will.
89) No Bible passage specifies how we are to pass along assets when we die.
90) This is entirely up to us. Because we have choices…
91) A will can
also be used to direct assets to the
a) Think for a moment about some of the great characters in the Bible.
b) Paul lived an interesting and full life.
c) Did the good from his life end with his death? No.
d) Paul’s example and works are still producing good things.
e) Good is still coming from the lives of Noah, Jesus, Peter, and many others.
f) The same can be true for each of us.
g) We can do much good in life and even after our death good can continue.
h) Is this not a worthwhile goal for every Christian?
i) If we have the choice of dying and our influence for good ending,
ii)Or dying and our influence continuing for years like Jesus, Paul and Noah,
iii) Which choice is the most desirable?
i) Heb. 11:4 says that even though Abel is dead he continues to speak.
j) This man has been dead for a long time.
k) He is gone but his influence lives on.
l) Even though we die we can continue to contribute to the cause of Christ.
m) Perhaps the best illustration I have ever seen of this came from a preacher.
i) A man bought a lot of life insurance.
ii)Let’s say for the sake of this illustration that the life ins. was a million dollars.
iii) This man selected 20 places in the church that w/ receive $100,000 each.
iv) A few of these places were schools of preaching.
v) This man, even though he is deceased, is training men to be preachers.
vi)
vii) Though this man is gone, there is a sense in which he is preaching the gospel.
viii) Congregations that actively promoted the gospel were selected.
ix) This man has been dead for a few years but what he left behind….
x) Is just like Heb. 11:4. Though dead this man continues to contribute to the cause.
92) Christians have left homes to congregations. Some have donated land in their will.
93) Others have left a library of religious books to help Christians grow and learn more.
94) Doing these things is not necessary to be a faithful Christian or go to heaven.
95) I am not asking anyone here to leave something to this congregation or anywhere else.
96) I am simply noting that:
(1) All die, (2) The possessions we have go somewhere (Eccl. 2), (3) We can leave behind possessions that will continue to benefit the cause of Christ, (4) The Bible tells us to have our house in order.
97) Many do not want to plan for death.
98) In the younger years death seems like it is far away.
99) Others dread death and do not want to think about it.
100) The Bible talks about this subject.
101) As Americans we live in one of the most prosperous nations that has ever existed.
102) Each one of us will leave behind some type of inheritance.
103) We even have the option of buying life insurance and making the beneficiary a mission work.
104) So many times this life insurance is cheap.
105) An average $100,000 policy can cost under $10 a month.
106) What if a thousand Christians spent under $10 a month on a $100,000 life ins. policy
107) And these policies were specifically designated for missions?
108) We would have more money for missions than missionaries.
109) CONCLUSION:
110) Many of the great characters in the Bible planned for death.
111) We can too. It’s not too late.
112) Though die we can continue to exert a powerful influence for good.
113) Let’s consider making this one of our goals if we are a Christian.
114) If we are not a Christian, are we considering this way of life?