Silas
Beloved of All
Your pain and anger over what has happened to your wife and your family is completely understandable. To watch an inheritance that a father intended for his family be taken through manipulation of a vulnerable mother who was suffering with dementia, and to hear such hard words spoken even as you were grieving a father's death, is a deep wound. It is right that the family has spoken clearly that this was wrong, and it is right to bring this burden to the Lord.
Scripture shows that God cares deeply about inheritance and about justice within families. Under the law He made careful provision to keep an inheritance from being unjustly taken or scattered. If a person had to sell land, there was a way to buy it back, and if he could not, a near kinsman could step in to redeem it so it would stay in the family. The law also said plainly that a prince or anyone with power must not take the people's inheritance by oppression or by forcing them out of what is theirs. What your brother in law has done, using influence over your mother in law in her weakened condition to rewrite a will for his own gain, goes directly against the heart of God for fairness and protection of the family portion. God sees oppression, even when courts or families feel powerless to stop it.
God also showed His concern for a just inheritance when daughters came and said it was not fair that their father's name and portion should be lost simply because there were no sons. The Lord agreed and established that they should receive their father's inheritance, and then provided that they marry within their tribe so the inheritance would remain secure. The point is clear that the Lord is not indifferent to these matters. He listens to those who are overlooked and He establishes what is right.
At the same time, the Bible lifts our eyes to a greater inheritance that can never be stolen. The Levites were given no parcel of land like the other tribes, and the Lord told them, I am your inheritance. They received no fields, yet they received the best portion, because to have the Lord Himself is more than to have property. In Christ, our ultimate inheritance is not a house or an account or an annuity, but the Lord and His promises. Peter calls it an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled and unfading, kept in heaven for us. No one can manipulate or forge a document to take that away.
That does not mean the loss you feel is small. The story of Ruth reminds us that God provided a kinsman redeemer to step in when a family inheritance and name were about to be lost through death and poverty. Boaz willingly took on the responsibility and cost so that what belonged to the family would be restored and the name would live on. That redeemer points us to Jesus, who came to seek and to save what was lost and to restore what sin and selfishness have broken. We have seen Him restore lives, families and hearts that others had written off, and He is still the great Restorer. Whether He restores in this life through lawful means, through a change of heart, or through His own provision, or ultimately in the life to come, we can trust His power to make right what has been taken.
You also mentioned the annuity your father left and the losses it has suffered, and you quoted the precious promise that He who did not spare His own Son but gave Him up for us all, how will He not also with Him graciously give us all things. That verse in Romans is first of all a guarantee of our salvation and of every spiritual blessing we need in Christ, because if God has already given the greatest gift, His Son, we can be sure He will not withhold His care. It is not a promise that every financial investment will recover in this life, but it is a promise that God, who gave His Son, will give us what we truly need and will work all things for our good. We can pray honestly for wisdom with finances and for the Lord's provision, while resting in the assurance that our security is not in the market but in Him.
In a situation like this there is also the temptation to take justice into our own hands. In ancient Israel if a family member was killed, a relative was considered honor bound to pursue the one who did it. God understood that passion for justice, but He also appointed cities of refuge so that vengeance would not run unchecked and so that justice would be handled rightly. The New Testament tells us plainly, vengeance belongs to the Lord, He will repay. That frees you from carrying the weight of revenge. It does not mean you cannot seek wise and lawful counsel about what, if anything, can be done legally to contest a will signed under diminished capacity. It does mean you can leave the final judgment to God and refuse to let bitterness take root.
Moses and Joshua, though they led the whole nation, never used their position to build up wealth or special privilege for their own families. They left no kingly estate for their children. Their example stands in contrast to those who use influence or proximity to the vulnerable for financial gain. God honors integrity and He judges exploitation.
So we will pray with you that God would bring truth to light, that He would soften and convict your brother in law, that He would provide for your mother in law's care, and that He would guard your hearts from resentment. We will ask Him to provide for your family's needs regarding the annuity and other financial pressures, to give you wisdom for every practical decision, and to be your portion and strength each day. May He restore what can be restored, and where earthly restoration is not possible in this life, may you know more deeply that the Lord Himself is your inheritance, and that nothing can separate you from His love in Christ Jesus.
Scripture shows that God cares deeply about inheritance and about justice within families. Under the law He made careful provision to keep an inheritance from being unjustly taken or scattered. If a person had to sell land, there was a way to buy it back, and if he could not, a near kinsman could step in to redeem it so it would stay in the family. The law also said plainly that a prince or anyone with power must not take the people's inheritance by oppression or by forcing them out of what is theirs. What your brother in law has done, using influence over your mother in law in her weakened condition to rewrite a will for his own gain, goes directly against the heart of God for fairness and protection of the family portion. God sees oppression, even when courts or families feel powerless to stop it.
God also showed His concern for a just inheritance when daughters came and said it was not fair that their father's name and portion should be lost simply because there were no sons. The Lord agreed and established that they should receive their father's inheritance, and then provided that they marry within their tribe so the inheritance would remain secure. The point is clear that the Lord is not indifferent to these matters. He listens to those who are overlooked and He establishes what is right.
At the same time, the Bible lifts our eyes to a greater inheritance that can never be stolen. The Levites were given no parcel of land like the other tribes, and the Lord told them, I am your inheritance. They received no fields, yet they received the best portion, because to have the Lord Himself is more than to have property. In Christ, our ultimate inheritance is not a house or an account or an annuity, but the Lord and His promises. Peter calls it an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled and unfading, kept in heaven for us. No one can manipulate or forge a document to take that away.
That does not mean the loss you feel is small. The story of Ruth reminds us that God provided a kinsman redeemer to step in when a family inheritance and name were about to be lost through death and poverty. Boaz willingly took on the responsibility and cost so that what belonged to the family would be restored and the name would live on. That redeemer points us to Jesus, who came to seek and to save what was lost and to restore what sin and selfishness have broken. We have seen Him restore lives, families and hearts that others had written off, and He is still the great Restorer. Whether He restores in this life through lawful means, through a change of heart, or through His own provision, or ultimately in the life to come, we can trust His power to make right what has been taken.
You also mentioned the annuity your father left and the losses it has suffered, and you quoted the precious promise that He who did not spare His own Son but gave Him up for us all, how will He not also with Him graciously give us all things. That verse in Romans is first of all a guarantee of our salvation and of every spiritual blessing we need in Christ, because if God has already given the greatest gift, His Son, we can be sure He will not withhold His care. It is not a promise that every financial investment will recover in this life, but it is a promise that God, who gave His Son, will give us what we truly need and will work all things for our good. We can pray honestly for wisdom with finances and for the Lord's provision, while resting in the assurance that our security is not in the market but in Him.
In a situation like this there is also the temptation to take justice into our own hands. In ancient Israel if a family member was killed, a relative was considered honor bound to pursue the one who did it. God understood that passion for justice, but He also appointed cities of refuge so that vengeance would not run unchecked and so that justice would be handled rightly. The New Testament tells us plainly, vengeance belongs to the Lord, He will repay. That frees you from carrying the weight of revenge. It does not mean you cannot seek wise and lawful counsel about what, if anything, can be done legally to contest a will signed under diminished capacity. It does mean you can leave the final judgment to God and refuse to let bitterness take root.
Moses and Joshua, though they led the whole nation, never used their position to build up wealth or special privilege for their own families. They left no kingly estate for their children. Their example stands in contrast to those who use influence or proximity to the vulnerable for financial gain. God honors integrity and He judges exploitation.
So we will pray with you that God would bring truth to light, that He would soften and convict your brother in law, that He would provide for your mother in law's care, and that He would guard your hearts from resentment. We will ask Him to provide for your family's needs regarding the annuity and other financial pressures, to give you wisdom for every practical decision, and to be your portion and strength each day. May He restore what can be restored, and where earthly restoration is not possible in this life, may you know more deeply that the Lord Himself is your inheritance, and that nothing can separate you from His love in Christ Jesus.
