Monthly Archives: February 2017

February 25, 2017 · 9:55 pm

Dreams and Dreamers

Our reading introduces us to the character of Joseph, the first-born of Rachel – Jacob’s beloved. We do find that parental favoritism continues in the first family. This time it is Joseph by Jacob. We have already talked about Rachel being the favorite of Jacob, now we find that Joseph carries the favoritism. Maybe this seems natural to happen, but it will cause great struggle and even sorrow for all involved. In Genesis 37, the Dreamer appears, already in a favored position with his coat of many colors, which distinguishes him from his brothers – that means Bilhah and Zilpah and Leah’s boys. These are two hand maids, and a tricked wife. The favorite child comes with its own set of problems. The boys hated Joseph, they could barely stand him. But when Joseph relates his first dream, where they will all bow down to him – this causes rage! Then the second dream is one where all of the family, mom’s and dad plus the brothers will bow to Joseph. Even Jacob rebukes Joseph for such arrogance. Just as the LORD told Cain that sin crouched at the door, so it is here that the only thing keeping Joseph alive around his brothers is the opportunity to kill him. Joseph provides this opportunity when he goes to visit them in the fields. Now Joseph is only 17 yrs. old; yet sent on quite a journey. I estimate that Joseph had a trip from Hebron to Shechem was about 40 miles; then he had to go further to Dothan, probably another 15 miles or so.  Joseph was obviously wandering around, looking for his brothers at the time, even when sent to Dothan. Needless to say, the plot thickens. We know the rest of the story and how that Joseph is being put into the right place at the right time  – and sure enough his dreams were more prop hectic then just sleeping interludes.  I can’t imagine the hatred from the older brothers; I’ve had fights with my sisters, but not nought to kill them. Not the case here. They see Joseph wandering around, and begin to plot how to kill him. “Throw him in the pit, says Reuben.” Of course being the oldest, he will take the heat for the killed Joseph, he tries to set up a sub-plot to rescue Joseph later. Nope – Joseph has to get to Egypt. Sold into slavery [20 shekels of silver, not even the full price of a slave 30] none other than the Midianites [aka Abraham’s second marriage – Genesis 25]  who in-turn sell him to Potiphar’s household. Mean while, the brothers kill a goat, smear the blood on the “favorite” coat and present it to Jacob as proof that Joseph has been killed by an animal. Now think of the hatred present in the story – there is no remorse or guilt by any of the brothers. They’re glad to be rid of the little creep!

Picking up the story again in Genesis 39, Joseph is in the palace so to speak, and the repeated phrase “and the LORD was with Joseph.” It works out that everything Joseph does turns to success. He is elevated to high positions not once, but three times in his life. Oh, there is Potiphar’s wife – she really wants Joseph in a sexual way. They say there is nothing worse than a woman scorned – Joseph being a handsome dude, she intends to add him to her conquests. Nope – Joseph might be a braggart, and a spoiled child, but he does have scruples and morals – he will not sin against his master, and more importantly against God. Just as the brothers got their opportunity to get back at Joseph, so does this scorned woman – out from under his clothes he runs, but still winds up in jail. I found it interesting that the wife blames her husband for the “alleged” attack. Well, in jail, Joseph is raised to “bossman” for God was with him. The Cup-bearer and Baker have dreams. These dreams are interpreted by Joseph. [Sort of reminds you of Daniel, and his elevation during Nebuchadnezzar’s reign] The Baker will die, the Cup-bearer will live, Joseph only asks, don’t forget me down here! Hum, do good and get forgotten.  At this point I am sure all of us would be a bit ticked and sour about how life is treating us. Thus far Joseph is innocent, all he has done is have dreams and interpret dreams. Yet he has been sold by his brothers, framed by a woman and forgotten by a freed man. BUT; God was with Joseph!  Will we rest in the fact that Jesus is with us, even when all is a mess? Out of favor with man, but in favor with God.

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February 17, 2017 · 11:49 pm

Runners, Rascals and Rivers

Genesis 28 has Jacob running from his brother Esau who has just been tricked by Jacob and his mother. Through some deceptive help of his mother Rebekah, Jacob escapes with the Birthright and Blessing of the Promised family. As a runner I have found that you can run as long as you want, eventually you will tire out and be caught.  For me it was unwilling to accept what the Lord had told me for 15 years – I was being called to the ministry. I fought it and ran from it but in 1994 after becoming completely exhausted with “playing” christian, submitted to the Father. It was a great day and burden lifting experience. Jacob on his running to Laban, encounters Yahweh at a place to be named later as Bethel. We know the story as Jacob’s Ladder. Remember at this point Jacob is lost, really lost. He has heard from grandpa Abraham, and listened to Isaac talk about God and His amazing acts – yet has not known Him. The Heavenly Father, repeats the Promise that has been passed down from the last two generations, now given to him. Jacob isn’t even remotely close to being ready to be “put in the ministry.” It will be some 20 years before Jacob submits to the Lord.  In Genesis 28: 18-22, it sounds like Jacob is playing “Let’s Make a Deal” with God. The very words Jacob states will come back to him. At this point God is the God of Abraham and Isaac, but not His God. In the next few chapters we run into the rascal Laban and his basket of tricks and deception. Over the next 20 years, Jacob works for two women, of which only Rachel does he want. At the end of the “courting process” Jacob has four [4] women and 12 children, 11 boys and Dinah.  Jacob should have learned his lesson, when he woke up with the wrong woman on his wedding night! Laban will prove to be a formidable challenger as far as tricks are concerned. So after 20 years – Jacob runs some more, this time from his present position to his past. The encounter with Esau, who at times really seems to be the victim, lest we forget Hebrews 12:16; both men are rich with resources. Jacob fears for his life and set up stages of goats, camels, kids and wives in front of himself – still the “shameful coward” to face his sins. Jacob tricks Esau again, telling him he will follow behind later, and send Esau on his way. Of course I would be remiss if I didn’t at least mention the poor parenting of Jacob in the dealings with Shechem and Dinah ordeal. Even though Dinah had been knowing raped, Jacob kept silent – however the sons could not let it go. Through a painful circumcision and then slaughtered while recovering, Simeon and Levi avenge their sister Dinah. Back to the River  – hearing from God this time, Jacob goes to Bethel, where he first encountered Yahweh.  Crossing rivers, Jacob comes to Bethel again, this time he is an active participant in the dealing – he wrestles with God, and gets crippled in the process. What a point – all of us wrestle with God, and having wrestled with Him – our Walk will be changed from that day forward!At least there is a respect for God now, Jacob tells his entourage to “put away your foreign gods, purify yourself  and change your clothes [ same statement Naomi tells Ruth to do before meeting Boaz in Ruth 3]. Final the runner is no longer the Rascal, instead of running from God, he is running TO GOD. On the plain of Paddan-aram, the trickster Jacob becomes Israel. A name change because of a personality and heart change. Just as Abraham became God’s man of blessing, now Israel is the conduit of blessing to all people’s. Tell you the truth I would not have chosen Jacob! But then again he probably wouldn’t have chosen me; but both of us have been chosen by the Father! It is a sad time, for just as Jacob [Israel] gets right with the Father, he loses his beloved Rachel in child-birth of Benjamin. The 12 Tribes are now complete – but what a cost. At the end of this section, the Runner has Run, the Rascal has met his challenge, and the Rivers have wound around to bring the weary traveler back to the Promised Land. Changed, weary, and blessed.  More parenting problems next week.

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February 11, 2017 · 8:34 pm

Lies and Deception

Genesis is quite an interesting book – in that it is the first book of the Bible and holds some many intriguing stories of early mankind adds to its uniqueness. If I was writing the Bible, there are definitely certain stories I would leave out – frankly they are very embarrassing. Yet Our Heavenly Father has seen fit to expose mankind for who he really is – both the good and the bad. The stories of failure to honor God is one thing, but the way humanity treats each other is appalling.  Looking back we find that jealousy caused Cain to kill his brother, then play games with God about the very act he did. “Am I my brothers keeper?” It reminds me of the many times that I was caught doing some sort of mischievous act and got caught, needless to say I tried to lie and finagle my way out of doing anything wrong – it didn’t work for me and it still doesn’t work with God! In our reading this week we are confronted with the repeated sins/rebellion from previous generations. Like it or not our children learn to do our wrongs, rather than our rights. Early on we find that Isaac lies about Rebekah being his wife because he is afraid of being killed by none other than the same Abimelech that Abraham lied to about Sarah. Technically Abraham was right when he said Sarah was his sister [half-sister], but Isaac just plain lied. I wondered what King Abimelech thought about the Hebrews and their lying? Just as Abraham listened to Sarah and took and had a child by Hagar, and all the problems that caused, we find that Isaac is very passive in his position as husband and father. Rebekah is the strong one in the family. Isaac seems to be only interested in satisfying his appetite for venison stew! The deceit that is evident between Isaac and Rebekah shows up in the lives of Esau and Jacob. Obviously each parent is guilty of favoritism. Isaac loves Esau, probably a burly type of man; whereas Rebekah loves Jacob, a definite “Mamma’s boy.” Sad part about the Esau/Jacob saga is that these men were 40 years old! I know that Jacob is a trickster, but where did he learn this? He isn’t innocent, but his mother sure is an accomplice.  It is her suggestion after hearing the plans of Isaac to bless Esau [which was right] to put into motion her plan to get “Her boy” blessed instead. I know that God was in this from the point that Jacob was the choice for Israelite nation to come; but the way it was done is outright wrong. Jacob lies over and over, he fears being caught, and Rebekah says she will take the blame. I really can’t help think that Isaac knew what was going on, but rather than resist, he goes along with it. Talk about your dysfunctional family! When the ploy is accomplished, here comes Esau – the brunt of the plan. I wondered about Isaac a lot, he acted like he was going to die within a few months, Isaac lived another 80 years! Did he not regard his privileged place in the plan of God very high? Could Esau have gotten his character trait from this ambivalence? [Hebrews 12:16] Well, Esau is coming after Jacob to kill him, quick Isaac send Jacob to my brother – Bethuel! Rebekah lost both boys on the same day. She never saw her beloved Jacob again.  When Jacob gets to Haran, he runs into Laban – long story for a future time, but Rebekah and Laban are two peas in a pod! On the way, Jacob who is just as lost and Esau has an encounter with God – Bethel becomes a prominent place in the future, God extends the promises made to Abraham and Isaac to Jacob – then we get a “Let’s Make a Deal” remark from Jacob – “If you will ______” then you will be My God. Why is it we are like this even today – we try to bargain with God? God is obviously with Jacob, he winds up with 12 children from four women and is subjected to the “tricks” of his uncle Laban. Jacob has not met his match in Laban, this next week we will see that the cycle of lies, deception and trickery continues in the first family of Israel. The moral of the stories is this – bad parenting results in continued cycle of rebellious prodigal children – true then true today!

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February 3, 2017 · 8:33 pm

All In The family

In our reading this week, we have the Promised Child – Isaac being born, and end with Isaac and Rebekah having twins in Esau and Jacob. It is interesting when we look at the way some traits of the family keep being repeated by subsequent generations. many of the actions that Abraham did, were repeated by Isaac, and then Jacob or Esau. I guess the apple doesn’t fall too far from the tree. After the man-made attempt to have an heir through Hagar – resulting in the conflicting problems with Ishmael. For those that may not know – Ishmael and the 12 princes from his ancestry, are the Arab nations. The fighting still is ongoing for the Promised Land. The Palestinians are still trying to get the “Blessing” of the first-born of Abraham. The Arabs and Islam follow the Bible, but only as far as the line of Abraham – if you read the Koran, you’ll find the departure point is with Abraham. The nations will continue to fight for the “and rights” until the end of the age. The familial relationship of Abraham and Sarah finds a cycle in Isaac and Rebekah. Just as Sarah detested Hagar/Ishmael and favored her son, so we find a divided family with Rebekah favoring Jacob and Isaac favoring Esau. Families divided as a constant source of conflict, especially later with siblings. It must be said that often, parents will live out their own dreams through the lives of their children, instead of letting the children be who they’re suppose to be. Jacob repeats the family cycle in that he loves Rachel and Joseph and Benjamin, much to the chagrin of Leah and the other 10 brothers.  Now there is quite a “family” connection with who they married. Abraham marries his half-sister. Nahor marries his brother’s [Haran] daughter [Niece], who in-turn births Bethuel and Rebekah to Nahor through Micah.  Rebekah becomes the wife of Isaac – yes he marries his cousin. It doesn’t stop there, Jacob marries his two cousins as well, for he Isaac marries his uncle’s daughters. Whew – sounds complicated – but there was such a mandate that the family not inter-marry with the people of the Canaanite tribes. [Esau I guess didn’t get that memo – he married outside the family lines and infuriated Rebekah, which is why she made Jacob go visit her brother Laban]  Something in our reading – we find that in Genesis 25 – Abraham remarries, has five more sons, but they are not included in the line with Isaac. One of the boys was Midian, we find that is who Joseph’s brothers sold him to in slavery later. Also Moses’ father-in-law was the Priest of Midian. The family connections just keep growing! I find it interesting that Laban shows his true colors early on – when the servant of Abraham goes to find a wife, Laban takes great notice of the gold jewelry that was given to Rebekah. Something of a character trait we will find later when he tricks Jacob with the wives and the sheep and goat herds. Lest we forget Laban is an idolater.  Remember his daughter Rachel takes her father’s idol, and he comes looking for it. Anyway when we look at all the shenanigans of the Abraham family – it can make one wonder, why in the world did God chose them!? Well the answer is very simple – the Faith of one man – Abraham was found to be pleasing to Yahweh and God chose him to bless him and build a great nation. None of us are perfect, but God chooses us to love us and show forth great blessings – albeit undeserved. I believe that God is looking for some “faith” people to use just as He used Abraham to do great things. The point is simple – God will use the faith of a single person to do great and mighty things – will you be that one that God will use to impact the generations?

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