Bad Start, Good Finish

Communion to the radio and our focus is making Christ is providing worship come check us out at 3485 Oxford Rd. or visit us online review BC.org join us for this week's message by Pastor Albert on shop doesn't matter how you start the race doesn't matter how you start 100 m – if you ask this man right here, the fastest man on the planet. He will tell you that absolutely it matters because back in 2011, he made a false start at the world championships in South Korea and he was disqualified, but if you ask him. He will tell you that he is a poor starter. He knows that he has the propensity to jump the gun or to not react fast enough so what he does is in the first 30 minutes or 30 m is he has his drive phase with where he just drives as hard as he can forward.

He puts his head down and he goes forward as much as he can. Then he goes into his tall phase, which is where he runs as straight as possible, taking his knees up as high as he can go it's time for top speed. This is the time, but he gains speed at 50 m. He will glance to the right to the left of you ever seen him run. That's exactly what he doesn't he wondered why you doing that you just keep running, but he does that and at 60 m, he becomes a beast. He gives his everything the last 15 to 20 m of the race. He is his strongest.

He checks one more time in the final 10 m but at this point he knows no one can catch him. He has won the race the last 10 m is three strides in these and he knows no one can now defeat him that here's the point that I'm trying to drive at and which is this it matters how you start the race. Sometimes people say this doesn't matter how you start it matters how you finish not true.

It matters how you start the race start the race of your life started the race of your marriage. It doesn't matter but know this, start does not ultimately determine how you finish the race.

It matters how you begin, but is not the ultimate thing that determines how you finish, you can still have a good finish, even from a bad start. If you do certain things right along the way. It's not either/or is wonderful if you can have a good start, but even if you don't there are certain things you can do along the way that can help you have a good finish that is the essence of the message. What are those things that you can do even if you didn't have a good start. That would help you having good finish Genesis chapter 50 our final message in this series. If you have your Bibles turn their two verse 22. In a saucepan together for the reading of God's word.

So Joseph dwelt in Egypt. He and his father's household and Joseph lived 110 years. Joseph saw airframes children. That was a son to the third-generation, the children of McKee are the son of Manasseh. His other son were also brought up on Joseph's needs.

And Joseph said to his brethren as he is lying in his deathbed he says to them. I am dying, but God will surely visit you and bring you out of this land to the land which he swore to Abraham, to Isaac and to Jacob that Joseph took an oath from the children of Israel, saying God will surely visit you and you shall remit see promise it shortly. There is no hopelessness here.

You may hope so you shall carry out my bones from here. So Joseph died being 110 years old and then bombed him and he was put in a coffin in Egypt for the past nine weeks we have been walking through this series on the family of Abraham and Sarah from the book of Genesis, we examine their good decisions, bad decisions, consequences of those decisions to later generations in this final message were going to see what helped this family finish well. The family of Abraham finished well do you know the finish well. Do you believe that if you don't believe that look at a mirror, you are the product of their family.

It is through their family.

Jesus Christ came into this world did this family finish. While look at these people look at me, look at all of us. We are children of father Abraham the finished well were going to learn how did they do that there were many negatives in this family and I love the word of God because it doesn't gloss over the faults and the failures of its heroes, but this steelhead a good finish before we look at those positives. Let me ask you a couple questions I want you seriously.

Honestly, before God answer those questions.

Question number one. Do you think that you will finish well.

Do you believe that you will finish well in your marriage. Do you believe that your kids will finish well. Be believe that it's too late. Do you live in regrets is sometimes I have people come to me for counseling couples will come in. One thing that often saves I think got married for the wrong reasons and often remind them once you get married you are the right one. Are you say is it was I gonna do with this message you see when you receive Christ as your Savior. The Holy Spirit comes into your life, and he brings hope that's going to be our final verse in this message. The Holy Spirit of God is a spirit of hope. So if you are in hopelessness wanted two things are happening.

Either you're not saved your say, but you are quenching the Holy Spirit of God. What happens when you get saved. Not only do you receive Jesus as your Savior, your sins are forgiven. Your names are written in the Lamb's book of life. You are a child of God.

At the very instant the Holy Spirit of God. You can see him.

He's a spirit he comes and he takes a residence in your heart and the most important thing that he brings to you is not only the assurance of salvation, but hope that from this point on, nothing is impossible for God.

There is no hope one of two things. Either you're lost, you don't have the Holy Spirit, or you do have him but your quenching him so this look at this message and I hope that the Holy Spirit will just encourage you and give you joy and peace in believing the passage we just read is the final words of the book of Genesis. The picture Joseph lying on his deathbed, giving his final instructions to his children. Maybe his grandchildren are there as well.

And by the way, if you notice twice.

Verse 22 in verse 26. It tells us he was, how old hundred and 10 years old wives that emphasize in the matter of four versus because in Egyptian culture and society and for that matter. In many of the ancient cultures of the time hundred and 10 years was considered to be the ideal age for a person to live Moses I believe is writing this book.

He emphasizes that because it is a picture of a good finish. He laughed to the ripe old age of hundred and 10 he had a good finish Joseph good finish is symbolic of the families good finish. In other words Joseph finishing well is a symbol that Abraham and Sarah and everyone else in between. They all finished well this family did not have it made. Didn't have a perfect life but they had a good finish.

As I mentioned earlier, you are part of that finish. If you are a child of Abraham, through Jesus Christ, you are part of that good finish.

Let's look at this. Five things that happen in this family that tell us how we can also finish well with others individually as a couple with our children. This church family. How can we finish well number one they had a chain breaker for a family to finish. Well, there has to be someone some point in time in your family tree who has to be the one to break the chain doesn't mean the person is perfect doesn't mean the person understand everything there is to understand about the Bible or lives in exemplary life, but they are the one who who chop the chain so you can move out with God, who was the person Abraham Sarah's life. It was not Abraham. It was his father tear of the first message listen to what the Bible says in Genesis chapter 11 verse 31 and Tara took his son Abram and his grandson Lot the son of Haran and his daughter-in-law Sarah, his son Abram's wife and they went out with them from or of the Chaldeans to go to the land of Canaan. I believe God's call came to both Abraham and Tara, but chronologically was Tara who had to break the chain, he had to say. I'm giving up my comfortable life. I'm giving up my ancestral home. I'm giving up my ancestral gods and I am going to move out, but got only problem is, Tara didn't go far enough.

He stopped inherent in after he died, Abraham kept on moving into the promised land, but Tara was still the chain breaker in every family that finishes well if you ever follow their history or good biography or the autobiography there's always that one person. It may be a granddaddy. It may be a grandma who was a prayer warrior. It may be a mother figure father. It may be a couple. It may be an uncle someone there in the past two says, from this day on me and my found house.

We will follow God, somebody has, to break the chain.

Do you know who that person is in your life if you can think of anybody in your life. Guess what, you are the chain breaker in your family is all well families in church that means nothing. Folks to be a family that finishes well there has to be a chain breaker but here's number two, they faced their skeletons in the closet you member the second message Abraham and Sarah had a secret what was their secret everywhere we go. Please tell people that you are my sister so that they won't kill me. This is Abraham talking to his wife Sarah. Was he telling the truth or was he lying on the truth. Why because Tara was not just Abraham's dad.

He was also saying is that sometimes people say, oh man, you know back then these to marry sisters and stop not true in the garden of Eden. But you know how much time has passed from the garden of Eden to Abraham and Sarah 2000 years people to inherit their sisters and it was an art situation, but why were they doing this Abraham and not had a note to her motive. The motive was to protect God's plan that Sarah you may get killed but hey you what I was saying you're my sister may allow you to live and I can move on to find someone else in God's promise can still come. It was a horrible embarrassing lie based on the truth. There was a skeleton in the closet live in Egypt July 25 years later to the King of deer are and how old was Abraham at the time he was hundred years old can imagine 100 year old man still pretending that his wife is a sister in the King, Abimelech, listen to how he talks to Abraham. He says what did you have been viewed that you have done this thing my translation paraphrase.

What's wrong with you again that goes to tell.

As this was not normative to marry brother and sister was not normal that was not right. Plus the fact that you're going around lying about it makes things worse later on.

Even Abraham and Sarah son Isaac did the same thing except his wife was not really his sister. This family did many other embarrassing things. For example, Sarah offered her own maidservant to Abraham so that he can have a child, Hagar post. Sometimes people say this another thing back in those days they would do that kind of stuff not true that's not true. People did not just marry whoever their servant girls or whatever that was not true. Abraham and Sarah, Isaac and Rebekah, Jacob and Rachel never meant to have Leah. It was always supposed to be one woman, one man life.

This was another embarrassing situation where he ends up sleeping with his wife's maiden.

Next thing you know child comes into play another skeleton in the closet doesn't stop there. If you study their story even more.

Jacob ended up with two wives of a Judah sleeps with his own daughter-in-law by mistake can think is approximate. This family had a lot of skeleton was a Telus one thing it tells us is the Bible is the word of God because God could have easily glossed over these embarrassing skeletons, but he didn't do that.

He put them right in the because why there are no perfect families. There is no perfect family. Sometimes he will negative our family was just a little more perfect like their family or this family man. We would be so much better. We would finish well. There are no perfect family many years ago when I first came to this church.

There was this elderly couple who told me we've never had an argument understand all these couples around here. The always fussing and fighting and all we've never had an argument I was like man is always well you you're my hero. You got me want to be like you fears later came out and would like cheating on his wife are light years.

Everybody knew in the community. Not only that, but even she knew it I was a horrible situation but it is all covered but like no one very old and fight no use fighting foods. There are no perfect couples. There is no such thing. Everyone has a skeleton in the closet now.

My suggestion to you is not too blasted over the airwaves and put on social media look this is how dirty your laundry is.

The point is facing accepted receive God's grace in your life and move on.

They faced their skeletons in the closet didn't hide him dealt with number three, the refuse to be coattail hangers.

We met a man by the name of Lord who was not lot was Abraham's nephew Lot attached himself to Abraham everywhere. Abraham went lot went with him. God blessed Abraham lot got some of the blessing Abraham had more livestock lot ended up having more livestock in their herdsmen begin to fight. So Abraham gave lot. The option the land you want, I'll go the other way.

Not if lot was any kind of man he should have said at that moment. Hey listen, honestly, God called you.

I'm just in for the ride. I have hitched my wagon to yours. You pick.

I'll go the other way is all really well. Then I want a beautiful plain of Jordan because it reminds me of Egypt. He was in talking about the fertility of the ground what he was talking about was the culture that he saw in Egypt. How amazing and fun and exciting it was and he said I want that.

The Bible says he pitched his tent close to cities by the name of Sodom and Gomorrah mixing the readers the outcry against the city went up to God.

It was homosexuality in that city was horrible. It came to a point where God himself came down destroyed the city. What did lot lose in the process he lost his daughters who were married, he lost his son-in-law's more than likely to have grandchildren, I think we lost them on the way out.

He also lost his own wife Simon was at work, going to Sodom and Gomorrah. What's worse is God tells them go away. He doesn't goes up in the mountains and his own daughters get them drunk sleep with him in the beginning of the Moabites and the ammonites, who were always in porn in the side of the children of Abraham and Sarah lot was a coattail hanger you mean by culture you hang onto someone else's faith. You don't have a strong faith you can be saved but you hang onto them.

Abraham and Sarah's family was not perfect. I mean they did some horrible thing, but they had a real faith in God is. You know that numbing some bad stuff.

I mean, people of faith. Don't do that.

Listen to the book of Hebrews chapter 11 in verse nine.

Listen carefully is on the screen. By faith he meaning Abraham dwelt in the land of promise as in a foreign country, which means what he didn't want to become the citizen of Sodom and Gomorrah. But don't miss this. It was not just Abraham and Sarah alone, dwelling in tents with who Isaac and Jacob means not only Abraham's family but also Isaac's family and also Jacob's family, the refuse to become citizens of Sodom and Gomorrah, the refuse to be coattail hangers, dwelling in tents with Isaac and Jacob, the heiress with headroom of the same promise for he and I believe and he is not just Abraham. He but also Isaac. He also Jacob. He also Joseph. He did all waited for the city which has foundations, whose builder and maker is God. I want to finish well on my marriage to finish well but I want my four children finish well as well. I wonder children finish well. Some of them may have more biblical knowledge.

Some of them may have more of a propensity to pray, as some of them may be a little more spiritual than others. Listen, I want all of them to have their own fate.

If you were truly honest.

Many of your cannot say that about the children. None of this hurts because some of you, your kids are grown they are no longer under your roof is hard to direct them and control them in get them close to Christ. But whatever you can. I pray that you would do that starting now so they refuse to be coattail hangers. Here's number four they accepted the road of brokenness I preached a message in the series called facing old photos number that Jacob and Esau were brothers. Esau sold his birthright to Jacob. Later on he wanted the blessing that went with it, and Jacob tricked him. God never condemned Jacob, but he tricked Isaac, the father and took the blessing and Esau's final words to Jacob as he was running away as the day of my father's death are near that I will kill you and he meant 20 years have gone. Jacob is not married and has children is time for him to go home, but his old foe is waiting for him. Esau is there and he's afraid the night before he meets him. He praises a God, would you deliver me from the hand of my brother and the next thing that happens is the man comes out of nowhere jumps on him and starts wrestling him to the ground. Who is that man read the rest of it.

He is the pre-incarnate Christ you have a big day ahead of you what you want. The biggest thing you need is a good night sleep right you get up in a good night sleep you get out of a good comfortable bed. The next thing you want is a nice breakfast coffee for people like us who can function God deliver me to send somebody his son to wrestle him to the ground so he has exhausted. Have you ever wrestled with anybody in me in a wrestling team have a couple people in other services we did five climate is a wrestling is a lot we have one here. Imagine wrestling for good 78 hours non-stop Jacob is sleep deprived physically insured because when the time comes for him to let go is that I will not until you bless me and touches his hip socket and it comes off out of joint.

He is physically a George. He is emotionally spent, and he is hobbling along towards his brother. I mean this is not going to be a fair fight was a result listen to Genesis 32 verse 31, just as he crossed to work annual the sun rose on him.

Can you picture this Hollywood moment is the silhouette of this man hunched over, hobbling along, headed to words this warrior this gunslinger on the other side. How did Esau respond. He can take it. He ran over to him hugged and began to cry for gave you know always or not God's ways we think God made me strong. And yes, he will make you strong at times God make me wise, and he will make you wise. God give me the right connections. God give me a job that keeps getting better and better. God give me a home that is just the best place on earth.

Sometimes God will allow weaknesses to come into your life sometimes ill be back pain. Sometimes it will be migraines sometimes ill be relationship struggles sometimes ill be a job loss. Sometimes there will be a pay cut sometimes to be something so random you how in the world did that happen and you will pray just like Paul did three times a guy would you remove this phase. I know I'm in a leave that porn in your flesh, because when you are weak.

Then your strong my graces sufficient for you, for my strength is made perfect in this family accepted the road of brokenness.

Here's the last one, the refuse to lose hope there is that incident where Jacob son Ruben actually slept with his own father's concubine.

There are other incidents that went on in this family that we already looked at Simeon and Levi killing the men of Shechem. Joseph's brothers wanted to kill him and then sold him into slavery. Judah is you know what he did there so many so many incidents this family should not make it there holding all to the promise that God had given to their father Abraham that through you all the families of the earth shall be blessed. You know the whole world, especially believers old and that oh in debt of gratitude are what you want to call them the Hebrews of the people of Israel or the Jewish people because they held onto that hope and we are the beneficiaries. Listen to what Joseph says in this final line I am dying, but God never Jacob, Joseph, was in overcome her, but God will surely visit you. I mean there is a sense of assurance, a sense of confidence and he will bring you out of this land to the land which he swore to Abraham, to Isaac and to Jacob on his deathbed he says hey guys, my times up. But God's time is still all that Joseph took an oath from the children of Israel, saying God will surely visit you and you shall. There is no subjunctive there. There is no you may you wish.

I hope so maybe sorta is that you shall carry up my bones from here to the do that absolutely form. Years later exactly when the time came for the Exodus they made sure they got Joseph's bones and they left Egypt back into the promised land. What Joseph was telling them was that the family is not going to end with him. This is just the beginning. Incredible problems will come see it in German form what he is saying is you will have to leave this land because one day things are gonna get bad for you but you will not be in highlighted you will come a part of this land can hear the hope in his voice. I said in the beginning of the message. The Holy Spirit is the spirit of hope. Listen to what it says in Romans 1513.

I want to really concentrate on this passage now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that you may abound in hope, how, by the power of the Holy Spirit, either. Your lost you don't have the Holy Spirit who brings hope or you're saved and you quenching the Holy Spirit because wherever the Holy Spirit is there is hope, and by the way that hope is more than don't don't give never give in. Hope is much more than that hope is a better tomorrow. Thank you so much for joining us today, Abraham and Sarah's family wasn't perfect but did finish well. We can have the same hope for our families. God is faithful to continue the work that he started in formation checks@onlineclearviewbc.org for the sermons, notes, visit Pastor Shah's blood shot.com