Generational Blessing

(Prov 12:7 TNIV) The wicked are overthrown and are no more, but the house of the righteous stands firm.

I hope you all had a Happy 4th of July weekend. This morning we continue our series. At first glance it's hard to tell what Solomon is getting to in this verse. I initially thought that the message Solomon was teaching was one of 'getting back up again.' I thought he was saying that the righteous are able to fall, but recover (see Prov 24:16), whereas the unrighteous fall and stay down. But after looking at this verse from several translations and after reading what scholars had to say about it, I now see that Solomon was looking at the long haul.

The Good News Bible translation of this verse says, "The wicked meet their downfall and leave no descendants, but the families of the righteous live on." This message is a message about the long legacy of the righteous vs. the short-lived lineage of the unrighteous.

God is a family oriented God. He started with a family in the garden (Adam and Eve), re-started with a family in the desert (Abraham and Sarah), and conquered the kingdom of darkness by solidifying His eternal family through the cross and resurrection (in Christ).

To understand this verse we must take a step back from the way that we normally look at things. God's ways are above our ways and His thoughts are above our thoughts (Is 55:8,9). You and I, as humans, have a propensity to be shortsighted. A year seems like a long time to us, but not to God. The Bible says, "With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day" (Ps 90:4; 2 Peter 3:8).

When God looks at us He sees us and our seed. He sees our children and our children's children. When Jehovah blesses a man He is blessing a lineage. When God makes a change in a man He is changing his entire legacy.

Remember that your life is TOO SHORT and God is TOO POWERFUL for Him to only impact your life: If God blessed you every day of your life, but your legacy died with you, it would STILL be a failure to God. Your life MUST outlive your years!.

That's what Solomon is talking about here. He understood this first-hand. He knew that he was where he was, because of the legacy his father left him. Solomon inherited the Blessing from David. Solomon stepped into the throne, because of the decisions his father made and Solomon knew that his children would be blessed or cursed, because of the decisions he made.

Solomon understood what the Psalmist wrote in the 112th Psalm, saying, "Blessed is the man who fears the LORD... His children will be mighty in the land; the generation of the upright will be blessed. Wealth and riches are in his house, and his righteousness endures forever." And just like the Father releases the Blessing over children, because of the actions of their parents, the opposite is also true. The Bible says that He visits the iniquity of fathers to the third and fourth generation (see Ex 20:5, 34:7; Num 14:18; Deut 5:9).

So what does this mean to you today? Two things:

1. The unrighteous have a lineage that will fail: It may look like the unrighteous are getting ahead right now, but in the long run their actions will catch up with them. If you want to do anything for them, pray for them. Pray that someone in their lineage will change the direction of their family.

2. The righteous have a linage that will remain: Know that the decisions you are making - decisions to pray, to honor God, and to seek His face - are decisions that have a lasting impact. You are making decisions that your grandchildren will benefit from! That's Good News!

Father, I thank You for being a Legacy Minded God. I thank You for leading me to make decisions that will positively impact my lineage. I receive reassurance from Your Word today that no matter what things may look like in the temporal, my family heritage is a heritage of righteousness and the Blessing that is on me will pass on to my children and my children's children. No economic downturn can stop what You want to do in my life and lineage! Thank You Father for a generational blessing! In Jesus' name. Amen!