Greetings Flag Branch members and friends and thanks for taking the time to join me, Pastor Jordan, for some Fine Points from Sunday’s service and message “Counting The Righteous”.
Counting the righteous is one of my favorite sermons to preach for several reasons. It speaks to many aspects of faith and worship. In the chapter from which the sermon is taken, we can see the type of relationship that has developed between God and Abraham over the years.
Abraham has not yet received a son from his wife Sarah and it seems like both he and she are now too old to have one together. Yet God arrives to tell them that their time has come and within the year their son will be born. But this was not the only reason God was in the vicinity. For He was on His way to investigate the level of wickedness in Sodom.
After Abraham fed those who were there in God’s stead, God wondered if He should tell Abraham of His plans. Here we see the admiration God had for Abraham because he had risen to become His friend. Another great aspect of this sermon is the dialog and the mystery surrounding the source of its origin.
The dialog feature in many places in the bible gives us a front row seat as to what was said, thought or prayed by and among those found in the text. It is mysterious in how it has been recorded and transmitted to those who wrote it down onto the pages of the sacred text.
Seeing there were no human witness writing and recording what happened and was said in real time and no recording devices to record it, it becomes a matter of faith to trust the content of the text.
Abraham and God’s relationship had evolved to the point that Abraham was able to suggest to God that He should consider if His actions were worthy of the judge of the earth without God taking offense.
Abraham and his nephew Lot had parted ways but not because they no longer cared about each other, but for the sake of peace between their growing households. When God revealed He might destroy Sodom, Abraham remembered his nephew Lot could get caught up in the destruction because he had moved to Sodom.
Again, we see and hear the thoughts of Abraham as he began to reason with God on behalf of his nephew Lot. This intervention proved to be the difference that saved Lot and his family from the destruction that befell Sodom.
But perhaps one of the most important aspects of this sermon is that God did not find ten righteous people in all of Sodom. He did not find ten people who feared and respected God. If He could have found ten, He would have spared the city for their sakes.
God sees the world and each place in the world and those in the world who have faith in Him and fear Him. It is for their sakes I believe God continues to spare the inhabitants of the earth. For the righteous belong to God. And as long as there remain righteous individuals, God will make accommodations in order for them to be saved.
Yet we can plainly see, the number of righteous, the number of people who actively seek to know and obey the will of God, continues to dwindle here among us. The message is designed to allow us to take inventory of ourselves and consider where we would fall in the count of the righteous.
How many will God find if He began counting the righteous among us? Would we count as one of the righteous?
You can hear the complete sermon by clicking the sermon title above. You can also see and listen to our previous Sunday School, Missions and BTU sessions by clicking this link. Be sure to download our mobile app on your phones and mobile devices to get the latest news, updates and shortcuts to all of our ministries, functions and activities.
Click the SS Daily Bible Readings for an excellent devotional and preparation for the upcoming Sunday School study. Don’t forget to leave a comment or question down below. As always, remember to fear God and keep His commandments.
Pastor Jordan
