Genesis 46-48

The opening of Genesis 46 reminds us something deeply instructive about God, He sees the end. He reassures Israel/Jacob that traveling to Egypt will result in his descendants becoming a great nation...yet as we know, they are in store for centuries of slavery. God sees the end, we too often are preoccupied with the journey.

We know too that part of Israel's reluctance was his commitment to the covenant. He believed that God was going to give him and his descendants the land of Canaan. No set of circumstances would chase him away from God's promise, not even famine. In Genesis 26 we see that Isaac was considering fleeing to Egypt because of another famine. Yet God told him to stay, Isaac sows his seed, in spite of the famine, and God supernaturally enables him to yield a hundred fold crop! Our prosperity, our destiny, is not dependent on our circumstances; I like the phrase circumstance transcendent!

What's God's word for you right now? His will is our security!

Pastor Fred

Genesis 40-45

"Two years later." Here is Joseph, in prison, an innocent man, seeing his way out, interpreted a dream for both the butler and the baker and yet butler forgets his promise! At what point would you and I despair, give in to the temptation that we had been forsaken, give up hope on the prophetic dreams of our yesterdays that proclaimed the prosperity of our future? 2 Peter 3:8 reminds us that a day is as a thousand years and thousand years as a day to the Lord. Our despair is not because we have been forgotten by God, impossible, but rather that we have forgotten that time does not drive Him but rather timing.

I love too the names Joseph chose for his two sons. According to the Apologetics Study Bible, Manasseh means "God has made me forget all my hardship in my father's house." And, Ephraim means, "God has made me fruitful in the land of my affliction." May it be that all of us see that our names, whatever they may be, have a strong foundation, be rooted in an unrelenting conviction that "God made..." We are in His grip and no set of circumstances can displace us! If you are in a dark place in your life, whether it be in innocence like Joseph or due to reciprocity like Joseph's brothers, if you genuinely love God, He is working to both Manasseh and Ephraim you!

These chapters for me are also a the basis for reconciling two people who are offended with one another. Usually there is no Joseph in my experience. Both side typically bear some guilt, as well, both side typically can boast some innocence. One can make a great case that Joseph was not completely innocent. We see arrogance and pride in his youth, and the story reveals, these can be costly sins. Think of a time you have been offended by someone, was your heart toward that person, your attitude, your words to them, your words to others about them...were they the perfect mirror of Jesus? If not, we aren't as innocent as we might think. We usually are both Joseph and his brothers mixed together. Since both side are typically this, the mediator must help each person see where they themselves have sinned. Usually, we can't see our own wrong doing because we are too focused on the other's. That is why Jesus talks to us about getting plank out of our own eye before we try to operate on the speck in our brother's eye. This is how reconciliation always takes its first step, each party sees the willingness of the other to take responsibility for their part...that releases grace into the situation, confession and requests for forgiveness become the seeds that soon blossom into restored relationship.

Finally, let us not forget that God brings Israel into Egypt, for one immediate purpose...slavery?

Pastor Fred

Genesis 37-39

So many thoughts today! First, parenting, come on Jacob/Israel, what were you thinking! This idea of reciprocity and providence both moving forward concurrently is so striking in the Jacob narrative. God will not be denied in advancing history for the birth of the Savior, but He does not exempt the chosen instruments of His divine will from reciprocity. Jacob's deep sorrow he suffered in believing his son was dead was reeping the sorrow he had sewn into the lives of his family by having an openly favorite child and filling the balance of his children with years of sorrow growing up in a family where they were emotionally, and possibly financially, neglected.

As parents, we must NEVER create a dynamic where one child feels they have the favor of their parents above their siblings. We must create an environment where we understand the giftings, talents, promising aspects of each and every child and celebrate it! Too, we must create a culture where each child is expected to celebrate the unique giftings of their siblings! Each child should be just as much of an advocate of the success and triumphs of their siblings as they are for themselves. In addition, we know there is the possibility where one child, even younger children's giftings will lend themselves to leading their older siblings. Think about student government or sports captains where siblings play together and younger ones surpass older ones. We must teach our gifted younger ones, and older ones, humility. We must also work to make sure those who gifted to empower the leadership of others are celebrated and affirmed so that they see all callings and giftings are precious in God's economy (1 Corinthians 12)!

Men, we are so very vulnerable to the value system of our secular culture! What are we doing to protect ourselves? Lot's story of what his daughters did and here we have the story of Jacob's sons and their promiscuousness. Men, if we are not aggressively pursuing a Biblical stamp on our sexuality, both our daughters and sons are at risk! Talk to your children about their sexuality. If you are not sure how, there are so many great resources available. We just purchased some books at LifeWay that are written based on age and are planning to talk with each of our children to begin that dialogue. If you don't the world will begin shaping their sexuality and our society will continue to suffer because the Christians are just as vulnerable! This enrages me! Listen to my podcast (www.thecitylifechurch.com) entitled Sophronismos 1 & 2. We aren't expected to be completely perfect as Christians but let's not use that a license to struggle with commission sins that have no place in the life of the devoted follower of Christ! If we do not shape our children's sexuality, we curse them to curiosity. If we don't give them the answers they are desperate to hear from us, they are cursed to follow their curiosity. You show me a man or a women who struggles with sexual issues and I'll show you a child whose parents failed to shape their children's sexuality appropriately and curse their children to being shaped by curiosity and experimentation. Now, as adults, even in the midst of a loving, affectionate, Godly marriage, they struggle because of the foothold curiosity and experimentation gained in them early in life. Pornography, fantasy, even prostitution plays into their appetite for curiosity and experimentation. When will we learn!

It's going to be a great year!!

Pastor Fred

Genesis 34-36

As we continue to read through Genesis, we see the powerful truth being declared through all the genealogies that are recorded, that one generation impacts not just those of their time but many generations that follow. Returning back to our question of Eden in regards to the curse being prescriptive or descriptive, helps us better understand what will come later when God speaks of the sins of the father being visited upon their children and the righteousness of a the father likewise affecting generations to come (see Exodus 20). Ezekiel 18 promises us that God will not punish one generation for the sins of another. Here's an article, give it a read, that speaks to this: Beth Moore.

We see that the sin of deception continues to characterize this family. This is a sobering moment for each of us, or it should be. We must be willing to ask ourselves some pressing questions. What sins are prevalent in our lives, both ones of omission and commission, meaning sins that I actively commit, like angry outbursts, or omission being sin as a result of my inaction, like withholding my generosity from neighbors in need? What am I perpetuating, following the sinful patterns of generations before me? What am I beginning, new patterns of sin that will be perpetuated generationally through my children?

Why not perpetuate righteousness as with sin, it lasts for three and four generations but with righteousness, come on, a thousand generations! What kind of impact am I, are you?

Pastor Fred

Genesis 28-33

These chapters remind us that while it is impossible to out run providence, out running reciprocity is equally hopeless, forever futile.

Genesis 22-27

Waiting. If there was one recurring theme throughout the history of Abraham and Isaac to identify, it is waiting. God's promise of a child for Abraham. God's promise that the lands would be his and his descendants. Sarah's longing for a child. God's promise to Hagar and her son Ishmael. I had forgotten that Isaac and Rebekah too had to wait for their first born, two sons. Isaac was 60 when they were born...waiting. Are you a waiter? Am I a waiter?

I was struck how chapter 22 began, "After these things God tested Abraham..." Are you kidding me! What's been happening for the more than a century of his life to date? Waiting in testings.

But the key is also found in chapter 22, "Here I am." Being a "waiting person" is being a "here I am" person, completely given to the sovereignty of God. I sometimes wonder if that wasn't Esau's downfall. He couldn't even wait for a few more moments for someone else in their families service, and servants they had in great abundance, to fix him a meal. He was willing to give up his birthright for something to eat. Now that's having a waiting problem.

I'm struck by this because one would think that being a lying, conniving, scheming, manipulating, man of deception would be flaw enough for the purposes of God to find another instrument. Yet, in the end, it was a waiting deficiency that disqualified Esau.

I'm not sure I really agree with the traditional view of what happened when Isaac blessed Jacob but thinking he was blessing Esau. There is one view, that Isaac's words have power, they are like a tangible gift, once given, not being able to be revoked. However, I believe that blessings are more of a prophetic moment. God giving insight to the one giving the blessing, speaking descriptively of what was to come. Jacob stole nothing. The future is the future and only God can see this, and God gave Isaac those words to speak over Jacob just as He had spoken to Rebekah when she inquired of Him in chapter 25 verses 22-23. Equally, Isaac's subsequent words spoken over Esau was born out of prophetic insight.

Are you a waiter? Am I a waiter?

Psalm 27:14 says, "Wait on the Lord: be of good courage, and He shall strengthen thine heart: wait, I say, on the Lord."

I woke up this morning feeling "thin" in the moments of my day. Sometimes I allow the weight of what is waiting for me to thin out my present. Let me give you a picture. If you were to take a bowling ball and place it in a stocking, it would thin out the upper portion of the stocking, its weight pulling all the fabric to itself. Sometimes the moments in our future are heavy maybe because of something unknown, maybe because of responsibility, maybe because of unavoidable consequences, maybe...just heavy. Some call it stress. I call it feeling thin. When I'm feeling thin, I'm allowing my future moments to weigh too heavily in my present and it causes me to miss the beauty of my now.

A Hebrew word for glory is "kabod" and one of its meanings is weighty. What can be weightier than Him?

Being a good waiter is being able to rest in the weightiness of His glory, the great counter weight of all things later.

Paul was a waiter which is why he wrote to the church of Philippi these sacred words: "Don't worry about anything, but in everything, through prayer and petition with thanksgiving, let your requests be made know to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses every thought, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus."

Pastor Fred

Genesis 19-21

The challenge in blogging through the history of the OT will be where to focus, wow, so much in these three chapters. I feel however that the part most striking to me is the contrast of what at first glance appears to be between the grace of God and the judgment of God.

We have an entire region that is consumed by fire, don't forget that includes children, innocent. Then, we have a man who lies, manipulates, untrusting, and disobedient, that's Abraham. How can this be? As I have blogged before, I don't believe that we see God's judgment in the OT and His grace and the NT. The judgment of God is only ever out of His grace, in an effort to bring people to repentance or to protect them from a future where possibly they would have only suffered. I think of the story of Lot's daughters, getting their father drunk, having an incestuous relationship with them, how could this be? Well, when we read about the dynamic in their home, we shouldn't be surprised. If your father is willing to throw you into a sex crazed mob in deference to being hospitable to strangers, no wonder there was a glaring absence of character in them. If I believe the sovereignty of God then I must embrace that if He allows innocent children to be destroyed, as He did in Sodom and Gomorrah, that was an act of grace on His behalf and not indifference. We must not see His invitation to them to enter into their eternal bliss as an act of a callous deity but rather the compassion of a loving God.

So why is He so patient with Abraham who appears to be so very flawed? I believe there is an important distinction here. Abraham's flaws did not characterize him. Did he make the same mistake twice, sure, but does two times characterize? Have you lied twice in your life in similar circumstances? Does that earn you the label of liar? I believe we see a pattern throughout Scripture and that is God's loving judgment comes once we have crossed the line of characterization.

Judas and Peter are a great example for us. Did they not ultimately commit the same sin? Did they not both betray their loyalty? There is however a grave difference, characterization. Judas was characterized by it, he was dishonest more than he wasn't. God knows the heart of every person. Peter, however flawed as we all are, was not characterized by dishonesty and betrayal. He made mistakes but was ultimately always growing and maturing, not just availing himself to forgiveness but to transformation as well.

Who gets to decide the difference between the two, characterization and momentary laps of character? God. Jeremiah 20:12 says, "Yet, O LORD of hosts, You who test the righteous, Who see the mind and the heart; Let me see Your vengeance on them; For to You I have set forth my cause." He is the only one who is allowed judgment because He alone knows the heart.

Pastor Fred