“…they are they which testify of me.” -Jesus Christ, speaking of the Old Testament scriptures.
Genesis Chapter 5 is solely dedicated to a list of Adam’s descendants. (you can read the full chapter at the bottom of this post) Why would God do that? Why devote a chapter to a list of names? We can see why He did it, in Genesis 5 at least, when we look at the first ten names in the order given. Continue reading
“You study the Scriptures diligently because you think that in them you have eternal life. These are the very Scriptures that testify about me…” Jesus Christ, John 5:39
In our last post we saw Jesus in the story of Joseph. Today we’ll see Jesus in another Old Testament passage: the story of Abraham taking his son Isaac to sacrifice.
Read Genesis 22
Before Genesis 22, Abraham was last seen together with Isaac when he was celebrating Isaac’s weaning. At that time Isaac was somewhere between three and five years old. Genesis 22 begins in verse one with the phrase Some time later… So fast forward to when some say Isaac is now thirty-three years old. He’s been the apple of his parent’s eye for thirty or so years now and even as his name means laughter, he’s provided laughter and joy to both Abraham and Sarah. Which as we’ll see makes the next phrase in our story, God tested Abraham, just about as gut wrenching as you can imagine. Abraham is about to hear what to him must have seemed like a very strange request from the Lord. Continue reading
When Joseph’s brothers saw that their father was dead, they said, “What if Joseph holds a grudge against us and pays us back for all the wrongs we did to him?” -Genesis 50:15
In last Saturday’s post, Looking for the Living Among the Dead, we saw how Jesus talked to the two men on the road to Emmaus who thought He was dead. ”…beginning at Moses and all the prophets, he explained to them what was said in all the scriptures concerning himself.” (Luke 24:27-34)
Here in Genesis we see what I believe is just one example of how Jesus is found in the writings of Moses and all the prophets. Perhaps Christ even shared something similar with the two on the road to Emmaus.
Joseph’s Response to the Sins of His Brothers
Jacob, the father of Joseph and his brothers, has just passed away. The funeral is over, and the family is back at home in Egypt, trying to return to their normal routine. It’s at this time, all the wrongs Joseph’s brothers committed against Joseph, come flooding into their minds: they hated him because he was their father’s favorite, they plotted to kill him, they tossed him into a cistern, they sold him into slavery, then they lied to their father and told him Joseph was dead.
And now Jacob is gone. And they think Joseph has just been waiting for the right time to settle the score. They think he’s angry. They think he’s ready for revenge. So they throw themselves down before Joseph, the powerful Prime Minister, and beg for his forgiveness. Continue reading
The following is an excerpt by David Platt. To read the full article click on the link: Why RISK Is Right.
In Matthew 13:44 Jesus tells his disciples, “The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and covered up. Then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field.”
I love this picture. Imagine walking in a field and stumbling upon a treasure that is more valuable than anything else you could work for or find in this life. It is more valuable than all you have now or will ever have in the future.
You look around and notice that no one else realizes the treasure is here, so you cover it up quickly and walk away, pretending you haven’t seen anything. You go into town and begin to sell off all your possessions to have enough money to buy that field. The world thinks you’re crazy. Continue reading
Why do you look for the living among the dead? -Luke 24:25
A Dead Sparrow
The bird hit the big picture window like a bug hits a windshield. It didn’t fair well. The little sparrow fell to the deck floor some six feet below the point of impact, which was marked with feathers stuck to the surface of the glass. It lay on its side at first, then it slowly rolled over and extended its legs up toward the sky. It was almost cartoonish. The only thing missing were a couple of ‘Xs” over each eye. My kids heard the “THUMP” and ran out onto the deck where the bird lay.
“We need to pray for him dad!” They insisted.
Wow. This is awkward. I had taught my kids about the power of God, and the power of prayer, and the importance of faith. It wasn’t that I didn’t have faith. I had faith alright. I had faith I’d be planting that sparrow in the back yard with all our other dead pets. But what could I do? My kids were expecting a miracle.
So we prayed. Continue reading
“Bury me with… Leah.” -Jacob, Genesis 49:29-31
“The primary problem is… learning how to love and care for the stranger to whom you find yourself married.” -Stanley Hauerwas, Professor of Ethics, Duke University
Married to a Stranger
It’s impossible to know what your spouse will be like tomorrow, or next year, or next decade. Because life will change him, or her. Finishing school changes him. Age changes her. The hirings, and firings, and battles at work change him. Where she lives changes her. A loved one dying changes her. Having kids changes him. You can’t really know who you will be married to, in the future, because they’ll change.
It’s inevitable: at some point in your marriage, you’ll find you’re married to a stranger. It happens to every one of us.
It happened to Jacob right away. Continue reading
Young man: “Satan isn’t really like a person, right? I mean there’s evil in the world, and there’s such a thing as evil–as a force. But Satan, if he did exist, would be just one person. He would be limited. He couldn’t be everywhere at once or anything. So what could he really accomplish in the world?” Continue reading
Truly I tell you, among those born of women there has not risen anyone greater than John the Baptist… -Matthew 11:11
How Jesus Loved People
Jesus loved people by commending them publicly. Here in Matthew 11 we see Jesus commend John the Baptist publicly. Jesus commended the faith of the formerly blind Bartimaeus when he said, “Go, your faith has healed you.” (Mark 10:54) Jesus commended the woman who anointed his feet with perfume when he said, “Your faith has saved you; go in peace.” Jesus commended Peter when Peter called him the Messiah, he said, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah…” (Matthew 16:17) And on, and on it goes.
Jesus commended people–often.
How to Love Like Jesus
Lighten up.
Encourage, commend, and even–dare I say it–compliment people. Do it today, just for today, focus on commending and encouraging.
Jesus did.
You can too.
Let your conversation be always full of grace… -Colossians 4:6
[Image via Paul L Dineen, Creative Commons]
Last Sunday at 8 PM I watched The Bible miniseries’ (episode one) on the History Channel. First I had to recover from the shock of seeing actual history on the history channel, instead of Swamp People and Pawn Stars. Then I had to decide if I liked it. Continue reading
[To see the last post on Genesis go to The Consequences of Calling Your Own Shots--Genesis 49:29]
So Joseph went up to bury his father. All Pharaoh’s officials accompanied him—the dignitaries of his court and all the dignitaries of Egypt—
Chariots and horsemen also went up with him. It was a very large company.
When the Canaanites who lived there saw the mourning at the threshing floor of Atad, they said, “The Egyptians are holding a solemn ceremony of mourning.”
What’s All The Fuss?
I was involved in a huge funeral once. Two friends died in the prime of life, in an ATV accident. They were firefighters and we had this huge procession through town with fire department vehicles. The streets were lined with well wishers. There were even helicopters flying overhead above the procession. One helicopter flew a giant American flag underneath. Another filmed the whole event in high def. Had my two friends been insurance salesmen none of that would have happened. It was their relationship with the fire department that resulted in such an ambitious funeral.
Jacob’s funeral was a much bigger deal than my friends’. Every single one of Pharaoh’s officials were there. Every dignitary from the nation of Egypt was there. All of Joseph’s family was there. Chariots and horsemen were even there. The funeral lasted a whole week. This thing was huge. When the people of Canaan saw it, it was easy to recognize someone very important had passed away. But why? Why was Jacob honored in such spectacular fashion? Continue reading
