Who is Ishmael? Part 1

 Genesis 16: 1-16

God had promised Abram that He would sire his own heir, and that his descendants would be as uncountable as the stars (Genesis 15: 4-5). 

 

(1) Now Sarai, Abram's wife had borne him no children, and she had an Egyptian maid whose name was Hagar.  

(2) So Sarai said to Abram, "Now behold, the Lord has prevented me from bearing children. Please go in to my maid; perhaps I will obtain children through her." And Abram listened to the voice of Sarai.  

(3) After Abram had lived ten years in the land of Canaan, Abram's wife Sarai took Hagar the Egyptian, her maid, and gave her to her husband Abram as his wife. 

 

Since Sarai was barren, the custom and culture was that she could have children by a surrogate, so she wanted to help God by letting Abram impregnate her slave. 

(4) He went in to Hagar, and she conceived; and when she saw that she had conceived, her mistress was despised in her sight. 

(5) And Sarai said to Abram, "May the wrong done me be upon you. I gave my maid into your arms, but when she saw that she had conceived, I was despised in her sight. May the Lord judge between you and me." 

(6) But Abram said to Sarai, "Behold, your maid is in your power; do to her what is good in your sight." So Sarai treated her harshly and she fled from her presence. 

 

Sarai's plan worked, the slave was pregnant, but then she stopped being a good, submissive slave. Abram didn't take possession of the slave, but left her in Sarai ownership, so she had every right to treat her in whatever way she wanted, to try to shape her up into the obedient slave she used to be. So Hagar ran away instead.

 

(7) Now the angel of the Lord found her by a spring of water in the wilderness, by the spring on the way to Shur.  

(8) He said, "Hagar, Sarai's maid, where have you come from and where are you going?" And she said, "I am fleeing from the presence of my mistress Sarai."  

(9) The the angel of the Lord said to her, "Return to your mistress, and submit yourself to her authority."  

 

The angel of the Lord could have been the Lord Himself appearing in a pre-incarnate form, as He orders her to go back to Sarai and obey her as her owner. Hagar is not free to decide to leave, she is Sarai's property, and the Lord is recognizing this relationship.

 

(10) Moreover, the angel of the Lord said to her, "I will greatly multiply your descendants so that they will be too many to count."  

(11) The angel of the Lord said to her further, 

 

"Behold you are with child,

And you will bear a son; 

And you shall call his name Ishmael, 

Because the Lord has given heed to your affliction. 

(12) He will be a wild donkey of a man,

His hand will be against everyone, 

And everyone's hand will be against him; 

And he will live to the East of all his brothers." 

 

Here we see what kind of man this son of Hagar will be. His name Ishmael gives witness that God has seen the affliction that she has suffered, and he will be a wild donkey of a man, untamable; and unable to get along with others, always fighting. 

This fits a description I heard once from a woman who had escaped Islam, who described her society as, "brother against brother, sons against the father, the family against the clan, the clan against the nation, the nation against the world. No peace anywhere, always fighting."

And Ishmael will give Hagar so many descendants they will be too many to count.

 

(13) Then she called the name of the Lord who spoke to her, "You are a God who sees"; for she said, "Have I even remained alive here after seeing Him?"  

(14) Therefore the well was called Beer-lahai-roi; behold, it is between Kadesh and Bered. 

The name she called the Lord was, "You See Me, God!" And she was surprised that she was still alive after this close encounter with her Deity. And the location of the well showed that she was on her way back to Egypt. 

The God who saw her affliction sent her back to the same affliction. She was to change her attitude to be treated better.

 

(15) So Hagar bore Abram a son; and Abram called the name of his son, whom Hagar bore, Ishmael.

(16) Abram was eighty-six years old when Hagar bore Ishmael to him.

He was still Abram when Ishmael was born of the slave-woman. It would be another thirteen years when God would again speak to him. 

O my Father, You are so good to us, and Your program for Abram (Abraham) was so much more than he would have ever imagined. So I know Your plan for me is no less wonderful. 

My Father, please help me to do the things each day that You planned for me to accomplish, to further Your Kingdom by growing Your family, and growing a little more mature each day.

O Father, send us out into all the world to gather together all of Your family, to bring all the embryos to the birth; and grow up Your children to the full stature of the Son of God as His body. 

And every eye shall see, every knee will bow, every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is our Lord God Almighty, our Redeemer and Messiah, sovereign King of the World and all Creation; to the everlasting glory of Almighty God the Father, forever and ever. Amen. 

Even so, come quickly, Lord Jesus! 

Who Is Michael?

There are 5 verses that tell us about Michael. Let's look at them to see who he is. 

Daniel 10: 12-13

(12) Then he (Gabriel) said to me, "Do not be afraid, Daniel, for from the first day that you set your heart on understanding this and on humbling yourself before your God, your words were heard, and I have come in response to your words. 

(13) "But the  prince of the kingdom of Persia was withstanding me for twenty-one days; then behold, Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me, for I had been left there with the kings of Persia."

Michael is one of the chief princes. There is more than one chief prince, who are generals in God's angelic army. Here General Michael comes to defend Gabriel, the messenger angel. He needed help to get through the "kings of Persia" to carry God's message to Daniel. These "kings of Persia" are high-ranking angels who are controlling the government of Persia, and Gabriel was not able to get by them without help. 

This shows us that there are strong spiritual forces who are over the government leaders of the nations of the world. Ephesians 6: 12 says that we also battle against principalities and powers and rulers of the darkness who bring spiritual wickedness into high places. This is who we battle against, in the spiritual realm around us. Powerful forces that strongly influence our government leaders. How much more are we vulnerable to their pressure.

Daniel 10: 21

 

... There is no one who stands firmly with me against these forces except Michael your prince. 

 

Gabriel says that Michael is the only one who will defend Israel, God's chosen people. All the other nations are backed by high ranking demons. 

General Michael is the only reliable angelic help Gabriel has, as this angelic general is the spiritual prince over Israel.  

 

Daniel 12: 1

 

Now at that time Michael, the great prince who stands guard over the sons of your people, will arise. And there will be a time of distress such as never occurred since there was a nation until that time; and at that time your people, everyone who is found written in the book, will be rescued. 

 

General Michael is the great prince who guards the children of Israel. He is the high-ranking holy angel who battles the high-ranking evil angels, and Michael and his angelic army is stronger than the demon general and his infernal army, and is able to rescue everyone whose name is written in the (the Lamb's) book (of life). 

 

Jude 9

But Michael the archangel, when he disputed with the devil and argued about the body of Moses, did not dare pronounce against him a railing accusation, but said, "The Lord rebuke you!" 

 

When Moses died, God buried him in an unmarked and unknown grave (Deuteronomy 34: 5-6) because Joshua, not Moses, was to lead the people into the Promised Land to conquer the inhabitants who were already there and take possession of the land. 

 

But these people of God were still very susceptible to wanting to worship what they can see, and they would have enshrined Moses' coffin and worshiped it. That's why the devil had a dispute with Michael. Michael knows the devil, he knows how evil and deceptive he is, and yet he still did not accuse him, but simply said that was not his to do, but the Lord Himself. 

Evidently, the devil would have promoted Moses' bones, and Michael would have none of it, and wrested the coffin away from him, for the Lord to bury anonymously.

 

Revelation 12: 7-9

 

(7) And there was war in Heaven, Michael and his angels waging war with the dragon. The dragon and his angels waged war,

(8) and they were not strong enough, and there was no longer a place found for them in Heaven. 

(9) And the dragon was thrown down, the serpent of old who is called the devil and Satan, who deceives the whole world; he was thrown down to the Earth, and his angels were thrown down with him. 

 

This is the last mention of this angelic hero. General Michael marshals his forces to war with the enemy of God to finally throw him out of God's home. Satan didn't live in Heaven, but he had access to God's throne to accuse us as the legal prosecutor of sinners. Now he is banned completely. 

 

But now he is confined to the earthly realms, where we still live. He and his whole army of demons. And he knows that his time is short. Michael is still the defender of God's people, though, and he hasn't retired. He still will defend Israel, and if we are spiritual Israel, us too. 

 

We are all in a spiritual battle, fighting not against flesh and blood, who are the victims and slaves; but against these principalities and powers and dark rulers of the wickedness in places of high authority. 

 

Our President has been battling them, and he needs us to back him up. We as God's people are to stand up against the evil that is trying to take over our whole society, and use the power we have to vote. This is a spiritual responsibility, as well as a political one. If we don't, then we're just letting the minions of the enemy take over to destroy us. And they will. He comes only to kill, steal and destroy (John 10: 10). 

 

O my Father, please strengthen us in this great war. We know that our Lord Christ wins in the end, but in the meantime, help us in the battles we face. Show us how to love one another as freely and unconditionally as You have loved us. Teach us how to overcome the hatred with love, the darkness with light, to face the enemy boldly and courageously, and having done all, to stand. 

 

My Father, You alone are God, we are not. We desperately need You and Your grace to share with others, even when they are attacking us. Let us leave all the railing accusations to our Lord, and simply stand our ground. 

 

O Father, send us all out to tell every living person in the world that You love them and are not willing for any to perish. Lead each one of Your embryos to the birth in Your family, Father, and grow us all up to maturity that we might gain the full stature of the Son of God as His body. 

 

And every eye shall see, every knee will bow, every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is our Lord God Almighty, our Redeemer and Messiah, sovereign King of the World and all Creation; to the everlasting glory of Almighty God the Father, forever and ever. Amen. 

 

Even so, come quickly, Lord Jesus!

Who Is The Antichrist?

Who is this guy that is called "The Antichrist"? The man of lawlessness? The son of destruction? How will we be able to recognize him when he comes? Is he coming soon?

John says:

I John 2: 18, 22

 

(18) Children, it is the last hour; and just as you heard that antichrist is coming, even now many antichrists have appeared; from this we know that it is the last hour. 

 

John says that there are lots of antichrists, because the spirit of antichrist is already busy in the world. 

 

(22) Who is the liar but the one who denies that Jesus is the Christ? This is the antichrist, the one who denies the Father and the Son. 

 

I John 4: 2-3

(2) By this you know the Spirit of God: every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God; 

(3) and every spirit that does not confess Jesus is not from God; this is the spirit of the antichrist, of which you have heard that it is coming, and now it is already in the world. 

 

II John 1: 7

 

(7) For many deceivers have gone out into the world, those who do not acknowledge Jesus Christ as coming in the flesh. This is the deceiver and the antichrist. 

 

Jesus had to be God to be the eternal Person who could pay our eternal debt in time. And He had to be a genuine human to die a man's death in place of each of us, as the Lamb of God. 

 
Anyone who denies the deity of Jesus or the humanity of Christ is denying who He is, so is spreading a lie. This is the spirit of antichrist.

Both God's Spirit and the demon spirits are in the world; God's Holy Spirit lives in His children on this Earth, and the demon spirits also try to inhabit and/or oppress people who don't have God's Spirit in them. Satan imitates God, promoting himself as the angel of light he used to be, so his people present themselves also as ministers of light, but teach heresy.

Some teachers in the early church were already teaching theological error that Paul corrected in his epistles. In Thessalonica they were saying that the Lord had already come. And today some theologians are saying the same thing. So Paul said:

II Thessalonians 2: 3-4, 9-12

(3) Let no one in any way deceive you, for it will not come (the coming of the Lord) unless the apostasy comes first, and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of destruction,

Jesus will not come for His people to set up His Kingdom until after this antichrist is revealed as to who he is.

(4) who opposes and exalts himself above every so-called god or object of worship, so that he takes his seat in the temple of God, displaying himself as being God. 

We will recognize this man of sin as the one who demands worship as though he is God, enthroning himself in God's temple. This will happen in the middle of the 7-year stretch of tribulation and great tribulation described in Daniel and in Revelation.

 

(9) The one whose coming is in accord with the activity of Satan, with all power and signs and false wonders. 

 

He will be a political head of state who will display great power to perform supernatural signs and fake wonders, to convince people that he is God.

 

(10) and with all the deception of wickedness for those who perish, because they did not receive the love of the truth so as to be saved. 

 

He will deceive all the people who have refused to submit to God in repentance and faith, because by that they open themselves up to his seductive lies. 

 

(11) For this reason God will send upon them a deluding influence so that they will believe what is false, 

 

What kind of thing would be a "deluding influence"? An implantable chip? A vaccination with nanobots in it to reprogram all your cells? Who knows what that "mark of the beast" will be, but it will prevent people from having freedom to think and feel the way they want, to freely choose to be saved. 

 

(12) in order that they all may be judged who did not believe the truth, but took pleasure in wickedness.

 

Those who have refused God's gracious and generous gift turn instead to wickedness and erotic and worldly pleasures instead. So they will give account.

 

Matthew 24: 15

 

(15) Therefore when you see the abomination of desolation which was spoken of through Daniel the prophet, standing in the Holy Place (let the reader understand). 

 

Jesus quoted Daniel, and He wants us to understand. So let's see what Daniel says:

 

Daniel 9: 26-27

 

(26) Then after the sixty-two weeks the Messiah will be cut off and have nothing, and the people of the prince who is to come will destroy the city and the sanctuary. And its end will come with a flood; even to the end there will be war; desolations are determined. 

Daniel says that there will be war until the end.

 

(27) And he will make a firm covenant with the many for one week, 

 

This is some kind of treaty among Middle Eastern nations including Israel.

 

but in the middle of the week he will put a stop to sacrifice and grain offering; 

 

This is the middle of the seven-year period, the last "week" of Daniel's "70 weeks". 

and on the wing of abominations will come one who makes desolate, even until a complete destruction, one that is decreed, is poured out on the one who makes desolate.

The one who does this will be completely and utterly destroyed. 

Daniel tells us how he gets to this point:

Daniel 11: 30-39

 

(30) ... Will return and become enraged at the holy covenant and take action; 

 

The holy covenant is the promise God gave the children of Israel to give them the land of Canaan. This will enrage him as most of the Arab nations are enraged in their hatred of God's chosen people; but he will not just talk, but will take action against them.

 

so he will come back and show regard for those who forsake the holy covenant. 

 

Antiochus Epiphanes fulfilled these prophesies, but as Jesus quoted Daniel here, Antiochus was only a forerunner to the antichrist to come. He will also partner with and promote those Jews who are willing to do anything for material rewards.

 

(31) Forces from him will arise, desecrate the sanctuary fortress, and do away with the regular sacrifice. And they will set up the abomination of desolation.

 

The man of sin who is still future will also set up the abomination of desolation, a statue-idol, set up in the temple of God to worship it instead. So there may be a Temple built in Jerusalem for the Tribulation period.

 

(32) By smooth words he will turn to godlessness those who act wickedly toward the covenant, 

 

Smooth words have always been one of Satan's enticements. Those who are willing to turn their backs on God's promises for earthly wealth will be turned to more wickedness than the world has seen heretofore.

 

but the people who know their God will display strength and take action. 

 

Only those who recognize their Messiah will have the strength and courage to take action to promote righteousness and godliness in Israel.

 

(33) Those who have insight among the people will give understanding to the many; 

 

People who have been born into God's family and understand more of God's plan for us will be charged with teaching the rest how to connect the dots in His word to recognize what God is doing.

 

yet they will fall by sword and by flame, by captivity and by plunder for many days. 

 

Yet there will be many martyrs, persecuted and overcome by the evil ones.

 

(34) Now when they fall they will be granted a little help, and many will join with them in hypocrisy. 

 

So many people today who consider themselves to be Christians only have a religion, not that relationship with God He wants to have with us as His children, and many of these will join with them; but because they don't have the Holy Spirit to give them wisdom and courage, they will not be able to be faithful when the hammer falls.

 

(35) Some of those who have insight will fall, in order to refine, purge and make them pure until the end time; because it is still to come at the appointed time. 

 

Even some of the godly teachers will be martyred, as the blood of the martyrs waters the fields of God, and their example will embolden others, giving them the courage to fight on. 

 

Now we will see the character of this antichrist:

 

(36) Then the king will do as he pleases, and he will exalt and magnify himself above every god and will speak monstrous things against the God of gods; and he will prosper until the indignation is finished, for that which is decreed will be done. (37) He will show no regard for the gods of his fathers 

 

This man is a megalomaniac, with a god-complex and a boldness against everything else that could be worshiped, as Satan has always wanted to be God. So he must slander and disparage the real God. 

 

or for the desire of women, 

 

This man is so evil that he isn't even attracted to women, but is probably more inclined to sexual pleasure with his own gender. 

nor will he show regard for any other god; for he will magnify himself above them all. 

 

He'll have such a high regard for himself that he thinks he has power over every god.

 

(38) But instead he will honor a god of fortresses, a god whom his fathers did not know; he will honor him with gold, silver, costly stones and treasures. 

 

He worships strength and victorious battles, and is willing to pay a high price for supernatural, demonic help.

 

(39) He will take action against the strongest of fortresses with the help of a foreign god; he will give great honor to those who acknowledge him and will cause them to rule over the many, and will parcel out land for a price. 

 

This man is the consummate politician, handing out bribes to everyone who will sell out to his "religion" and worship him and help him in his tyranny over the masses of people all over the world.

O my Father, please help Your children to recognize this man who You have called the man of lawlessness, of sin. Open our eyes to see all that is going on around us in the world that we can have some effect on, or to teach others to be warned of. Let Your word go out over the whole world to every living person, to accomplish what You have sent it to. Send out all of Your children to share our stories, to tell everyone how much You have loved us, and that You want to do for them as You have for us through Your Son. 

My Father, You are so good to us, You have told us ahead of time what to look for, what to anticipate, what to look forward to. You have told us the last chapter, and we win with You! This gives me courage to persevere. Let me get Your word out, let me be Your messenger, Your missionary. Let me tell many of Your spiritually unborn fetuses how they can come to the birth into Your family, and grow up to maturity. 

O Father, grow us all up into the full stature of the Son of God. 

And every eye shall see, every knee will bow, every tongue will proclaim that Jesus Christ is Lord, the Son of the Father, Lord God Almighty, sovereign King of the World and all Creation; to the everlasting glory of Almighty God the Father, forever and ever. Amen. 

Even so, please come soon, Lord Jesus! 

The Story Of Joseph Part 36--The Final Chapter

 Exodus 13: 19

The book of Genesis ended with Joseph "in a coffin in Egypt." This may have been the end of his life, but there is still one more chapter to end his story. 

The next book of the Pentateuch is Exodus, which starts with the sons of Israel still in Goshen after Joseph and all his brothers and all that generation died, and they were, "fruitful and increased greatly, and multiplied, and became exceedingly mighty, so that the land was filled with them" (Exodus 1:7). 

Joseph had said that, "God will surely take care of you and bring you up from this land to the land which He promised on oath to Abraham, to Isaac and to Jacob" (Genesis 50: 24).

Since the sons of Israel were so comfortable in this land, what will God do to convince them to leave, to go to the Promised Land of Canaan? 

God had "a new king" come to power in Egypt, "who didn't know Joseph" (V. 8). Whether this new king was aware of their history or not, he didn't consider it to be a reason to continue to honor or trust these people who never did mix in with the Egyptians. He was afraid of them, thinking that they might join with some enemy in attacking Egypt. 

This had to be of God, that He would allow the devil to put this idea into his mind, for fear to induce him to be harsh with them. 

The sons of Israel had been living in ease and prosperity, well respected by their Egyptian neighbors. They had multiplied in numbers and in their wealth, but they may have been rather flabby physically, as hot-house plants, and God knew that they would need to toughen up to endure the rigors of a march through the desert and to conquer the peoples who lived in Canaan. 

So, God allowed His chosen family to be enslaved and mistreated, until they were so beaten down emotionally and built up physically, to be ready and willing to leave. 

That's when Moses came on the scene. His story begins in a very interesting way, that we all probably know, but when he was 80 years old he was ready to lead them all out of Egypt. 

God convinced this Pharaoh to let them go by inflicting on them all the "plagues of Egypt," which showed that his Egyptian gods were nothing, ending with instituting the Passover with the blood of the lambs on the door frames. Then they left Egypt. And:

(19) Moses took the bones of Joseph with him, for he had made the sons of Israel solemnly swear, saying, "God will surely take care of you, and you shall carry my bones from here with you." (Genesis 50: 25.) 

This is the last chapter in Joseph's story. So the Sons of Israel had kept Joseph's coffin for the 400 years total that they were in Egypt, so they also took it with them, and carried it through the Desert with them for the 40 years they wandered. Then when they finally entered the Promised Land under Joshua's leadership, some of them must have at some point taken Joseph's bones to the ancient burial ground at the Cave of Machpelah, that Abraham had bought so long ago, and lay his bones to rest with his fathers' bones. This was culturally very important to them. 

Joseph had brought his father Jacob's body back to this cave when he died, but he didn't want his own body to be buried there until all his people were there also, as owners of the land, as the Lord had promised. His coffin was a constant reminder to them that God would fulfill His promise to them.

And they also fulfilled their promise to him, after all these years had passed, to finally bury Joseph's coffin. 

O my Father, You planned out the whole human story before You made anything that exists now. And You planned each of our individual stories to fit into Your grand Master Plan. You are so smart and clever! Your wisdom and power have accomplished Your will in everything You have made! 

My Father, all the pieces of all the people and events fit so perfectly together in Your timing to work out all the parts, just like a gigantic puzzle. When we can see how some of these pieces fit together, then we can have a glimpse of the bigger picture that will emerge, just as You planned it all out. How you use our free choices for both good and evil, is amazing, and a convincing testimony of Your greatness and goodness. 

O Father, use me; use my words; use my personality, and continue to build my character. Use every part of me to further Your program, and send me out with all of Your children to witness and testify to every living person of Your love and provision of all we need. Let everyone in every nation hear and understand clearly who You are and how You have sent Your only Son to be our Savior and Redeemer. Let every spiritually unborn child come to the birth in Your family, Father, that all my brothers and sisters and I will all grow up into the full stature of the Son of God, as His body. 

And every eye shall see, every knee will bow, every tongue will proclaim that Jesus Christ is our Lord God Almighty, sovereign King of the World and all Creation, to the everlasting glory of Almighty God the Father, forever and ever. Amen. 

Even so, do come swiftly, Lord Jesus! 

The Story Of Joseph Part 35--The End Of Joseph's Life

Genesis 50: 22-26

Joseph has moved his whole family out of Canaan into Egypt, and has settled them in the most fertile and prosperous region of the land, Goshen. 

Joseph was very highly respected and liked and honored by the Pharaoh and the Egyptians for his skillful management of the 7 years of prosperity and the 7 years of famine, to save their lives from starvation during that time. 

So the sons of Israel prospered and multiplied and enjoyed good lives there in Egypt. 

(22) Now Joseph stayed in Egypt, he and his father's household, and Joseph lived one hundred and ten years. (23) Joseph saw the third generation of Ephraim's sons; also the sons of Machir, the son of Manasseh, were born on Joseph's knees. 

Joseph lived to a good old age, and enjoyed God's blessings of family, seeing his grandchildren and great grandchildren also prospering. 

(24) Joseph said to his brothers, "I am about to die, but God will surely take care of you and bring you up from this land to the land He has promised on oath to Abraham, to Isaac and to Jacob." (25) Then Joseph made the sons of Israel swear, saying, "God will surely take care of you, and you shall carry my bones up from here." 

Joseph was aware of his impending death, as his father Jacob and grandfather Isaac and great grandfather Abraham were of theirs, to give God's blessings to the next generation, to pass on to future generations. 

But Joseph was not to bless his sons, his father Israel did that, in claiming them as his own sons in the number of the Tribes of Israel. And apparently Joseph had no more sons after Manasseh and Ephraim. 

Joseph also wanted to be buried with his fathers, but he did not want to leave his family in Egypt. So he told his brothers to remember him through the generations to carry his bones with them back to the Promised Land when the Lord God would bring them all back to Canaan. 

This is big. Joseph carried his father's coffin back to Canaan for immediate burial, but he was willing to wait as long as needed to go with his people back to that land, when they would own it as their own nation. This is what God had promised, and Joseph believed God, and wanted his bones to participate in its fulfillment.

(26) So Joseph died at the age of one hundred and ten years; and he was embalmed and placed in a coffin in Egypt. 

So, when Joseph died, he was embalmed, as was the Egyptian custom for persons of importance and standing. But he was not buried. We are not told where they kept his coffin, but it was cared for from generation to generation for the 400 years the sons of Israel would dwell in Egypt. 

This may be the end of Joseph's life, but there is one more chapter to end his story. 

And the last words of the book of Genesis are, "in a coffin in Egypt." This speaks of death and bondage. What began with "In the beginning God" with life and light and goodness, ends with the opposite. How far our sorry human nature carries us away from what is good and beneficial for us. 

We need God! We all need the goodness our Lord God wants to lavish upon us. We all are desperate without His Holy Spirit in the New Birth to give us back that life and light and goodness that we lost through Genesis, through our own personal beginnings and passage through our lives. 

We have all lost our way, we are all like a stained, uncleanable menstrual cloth before God, in our sinfulness (Isaiah 64: 6). Every one of us has inherited from Adam that damaged DNA that has marred our human nature, and causes every one of us to make a wrong choice or decision that we know is wrong, and do it anyway. We are born sinners, and we are all transgressors, committing sins. 

But God has sent His own Son to be the Lamb of God (John 1: 29, 36), our personal Sacrifice (Leviticus 1), to cleanse us from sin by His Blood splattered on the sides of His altar, the Cross. Then His Holy Spirit can come in to that pristine soul, make our human spirit alive, and cut away, circumcise, the connection of our flesh to that new Life He gives us (Colossians 2: 11), breaking the power sin had over us. 

"Genesis" means "beginnings." We must go to the end for the ending. Even Joseph's story still has a final chapter, and we all will have a final chapter to our stories, too. 

Joseph lived his life so that his final chapter did not detract from it. How we live our lives, the choices we make every day we live, how we see and treat one another, what we've done with what God has given us, will all determine how our final chapter will read. What will be on our tombstone, in our epitaph.

O my Father, You have given us the final answer to everything we can ever ask. You have laid out our whole human story, from before the beginning until after the end. Father, You will not try to "clean" our flesh, but will replace our bodies with spiritual bodies (I Corinthians 15: 44, 49). The spiritual will swallow up the material, the eternal the temporal. And while we live in our flesh bodies now, You have them separated from the spiritual Life that dwells in us as Your children. 

My Father, help us to learn every lesson we need to practice now while we live here on this Earth. Teach us to love one another as unconditionally and passionately as You have loved us! Show us how to share with others how much You love us, in the way each person can understand. Send out all Your children, Father, into every nation, so that every living person will be able to hear. 

O Father, fill Your great house with all of Your uncountable family! 

And every eye shall see, every knee will bow, every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is our Lord God Almighty, our Redeemer and Savior, sovereign King of the World and all Creation; to the everlasting glory of Almighty God the Father, forever and ever. Amen. 

Even so, come quickly, Lord Jesus! 

The Story Of Joseph Part 34--Joseph Has Forgiven His Brothers

 Genesis 50: 15-21

We've just recounted the elaborate and detailed explanation of the funeral arrangements Joseph orchestrated for his father Jacob. Then when they all got back "home" in Egypt, Joseph returned to his house, and his brothers all went back to Goshen.

(15) When Joseph's brothers saw that their father was dead, they said, "What if Joseph bears a grudge against us and pays us back in full for all the wrong which we did to him!" 

Then the brothers got to thinking negatively, and thought that Joseph was only nice to them because their father was still alive to see it. But now that he's gone, maybe Joseph, with all his power and authority, will go after them in revenge!

(16) So they sent a message to Joseph, saying, "Your father charged before he died, saying, (17) 'Thus you shall say to Joseph, "Please forgive, I beg you, the transgression of your brothers and their sin, for they did you wrong."' And now, please forgive the transgression of the servants of the God of your father." And Joseph wept when they spoke to him. 

The brothers are suffering from their own guilty consciences, knowing that they really do deserve to be punished for how they treated their little brother. But now they're making up a story to try to convince Joseph to not pay them back. 

Did Jacob even know what they did? Did he ever question that they "found" his special robe, covered in blood? Did he ever doubt their story since back then? 

And Joseph's heart breaks for his brothers, still suffering in their guilt!

(18) Then his brothers also came and fell down before him and said, "Behold, we are your servants." 

After sending the message, they came and bowed down to him again, trying to convince him to not pay them back.

(19) But Joseph said to them, "Do not be afraid, for am I in God's place? 

Joseph tells them that they don't need to be afraid of him, that he won't do anything to them, because their guilt is between them and God. Even though he does have the power as vizier under Pharaoh in Egypt to do what he wants with them, he won't take God's place in dealing with them.

(20) "As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good in order to bring about this present result, to preserve many people alive. 

He gives them the bigger picture that they've missed so far: that even though they were looking at the short-term, to get rid of a pesky little brother, that God was using them to orchestrate His bigger plan; He knew that Joseph needed to be in Egypt, having everything happen that happened to him, to prepare him for this time and position, to be able to save many people alive, who otherwise would have starved to death during that severe 7-year famine back then. 

And that he had realized this, and forgiven his brothers long ago, so they also needed to forgive themselves. He didn't even send them back to Canaan when the famine was over, but continued to take care of them.

(21) "So therefore, do not be afraid; I will provide for you and your little ones." So he comforted them and spoke kindly to them. 

And their father's death will make no difference, he still accepts them and loves them as his brothers, and he will still take care of them the same as before. They don't ever have to be afraid of him because of his position. 

Joseph and his family continued to live in Egypt. Joseph never saw Canaan again, he was comfortable living in his adopted country, and in his high governmental position he remained in Pharaoh's favor; and his people also remained under the king's protection and provision.

O my Father, You know that it is sometimes hard for us to forgive ourselves, even after we know You've forgiven us. Thank You for telling us how Joseph reassured his brothers of his forgiveness to them, as accepting that You had used them in Your plan for him and them. 

My Father, as Joseph was able to maintain his trust in You through years of disappointing consequences, never faltering in his faith, so I know that no matter what happens in my life, even when I do what I know is right and it still turns out negatively, then I can still rely on Your faithfulness to me, to keep me and care for me as Your child. 

O Father, use me, send out all of Your children, in all the ways each of us can go, to show Your love for us all, and tell them about how You have already taken care of everything we all need, right here in this Earth and with one another. Please help us to love one another as unconditionally as You have loved us. Then they will see how You have sent Your own Son to be our Redeemer, and repent and turn to You for Salvation; or turn away from You, fully aware of what they are refusing. 

And every eye shall see, every knee will bow, every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is our Lord God Almighty, our Savior, Redeemer and Messiah, the sovereign King of the World and the whole Creation; to the everlasting glory of Almighty God the Father, forever and ever. Amen. 

Even so, please come quickly, Lord Jesus! 

The story of Joseph Part 33--Jacob's Funeral

Genesis 49: 29- 50: 14

Jacob had moved to Egypt to be with his son Joseph, and his whole family emigrated from Canaan to Goshen in Egypt. Then he lived another seventeen years in Egypt, so he was 147 years old. 

When he knew he was near his time of death, he blessed his twelve sons, to give God's prophecy to each of them before he died.

(40: 29) Then he charged them and said to them, "I am about to be gathered to my people; bury me with my fathers in the cave that is in the field of Ephron the Hittite, (30) in the cave that is in the field of Machpelah, which is before Mamre, in the land of Canaan, which Abraham bought along with the field from Ephron the Hittite for a burial site. (31) There they buried Abraham and his wife Sarah, there they buried Isaac and his wife Rebecca, and there I buried Leah--(32) the field and the cave that is in it, purchased from the sons of Heth." 

After he blessed his sons, he had them all promise him that they would not bury his body in Egypt, he wanted to be buried with his family in Canaan; and he made sure to give them the exact address and directions to the burial cave.

(33) When Jacob finished charging his sons, he drew his feet into the bed and breathed his last, and was gathered to his people. 

Jacob had been sitting on the side of his bed as he blessed them and charged them to bury him in Abraham's cave. Then he pulled up his feet into the bed. I don't know if he died right then, he may have rested for a while, before he actually died. It must not have been very long, but apparently Joseph was the only one left with him by then. Joseph stayed with his father, even if all the rest of his brothers went home.

(50: 1) Then Joseph fell on his father's face, and wept over him and kissed him. 

Joseph is the one who is with Jacob at the moment of his death, as he is the only one who was there to witness his last breath. He stayed with him to the end.

(2) Joseph commanded his servants the physicians to embalm his father. So the physicians embalmed Israel. (3) Now forty days were required for it, for such is the period required for embalming. And the Egyptians wept for him seventy days. 

As an Egyptian official, Joseph gave his father the greatest Egyptian honor that could be bestowed at death, and he had the authority to make it so.

(4) When the days of mourning for him were passed, Joseph spoke to the household of Pharaoh, saying, "If now I have found favor in your sight, please speak to Pharaoh, saying, (5) 'My father made me swear, saying, "Behold I am about to die; in my grave which I dug for myself in the land of Canaan, there you shall bury me." Now therefore, please let me go up and bury my father; then I will return.'"  

Pharaoh probably had a busy schedule, so Joseph sent word to him by his close servants, asking permission to leave the country for this funeral, with assurances that he was not abandoning his responsibilities, but would immediately return after the burial.

(6) Pharaoh said, "Go up and bury your father, as he made you swear." 

And Pharaoh respected Joseph and trusted him, so he gave his permission.

(7) So Joseph went up to bury his father, and with him went up all the servants of Pharaoh, the elders of his household and all the elders of the land of Egypt, (8) and all the household of Joseph and his brothers and his father's household; they left only their little ones and their flocks and their herds in the land of Goshen. (9) There also went up with him both chariots and horsemen; and it was a very great company. 

Pharaoh allowed his whole household, all his high officials, and all the Egyptian dignitaries to go with him, and even sent charioteers and horsemen from his military to accompany them. It was a very large entourage.

(10) When they came to the threshing floor of Atad, which is beyond the Jordan, they lamented there with a very great and sorrowful lamentation; and he observed seven days mourning for his father. 

This very great company reached their destination and performed a whole week of ritual funerary ceremonies and mourning.

(11) Now when the inhabitants of the land, the Canaanites, saw the mourning at the threshing floor of Atad, they said, "This is a grievous mourning for the Egyptians." Therefore it was named Abel-Mizraim, which is beyond the Jordan. 

When all the locals witnessed this, they were so impressed that they renamed the place in honor of this great funeral, calling it, "The Mourning of Egypt."

(12) Thus his sons did for him as he had charged them; (13) for his sons carried him to the land of Canaan and buried him in the cave of the field of Machpelah before Mamre, which Abraham had bought along with the field for a burial site from Ephron the Hittite.

So Joseph and his brothers carried out their father's wish, to be buried with his father Isaac and his grandfather Abraham.

(14) After he had buried his father, Joseph returned to Egypt, he and his brothers, and all who had gone up with him to bury his father.  

Then Joseph was true to his word to Pharaoh, and returned to his office and position, bringing back with him everyone who went with him, safely. 

This funeral is much more elaborate and is described in much more detail than any other funeral in Scripture.  Israel's sons, under the leadership of Joseph, did more than just bury his body, but carried out all the rituals and ceremonies and involved all the people to give Jacob the honor in death that he never sought in life. This man was the father of the whole nation of Israel, and it was right to honor him thus. 

O my Father, You knew that these people set a store by how their bodies were treated even after death, when they would need them no more. Hebrews wanted their bodies to lie with the bodies of those who went before. And the Egyptians had a religion that taught that their bodies would come back alive, so they furnished in the graves with the bodies all they thought they would need if they came back alive one day. 

My Father, we know that You will raise up everyone who has died, some with spiritual bodies that can withstand standing in Your presence, and others with spiritual bodies that are fitted to suffer retribution forever. These mortal bodies of flesh will not endure. But the Egyptians had the right idea, even if it fell short of Your Truth. 

O Father, please send out Your children to be Your messengers and missionaries to share with the whole world how You love us all so much that You sent Your only Son to take away the sins of everyone in the world who wants to turn to You. Let everyone alive in all the nations understand the importance and value of Your provision of our every need--physical, mental, psychological, material, spiritual, financial, relational--temporal and eternal--and every other need we may have. You are our Source, Father; nothing exists that You didn't imagine. 

And every eye shall see, every knee will bow, every tongue will proclaim that Jesus Christ is our Lord God Almighty, our Redeemer and Messiah, sovereign King of the whole World and all Creation; to the everlasting glory of Almighty God the Father, forever and ever. Amen. 

Even so, come soon, Lord Jesus!