John_13-34: A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another.
Memory Verse:
And Abimelech took sheep, and oxen, and menservant and womanservants, and gave them unto Abraham, and restored him Sarah his wife.
Genesis 20:14
Text:
Genesis 20:1-14
Now Abraham moved on from there into the region of the Negev and lived between Kadesh and Shur. For a while he stayed in Gerar,
2 and there Abraham said of his wife Sarah, “She is my sister.” Then Abimelek king of Gerar sent for Sarah and took her.
3 But God came to Abimelek in a dream one night and said to him, “You are as good as dead because of the woman you have taken; she is a married woman.”
4 Now Abimelek had not gone near her, so he said, “Lord, will you destroy an innocent nation?
5 Did he not say to me, ‘She is my sister,’ and didn’t she also say, ‘He is my brother’? I have done this with a clear conscience and clean hands.”
6 Then God said to him in the dream, “Yes, I know you did this with a clear conscience, and so I have kept you from sinning against me. That is why I did not let you touch her.
7 Now return the man’s wife, for he is a prophet, and he will pray for you and you will live. But if you do not return her, you may be sure that you and all who belong to you will die.”
8 Early the next morning Abimelek summoned all his officials, and when he told them all that had happened, they were very much afraid.
9 Then Abimelek called Abraham in and said, “What have you done to us? How have I wronged you that you have brought such great guilt upon me and my kingdom? You have done things to me that should never be done.”
10 And Abimelek asked Abraham, “What was your reason for doing this?”
11 Abraham replied, “I said to myself, ‘There is surely no fear of God in this place, and they will kill me because of my wife.’
12 Besides, she really is my sister, the daughter of my father though not of my mother; and she became my wife.
13 And when God had me wander from my father’s household, I said to her, ‘This is how you can show your love to me: Everywhere we go, say of me, “He is my brother.”’”
14 Then Abimelek brought sheep and cattle and male and female slaves and gave them to Abraham, and he returned Sarah his wife to him.
Luke 19:7-8
All the people saw this and began to mutter, “He has gone to be the guest of a sinner.”
8 But Zacchaeus stood up and said to the Lord, “Look, Lord! Here and now I give half of my possessions to the poor, and if I have cheated anybody out of anything, I will pay back four times the amount.”
1 Samuel 12:1-5
Samuel said to all Israel, “I have listened to everything you said to me and have set a king over you.
2 Now you have a king as your leader. As for me, I am old and gray, and my sons are here with you. I have been your leader from my youth until this day.
3 Here I stand. Testify against me in the presence of the Lord and his anointed. Whose ox have I taken? Whose donkey have I taken? Whom have I cheated? Whom have I oppressed? From whose hand have I accepted a bribe to make me shut my eyes? If I have done any of these things, I will make it right.”
4 “You have not cheated or oppressed us,” they replied. “You have not taken anything from anyone’s hand.”
5 Samuel said to them, “The Lord is witness against you, and also his anointed is witness this day, that you have not found anything in my hand.”
“He is witness,” they said.
Introduction:
God’s word teaches that restitution is an act of making amend for wrongs done against our fellow men, restoring stolen things to the rightful owners, paying back debts, giving back where one has defrauded, making confessions to the offended, apologizing to those slandered so as to have a conscience void of offence towards God.
Some Of The Acts Of Restitution In The Bible:
1. Abimelech Restored Back Sarah To Abraham.
Genesis 20:14-15
And Abimelech took sheep, and oxen, and menservants, and womenservants, and gave them unto Abraham, and restored him Sarah his wife.
15 And Abimelech said, Behold, my land is before thee: dwell where it pleaseth thee.
2. Zacchaeus To Jesus He Is Ready To Restore Everything He Has Wrongly Taken From Anybody In Fourfold.
Luke 19:8
But Zacchaeus stood up and said to the Lord, “Look, Lord! Here and now I give half of my possessions to the poor, and if I have cheated anybody out of anything, I will pay back four times the amount.”
3. The Lord Spoke To Moses About How To Restitute.
Numbers 5:6-8
“Say to the Israelites: ‘Any man or woman who wrongs another in any way[a] and so is unfaithful to the Lord is guilty
7 and must confess the sin they have committed. They must make full restitution for the wrong they have done, add a fifth of the value to it and give it all to the person they have wronged.
8 But if that person has no close relative to whom restitution can be made for the wrong, the restitution belongs to the Lord and must be given to the priest, along with the ram with which atonement is made for the wrongdoer.
4. Restitution Of Property Was Made To The Shunammite’s Woman And Her Son That Elisha Restored To Life.
2 Kings 8:1-6.
Now Elisha had said to the woman whose son he had restored to life, “Go away with your family and stay for a while wherever you can, because the Lord has decreed a famine in the land that will last seven years.”
2 The woman proceeded to do as the man of God said. She and her family went away and stayed in the land of the Philistines seven years.
3 At the end of the seven years she came back from the land of the Philistines and went to appeal to the king for her house and land.
4 The king was talking to Gehazi, the servant of the man of God, and had said, “Tell me about all the great things Elisha has done.”
5 Just as Gehazi was telling the king how Elisha had restored the dead to life, the woman whose son Elisha had brought back to life came to appeal to the king for her house and land.
Gehazi said, “This is the woman, my lord the king, and this is her son whom Elisha restored to life.”
6 The king asked the woman about it, and she told him.
Then he assigned an official to her case and said to him, “Give back everything that belonged to her, including all the income from her land from the day she left the country until now.”
Why Restitution Is Made?
1. God commands it.
Exodus 22:10-13
“If anyone gives a donkey, an ox, a sheep or any other animal to their neighbor for safekeeping and it dies or is injured or is taken away while no one is looking,
11 the issue between them will be settled by the taking of an oath before the Lord that the neighbor did not lay hands on the other person’s property. The owner is to accept this, and no restitution is required.
12 But if the animal was stolen from the neighbor, restitution must be made to the owner.
13 If it was torn to pieces by a wild animal, the neighbor shall bring in the remains as evidence and shall not be required to pay for the torn animal.
Leviticus 6:1-5
The Lord said to Moses:
2 “If anyone sins and is unfaithful to the Lord by deceiving a neighbor about something entrusted to them or left in their care or about something stolen, or if they cheat their neighbor,
3 or if they find lost property and lie about it, or if they swear falsely about any such sin that people may commit—
4 when they sin in any of these ways and realize their guilt, they must return what they have stolen or taken by extortion, or what was entrusted to them, or the lost property they found,
5 or whatever it was they swore falsely about. They must make restitution in full, add a fifth of the value to it and give it all to the owner on the day they present their guilt offering.
2. It enables us to follow peace with all men.
Romans 14:19
Let us therefore make every effort to do what leads to peace and to mutual edification.
3. To have clear conscience towards God and towards man.
1 Samuel 12:1-5
Samuel said to all Israel, “I have listened to everything you said to me and have set a king over you.
2 Now you have a king as your leader. As for me, I am old and gray, and my sons are here with you. I have been your leader from my youth until this day. 3 Here I stand. Testify against me in the presence of the Lord and his anointed. Whose ox have I taken? Whose donkey have I taken? Whom have I cheated? Whom have I oppressed? From whose hand have I accepted a bribe to make me shut my eyes? If I have done any of these things, I will make it right.”
4 “You have not cheated or oppressed us,” they replied. “You have not taken anything from anyone’s hand.”
5 Samuel said to them, “The Lord is witness against you, and also his anointed is witness this day, that you have not found anything in my hand.”
“He is witness,” they said.
4. It is the evidence of our conversion which shows our readiness to obey the Scripture.
Ezekiel 33:14-16
And if I say to a wicked person, ‘You will surely die,’ but they then turn away from their sin and do what is just and right—
15 if they give back what they took in pledge for a loan, return what they have stolen, follow the decrees that give life, and do no evil—that person will surely live; they will not die.
16 None of the sins that person has committed will be remembered against them. They have done what is just and right; they will surely live.
Luke 19:8-9
But Zacchaeus stood up and said to the Lord, “Look, Lord! Here and now I give half of my possessions to the poor, and if I have cheated anybody out of anything, I will pay back four times the amount.”
9 Jesus said to him, “Today salvation has come to this house, because this man, too, is a son of Abraham.
Benefits Of Restitution:
Once you genuinely restitute, the following benefits from God are yours:
1. Favour from God.
Luke 2:52
And Jesus grew in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and man.
2. Speedy answers to prayers.
Luke 11:9
“So I say to you: Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you.
3. Fearlessness and healing.
Psalm 27:1.
The Lord is my light and my salvation—
Whom shall I fear?
The Lord is the stronghold of my life—
Of whom shall I be afraid?
Psalm 107:20
20 He sent his word, and healed them, and delivered them from their destructions.
4. Anointing for great exploits.
Acts 10:38
How God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Ghost and with power: who went about doing good, and healing all that were oppressed of the devil; for God was with him.
5. Protection.
Psalm 105:15
Saying, Touch not mine anointed, and do my prophets no harm.
6. Heavenly Provision.
Psalm 132:15-16
I will abundantly bless her provision: I will satisfy her poor with bread.
16 I will also clothe her priests with salvation: and her saints shall shout aloud for joy.
Conclusion:
One of the evidences of genuine repentance is restitution. Restitution is not a new doctrine. It has been in practice before the birth of Jesus Christ and He emphasized on it also. Do you have any restitution to make? Pray to God for help and take right steps now and the Holy Spirit will help you.
Prayer Points:
1. Thank God for His word that He sent to you today.
2. Father, help me to amend my ways.
3. Father, please give me the wisdom to restitute my ways.
4. Father, help me to restore all that I have wrongly taken.
5. Pray for the rapid growth of the RCCG spiritually, numerically and materially.
6. Pray for Daddy G O and his family intensely.
7. Any other prayer request.
Thank You Jesus.
Father! In The Mighty Name Of Jesus Christ Your Son! We Cover Your Son Pastor E A Adeboye With The Precious Blood Of Jesus! He Shall Finish Strong, To Your Glory Through Christ Jesus Our Lord And Saviour! Amen!
Father! In The Mighty Name Of Jesus Christ Your Son! We Cover Your son Pastor Yemi Osinbajo With The Precious Blood Of Jesus! He Shall Finish Strong, To Your Glory Through Christ Jesus Our Lord And Saviour! Amen!
Father! In The Mighty Name Of Jesus Christ Your Son! We Cover Your Son Mr Donald Trump With The Precious Blood Of Jesus! He Shall Finish Strong, To Your Glory Through Christ Jesus Our Lord And Saviour! Amen!
Father! In The Mighty Name Of Jesus Christ Your Son! We Cover Your Son Reuven Rivlin With The Precious Blood Of Jesus! He Shall Finish Strong, To Your Glory Through Christ Jesus Our Lord And Saviour! Amen!
May God Bless Israel, Nigeria, And America And Take Care Of Us; May God Make His Face Shine Upon Us, And Be Gracious To Us; May The Lord Lift Up His Countenance Upon Us, And Give Us Peace, In Jesus Christ Name, We Pray! Amen!
May The Grace The Lord Jesus Christ, And The Love Of God, And The Fellowship Of The Holy Spirit Be With You All. Amen!
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