O.T. Preaching, Copyrighted by Author

Beginnings, Pt. 1: "Something Out of Nothing" (Gen 1)

2007-09-22T23:15:00.001-07:00

BEGINNINGS

INTRODUCTION
Genesis is a universal, historical, and theological account of God, his creation and man. The new is as old as the Bible, the more things change the more they remain the same, whatever will be has been, and there is nothing new under the sun. People repeat themselves tediously, predictably, and laughably. Chapters 1-11 talk about who God is, what He did, and why he did it.

SOMETHING OUT OF NOTHING (GENESIS 1: 1-2:3)
One day a group of scientists got together and decided that man had come a long way and no longer needed God. So they picked one scientist to go and tell Him that they were done with Him.

The scientist walked up to God and said “God, we’ve decided that we no longer need you; We’re to the point that we can clone people and do many miraculous things, so why don’t You just go and get lost.”

God listened very patiently and kindly to the man. After the scientist was done talking, God said, “Very well, how about this? Let’s say we have a man-making contest.” To which the scientist replied, “Okay, great!”

But, God added, “Now we’re going to do this just like I did back in the old days with Adam.” The scientist said, “Sure, no problem” and bent down and grabbed himself a handful of dirt. God looked at him and said, “No, no, no. You go get your own dirt.”

God is omnipotent, omniscient, and omnipresent. The world that God created is beautiful, rich, and matchless. It’s a wonderful world, a strange planet, and an earthly paradise. The song, “It's a Small, Small World” expresses this thought:
“It’s a world of laughter, a world of tears.
It's a world of hope, and a world of fears.
There's so much that we share
And it's time we're aware it's a small world after all.”

How did God create the world? What did He supply it with? And why did He give life to man?

God Ordered the World from Chaos to Creation
1:1 In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. 2 Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters. 3 And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. 4 God saw that the light was good, and he separated the light from the darkness. 5 God called the light “day,” and the darkness he called “night.” And there was evening, and there was morning--the first day. (Gen 1:1-5)
On day one of creation, God created the light, and God saw that the light was good (1:4) - the word “good” is repeated daily – once for each day, no more, no less (Gen 1:4, 10 , 12, 18, 21 , 25). The world is suited for us, its properties are jarring, and the conditions are right.

Encyclopedia Britannica says that the earth is a terrestrial body whose solid surface, abundant waters, and oxygen-rich atmosphere have combined to create conditions suitable for life…The Earth is a nearly spherical body with an equatorial radius of slightly more than 6,378 kilometers (3,963 miles)…The Earth's magnetic field shields the planet from the most direct effects of the ionized gas that constitutes the solar wind, carving out a cavity known as the magnetosphere.
http://www.britannica.com/bcom/eb/article/4/0,5716,108974+1,00.html

Earth’s enormous size keeps it from losing its interior heat so that it remains geologically active. Its density provided enough gravity to hold onto a substantial atmosphere and a large ocean. Its distance from the sun, around 93 million miles, keeps the earth at an average temperature with which life can exist - between the freezing and boiling points of water. If it’s too hot, we become barbecue; too cold, we become Popsicles.

The 23.5 degrees tilt of its axis gives earth her seasons. We can go surfing and scuba-diving in the summer, and skiing and skating in the winter, slipping and sliding all the way.

The earth spins around like a top. It is like a huge spaceship rushing through space at about 60,000 miles per hour. (Understanding the Earth 8, Tom Williamson Morristown, NJ/Macmillan Publishers Limited/84).

Without the Creator, everything was chaos: “the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep” (v 2). It was without shape or content, distinctiveness or quality, time or space – unshaped, uninhabited and unruly. We call this “chaos” – disorder, discord or disaster.

Without God, the earth is a place of darkness, disarray, decay, death and destruction. But God called creation good after he placed His signature on it. Derek Kidner says, “God knows nothing of either conflict or chance in this: only of the watchful Creator who assigns to everything its value (4a), place (4b) and meaning (5a) (Derek Kidner, Genesis 47, Tyndale Old Testament Commentary, IVP).

How did God create the world? He spoke the word and it came into order. He did not invent the world from something – that’s left to man; He created the world out of nothing. Man discovers; God creates. Colossians 1:17 tells us that the Son of God holds all things together, all things were created by him and for him (Col 1:16-17). God the Holy Spirit hovers like a dove over the surface of the deep, searches all things (1 Cor 2:10), and renews the face of the earth (Ps 104:30).

God Ordered the World from Creation to Completion
26 Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, in our likeness, and let them rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air, over the livestock, over all the earth, and over all the creatures that move along the ground.” 27 So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them. 28 God blessed them and said to them, “Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air and over every living creature that moves on the ground.” 29 Then God said, “I give you every seed-bearing plant on the face of the whole earth and every tree that has fruit with seed in it. They will be yours for food. 30 And to all the beasts of the earth and all the birds of the air and all the creatures that move on the ground--everything that has the breath of life in it--I give every green plant for food.” And it was so. 31 God saw all that he had made, and it was very good. And there was evening, and there was morning--the sixth day. 2:1 Thus the heavens and the earth were completed in all their vast array. (Gen 1:26-31)

What was God’s last declaration about his creation after He made man (1:31)? And how was it different from what He said when he made other created beings (1:25)? God said “very good” when He created man. He rested after that. The creation of man was the crowning achievement of God. He was His grand design, His magnum opus, His crowning achievement, a work of love and the object of His affection. The creation of man completed God’s work and aspiration.

Someone once coined the word “The human machine” in reference to man.
The human brain is the most highly developed in the animal kingdom
http://www.britannica.com/bcom/eb/article/9/0,5716,42389+2+41468,00.html
We have 75 trillion cells of some 200 different types of cells in our body.
http://www.britannica.com/bcom/eb/article/9/0,5716,42389+2+41468,00.html

Our DNA, fingerprints, and looks are all different from one another.

And on an average day, you eat 3 1/4 pounds of food, perspire 1.43 pints, and drink 2.9 pounds of liquid. You turn in your sleep 25-30 times, move 750 major muscles, breathe 23,040 times, and speak 25,000-30,000 words. Your heart beats 103,689 times, you exercise 7,000,000 brain cells, and your blood travels 168,000,000 miles.

Being made in God's image (1:27) means that man is a spiritual being. Man has a religious nature - he is created for a relationship with God (Rev 4:11). God has given us communicable godly characteristics of love, truth, wisdom, holiness, and justice. St. Augustine said, “You have made us for yourself, O Lord, and our hearts are restless until they find their rest in you.”

Man is also a relational being - male and female he created them (1:27). God intends us to have a healthy respect for our own bodies, one another, and the opposite sex. Man as male and female are coupled to each other, complementing of each other, and find comfort in each another.

Man is also a responsible being. He is to rule over creation. Man is described as in nature and over nature, continuous with it and discontinuous with it (Derek Kidner, Genesis 50, Tyndale Old Testament Commentary, IVP). Man is not like animals, rocks, or trees, but we are not unlike them because we are part of creation, and, definitely, we ought not mistreat any created being.

God Ordered the World from Completion to Commission
2 By the seventh day God had finished the work he had been doing; so on the seventh day he rested from all his work. 3 And God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it he rested from all the work of creating that he had done. (Gen 2:1-3)

God commissioned the seventh day as a sanctified day, a day to rest our bodies and to separate ourselves unto God (2:2-3). Rest does not mean relaxation, inactivity or sleep, but to be still, to cease from toil or strive or work, especially in order to regain one's energy.

It is a holy day, not a holiday or an hour of extra sleep, a day of fun-filled festivity, or a long weekend’s holiday. It is a day consecrated to God, set apart for the worship of the Creator, and observed in the house of the Lord.

Rabbi Sidney Greenberg distinguishes a holy day from a holiday:
On holidays we run away from duties,
On holy days we face up to them.
On holidays we let ourselves go,
On holy days we bring ourselves under control.
On holidays we try to empty our minds,
On holy days we attempt to replenish our spirits.
On holidays we reach out for things we want,
On holy days we reach up for things we need.
One brings a change of scene, the other a change of heart.
One pampers our bodies, the other nourishes and challenges our soul.

A person who is rested is good for another day, the daily grind and the week ahead. He recovers his composure and maintains his edge and benefits his family. All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy. A weekend of play makes us dread Mondays. Real rest means time for reflecting on God, reviewing your personal life, and renewing our body, mind, soul and spirit.

Conclusion: God made the world for you and me. His creation is not from something, but from nothing; it is not simply creating something, but creating something good. Without God all is chaos, man is incomplete, and life is impossible. Ray Stedman said: God is absolutely necessary for the completeness of life. Without God you cannot understand the world around you. You can't understand yourself or your neighbor or God himself. You will never have any answers without God, but if you have fallen away or excluded God and found misery and heartache and darkness and futility and emptiness and boredom - all the things that are a result of man attempting to live without him, Genesis declares that if you return on the principle of faith in God you will find help, spiritual health, and happiness, in every realm of life. http://pbc.org/dp/stedman/adventure/0201.html

God’s creation reveals His mighty power at work, His wondrous order of things, and His loving kindness to man. So let us live our lives thankfully, orderly, usefully, creatively, and humbly as a response to His greatness and goodness.

Beginnings, Pt. 2: "The Sky is the Limit" (Gen 2)

2007-09-22T23:08:00.000-07:00

THE SKY IS THE LIMIT (GENESIS 2:1-25)
In March 1997, Dolly of Scotland made headline news. Who was Dolly? Dolly was a sheep. Scientists from the Roslin Institute in Scotland, who have tried for more than 10 years to clone a sheep from a single adult cell, produced Dolly after 277 failed attempts. Times magazine said Dolly “is a carbon copy, a laboratory counterfeit so exact that she is in essence her mother's identical twin.” (The Age of Cloning” 3/10/97 J. Madeline Nash) The truth is that Dolly is technically more likely her clone’s sister than twin or kid.

Genesis 1 tells us that God created the world out of chaos. Man was incomplete without God, and he is the crown, the climax, and the centerpiece of God's creation. Everything God created was good, but creation was only complete with man. What He saw as “good” before now had become “very good.” (1:31)

In God’s design and by His devise, the sky was the limit for man. The possibilities were boundless, and nothing was beyond his reach. St. Augustine said, “Man wonders over the restless sea, the flowing water and the sight of the sky - and forgets that of all wonders Man himself is the most wonderful.”

How is man “very good”? How is he the center of God’s creation? Why did God lavish on man and reserve for him the best things in life?

Man is a Physical and Spiritual Being
Thus the heavens and the earth were completed in all their vast array.
2 By the seventh day God had finished the work he had been doing; so on the seventh day he rested from all his work. 3 And God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it he rested from all the work of creating that he had done. 4 This is the account of the heavens and the earth when they were created. When the LORD God made the earth and the heavens-- 5 and no shrub of the field had yet appeared on the earth and no plant of the field had yet sprung up, for the LORD God had not sent rain on the earth and there was no man to work the ground, 6 but streams came up from the earth and watered the whole surface of the ground-- 7 the LORD God formed the man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being. (Gen 2:1-7)

First, you and I are physical and spiritual beings. We are not heavenly creatures. God did not make us from star dust, moon beams, or meteor showers. Man is dust from the ground, soil, or in the “Fiddler on the Roof” expression: “a worthless lump of clay.” At the end of life three things await physical humanity: disease, death, and dust (in that order).

Do you know what else comes out from the ground (2:19)? Animals! So man, in a sense, is comparable to an animal.

There was a Jewish story about a king who tested Elijah the prophet with two questions. The first was: “Why was man created?” Elijah responded: “The only reason that He made man was that he serve Him with all his heart, so that He should take pleasure in him and in the generations that spring from his loins until then end of days.”

“Why did the Almighty create reptiles?” was the second question. Again Elijah said, “When man procreated and his number became great he began to worship the sun and stones and wooden idols. From day to day the sinfulness of man had been mounting so that he deserved death and greatly tried God's patience.

At that point God looked upon all creatures He had created in the world and said: ‘Men have life and these creatures have life. Men have souls and these creatures have souls. Men eat and drink and these creatures eat and drink. Therefore, men too are animals and are no better than the reptiles that I have created.’

Immediately thereafter the Almighty's wrath subsided and he withheld his hand from destroying mankind. From this therefore, you can see that God created the reptiles, so that He would have some creatures with which to compare man and shame him unto humility.”

William Jenkyn says with wit, “Our father was Adam, our grandfather dust, our great-grandfather nothing.”

However, we are more than dust and we differ significantly from animals. How are we like and unlike animals (2:7, 19)? By the way, animals possessed the breath of life (Gen 7:15, 22), too, but God Himself breathed into man’s nostrils the breath of life (2:7). God has put His spirit and breath in us (Job 34:14-15). Man has a longing for the Creator - in Him we live and move and have our being (Acts 17:28).

As spiritual beings, we long to know our Creator, our origin and our destiny. Animals have no desire to know, worship or serve their Creator. Peanuts’ Snoopy the dog one day looked down to the ground with his head hanging from his doghouse. He then sat up and around, and finally lied flat on his back, thinking to himself: “My life has no purpose...My life has no direction...no aim...no meaning...And yet I'm happy..I can't figure it out...What am I doing right?”

Man is a Diligent and an Intelligent Being
15 The LORD God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it. 16 And the LORD God commanded the man, "You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; 17 but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat of it you will surely die." 18 The LORD God said, "It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper suitable for him." 19 Now the LORD God had formed out of the ground all the beasts of the field and all the birds of the air. He brought them to the man to see what he would name them; and whatever the man called each living creature, that was its name. 20 So the man gave names to all the livestock, the birds of the air and all the beasts of the field. But for Adam no suitable helper was found. (Gen 2:15-20)

Was work a punishment for man’s fall? European folk legends describe Eden as a place of milk and honey and free from work. Daniel T. Rogers, a Princeton University historian says that to Europeans “to work was to do something wearisome and painful, scrabbling in the stubborn soil. It was the mark of man entrapped by necessity, and thus men who were not wholly free.” (Los Angeles Times 9/17/92).

A friend of mine in Australia told me that people flock to the beach on the weekends, towing their boats, and no money on earth can persuade them to work.

Man’s distaste for work is articulated by this bumper sticker question I saw: “Is it Friday yet?” Another states: “Born to Sing, Forced to Work.”

No, man has to work (2:8-9, 15). Work is not the outcome of sin; it was not optional. The garden of Eden was paradise, with a lavish garden (2:8), scenic trees (2:9), rippling rivers and streams (2:10), and precious stones (2:12). Man had almost everything, but yet work was a way of life in God's original plan.

A 58-year old woman said this: “A marriage can survive almost anything except the husband staying home all day.” (Live and Learn 137)

Why work? In working, we seek to realize our potential, we learn to relate to others and we repay God by our service.

Man is also an intelligent being. God did not create a robot. Man has the right to choose. Obedience or disobedience is an alternative; however, the latter brings serious consequences. God created a person. By definition, a person has “personality,” a mind of his or her own.

God placed His confidence in man, gave him the freedom to choose, but warned him to favor what is right. So you and I today are expected to ponder over things, prioritize the options, and pick the right choice. Some things are forbidden, some areas are optional, but man’s task is to decide what is fitting and do the right thing.

Moreover, naming animals (v 19) was a difficult task: “Now the LORD God had formed out of the ground all the beasts of the field and all the birds of the air. He brought them to the man to see what he would name them; and whatever the man called each living creature, that was its name.”

For example, do you know the difference between a crocodile and an alligator; a turtle and a tortoise; a frog and a toad? I discovered the difference from a child’s book! A crocodile has a long triangle head but an alligator has a flat broad head. The teeth of a crocodile are visible on the outside of the mouth, but only the upper teeth of an alligator are on the outside.

Tortoises usually live on land or in fresh water. They have legs and were known to run against rabbits in children’s books. Turtles, on the other hand, usually live in salt water and have flippers for swimming.

Toads have dry skin and can be found far from water, but frogs have smooth moist skin and live close to water.

Man is an Emotional and a Relational Being
21 So the LORD God caused the man to fall into a deep sleep; and while he was sleeping, he took one of the man's ribs and closed up the place with flesh. 22 Then the LORD God made a woman from the rib he had taken out of the man, and he brought her to the man. 23 The man said,
"This is now bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called 'woman,' for she was taken out of man." 24 For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and they will become one flesh. 25 The man and his wife were both naked, and they felt no shame. (Gen 2:21-25)

Before woman was created, things did not look good for man or quite right to him. Naming pairs and pairs of animals (2:18) made him aware of his missing half and it did nothing but doubled his misery and loneliness. Adam needed someone to do things with, to discuss things with, and to decide things with. Adam was busy with work meant for two people, surrounded by species not his type, and engaged in fellowship with God, but not on the same level.

So God gave Eve to Adam in the first marriage on earth (Matt 19:3-6). She was his helper; two was better than one. They were two bodies but one flesh, alike but unlike each other, uncovered but unashamed. Peter Lombard (in 1158) said, “Eve was not taken from the feet of Adam to be his slave, nor from his head to be his lord, but from his side to be his partner.” Man was the head, woman his spine, the neck, his soul mate. Note that the first ever words out of Adam’s mouth was a love poem to his other half and a romantic pining of how close they were and how alike and unlike they were (v 23).

Adam was the king, Eve was her queen; he was the man, she was his lady; and he is the head, and she was his side. She was his love and he was her life. The word man referred to male and female (1:27). The joint equation, and not one gender alone, was “very good” (1:31) - they were dependent on each other and devoted to each other. They loved, trusted, and supported each other.

A CEO noticed that the gas attendant and his wife were engaged in an animated conversation. The conversation stopped as he paid the attendant. But as he was getting back into the car, he saw the attendant wave and heard him, say, “It was great talking to you.”

As they drove out of the station, the CEO asked his wife if she knew the man. She readily admitted she did. They had gone to high school together and had dated steadily for about a year.

“Boy, were you lucky that I came along,” bragged the CEO. “If you had married him, you'd be the wife of a gas station attendant instead of the wife of a chief executive officer.”

“My dear,” replied his wife, “if I had married him, he'd be the chief executive officer and you'd be the gas station attendant.” (Bits and Pieces, 1/9/92)

The emotional need of man and wife were met in each other, but couples, like everyone else, need to learn how relate to family members, friends, and outsiders. The command to leave one’s parents was meant for us and not Adam and Eve; they were the first man and woman on earth and the first parents!

English poet John Donne said these memorable words: “No man is an island, entire of itself; every man is a piece of the continent, a part of the main.”

Conclusion: God has given us a lot, but He asked from us one thing – that we obey Him. God’s providence for man includes healthy fellowship with God, guidelines on positive living, and good relations with others.

Do you appreciate what God has done for you? Do you challenge your mind, discipline your body, and excel in tasks? God did not intend for us to be couch potatoes. It’s been said, “A mind is a terrible thing to waste.” Some of you may turn out to be doctors, engineers, and teachers. Whether in the arts, science or other operations, the Chinese say, “An official emerges from every profession.”

Beginnings, Pt. 3: "The Greatest Danger in the World (Gen 3)

2007-09-22T23:07:00.000-07:00

THE GREATEST DANGER IN THE WORLD (GENESIS 3:1-24)
When I was in Chicago for continuing education, my cousin and his wife bought a box of chocolates for snacks. The chocolates were not popular buys like See’s Candies, Hawaiian Mauna Loa or Godiva. They were inexpensive, purchased from a nearby wholesale supermarket. The brand name was not catchy either.

Chocolates are bad for me. They make my throat dry and I literally get sick. Though I declared to my cousin my indifference to chocolates, I could not take my eyes off the box the next few days every time I passed it, especially as they lay neglected on the kitchen.

The more I laid my eyes on the chocolates, the more I was drawn to the smooth texture, exquisite packaging, and direct come-ons. What contested my resistance was the shiny clear plastic box, with almond shavings topping the chocolates, and the wickedly tempting label: “The Elegantly Sinful Sweet Chocolates.”

Finally I caved in! Worse, to my disappointment at my great sacrifice, I discovered they were just ordinary fare, the usual standard chocolates. They were not any tastier, newer, or fancier than others I had eaten.

Genesis 3 introduces the doctrine of original sin, the downfall of man, and God’s divine grace. Man was with God and had a comfortable home. Everything he did was prim and proper and praiseworthy. The bar was, however, raised when he wanted to be like God, not just to be with God. He was promised infinity and beyond, and he began to resent rules and regulations and regimen.

In this passage, we learn of Satan’s tricks, man’s troubles and God’s provision for sinful man. Temptation is not sin. God tempts no one (Jas 1:13), and man does have a way out of temptation (1 Cor 10:13). What strategy does the devil use? Why do our troubles grow when we submit to temptation? And how is God faithful to His children in their transgressions?

Satan Deceives Believers and Sows a Trail of Discontentment
3:1 Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the LORD God had made. He said to the woman, "Did God really say, 'You must not eat from any tree in the garden'?" 2 The woman said to the serpent, "We may eat fruit from the trees in the garden, 3 but God did say, 'You must not eat fruit from the tree that is in the middle of the garden, and you must not touch it, or you will die.'"
4 "You will not surely die," the serpent said to the woman. 5 "For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil." 6 When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it. 7 Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they realized they were naked; so they sewed fig leaves together and made coverings for themselves. (Gen 3:1-7)

A salesman circled a building block for a long time before he ran out of patience and, in exasperation, parked his car illegally in a no-parking zone. Fearing he would get a ticket, he left this note just in case a policeman might come along: “I’ve circled this block twenty times. I have an appointment and I must keep it or I will lose my job. Forgive us of our trespasses!”

Upon returning, his worst fears were realized. He found this note on his car: “I’ve circled this block for twenty years. If I don’t give you a ticket, I’ll lose my job. Lead us not into temptation!”

Satan’s most dangerous tool is deception. The devil is a tempter (1 Thess 3:5), a liar (John 8:44) and an accuser (Rev 12:10). He is crafty (3:1) and he uses words, images and insinuations to entice God’s people. Someone said, “Sin as a caterpillar is dangerous, but sin as a butterfly is a thousand times worse” (Megiddo Message).

Do you know a question is a double-edged sword? A question has the potential to make a person think positively or negatively and make an individual improve or imagine things. The first question in the Bible was a seductive lie, not a quest for truth. It opened a can of worms for Eve.

The first lie of the ancient serpent, also known as the devil, or Satan (Rev 12:9), was in the form of a negative question. God's original command to Adam was put in the positive form, then followed by a negative prohibition: “You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat of it you will surely die.” (Gen 2:16-17).

However, Eve foolishly added to God’s word: “You must not touch it, or you will die.” (3:2-3) The serpent began, in verse 2, by contradicting God’s word in the form of a question (“Did God really say, `You must not eat from any tree in the garden'?”), but Eve changed God's word by adding the word “touch,” and dropping the important word “surely” (“ you must not touch it, or you will die”), and so she played right into Satan’s hand and became an unwitting captive to Satan’s first outright lie: “You will not surely die” (3:4), teasing her: “No way! Absolutely not! Not possible! You will see far and wide, rule heaven and earth, and know truth from error!”

The devil appeals to our physical senses, inner pride and human judgment to snare us. He pounds on our ignorance, vanity and pride. Entertaining him makes us vulnerable, foolish and weak.

Man Disobeys God and Reaps a Whirlwind of Destruction
7 Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they realized they were naked; so they sewed fig leaves together and made coverings for themselves. 8 Then the man and his wife heard the sound of the LORD God as he was walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and they hid from the LORD God among the trees of the garden. 9 But the LORD God called to the man, "Where are you?" 10 He answered, "I heard you in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; so I hid." 11 And he said, "Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten from the tree that I commanded you not to eat from?" 12 The man said, "The woman you put here with me--she gave me some fruit from the tree, and I ate it." 13 Then the LORD God said to the woman, "What is this you have done?" The woman said, "The serpent deceived me, and I ate." 14 So the LORD God said to the serpent, "Because you have done this, "Cursed are you above all the livestock and all the wild animals! You will crawl on your belly and you will eat dust all the days of your life. 15 And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel." 16 To the woman he said, "I will greatly increase your pains in childbearing; with pain you will give birth to children. Your desire will be for your husband, and he will rule over you." 17 To Adam he said, "Because you listened to your wife and ate from the tree about which I commanded you, 'You must not eat of it,' "Cursed is the ground because of you; through painful toil you will eat of it all the days of your life. 18 It will produce thorns and thistles for you, and you will eat the plants of the field. 19 By the sweat of your brow you will eat your food until you return to the ground, since from it you were taken; for dust you are and to dust you will return." (Gen 3:7-19)

Disobedience is like releasing the genie that has no intention to return to the bottle.

A man came to a rabbi and said, “Oh Rabbi, I have done wrong. I have slandered my friend. I have told lies about him. I have spread rumors. But now I am sorry for what I have done and what I have said. I've gone to my friend to tell him how sorry I am and ask his forgiveness. And out of the goodness of his heart, he has forgiven me. But now I have to seek forgiveness from God for breaking His commandments. So I've come to you, my teacher, to ask: How can I be forgiven by God for slandering and gossiping about my friend?”

The rabbi looked thoughtfully at the man, and then he asked, “Do you see that feather pillow over there on my bed? Take that pillow and go into the center of town, into the town square, and cut the pillow open and let all the feathers fly to the wind. That will be your punishment for what you have done, for all the ill words you have spoken.”

The man was quite puzzled by the rabbi's instructions, but he did just as he was told. He took the feathers pillow to the center of town, cut it open, and watched the feathers fly away in the wind. Then he returned to the rabbi and said, “I've done just as you told me. I took the feather pillow to the center of town, cut it opened, and watched the feathers fly to the wind. Now I am forgiven for slandering and gossiping about my friend?”

The rabbi replied, “No, you are not forgiven yet. For you have only fulfilled half your task. First you let the feathers fly to the wind. Now go out and collect every feather that flew away.” (From “The Business Bible” by Rabbi Wayne Dosick, Bits and Pieces 7/12/96)

The greatest danger facing man today is not the threat of AIDS, a nuclear meltdown, a computer glitch, or weapons of mass destruction, but the deceitfulness of sin. The promise of more money, better sex, powerful drugs, or intoxicating power are all damaging lies -- white lies, true lies, and, as some people naively call it, beautiful lies. The fallout from believing Satan’s lies was irreversible and irreparable. The curse man suffered was irrevocable. Sadly, he became the world’s most dangerous animal.

Sin inflicted a four-fold damage upon humanity: separation from God, inner conflict, disconnect from one another, and threat to creation. Adam and Eve thought they would be like God, but they discovered they were so different that their first instinct in the presence of God was to run and hide and disappear from His presence (3:9).

The man and woman also experienced something inside them they had not felt before (3:10): fear, mortification and panic. Inevitably, grief, hatred and anger followed (10). They hid from God, fudged over God’s three questions, and blamed the devil, using the ancient but lame “The devil made me do it” excuse (v 13)

Later, they discovered they no longer liked each other (vv 12-13). Three words described their relationship with each another: shame, blame, and game. They felt ashamed in the other’s company (3:7), then started blaming each other (3:12-13) and finally played the first unfriendly battle of the sexes game – a contest they carried on for the rest of their lives (3:16). They began to see faults, weaknesses and imperfections in each other and were willing to expose them, excuse themselves, and exploit each other. Mark Twain once said, “Of all the animals, man is the only one that is cruel. He is the only one that inflicts pain for the pleasure of doing it.”

Finally, work once considered valuable, reasonable and purposeful was now unrewarding, unsatisfactory, and unfulfilling (3:17-19). They would have to toil for a living. Little, if any, time was left for reflection, recreation, or relationships. Dominion over anything from now on is a memory, a struggle and a joke. They will get no satisfaction till they return to dust!

God Delivers His Children and Imparts a Glimmer of Hope
20 Adam named his wife Eve, because she would become the mother of all the living. 21 The LORD God made garments of skin for Adam and his wife and clothed them. 22 And the LORD God said, "The man has now become like one of us, knowing good and evil. He must not be allowed to reach out his hand and take also from the tree of life and eat, and live forever." 23 So the LORD God banished him from the Garden of Eden to work the ground from which he had been taken. 24 After he drove the man out, he placed on the east side of the Garden of Eden cherubim and a flaming sword flashing back and forth to guard the way to the tree of life. (Gen 3:20-24)

Satan thought that man was finished, but God intervened and His mercy triumphed over judgment. Adam and Eve experienced grace and hope in the midst of punishment.

My favorite Walt Disney movie of all time is Pinocchio. Pinocchio was the puppet who was given the gift of life by the blue fairy. The bewildered little wooden boy spoke: “I can move, I can talk, I can walk.” Then he asked the fairy: “Am I a real boy?” The fairy said, “Yes, Pinocchio. I’ve given you life. Prove yourself brave, truthful and unselfish, and someday you will be a real boy. You must learn to choose between right and wrong.”

The curious, impulsive and roving wooden boy, however, made the worst friends, visited the wrong places and lied through his nose. In the end, after a series of bad choices and a lot of bad company, Pinocchio recalled his father’s words, relied on his conscience Jiminy Cricket, and recovered to do right. There is a lot to like in Pinocchio’s adventure!

In spite of man’s fallen condition, God gave some measure of self-respect back to man. Eve had a new name, the mother of all the living. They will not experience immediate death but will live to see their children (3:20). God Himself clothed Adam and Eve. An animal was sacrificed to provide the garments - a preview of God's atonement for man’s sin.

The drama of world redemption was also set forth (vv 14-15). Satan would strike her (Eve) offspring’s heel, a strong reference to Satan’s opposition to the descendant of Eve that threatened his stronghold, but the woman's seed will strike a fatal blow to the snakehead - a compelling reference to the death of Jesus Christ (3:14-15).

This promise of a coming Redeemer is the heart of the Bible from now on. William Scroggie calls this “the unfolding drama of redemption.” The early church fathers call Genesis 3:15 “the first preaching of the gospel.” It is the clearest promise of the coming of a Redeemer.

The last compassionate thing God did for man was to expel them from Eden. Charles Ryrie suggests, “Driving Adam and Eve from the garden was both a punishment and an act of mercy, lest they should eat of the tree of life and live forever in a state of death and alienation.”

Conclusion: The greatest danger in the world is sin, and our worst enemy is ourselves. God is good, kind, and merciful. He forgives, redeems and loves lost sinners. Sin and death entered the world through one man, yet death came to all men because all sinned (Rom 5:12-14), but God’s showed his righteousness to sinners through Jesus Christ: “For as in Adam all die, so in Christ all will be made alive” (1 Cor 15:21-23). The first man Adam was a perishable, weak and physical being who returned to dust; but the last Adam, Jesus Christ, conquered death and rose from the grave, He has promised us an imperishable glorious spiritual body (1 Cor 15:44-46).

Have you sought, claimed and applied the righteousness of Christ? Do you count yourselves dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus (Rom 6:11)? Are you willing to seek God who is able to help you when you are tempted, when you stumble and when you have sinned?

Beginnings, Pt. 4: "Murder Most Foul" (Gen 4)

2007-09-22T23:05:00.001-07:00

MURDER MOST FOUL (GENESIS 4:1-18)
There is a beautiful Hebrew legend of how the location of the Jerusalem temple was determined. Two brothers lived side by side on adjoining lands in the past. One was the head of a large family, and the other lived alone. One night, the former lay awake and thought: “My brother lives alone, he has not the companionship of wife and children to cheer his heart as I have. While he sleeps, I will carry some of my sheaves into his field.”

At the same hour, the other brother reasoned: “My brother has a large family, and his necessities are greater than mine. As he sleeps, I will put some of my sheaves on his side of the field.” Thus the two brothers went out, each carrying out his purposes and each laden with sheaves, and met at the dividing line. There they cried and embraced each other. The place they met was the very spot the altar of the Jerusalem temple was placed years later (7,700 Illustrations # 3214, Paul Lee Tan).

Adam and Eve had two sons, Cain and Abel. The older Cain was a gardener and the younger was a shepherd. And Adam and Eve’s marital conflicts in Eden were taken up by Cain, who was outraged at Abel’s sacrifice. The first sin of man in the garden was disobedience against God, and the second was bloodshed against brother. It’s been said, “Sin never stands still- it always continues to grow.” The sin against God was, inevitably, spilled over to man.

Abel’s sacrifice was acceptable to God, Cain’s was not, and the outcome was jealousy and envy, anger and hatred, foul play and cover up. What did God see in Abel that was missing in Cain? Why was Abel commended as a righteous man? How should we approach God, please and dignify Him?

Sacrifice Your Gifts in Faith
4:1 Adam lay with his wife Eve, and she became pregnant and gave birth to Cain. She said, "With the help of the LORD I have brought forth a man." 2 Later she gave birth to his brother Abel. Now Abel kept flocks, and Cain worked the soil. 3 In the course of time Cain brought some of the fruits of the soil as an offering to the LORD. 4 But Abel brought fat portions from some of the firstborn of his flock. The LORD looked with favor on Abel and his offering, 5 but on Cain and his offering he did not look with favor. So Cain was very angry, and his face was downcast. 6 Then the LORD said to Cain, "Why are you angry? Why is your face downcast? 7 If you do what is right, will you not be accepted? But if you do not do what is right, sin is crouching at your door; it desires to have you, but you must master it." (Gen 4:1-7)

Cyrus, the founder of the old Persian Empire, once had captured a prince and his family. When they came before him, the monarch asked the prisoner, “What will you give me if I release you?” “I will give the half of my wealth,” was his reply.

“And if I release your children?” “Everything I possess.” “And if I release your wife?” “Your Majesty, I will even give of myself.”

Cyrus was so moved by his devotion that he freed them all. As they returned home, the prince said to his wife, “Wasn't Cyrus a handsome man! What impressive soldiers he had! Did you get a view of the big palace, the busy city, and the beautiful streets?”

With a look of deep love for her husband, she said to him, “I didn't notice. I could only keep my eyes on the one who was willing to sacrifice himself for me.” (Adapted from www.sermonillustrations.com “sacrifice”)

The single evident reason why Abel’s offering was pleasing to God is found in Hebrews 11:4: “By faith Abel offered God a better sacrifice than Cain did. By faith he was commended as a righteous man, when God spoke well of his offerings. And by faith he still speaks, even though he is dead.”

Abel’s sacrifice was better. He was considered a righteous man, and his deed was highly regarded because it was offered in faith. To sacrifice is to give something pleasant, pleasing and pleasurable completely to God. Abel on his own and decided by himself to offer fat portions from some of the firstborn of his flock. Fat portions do not mean lard! Abel gave the best of his first farm stock. Sacrificing any kind of animal requires skill, work, and strength. When offered in faith, it was a costly, bloody and holy sacrifice.

The younger Abel offered after Cain, but he did not follow in his older brother’s practice, and he had no idea what God said to Cain. Abel offered his gifts in faith, but the absence of faith is unbelief, which was how Cain offered. The word “believe” means “live by” - Cain did not live by what he offered. God expects us to live by what we offer, so He looked with favor on Abel and his offering, and not on Cain and his offering. Picking fruits require little effort, offering first fruits of the soil, and not just some fruits, did not even enter Cain’s mind, and receiving matching yield and getting just desserts for his budget gift made him upset.

Rabbi Simlai tracked the history of the commandments in the Bible and noted that Moses gave 613 commands - 365 yes’ and 248 no’s. King David then reduced them to eleven in Psalms 15, followed by the prophet Isaiah (33:14, 15) who condensed them to six, and later Micah 6:8 asked a question and shortened them to three: “What does the LORD require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.” The last of all, Habakkuk summarized them all to one, namely - “The righteous will live by his faith.” (Hab. 2:4) (7,700 Illustrations # 1495).

This is Paul’s thunderous message in Romans 1:17.

How was unbelief negatively manifested by Cain - inside, outside, and upside? Verse 5 says Cain was very angry. Cain was not just angry, or angry for just a moment, or angry for the right reason. He was very angry. Inside Cain was an intense, wild, fiery rage that would not die down.

On the outside, Cain had a drop dead face: his face was downcast The NASB said Cain’s countenance fell. Cain did not look good, his jaw had dropped, his face was sour and he could not recover when things did not fall into place.

The upside for Cain was that the Lord tried to talk him out of his rage (vv 6-7), even though it was in vain: “Then the LORD said to Cain, ‘Why are you angry? Why is your face downcast? If you do what is right, will you not be accepted? But if you do not do what is right, sin is crouching at your door; it desires to have you, but you must master it.”

In the words of Martin Luther, the famous church reformer: “You cannot stop the birds from flying over your head, but you can keep them from building a nest in your hair.” (Dallas Willard, Spirit of the Disciplines 117)

The foremost reason why Abel’s offering was pleasing to God was because it was offered in faith.

Show Love for Your Brother
8 Now Cain said to his brother Abel, "Let's go out to the field." And while they were in the field, Cain attacked his brother Abel and killed him. 9 Then the LORD said to Cain, "Where is your brother Abel?" "I don't know," he replied. "Am I my brother's keeper?" 10 The LORD said, "What have you done? Listen! Your brother's blood cries out to me from the ground. 11 Now you are under a curse and driven from the ground, which opened its mouth to receive your brother's blood from your hand. 12 When you work the ground, it will no longer yield its crops for you. You will be a restless wanderer on the earth."
(Gen 4:8-12)

When Leonardo do Vinci was working on his masterpiece “The Last Supper,” his biggest challenge was to paint the face of Jesus and the twelve apostles. Beginning with the apostles, he painted with joy, ease and interest. But when it came to Judas, mischief, resistance and vindictiveness came upon him. He thought long, hard and ill over Judas’ face, and remembered a guy he disliked, a man he hated and was still angry with.

The painter relished the opportunity to get back at him, decided that the time had come and used his enemy’s face gleefully, freely and triumphantly for the likeness of Judas. Happy with setting the record straight, he finally turned to paint Jesus’ face, but when he attempted to paint the face of Jesus, he failed. He tried a few times, this way and that, but the outcome was a blank. Finally, he gave up, wiped out his enemy’s face from the painting of Judas, and then only did he complete his classic work (Adapted from Kenneth Budd QQ 173).

Cain never had it so good. Derek Kidner commented: “While Eve had been talked into her sin, Cain will not have even God talk him out of it” (Kidner, Genesis 74, IVP). God appeared to Cain, reasoned with him, warned against anger, sin, and obsession, but after God was out of sight, he misled his brother to a field and killed him with his bare hands. Cain was angry, and that anger turned into deadly rage as he spilled his frustrations, unleashed his anger, and blamed his misfortunes on Abel. Abel was, essentially, the first martyr in the Bible. George MacDonald was right: “It is not by driving away our brother that we can be alone with God.” (3,000 quotations on Christian Themes 8, Carroll E. Simcox, Baker Book House 1975)

The Bible used two words together in front of the word Abel to qualify their relationship- “his brother” Abel (4:2, 8) – twice, once each in verse 2 and 8. Further, God hinted three times to Cain the identify of the victim – he is “your brother” Abel (9, 10, 11)? The only instance Cain used the word “brother” was to say sarcastically, “I don’t know. Am I my brother’s keeper?” Cain dropped his brother’s name from the phrase “my brother Abel,” decried his responsibility, and disputed God’s question, His interference, and the designation of brother.

The consequences were swift: Cain would work endlessly (4:12), wander aimlessly, and watch fearfully all his life. Before, Adam toiled painstakingly for bread and butter, but now Cain would work overtime for crumbs. Man would be restless, wayward, and unsuccessful. Finally, they had to look over their shoulders, watch their backs, and fear for nothing.

Why was Cain’s sacrifice unacceptable to God? The single evident reason is from 1 John 3:11-12: “This is the message you heard from the beginning: We should love one another. Do not be like Cain, who belonged to the evil one and murdered his brother. And why did he murder him? Because his own actions were evil and his brother's were righteous.”

Cain had no love for his brother. Cain was jealous of his brother’s success, envious of Abel’s position before God, and plotted to obtain, possess, and corner God’s love. Someone said, “The man who blames others for his problems hasn't begun his education. The one who blames himself has begun his education. And the man who blames no one has finished his education.” Cain's tilling fields had now become Abel's killing fields and burial ground. Abel was not Cain’s enemy in life, but now he was Cain’s conscience in death. Cain would become a fugitive; he would plead for God’s protection, run from imaginary enemies and even fear his own shadow.

Strengthen Your Hope in God
16 So Cain went out from the LORD's presence and lived in the land of Nod, east of Eden. 17 Cain lay with his wife, and she became pregnant and gave birth to Enoch. Cain was then building a city, and he named it after his son Enoch. 18 To Enoch was born Irad, and Irad was the father of Mehujael, and Mehujael was the father of Methushael, and Methushael was the father of Lamech. (Gen 4:16-18)

When God created the donkey and told him: “You will work tireless from sun up to sun down, carrying heavy bags on your back, you'll eat grass, you will not have intelligence and you will live 50 years.” The donkey answered: “I'll be a donkey, but living 50 years is too much, give me only 20 years.” And God gave him 20 years.

God created the dog and told him: “You will look after the men house, you will be his best friend, you will eat whatever they give you and you will live 25 years.” The dog answered: “God, living 25 years is too much, give only 10. God gave him 10 years.”

God created the monkey and told him: “You will jump from branch to branch, you will do silly things, you will be amusing and you will live 20 years.” The monkey answered: “God, living 20 years is too much, give me only 10 years.” And God agreed.

Finally, God created man, and told him: “You will be Man, the only rational being on this earth, you will use your intelligence to control other animals, you will dominate the world and you will live for 20 years.”

The man answered: “God, I'll be man, but living 20 years is not enough, why don't you give me the 30 years that the donkey refused, the 20 years that the dog did not want and the 10 years that the monkey refused.”

And God said, “So be it. You will live 20 years like a man, then enter adulthood and spend 30 years like a donkey, working and carrying the load on his back, then when your children leaves home, you will spend 15 years like a dog, looking after the house and eating whatever is given to you, then you will retire, and spend 10 years like a monkey, jumping from house to house or from children to children, doing silly things to amuse your grandchildren.”

God had banished Cain to a nomadic life, but the lesson was quickly forgotten, and Cain did the opposite and settled down (4:16). Verse 16 records, “So Cain went out from the Lord’s presence and lived in the land of Nod, east of Eden.” Man, as usual, was antagonistic to God, egotistic to others’ detriment, and humanistic to the core.

Man lived the kind of life he wanted, a life without God, opposed to God’s directive. Before too long the temptation of the flesh took over, their hearts were in the wrong places, and Cain’s children retrogressed from monogamy (4:17) to polygamy (4:19).

William Ward Ayer was right: “We are all dangerous folks without God's controlling hand.” (Frank Mead, 12,000 GOD) Cain’s descendants forged a future for themselves by their bare hands, for the better and the worse, for prosperity and perversity, collectively and godlessly – from Lamech the first poet (4:23) to his son Jabal the first builder and herdsman (4:20) and Jabal’s brother Jubal the patron of music and arts (4:21) and half-brother Tubal-Cain who was skilled in craftsmanship and industry (4:22).

Men were occupied with exploring their potential, entertaining themselves, and escaping punishment at all cost (4:23-24). Man’s progress, the history of civilization, and the course of society reached another predictable instance of murder, self-justification, and evasion: “Lamech said to his wives,” Adah and Zillah, listen to me; wives of Lamech, hear my words. I have killed a man for wounding me, a young man for injuring me. If Cain is avenged seven times, then Lamech seventy-seven times.”

Man without God has a curiosity for everything, is capable of doing anything and would stop at nothing.

However, the hope of a godly line was found in Seth – a child of hope and promise in place of Abel: “Adam lay with his wife again, and she gave birth to a son and named him Seth, saying, ‘God has granted me another child in place of Abel, since Cain killed him.’” Seth also had a son, and he named him Enosh. At that time men began to call on the name of the LORD (v 25-26).

Someone said, “Hope is the light that illuminates the darkness.” Victor Hugo, the author of Les Miserables, said, “Hope is the finger of God written upon every brow. Actually, hope is optimism based on God’s promises. The godly line of Seth called on the name of the Lord (24). Seth was the offspring of redemption, the providence of God, and the hope of mankind.

Conclusion: The great Russian writer, Fyodor Dostoevsky, said: “If God does not exist, everything is permissible.” Man, left by himself, lives for himself and leans on the design of his mind, the desires of the flesh and the determination of his hands. Only personal faith, brotherly love and godly hope please God.

How about you? What sacrifices do you bring to God today? How have you approached Him? Begin with brokenness of spirit (Ps 51:17), next reconciliation with others (Matt 5:23-24), then indebtedness to God (Ps 50:23), followed by neighborly conduct (Heb 13;16) and finally, godly living (Rom 12:1).

Do you come to God a broken and contrite heart? Have you reconciled with your brother? Do you thank Him for what He has given to you? Do you do good and share with others (Heb 13:16)? Finally, is your body a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God?

Beginnings, Pt. 5: "Talk the Talk, Walk the Walk" (Gen 5)

2007-09-22T23:03:00.000-07:00

TALK THE TALK AND WALK THE WALK (GENESIS 5:20-23)
I asked my good friend Rev. Michael Wu on an internet chat: “I am working on Enoch, do you have anything to say about him to my congregation?” After an awkward pause, these words appeared on my monitor: “Enoch is one of the two youngest board members of our church. Born in LACAC (church). 26 years-old. Enoch means steady - word root related to Amen in Hebrew. Maybe his parents want him to be steady in following Christ. I pray for that definitely.”

Of all the fifteen identified heroes of the faith in Hebrews 11, Enoch’s story in Genesis is the shortest text, with the brightest hope, and the least mentioned today. Like others, I had reasons to skip Enoch. Twice in ten years, I had the opportunity to preach this passage, but passed on it because there was so much theology, so little text, and the task so uneasy.

A little Sunday school girl said this about Enoch: “Enoch was a man who learned to walk with God, and they used to take long walks together. One day they walked so far that God said, 'Look, Enoch, it's too far for you to go back; just come on home with me.' So he walked on home with God.”
http://pbc.org/dp/stedman/hebrews1/0094.html

The phrase “walked with God” refers to the abundant life and blessed fellowship with God, the greatest spiritual experience of our loves. The only other person to do so was Noah (Gen 6:9), Enoch’s great grandson born 69 years after Enoch was taken up. The theological implication of Enoch’s transportation to heaven is monumental: Adam and Eve were driven from the garden, the tree of life was guarded, consequently the repeated pronouncement and epitaph in Genesis 5 “and he died” was the fate of all men. Man’s first real physical death was recorded in the same chapter. Beginning from Adam, through six generations before (5:5, 8, 11, 14, 17, 20) and two after Enoch’s era (5:27, 30), everyone except Enoch died. Not only did he not die, he had no negative review, brightened with a lengthy, steady, and daily relationship with God.

What characterizes a man who is so close to God? Is it attainable, sustainable and practical? What profits those who spend substantial quality time with God?

Add Life to Your Years of Existence
20 Altogether, Jared lived 962 years, and then he died. 21 When Enoch had lived 65 years, he became the father of Methuselah. 22 And after he became the father of Methuselah, Enoch walked with God 300 years and had other sons and daughters. (Gen 5:20-22)

A London newspaper once offered an attractive cash prize for the best answer to this question: “Which is the shortest trip to London?” Letters poured in, theories sprang up, and readers followed the outcome closely until the sponsors announced the prize-winning answer. The winning entry was this: “The shortest way to London is good company.” (7,700 Illustrations # 3903)

No matter how far the distance and rough the trip, the travel is short and sweet with the right company.

Attending classes under great men like Dallas Willard, Warren Wiersbe, Calvin Miller and Larry Crabb made a great impact and a remarkable change in my life and service. Up till then, I have listened to many good preachers: Haddon Robinson, Charles Swindoll, John Stott, Bill Hybels, and Rick Warren, bought their tapes, read their books, and had heard some of them in the seminary chapel, churches, and conferences.

When I was a student at Dallas Seminary in my late 20’s, interaction with the professors was rare, short and formal. Ten years later, when I took classes under Willard, Wiersbe, Miller, and Crabb in a smaller classroom environment of about 10-25 fellow pastors for my Doctor of Ministry degree, I began to actively ask questions, comment on the issue at hand, and interact confidently, spontaneously and hungrily with professors and fellow students. Slowly the quiet, passive bystander in me disappeared. I picked up points here and there, other students shared their ups and downs, and the professors opened up their lives – the highs and lows of family life, kids, and ministry. I grew by leaps and bounds, learned bits and pieces, and things made sense, fell into place and good things happen. I blossomed, thrived and matured faster than I imagined under proper tutelage.

My wife exclaimed: “Wow, I was thinking then, ‘You spent thousands of dollars studying, especially thousands of dollars for that Dallas Willard class, and nothing happened.’ Then suddenly you are putting up internet sermons, teaching at seminary and writing for publication.” Actually, it was $2,248 for the Fuller class with Willard, I checked. $1,600 for the course, and $648 for housing and seclusion at a monastery.

Walking with spiritual giants is dizzying, invigorating and humbling. Walking with God is the road least traveled, but the healthiest activity and the best safeguard in life. Those who walk on this road and travel on this journey do not wear and tear, wax and wane, or waver and doubt.

Enoch’s walk was as light as a stroll, as brisk as a jog, and as long as a marathon. You “walk with,” not “walk around” Him like a stranger, walk behind Him like a child or walk from Him like an enemy. It is not instantaneous, hurried or forced, and it is a reality, not a fantasy; a fact, not a feeling; and an endeavor, not an escape.

Enoch was a normal father, a good parent, and a caring family man. He did not just disappear. He took care of his family’s needs before he was taken up - after his first son was born and his sons and daughters were old enough to take care of one another. Besides, Jesus is the direct descendant of Enoch (Lk 3:37).

Add Lecture in Your Instruction to Others
14 Enoch, the seventh from Adam, prophesied about these men: "See, the Lord is coming with thousands upon thousands of his holy ones 15 to judge everyone, and to convict all the ungodly of all the ungodly acts they have done in the ungodly way, and of all the harsh words ungodly sinners have spoken against him." 16 These men are grumblers and faultfinders; they follow their own evil desires; they boast about themselves and flatter others for their own advantage.
(Jude 14-16)

John Wesley, the fiery evangelistic-minded Methodist founder, used to keep young men he had sent out to preach on probation until they can answer these questions. The first question Wesley asked them was, “Has any one been converted?” If the answer was “No,” he would ask, “Do people like it when you witness to them?” And if Wesley was dissatisfied with the answer, he would ask the final question: “Did any one get mad?”

Then Wesley would say to unproven young evangelists: “I don’t think the Lord had called you to preach the gospel. When the Holy Ghost convicts people of sin, they are either converted or they don't like it and get mad.” (Adapted from Moody's Anecdotes, Page 123 http://www.sermonillustrations.com/preaching.htm)

Enoch’s view was not attractive then or now, to the saved or unsaved, whether outspoken or reworded. He was a moral crusader, a spiritual prognosticator, a truth serum, and a bearer of bad news. Enoch’s generation had sinned against God in word and deed (v 15). They were corrupted inside and outside (v 16a), and flattered themselves and others (v 16b), but he prophesied against ungodly acts, ungodly way and ungodly sinners.

Enoch was from the godly line seven generations removed from Adam. The seventh generation from ungodly Cain were three brothers – Jabal, Jubal and half-brother Tubal-Cain - who established construction and livestock (Gen 4:20); music and arts (Gen 4:21), craftsmanship and industry (Gen 4:22). In contrast, Enoch served the Lord and prophesied on sin, judgment, and the Lord’s coming.

The nutshell on biblical judgment is this: “The Lord, the Judge of all the earth (Gen 18:25), is a righteous judge (Ps 7:11, 2 Tim 4:8), and He will judge the world (Ps 98:9, Acts 17:31, Rom 3:6), all men and women (Heb 12:3), the living and the dead (Acts 10:42, 2 Tim 4:1).”

The Bible puts more force behind the word “judge” (v 15) than the word “punish,” as demonstrated by its New Testament occurrences. The New Testament alone has 113 Greek references for the word “judge” but only two occurrences for the word “punish” (kolazo) (Acts 4:21, 2 Peter 2:9). Judgment is divine, universal, impending, just and righteous. Judgment is certain, but punishment is optional - we decide our own punishment.

The Greek word for “convict” (v 15) is even more dramatic. It means telling a fault, rebuking or reproving. It is the proof of evidence, not the fabrication or planting of evidence; uncovered by light and not concealed in secret (John 3:20, Eph 5:11-13); a straightforward, uncontested and swift verdict, not a deadlock jury, a drawn-out trial or a delayed sentencing. clean

Add Longevity to Your Relationship with God
23 Altogether, Enoch lived 365 years. 24 Enoch walked with God; then he was no more, because God took him away. (Gen 5:23)
5 By faith Enoch was taken from this life, so that he did not experience death; he could not be found, because God had taken him away. For before he was taken, he was commended as one who pleased God. (Heb 11:5)

In the breakthrough book on management “Built to Last,” authors James C. Collins and James I. Porras told an interesting parable – the parable of the black belt. A martial arts student, after working tirelessly many years for a hard-earned black belt, knelt before his teacher who was to confer him a black belt on the day of his graduation. The teacher asked: “Before granting the belt, you must pass one more test. You must answer the question: What is the true meaning of the black belt?” The student said, “The end of my journey. A well-deserved reward for all my hard work.” The master spoke: “You are not ready for the black belt. Return in one year.”

A year later the student returned and knelt again in front of the teacher. “What is the true meaning of the black belt?” asked the teacher. “A symbol of distinction and the highest achievement in our art,” said the student. The teacher again replied, “You are still not ready for the black belt. Return in one year.”

A year later, the wiser student was back and knelt once again in front of the teacher. And again the teacher asked, “What is the true meaning of the black belt?” Finally, the student replied to the master’s satisfaction: “The black belt represents the beginning – the start of a never-ending journey of discipline, work, and the pursuit of an ever-higher standard,” says the student. (Built to Last 199-200, James C. Collins and Jerry I. Porras. NY: Harper & Collins, 1994)

Someone once said, “The conversion of a sinner takes a moment, but the growth of a saint takes a lifetime.” The Chinese say, “It takes 10 years to plant a tree, but 100 years to plant a man!” Spiritual growth is not a short hop, a fast track or a quick fix.

Enoch began walking with God at the age of 65, and he walked with God for the next 300 years, up to the ripe old age of 365. He wasn’t a spiritual giant instantly, irregularly or grudgingly. It was 300 years of purpose, not by chance. His walk commenced at the young age of sixty five, after his first son, Methuselah, was born. In our time, we would call him a young man, a young adult or a young father.

Dallas Willard once said in a class I took: “The person who says, ‘I don’t have time’ is very close to reproaching God.” God the Creator, the Maker and the Author of Life, has made us for fellowship with Him. Is He your companion for life, confidant in life, and counsel through life?

Giants are made, mentored, and monitored, and God is the biggest, truest, surest spiritual giant. It begins with daily devotions - reading God’s word, conversing with Him, and abiding in Him.

Fellowship with God began with Adam and Eve in the garden before the fall, continued by Enoch and Noah, and extended to you and I, here and now and for all eternity. Are you ready for heaven? John Bunyan said, “When you come to the paradise of God, you shall have white robes given to you, and your walk and talk shall be every day with the King, even all the days of eternity. There you also you shall serve Him continually with Praise, shouting, and Thanksgiving.” (The Book of Jesus 534, Calvin Miller)

Conclusion: To walk an hour with God is a devotion; to walk a day with God is a discipline; but to walk a lifetime with God is devotion plus discipline plus dependence. Fellowship with God is the biggest thrill in our lives, the highest task of our lives, and the sweetest thing in life. It is for starving sinners, sleeping saints, and spiritual munchkins. You and I have lots of time and plenty of reasons to begin walking with God. Would you take the first step, the next step, and step by step?

Beginnings, Pt. 6: "Stop the World, I Wanna Get Off" (Gen 6)

2007-09-22T23:01:00.000-07:00

STOP THE WORLD, I WANNA GET OFF!
A friend e-mailed me these insightful pointers on Noah by Don Kryer of Frontline Fellowship that has “Things to Learn from Noah and His Ark” for its subject:
(1) Plan ahead. It wasn’t raining when Noah built the ark. (2) Stay fit. When you’re 600 years old, someone might ask you to do something really big. (3) Don’t listen to critics. Do what has to be done. (4) Build on high ground. (5) For safety’s sake, travel in pairs. (6) Two heads are better than one. (7) Speed isn’t always an advantage. The cheetahs were on board, but so were the snails. (8) If you can’t fight or flee -- float. (9) Take care of your animals if they were the last ones on earth. (10) Don’t forget that we’re all in the same boat. (11) When the doo-doo gets really deep, don’t sit there and complain – shovel! (12) Stay below deck during the storm. (13) Remember that the ark was built by amateurs and the Titanic was built by professionals. (14) If you have to start over, have a friend by your side. (15) Remember that the woodpeckers inside are often a bigger threat that the storm outside. (16) No matter how bleak it looks, there’s always a rainbow on the other side. (17) DON’T MISS THE BOAT!!! (Don Kryer, Frontline Fellowship)

The Lord commanded Noah to build an enormous ark, one and a half football field long and nine standard rooms high, on an extra wide house lot. In seven days the animals voluntarily came to Noah (7:15) - seven of every kind of clean animals and a pair of every kind of unclean animals (7:2). After Noah had done his part, the rain poured forty days non-stop (7:12) and the waters rose twenty feet over the mountains (7:20) and flooded the earth for the next 150 days (7:24) before receding the next 150 days (8:3), but Noah, his wife, his three sons and their wives did not get off the boat for another two months (8:6, 10, 12).

God delivered Noah and his family because Noah found favor in the eyes of the Lord (6:8). How does one do that? How are we to remain in God’s favor in an atheistic society, before an antagonistic people, in an abominable world? Noah was a man of inspiration, of perspiration and aspiration. He was a righteous man who attempted to save others and he walked with God.

How are we to be the salt and the light of the world, ambassadors to the world?

Inspire Others by Your Inward World
5 The LORD saw how great man's wickedness on the earth had become, and that every inclination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil all the time. 6 The LORD was grieved that he had made man on the earth, and his heart was filled with pain. 7 So the LORD said, "I will wipe mankind, whom I have created, from the face of the earth--men and animals, and creatures that move along the ground, and birds of the air--for I am grieved that I have made them." 8 But Noah found favor in the eyes of the LORD. 9 This is the account of Noah.Noah was a righteous man, blameless among the people of his time, and he walked with God. (Gen 6:5-9)

I asked my wife when I was preparing this message: What is the difference between this world and Noah’s? How are we different and what does the clause “that every inclination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil all the time” in verse 5 mean?

Doris was surprised by the question. After all, like Noah’s generation, violence, depravity and chaos are the order and norm today. She recovered and said: “That is a good question. I never thought about that. I think the difference is that not only were wickedness and evil present at that time, but love and care were totally missing. Our present world, corrupt as it is, still has some good qualities remaining.”

That sums up Noah’s generation. Not only were immorality and violence present and love and honor absent, but remorse and correction were unlikely, derided and opposed. All negative and no positive or redeeming quality. Every inclination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil all the time (v 5).

Noah was a righteous man, one of a kind and a candle in the dark. His inward world was an inspiration. He was one of three, along with Job and Daniel, to define and personify the word “righteousness” (Ezek 14:20). Further, he and Job were the only biblical characters known as blameless (v 9) – godly men marked by the integrity of character, the fear of God and the abhorrence of evil (Job 1:1). He was a shining light in the darkness, a shimmering star in the night, a single spark lit and aflame for God.

Championing and upholding integrity, character and uprightness is not easy, especially when the family, the society, and even the world are surrounded, seduced and shaped by evil.

Three centuries ago, Jonathan Edwards (1703-58), who single-handedly influenced the Great Awakening, wrote a list of 70 resolutions over two years, in his own words “to fight against the world, the flesh and the devil to the end of my life” (Eerdman’s Handbook to the History of Christianity p. 438). He was 19 at that time, exposed to temptation like most youngsters but was mature beyond his years. The revival would occur under this spiritual giant twelve years later. Here are his 10 shortest resolutions:
(1) Resolved, to live with all my might, while I do live.
(2) Resolved, never to do anything, which I should be afraid to do, if it were the last hour of my life.
(3) Resolved, when I feel pain, to think of the pains of martyrdom, and of hell.
(4) Resolved, to be endeavoring to find out fit objects of charity and liberality.
(5) Resolved, never to do anything out of revenge.
(6) Resolved, never to suffer the least motions of anger to irrational beings.
(7) Resolved, that I will live so as I shall wish I had done when I come to die.
(8) Resolved, to maintain the strictest temperance in eating and drinking.
(9) Resolved, to cast away such things, as I find to abate my assurance.
(10) Resolved, in narration's never to speak anything but the pure and simple verity (truth). http://www.dallas.net/~trigsted/text/resolut.htm

So, be on your toes. Guard your heart (Prov 4:23), watch your steps (Eccl 5:1), and check for error so that you may not fall from your secure position (2 Pet 3:17).

Perspire in Your Outward Witness
5 if he did not spare the ancient world when he brought the flood on its ungodly people, but protected Noah, a preacher of righteousness, and seven others (2 Peter 2:5)

A rich man, who was wasteful, drunk and lecherous, died in a certain town and the entire community mourned his death. When his coffin was lowered the people wailed and cried loudly. In the recollection of the oldest inhabitant of the town no man departed with such sorrow.

The following day another rich man died. He was just the opposite of the first in character and living. He was ascetic and dined on practically nothing but dry bread and turnips. He had been pious all the days of his life and sat all the time studying religious books. Nonetheless, no one except his own family mourned his death. His funeral passed almost unnoticed, and he was laid to rest in the presence of a handful.

A stranger, who happened to be visiting in the town at that time, was filled with wonder, and asked: “Explain to me the riddle of this town's strange behavior. It honors a reckless man, yet ignores a saint!” One of the townsmen replied, “The rich man who was buried yesterday, although he was a lecher and a drunkard, was the leading benefactor of the town. He was easy-going and merry, and loved all the good things in life. Practically everybody in this town profited from him. He'd buy wine from one, chickens from another, geese from a third, and cheese from a fourth. And being kindhearted, he paid well. That's why he is missed and we mourn after him. But what earthly use was the saint to anybody? He lived on bread and turnips and no one ever made a cent on him. Believe me, no one will miss him.”

Like his great grandfather, Enoch (Jude 14-16), Noah walked with God and ministered to men. Noah had an innocent mind, a resolute purpose, but a heart of gold. He perspired to save the lost. Noah was the preacher of righteousness who attempted to save others. Never mind he had seven days (Gen 7:14), or that he had seven family members to save, he preached to all who were willing to hear, not just family members, as if his life depended on it, as if he himself was drowning, and as if he had room on board for them.

Noah didn’t shut the world out, but he couldn’t get them on or invite them up either. Do you know who many people he convinced? None, except his family. He painstakingly relayed God’s message, reasoned with them, but eventually resigned with regrets.

Noah was the salt of the earth, the salvation of the world but, nevertheless, a sword to the unsaved (Heb 11:7). He did all he could though he couldn’t convince them, correct or convert them, but he talked to as many people as possible, tried out as many methods as available, made as much adjustment as he could, and used up all seven days he had. That’s why he was called a preacher of righteousness.

Aspire for an Upward Walk
7 By faith Noah, when warned about things not yet seen, in holy fear built an ark to save his family. By his faith he condemned the world and became heir of the righteousness that comes by faith. (Heb 11:7)
20 Then Noah built an altar to the LORD and, taking some of all the clean animals and clean birds, he sacrificed burnt offerings on it. 21 The LORD smelled the pleasing aroma and said in his heart: "Never again will I curse the ground because of man, even though every inclination of his heart is evil from childhood. And never again will I destroy all living creatures, as I have done. (Gen 8:20-21)

Several years ago, a pastor friend (Rev. Tang) and an immigrant from Hong Kong related how learning the English language when he was young shaped his spiritual life as an adult. He fondly remembered an English teacher who required him to memorize a short verse by Walter Savage Landor (1775–1864). The pastor could remember the poem after more than 30 years, recited all of the 35 words to me, and then wrote parts of it down on a piece of paper for me. I had kept it since in my photo album. The words were short, but rich and invaluable, especially the first ten words: “I STROVE with none, for none was worth my strife.” http://www.bartleby.com/101/576.html

The maverick attitude is true and admirable: nothing is worth our strife. God alone is present through thick and thin, through life’s ebb and flow, for today and tomorrow. Noah walked on earth, rode the storm, and escaped the wrath, all by God’s grace. A Jewish proverb says, “Whosoever walks toward God one cubit, God runs towards him twain (twice).” (3,000 Quotations p. 8).

Noah walked and leaned close to God as God addressed him directly through every chapter of Genesis 6 through 9, revealed to Noah His plans, and directed Noah about the ark, into the ark (Gen 7:1), out of the ark (Gen 8:15).

Amazingly, Noah listened patiently, obeyed consistently, worked speedily and said nothing in all three chapters! A man of God who walks with God is one who fears God, obeys Him, and honors Him. Noah’s fear was not emotional, patchy or crippling, but reverential, godly and rational (Heb 11:7). He obeyed all that God had commanded him (Gen 6:22, 7:5). He remains the only individual in the Bible credited with the line “did all that the Lord commanded” or “did all that God commanded.” Noah would not do anything that would pain, grieve or displease God. As soon as they landed, Noah was distinguished as the first person in the Bible to build an altar to the Lord (Gen 8:20). The altar would symbolize the starting place, the mending fence, and the turning point of one’s relationship with God.

Noah’s story was remarkable. In the end, everything was water, waste, wet and wild. No one outside of God’s refuge survived. In the midst of all this, Noah seized the three greatest spiritual blessing one can have in life: to belong to God, to be with Him, and to believe in Him. God was the leader, Noah the student, but God talked to, interacted with, and confided in Noah like a friend.

God desires His children to be occupied with the presence of God, ordered by the word of God, and offered for the use of God. Believers are to dwell on the things of God, to develop a meaningful relationship with God, and to devote themselves without reservation to Him.

Are you totally given to God, guided by Him and growing in Him? While we rejoice that we will no longer be swept by the flood, will the fire of God consume you on Judgment Day? Will you be left behind on earth or caught up in the air at the Lord’s coming? Will you meet the Lord alone or bring others to Him?

Conclusion: It’s been said: “Any dead fish can float downstream -- it takes a live one to swim against it.” http://www.focusongod.com/faith.htm A believer stands out like a sore thumb, stands up as a godly man should, and stands firm in the midst of the corruption of men, the collapse of culture, and the condemnation of the world.

The Bible warns us not to be deceived (Gal 6:7), defiled (Matt 15:18), or depressed by evil (1 Cor 13:6, Ps 37:7). A man reaps what he sows. However, do not delight in evil; rejoice with the truth (1 Cor 13:6), rejoice in the hope of the glory of God (Rom 5:2) and that your name is written in heaven. (Luke 10:20).

Beginnings, Pt. 7: "Man Proposes, God Disposes" (Gen 11)

2007-09-22T23:00:00.000-07:00

MAN PROPOSES, GOD DISPOSES (GENESIS 11:1-9)
Proverbs 19:21 says, “Many are the plans in a man's heart, but it is the Lord's purpose that prevails.”

I have a tourist magnet sticking to my refrigerator that has a colorful slogan. The first line says, “BE REASONALBE,” and the bottom line: “Do it my way.” We like to do things our way, say it with force, “My way or the highway,” and brush others out of the way. As Frank Sinatra would sing:
“Yes, there were times I wish you knew
When I bit off more than I could chew
But through it all when there was doubt
I ate it up, and spit it out
I faced it all and I stood tall and did it…MY WAY!”

The Tower of Babel is about man’s determination to live sufficiently, determinedly and arrogantly without God. People think they are smart in themselves, fine without God and in safe hands. Man thinks that with the advance of new industries, active collaboration and concerted effort, nothing can stop them from reaching the top, literally. However, God reminds us His counsel will stand. Relying on Him guarantees our well-being but excluding Him from our lives means failure.

The word “Come” is prominent in Genesis 11. The first and primitive “Come” (v 3) began the construction, the second and civilized “Come” (v 4) progressed with contention, and the final and sovereign “Come” (v 7) ended in confusion. Why is God opposed to man’s insistence on his own way? What kind of lives do we live without God? How does that bring ruin upon us?

The Intelligence of Man is Foolishness to God
11:1 Now the whole world had one language and a common speech. 2 As men moved eastward, they found a plain in Shinar and settled there. 3 They said to each other, "Come, let's make bricks and bake them thoroughly." They used brick instead of stone, and tar for mortar. (Gen 11:1-3)

Some time ago, the Los Angeles Zoo displayed an exhibit designed to inform, amuse and shock visitors. Its slogan was “The world’s most dangerous animal - the only animal capable of destroying the earth, other species, or even its own kind.”

What was this animal? Onlookers were puzzled that the cage had not one but two college students. Why two? For a long time I couldn’t figure out its meaning. Man by himself is a timid and troublesome animal, but with company he is a daring and dangerous animal. One individual is tempted to act badly, two are pressured to act. With a little knowledge, in the wrong environment, and for the lack of guidance, man is a deadly animal.

It’s been said, “Humanity without divinity degenerates into bestiality.” A haunting line from the movie “A Beautiful Mind” echoed the same thing: “Man is as capable of as much atrocity as he has imagination.”

One in every 32 adults in the United States was behind bars or on probation or parole by the end of 2001, according to a government report. (Los Angeles Times, “Adults Punished for Crimes Hits Record,” August 26, 2002)

Before the construction of the tower, primitive men first tested the extent of their knowledge, researched the possibilities of natural properties, fulfilled their potential with great success and pushed their inventions to new heights. They had the resources, the skill and the drive to succeed. Nothing was beyond them, could stop or slow them. They had discovered how to heat raw materials, give them shape, and maximized its use.

The first biblical occurrence of the word “Come” is man’s determined, united, and negative effort to flourish, succeed and prosper without God. From stone they had progressed to bricks, and from mortar they had discovered tar. From now on they were hungry for the next step, the latest discovery and the new frontier.

Sadly, the advance of secular man is his very path to destruction. People make guns, bombs, nuclear weapons, biological weapons, and weapons of mass destruction. We have seen the rise of dictators and madmen such as Hitler, Saddam Hussein and Osama Bin Laden who love nothing but to cause religious wars, civil wars and World Wars. Radio, TV and newspapers are perfect propaganda tools in their hands.

J. Robert Oppenheimer, the world famous inventor of the Atomic bomb that was dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, fittingly expressed his regret to Harry Truman: “I have blood on my hands.” He likened the then United States and Soviet Union rivalry to “two scorpions in a bottle, capable of killing the other but only at the risk of its own life.” (US News & World Report 8/17/98 “Brotherhood of the Bomb”)

Still, God is not opposed to man’s efficiency or proficiency, but their sufficiency. He is not at odds with creativeness but our cleverness, or against the process of change but our extremity in confidence. Ultimately God will destroy the wisdom of the wise and frustrate the intelligence of the intelligent (1 Cor 1:19, Isa 29:14). Man will discover that with much wisdom comes much sorrow, and increasing knowledge amounts to increasing pain (Eccl 1:18).

The Insubordination to God is Pretentious of Man
4 Then they said, "Come, let us build ourselves a city, with a tower that reaches to the heavens, so that we may make a name for ourselves and not be scattered over the face of the whole earth." 5 But the LORD came down to see the city and the tower that the men were building. 6 The LORD said, "If as one people speaking the same language they have begun to do this, then nothing they plan to do will be impossible for them. (Gen 11:4-6)

The first “Come” was a realization of man’s greatness but the second “Come” launches his vertical assault against God.

There’s an old African story about a boy who went out to see the world. He came to a great lake and saw a strange creature sitting on a tree limb there. This giant creature lay down and gobbled the lake dry. When the water was gone, the creature moaned and screamed for thirst and shouted for more.

The boy next followed the creature into a hut where the creature sets a cauldron over roaring fire. The creature tossed creatures large and small into the boiling water, including two live bulls and a rat. As the creature left for a short while, the boy stole a piece of meat for himself. But when the creature returned to finish the food to the last drop, the creature noticed that someone had stolen some food, and shouted that there’ll never be an end to the creature’s hunger.

Then the boy ran home and told his father: “Now I’ve seen what’s in the world.” (Jory Farr, Press Enterprise 3/26/99)

People are power hungry, celebrity conscious, and utterly shameless.

After a couple of strangers were married on national TV in front of 23 million viewers, USA Today asked on its front page: “Why people will do almost anything to get on TV” (USA Today, Craig Wilson 02-25-2000) A teenager opined, ''Because it would be so cool to be on national TV and have two seconds of fame.''

The tower of Babel was man’s ecumenical stairway to heaven, his giant leap in technology and the world’s first engineering marvel. The people at Babel revealed their unquenchable longings, flexed their collective muscles and craved for godlike glory: “Then they said, “Come, let us build ourselves a city, with a tower that reaches to the heavens, so that we may make a name for ourselves and not be scattered over the face of the whole earth.”

Man disregarded God's will deliberately, deftly and dangerously. God's original command to man was to be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth (Gen 4:12, 9:1), but not only were they putting down roots and building acclaimed cities, they intended to ascend to heavens, immortalize their names, and exclude, rival, and play God, all at once.

The tower was a false sense of security. Man had amassed more talent, created more wealth and brainstormed new ideas. The motive was in the overwhelming desire for immortal life, for an illustrious name and for inseparable, indispensable, and irreversible human ties. This is the classic outcome of spirituality without God, man-made religions, and rejection of absolutes.

However, The Lord saw the evil of this vanity, idiocy and superficiality: “But the LORD came down to see the city and the tower that the men were building. The LORD said, ‘If as one people speaking the same language they have begun to do this, then nothing they plan to do will be impossible for them.’” (vv 5-6)

God is not targeting architects, builders and contractors. He is not against extensive construction, but exclusive control; He does not oppose unity, but universality, the conception of a world system and the grandiosity of complete domination.

Man is not the master of the universe. God will show the way to those who would listen. Not long after the episode at Babel, just as Noah did, Abraham will build an altar to God and found the city which has God for its foundations, architect and builder (Heb 11:10).

Incivility to Others is Dangerous to One Another
7 Come, let us go down and confuse their language so they will not understand each other." 8 So the LORD scattered them from there over all the earth, and they stopped building the city. 9 That is why it was called Babel--because there the LORD confused the language of the whole world. From there the LORD scattered them over the face of the whole earth. (Gen 11:7-9)

Can people get along with differences in language, land and lineage? (6:5-8)

C. H. Spurgeon said: “Be not proud of race, face, place, or grace.” http://www.sermonillustrations.com/pride.htm

Californians who made their new home in Las Vegas, Phoenix or Seattle are often unwelcome and the butt of jokes in their new environment. A joke making its rounds in Seattle was reported in the Los Angeles Times (8/29/97).

A Texan, a Californian and a Seattleite are in a bar, and they ask for a bottle of tequila, a bottle of wine and a bottle of beer. The Texan throws a bottle of tequila into the air and shoots it with a pistol. He explains to the Californian and Seattleite, “Texas has plenty of tequila.” Next, the Californian throws a bottle of wine into the air and shoots it. He explains to the other two, “California has plenty of wine.” Finally, the Seattleite throws a bottle of beer into the air into the air, shoots the Californian and catches the beer bottle. He explains to the shocked and frightened Texan, “We have plenty of Californians, but I have to recycle the bottle.”

Today, the Wycliffe Bible Translators estimates there are about 6,170 languages in the world today. Mexico alone has 241; India 381; Indonesia 669; and Papua New Guinea 849 languages. The African continent alone has 1,918 different languages (Walk Thru the Bible 1/89 10).

In California alone, a study conducted in the new millennium revealed that more than 224 languages are spoken in the state. (Los Angeles Times 11/1/00)

The last “Come” was the reality of man’s lowliness and exposes his shallow understanding of brotherhood.

Do you know why the tower of Babel was incomplete? The builders scattered were not only scattered but, more importantly, they had no urge to merge again, now that they do not look like each other, act like the other and talk to one another. God exposed the hypocrisy, intolerance and guise of man. Their call for structure was a cover for supremacy.

Today, unfortunately, people kill one other over one of three things - the color of their skin, the dialect of their tongue, and the invasion of their space or neighborhood. Someone once said, “Racism is dislike of the unlike.” “Ethnic cleansing” is the abominable term now for one race obliterating the other.

Men’s hatred for one another is unabated from East Europe to East Timor, from right-wing nationalists to new-sprung activists, from minorities in the cities to tribes in each country and to neighbors whose scenic view is blocked by the next door fence or tree.

In America, people could not forget the nightmare race relations that had surfaced through the O. J. Simpson trial, the Rodney King and the Reginald Denny beatings.

Babel, the enemy of God, was the place where it all began. Do you know what city in Revelation is given more coverage for her ill-gotten riches and eventual doom (Rev 18:2-3)? Babylon the Great - the biblical city that survived the threat of Babel dispersion. It is also known as the mother of prostitutes and the abominations of the earth (Rev 17:5). Why was she called such? She feeds on immorality, sorcery and wickedness (Is 47:8-13). Its modern name? Iraq.

Conclusion: As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are God’s ways and thoughts higher than man (Isa 55:9). There is no wisdom, insight or plan that can succeed without the Lord and against the LORD (Prov 21:30). Have you over-relied on your talents, intellect, learning, effort, and skills? Rely not on your personal understanding or counsel from others, but trust Him at all times, for all things, with all your heart. Remember, God’s foolishness is wiser than your wisdom, and His weakness is stronger than your strength (1 Cor 1:25-26).

Abraham, Pt. 1: "Where He Leads, I Will Follow" (Gen 12)

2007-09-22T22:45:00.000-07:00

WHERE HE LEADS, I WILL FOLLOW (GENESIS 12:1-13:4)
Traveling is a hazard, and I had my share of bloopers and misadventures. One was a landing in Connecticut that never was due to snow. The plane did the next best thing and landed at a small local airport nearest possible to the city, then a bus drove the passengers to their planned destination. The consolation prize was a snow-dotted scenic route through the woods, which was quite a sight to behold for this city boy.

I had no one but myself to blame for the next incident. When I was a continuing student at Chicago’s Trinity Evangelical Divinity School, I missed my night flight home to Los Angeles. The airlines clerk told me I could leave on the next flight in the morning. Calling my friend to return for me did not make sense, so I opted to sleep inside the airport, waking up a few times in the night to check my things, only to find plenty of company sleeping next to me!

The last incident was unforgettable – August 14, 2003. My wife and I were going through Customs in Toronto when a power blackout hit the northeast cities of North America, including Toronto and New York. Outside phones were unable to reach Air Canada operators, so we had to join the snaking crowd at the airport to reschedule our next day flight to Los Angeles. Since my cellular phone had no reception at the same time, too, I had to wait an hour for the public phone to notify others of our delay.

Early next morning, the departure schedule at the airport announced that the flight was canceled again, and when we got through to the operator to reschedule our flight after an hour’s wait, she said the flight was on again and told us to go to the ticketing counter. After an hour’s wait at the counter, we were told by the receptionist that the flight was off again; so we returned to the phone operator after another hour of waiting and managed to reschedule a successful flight home the next day.

About 1,800 years before the birth of Jesus Christ - after the chaos at Babel but before there were Jews - a seventy-five year old man by the former name of Abram received a call from God to settle in a new land, to build a great nation and to be a personal blessing to all the families of the earth. The promise to the Father of Nations is clear: the settlement into the Promised Land, the beginnings of the Jewish people and the coming of the Messiah, Jesus Christ.

Abram’s father, Terah, had initiated the long 1,000-mile trek from Ur of the Chaldeans, located near the Euphrates River about 190 miles southeast of present-day Baghdad, to Canaan (Gen 11:31), but died in Haran, 400 miles away from the destination. (Los Angeles Times 4/16/03 “Ancient Ur Still Standing as Another Regime Topples”)

After Terah died, the Lord said to Abram: “Leave your country, your people and your father's household and go to the land I will show you. I will make you into a great nation and I will bless you; I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse; and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you.” (Gen 12:1-3)

So, the raw Abram, along with his wife Sarai and his nephew Lot, made the journey to Canaan. Upon arrival in Canaan, when a famine severely tested him, Abram followed his own instincts into Egypt and almost paid a heavy price if not for God’s intervention.

What does God require of those who follow Him? How can we avoid the dangers of falling behind, losing track or turning aside?

Trust in the Lord and Stride out Confidently
12:1 The LORD had said to Abram, “Leave your country, your people and your father's household and go to the land I will show you. 2 “I will make you into a great nation and I will bless you; I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing. 3 I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse; and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you.” 4 So Abram left, as the LORD had told him; and Lot went with him. Abram was seventy-five years old when he set out from Haran. 5 He took his wife Sarai, his nephew Lot, all the possessions they had accumulated and the people they had acquired in Haran, and they set out for the land of Canaan, and they arrived there. 6 Abram traveled through the land as far as the site of the great tree of Moreh at Shechem. At that time the Canaanites were in the land. (Gen 12:1-6)

The week heading into the celebration of our wedding anniversary in the new millenium was a hectic, stressful and miserable one for my wife and me. We had put our Monterey Park house for sale a month before that and were excited that a buyer had made us an offer the second day of our open house, with the closing escrow a week after our anniversary. At the same time, we had made an offer for a house, offering the seller the full price he wanted, and he duly accepted the next day. Our plan was to complete the sale of our house first, live in an apartment no longer than a month - to be on the safe side, and roll over the money we received from selling our old house into the new one to close escrow.

On the day of our wedding anniversary, our agent called us, telling us that the new house seller had reneged on the deal. My agent had discovered that the man was unable to sell the house because he had debts totaling $390,000 from two loans and had five bank liens on his house. Suing him would make no sense since his creditors had not recovered a penny from him for a long time and it would just tie us up in court. Further, winning would make us another name on his long list of unpaid creditors.

We ended up with packed boxes in the garage of our rented apartment for the next five months with no house to move into and no end to the waiting, until we found a newer home in a better location and a coveted neighborhood.

God’s call to Abram was a call to trust and obey Him. Abram followed one step at a time, one day at a time, one place at a time, doing one thing and completing one task at a time. Note that Abram did not know in what direction they were heading, at what location they were stopping and for how long they were staying until he got there. The Lord said to Abram, “Leave your country, your people and your father's household and go to the land I will show you.” (v 1) In fact, he did not know what was lurking ahead, how far was the distance and how long was the trip; he only knew “who” was leading, “who” he was following and why -- that was enough for him.

Hebrews 11:8-10 says, “By faith Abraham, when called to go to a place he would later receive as his inheritance, obeyed and went, even though he did not know where he was going. By faith he made his home in the Promised Land like a stranger in a foreign country; he lived in tents, as did Isaac and Jacob, who were heirs with him of the same promise. For he was looking forward to the city with foundations, whose architect and builder is God.”

Abram forsook everything, demonstrating his trust in God and leaving the old setting for the new. He left Haran, a wealthy, busy and established community for an unknown way of life, parting with close relatives, familiar surroundings and accustomed ways. His trust in God was sorely tested in Canaan. The Canaanites were a loose company of tribes who occupied and terrorized the land, including the cities of Gaza and Sodom and Gomorrah (Gen 10:15). Their hostility towards Shem’s descendants, of which Abram was one, was understandable. Noah had cursed his son Ham, the ancestor of the Canaanites, to be a slave to his brother Shem (Gen 9:25-26).

Abram’s travels, therefore, in enemy territory were never easy, enjoyable or effortless. He was in a state of outright fear, constant vigilance, but quiet trust. As D. L. Moody says, “Trust in yourself and you are doomed to disappointment; trust in your friends, and they will die and leave you; but trust in God, and you will never be confounded in time or eternity.”

Testify to Other and Secure Your Markers
7 The LORD appeared to Abram and said, “To your offspring I will give this land.” So he built an altar there to the LORD, who had appeared to him. 8 From there he went on toward the hills east of Bethel and pitched his tent, with Bethel on the west and Ai on the east. There he built an altar to the LORD and called on the name of the LORD. (Gen 12:7-8)

One of the lost treasures of the Christian church is the home thanksgiving meeting, a gathering I eagerly awaited when I was a young believer. A home thanksgiving meeting was an occasional home fellowship whereby the hosts invited their friends, relatives and church members to share in the blessings of a special event, usually over the birth of a child, the purchase of a new home or the celebration of a wedding anniversary. The host family would borrow 30-40 chairs from their neighbors, friends or church for the happy occasion.

A designated song-leader would begin the meeting by leading everyone present in joyous singing, followed by the host’s testimony about how God had blessed the family and a short message by the pastor or a church elder on the importance of thanksgiving in a believer’s life. The best part of the gathering was the last part of the program, where lots of food and refreshments were served!

Testifying to others is to tell others who we were before accepting Christ, what Christ has done for us and how our character and challenges are different from before.

Like my church, churches today should set aside a few Sundays in the year for members to share their salvation and thanksgiving testimony. I do for my church, to rippling effect, for occasions such as Mother’s day, Father’s Day, Graduation Day and Thanksgiving Sunday. The atmosphere, I have discovered, is usually electric, the effect upon the speaker and congregation is powerful and the benefit to the church is immeasurable.

The watershed of Abram’s sojourn in Canaan was his consistent testimony to others by erecting altars wherever he went.

Abram built an altar in Shechem (12:7), another between Bethel and Ai (12:8), and other places such as Hebron (Gen 13:18) and Mount Moriah (Gen 22:9). Noah (Gen 8:20) and Isaac (Gen 26:25) both built an altar in their lifetime and Jacob two (Gen 33:20, 35:7), but Abram erected as many altars as all three of them did together.

Altars were meaningful, important and sensible to Abram because they were personal worship markers, public witness markers and practical whereabouts markers.

Worship was a big part of Abram’s life -- in his first travel and up to the last major account of his life (Gen 22:9). Abram called on the name of the Lord (Gen 12:8; 13:4).

The altars were also public witness markers, which were an eyesore to the inhabitants of the land. Abram ascribed an altar to the name of the Lord (12:7) and called on His name without pretense, hesitation or fear (12:7). The inscriptions, words and the location were loud, unmistakable and pointed to the Canaanites.

Finally, the altars were practical whereabouts indicators for the next generation. Abram’s grandson Jacob would return from Haran and build an altar at Shechem (Gen 33:18-20), the same place where Abram had built the first altar (12:6-7). Jacob even settled there for a while after his anxious reunion with his brother Esau until he had to move.

Tell the Truth and Set an Example
10 Now there was a famine in the land, and Abram went down to Egypt to live there for a while because the famine was severe. 11 As he was about to enter Egypt, he said to his wife Sarai, “I know what a beautiful woman you are. 12 When the Egyptians see you, they will say, 'This is his wife.' Then they will kill me but will let you live. 13 Say you are my sister, so that I will be treated well for your sake and my life will be spared because of you.” 14 When Abram came to Egypt, the Egyptians saw that she was a very beautiful woman. 15 And when Pharaoh's officials saw her, they praised her to Pharaoh, and she was taken into his palace. 16 He treated Abram well for her sake, and Abram acquired sheep and cattle, male and female donkeys, menservants and maidservants, and camels. 17 But the LORD inflicted serious diseases on Pharaoh and his household because of Abram's wife Sarai. 18 So Pharaoh summoned Abram. “What have you done to me?” he said. “Why didn't you tell me she was your wife? 19 Why did you say, 'She is my sister,' so that I took her to be my wife? Now then, here is your wife. Take her and go!” 20 Then Pharaoh gave orders about Abram to his men, and they sent him on his way, with his wife and everything he had. (Gen 12:10-20)

Bella D. Paulo, a professor of psychology at the University of Virginia, studied 147 people between 18-71 - 77 undergraduates and 70 community members - to track the course of lying, who people lie to and how often they do. The subjects were asked to keep a diary of all falsehood told over a week.

Paulo found that 10% of lies were exaggerations and 60% were outright deception. The lies were mostly subtle, often of lies of omission. Most people lie once or twice a day and also in 20% of social exchanges lasting 10 or more minutes. In one week alone, 30% of speakers deceive in one-on-one interaction. Married couples lie to each other in 10% of their exchanges, dating couples 33% and college students lie twice a day, which is twice that of an average person, and in one of two conversations with their mothers!
(Psychology Today 5-6/97).

Lying is addictive. In another report, Paulo explained that while 1 in 7 instances of lying was discovered, more than 70% of liars surveyed said they would tell their lies again. (Psychology Today 9-10/96)

Abram’s sister act – “she is my sister”- occurred twice in his lifetime (Gen 12:13, 20:2). Technically, Sarai was Abram’s wife and sister, but from a different mother (Gen 20:12). Sarai was Abram’s wife by marriage and his sister only in name. He was legally inaccurate and morally wrong. As an old proverb notes, “Half a fact is a whole falsehood.”

Abram, the father of faith, succumbed to deception because he was in the wrong place at the wrong time with a wrong motive. Abram chose the easy way out (12:10) when his first big test came. When a famine struck, he panicked, fled Canaan and took shelter in Egypt.

How do we know Abram was in the wrong place? When all was said and done, after a harrowing near disastrous experience, Abram ended up where he began and returned to the original place of worship (Gen 13:1-4). Later, Abram had many problems as a result of taking an Egyptian concubine, Hagar, who was probably one of the servants Pharaoh gave to Abram (12:16).

Were Abram’s actions motivated by love for his wife? Did Abram love his wife? Probably yes, but not as much as he loved his own neck (12:13). The words of Abram to his wife revealed his motive: “Say you are my sister, so that I will be treated well for your sake and my life will be spared because of you (12:13).

Abram also had a wrong perception of the natives of the land. He thought they were savages, barbarians and animals, but was he right? The truth is that the godless Pharaoh acted more honorably than the God-fearing Abram! Even the killer Egyptians were not all that bad. They loved their king (12:15) and kept their word, while Abram quietly kept all the gifts (12:16).

In the end Abram was made speechless when he was bombarded by three separate questions, a what-question, a why-didn’t-you question and a why-did-you question: “What have you done to me?” “Why didn’t you tell me she was your wife?” and “Why did you say, ‘She is my sister,’ so that I took her to be my wife?” (12:18-19)

Conclusion: God saves us, leads us and blesses us so that we may bless others by what we do, what we say and how we live for Him. Often life’s hardships, our imaginary fears and needless worries hinder us from reaching our potential; however, we fail the test not because God is unable or willing to help us, but because we help ourselves too much and hinder ourselves too naively. Is your self-centeredness, self-complacency and self-contradiction preventing Him from blessing you and making you a blessing to others? Have you passed the true test of our sincerity, virtue and faith and demonstrated willingness to trust and obey Him even when troubles come, people threaten and circumstances change?

Abraham, Pt. 2: "Short-Term Gain, Long-Term Pain" (Gen 13)

2007-09-22T22:44:00.000-07:00

SHORT TERM GAIN, LONG TERM PAIN (GENESIS 13:5-14)
Once upon a time, there was a man who lived with his wife, two small children, and his elderly parents in a tiny hut. He tried to be patient and gracious, but the noise and crowded conditions wore him down.

In desperation, he consulted the village wise man. “Do you have a rooster?” asked the wise man. “Yes,” he replied. “Keep the rooster in the hut with your family, and come and see me again next week.” The next week, the man returned and told the wise elder that the living conditions were worse than ever, with the rooster crowing and making a mess of the hut. “Do you have a cow?” asked the wise elder. The man nodded fearfully. “Take your cow into the hut as well, and come see me in a week.” Over the next several weeks, the man - on the advice of the wise elder - made room for a goat, two dogs and his brother’s children.

Finally, he could take it no more, and in a fit of anger, kicked out all his guests, leaving only his wife, his children and his parents. The home suddenly became spacious and quiet, and everyone lived happily ever after. (Source: The Hope Health Letter, Leadership, Winter 96)

Besides his son Abraham and daughter-in-law Sarai (Gen 11:31), Terah took his grandson Lot with him to Haran, where the family accumulated possessions and acquired servants (Gen 12:5). Lot was the nephew of Abram; his deceased father, Haran, was Abram’s brother (Gen 11:30-32). After the death of Terah in Haran, God called Abram to resume the journey to Canaan. An embarrassing detour to Egypt when a famine struck Canaan resulted in even more gifts than they had ever had before, with courtesy from Pharaoh, who had eyes on Sarai (Gen 12:16, 13:2). Abram now had much wealth in livestock, gold and silver (Gen 13:2), but before long, a misunderstanding and a conflict arose between Abram and Lot’s herdsmen (Gen 13:7).

Abram was the winner in the dispute when he allowed Lot to pick first the land of his choice. How were Abram's values superior to Lot's? Abram trusted God as his guide, while Lot trusted his feelings to guide him. Lot made a lousy choice because his criteria were flawed and the consequences were tragic.

The key to joy is the contentment that Christ gives in any and every situation - whether well-fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. Paul says, “I can do everything through him who gives me strength.” (Phil 4:12-13).

So, how does a contented man behave? What guides him? Why is contentment a safeguard against prosperity, temptation and strife?

Shun Quarrelsome Practices
5 Now Lot, who was moving about with Abram, also had flocks and herds and tents. 6 But the land could not support them while they stayed together, for their possessions were so great that they were not able to stay together. 7 And quarreling arose between Abram's herdsmen and the herdsmen of Lot. The Canaanites and Perizzites were also living in the land at that time. 8 So Abram said to Lot, “Let's not have any quarreling between you and me, or between your herdsmen and mine, for we are brothers. 9 Is not the whole land before you? Let's part company. If you go to the left, I'll go to the right; if you go to the right, I'll go to the left.” (Gen 13:5-9)

The first mark of a contented man is a disinterest in and a distaste of quarreling. For Abram, quarreling with anyone, especially with someone who meant a lot to him, instead of resolving a problem and salvaging a relationship was unacceptable.

My father had an elder brother, a younger brother and a younger sister, who was the youngest in the family. My quiet elder uncle married a feisty wife, the type that talks loudly, terrorizes neighbors and unsettles people. She demands the last word in a conversation, must be one up on others and makes sure everyone knows who is boss.

Troubles in the family surfaced when my youngest aunt made her wedding plans. She was the favorite child at home because she was the youngest member and the only girl in the family. For unknown reasons, her plans did not include a wedding banquet, her eldest brother’s family or anyone in the family. The wedding couple was young, poor, carefree, independent and idealistic. The eldest brother’s wife threw a fit, but my grandmother, the family matriarch, sided with her daughter.

The two families did not get along nor did they make up since. My grandmother’s death was literally the last nail in the coffin for the two strained families. The daughter came dutifully to attend her mother’s funeral, but commotion broke out at the funeral parlor. My eldest aunt by marriage, now the new matriarch of the family, forbade the youngest daughter and her family from attending the funeral, burning incense or paying respects.

Ever since, the two families had lost contact with each other for 35 years and counting; their kids had never talk or met. Even the adult son of my eldest uncle said this of her mother: “It's because of my mother we do not know who our cousins are.”

It’s been said: “No matter how right you are, no matter how wrong the other people are, no matter how much evidence you have to prove it, you will never get them to agree with you by arguing them down.” (Bits & Pieces 1/9/92)

Shunning quarrels is wise, classy and rewarding. Abram and Lot did not quarrel with each other, but they still had to separate because their herdsmen were fiercely loyal to their masters. The matter was serious, the herdsmen were out of control, and a lot of lives were at stake. Abram knew that he and Lot were able to control themselves, but he wanted the best for both groups of herdsmen. The worse thing in conflict is to involve other groups, incite them to anger or inflame the issue.

Abram even said “...for we are brothers.” (13:8) Was Abram really Lot’s brother? No. Abram was the uncle, deserving of family respect and first pick, but he gave Lot the right to choose. To keep the family relationship, Abram forsook his right as the older relative, lowered himself to that of a brother and made the first move to resolve differences. Abram did not have the air and attitude of a patriarch, an uncle or a landlord. Abram's words made sense to his nephew Lot: “Is not the whole land before you? Let’s part company.” (13:9) There was plenty of land, grain and fortune for both. Abram was mentally clear, rationally balanced and definitely smart in decision-making. He did not allow his heart to take over or get the better of his head.

Quarrelling in the family, whether the quarrel is with a sibling, a child, a parent, an in-law or a relative, makes losers of everyone. It frays and distances families, polarizes innocent onlookers and embroils future generations. Goodwill is hard to win and easy to lose.

Shun Questionable Places
10 Lot looked up and saw that the whole plain of the Jordan was well watered, like the garden of the LORD, like the land of Egypt, toward Zoar. (This was before the LORD destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah.) 11 So Lot chose for himself the whole plain of the Jordan and set out toward the east. The two men parted company: 12 Abram lived in the land of Canaan, while Lot lived among the cities of the plain and pitched his tents near Sodom. 13 Now the men of Sodom were wicked and were sinning greatly against the LORD. (Gen 13:10-13)

The next mark of a contented person is an avoidance of questionable places.

I know of a church leader who fell into sin on an overseas assignment. His wife and family were supposed to join him in the summer, when the kids were out of school. One night his wife received a call from a friend to fly straight to Hong Kong. She packed her bags, entrusted her kids to friends and caught the next available flight to Hong Kong. What was the rush? Her husband, who was stationed in Hong Kong, was seen in the company of bar girls in mainland China. How did it happen? In China? Wasn’t he supposed to be in Hong Kong? The church leader, like many erring husbands, was in a popular hotspot in Shenzhen, the city bordering Hong Kong that is a hotbed of entertainment, commerce and social activities due its close proximity to and a short ride from Hong Kong.

Sadly, seventeen years before, a young teenage girl had reported seeing the same leader smoking outside a nightclub. She told a few people, including the pastor, but the man denied it, and the church leaders believed the man and not the teenager. Everyone thought she was mistaken then, and now all who were told felt like fools. However, the saddest thing was that the same person had played with fire, flirted with disaster and deceived his family, friends, and church leaders for at least seventeen years.

The problem of Lot was that he was deceived by looks and feelings. What four actions characterized Lot in Hebrew (13:10)? He “raised his eyes,” “saw,” “chose” and “joureyed.” Why did Lot choose to go east and pick the whole plain of Jordan? The plains of Jordan were well-watered, a combination of Eden and Egypt. Either Lot had forgotten his uncle’s no-win, all-lose incident in Egypt even though he was there himself, or he simply did not care! Did Pharaoh's power, riches, gifts get into his head?

Lot went farther and farther and ended up in Sodom and Gomorrah, the place of coming destruction. Lot was an extreme and reckless risk-taker. He wanted to see how far he can go without being burned. Unlike Abram, Lot's heart controlled his head. The pull of Sodom lured him eastward and he blatantly ignored the obvious signs. His eyes grew larger, his appetite got bigger and his heart more ambitious. His philosophy was like the bumper sticker I saw at the back of a car: “How much sin can I get away with and still get to heaven?”

Sodom and Gomorrah was a morally deceptive, spiritually bankrupt and physically dangerous place. Lot was more concerned for the city to be beautiful than the people to be good. There were less than 10 righteous people in the city (Gen 18:32).

The people of the city were not just wicked; twice the Scriptures emphasized the word “greatly” in regard to their sin (Gen 13:13, 18:20). They were guilty of excessive, gross and continuous willful disobedience. Further, Genesis 14 reveals that for fourteen years Sodom was a hotbed of war, politics and dissent (Gen 14:5). Eventually Abram had to risk his life and his 318 men’s lives (Gen 14:14) to rescue Lot, who planted himself right in the path of nine warring kings (Gen 14:1).

Shun Quick Payoffs
14 The LORD said to Abram after Lot had parted from him, “Lift up your eyes from where you are and look north and south, east and west. 15 All the land that you see I will give to you and your offspring forever. 16 I will make your offspring like the dust of the earth, so that if anyone could count the dust, then your offspring could be counted. 17 Go, walk through the length and breadth of the land, for I am giving it to you.” 18 So Abram moved his tents and went to live near the great trees of Mamre at Hebron, where he built an altar to the LORD. (Gen 13:14-18)

Many years ago, a friend who returned to Singapore after his studies in the States asked me to keep his checks and check his mail, which was transferred to my house. The checks were signed so that I could pay for the credit card he charged once or twice a year in Singapore, since applying for a credit card over there was extremely hard. Along with his regular mail, I also received junk mail, magazines and government correspondence. The toughest tasks were sending to him his income tax documents and driving license and getting him to sign unsigned checks after the first book was finished.

The job got harder when I, too, left Los Angeles for continuing education in Chicago. I took with me my friend’s checks, forwarded his mail to my new address, and paid his credit card bills from Chicago. The complication extended further because I was temporarily staying with my cousin in Chicago! What a weird experience. After two years, he returned for some government business and to forward his mail to Singapore. It did not occur to him or me that banks and credit card companies were willing to send his mail even to Singapore. Waiting for the two years’ odyssey to end was a lifetime to me.

Waiting for the fulfillment of God’s promise can be trying, taxing and tiresome because God’s promises are often fulfilled in part or by installments, and seldom all at once.

Abram knew that the Lord’s promise could be trusted; however, he also learned that the declaration and the fulfillment of God’s promise were two different things. Patience and perseverance were required to overcome panic when God’s promise was slow to arrive. The Lord, on His part, reassured Abram seven times altogether and reiterated His promise – the promise of an heir, numerous descendants, and the Promised Land (Gen 12:1-3, 13:14-17; 15:5, 17:1-8, 18:10; 21:12; 22:16-18).

The fulfillment of God’s land promise to Abram was eventually secured in the time of Joshua (Josh 23:14), a delay of more than 600 years from the day God first promised Abram. The waiting period include 180 years of his son Isaac’s life (Gen 35:28), 400 years in Egypt (Gen 15:13) and 40 years in the wilderness. The final installment of God’s promise to Abram - all the peoples on earth will be blessed through Abram (Gen 12:3) - was ultimately fulfilled forty-two generations later in Jesus Christ the Messiah (Matt 1:17), not hundreds of years but thousands of years later!

Lot, however, was not the type to wait. His decision to settle for a quick payoff was the worst kind of home purchase and real estate blunder. He boxed himself in, limited his options and chose on impulse. His first mistake was limiting himself to right or left, and not whether right or wrong. Next, he fell in love with the densely populated east when the spacious north, south and west (13:15) and the length and breath of the land (13:17) - up, down, and around - were available to him. Lastly, Lot chose city over suburbia or rural; he chose the cities of the plain over the great trees of Mamre (v 18) and preferred density and crowding to nature and space. In today's terms, Lot was indifferent to location, neighbors or traffic.

Conclusion: God cares for His people, provides for their needs and keeps from danger those who believe in Him, depend on Him and honor Him by upholding godly principles, making wise decisions, and living righteous lives. Are you letting daily provisions (1 Tim 6:8), monthly pay (Lk 3:14) or changing circumstances (Phil 4:11) trouble you? Do you trust God to be your fixed possession (Heb 13:5), your continual provision (Mt 6:33, Phil 4:13) and your everlasting portion?

Abraham, Pt. 3: "The Nations in Uproar" (Gen 15)

2007-09-22T22:43:00.000-07:00

THE NATIONS IN UPROAR (GENESIS 15:1-21)
There is a story a number of years ago when John Kennedy was president of the United States, and Nikita Khrushchev was Premier of the Soviet Union, and Golda Meier was Premier of Israel. The three of them got together for a peace conference and decided to pray about the concerns on their heart.

John Kennedy asked God: “Will there be peace in America between the blacks and the whites?” God said, “Not in your lifetime, not in your lifetime.”

Nikita Khrushchev asked God: “Would there ever be peace between the United States and Russia?” God said: “Not in your lifetime, not in your lifetime.”

Golda Meier asked God: “Will there be peace between the Arab and the Jews?” God said, “Not in my lifetime, not in my lifetime.” (Eldon Reich, Sermoncentral.com)

A lot has changed since 9/11. Some say the last days are here, others suggest that the world is at the brink of war, and still some others deduce that God is judging America for her economic system, moral bankruptcy, spiritual decline, violence on fellow Americans and arrogance in the world.

The reason for 9/11 right from the horse’s mouth or Ayman al-Zawahiri, the Egyptian-born doctor of the Al-Qaeda terrorist network, was stated as such: “America is the head of criminals by creating this Israel, this continuous crime for 50 years. The Muslim nation shall not accept this crime.” (New York Times, “Bin Laden Taunts U.S. and Praises Hijackers” 10/8/01).

In fact, Iran’s President Ahmadinejad unapologetically called for Israel to be “wiped off the map.”
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2005/10/27/wiran27.xml

To understand current events and things to come, one has no need to look anywhere but to the past, specifically at God’s promise to Abram in Genesis 15. Genesis 15 is pivotal to the understanding of the nature, scope and gravity of God’s promise to Abraham and, specifically, his descendants, the Jewish people and nation. When Abram and Sarai were old, childless and past the age of childbearing, God appeared to him again with the promise of a son, an heir and countless generations of children.

What are the terms of God’s promise to Abraham? Why is He faithful and just even when His chosen people are fickle, fearful and faithless?

God’s Promise to Abraham is Professed
15:1 After this, the word of the LORD came to Abram in a vision: “Do not be afraid, Abram. I am your shield, your very great reward.” 2 But Abram said, “O Sovereign LORD, what can you give me since I remain childless and the one who will inherit my estate is Eliezer of Damascus?” 3 And Abram said, “You have given me no children; so a servant in my household will be my heir.” 4 Then the word of the LORD came to him: “This man will not be your heir, but a son coming from your own body will be your heir.” 5 He took him outside and said, “Look up at the heavens and count the stars--if indeed you can count them.” Then he said to him, “So shall your offspring be.” 6 Abram believed the LORD, and he credited it to him as righteousness. (Gen 15:1-6)

When my wife’s nephew Joshua was ten years old, he wrote, signed and dated this declaration to his mother: “I promise that I only play 25 minutes, the rest of the 5 minutes are use for turning off the computer or finishing the game. Also, when I promised that if I finish playing or doing things that I enjoy, I have to do my duty such as home work, house work, etc. I have to keep my promises. Promises are to be kept in order for my parents to trust me.” To hold him responsible, Joshua’s mother cosigned her name a line below his, and the statement was taped to the computer desk as a reminder.

Unfortunately, the promise did not work, so the youngster signed another one the following year, sticking the note to the refrigerator which says: “NO (double underline) T.V. or computer game till ALL (underline) homework and piano practice are done.” On the bottom of the new statement were these words: “Things need to do everyday (responsibilities): piano, homework, Chinese 15 minutes (optional - if there is time).”

Although Joshua forgot the second one in a hurry, his father added that all was not lost. He explained, “He got the principle of it.”

Man's promises are corny, flaky and shaky, but God’s promises are true and trustworthy. Man may lie to you - not God. He is not a man that he should lie (Num 23:19). Hebrews 6:18 says it is impossible for God to lie. Abram was ready for his servant Eliezer (v 2) to be his heir and to benefit from his vast fortune, but God told Abram that a son coming from his body or belly will be the heir. Eliezer’s ineligibility, exclusion and disqualification couldn’t be any clearer.

Abram, who had never had an actual two-way conversation with God up to this point, asked God for clarification (v 4). When God promised him that innumerable descendants would come from his aged, going downhill, past the prime body, Abram, remarkably, believed. The first occurrence of the words “believe” and “righteous” in the Bible is forever associated fittingly with Abraham, who is the very picture and embodiment of belief and righteousness. God’s promise to Israel was secure because of Abraham’s belief, not Israel’s behavior, and his righteousness, not Israel’s results.

Hebrews 11:11 says, “By faith Abraham, even though he was past age - and Sarah herself was barren - was enabled to become a father because he considered him faithful who had made the promise.” Abraham believed that Gods’ promise to him was firm, rock-solid and good as gold. Romans 4 records that against all hope, Abraham in hope believed (Rom 4:18), without weakening in his faith (Rom 4:19) or wavering through unbelief regarding the promise of God (Rom 4:20) and was fully persuaded that God had power to do what he had promised (Rom 4:21).

Abraham had his weak, fearful and tasteless side and moments, as demonstrated by his lie to Abimelech (Gen 20:11), but he considered God faithful (Heb 11:11) and the promise secure because God swore by His own name (Heb 6:13-14).

God’s Protection of Israel is Proven
12 As the sun was setting, Abram fell into a deep sleep, and a thick and dreadful darkness came over him. 13 Then the LORD said to him, “Know for certain that your descendants will be strangers in a country not their own, and they will be enslaved and mistreated four hundred years. 14 But I will punish the nation they serve as slaves, and afterward they will come out with great possessions. 15 You, however, will go to your fathers in peace and be buried at a good old age. 16 In the fourth generation your descendants will come back here, for the sin of the Amorites has not yet reached its full measure.”
(Gen 15:12-16)

As Abram fell into a deep sleep, God further added that the Israelites would experience discrimination, slavery and oppression for four hundred years in Egypt, the kind that even in deep sleep, Abram could feel its force, terror and misery. Yet, no length of persecution, amount of damage or severity of pain can remove God’s promise.

The covenant God made with Abram is a binding, an unconditional and everlasting covenant. History attests to the fact that the Jews, God’s chosen people, have overcome captivity, exile and tragedy no matter where they go, who they face and how they were treated, whether in Egypt, Assyria or Babylon. The survival of the Jews and the Jewish nation is one of the strongest arguments for the existence of God and the inspiration of the Bible. Thomas Newton’s assessment was right on target: “The preservation of the Jews is really one of the most signal and illustrious acts of divine Providence.” The critics that laughed, scoffed, and discredited the Bible for prophesying Israel’s restoration before the present Jewish state existed were effectively silenced with the emergence of present-day Israel.

There are three unkind ways to suffer: suffering without reason, suffering without end and suffering without support.

Time and again, the Jewish people were scattered all around the world, only to return to their beloved land. They had suffered through three prolonged periods in history – 400 years in Egypt, 70 years in Babylon and the longest period of more than 1,850 years, which is from the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 A.D. until restoration of the present Jewish state in 1948.

Prior to the emergence of the modern Jewish state, the Jews were just a minority in a sea of Arabs who had guaranteed rights. At the sixth Jewish Zionist Congress in 1903, Uganda was even considered as an option for a Jewish homeland. http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/globalconnections/mideast/timeline/text/index.html

The Jews had their first break in the First World War when Turkey, allies of Germany and Austria, lost the First World War and surrendered the land to the British. As a gesture to the Jews who fought alongside them, the British promised in the 1917 Balfour Declaration to help create a national home for the Jews in Palestine. http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/globalconnections/mideast/timeline/text/index.html

Two dates forever marked Israel’s sovereignty and supremacy. The first was May 14, 1948, the day the British withdrew from Palestine. The United Nations, the Soviet Union and the United States included, had passed a resolution to recognize Israel’s right to exist out of emotional, moral and political reasons. During the Second World War, 6 million of an estimated 7.5 million Jews in Europe were shot, gassed or killed in the cruelest way imaginable. Another figure puts it close to one-third of the world’s Jews. The plan called for Palestine to be divided into roughly equal halves, with Jerusalem and religiously significant surrounding sites under the control of a separate international authority. The Jews accepted the plan, but the Palestinian Arabs rejected it. The British, for its best interest, gave up power after twenty-five years of colonial rule because Egypt from the south, Jordan from the east, Syria and Lebanon from the north and their Muslim ally Iraq were set to unleash their anger upon the newly-established Jewish state. However, the new Jewish state of 650,000 people soundly defeated the five Arabic nations of 40 million people and wrested control of about 70 percent of what had been Mandatory Palestine.
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/globalconnections/mideast/timeline/text/time3.html

The next date is the Six Day War in June 1967. The Egyptian-led forces that battled Israel had a frightening line-up: Syria, Iraq, Kuwait, and Jordan. They call it the David and Goliath battle. On June 5, 1967, Israel launched a surprise attack on Egypt. Israel seized the Golan Heights from Syria, Sinai and the Gaza Strip from Egypt, and East Jerusalem and the West Bank from Jordan – four times the land Israel had previously - before a cease-fire was agreed upon.
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/globalconnections/mideast/timeline/text/time4.html

Attempts to exterminate Gods’ chosen people will often come but it will always fail and never succeed. The unconditional and unyielding love of God is the key to understand Israel’s comeback, resilience and destiny. In fact, even three strongest tests will not change God's love: the might of Egypt (v 13), the passing of time and the death of Abraham, God’s beloved friend. Further opposition, determination and cooperation of Israel’s enemies would not separate the Lord from the apple of His eye (Deut 32:10).

Israel will experience sorrow and suffering, but she will receive strength and sustenance and will overcome persecution and danger. Although Israel’s odd behavior, aggressive tactics and independent ways sometimes vexed, tested, embarrassed, frustrated and even alienated her staunchest supporters, God’s promise is irremovable by force because of Abram’s faith. Paul asked in Romans 11:1, “Did God reject his people? By no means!” The Gentiles are engrafted branches and not replacement branches (Rom 11:17-19).

God will punish Israel for her unbelief, but He will never reject or abandon her. Rejecting or casting away Israel is not in God’s dictionary, according to Paul in Romans 1:1-2. For the sake of his great name (1 Sam 12:22), the LORD will not reject his people or forsake his inheritance (Ps 94:14), even though Israel had a history of rejecting Him (Jer 15:6).

God’s Provision of Land is Permanent
18 On that day the LORD made a covenant with Abram and said, “To your descendants I give this land, from the river of Egypt to the great river, the Euphrates-- 19 the land of the Kenites, Kenizzites, Kadmonites, 20 Hittites, Perizzites, Rephaites, 21 Amorites, Canaanites, Girgashites and Jebusites.” (Gen 15:18-21)

In the Fiddler on the Roof a young Jew pleaded for an answer from his rabbi just as the Jewish people in the little Russian village of Anatevka were being chased out of their small community on the eve of the anti-Tsar Communist Revolution in 1905. He asked, “Rabbi, we’ve been waiting for the Messiah all our lives. Wouldn’t this be a good time for him to come?” The rabbi answered, “Certainly, my son, but we’ll have to wait for him someplace else. Meanwhile, let’s start packing.”

God’s promise of land and its boundaries in the covenant made with Abram are stipulated in verses 18-21. Until today, Israel does not have control of the lands once captured at the height of King David’s reign. This could only mean that more Arab-Israeli disputes are on the way and the United Nations will be caught in the middle; however, the United States’ support for Israel will not change because of Jewish ties to Israel, the Evangelicals’ support at home and American interest in the Middle East. We can all expect to see more Palestinian uprisings and unrest, Jewish restrictions and retaliation, international intervention and investigation in the future until Jesus the Messiah returns.

Even though God is faithful to His promise to Israel, He has not forsaken the nations. God has an inheritance for Israel and her neighbors. Jeremiah 12:14-16 says, “This is what the LORD says: “As for all my wicked neighbors who seize the inheritance I gave my people Israel, I will uproot them from their lands and I will uproot the house of Judah from among them. But after I uproot them, I will again have compassion and will bring each of them back to his own inheritance and his own country. And if they learn well the ways of my people and swear by my name, saying, `As surely as the LORD lives'--even as they once taught my people to swear by Baal--then they will be established among my people.”

Isaiah says, “In that day there will be a highway from Egypt to Assyria. The Assyrians will go to Egypt and the Egyptians to Assyria. The Egyptians and Assyrians will worship together. In that day Israel will be the third, along with Egypt and Assyria, a blessing on the earth. The LORD Almighty will bless them, saying, “Blessed be Egypt my people, Assyria my handiwork, and Israel my inheritance.” (Isa 19:23-25)

Though the Palestine and Israel conflict is unresolved, Israel has made some progress with her neighbors. The America-sponsored Camp David peace accord between Israel and Egypt was a step in the right direction. In 1979, Egyptian President Anwar Sadat signed the accord despite accusations of betrayal from other Arab countries. Egypt and Israel agreed upon mutual recognition and permanent peace, with Israel returning the Sinai in 1982 and Egypt receiving substantial U.S. aid. http://www.time.com/time/europe/timetrails/israel/is790409.html

In 1994, after 46 years in an official state of war, Jordan and Israel announced formal agreement on a peace treaty, the first such pact between Israel and an Arab nation since the treaty with Egypt in 1979. http://www.time.com/time/europe/timetrails/israel/is941031.html

At the beginning of the new millenium, the Palestinians and the Israelis had an opportunity for peace but could not seal an agreement to end 52 years of conflict. Sovereignty over Jerusalem and its holy sites remained irresolvable. http://www.time.com/time/europe/timetrails/israel/is000807.html

Conclusion: God’s plan for Israel is to be a light to the world (Isa 42:6) and a blessing on earth (Isa 19:24) and that all peoples on earth will be blessed through her. (Gen 12:3) Hatred, violence and death consume evildoers and their countries. Are you an ambassador of Christ (2 Cor 5:19-20) and a light to the world? As Christians, have you prayed for Israel’s peace (Ps 122:6), her harmony with her neighbors (Gen 20:17) and her contribution to the world (Is 42:6)? Have you prayed for war victims and their families, the nations and her leaders, peace on earth and God’s kingdom coming?

Abraham, Pt. 4: "The God Who Really Sees" (Gen 16)

2007-09-22T22:42:00.000-07:00

THE GOD WHO REALLY SEES (GENESIS 16:1-16)
Are you suffering, weak, or troubled?

At the lowest point of my ministry, I took a course co-taught by two professors who required all students, mainly pastors, to stay together in a retreat center for two weeks, and every night there was a designated time for singing, fellowship and prayer. A few testimonies stuck in my mind. A Midwest Lutheran pastor was so frustrated, shaken and disgusted at how his ministry was going. He was a popular pastor. People lined up to see him every day in that small rural community and they appeared on his doorstep for something as minor as fixing a toilet seat. On the denominational front, he was exhausted from ugly politics battling feminist groups, gay rights, abortion supporters and other interest groups. He had thought about taking a long break, especially the last few months, when he would get up early Sunday morning before dawn, writing his sermon before the congregation arrived to avert a major embarrassment.

On the last day, another pastor confessed dramatically for the first time in his life that he was sexually abused as a kid. One of the professors talked about how he often reacted angrily and negatively to his wayward son’s up and down battle with drugs, but the turning point in the unhappy father and son relationship was when he felt God turning the question upon him: “What about your anger?”

At the end of the two weeks, the Lutheran pastor echoed the determination of the group when he said, “When I first arrived, I was determined to go home after this class and quit my church. But after these two weeks’ fellowship, prayer and testimonies, I think I’d rather stay in my own church.”

Do you know God understands your misery more than you think? Abram and Sarai had a maid by the name of Hagar; however, all of them were dissatisfied with their conditions. Sarai was the pushy wife who was paranoid for an heir, Abram was the passive husband who blindly followed his wife's ill-advised instructions and Hagar was the ambitious maid who discovered a way out of her outsider status.

Sarai and Abram were not getting any younger. Abram was eighty five years old (16:16) and Sarai was seventy four (17:17), but Sarai had a plan. How about taking a concubine for her husband so that a baby by her husband and the maid may be considered Sarai’s child (16:1-3)? In the end, no one was happy, especially Hagar. Hagar lived a more miserable life than before because things in the new family worked out quite differently than she expected. She was not as important once she got there.

What happens when we use human solutions to replace God’s way to a better life? How does God want us to live even when the quality of life is not ideal or improving? Why is it better to trust God even at the worst of times?

Living Your Life Through Others is Fooling Yourself and Others
16:1 Now Sarai, Abram's wife, had borne him no children. But she had an Egyptian maidservant named Hagar; 2 so she said to Abram, “The LORD has kept me from having children. Go, sleep with my maidservant; perhaps I can build a family through her.” Abram agreed to what Sarai said. 3 So after Abram had been living in Canaan ten years, Sarai his wife took her Egyptian maidservant Hagar and gave her to her husband to be his wife. 4 He slept with Hagar, and she conceived. When she knew she was pregnant, she began to despise her mistress. 5 Then Sarai said to Abram, “You are responsible for the wrong I am suffering. I put my servant in your arms, and now that she knows she is pregnant, she despises me. May the LORD judge between you and me.” (Gen 16:1-5)

Sarai’s mistaken notion was that she could live her life through Hagar, that she could build a future on an abnormal relationship and that her husband and the family would be happier and complete with kids at home. Abram and Hagar did not protest the plan. Abram, on the one hand, wanted her wife happy, their marriage to work and a baby to stabilize the family and calm things down. Hagar, on the other hand, thought her status would be upgraded, her fortune would change and motherhood would satisfy her. In the end, all the participants were fooling themselves and others.

A friend knew a young couple who was a perfect match for each other and their home was the picture of an ideal family. The couple knew each other since teenagers. They were married after their careers quickly took off and both had enviable, perfect jobs. She was a capable counselor and he was good in sales. They had two smart and lovely kids - the oldest 10, fast-tracked to the top of their profession and bought a nice home in a middle-class neighborhood. They were compatible, genial and successful. My friend’s respect, admiration and idealization of the romance story were set. One day, it all went wrong. The husband came home, told the wife that he was seeing someone else and wanted a divorce.

The strangest thing was hearing my friend’s words. My friend went home after hearing the news for the first time, finding no sleep and having no peace until the person turn to God in prayer, saying: “Lord, how foolish I was. Please forgive me for adoring what they had!”

Building a life through others is foolishness because we ignore people's problems and magnify our own problems, thereby inheriting and creating more problems. When we desire the lives of other people, we foolishly ignore the price they pay for success, the constant sacrifice they make to stay at the top and the constant vigilance over everything - their possessions, kids and competitors.

Hagar imagined a better life was ahead of her. She thought, “Isn’t it better to be part of the family instead of being a foreigner, an outsider and a slave?” Abram and Sarai, also, foolishly and naively thought that the exotic things they had received from Pharaoh, including Hagar (Gen 12:16), would improve their standard of living.

To their surprise, they inherited more problems. Before they were fairly dissatisfied, now they were downright miserable. No one was happy when the plan succeeded. None of them were the same. Sadly, it was the point of no return. Their lives were depressing. Hagar was conceited, Sarai was contentious and the conspiracy failed.

Is there something you sought that you did not work for? Have you prayed earnestly about it? Or think long and hard about it?

Living a Life For Oneself is Fighting Yourself and Others
6 “Your servant is in your hands,” Abram said. “Do with her whatever you think best.” Then Sarai mistreated Hagar; so she fled from her. 7 The angel of the LORD found Hagar near a spring in the desert; it was the spring that is beside the road to Shur. 8 And he said, “Hagar, servant of Sarai, where have you come from, and where are you going?” “I'm running away from my mistress Sarai,” she answered. (Gen 16:6-8)

A traveler nearing a great city asked an old man seated by the road, “What are the people like in this city?” The man replied, “What were they like where you came from?”

“A terrible lot,” the traveler reported. “Mean, untrustworthy, detestable in all respects.” “Ah,” said the old person. “You will find them the same in the city ahead.”

Scarcely had the first traveler gone on his way when another stopped to inquire about the people in the city before him. Again, the old person asked about the people in the place the traveler had just left. “They were fine people, honest, industrious, and generous to a fault. I was sorry to leave,” declared the second traveler. Responded the wise one, “So you will find them in the city ahead.” (Leadership Summer 96)

It’s been said, a man’s worst enemy will never do him the harm he does himself. (Scholem Alechem- Yiddish Tales, cited in Christianity Today 8/11/97)

Hagar was fighting and hopping mad. Sarai gave her a hard time when the pregnant Hagar began to despise her mistress (v 4). This time, Hagar had it. Nothing had changed or improved. Sarai was still her owner. Things were worse than before. Sarai was now her rival and she punished Hagar physically like never before. Hagar fought her mistress' contempt, jealousy and mistreatment, and decided to run away.

In running away (v 6), Hagar fought herself just as hard as she fought Sarai. In truth, her three negative attitudes hurt her more than it hurt Sarai. First, Hagar was understandably defiant. Her mentality at this point was: “I have something to do, I have somewhere to go, and I will make it on my own.” However, she was doing nothing new, going nowhere fast and pursuing nothing promising. All she did was to return to her pagan roots. Bible scholars tell us that Shur was a place between Beersheba to Egypt and Hagar was midway to Egypt (16:7), where she was previously regarded, treated and sold as a slave.

Next, escaping was a poor way to handle Hagar’s problems. No wonder the world's longest running and most intense battles in history are fought between the Jewish people and the Arabs, the descendants of Ishmael, Hagar's son. The two kin nations till today do not settle their differences well.

Blame, also, had never escaped Hagar's mind. Note that when the angel asked Hagar a “where” question – where she had come from, and where she was going, Hagar responded with a “who” answer. “I'm running away from my mistress Sarai,” Hagar answered, dragging Sarai into the matter and equation.

Have you fought senselessly against others and yourself? Have you prayed to God for guidance instead? Have you asked Him to help you correct the situation when you would rather take flight, blame others or strike back?

Living a Life in God is Forgiving Yourself and Others
9 Then the angel of the LORD told her, “Go back to your mistress and submit to her.” 10 The angel added, “I will so increase your descendants that they will be too numerous to count.” 11 The angel of the LORD also said to her: “You are now with child and you will have a son. You shall name him Ishmael, for the LORD has heard of your misery. 12 He will be a wild donkey of a man; his hand will be against everyone and everyone's hand against him, and he will live in hostility toward all his brothers.” 13 She gave this name to the LORD who spoke to her: “You are the God who sees me,” for she said, “I have now seen the One who sees me.” 14 That is why the well was called Beer Lahai Roi; it is still there, between Kadesh and Bered. 15 So Hagar bore Abram a son, and Abram gave the name Ishmael to the son she had borne. 16 Abram was eighty-six years old when Hagar bore him Ishmael. (Gen 16:9-16)

Han Xin was a military strategist who rendered outstanding service towards the founding of the Han Dynasty (207 B.C. - A.D. 221). When he was young his family was poor and he was looked down upon. Once, a young man humiliated him in front of a crowd of people. He said to Han Xin, “Although you are strongly built and like to carry a sword, you are inwardly a coward. If you are not afraid to die, come and try to stab me with your sword. If you are afraid to die, then crawl under my legs.”

Han Xin looked at the man for a long while and then bent down and crawled through the man’s parted legs. All the people in the street laughed at him, thinking he was a coward. Later, when Han Xin became the Prince of Chu, he summoned to an interview the young man who had humiliated him and appointed him to an official post. To all the (bewildered) civil and military officials, Han Xin said, “This man is a good fighter. I could have killed him when he humiliated me. But there is nothing praiseworthy in killing him. That was why I endured this humiliation and achieved what I’ve achieved today.” (Best Chinese Idioms Vol. 2, Situ, Tan 163-64 Hai Feng Pub. Co. Hong Kong, 1988)

Warren Wiersbe said, “Life is about 10% what you make it and 90% how you take it.”

God told Hagar the secret of making a bleak, hopeless and miserable situation tolerable. He persuaded Hagar to return to her mean mistress and submit to her. Though trouble erupted again more than fourteen years later (Gen 16:15, 21:5, 8), specifically when Isaac was weaned, usually at two to three years old, but Ishmael was already a 16- or 17-year old teenager by then. Matthew Henry even suggested that the Jews weaned their young about three to five years old.

The greatest tragedy in life is to have no one to believe in, to turn to or call on. God's presence at the expecting Hagar's lowest point gave her courage, reason and motivation to live. God had seen her misery, heard her cries and calmed her fears. He would not stand idly by when those who are lost, abandoned or helpless.

Hagar's worry for her son was taken care of. God said to her: “He will be a wild donkey of a man; his hand will be against everyone and everyone’s hand against him, and he will live in hostility toward all his brothers.” (Gen 16:12) The next time we see Ishmael, he was the one giving his half-brother Isaac a hard time (Gen 21:9). Hagar’s fear that her son would be bullied was unfounded.

Conclusion: Have you turned to our Lord Jesus Christ when you are suffering, weak and troubled? He was oppressed and afflicted (Is 53:7), and so He can empathize with those who are in distress (Is 63:9). God is just. Those who trouble you will have to answer to Him. (2 Thess 1:6) God's presence and work in our lives is our reason for hope. 2 Corinthians 4:8-9 says, “We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed.” (2 Cor 4:8-9)

Do you believe God knows your heartaches, understands your situation, and hears your prayers, cries, and tears? We have a God who truly sees. He will answer you when you seek Him, obey Him, and trust Him.

More importantly, have you asked the God of all comfort to use you to comfort those who are in trouble? (2 Cor 1:3-4) Is there who is in need that you can offer help and support? Someone more disadvantaged and disheartened than you?

Abraham, Pt. 5: "Room to Grow" (Gen 17)

2007-09-22T22:41:00.000-07:00

ROOM TO GROW (GENESIS 17:1-19)
Twice Michelle Kwan failed to land the big prize at Winter Olympics Figure Skating Championship. In 1998 she was placed second and in 2002 she dropped to third. Each time she bravely congratulated the winner, evaluated her situation and announced her participation in the next Olympics. Since then, apart from the commercial endorsements, it has not been plain sailing and not what the UCLA student had bargained for. Critics and reporters said she was too old, too cautious, and too mechanical. They harped that her jumps were the same, her routine had no edge and her rivals were more exciting.

The twenty-year old Michelle had won the U.S. Figure Skating Championship nine times and the International Championship five times, but a year before the 2002 Winter Olympics in Utah confessed, “It doesn’t get easier. It gets harder and harder. You have to stay on top of your game.” (San Gabriel Valley Tribune 1/22/01)

Here are some quotes on personal growth and development:
“Behold the turtle. He only makes progress when he sticks his neck out.” (James Bryant Conant, former president of Harvard)
“If you have always done it that way, it is probably wrong.” (Charles Kettering)
“It is impossible for a man to learn what he thinks he already knows.” (Epictetus)
“Everyone thinks of changing the world, but no one thinks of changing himself.” (Leo Tolstoy)
“We know what we are, but know not what we may be.” (William Shakespeare)

In Genesis 17, Abram had settled comfortably in Canaan, Sarai and Hagar had suspended their rivalry, and even Ishmael, who Abram fathered when he was eighty-six, was a teenage 13 (Gen 16:16, 17:1). Abram did not have much before, but now had plentiful of silver and gold (Gen 13:2) on top of livestock and servants (Gen 12:16). Two chapters ago, God promised the land and an offspring to Abraham, but now the subject had finally shifted to the identity and the mother of Abraham’s offspring, Sarai.

Is your faith going forward, moving ahead, or making progress? Genesis 17 is about a continual desire to grow in faith, to live a stirring Christian life and to make a difference in the world. How do we make an impact after weeks and months and years of the same thing? What is missing? What are the first steps to rekindle the flame?

Improve Your Relationship with God
17:1 When Abram was ninety-nine years old, the LORD appeared to him and said, “I am God Almighty; walk before me and be blameless. 2 I will confirm my covenant between me and you and will greatly increase your numbers.” 3 Abram fell facedown, and God said to him, 4 “As for me, this is my covenant with you: You will be the father of many nations. (Gen 17:1-2)

In 1997 I made a bold decision to leave my comfort zone. After serving seven years in the same church after seminary graduation, I was ready to face new challenges, obtain further training and learn new skills. Little did I know, God was preparing me for a teaching, writing and online ministry on top of pastoral ministry. My wife pokes fun at me, constantly reminding me that I did not have an email until I left Los Angeles in 1997.

A year later, after I had returned from Chicago, a friend asked me if I was still interested to meet with a few pastors on a regular basis to talk about what we were doing, share our needs and spend time in prayer. I never felt the need for it previously in ministry when I was in my twenties and early thirties; before, I considered it a waste of time, an invasion of privacy and a restriction on freedom, but now it was God-sent.

Continuing education also helped to recharge my batteries, revitalize my ministry and renew my perspective on ministry. A new ministry in a smaller church in the countryside an hour’s drive from the city allowed me to spend more time on teaching and writing, eventually posting all the sermons I’ve written on the internet (epreaching.blogspot.com) . It’s been said, “You can’t teach an old dog new tricks,” but I believe a trick or two is within reach!

Michael Eisner once said that a man must renew himself once every seven years.

Ironically, God gave Abraham a big surprise, a big present and a big lesson when two seven-year cycles since Ishmael’s birth was a year short of expiring.

To renew oneself is to make fresh and alive one’s relationship to God, to be richer, deeper and stronger in faith. It is to reverse, to turn around from an extended period of stagnated growth, declining expectations and established routines. It is the answer to the SOS crisis - same old stuff. To remain focused after years of decline is a need, a challenge and a task.

God had appeared to Abraham in Genesis chapters 12, 13 and 15, and like old times, it had a powerful effect on Abram. Back in Genesis 12, when God told Abram to leave his country, people and his father's household, Abram left (Gen 12:1-4). When God reappeared to Abram after the separation form Lot, Abram built an altar to the Lord (Gen 13:18). The third and previous occasion of the Lord’s appearance to Abram was the promise of an heir to Abram. Abram believed the Lord, and he credited it to him as righteousness. (Gen 15:1-6)

At this point God appeared to Abraham, and the adventure started all over again. Now Abram fell on his face twice in awe, worship, fear and reverence (17:3, 17). He fell on his face before God for the first time for a valid reason. The Lord God declared, also for the first time, that He was El-Shaddai, Almighty, Omnipotent.

We need to renew our relationship with God, to cherish our walk with Him, and to kindle a warm glow in our lives, a deep longing and a heightened sensitivity for Him. There should be a fear, a reverence of God in our lives. Not fear in the negative emotional sense, but in the positive and godly sense, sometimes known as holy fear. It’s the difference between scaring us to death or waking us to life in Him! We need the latter.

Are you green and growing or are you ripe and rotten? Have you made necessary changes to improve your prayer life, devotional life, and Christian living?

Identify Your Mission in Life
5 No longer will you be called Abram; your name will be Abraham, for I have made you a father of many nations. 6 I will make you very fruitful; I will make nations of you, and kings will come from you. 7 I will establish my covenant as an everlasting covenant between me and you and your descendants after you for the generations to come, to be your God and the God of your descendants after you. 8 The whole land of Canaan, where you are now an alien, I will give as an everlasting possession to you and your descendants after you; and I will be their God.” 9 Then God said to Abraham, “As for you, you must keep my covenant, you and your descendants after you for the generations to come. (Gen 17:5-9)

Several centuries before Christ, Alexander the Great came out of Macedonia and Greece to conquer the Mediterranean world. On one of his campaigns, Alexander received a message that one of his soldiers had been continually engaging in serious misbehaving and thereby shedding a bad light on the character of all the Greek troops. And what made it even worse was that the soldiers' name was also Alexander. When the commander learned this, he sent word that he wanted to talk to the errant soldier in person. When the young man arrived at the tent of Alexander the Great, the commander asked him, “What is your name?”

The reply came back, “Alexander, sir.” The commander looked him straight in the eye and said forcefully, “Soldier, either change your behavior or change your name.”

Next, Abraham and Sarai were given new names, indicating their role, responsibility and response to the needs of others. They were given inspiring, illuminating and illustrious names, to make them extend outside of their little world, family circle and status quo. Abraham discovered he had a personal call, a divine mission and a global outreach to others. God intended Abraham to be a father of many nations, a light to the world and a bridge to the Gentiles.

Abram or the Exalted father had now become Abraham, the Father of a multitude. And Sarai (17:15) or “my princess” became simply Sarah or “princess.” The narrow world of Sarai opened up to a whole new world of possibilities. She was no longer Abram’s little princess but the mother of nations, dropping the narrow personal pronoun “my” and changing from national and universal implications.

God has not saved us to be window displays, fake jewelry or museum pieces. We are servants, subjects and soldiers of the Almighty for a purpose: to be citizens of the world, ambassadors to the world and witnesses in the world.

Have you discovered God’s mission for you on earth? What part has God prepared for you? How have you contributed to God’s work of ministry?

Instruct Your Faith to Work
15 God also said to Abraham, “As for Sarai your wife, you are no longer to call her Sarai; her name will be Sarah. 16 I will bless her and will surely give you a son by her. I will bless her so that she will be the mother of nations; kings of peoples will come from her.” 17 Abraham fell facedown; he laughed and said to himself, “Will a son be born to a man a hundred years old? Will Sarah bear a child at the age of ninety?” 18 And Abraham said to God, “If only Ishmael might live under your blessing!” 19 Then God said, “Yes, but your wife Sarah will bear you a son, and you will call him Isaac. I will establish my covenant with him as an everlasting covenant for his descendants after him. (Gen 17:15-19)

A wife invited some people to dinner. At the table she turned to their six-year-old daughter and said, “Would you like to say the blessing?” “I wouldn’t know what to say,” the girl replied. “Just to say what you hear Mommy say,” the wife answered. The daughter bowed her head and said, “Lord, why on earth did I invite all these people to dinner?”

Abraham’s faith was in need of maintenance, repair or overhaul. Without knowing it, he was out of gas, water and engine oil. In his journey of faith, his battery needed charging, his tires needed replacing and his filter changed. The patriarch had traveled miles and miles, places to places for years and years.

The elderly Abraham expected nothing extraordinary or unusual from God, apart from the expected heir pronouncement. God’s discourse, Abraham’s response and polite conversation were fine until God dropped a bombshell on Abraham, who subsequently could not stop laughing to himself (v 17), thinking of Sarah and questioning at heart, believing a mistake was made. The ninety-nine year-old Abraham (17:1) had long stopped dreaming the impossible dream, long suspended his belief in miracles and had ceased hoping for Sarah to conceive. Abraham was kind of over the hill and picking up speed. He was a year from reaching the century mark, Sarah was a decade behind (v 17) and the last time God spoke to him was thirteen years ago (16:16,17:1).

Abraham grinned, was amused and joked to himself. The problem was that he had reached a standstill, lost his way and hit a mid-life crisis without knowing it. God could say anything general to Abraham, but not anything explicit, concrete or novel to him. A spiritual check-up was necessary on the Father of faith. Unlike the land promise in the not too distant future, Abraham was shaken this time because the announcement of an heir is more immediate - a son he will see in his lifetime, and to be really specific - a boy by the name of Isaac, and too familiar to surprise - his wife Sarah, whom he knew too well.

This was too much for Abraham. His instinctive reaction was to laugh, keep the joke to himself. Isaac's birth was the biggest joke around. His father (17:17), mother (18:12-15) and neighbors laughed (21:6). The difference between Abraham’s laughter here and Sarah’s in the next chapter is that Abraham laughed and talked to God about it, but Sarah laughed alone. She had no question for God, no reply to God or trust in Him. Abraham laughed and talked to God, Sarah laughed to herself, and the neighbors laughed with her.

Conclusion: Do people smell the fragrance of God in you? Do they see the fruit of the Spirit? Do they praise God for His work in you? Are you stunted, stagnant or stale? The Bible says, “Like newborn babies, crave pure spiritual milk, so that by it you may grow up in your salvation, now that you have tasted that the Lord is good” (1 Peter 2:2-3).

Abraham, Pt. 6: "All That Glitters is Salt, Not Gold" (Gen 19)

2007-09-22T22:40:00.000-07:00

ALL THAT GLITTERS IS SALT, NOT GOLD (GENESIS 19:1-26)
My good friend from Northern California while we were studying at the seminary was hopping mad when he heard people say that the 1989 earthquake was a sign of God’s displeasure at and judgment on San Francisco, also known as the homosexual capital of the world. When the 7.1 Richter scale earthquake hit San Francisco in the summer of 1989, people died, buildings shook and a bridge collapsed; however, a student wrote an article in the student newspaper declaring God’s judgment upon the homosexuals of San Francisco and California for the hedonistic people, sinful lifestyle and weird thinking that were part of the West Coast.

My friend, whose parents, siblings, nephews and nieces were in San Francisco, went ballistic. As the editor of the student newspaper, he wrote an editorial cautioning against rushing into judgment, extolling God’s love for sinners and reminding readers of the spiritual impact of Californian pastors like Chuck Swindoll, John MacArthur and Chuck Smith, the quality education he received at Biola College, the effective ministries of parachurch groups like Campus Crusade and World Vision that were based there and godly Christians in California who attend the numerous churches there every week.

Indeed, the judgment of Sodom and Gomorrah in Genesis 19 is a shocking passage to read and even tougher to teach and apply. Many Christians are uncomfortable with the content, the language and, especially, the ending of the text. Some others, unfortunately, have taken the text and the opportunity to gloat at the behavior, the condemnation and the destruction of homosexuals!

The situation in Sodom and Gomorrah is more complicated than merely a single issue. It is about the corruption of normal man and woman relationship (19:5), the outbreak of violence in people to people relationship (19:9) and the evil in fallen man’s heart toward God (19:13).

Earlier in Genesis 13, Lot foolishly chose a prosperous city for residence based on its busy surroundings, appealing landscape and fertile land but he ended up in a morally low society, a spiritually bankrupt place (Gen 13:10) and a politically dangerous situation. Abraham had to rescue his stubborn nephew when the kings of the east invaded Sodom (Gen 14:12). In Genesis 18, God promised Abraham that He would not destroy Sodom if even 10 righteous people were in it.

Why was Sodom and Gomorrah judged? How are we to respond to temptation in an immoral, irreligious and irreversible environment? What should we do when wrong is considered right, the spiritual climate is hopeless and when judgment is imminent?

Separate Yourself Before Sin Strikes
19:4 Before they had gone to bed, all the men from every part of the city of Sodom--both young and old--surrounded the house. 5 They called to Lot, “Where are the men who came to you tonight? Bring them out to us so that we can have sex with them.” 6 Lot went outside to meet them and shut the door behind him 7 and said, “No, my friends. Don't do this wicked thing. 8 Look, I have two daughters who have never slept with a man. Let me bring them out to you, and you can do what you like with them. But don't do anything to these men, for they have come under the protection of my roof.” 9 “Get out of our way,” they replied. And they said, “This fellow came here as an alien, and now he wants to play the judge! We'll treat you worse than them.” They kept bringing pressure on Lot and moved forward to break down the door. 10 But the men inside reached out and pulled Lot back into the house and shut the door. 11 Then they struck the men who were at the door of the house, young and old, with blindness so that they could not find the door. (Gen 19:4-11)

In the November 1987 Reader’s Digest, Betty Wein retells an old tale she heard from Elie Wiesel:

A just man comes to Sodom hoping to save the city. He pickets. What else can he do? He goes from street to street, marketplace to marketplace, shouting, “Men and women, repent. What you are doing is wrong. It will kill you; it will destroy you.”

They laugh, but he goes on shouting, until one day a child stops him. “Poor stranger, don’t you see it’s useless?”

“Yes,” the just man replies.

“Then why do you go on?” the child asks.

“I was convinced that I would change them. Now I go on shouting because I don’t want them to change me.” (Illustrations for Preaching and Teaching, Craig Brian Larson)

Were there 10 righteous people in Sodom and Gomorrah (18:32), as Abraham had hoped? In the end Lot was the only righteous resident and closest to a normal person in Sodom.

Would you live there? Start your family? Mingle with them? Lot believed he could handle the people, the lifestyle and the environment. Today many people think they can handle alcohol, drugs, sex and anything bad, unhealthy or harmful without being burned, serious consequences and disastrous results. Lot’s life was inadvertently changed - tested, torn and terrorized by his neighbors.

Why had God not destroyed California cities like San Fernando Valley, the pornography capital of the world, San Francisco, the gay capital of the world, and other crime and sin capitals of the world? No one is safe. Tony Campolo said, “If God is not going to judge this generation, He will have to apologize to Sodom.”

Let me suggest why the Lord has spared us, how we can still save the communities in our society today and what we can do to make an impact even when destruction comes.

Christians are the salt and light of the world, the conscience and voice of a society, people who should stand out like a sore thumb. They shine in the dark, walk in the light and do the right thing. Sadly, Lot resembled his neighbors. In offering his daughters to the repulsive crowd (Gen 19:4-8), he behaved just as weird as the people around him.

In the end, Lot’s speaking out was ineffective (Gen 19:9). Why? Lot just wanted to avoid trouble, so he said to no effect: “This is no good,” “Here’s a better way” and, of course, “Not under my roof!”

How are you different from the world around you? Are you walking in the counsel of the wicked? Standing in the path of sinners? Or sitting in the seat of scoffers?

Step Away From Worsening Conditions
12 The two men said to Lot, “Do you have anyone else here--sons-in-law, sons or daughters, or anyone else in the city who belongs to you? Get them out of here, 13 because we are going to destroy this place. The outcry to the LORD against its people is so great that he has sent us to destroy it.” 14 So Lot went out and spoke to his sons-in-law, who were pledged to marry his daughters. He said, “Hurry and get out of this place, because the LORD is about to destroy the city!” But his sons-in-law thought he was joking. 15 With the coming of dawn, the angels urged Lot, saying, “Hurry! Take your wife and your two daughters who are here, or you will be swept away when the city is punished.” 16 When he hesitated, the men grasped his hand and the hands of his wife and of his two daughters and led them safely out of the city, for the LORD was merciful to them. 17 As soon as they had brought them out, one of them said, “Flee for your lives! Don't look back, and don't stop anywhere in the plain! Flee to the mountains or you will be swept away!” 18 But Lot said to them, “No, my lords, please! 19 Your servant has found favor in your eyes, and you have shown great kindness to me in sparing my life. But I can't flee to the mountains; this disaster will overtake me, and I'll die. 20 Look, here is a town near enough to run to, and it is small. Let me flee to it--it is very small, isn't it? Then my life will be spared.” 21 He said to him, “Very well, I will grant this request too; I will not overthrow the town you speak of. 22 But flee there quickly, because I cannot do anything until you reach it.” (That is why the town was called Zoar.) (Gen 19:12-22)

The mother of Mencius, the famous Confucian scholar of the Warring States Period, paid particular attention to the education of her son. The young Mencius and his mother at first lived near a cemetery. When Mencius saw people mourning at the burial of their dead, he started to imitate them playfully. He cried loudly, kowtowed nonstop and burned incense like them. Mencius’ mother said, “This is not a place for my son to live.” They immediately moved to a place near a market.

At the next stop, when Mencius saw vendors bragging about what they wanted to sell and making money, he started again to imitate them. He hawked, shouted and bargained like a street vendor. Mencius’ mother said, “This is also not a suitable place for my son to live.”

Again they moved immediately but this time to a place near a school. His mother finally said, “This is a suitable place for my child to live.” It was here that they finally settled down. (Adapted from Best Chinese Idioms Vol. 2, Tan Situ, Kowloon, Hong Kong: Hai Feng Publishing Company, 1988.

Lot was the proverbial frog in the kettle that will jump out of boiling water immediately, but will die in cold water rising slowly a degree at a time. The weird surroundings, the odd behavior and the immoral majority did not hasten his move. He thought he would be fine as long as they do not bother him, as long as he minds his business and the boundaries are clear. It did not occur to him to Sodom was not the right place to raise an upright, a healthy or a normal family

The signs were clear. Lot faced immovable roadblocks and rising opposition not just from without and from outsiders but from within and at home. His sons-in-law laughed at him, his wife loved the world and even he himself vacillated. Lot could not convince his future in-laws (14), his wife or even himself to leave. Ironically, the people of the city told him in vain to leave: “Get out of our way.” (Gen 19:9)

The angels had to bend backward for Lot’s family, yell at them to run and drag Lot out of town literally (19:17). Finally, the angels yielded to Lot’s request to stop when they were safer, though not safely, at the next town (19:19-21). Lot thought like a carnal man: “The problem is not so serious, it’s not so simple to leave and the judgment won’t be so sudden! I can’t leave without my wife, my family is not ready and we have already set the engagement date!”

Smarten Up in the Future
23 By the time Lot reached Zoar, the sun had risen over the land. 24 Then the LORD rained down burning sulfur on Sodom and Gomorrah--from the LORD out of the heavens. 25 Thus he overthrew those cities and the entire plain, including all those living in the cities--and also the vegetation in the land. 26 But Lot's wife looked back, and she became a pillar of salt. (Gen 19:23-26)

When Hurricane Andrew struck and devastated the Florida Peninsula south of Miami on Aug. 24, 1992, with winds 165 mph and with gusts stronger than 200 mph, it left a $25 billion bill of damage and a record as the most costly natural disaster in U.S. history at that time.

In the hours before Andrew's pending eastward inland travel to Louisiana the next day, CNN interviewed (8/26/92) a man about his present and future plans with this question: “How are you preparing for Hurricane Andrew?” The man replied, “I'm moving my family from Louisiana to Arkansas.”

“Louisiana?” the man asked. “Isn't that a bit far?” The man who planned to move more than 400 miles away answered, “No. When you're gonna run, you better run far enough!”

The man was right. Hurricane Andrew left 28 people dead in Florida and Louisiana.

The judgment on Sodom could not be prevented or delayed, but the punishment for Lot’s wife could have been avoided. How many warnings did the angels give Lot and his family? Three firm warnings (19:12, 15, 17). At the last warning, how many commands were there? I used to think there were two. Actually, there were four: run for your lives, don’t look back, don’t stop, run to the mountains.

Even then, Lot’s wife looked back and at that point the supernatural protection of God was gone. The Dead Sea region with its rich minerals - petroleum, bitumen, salt and sulfur - rained on her (Genesis, Derek Kidner, Tyndale Old Testament Commentary 135). She not only stayed too long in Sodom and Gomorrah, she left her heart there and here eyes veered naturally, longingly and, unfortunately, dangerously at the city.

Someone once said, “What the mind does not attend to, it dismisses. What it attends to, it considers. What the mind attends to continually, it believes. And what the mind believes, it eventually does.” (Earl Nightingale)

Lot’s wife left the city, but the city did not leave her. It was in her system, blood, world, heart and mind

Conclusion: The Bible says, “For the Lord your God is a consuming fire.” (Deut 4:24) The wicked are blown away like chaff (Ps 1:4). The Bible did not merely admonish us to “avoid evil,” but “Avoid every kind of evil” (1 Thess 5:22). Do you love the world? Have you fastened on to the things of the world? Is the love of the Father in you? The road to God is a narrow gate but the road to destruction is wide, so we have to protect and save ourselves from this corrupt generation. Are you holding on to the word of life so that you do not compete or labor for nothing?

Abraham, Pt. 7: "Make Me a Blessing" (Gen 20)

2007-09-22T22:39:00.000-07:00

MAKE ME A BLESSING (GENESIS 20)
Several years ago, USA Today published the results of a survey on how people feel about their neighbors and their relationship with them. The interview with 1,002 adults revealed that people consider their neighbors as valuable friends, and not as nameless, faceless or heartless strangers.

Below are the results of the survey:
69% have offered to give or have received help from neighbors the previous year.
63% feel as safe in neighborhood now as 5 years ago
61% know neighbors fairly well or very well
51% borrowed from or lent something to a neighbor last year
47% chat with their neighbors five times or more a month, 37% one to four times, and 14% never talk to folks next door.
33% have shared a meal in one or the other’s house. (USA Today, 7/14/97)

In Genesis 12, God had promised Abraham three things: land, seed and blessing. The fulfillment of the promise was right on track even though Abraham was still far from the kind of man exemplifying God’s generous blessing. As the story unfolded God later specified the boundaries of the land in Genesis 15 (Gen 15:18-21) and in chapter 17 the seed Isaac was born. The present chapter captures the relationship between the Father of all who believe and his Gentile neighbors. The time had come for the father of the circumcised (Rom 4:12) and the father of many nations (Rom 4:17) to assume the role that God had assigned for him - to be God's bearer of the promise, His instrument of peace and His mouthpiece to the world.

How should Christians relate to people of a different faith or do not worship God? What do we need to change about our understanding of them? Why does God want us to extend His blessing even to the unbelieving world?

People Can Be Honestly Mistaken and Easily Disadvantaged
20:1 Now Abraham moved on from there into the region of the Negev and lived between Kadesh and Shur. For a while he stayed in Gerar, 2 and there Abraham said of his wife Sarah, “She is my sister.” Then Abimelech king of Gerar sent for Sarah and took her. (Gen 20:1-2)

A man who lost his axe suspected that the missing axe was not misplaced but was stolen. He searched the house everywhere carefully, repeatedly but futilely – in the kitchen, inside the bedroom and behind every fixture. He was convinced in his heart that the axe could not just walk away, go into hiding or vanish into thin air. All signs pointed and led to his neighbor’s son. As the boy passed by, the man looked at the boy’s mannerism - the way he walked, the way he looked, the way he talked – and he was certain that he had found the thief. In fact, everything about the boy’s appearance, behavior and activities suggested that he had stolen the ax.

However, before too long, the man accidentally found his axe while he was digging in his cellar. The next time when he saw his neighbor’s son passed by again, he had another attitude, perspective and opinion: nothing about the boy’s behavior or appearance seemed to suggest that he had stolen the axe.

Deep in the heart, mind and being of Abraham was a sense of distrust, fear and intolerance of his Gentile neighbors. This was nothing new or shocking. Abraham was afraid of Pharaoh and lied when he was far away in foreign Egypt (Gen 12). His latest neighbor, Abimelech, was viewed with the same suspicion. Abraham was incredibly helpful to his nephew and fellow Jew, Lot, but was extremely suspicious of all Gentiles, be they enemies or friends. He would do all that is in his power to rescue his relative Lot and his household from foreign invaders, to recover all their goods and possessions, and to safeguard them from future invasions (Gen 14:16-17), but he would keep things to himself, keep things in the community and keep things separate with the Gentiles. In Abraham’s mind, they could harm, betray or even kill him, his family, or relatives if they had their way, grounds and opportunity to do so.

Abimelech, unwittingly, made what we called an honest mistake. He mistook Sarah for a single woman, someone who was available, and decided to make her a showpiece for his palace; thereby he was exposed to, called into and bound for God’s judgment.

Abraham thought he understood the Gentile human nature, but they were not as bad or mean as he thought they were! At least not all or even most of them. Plain and simple, Abimelech was dragged into trouble simply because Abraham lied. Abraham did not think the Gentiles were capable of being law-abiding citizens, godly neighbors and potential friends. They were unclean, uncircumcised and ungodly sinners, mostly predators, bandits and villains to him. So he kept secrets, told lies and fed misinformation to his neighbors the moment he arrived at Gerar.

Unfortunately, Abraham’s trust in God up to this point did not increase, but his mistrust in foreigners did. He did not exercise faith, but showed prejudice in foreign territory. He did not pray before, but after the incident, and missed a wonderful opportunity to witness to the local residents because of his narrow mind, deceptive words and corresponding actions.

God is Highly Impartial and Equally Merciful
3 But God came to Abimelech in a dream one night and said to him, “You are as good as dead because of the woman you have taken; she is a married woman.” 4 Now Abimelech had not gone near her, so he said, “Lord, will you destroy an innocent nation? 5 Did he not say to me, 'She is my sister,' and didn't she also say, 'He is my brother'? I have done this with a clear conscience and clean hands.” 6 Then God said to him in the dream, “Yes, I know you did this with a clear conscience, and so I have kept you from sinning against me. That is why I did not let you touch her. 7 Now return the man's wife, for he is a prophet, and he will pray for you and you will live. But if you do not return her, you may be sure that you and all yours will die.” (Gen 20:3-7)

A Jewish story told of how Abraham changed his attitude towards outsiders. Once, as the Patriarch Abraham sat at the entrance of his tent, he saw an old, tired man approach. Abraham arose and ran forward to bid him welcome. He begged him to enter his tent and rest, but the old man declined the invitation and said, “No, thank you! I will take my rest under a tree.” But, after Abraham continued to press him with his hospitable attentions the old man allowed himself to be persuaded and entered the tent.

Abraham placed before him goat’s milk and butter and baked for him fresh cakes. The stranger ate until he was satisfied. Then Abraham said to him, “Now praise the Lord, the God of heaven and earth, Who gives bread to all His creatures!” “I do not know your God,” replied the old man coldly. “I will only praise the god that my hands have fashioned!”

Then Abraham spoke to the old man, told him of God’s greatness and loving kindness. He tried to convince him that his idols were senseless things who could neither help nor save anyone. He urged him therefore to abandon them and put his faith in the one true God and thank Him for His gracious acts that He did for him every day. But to all of Abraham’s fervent pleas the old man answered indignantly, “How dare you talk to me this way, trying to turn me away from my gods! You and I must have nothing in common, so do not impose on me any further with your own words, because I will not heed them!” At this Abraham grew very angry and cried out, “Old man, leave my tent!” Without a word the old man departed and he was swallowed up by the dark night and the desert.

When the Almighty saw this He grew very wrathful and appeared before Abraham. “Where is the old man who came to you this night?” He asked sternly. “The old man was stubborn,” replied Abraham. “I tried to persuade him that if he believed in You everything would be well with him. He refused to hear my words so I grew angry and drove him out of my tent.” Then spoke God: “Have you considered what you have done? Reflect for one moment: Here am I, the God of all Creation - and yet have I endured the unbelief of this old man for so many years. I clothed and fed him and supplied all his needs. But when he came to you for just one night you dispensed with all duties of hospitality and compassion and drove him into the wilderness!”

Then Abraham fell upon his face and prayed to God that He forgive him his sin. “I will not forgive you,” said God, “unless you first ask forgiveness from the heathen to whom you have done this evil!” Swiftly, Abraham ran out of his tent and into the desert and after much searching found the old man. Then he fell at his feet and wept and begged for his forgiveness. The old man was moved by Abraham’s pleas and he forgave him. (A Treasury of Jewish Folklore, ed. Nathan Ausubel 456-57. New York: Crown Publishers, 1948)

God causes the sunshine and rain to shine on righteous and unrighteous people (Mt 5:44-45). He views humans the same way, requires the same thing from them and gives them a chance, a way out, and an opportunity to repent. God does not show favoritism but accepts men from every nation who fear him and do what is right. (Acts 10:34-35).

Abimelech, to his credit, had a clear heart and clean hands. The nation was innocent. He did not cause trouble upon Abraham or Sarah. He was not stubborn, unrepentant or shameless. Unlike the previous deception in Egypt (Gen 12:19), Sarah, too, got into the act. She agreed with the plan, conspired to mislead Abimelech and echoed that Abraham was her brother (20:5). Even God did not reject Abimelech’s claim of possessing a clear conscience (20:5, 6). Further, the matter had not gone out of hand. Abimelech had approached Sarah (20:4), but the Lord restrained him (20:4, 6). The Gentile king had not touched Sarah or sinned against God. Unlike Pharaoh who had to read the signs after serious diseases were inflicted upon Egypt (Gen 12:17), Abimelech did not suffer any loss, except for a bad dream. Unlike Pharaoh who had to guess if the source of his problems were Sarah (Gen 12:18), God pointedly reminded Abimelech where danger was. In the end, the heathen king responded humbly, positively and immediately to the divine suggestion. In other words, salvation was not far away for the heathen king.

The way we rightly treat all people, the saved and the unsaved, is an integral part of New Testament teaching. According to the Greek text, the duties to “all” include doing right to them (Rom 12:17), living at peace with them (Rom 12:18, Heb 12:14), doing good to them (Gal 6:10), showing respect (1 Pet 2:17) and loving them (1 Thess 3:12,), and being patient (1 Thess 5:14), kind (1 Thess 5:15) and humble (Tit 3:2).

Believers are commanded to emulate, exercise and extend God’s mercy (Lk 6:36), even to those who doubt, question and reject His existence, the truth and the gospel. Jude 22-23 says, “Be merciful to those who doubt; snatch others from the fire and save them.” Paul says, “The Lord's servant must gently instruct those who oppose him, in the hope that God will grant them repentance leading them to a knowledge of the truth, and that they will come to their senses and escape from the trap of the devil, who has taken them captive to do his will” (2 Tim 2:25-26). Finally, Peter says, “Live such good lives among the ‘pagans’ that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day he visits us” (1 Pet 2:12).

We Should Be Heavenly Minded and Earthly Good
11 Abraham replied, “I said to myself, 'There is surely no fear of God in this place, and they will kill me because of my wife.' 12 Besides, she really is my sister, the daughter of my father though not of my mother; and she became my wife. 13 And when God had me wander from my father's household, I said to her, 'This is how you can show your love to me: Everywhere we go, say of me, “He is my brother.” '“ 14 Then Abimelech brought sheep and cattle and male and female slaves and gave them to Abraham, and he returned Sarah his wife to him. 15 And Abimelech said, “My land is before you; live wherever you like.” 16 To Sarah he said, “I am giving your brother a thousand shekels of silver. This is to cover the offense against you before all who are with you; you are completely vindicated.” 17 Then Abraham prayed to God, and God healed Abimelech, his wife and his slave girls so they could have children again, 18 for the LORD had closed up every womb in Abimelech's household because of Abraham's wife Sarah. (Gen 20:11-18)

E. Stanley Jones (1884-1973), the renowned Methodist evangelist and missionary, met, befriended and admired Mahatma Gandhi, the father of India, while he was a missionary to India for 36 years. He even wrote a biography of India’s most famous citizen, titled, “Gandhi: Portrayal of a Friend.” Jones and Gandhi talked openly, candidly and rationally on the subject of religion, society and politics.

The first time Jones and Gandhi met, Jones asked Gandhi a direct question: “How can we make Christianity part of the national life of India and contribute its power to India’s uplift? What would you, as one of the Hindu leaders of India, tell me, a Christian, to do in order to make this possible?”

Gandhi’s response was clear and direct: “First, I would suggest that all of you Christians, missionaries and all, must begin to live more like Jesus Christ. Second, practice your religion without adulterating it or toning it down. Third, emphasize love and make it your working force. Fourth, study the non-Christian religions more sympathetically to find the good that is within them, in order to have a more sympathetic approach to the people.” (Bill Moore, http://www.kyumc.org/discipleship/Discipleship_NetNews_10-00.html)

Abraham finally disclosed to Abimelech what was in his heart all along. In Egypt he said nothing to Pharoah even though Pharaoh, like Abimelech, also demanded an answer (Gen 12:18-20). The Father of all who believe grew in faith and trusted in others as he learned the second time round that honesty was the best policy. Abraham confessed: “I said to myself, `There is surely no fear of God in this place, and they will kill me because of my wife.” (20:11). After Abraham opened up, things were patched up and misunderstandings were cleared up. This time, Abraham lived a long time in Gerar (Gen 21:34), unlike the short spell in Egypt. Even his son lived in Gerar until Isaac was invited to leave (Gen 26:16).

The reason for his long residence in Gerar was obvious. He did not think only of himself now, but also of Abimelech. He mended the broken trust, built a solid friendship and corrected his past mistakes. Abraham honestly told Abimelech his fears, absolving his wife from blame and taking responsibility for the deception.

Abraham’s confession turned things around. Unexpectedly, Abimelech treated Abraham kindly after that. Abimelech brought sheep and cattle and male and female slaves and gave them to Abraham, and he returned Sarah his wife to him. Abimelech even invited Abraham to live with them and choose a place of his liking (Gen 20:14-15). The friendship could not be possible before Abraham’s education and transformation in Gerar. On top of slaves and animals, Abimelech gave Abraham a thousand shekels of silver for offending the couple (Gen 20:16). Formerly in Egypt, the former Abram received nothing for compensation when he was kicked out unceremoniously by Pharaoh. What Abram had received in Egypt was given before his deception was discovered. Back then, Abram said nothing, did nothing and left in utter shame. This time, he said and did something and salvaged his reputation. Unlike Pharaoh who did not trust the old Abram ever again, Abimelech trusted Abraham after the patriarch made amends, giving Abraham a place to stay and Sarah a place of honor, putting things behind them.

Conclusion: Believers are the salt of the earth and the light of the world (Matt 5:13-14). Is your light brightly shining before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven? Are people more impressed by who you are than what you do, with who you are than by who you say you are and who you are than by the God you profess to know. It’s worthless to be heavenly-minded when there is not an ounce of earthly-good in you. It’s been said, “People don’t care how much you know till they know how much you care.” Have you made a case for Christ by your words, actions, and life? Have you shown yourself to be a bright light, a good neighbor and a model citizen?

Abraham, Pt. 8: "God's Friend" (Gen 22)

2007-09-22T22:38:00.002-07:00

GOD’S FRIEND (GENESIS 22)
At 3:00 a.m. one cold morning a missionary candidate walked into an office for a scheduled interview with the examiner of a mission board. He waited until 8 a.m. when the examiner arrived. The examiner said, “Let us begin. First, please spell baker.” “B-a-k-e-r,” the young man spelled. “Very good. Now, let’s see what you know about figures. How much is twice two?” “Four,” replied the applicant. “Very good,” the examiner said. “I’ll recommend to the board tomorrow that you be appointed. You have passed the test.”

At the board meeting the examiner spoke highly of the applicant and said. “He has all the qualifications of a missionary. Let me explain. First, I tested him on self-denial. I told him to be at my house at three in the morning. He left a warm bed and came out in the cold without a word of complaint. Second, I tried him out on punctuality. He appeared on time. Third, I examined him on patience. I made him wait five hours to see me, after telling him to come at three. Fourth, I tested him on temper. He failed to show any sign of it; he didn’t even question my delay. Fifth, I tried his humility. I asked him questions that a small child could answer and he showed no offense. He meets the requirements and will make the missionary we need.” (7,700 Illustrations # 3461)

In Genesis 22, God dramatically tested Abraham’s devotion to Him with the instruction to offer Isaac his son as a burnt offering on a mountain. Abraham had already suffered the loss of his other son Ishmael, who had left the household with his mother Hagar (Gen 21:9-20). Abraham was at a junction, a crossroad and a fork in his life. Sarah, who had conceived Isaac in her old age, would die in the next chapter. Abraham’s life would fade in the background after this and the stage would be occupied by his son Isaac. Abraham faced the most critical test of his life. Passing the test would cement Abraham’s legacy in Jewish history. Stories of faith and courage would be told, Jewish history would be made and Abraham would received the highest and most affectionate accolade God had given man - the friend of God (Jas 2:21-23).

How do believers handle the test of faith, especially when the stakes were high? What motivates a man of faith to surrender to God’s seemingly illogical request? How does testing mature one’s faith?

Place Your Life in God, Who is Sovereign – There in no Fear in Him
22:1 Some time later God tested Abraham. He said to him, “Abraham!” “Here I am,” he replied. 2 Then God said, “Take your son, your only son, Isaac, whom you love, and go to the region of Moriah. Sacrifice him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains I will tell you about.” 3 Early the next morning Abraham got up and saddled his donkey. He took with him two of his servants and his son Isaac. When he had cut enough wood for the burnt offering, he set out for the place God had told him about. 4 On the third day Abraham looked up and saw the place in the distance. 5 He said to his servants, “Stay here with the donkey while I and the boy go over there. We will worship and then we will come back to you.” (Gen 22:3-5)

One summer, a drought threatened the crop in a small town. On a hot and dry Sunday, the village pastor told his congregation, “There isn't anything that will save us except to pray for rain. Go home, pray, believe and come back next Sunday ready to thank God for sending rain.”

The people did as they were told and returned to church the following Sunday. They wee buzzing, recounting and sharing with excitement at what the pastor had said the previous Sunday. But as soon as the pastor saw them, he was furious and chided them for their indifference, disobedience and faithlessness. He further accused them of living a life of insincerity, hypocrisy and prayerlessness. The people did their best to pacify the pastor, to deflect the criticism and to minimize the uproar.

“We can't worship today. You do not yet believe,” the pastor said. The people, of course, moaned in disappointment and protested their innocence “But we prayed, and we do believe.” “Believe?” the pastor lashed out. “Then where are your umbrellas?”

Mother Teresa said, “True holiness consists in doing God's work with a smile.”

Abraham’s hope in God was against all hope (Rom 4:18). He did as he was asked without hesitation, questioning or fanfare. If he was resistant, angry, quarrelsome, emotional or disillusioned, he did not show it, his son did not feel it, his servants did not know it and yet God would not have faulted him anyway. Abraham did not ask for further clarification, bargain for a later date or feign moral disgust at the request. In fact, Abraham did the unexpected - he left early next morning even though time was not stipulated, finished the chores single-handedly even though he had servants with him and kept the appointment even though he had three days on the trip to think it over, change his mind or beg for mercy.

How in the world could a person sacrifice one’s own child, not withstanding the favorite child? The identity of the child was clear. It was not Ishmael, but Isaac that God demanded. The child that Abraham and his beloved wife Sarah had when they were past the age of child-bearing. The task was clear: to offer Isaac, like what a Levitical priest offering a sacrifice to the Lord (Lev 14:20). What would Abraham tell Sarah, the mother of his child? Abraham and Sarah loved the child dearly and they would rather give up their lives than their child’s life. There would, no doubt, be heartbreak, tears and resistance. Isaac was Abraham and his beloved Sarah’s pride, joy and life.

Was Abraham serious? Of course. He took wood, fire and knife for the trip. He had a non-nonsense, all-business, professional-like approach to sacrificing Isaac. At his arrival on the mountain, he built an altar, laid the wood in order, bound Isaac and laid him on the altar upon the wood. Abraham then stretched forth his hand and took the knife to slay his son.

Abraham’s obedience to God was unthinkable and unflinching. He had come a long way. His forefather, including his father, were pagans, idolaters and unbelievers (Josh 24:2-4) but God chose Abram and brought him out of Ur of the Chaldeans and named him Abraham (Neh 9:7-8). To the possessions and people Abraham and Sarah had acquired in Haran (Gen 12:5) were added livestock and more servants (Gen 12:16) and more livestock and silver and gold during famine (Gen 12:6, 13:2). Even when they were very wealthy (Gen 13:2), silver kept coming (Gen 20:16). Isaac, too, was a gift from God (Gen 17:16). God had kindly given the child to the parents when hope was slim, fading and gone.

How could Abraham withhold from God the only thing He was asking from him after God had protected him from Pharaoh (Gen 12:17) to Abimelech (Gen 20:3), from famine (Gen 12:10) to warfare (Gen 14:15), from Chaldee to Canaan?

Place Your Faith in God, Who is Perfect – Nothing is Impossible to Him
When they reached the place God had told him about, Abraham built an altar there and arranged the wood on it. He bound his son Isaac and laid him on the altar, on top of the wood. Then he reached out his hand and took the knife to slay his son. But the angle of the Lord called out to him from heaven, “Abraham! Abraham!” “Here I am,” he replied. “Do not lay a hand on the boy, he said. “Do not do anything to him. Now I know that you fear God, because you have not withheld from me your son, your only son.” (Gen 22:9-12)

Fred Craddock once told the story of Oswald Goltar. He was a missionary sent to preach the gospel in India near the end of World War II. After many months the time came for a trip back home. His church wired him the money to book passage on a steamer but when he got to the port city he discovered a boatload of Jews who had escaped from Germany had just been allowed to land temporarily. They had been wandering and had no place to go, so they were all crammed in an attic.

It happened to be Christmas, and on Christmas morning, this missionary went to one of the attics where the Jews were staying. He walked in and said, “Merry Christmas.” The people looked at him as if he were crazy and responded, “We’re Jews.” “I know that,” said the missionary, “What would you like for Christmas?” In utter amazement the Jews responded, “Why, we like pastries, good pastries like the ones we used to have in Germany.”

So Oswald Goltar went out and used the money for his ticket home to buy pastries for all the Jews he could find staying in the port. Of course, he then had to wire home asking for more money to book his passage back to the States. His superiors wired back, asking what happened to the money they had already sent. He wired that he had used it to buy Christmas pastries for some Jews. His superiors wired back, “Why did you do that? They don’t even believe in Jesus.” He wired back, “Yes, but I do.”

Abraham was not the father of all who believe (Rom 4:11), the father of the circumcised (Rom 4:12) and the father of many nations (Rom 4:17) for nothing. Since he clearly knew that God had promised him offspring through Isaac (Gen 21:12), so why did he plan to sacrifice his own son? Abraham knew that God was perfect and nothing was impossible to Him. He could give Abraham his son back unharmed, in one piece, as if nothing had happened. God could even present Isaac to his father better than ever, as good as new and in the best shape possible.

Hebrews 11:17-19 reveals Abraham’s faith in God’s perfection: “By faith Abraham, when God tested him, offered Isaac as a sacrifice. He who had received the promises was about to sacrifice his one and only son, even though God had said to him, “It is through Isaac that your offspring will be reckoned.” Abraham reasoned that God could raise the dead, and figuratively speaking, he did receive Isaac back from death.”

Abraham believed that God could and would raise Isaac from the dead if he had sacrificed Isaac and would return to him his child without a hair, bone or muscle missing – wow! That’s the heart, meaning and face of faith. It’s been said, “God is too wise to make a mistake, too good to do evil.” (Paul Lee Tan, Encyclopedia of 7.700 Illustrations # 6928).

Abraham did not throw a fit, shake his fist at God or poured contempt on the request. His stomach did not churn, his muscles did not tighten and his body did not shake. Tears fell from his eyes but there was no rage in them, his heart broke but it did not die and no curse or nonsense was found in his mouth, because his hope in God was unshakable and unwavering. He believed nothing was impossible to Him and too hard for Him to do.

Place Your Faith in God, Who is Wise – He Will Supply All Your
Needs
13 Abraham looked up and there in a thicket he saw a ram caught by its horns. He went over and took the ram and sacrificed it as a burnt offering instead of his son. 14 So Abraham called that place The LORD Will Provide. And to this day it is said, “On the mountain of the LORD it will be provided.” 15 The angel of the LORD called to Abraham from heaven a second time 16 and said, “I swear by myself, declares the LORD, that because you have done this and have not withheld your son, your only son, 17 I will surely bless you and make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and as the sand on the seashore. Your descendants will take possession of the cities of their enemies, 18 and through your offspring all nations on earth will be blessed, because you have obeyed me.” (Gen 22:13-18)

In 1634 renowned Dutch painter Rembrandt painted a great work of art that depicted Abraham’s sacrifice of Isaac. The painting (“The Sacrifice of Abraham”) captures perfectly how the Lord intervenes to stop Abraham from slaying his son Isaac. Isaac’s eyes did not meet his father’s eyes. He was lying on the ground, his arms bound behind his back and his eyes covered by his father’s left hand, but his head was thrown back revealing the neck. Isaac’s curled right leg was completely relaxed while the other curled leg was ready to kick off.

The most fascinating part of Rembrandt’s drawing was the activity on Abraham’s right hand. Abraham had raised his right hand to strike the boy, but an angel’s hand grabbed hold of his hand. As a result the knife barely fell out of his hands on its way to the ground. The angel’s right hand had such a tight grip on Abraham’s hand that Abraham was forced to drop the knife out of his hands.

The angel held his left hand up as if to signal for Abraham to stop what he was doing. The angel’s eyes were most tricky. He was looking intensely at Abraham as he gripped him by the wrist and, at the same time, looking at the boy to see if he was alright.
http://metalab.unc.edu/wm/paint/auth/rembrandt/1630/abraham.jpg

God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does he tempt anyone (Jas 1:13). The Lord would never permit us to do what is immoral, inhuman or irresponsible. He will never ask from us what we cannot give, handle or bear. Our God would never look the other way while the innocent perish or rob them of their worth, value and life.

God tested Abraham to uncover, develop and mature all the goodness, courage and faith that were inherent in Abraham. Abraham looked up and there in a thicket he saw a ram caught by its horns. So Abraham called that place The Lord Will Provide. (22:13-14a). The word “provide” is a fitting translation of the corresponding Hebrew word “see.” The word provide is from two words – “pro” or “before,” and “video” or “see.” The Hebrew word is simply God will see or God will see to it. God saw the beauty, innocence and essence of Abraham’s faith and saw him through his test, torment and triumph.

The lamb was a testimony to God’s foreknowledge of man’s physical, emotional and spiritual need. The ultimate and perfect fulfillment of God’s promise to provide for the need of man is in the gift of His Son. Jesus is the unblemished and spotless lamb (1 Pet 1:19) who was led as a sheep to slaughter (Acts 8:32), the Lamb of God who took away the sin of the world (John 1:29).

Surprisingly, Abraham was the only person in the Bible credited with hearing or obeying God’s voice (Gen 22:18, 26:5). He did not withhold, reserve or spare his son. The father of many nations (Gen 17:4-5, Rom 4:17-18)) and the father of the circumcised (Rom 4:12) was now an unqualified success as the father of all who believe (Rom 4:11).

Conclusion: Man is but a stranger on earth; for we were born only yesterday and know nothing, and our days on earth are but a shadow (Job 8:9). God gives what is good, holds everything together and puts everything right. He rescues the godly from doubt and unbelief to faith in God to overcome the tests of life. God has promised us strength to overcome every storm, blow or turn. At the end of every trial, God has promised: “Blessed is the man who perseveres under trial, because when he has stood the test, he will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love him.” (Jas 1:12)

Abraham, Pt. 9: "Good Grief" (Gen 23)

2007-09-22T22:38:00.001-07:00

GOOD GRIEF (GENESIS 23)
Charlie Brown of the popular Peanuts comic strip has a habit of blurting out two words whenever he is stuck, trapped or frustrated. His favorite expression is “Good grief!”

Death or bereavement in the family is a hurting, devastating and overwhelming affair. Recovering from the loss of a loved one or family member is a slow, painful and lengthy process. Researchers from the Medical College of Virginia, in a study reported in Psychology Today, concluded that the death of a close relative is the single biggest contributor to depression. A serious illness would increase a person’s risk of depression by 330%; divorce/breakup raises it to an unhealthy 1,130%; serious marital problem and assault pushes risk to an alarming 1,400%; but the risk of depression in the death of a close relative soars to a dangerous 1,500%. (Psychology Today 11-12/95).

Abraham and his constant companion and longtime wife Sarah loved each other. Their unusual love story is one for the ages. They were very devoted to each other. When Abraham requested his wife to tell outsiders that she was his sister and not his wife, she dutifully obliged. When Sarah expelled her servant girl Hagar, the mother of Abraham’s first son Ishmael, Abraham reluctantly complied. Their love survived the long and treacherous road to the Promised Land, the early and self-conscious days of childlessness and the explosive and divisive quarrels in the family. They had lived as young newly-weds with Abraham’s father Terah in Ur of the Chaldeans (Gen 11:29), managed things on their own and prospered in the new land, eventually realizing the dream of becoming parents when Isaac was born. However, the father of many nations (Rom 4:17) was now without his wife Sarah, who died of old age. How did the Father of faith feel? What would life be like without Sarah? Where would he find the strength to go on? What could he do to honor her life?

Grief hardly qualifies as being good, but grieving is good. The loss of a loved one, while it triggers a grave crisis in the home, is not the end of the world for surviving family members. How is grieving good? Why does grieving make tragedy bearable? What should we do when a loved one passes away? How should we respond to others in grief?

Weep Alone Patiently
23:1 Sarah lived to be a hundred and twenty-seven years old. 2 She died at Kiriath Arba (that is, Hebron) in the land of Canaan, and Abraham went to mourn for Sarah and to weep over her. (Gen 23:1-2)

Allowing others to weep and grieve for their loss is not a bad thing.

C. S. Lewis, the well-known Christian author wrote:
“To love at all is vulnerable. Love anything and your heart will certainly be wrung and possible be broken. If you want to make sure of keeping it intact, you must give your heart to no one, not even to an animal. Wrap it careful round with hobbies and little luxuries; avoid all entanglements; lock it up safe in the casket or coffin of your selfishness. But in that casket - safe, dark, motionless, airless - it will change. It will not be broken; it will become unbreakable, impenetrable, irredeemable...The only place outside Heaven where you can be perfectly safe from all the dangers...of love is Hell. (Swindoll, Quest)

Abraham mourned and wept over Sarah’s death (v 2). What's the difference? Weeping is a personal response to grief while mourning or lamenting is frequently a ceremony, a ritual or a tradition that involves rending the clothes, beating the breasts and tearing of hair. The first mourning recorded in the Bible, significantly, is Abraham’s lamenting over the loss of his wife Sarah. We do not know how long Abraham mourned, but at Jacob's death his children mourned for seven days (Gen 50:10).

Many Christians struggle for the right words to say to people who are grieving or suffering loss. Their words often reflect their negative opinion of grief. The most common words of advice given to someone at the loss of a loved one are “Don't cry” “Don’t feel bad” and “Don’t be sad.” Well-meaning advice like “I’m sure there is a purpose behind all this” or “Time will heal all things” is out of line and out of place. The worst advice I've heard so far given to a person who had lost a loved one is “Jesus needs him more than you do.”

Dear Abby gives this advice on how to respond to those who are grieving: “How one handles grief is a personal matter. Let the one who has suffered the loss take the lead. If he feels like talking, encourage him to talk. If he prefers to sit in silence, don’t intrude on his silence. Friends should call, bring food, offer to run errands and do what needs to be done. A hug, a squeeze of the hand, a look which says, “I’m here, if you need me” conveys more than a thousand words. (Quotable Quotations 166 Wheaton, IL: Victor Books, 1985)

Weeping is natural, healthy and necessary. William H. Frey of Health Partners Dry Eye and Tear Research Center in St. Paul, Minnesota, has provided the most revealing study on tears. Tears are caused by three sources - mostly sadness, 20% out of happiness and 0.5% by anger. Women, on the average, cry five times a month, four times as often as men. Only 4% of women say they don’t cry at all, but a whopping 45% of men say they don’t cry at all. For those who cry, 85% of women and 73% of men reported they feel better after crying. Women are more likely to cry when they are angry but anger inhibits crying in men (Los Angeles Times 3/10/97).

Tears help put a person pull together, and not reduce him or her into pieces. Crying is often healthy. It is crucial to and part and parcel of the recovery process. It frees grieving people, and not cripple or shackle them. They get back on their feet quicker, get things off their chest sooner and get on with their life faster after a good cry. The Bible does not discourage people from crying. 1 Thessalonians 4:13 does not discourage us from grieving, but grieving like people “who have no hope.” Romans 12:15 even encourages believers to weep with those who weep. Jesus did not hold back his tears on two occasions, once over Lazarus and another over the city of Jerusalem.

Walk Ahead Patiently
12 Again Abraham bowed down before the people of the land 13 and he said to Ephron in their hearing, “Listen to me, if you will. I will pay the price of the field. Accept it from me so I can bury my dead there.” 14 Ephron answered Abraham, 15 “Listen to me, my lord; the land is worth four hundred shekels of silver, but what is that between me and you? Bury your dead.” 16 Abraham agreed to Ephron's terms and weighed out for him the price he had named in the hearing of the Hittites: four hundred shekels of silver, according to the weight current among the merchants. (Gen 23:12-16)

Most college students have come across a study of stress known as “The Social Readjustment Rating Scale” in their basic psychology class. The list consists of 12 stress killers and how these events affect lives on an ascending scale, up to the maximum 100 points. The lowest four stress factors were: Christmas, 12 points; trouble with boss, 23 points; trouble with in-laws and children leaving home, each 29 points; and mortgage or loan foreclosure, 30. The middle four stress reasons were: change into a different line of work, 36 points; death of a close friend, 37 points; pregnancy 40; and retirement, 45. The four stress killers were: fired at work, 47 points; marriage, 50; divorce, a high 73; and death of a spouse, the maximum 100 points.

Death of a spouse is the hardest thing to accept and to handle. Living without one’s life-partner is not only the biggest stress in life; it is also life’s lowest blow, cruelest joke and scariest adjustment. I heard a speaker (D Pao) said that a man has a 25% chance of surviving death following his spouse’s death, but a surviving wife has no problem surviving!

How do those who remain submit to God’s will when loved ones are gone? After crying for a while, Abraham arose (v 3). He did not cry until he was dehydrated, till he was treated or was unrecognizable. The study of Abraham’s life is an incredible look at a man who purposed to walk ahead, not away. Abraham’s purpose, direction and zest in life dimmed, but it did not die the day Sarah died. True, he endured many sleepless nights, weathered many storms and walked the lonesome valley, and nothing could be worse than losing a spouse. The bottom fell out, but the clock kept ticking. There were things to do, people to see and reasons to live.

Abraham had to live for the sake of Sarah, the sake of their son and his own sake. The first thing Abraham did was to buy a piece of property to bury Sarah. Abraham was offered a piece of land free, but he would not accept a lease for his beloved Sarah (vv 5-6). Buying property was a new experience even for the wealthy patriarch who possessed many servants, much livestock and gold. Abraham had not own a piece of property so far. For the first time in his life, as an exception, he bought a piece of property. However, Abraham did not become a property tycoon or make any property investment after this. He bought only one piece of property in life - nothing before, nothing after this and nothing to leave behind – to signal his devotion to his wife. Abraham, technically, was a native of Ur, but he wanted Sarah to be buried in the Promised Land to be close to the family, especially to their young son Isaac.

Further, Abraham had to think of Isaac. Isaac was unmarried (Gen 24:2). Among Abraham’s to-do list was to ensure that Isaac did not marry one of the local idolatrous girls (Gen 24:3). To do that, he had better stick around to see that the most unacceptable and unimaginable thing would not happen: Isaac’s return to Ur! (Gen 24:6) Abraham had to be strong, available and brave. He was not the only who missed Sarah; Isaac missed his mother terribly (Gen 24:67). In fact, the first thing Isaac did when he met Rebekah, his future wife, was to bring her into the tent of his deceased mother Sarah (Gen 24:67). Only after marriage was Isaac comforted after his mother's death.

Finally, Abraham was nowhere near death or dying. After Isaac was married, Abraham remarried at a later age, started another family, had six more sons and lived until 175 (Gen 25:1-7). When he send his servant to get a bride for his Isaac, Abraham was at an old age (Gen 24:1) but he had yet to live to his lifetime (Gen 25:7).

Work Again Purposefully
So Ephron’s field in Machpelah, near Mamre- both the field and the cave in it, and all the trees within the border of the filed-was deeded to Abraham as his property in the presence of all the Hittites who had come to the gate of the city (Gen 23:17-18)

Rabbi Norman E. Singer tells the story of a woman whose only son died. In her grief she went to the holy man and said, “What magical incantations do you have that will bring my son back to life?” Instead of sending her away or reasoning with her, he said, “Fetch me a mustard seed from a home that has never known sorrow. We will use it to drive the sorrow out of your life.”

The woman set out at once in search of the magical seed. She came first to a splendid mansion, knocked at the door and said, “I am seeking a house that has never known sadness. Is this the place?” They told her, “You have come to the wrong place,” and began to describe all the tragic things that had befallen them.

The woman said to herself, “Who is more able to help these poor people than myself, who has also known great sorrow?” She stayed on and comforted them, then went on in search for a home that had never known sorrow. But wherever she turned, in hotels and places, she found one tale after another of sadness and misfortune. She became involved in ministering to other peoples’ grief she forgot about her quest for the magical seed, never realizing it had in fact driven the sorrow out of her life.

The biggest challenge at the loss of a loved one is to live the remaining life with purpose.

St. Francis of Assisi said, “Lord, save me from despair, and if I am in despair, make me do some work of peace for Thee.” (Instrument of Thy Peace 41, Alan Paton, New York: Seabury Press, 1968)

Abraham wasn’t about to stay in the house, sit in a rocking chair and live like a recluse. He bought not just a cave from Ephron the Hittite, but a cave, the field and all the trees within the border of the field. Bring out the lawn mowers, leaf-blowers and the shears! There was a lot of work to be done, a lot of flowers to plant, a lot of grass to cut, a lot of weeds to pull, uproot and kill!

Work is a challenge, not a cure or a crutch. Work is a way to calm and control grief, and not to cancel or correct grief. Work is a grieving person’s connection to people and the world again, not a cover from them. Work is a comfort to the grieving, not a curse. Work keeps a person’s mind, body and spirit active.

Of course, Abraham - at his age, with his wealth and under the circumstances - did things that were sentimental, personal and rational to him. The trees were a shade to him, the field was a trail for him and the cave was a monument to him. The spread, the space and the surroundings of the field brought him peace, rest and closure.

An 86 year-old: “I've learned to keep looking ahead. There are still so many good books to read, sunsets to see, friends to visit, and old dogs to take walks with.” (Live and Learn 159).

Conclusion: Christians have to come to grip with death. They have to permit the departed to leave, the surviving to grieve and themselves to live. Have you tried too hard to offer wise and reassuring words to the grieving rather than offering your presence and prayer to them? Crying for the deceased is not a cry for help or attention, but a cry of love and affection. The Bible says, “Weeping may remain for a night, but rejoicing comes in the morning” (Ps 30:5).

Do you live in the present or in the past? Are you thinking and talking too much of the past and not enough of the present and the future?

Abraham, Pt. 10: "Walk by Faith, Not By Sight" (Gen 24)

2007-09-22T22:37:00.001-07:00

WALK BY FAITH, NOT BY SIGHT (GENESIS 24:1-25:9)
Walking by faith is not the most natural thing on earth. Like any exercise, exercising our faith is easier said than done. No one is ever quite ready - intellectually, emotionally or spiritually - for God’s ways, life’s lessons or unexpected turns.

Abraham traveled a long way from his native Ur to Canaan. Along the road his father died. The Promised Land was not a bed of roses by any means. Abraham strayed into Egypt when a famine struck, separated from Lot as their fortunes grew, took a concubine at his wife’s insistence but later had Isaac with the aged Sarah and witnessed the departure of Ishmael, his other son.

However, whenever Abraham stumbled, slipped or stalled, faith rescued him, pulled him out and put him back on his feet. A man of faith is not perfect in faith but persistent in faith. Abraham’s triumph over his shortcomings, mistakes, weaknesses, blunders and faults was nothing short of a miracle. He eventually overcame his inadequacies, suspicions and fears and transformed himself into a giant in faith.

How does a man of faith relate to God, live his life and minister to others? What are his responsibilities and challenges? What motivates and sustains his faith?

A Man of Faith is a Promise-Keeper
24:1 Abraham was now old and well advanced in years, and the LORD had blessed him in every way. 2 He said to the chief servant in his household, the one in charge of all that he had, “Put your hand under my thigh. 3 I want you to swear by the LORD, the God of heaven and the God of earth, that you will not get a wife for my son from the daughters of the Canaanites, among whom I am living, 4 but will go to my country and my own relatives and get a wife for my son Isaac.” 5 The servant asked him, “What if the woman is unwilling to come back with me to this land? Shall I then take your son back to the country you came from?” 6 “Make sure that you do not take my son back there,” Abraham said. 7 “The LORD, the God of heaven, who brought me out of my father's household and my native land and who spoke to me and promised me on oath, saying, 'To your offspring I will give this land'--he will send his angel before you so that you can get a wife for my son from there. 8 If the woman is unwilling to come back with you, then you will be released from this oath of mine. Only do not take my son back there.” (Gen 24:1-8)

Augustine, the renowned author of “The Confessions of Augustine” and one of the greatest thinkers, writers and defenders of the faith, was also known for his famous mother, Monica. Before he was saved, Augustine cohabited with a woman for 14 years, fathered a son out of wedlock and held to heretical teachings. Rome was always a big attraction to him. He wanted to taste city life, explore the opportunities and make his mark there.

When Augustine made up his mind to leave for the bright lights of Rome, knowing that his mother would object or, worse, follow along, he told her to meet him somewhere in town while he secretly boarded a ship to Rome. The heartbroken mother prayed for his son’s salvation for 17 years. In times of loneliness and grief Monica would run to the church for sanctuary and prayer, crying over his son’s waywardness, lifestyle and absence. A bishop who attended and ministered to the teary Monica in prayer said to the woman who often begged him to pray for her son and talked to him: “Only pray to our Lord for him. Your son will at length discover his error and impiety. Go your way, God bless you; it cannot be that a child of those tears should perish.”

Abraham’s famous last words in the Bible have not been covered enough in commentaries. After warning his servant once in verse 6 not to take his forty-years old son (Gen 25:20) back to Mesopotamia, Abraham reiterated the point to his servant and ended the conversation with him this way: “Only do not take my son back there” (v 8) - thus concluded the account of Abraham’s life and legacy. The reason Abraham made his servant swear an oath was clear: God’s promise of land was meant not just for the patriarch alone, but for Abraham and his offspring (Gen 12:7, 13:15, 17:8). Abraham claimed the land promise for the next of kin and subsequent generations. The urgent request was uncharacteristic of the patriarch; not only did the boss ask a favor from his servant, but he also initiated an oath (vv 3, 7), putting his servant’s hand under his thigh for a solemn swear-in.

Already Abraham had buried his wife Sarah in Canaan instead of Ur, their native city; returning to Ur was not an option. Abraham’s break with culture, tradition and precedent in burying Sarah in Canaan was an unmistakable message. Buying a cave and nothing else in his life was meant to send the same message to future generations that Canaan was home now. Abraham would not allow Isaac to return under any circumstances, if he could help it. While he was still living, Abraham would do all that was in his power to find and bring a wife from his old country and his own relatives for his son Isaac.

Abraham determined that Isaac’s future wife must not be a Canaanite woman. Canaan, the Canaanite forefather, was cursed to be a slave to his brothers (Gen 9:25-27). Abraham’s orders to stay in Canaan defined, characterized and shaped the Israelites’ mindset toward Israel. Following Abraham’s lead, Jacob’s last words to his children were to be buried with his fathers in Canaan (Gen 49:29-32).

A Man of Faith is a Pilgrim on Earth
25:1 Abraham took another wife, whose name was Keturah. 2 She bore him Zimran, Jokshan, Medan, Midian, Ishbak and Shuah. 3 Jokshan was the father of Sheba and Dedan; the descendants of Dedan were the Asshurites, the Letushites and the Leummites. 4 The sons of Midian were Ephah, Epher, Hanoch, Abida and Eldaah. All these were descendants of Keturah. 5 Abraham left everything he owned to Isaac. 6 But while he was still living, he gave gifts to the sons of his concubines and sent them away from his son Isaac to the land of the east. (Gen 25:1-6)

An American tourist visited the renowned Polish rabbi Hofetz Chaim. The tourist was astonished to see that the rabbi’s home was only a simple room filled with books, a table and a cot.

The tourist asked, “Rabbi, where is your furniture?” Rabbi Chaim replied, “Where is yours?” The puzzled American asked, “Mine? But I’m only a visitor here. I’m only passing through.” The rabbi replied, “So am I, so am I.” (Ralph Spencer)

An early pilgrim said, “By the grace of God I am a Christian man, by my actions a great sinner, and by calling a homeless wanderer of the humblest birth who roams from place to place. My worldly goods are a knapsack with some dried bread in it on my back and in my breastpocket a Bible. And that is all.” (Jean Fleming, Between Walden and the whirlwind, Nav 85)

Man is but an alien (Ps 39:12) and a stranger on earth (Ps 119:19). He is but a breath and his days are like a fleeting shadow (Ps 144:4). His troubles are as sure as sparks fly upward (Job 5:7) and his days on earth are like a shadow - without hope (1 Chron 29:15). As the gospel song says, “This world is not my home, I’m just a passing through.” says that man. Psalms 39:6 says, “Man is a mere phantom as he goes to and fro: He bustles about, but only in vain; he heaps up wealth, not knowing who will get it.” People are like grass (Isa 40:7) and grasshoppers (Isa 40:22) - here today and gone tomorrow. The length of our days is seventy years--or eighty, if we have the strength. (Ps 90:10)

The world is not enough for the pilgrim. True citizenship, eternal rest, and wondrous joy is awaiting in heaven (Phil 3:20), where our lowly bodies will be transformed into glorious bodies.

Abraham was a pilgrim in the true sense of the word, making his home in the promised land like a stranger in a foreign country; he lived in tents, as did Isaac and Jacob, who were heirs with him of the same promise. (Heb 11:9) Even though Abraham had an abundance of servants, gold and livestock (Gen 12:16, 13:2, 20:16), bought and owned the barest minimum. He never possessed material goods long enough for them to gain sentimental value on him. He was an alien, a sojourner and a journeyman (Gen 20:1, 21:23, 34). All he had transacted in his life was a cave for his family grave. He could have bought more but he saw no need to, even though he had the reason and the time to pass on land and property to the next generation. He had eight sons from three women, and he could have at least left a house for each one, but Abraham was a man who was in the world but not of the world.

Very early in his life, after Abraham was already very wealthy (Gen 13:2), he gave a tenth of everything he possessed to Melchizedek, the priest of God Most High (Gen 14:18-20). The patriarch was never motivated by money and not a lover of money. Family and relatives meant much more to him. Even when he was offered the goods he recovered from the kings that invaded Sodom, he refused to accept anything from the king of Sodom for reward so that the king could never boast of making Abraham rich (Gen 14:22-24). Abraham’s motive for the daring rescue was to save Lot and not to make money.

Abraham gave away much of what he had on his own terms. He gave to whoever he wanted to - to Isaac and his other sons; he gave whatever he wanted to - his other sons received gifts, and Isaac, everything else; and he gave whenever he wanted to - while he was living (Gen 25:5-6). He did not want his sons, their wives and children to quarrel, wrangle and fight over the money, property, livestock and servants.

A Man of Faith is a Peacemaker at Heart
Then Abraham breathed his last and died at a good old age, an old man and full of years; and he was gathered to his people. His sons Isaac and Ishmael buried him in the cave of Machpelah near Mamre, in the field of Ephron son of Zohar the Hittite (Gen 25:9)

A Sunday school teacher was discussing the Ten Commandments with her five and six year olds. After explaining the commandment to “Honor thy father and thy mother,” she asked, “Is there a commandment that teaches us how to treat our brothers and sisters?”
Without missing a beat, one little boy answered, “Thou shall not kill.”

A poem “The Power of Words” says:
“A careless word may kindle strife,
A cruel word may wreck a life,
A bitter word may hate instill,
A brutal word may smite and kill,
A gracious word may smooth the way,
A joyous word may light the day,
A timely word may lessen stress,
A loving word may heal and bless.”

A man of faith who walks in faith with God is neighborly, cordial and kind to others. Abraham was never unpleasant to others, confrontational or bitter with others. He cared for his sons, his relatives and his neighbors. The wise Abraham prevented his sons from continuing the war their respective mother started. The most beautiful picture in his death was the sight of Ishmael and Isaac jointly burying their father (Gen 25:9). They were both his sons. Abraham valued peace with others in life and brought peace to others in death.

Abraham provided for his other sons from a later marriage to Keturah and made sure that history did not repeat itself. Although Abraham left everything he owned to Isaac, while he was still living, he gave gifts to the sons of his concubines and sent them away from his son Isaac to the land of the east (Gen 25:5-6).

Abraham’s peacemaking efforts in the family were not an aberration. He protected his herdsmen from turf wars, averted a quarrel with his nephew Lot, and even rescued Lot when he was captured (Gen 14:11-12). When he realized that the angels who visited him had turned away and were heading toward and bent on destroying Sodom, where Lot was residing, Abraham literally stood in the path of God (Gen 18:22). He boldly asked God ten different questions, making up six mock numbers in six rapid-fire exchanges with Him. Abraham asked God to the limit, even risking annoying Him (Gen 21:30, 32), for the sake of Lot, but he came out with an understanding, an appreciation, and a gratitude for God’s justice, mercy and love. (Gen 21:31-34)

Finally, he made peace with his neighbors. His relationship with Abimelech, the Philistine, was admirable, but his relationship with Pharaoh was not. Unlike his brisk journey into foreign Egypt that ended on a sour note, he had a good rapport and made a good-faith treaty with neighbor Abimelech, enabling him to stay in the land of the Philistines for a long time. After airing their grievances upon meeting, Abimelech invited Abraham to live in the land, and Abraham, in turn, prayed for Abimelech (Gen 20:15-18). When a misunderstanding almost erupted again, Abraham brought sheep and cattle and gave them to Abimelech, and the two men made a treaty (Gen 21:25-34).

Conclusion: By God’s grace, we can triumph over adversities, fears and opposition in the journey of faith. No one is born to run; from crawling on our knees, we progress to standing on our feet, then walking naturally with ease.

Are you stepping out in faith and abiding by God’s promises to be God’s instrument of peace, righteousness and blessing? Do you make effort to get along with neighbors and enemies? Are you seeking God’s will, doing God’s work and following God’s way?

Isaac: "It's All Small Stuff"

2007-09-22T22:35:00.001-07:00

IT’S ALL SMALL STUFF (GENESIS 26:12-33)
Snoopy, Charlie Brown’s dog, was having one of those lazy, carefree days doing nothing as he plopped his stomach on the floor in his kennel and then walked around aimlessly and restlessly, sighing in his thoughts: “I’m growing old, and I’ve never done anything. I’ve never chased a rabbit...I’ve never barked at a burglar. Cats scar me to death. I hate retrieving ducks. All I ever do is sleep.”

After pondering his options, Snoopy went back to sleep, this time with his head contentedly rested on a rock, his back on the floor, facing the blue sky, admitting to himself: “Well, I guess each of us has his own special calling.”

Unlike Abraham, Isaac lived an easy life and had it made. He was a boring guy who lived a ho-hum life and made no ripples in life. Unlike his father and his son, he did not loom large in the Bible; he was more like a small-print footnote stuck between two important dissertation and larger-than–life figures. His father, Abraham, was the father of many nations and Jacob, his son, was the father of the nation Israel. Unlike Abraham and Jacob who traveled abroad, Isaac lived a sheltered life and had never left home. His parents even ordered a bride for him, but after the death of both parents, he had a rude awakening. Curiously, he imitated his parents’ tag team lie disastrously and gambled with Rebekah’s life when he told the Philistines that she was his sister (Gen 26:1-11).

God did not let Isaac down even though He let him fail. Isaac later made up for his past inexperience, mistakes and immaturity. Slowly, he stepped out of his father’s shadow, experienced God for himself and got along impressively with his neighbors.

How should we respond to people who intimidate us? Who should we turn to when we are alone and afraid? Why is it more blessed to turn the other cheek than to fight tooth and nail when our enemies offend us?

Shut Up and Pull Out Like a Gentleman
12Isaac planted crops in that land and the same year reaped a hundredfold, because the LORD blessed him. 13The man became rich, and his wealth continued to grow until he became very wealthy. 14He had so many flocks and herds and servants that the Philistines envied him. 15So all the wells that his father's servants had dug in the time of his father Abraham, the Philistines stopped up, filling them with earth. 16Then Abimelech said to Isaac, “Move away from us; you have become too powerful for us.” 17So Isaac moved away from there and encamped in the Valley of Gerar and settled there. 18Isaac reopened the wells that had been dug in the time of his father Abraham, which the Philistines had stopped up after Abraham died, and he gave them the same names his father had given them. 19Isaac's servants dug in the valley and discovered a well of fresh water there. 20But the herdsmen of Gerar quarreled with Isaac's herdsmen and said, “The water is ours!” So he named the well Esek, because they disputed with him. 21Then they dug another well, but they quarreled over that one also; so he named it Sitnah. 22He moved on from there and dug another well, and no one quarreled over it. He named it Rehoboth, saying, “Now the LORD has given us room and we will flourish in the land.” 23From there he went up to Beersheba. (Gen 26:12-23)

When my wife and I agreed to the terms of a house several years ago, little did we know that trouble was ahead. On the day of our wedding anniversary, twenty days before moving in, our agent called and told us that the owner had faxed a note to him saying that he was canceling the sale. On top of a regular mortgage, the owner apparently owed the government $50,000.00. He also had back taxes, five liens, and bank loans that totaled more than his house’s asking price. Besides facing the liens that would prevent him from selling, he also wanted to sell with enough profit to pay off his debts and to retire.

On our agent’s advice, we dutifully went through mediation and arbitration as stipulated on the contract, but the seller did not budge, return calls or even open his door to a hand-delivered mediation letter from his broker. On the day we were supposed to move in, I drove by the house three times, staring at the house. The Sunday after the initial move-in date, when I remarked to my wife that we were supposed to move in that weekend, she replied, “Do you know this is the third time you are saying it?” I replied, “I know, but I can’t help it.”

Days turned to weeks and weeks to months, and slowly the Lord took our minds off the house. Though we stayed six months in a rented house before we bought our dream house and I still drove by the area once a week to look for new homes, we were too busy with our ministry and jobs and occupied with various things most of the time to even think about the house. I discovered that once the move-in weekend had passed, the mind did not play tricks on me again, rewinding, replay and reliving old memories.

Isaac was a gentleman. His actions were never out of character or out of range with the person he was; he did not get mad, turn bad or get even when he was pushed to the edge by the bad guys.

Isaac, at first glance, was a coward, a victim and a loser but his silence must be examined in the context of the danger he faced. He was a foreigner, his wells were plugged up by the Philistines and he was invited to leave by none other than Abimelech, the Philistines ruler (Gen 26:15). Not only had Isaac suffered hostility shown by the Philistines, who stopped up the wells that his father, Abraham, had dug up, his relocation to the Valley of Gerar was twice met with resistance from the herdsmen of Gerar, who seized the wells and water that his servants had discovered (Gen 26:20, 21). The third time, however, was a charm for the nomadic Isaac, who later discovered water in the abundance (Gen. 26:23).

Isaac appeared powerless, but he was not spineless, toothless or brainless. He ran out of water, but he did not run out of options. He would rather move willingly and than to be removed forcefully. Nobody laid a finger on him, his family, herdsmen, flocks or possessions. Abimelech was impolite, the Philistines were jealous – the first occurrence of the Hebrew word “envy” in the Bible (Gen 26:13), but no fist was thrown, no fight had ensued and no party was hurt. Feelings, sensibilities, relations were hurt, that’s all. Isaac was wronged and hindered, but he wasn’t wounded or harmed. There was always another well, another spring, another discovery elsewhere. So he moved to the outskirts, to the valley, to the frontier. He was not at the point of starvation; he had just reaped a hundredfold harvest (Gen 26:12). It was more important to be blessed by the Lord, of which Isaac was. The references to God’s clear, unmistakable blessing on Isaac (Gen 26:12-13), in a sense, were more striking than God’s blessing on Abraham. Abraham was wealthy (Gen 24:35), but Isaac was very wealthy (Gen 26:13).

Robert Eliot said these classic words: “To avoid stress, Rule No. 1 is, don't sweat the small stuff. Rule No. 2 is, it's all small stuff.” (Quotable Quotations, 369). In the words of the Chinese, “As long as the green mountain remains, why fear there is no wood to burn.” When it is not a matter of life and death, sticks and stones, the last resort or the last straw, investing time, money and energy to change people’s minds, opinions and feelings is costly, draining and unrewarding.

The only command Isaac had received from the Lord so far was to stay in the land (Gen 26:2-3), and although he left Gerar, he did not go down to Egypt, which the Lord had forbidden. God promised the land to Abraham and Isaac, but He did not stipulate for Isaac to claim the city of Gerar, its waters or wells, where he was harassed. More importantly, Isaac was an adventurer by nature (Gen 26:23). Even if Abimelech, the Phllistines or the herdsmen of Gerar did not drive him away, plug up his wells or did anything funny, foolish or fanatical, he still would have left, which he did even after digging another well and finding uncontested water at Rehoboth (Gen 26:22-23).

In this tit-for-tat, an-eye-for-an-eye and dog eat dog world and society, Isaac was peerless as a gentleman. He left without fuss, last words or a tinge of regret. He was one of a kind and had a different philosophy altogether. The world did not need another jerk, another showdown and another casualty. Instead of thinking the well-followed Chinese tradition of “You get me the first day of the month and I’ll get you on the 15th,” think “If I don’t work in the east, then I’ll work in the west.”

Step Up and Press On As an Heir
24That night the LORD appeared to him and said, “I am the God of your father Abraham. Do not be afraid, for I am with you; I will bless you and will increase the number of your descendants for the sake of my servant Abraham.” 25Isaac built an altar there and called on the name of the LORD. There he pitched his tent, and there his servants dug a well. (Gen 26:24-25)

Several years ago, Time Magazine, for a change, put a Christian figure and a new face on its cover: Franklin Graham. Franklin is the son of the world's most famous preacher, Billy Graham, whose radio broadcast was carried by 660 stations. Growing up, the younger Graham was often embarrassed and bothered by his father's well-wishers, who often said: “Dear Little William Frank, we heard that your daddy has new help for preaching God's truth. So grow up fast!”

Franklin had his turn at rebellion when he was young. Neighbors called the local sheriff one instance when they saw the younger Graham chopping down a neighbor’s tree - with 720 rounds of machinegun fire! Smoking was also a hard habit to break. To make him quit smoking, his mother attempted to sicken him of smoking by forcing him to smoke a whole packet of cigarettes. He finished all of them, vomited five or six times, but refused to give in. While he was sent to a Christian boarding school, he taunted the local police to high-speed car chases and cultivated a fascination for firearms.

The younger Graham eventually accepted the Lord at age 22, but it took him another 22 years to emerge in his own right and on his own terms to succeed his father Billy Graham at the helm of his father's ministry, after garnering respect for starting a new, breakthrough ministry - Samaritan’s Purse. Franklin Graham reflected on his turnaround and transformation, and said, “People might say: ‘Come on, you've got it made. Your father is Billy Graham! You have a perfect position before God.’” His reply, however, was, “ No I don't. No one can choose God for you. You must choose.” (“In the Name of the Father” Time 5/13/96)

Isaac’s knowledge and experience of God were initially second-hand, family-owned postdated and by default. God blessed him only after his father’s death (Gen 25:11). His father was a typical immigrant who made his mark and fortune in the new land, but unfortunately Isaac was a passive second-generation recipient who was just going along for the ride.

However, Isaac resolutely kept moving until he found God, which he did at Beersheba, the same spot where God was known to have appeared to Hagar (Gen 21:14). Now he had a direct, personal and real relationship with God. The first time God appeared, He said to Isaac: I will be with you (Gen 26:3), but this time God said to him, “I am with you” (Gen 26:24). As it has often been said, “God has no grandchildren.” God now confirmed his relationship with Isaac using the present tense. Just like his father (Gen 12:7, 8, 13:18), Isaac built an altar and called on the name of the Lord (Gen 26:25); his faith was no longer a symbolic act, a traditional ritual or a family practice.

Hebrews 11:9-10 tells us that Isaac stood tall as an heir of the same promise Abraham inherited: “By faith he made his home in the promised land like a stranger in a foreign country; he lived in tents, as did Isaac and Jacob, who were heirs with him of the same promise.”

Isaac’s name was mentioned in the same breath with Abraham by his grandson Joseph (Gen 48:15-16, 50:24) and afforded the same honor by God Himself (Ex 3:6, 3:16, 4:5, 6:3, 6:8, 33:1, Lev 26:42) in the Torah and Jesus in the New Testament (Matt 22:32, Lk 13:28). God is the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, not just Abraham and Jacob.

Isaac also made a name for himself planting crops, something his father Abraham never did. Abraham loved the mountains (Gen 12:8), the oaks (Gen 18:1) and trees (Gen 23:7), but Isaac made his life in the valley. Yet Isaac’s biggest achievement was not carving a name for himself as a maverick, but inheriting and embracing God as his own, as an heir should. He was a giant the day he stepped out of his father’s shadow, stepped into his own shoes and stepped up to the promise.

Speak Up and Patch Up to Be a Peacemaker
26Meanwhile, Abimelech had come to him from Gerar, with Ahuzzath his personal adviser and Phicol the commander of his forces. 27Isaac asked them, “Why have you come to me, since you were hostile to me and sent me away?” 28They answered, “We saw clearly that the LORD was with you; so we said, `There ought to be a sworn agreement between us'--between us and you. Let us make a treaty with you 29that you will do us no harm, just as we did not molest you but always treated you well and sent you away in peace. And now you are blessed by the LORD.” 30Isaac then made a feast for them, and they ate and drank. 31Early the next morning the men swore an oath to each other. Then Isaac sent them on their way, and they left him in peace. 32That day Isaac's servants came and told him about the well they had dug. They said, “We've found water!” 33He called it Shibah, and to this day the name of the town has been Beersheba. (Gen 26:26-33)

In the Academy-award winning movie Braveheart, one of the most significant developments in the training of Scotsman William Wallace, the fighter and warrior who initiated Scotland’s drive to independence, was the advice given to him by his father when he was grooming the young boy for adulthood.

Young Wallace had wanted to join his father and brother to fight against the English, but his father objected and prevented his youngest son from joining them. The young Wallace objected, “I can fight,” but his father restrained him, saying what turned out to be his last words to his son, “I know. I know you can fight. But it's our wits that make us men.”

Later, when his Uncle Argyle came to take the revenge-minded orphan Wallace with him, he caught William looking at his sword, handed the sword to him and took it back as he tapped William’s head, and said: “First, learn to use this, then I'll teach you to use this.”

Years later, when an adult William Wallace returned home, the first person who picked a fight with him was his old childhood friend - the big, burly, brutish Hamish, a fierce fighter who later became Wallace’s loyal sidekick.

Hamish tried crushing him by throwing a huge rock at Wallace, who had promised not to move as he teased Hamish: “I was wondering if you could do that when it matters, as is matters in battle. Could you crush a man with that throw?” The furious Hamish shouted, “I could crush you, like a worm,” and proceeded to throw the rock at Wallace, but he missed. William then hit Hamish in the forehead with a tiny stone he had picked from the ground. Hamish, who had crumbled to the ground, admitted defeat and said, “Aye, welcome home. Aye, you busted my head.” Wallace turned and said to his friend, “Well, you should have moved.”

Isaac was a gentleman, not a guerilla; an heir, not a heathen; a child of God and hot grandchild. More triumphantly, he was a peacemaker, not just a peacekeeper - a peace-loving man, a good neighbor, and an honorable ally.

When Abimelech came with his personal adviser and the commander of his forces to make a treaty with Isaac (Gen 26:26-27), Isaac questioned Abimelech’s strange visit, his latest motive and past treatment. Isaac was not easily deceived, intimidated or persuaded. He heard their side of the story, listened to the solution they offered and used his head as well as his heart to settle their cold war, their mutual suspicion, their past and potential conflicts. Isaac spoke up to end the conflict, secure peace and move on.

Isaac, contrary to belief, was not the type to gloss over a problem. He was not a weak man who would not speak up or stand up to bullies. When the occasion arose, he brought up Abimelech's past hostility to him and asked him why the ruler hated him so and had sent him away (Gen 26:27). Isaac, unequivocally, chose the word “hate” (v 27) in Hebrew, or “hostile” in NIV. When the air was cleared, they made peace. Making allies with the locals was not a bad thing; Abraham did it (Gen 14:13). In the end, Abimelech, with all the hurled threats and verbal abuses, had not harmed Isaac in the least bit (Gen 26:29).

To practice kindness to strangers, Isaac even invited them to a feast, instead of sending them away empty, after they had made peace. Isaac was the first peacemaker in the Bible; he was the first one to be credited with living “in peace” with his neighbors (Gen 26:29, 31). God’s blessings followed Isaac the peacemaker.

Conclusion: Life is too short to keep enemies and records. Are you at peace with God, with yourself and with others? Are you living in peace with your spouse (1 Cor 7:15), with the church family (1 Thess 5:13), and with all men (Heb 12:14)? Inherited faith need not be musty faith. As an heir of God, have you claimed God for yourself? Have you confessed God in your heart? Do you count on Him in all things you do, for all things you have, through all things you face? People will grow old but faith must be young. Do you seek and follow God’s promise, His part and path for your life?

Jacob, Pt. 1: "Privilege Has Its Membership" (Gen 25)

2007-09-22T22:33:00.000-07:00

JACOB: WRESTLING WITH GOD AND MAN
Jacob was a clever and crafty, colorful and captivating, calculative and complex character. Jacob is not our model, neither are his methods and marriages. His motivation was indefensible, his mistakes were glaring and his misery dogged him.
However, readers who initially despise Jacob’s character and reject his conduct would likely identify with his strengths and weaknesses, his successes and failures, his struggles and resourcefulness later.

The father of the nation Israel was ruthless but reliable and redeemable at the same time. If faith characterized his grandfather Abraham, fairness his father Isaac, then Jacob was known for his feistiness. However, behind the tough exterior was a tender soul: he fell truly, madly, deeply in love. Of course, the highlight of his epic journey in life was a gripping struggle with God by the river of Jabbok. In the end, his biggest defeat was the scene of his biggest triumph. God eventually blessed Jacob when he sought Him for the cure to his ills, something God had patiently waited for since Jacob’s birth.

PRIVILEGE HAS ITS MEMBERSHIP (GENESIS 25:19-34)
A Jewish story told about a poor man who noticed that there was a naked stranger in his house. “Hey,” he shouted, “you get out of my house, do you hear?” “Dear Sir,” said the stranger, “just look at me. How can you bring yourself to drive a naked man into the street?”

“You’re right,” said the poor man, “that would be a sin. But tell me, who
are you?” The visitor confessed, “You don’t recognize me? Well, to tell the truth, my name is Poverty.”

When the poor man realized that Poverty was living in his house, he was deeply distressed. He racked his brains for a way to get rid of him. Finally, he went to a tailor’s shop, described Poverty and ordered a suit to fit (to cover Poverty’s nakedness). The tailor wrote down Poverty’s measurements and went to work. To pay for the suit the tailor was making, the poor man had to sell everything he owned, but he gritted his teeth and bore it, because anything was better than having Poverty as a personal guest.

Finally, the tailor delivered the suit and Poverty put it on. “Sorry,” Poverty smiled. “It doesn’t fit.” The poor man turned on the tailor and cried, “How could you do this to me? I paid you good money, how could you made the suit too small?” “Don’t scold the tailor,” said Poverty, “it’s not his fault. It’s just that while you were spending the last of your money, I grew bigger.” (YIVI Institute for Jewish Research, Edited by Beatrice Silverman Weinreich, Translated by Leonard Wolf).

The debate over God’s sovereignty, fairness and choice at the twins’ birth is pointless, because the focus is strictly on the twin brothers’ independent maneuvers over each other before, during and after the moment of birth. Nevertheless, even though baby Jacob won the battle at birth, he did not win the war by himself.
No one helped Jacob more than Esau, who was irrevocably poorer when he sold his birthright to his younger brother. Esau did not lose everything, but he lost the most important treasures entrusted to him: privilege and responsibility.

A church member noted: “God gives you a personality, but you form your own character.” Hebrews 12:16-17 emphasizes Esau’s loss, and not Jacob’s gain: “See that no one is sexually immoral, or is godless like Esau, who for a single meal sold his inheritance rights as the oldest son.” Nevertheless, Esau’s loss was Jacob’s gain.

How is it possible for some people to keep, increase, and even multiply what they have, while others ignore, waste and even lose all they have? What kind of attitude should we place on spiritual things?

Choose What is Good for Yourself
27 The boys grew up, and Esau became a skillful hunter, a man of the open country, while Jacob was a quiet man, staying among the tents. 28 Isaac, who had a taste for wild game, loved Esau, but Rebekah loved Jacob. 29 Once when Jacob was cooking some stew, Esau came in from the open country, famished. 30 He said to Jacob, "Quick, let me have some of that red stew! I'm famished!" (That is why he was also called Edom.) (Gen 25:27-30)

A.B. Simpson, the founder of the Christian and Missionary Alliance, told of a man’s advertisement for a skilled coach driver. Among those who came were two that seemed to him to be particularly bright. He took them aside and asked them how near they could drive to the edge of a precipice without falling over.

The first candidate answered that he could go within half an inch and had frequently done so, just shaving the edge and feeling perfectly safe. He then asked the other the same question. “Well, sir,” replied the man modestly, “I really cannot tell, because I have never allowed myself to venture near the edge of a precipice. I have always made it a rule to keep as far as possible from danger, and I have had my reward in knowing that my master and his family were kept from danger and harm.”

The master had no difficulty in deciding between the two candidates. He said to the second man, “You are the man for me. The other may be brilliant, but you are safe!” (The Holy Spirit, Camp Hill: Christian Publications, 1994)

The problem of Esau was that he erred on the side of danger, recklessness and indifference. He was a skillful, or the word knowledgeable in Hebrew, hunter, but he did not know what was good for himself or his family. The dark side of Esau was that he walked on the wild side and catered to every sight, sound and smell. Worse, he would give anything and everything to gratify his desires.

Temperamental, insatiable and unpredictable, Esau thirsted for temporary things, not permanent things; he lived on borrowed things, rather than earned things; and he craved for physical things, never spiritual things.

The moment he returned from the field, Esau ranted and raved about hunger pangs, lived and died over red stew, went bonkers and ballistic over soup, porridge and beans. The first word from his mouth was not the NIV translation (v 30 “Quick, let me have some”) but the one-time occurrence of the Hebrew verb “feed” which means to swallow greedily, its only occurrence in the Bible. Ironically, the hunter was the hunted; he was stalked, baited and trapped not by his brother’s guile, but by his need to be fed. The king of the jungle was an easy prey in the kitchen. Esau didn’t cook but took, but what an expensive, bland and quick snack it was!

Sympathy for Esau or blame on Jacob is natural, but unnecessary. Esau was not carefree and careless for a moment; he cared for nobody but himself for many years. When Esau was forty years old, he married not just one but two idol-worshipping Hittite women, doubling the grief of his parents (Gen 26:34-35), so much so that his mother, Rebekah, was disgusted with living (Gen 27:46) and the usually quiet father, Isaac, strictly forbade his other son Jacob from marrying a Canaanite woman (Gen 28:1). When Esau realized how displeasing the Canaanite women were to his father Isaac, instead of seeking a bride from his mother’s family side like brother Jacob, Esau compounded his mistakes by marrying Wild Uncle Ishmael’s daughter (Gen 28:8- 9)! His choices were nothing short of rebellious.

Cherish What is Given to You
31 Jacob replied, "First sell me your birthright." 32 "Look, I am about to die," Esau said. "What good is the birthright to me?" 33 But Jacob said, "Swear to me first." So he swore an oath to him, selling his birthright to Jacob. (Gen 25:31-33)

Fans of the Peanuts comic strip know that Charlie Brown has a sister by the name of Sally, who looks to her big brother for advice. One day while Charlie Brown was lounging comfortably in his big round chair, in came Sally.

The big brother instinctively asked the little sister, who is not a big fan of school, about her progress in school: “Have you done your homework yet?” Sally countered, with a piece of paper in her hand: “No, I have a new philosophy.” She looked at the piece of paper in her hands and said with a blank expression on her face: “I’ve decided to put everything off until the last minute, and to learn everything in life the hard way.”

Charlie Brown wished her sister, who was walking away from his brother and the conversation: “Good luck.” Sally promptly answered, “Thank you, that’s what my teacher said.”

British pastor Rev. Billy Strachan once challenged his congregation with a set of thought-provoking service-related questions. The four questions all contained five words. The first question was, “What Gift Do You Want?” Another question he asked was “What Gift Did You Get?” The next was “What Gift Do You Need?” and the last “What Good Did It Do?” (Keswick, 1990)

A birthright was a privilege that involved responsibility. Esau, as the heir, stood to gain twice as much inheritance as anyone in the family (Deut 21:17), but he had a cavalier attitude toward his favored status. It is doubtful if Esau knew how valuable the birthright was, how privileged he was and how important his role was in the family. He was the type that would bankrupt and sell what was priceless to his parents, family and clan. Clueless and dense, Esau could not guard what he had, never mind what was communal. Not only did Esau not guard or increase what he had, he did not know much he was worth, how much he would need and how much it affected others.

Jacob, on the other hand, for all his faults, was poor, hungry and resourceful. He was number two son – second string, second banana, second in line - but he was second to none.

Esau was not the only person in the Bible to lose the right to lead the family. Jacob's three oldest sons – Reuben, Simeon and Levi (Gen 49:3-5) – also lost the respect of their father, their reputation within the family and their standing in the nation. Like the three oldest sons of Jacob, Esau lost his birthright because he was an obsessed, a carnal and an ungodly man. His stomach was his god, his mind was on earthly things and his taste was poor.

Esau fell into the entitlement trap. Conditions and duties were alien to him as the firstborn. He thought he was set for life even though he just was older by a few seconds. Like the Chinese say, he thought he could “eat on even if a leg is broken.” The ungodly think they are entitled to spiritual service pensions and benefits from the Heavenly King all their life on earth. Esau lost everything because he did not treasure, keep or realize what he had in the first place.

Jacob, on the flip side, was the underrated 100-pound weakling with insatiable appetite and relentless drive. He was the soul, symbol and stock of an emerging nation. The younger, lesser, and poorer brother did not just grab his opportunity one-time at birth; more importantly, he guarded and multiplied everything he had for the rest of his life.

Count What is Gone from You
34 Then Jacob gave Esau some bread and some lentil stew. He ate and drank, and then got up and left. So Esau despised his birthright. (Gen 25:34).

A very successful businessman had a meeting with his new son-in-law. “I love my daughter, and now I welcome you into the family,” said the man. “To show you how much we care for you, I'm making you a 50-50 partner in my business. All you have to do is go to the factory every day and learn the operations.” The son-in-law interrupted, “I hate factories. I can't stand the noise.”

“I see,” replied the father-in-law. “Well, then you'll work in the office and take charge of some of the operations.” “I hate office work,” said the son-on-law. “I can't stand being stuck behind a desk all day.”

“Wait a minute,” said the father-in-law. “I just make you half-owner of a moneymaking organization, but you don't like factories and won't work in an office. What am I going to do with you?” “Easy,” said the young man. “Buy me out.”

It’s been said, “There are three kinds of people: those who make things happen, those who watch things happen and those who have no idea what happened.”

The reason for Esau’s rejection was due his passive-aggressive rejection of his birthright. He was an indifferent, ignorant and irreligious man, passive and poor in retaining and nurturing of what he had, but eager and prepared to sell his birthright. He did not blink an eye, sit on it or doubt for a moment his decision.

Esau was ignorant of what he had, what he lost and why. In other words, he did not care one way or another; he just gulped down the food and drink, dust the dirt off his pants and left looking for the next adventure. It was a good deal and a great bargain to him. He must have been amused by the worth of his birthright, the request of his brother and the absurdity of even bargaining.

Jacob, on the other hand, believed, valued and pursued what he did not have, but not what he could not have. Someone suggested that Jacob valued the birthright so highly that he was willing to stoop to the level he did to obtain it. http://www.bible.org/docs/ot/books/gen/deffin/gen-27.htm#TopOfPage

I believe Esau is the type that would lose what he had to others, sooner or later, fairly or naively, if not to Jacob, then someone else. God had disclosed the flaw and the ruin of Esau to Rebekah: the older will serve the younger (v 23). Note that God did not condemn Esau to his fate; He just unmasked his future. Esau was the No. 1 pick who did not bother to train, listen to instructions or play his part. His life was characterized by excesses, exaggerations and excuses. The writer of Hebrews called Esau a godless man, the type that live and die by the senses (Heb 12:16).

Conclusion: It’s been said, “When a man with money meets a man with experience, the man with the experience ends up with the money and the man with the money ends up with the experience.” (Live and Learn 95). God has given us much, but have you returned as much in terms of your faithfulness, dependability and usefulness to Him? Have you taken for granted God’s gifts to you, His guidance in your life and His grace for your weaknesses? Have you made good choices, demonstrated godly character and genuine commitment?

Jacob, Pt. 2: "The End Does Not Justify the Means" (Gen 27)

2007-09-22T22:32:00.000-07:00

THE END DOES NOT JUSTIFY THE MEANS (GENESIS 27:1-46)
A Frenchman goes to his priest for confession. “Father I have sinned. “What is it my son?”

“During the war I hid a Jew in my attic.”

The priest said “You did a noble thing, why are you upset?”

The Frenchman said “I asked him for money for his food every week.”

The priest said “There was nothing wrong with that. It was hard times, and you were not a rich man. Go in peace.”

“One more thing,” said the Frenchman. “Do I have to tell him the war is over?”

A 39-year-old says it best: “If someone says something unkind about me, I must live so that no one will believe it.” (Live and Learn, 12)

The path to God’s will is not one of subversion, but one of submission. Seeking God’s way, His timing and guidance, is a constant struggle and a lifetime lesson for a believer, but insubordination brings trouble into our lives, turmoil upon others, and reprove from God.

The co-dependent, high-octane and double-crossing relationship of the two brothers Jacob and Esau with their parents, as expected, was headed for an ugly confrontation, bad fall and sad ending. One of the twins would cry, one would flee, but both parents were heartbroken for individual reasons. Esau did not get better, Jacob got worse and the family disintegrated into pieces.

What is God’s way for the family? Why is it better to follow God's way than to follow our instincts or to follow bad advice? How can relationships be saved, sustained and strengthened?

Trust in the Family and its Worth
27:1 When Isaac was old and his eyes were so weak that he could no longer see, he called for Esau his older son and said to him, "My son."
"Here I am," he answered. 2 Isaac said, "I am now an old man and don't know the day of my death. 3 Now then, get your weapons--your quiver and bow--and go out to the open country to hunt some wild game for me. 4 Prepare me the kind of tasty food I like and bring it to me to eat, so that I may give you my blessing before I die." 5 Now Rebekah was listening as Isaac spoke to his son Esau. (Gen 27:1-5)

A mother crab was having a hard time teaching her young the right and dignified way to walk when they were scurrying at the beach one day. No matter how often and how hard she taught her son, he still did not get it right. In fact, he was way off mark and hopeless beyond correction. In desperation, the mother crab chastised him: “How many times do I have to tell you to walk straight! Stop walking sideways! It’s much more becoming to stroll forward than walk sideways.”

The equally frustrated young crab protested: “I will, Mother, just as soon as I see how. Show me how to walk, and I’ll walk like you.” (Adapted from William Bennett, The Moral Compass 522 NY:Simon & Schuster, 1995)

It’s been said, “The apple does not fall far from the tree,” meaning children take after their parents. The family is the crucible that shape a person’s personality, fortune and destiny. No doubt, the beliefs and behavior of parents are the most crucial factors in the development of a child’s future. Active, mature and godly parents are less likely to produce lazy, disruptive or rebellious kids.

Allen Ross, who wrote the excellent book “Creation and Blessings,” notes that in the six scenes through the three chapters of Genesis 25-27 the family was never in the same setting together at one time. They did not share a decent meal, a single moment or a positive experience together. In Genesis 27, the family members were always peeking through the door, plotting the next step, speaking in hush tones and undermining one another’s authority or actions.

The parents never checked with each other, talked about an issue together or solved a problem together. The mother “overheard” the father, the father decided without consultation and both parents spoke only to their favorite child. Rebekah, the mother, had an unmistakable part in the plot: she was the coach (v 9), the chef (v 9) and the costume designer (v 15).

The twins didn’t do any better. They were seconds apart in birth but miles apart in attitude, appearance and activity, not speaking to each other in chapter 27. The older stole his father’s heart but the younger stole his brother’s blessing.

Sadly, the family unit was on the verge of collapse because the family members did not value, uphold or share the greatest virtue in the family: trust. Without trust, any action or advice is worthless and the chances of improving one another’s lives are slim and hopeless. With trust, there is honesty, stability and respect in the family, and people are more willing and likely to listen to, lean on and look after one another.

Turn to God and His Word
15 Then Rebekah took the best clothes of Esau her older son, which she had in the house, and put them on her younger son Jacob. 16 She also covered his hands and the smooth part of his neck with the goatskins. 17 Then she handed to her son Jacob the tasty food and the bread she had made. 18 He went to his father and said, "My father." "Yes, my son," he answered. "Who is it?" 19 Jacob said to his father, "I am Esau your firstborn. I have done as you told me. Please sit up and eat some of my game so that you may give me your blessing." 20 Isaac asked his son, "How did you find it so quickly, my son?" "The LORD your God gave me success," he replied. 21 Then Isaac said to Jacob, "Come near so I can touch you, my son, to know whether you really are my son Esau or not." 22 Jacob went close to his father Isaac, who touched him and said, "The voice is the voice of Jacob, but the hands are the hands of Esau." 23 He did not recognize him, for his hands were hairy like those of his brother Esau; so he blessed him. 24 "Are you really my son Esau?" he asked. "I am," he replied. (Gen 27:15-24)

When we decided to sell our Monterey Park house by ourselves instead of using an agent, our first offer came from a public school teacher who had a broker’s license. He came the first day of the open house, laid a compass in the living room and turned it a few times until he was satisfied. I asked him a silly question: “What direction is my master bedroom facing?” After he was gone, my wife said, “That’s no ordinary compass, it’s a feng shui (geomancy) compass.”

The next day, they were back to check the electrical fuses, later asked for my fax number and faxed us an offer a few hours later. We were ecstatic with the offer. Though it did not meet our advertised price, the offer was still $18,000 more than our lowest selling price! Then it occurred to us that his offer ended with the number 8 (the Chinese letter 8 rhymes with “prosperity”), the date for closing escrow was 8/8, his house address on the fax was 808 and his phone number had four 8’s!

After we opened escrow, he ordered a house inspection and returned to convince us to fix 86 things – major and minor - on our 1951 house even though only 10 were mandatory for closing. While we were anxious for our house to sell, a friend who is in real estate agent told us not to fret: “I have dealt with many superstitious clients. Don’t worry, they will close escrow.” She was right - they did.

Turning to God in decision-making was never a strong suit in Isaac’s family. Chapter 27 exposes the exaggerations, the embellishments and the excesses within the family. Isaac’s Achilles’ heel was recorded for readers to see. Isaac’s love (vv 4, 9, 14) for tasty food was repeated three times and the word tasty food, or “delicacy” in Hebrew, was repeated an unsavory six times (vv 4, 7, 9, 14, 17, 31). Later, Solomon would warn against the fondness for tasty food (Prov 23:3, 23:6) in the only other two Hebrew occurrences of the word outside this chapter. Isaac exaggerated his closeness to death (vv 2, 4, 7). In fact, he would not die for at least another two decades (Gen 31:41) and he lived to be a grandfather many times over to Jacob’s many kids (Gen 35:27).

Isaac’s weakness set the stage for his downfall. Words out of his mouth deceived him and his five senses failed him: the sense of touch (v 21 “Come near so I can touch you, my son”), sound (v 22 “The voice is the voice of Jacob”), sight (v 23 “but the hands are the hands of Esau”), taste (v 25 “My son, bring me some of your game to eat”), and smell (v 27 “Ah, the smell of my son is like the smell of a field that the LORD has blessed”). Curiously, Isaac defiantly chose Esau over Jacob even though the former had married outside the faith (26:34-35).

The mother, Rebekah, used the strictest term on Jacob to convince him to follow her orders. The English word “tell” (v 8) is the Hebrew word for “command” (v 8). The text noted that it was her instigation (v 6, “Rebekah said to her son Jacob, ‘Look, I overheard your father say to your brother Esau’”), her idea (v 8, “Now, my son, listen carefully and do what I tell you”) and her inventiveness (vv 14-17) from the start: “Then Rebekah took the best clothes of Esau her older son, which she had in the house, and put them on her younger son Jacob. She also covered his hands and the smooth part of his neck with the goatskins. Then she handed to her son Jacob the tasty food and the bread she had made.” (vv 15-17)

The younger son Jacob was a big liar, a good actor but a joyless winner. Mark Twain said famously, “One of the striking differences between a cat and a lie is that the cat has only nine lives” (Quotable Quotations 214). Lies have many faces, countless lives and lame cover-ups. Martin Scorcese, the famous Hollywood director once said, “You can tell a great lie, if 80% is the truth.”

Worse, Jacob knew he was an accomplice from the start (v 12 “What if my father touches me? I would appear to be tricking him”). He lied to his father as often as he was asked (vv 19, 20, 24), each time his lie got bolder (v 20, “The LORD your God gave me success”), answering less with each question and sounding more convincing. Jacob curried his mother’s favor, invoked God’s name and assumed his brother’s name, identity, appearance, habits and, inevitably, the blessing.

Jacob fooled his brother previously and his father next, but ultimately he fooled himself, thinking he could get away. William Blake said, “A truth told with bad intent beats all the lies you can invent.” (Quotable Quotations 408)

Think of Others and Their Welfare
41 Esau held a grudge against Jacob because of the blessing his father had given him. He said to himself, "The days of mourning for my father are near; then I will kill my brother Jacob." 42 When Rebekah was told what her older son Esau had said, she sent for her younger son Jacob and said to him, "Your brother Esau is consoling himself with the thought of killing you. 43 Now then, my son, do what I say: Flee at once to my brother Laban in Haran. 44 Stay with him for a while until your brother's fury subsides. 45 When your brother is no longer angry with you and forgets what you did to him, I'll send word for you to come back from there. Why should I lose both of you in one day?" (Gen 27:41-45)

On my only visit to the Getty Center in Los Angeles shortly after the museum opened, I was most impressed by a painting titled “An Allegory of Fortune” that was painted by Dosso Dossi, an obscure 16th century Italian painter. The seven-foot painting was first discovered at a flea market and purchased for a modest sum. Later, the tycoon Paul Getty paid $4 million for it in 1989.

The allegorical painting aptly describes how fleeting fortune is and how tenuous her wealth is. Dossi painted the goddess Fortune as a seductress with her hands full of worldly goods, but with all her riches, she was sitting on a big soap bubble, wearing just a single shoe, with fierce winds blowing the drapery in the background.

Fortune, for all its possessions, pull and promise, is like a bubble that is about to pop anytime. By definition, fortune come and goes, enters and exits, beckons and passes. She is sitting pretty and biding her time, but waiting for the last shoe to drop.

A Swedish proverb wisely reveals the way to the good life, which has little to do with riches: “Fear less, hope more; eat less, chew more; whine less, breathe more, talk less, say more; hate less, love more; and all good things are yours.”

The real losers in the family conflict were not Isaac and Esau, but Rebekah and Jacob. Later, Rebekah admitted she had lost the affection, goodwill, and respect of her older son Esau (Gen 47:45).

Jacob was also the loser because of his hollow victory over an older but weakened brother. Esau’s life went downhill from day one. He had already lost his birthright and leadership role in the family two chapters ago (Gen 25) and had lost his father’s favor and his family’s spiritual heritage in the previous chapter because of his polygamous marriage and pagan practices (Gen 26:34). The family inheritance was Esau’s to lose and Jacob’s to inherit. Jacob, who did not have the patience to wait on God, will have decades to sober up and think about his deeds.

Jacob paid a heavy price for supremacy, prosperity (27:28) and domination over nations, brother (27:37) and others (27:29). Esau more than bore a grudge against Jacob; he hated his brother who deceived him. The Hebrew word in verse 41 is “hate,” not begrudge; it appears for the first time in the Bible and is the same feeling that Joseph’s brothers feared Joseph would harbor after the death of their father (Gen 50:15).

Jacob lost the trust of his father (27:35), the goodwill of his brother (27:41) and the presence and affections of his mother. Rebekah sent her precious son away on the pretense of getting him a wife (27:46) to save his neck and Jacob would wander from home for the next twenty years (31:41). He will not see his beloved mother again, know of her death or attend her funeral. Jacob left empty-handed and filled with fright. He left poorer, lonelier and sadder than before the conflict. George Bernard Shaw said, “There are two tragedies in life. One is not to get your heart's desire. The other is to get it.” (Minister's Manual 11)

Allen Ross noted that Rebekah and Jacob gained “nothing that God would not have given them anyway; and they lost much (73).” Benjamin Franklin once said, “Sin is not hurtful because it is forbidden, but it is forbidden because it is hurtful.”

Conclusion: God's way is the best way. The way to trust God is submission to Him, giving Him all your fears and hopes; and the consequence of distrust is suspicion, subversion, and spite. God is not a God of disorder but of peace.
(1 Cor 14:33) Do you trust God with all you heart? Do you try to solve things your way or God’s way? Do you acknowledge Him by your words and deeds?

Parents, are you raising your children in godly instruction and with biblical values? Do you teach them to value brotherly love, neighborly love and God’s love? Do you discourage or exasperate them, dismiss or fear your responsibility, dishonor and misrepresent God yourself?

Jacob, Pt. 3: "Better Late Than Never" (Gen 28)

2007-09-22T22:31:00.000-07:00

BETTER LATE THAN NEVER (GENESIS 28:10-29:13)
A Chinese fable tells of the owl’s flight to the east to escape its neighbors, who were increasingly tired and vocal of the bird’s incessant noise in the night. As it was packing, the owl met a pigeon, which asked: “Where are you going? Why are you in such a hurry?”

The owl answered tersely, “I’m moving to the east.” The pigeon asked again, “Why are you moving there?” The owl moaned, “Because people here all complained about my singing. They cannot stand my hooting. I am going to move east so that they will have no reason to complain anymore.”

The pigeon then frankly told the owl, “Moving to another place is a good idea only if you change your voice. If you don’t, the people in the east too will complain about your singing.”

Kevin McHale, the legendary Boston Celtics basketball great, explained why troubles often follow many NBA players that discover newfound wealth: “I don't think basketball is the answer to all problems. If a guy comes into the league with a ton of problems, and they pay him half a million dollars, then he's a millionaire with a ton of problems.” (Los Angeles Times 1/3/93)

Jacob made a bad name and a horrible life for himself when he deceived his father (Gen 27:35) and angered his brother (Gen 27:45). The first act of deception in the Bible was not committed by the serpent (Gen 3:13), but by Jacob (Gen 27:35). The English word for Jacob’s and the serpent’s act of deception is similar in NIV but the Hebrew text technically used the word “beguiled” for the serpent’s actions and “deceived” for Jacob’s. The conniving, selfish Jacob appeared to be leaving his problems behind, but he was just taking his troubles elsewhere, transferring them to others and prolonging his agony. Jacob’s mother had sent him 500 miles away to Haran, where her brother lived. The sober Jacob had a lot of spare time to reconsider his ways. Though it took leaving his town, his family and his past behind for Jacob to mend his ways, he was a truly changed man by the time he reached Haran. It was better late than never!

Why is a changed life better late than never? How are people changed and transformed from the errors of their ways? Is there hope for cold, calculative and crooked people like Jacob?

Comprehend God’s Providence to You
10 Jacob left Beersheba and set out for Haran. 11 When he reached a certain place, he stopped for the night because the sun had set. Taking one of the stones there, he put it under his head and lay down to sleep. 12 He had a dream in which he saw a stairway resting on the earth, with its top reaching to heaven, and the angels of God were ascending and descending on it. 13 There above it stood the LORD, and he said: "I am the LORD, the God of your father Abraham and the God of Isaac. I will give you and your descendants the land on which you are lying. 14 Your descendants will be like the dust of the earth, and you will spread out to the west and to the east, to the north and to the south. All peoples on earth will be blessed through you and your offspring. 15 I am with you and will watch over you wherever you go, and I will bring you back to this land. I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you." (Gen 28:10-15)

God works in mysterious, marvelous and miraculous ways.

A friend who was a seminary professor in Hong Kong was actually converted watching the controversial, ultraliberal and blasphemous movie “Jesus Christ Superstar.” When asked to share his testimony, he wrote: “In September 1978, when I was in a very desperate and low state of mind, I went to the Ocean Theatre to watch a movie called “Jesus Christ Superstar”. The Spirit of God spoke to my heart powerfully through that movie! As I looked to the life of Jesus, I found that Jesus loved me so much. I strongly felt that I was a sinner, Jesus still loved me and died for me on the cross. I still remember a shot showing Jesus' painful look as he was hanging on the cross, but all of a sudden, Jesus prayed, “ Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do” (Lk 23:34). I was cut to the heart by this prayer and my tears came out as much as it could. I accepted Jesus' love and forgiveness deep down in my heart. Praise God! He saved me by this unusual means and through this unexpected incident.” (Via email 8/13/00)

Jacob’s ladder was God’s brief but deliberate disclosure of His active involvement in the world, His avid interest in human affairs and His astute intervention into people’s lives. Jacob was tired, lonely and forlorn when he stumbled into Bethel. He had no company but the sun for his trip, no place but the ground for his body and no pillow but a stone for his head, but he experienced God’s in a personal and poignant way. The door at home, to his family and to Beersheba were slammed shut but the window of heaven was wide open to him. God literally threw down a ladder of hope to a down and out Jacob, who was mired in a pit of his own making.

For a preview and in a snapshot, God made apparent, available and accessible His presence, promise and providence to Jacob in a powerful and unmistakable way. God confirmed to Jacob his destiny as the heir of God’s promise to his forefathers, to his descendants and to the world. He reiterated to Jacob His promise to Abraham and Isaac, relayed to him the prosperity of his descendants and reassured the fearful patriarch of His presence in the dangerous journey.

Strangely, unlike His other appearances to Abraham and Isaac, God spoke to Jacob only in a dream. God had spoken audibly on a few occasions to Jacob’s grandfather, Abraham (Gen 12:1, 13:14, 15:1, 17:1, 18:1, 22:1), and once to his father, Isaac (Gen 26:24). Abraham even dropped to his knees and fell facedown at the appearance of God (Gen 17:3). Wouldn’t God’s dramatic and glorious self-disclosure be a surefire way to change someone for good?

However, God is wise, righteous, and sovereign. God’s appearance in a dream was clear enough for Jacob to understand, but not necessarily convicting enough for him to change. He had made initial contact with the patriarch, but the rest was up to Jacob. God did not force a change in Jacob’s life through a glorious and dramatic appearance. He gave Jacob the leeway, the motivation and the opportunity to make a change and make things right for himself.

Change Your Perspective of Life
16 When Jacob awoke from his sleep, he thought, "Surely the LORD is in this place, and I was not aware of it." 17 He was afraid and said, "How awesome is this place! This is none other than the house of God; this is the gate of heaven." 18 Early the next morning Jacob took the stone he had placed under his head and set it up as a pillar and poured oil on top of it. 19 He called that place Bethel, though the city used to be called Luz. 20 Then Jacob made a vow, saying, "If God will be with me and will watch over me on this journey I am taking and will give me food to eat and clothes to wear 21 so that I return safely to my father's house, then the LORD will be my God 22 and this stone that I have set up as a pillar will be God's house, and of all that you give me I will give you a tenth." (Gen 28:16-22)

Yevgeny Kafelnikov, the outspoken 1999 Australian Open champion, who has a private jet and has earned more than US$18 million in his career when the incident occurred, received a rude awakening at the Australian Open from none other than Andre Agassi, the tennis brat turned diplomat. The Russian who turned pro in 1992 voiced that the prize money of US$473,385 for the winner in men's tennis was way too low, describing the prize money in tennis as “ridiculous” in comparison to golfers at a low-level PGA tournament in the United States that received about 10 times as much as players in a similar tennis competition.

Agassi, the six-time Grand Slam winner who had given $2 million of his earnings to start a school in Las Vegas, remarked, “My feelings are he should take his prize money when he's done here and go buy some perspective. I don't speak for anybody but myself and I don't like anybody speaking for me. I was clear with Yevgeny this morning that when he speaks for the players, say one phrase: 'Except for Andre.' I'd be hardpressed ever to spend time with a person who thinks making hundreds of thousands of dollars is not enough money.”
http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/tennis/2001/australian_open/news/2001/01/19/agassi_kafelnikov_ap/

Jacob was a changed man, with a new attitude and perspective on life. The way he viewed things and the values he cherished were different. Previously he used God’s name in vain and took Him for granted when he lied without batting an eye to his father: “The LORD your God gave me success” (Gen 27:20). God was in the second person and a second-hand experience to him. The previous actions of Jacob made God out to be a laughable, usable and disposable Divine Being.

The transformed Jacob vowed to make a change. He was the first person in the Bible to make a vow (v 20), but his vow was not designed to manipulate God or twist His arm anymore. God had already made an unconditional promise to Jacob to watch over him and bring him back to this land (v 15). Jacob needed not do anything in return, but he offered to God an altar (v 18, Gen 35:3), a tithe (v 22) and a commitment. He did not ask for what God was not willing to give, which is His presence, care and guidance (v 15), including his safe return to the land. Instead of relying on his abilities, brains and charm, he began to rely on God to supply His needs and be his witness.

God promised to give the land to Jacob (v 13), but Jacob had no such grand ambition. He humbly settled for food to eat and clothes to wear (v 20). Jacob asked but for the basic necessities of life. Trumping his brother, inheriting the land and succeeding in life were far from his mind. He recognized that his life was in God’s hands and his possessions were God’s to give (v 22). Mercy, and not merit, was on his lips. Survival and simplicity, and not success and strength, were what he sought. Peace, and not possessions, was his priorities.

More importantly, for better or worse, he vowed to return to the Promised Land God spoke about in the dream and to face his angry, raging, older brother, who was awaiting him. True to his word, Jacob not only returned to Canaan after his sojourn in Haran (Gen 31:12-13), he resided in Bethel, where God appeared to him, for a while after his daughter was violated at Shechem (Gen 35:1-3). Bethel was indeed God’s shelter and sanctuary to his family, a place of refuge, rest and recovery (Gen 31:12-13, 35:1-3).

Care for Others Before Self
4 Jacob asked the shepherds, "My brothers, where are you from?" "We're from Haran," they replied. 5 He said to them, "Do you know Laban, Nahor's grandson?" "Yes, we know him," they answered. 6 Then Jacob asked them, "Is he well?" "Yes, he is," they said, "and here comes his daughter Rachel with the sheep." 7 "Look," he said, "the sun is still high; it is not time for the flocks to be gathered. Water the sheep and take them back to pasture." 8 "We can't," they replied, "until all the flocks are gathered and the stone has been rolled away from the mouth of the well. Then we will water the sheep." 9 While he was still talking with them, Rachel came with her father's sheep, for she was a shepherdess. 10 When Jacob saw Rachel daughter of Laban, his mother's brother, and Laban's sheep, he went over and rolled the stone away from the mouth of the well and watered his uncle's sheep. 11 Then Jacob kissed Rachel and began to weep aloud. (Gen 29:4-11)

When Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, probably the greatest college basketball player ever, was a Laker, he was often cold to even his own teammates, so much so that they called him “The Brother from Another Planet.” Outsiders were given worse treatment. They could stand right alongside him without being acknowledged.

A sportswriter noted that the difference between Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and another Laker player is that when you ask another player, “How are you?” his reply is usually: “Fine, how are you?” but when you ask Kareem, “How are you?” his reply is: “Fine.” Despite his fame, his icy relationship with players and management complicated and hindered his efforts to further his coaching career after playing.

George Washington Carver, the famous American innovator, said: “How far you go in life depends on your being tender with young, compassionate with the aged, sympathetic with the striving, and tolerant of the weak and the strong. Because someday in life you will have been all of these.”

The new Jacob was friendly, helpful and, more importantly, real. He gently addressed strangers as “my brothers” (Gen 29:4), politely asked about his uncle’s welfare and earnestly interacted with people. Jacob not only longed for relatives, he even cared for sheep! He readily helped strangers and relatives alike without being asked, worked for free without any introduction and wept like a baby without mother’s coaching, for a change. Tears that he held back broke like a dam when he saw a relative.

Jacob broke down in the most unusual, foolhardy and involuntary way. He who had never expressed remorse to his only brother or concern for his aging father cried at the first indication and discovery of a distant relative. Relationships were now more important to him now than riches.

Many Bible commentators, students and readers doubt if Jacob’s transformation in the passage was genuine or meant. The education of Jacob was not complete, but it was off to a fair, if not creditable and meaningful, start. From now on, his priorities were God first, family and others next, himself last.

Conclusion: John Newton the slave-trader turned hymn-writer after his conversion said: “Though I am not what I ought to be, nor what I wish to be, nor yet what I hope to be, I can truly say I am not what I once was: a slave to sin and Satan.” Salvation from sin, transformation of lives, and reconciliation to God are made possible in Christ (John 1:51). Have you received Jesus Christ into your heart? Do you know He is the Creator of heaven and earth, the mediator between God and man, the salvation of Jews and Gentiles? Won’t you turn from your sin and self, turn to Him and turn your life around?

Jacob, Pt. 4: "What Doesn't Kill You Makes You Stronger" (Gen 29)

2007-09-22T22:30:00.000-07:00

WHAT DOESN’T KILL YOU MAKES YOU STRONGER (GENESIS 29:15-30, 31:36-42)
Charles Sykes, a senior fellow at the Wisconsin Policy Institute, a public policy think tank, didn’t like the way his fellow citizens whine, evade responsibility and point fingers. The infamous 1991 Los Angeles riot was a case in point, when rioters, looters and arsonists excused their behavior by calling their act of lawlessness an insurrection, an uprising and a protest.

So Sykes wrote a controversial book titled “A Nation of Victims” and appeared on TV to counter the mood that people from all walks of life had unashamedly adopted: “I am a victim of a syndrome or a dysfunction – emotional, racial, sexual, or psychological. So what I do is not my fault, I am not responsible for my behavior, so-and-so or this-and-that made me do it.”

In an interview with C-SPAN Sykes said: “All of us in some sense can blame somebody else for our problems. Mommy and Daddy are a good target, but also we all want to be loved and we would wish that everything was suited for us, that all of our needs were taken care of. That's what it was like when we were babies. Part of the problem in American culture is that Americans are very ambivalent about growing up. We know that we have to do it, but we don't necessarily like it.” www.booknotes.org/transcripts/10115.htm

Victims, typically, hide behind catchy but convenient slogans such as the one I saw: “90% of people is dysfunctional, the rest is in denial.”

Jacob was the consummate sufferer and classic sucker, but also the ultimate survivor in Haran. He was victimized upon his arrival in Haran but he refused to be deflated by the treatment and defined by the experience. Jacob came from nowhere, arrived with nothing, but left with God’s favor, Laban’s fortune and his own family.

How did Jacob turn his life around from victim to victor? Why are some victims able to triumph over man-made tragedy, traps and troubles? What do victors have in them that victims do not have to survive and succeed?

Live Humbly with Others
16 Now Laban had two daughters; the name of the older was Leah, and the name of the younger was Rachel. 17 Leah had weak eyes, but Rachel was lovely in form, and beautiful. 18 Jacob was in love with Rachel and said, "I'll work for you seven years in return for your younger daughter Rachel." 19 Laban said, "It's better that I give her to you than to some other man. Stay here with me." 20 So Jacob served seven years to get Rachel, but they seemed like only a few days to him because of his love for her. 21 Then Jacob said to Laban, "Give me my wife. My time is completed, and I want to lie with her."
22 So Laban brought together all the people of the place and gave a feast. 23 But when evening came, he took his daughter Leah and gave her to Jacob, and Jacob lay with her. 24 And Laban gave his servant girl Zilpah to his daughter as her maidservant. 25 When morning came, there was Leah! So Jacob said to Laban, "What is this you have done to me? I served you for Rachel, didn't I? Why have you deceived me?" (Gen 29:16-25)

One of the most humbling things I did in my first year of pastorate at a church was to wash the urinal or toilet stand. Years of neglect had left eight long, vertical, parallel lines on the bowl. The yellow stains were a blight and an eyesore.

I was not looking forward to or asking for the job, but most volunteers had successfully steered clear of the unwanted job for many years. When Ajax cleaner and bleach failed to remove the stains on my initial attempts, someone suggested using lime removal. Returning from the nearest store, I followed closely the instructions on the bottle. I wet the stains with the liquid, left it for half an hour and then used a heavy brush and a heavy hand to rub the stain, repeating the whole process a few times until the layers of stain were removed. To complete the job, I used a screwdriver to scrape off the last dab of the stubborn stains.

When the job was done, a church member walked into the restroom and kindly said to me, “Pastor, you shouldn’t be doing this. We should just ago ahead and buy a new one.” I replied instantly, “Thank you, but after the hard work, I wouldn’t replace it for anything in the world.”

Laban used the dirtiest trick in the book to trick, use and exploit poor Jacob; however, Jacob was stretched, tested and humbled, but never broken or despaired. God had revealed to Rebekah that his son Jacob was the heir of promise, but He did not say how he was to obtain the blessing, when he would get it and what price he would have to pay. The easy way was definitely out. The first indication of a new and humbled Jacob was his willingness to work hard for his bride Rachel. The old Jacob took what was others and not his, but the new Jacob earned his family and fortune (Gen 32:13-15) the old-fashioned way. The old Jacob was unwilling to wait one day for his inheritance, but the new Jacob offered to work seven years for his wife. The freeloader was gone; the breadwinner had emerged. Jacob replaced his old bag of tricks with a new work ethic.

Ironically and unwittingly, his cunning father-in-law was God’s instrument of humility for young Jacob, who had to experience poverty before he could expect progress and prosperity. Before, Jacob schemed, swindled and strived. Now, money meant little to him. He had even worked one month for free before an embarrassed Laban decided to offer him wages (Gen 29:14-15). Jacob earned his way through life instead of riding on the coattails of others. The word “work” or “serve” is repeated six times in the chapter (vv 15, 18, 20, 25, 27, 30). In fact, all the nine times the word “work” or “serve” is used of Jacob’s sojourn in Haran, including Genesis 30:26 and 29, referred to none other but Jacob’s labor – not Laban or his servants.

Even when he was cheated, Jacob turned the other cheek to Laban’s deceit and walked the second mile for Rachel. He humbly slaved fourteen years for Rachel before striking a joint agreement with Laban for his share of the profits the following six years, eventually breaking free to be on his own after two decades (Gen 31:38). Jacob was an employee for fourteen years, a partner the next six years and his own boss only after twenty years. What a way to start a business! Even when he was tricked into marrying Leah, Jacob argued his case but did not vent anger, afflict damage or seek avenge. In fact, he did little but asked his father-in-law three harmless questions (v 25).

Throughout his ordeal, Jacob humbly and wisely kept his head on, kept his act together and kept his mouth shut.

Live Harmoniously at Home
26 Laban replied, "It is not our custom here to give the younger daughter in marriage before the older one. 27 Finish this daughter's bridal week; then we will give you the younger one also, in return for another seven years of work." 28 And Jacob did so. He finished the week with Leah, and then Laban gave him his daughter Rachel to be his wife. 29 Laban gave his servant girl Bilhah to his daughter Rachel as her maidservant. 30 Jacob lay with Rachel also, and he loved Rachel more than Leah. And he worked for Laban another seven years. (Gen 29:26-30)

Marriages today are often easily wrecked by marital infidelities, financial pressure and time constrain. It is not uncommon to hear of spouses that would not live, converse or associate with one another when they are old, when they have retired, or when the children are gone.

Couples can testify that love is simple, but marriage is more complicated than young people, singles and love-struck couples think. The Chinese have a saying, “Falling in love is easy; getting along is tough.”

Love is a wonderful thing, but harmony is priceless. Love uplifts couples, but harmony grounds them. Love brings couples together, but harmony binds them for life, commits them to each another and shields them from attacks.

Marriage is unfashionable today because it is hard work, harder than earning a degree, keeping a job or living with one’s parent, child or sibling.

One of the most beautiful expressions of love is Jacob’s unceasing love for Rachel: “So Jacob served seven years to get Rachel, but they seemed like only a few days to him because of his love for her” (Gen 29:20). His love for Rachel is the most enduring love story in the Bible. More is written in the Bible about their “love” (vv 18, 20, 30) than any couple’s.

Jacob’s love for Rachel was genuine, but Laban’s treachery, Jacob’s naiveté and Leah’s emergence that resulted in fault-finding almost wrecked the family. The Chinese have a saying: “If the home is harmonious, ten thousand things succeed; if the home is disgraced, mouths wag non-stop.” From day one together, the wives were jealous of one another and the kids were caught in the crossfire. Jacob refusal to take sides did not stop the sniping at home. Rachel and Leah were formidable rivals - smitten by the same man, stubborn in their ways and stuck with each other.

Next, Jacob and his four wives, two concubines included, had the most bizarre, the most complicated and the most dysfunctional marriage in the Bible; only by God’s grace, they survived it. Some marriages today cannot survive an attack, a mistake or a blow.

Rachel’s problem was not childlessness but childishness (30:1-4), Leah’s problem was not her appearance but her attitude and their issue was not rights but respect – in fact, their lack of self-respect. In the end, there was little to profit for Rachel and Leah, little to like in the sisters and little to separate between them. While Rachel looked stunning and striking and Leah looked sleepy and sluggish, Rachel was the one Jacob loved in life and Lean was the one buried with him in death (Gen 49:31). Though Rachel’s two sons were heavily favored by Jacob, the Messiah would come through Leah’s son, Judah.

When Leah and Rachel came to their senses (Gen 31:14-15) and discovered that the real troublemaker and enemy was not each other but their father, they turned against him and harmony in the family was restored. Remarkably, Rachel and Leah’s bickering stopped, their discontent with each other ceased and their story ended after the confrontation with their father. Rachel’s last encounter with Laban evened the score (Gen 31:35), stopped his continual meddling into their lives and proved to be her last words in the Bible.

Live Honorably Before God
36 Jacob was angry and took Laban to task. "What is my crime?" he asked Laban. "What sin have I committed that you hunt me down? 37 Now that you have searched through all my goods, what have you found that belongs to your household? Put it here in front of your relatives and mine, and let them judge between the two of us. 38 "I have been with you for twenty years now. Your sheep and goats have not miscarried, nor have I eaten rams from your flocks. 39 I did not bring you animals torn by wild beasts; I bore the loss myself. And you demanded payment from me for whatever was stolen by day or night. 40 This was my situation: The heat consumed me in the daytime and the cold at night, and sleep fled from my eyes. 41 It was like this for the twenty years I was in your household. I worked for you fourteen years for your two daughters and six years for your flocks, and you changed my wages ten times. 42 If the God of my father, the God of Abraham and the Fear of Isaac, had not been with me, you would surely have sent me away empty-handed. But God has seen my hardship and the toil of my hands, and last night he rebuked you."
(Gen 31:36-42)

William J Benett’s The Moral Compass told of a war in Germany, where thousands of soldiers were scattered all over the country. A captain of the cavalry, who had a great many men and horses to feed, was told by his colonel that he must get food from the farms nearby. The captain walked for some time through the lonely valley, and at last knocked at the door of a small cottage. The man who opened it looked old and lame. He leaned on a stick.

“Good day, sir,” said the captain. “Will you kindly show me a field where my solders can cut the grain and carry it off for our army?” The old man led the soldiers through the valley for about a mile, and in the distance they saw a field of barley waving in the breeze.

“This is just what we want. We’ll stop here,” exclaimed the captain. “No, not yet,” said the old man. “You must follow me a little farther.” After another mile or two, they came to a second field of barley. The soldiers dismounted, cut down the grain, tied it in sheaves, and rode away with it. Then the captain said to the old farmer: “Why did you make us walk so far? The first field of barley was better than this one.” “That is true, sir,” answered the old man, “but it was not mine.” (William J. Benett, The Moral Compass 262, New York:Simon & Schuster, 1995)

Jacob left Beersheba in shame but left Haran with his honor intact. True, Jacob boldly proposed working seven years for Rachel, but Laban held him to ransom the next seven years before he had an opportunity to think, speak or decide. Still, the unlucky, hapless and disadvantaged Jacob did not take to the bottle, take his responsibility lightly or take it out on his wives. He knew that leaving was the right thing to do; even the contentious wives agreed for the first time on something together: leaving father! (Gen 31:14-16)

Though Jacob left abruptly, he did not leave disgracefully or empty. His father-in-law had worked overtime to deny him of sheep, goat and wages. For two decades, not only did Jacob endure the heat of day, the cold of night and the lack of sleep to care for the health and safety of the animals, he did not eat, keep or neglect what was not his (v 38). He even paid for the loss of sheep and goat out of his own pocket to Laban, who never failed to withhold, deduct or siphon wages from his son-in-law (v 39). Laban was not the type to be shy or slow to lower, freeze or delay Jacob’s pay, changing his pay ten times (v 41). Through it all, Jacob never complained or compared.

The magnanimous Jacob closed the book on Haran but he did not close the door on the people there. They were still his relatives to the end (vv 22, 25, 32, 37). Laban lost the trust of both his daughters (31:14), but the daughters were still respectful to him (v 35). In the end, all ended well. Laban had his wish, kissed his grandchildren and his daughters goodbye and blessed them on their way (vv 28, 35). The fear (v 31) and anger (v 36) of Jacob disappeared as quickly as they surfaced. When all was said, more was done on Jacob’s part. He even provided dinner and lodging (v 54), unafraid that Haran and his relatives (Gen 31:23) would stab him in the night! What was past was indeed past.

Conclusion: Obstacles can terrorize or test us. Have you invited and allowed God to be your guide, defender and keeper in life. An insecure person before marriage is often a basketcase after marriage. A survivor has no bigger test than surviving marriage! Are you dutiful to your spouse? Have you upheld your commitment before God? Do you care for each another? Love and respect - not the presence of kids, possessions or romance - define a marriage once dreamy love is gone. Jean Anouih says, “Things are beautiful if you love them.”

Jacob, Pt. 5: "Bygones are Bygones" (Gen 32)

2007-09-22T22:29:00.000-07:00

BYGONES ARE BYGONES (GENESIS 32:1-15, 32:22-33:12)
One of my favorite comedies is “Groundhog Day,” a make-believe story about Phil Conners (actor Bill Murray), a weather man with a bad attitude, an obnoxious personality and a razor tongue. For the fourth straight year, he was assigned on Groundhog Day, Feb. 2, to cover a small town’s festivities. Conners cared little about the fuss the folks were paying to a groundhog but was smitten by the new and attractive producer (actress Andie MacDowell) who was reporting the news with him.

After the shoot, the news team could not get out of town because of the bad weather and heavy snow. To his horror, when he woke up the next day, Conners discovered that new day was the old day he had lived a day before. He met the same people, did the same things and said the same things. Every day after was the same.

Of course, Conners took advantage of what he knew every previous day, and over and over he started the day on a promising note but ruined it with a terrible mistake and wrong motivations. His attempt to woo the producer, who was smitten with him because he knew more about her likes and dislikes over the course of time, usually ended on a wrong note. She slapped him hard over many days when she realized that he was just a hypocrite mouthing words to win her, until he gave up trying to win her affections and to be who he was not. Since he had lots of time and was not going anywhere fast, he decided to learn new things for a change, such as playing the piano, helping defenseless people and simply enjoying the town, the people and even the weather that stranded him there. When that happened, the producer fell in love with the new and improved Conners, the weather cleared up and they were free to leave.

For 20 years Jacob did not have to deal with his brother, who had wanted to kill him (Gen 27:41). Jacob had made a fool out of Esau, made a mockery of brotherhood and made a sham of the family. He had avoided and escaped the problems of his childhood but presently was headed on a collision course twenty years later. Jacob’s rehabilitation, transformation and story climaxed with a humbling prayer, a wrestling match and a touching reconciliation.

Why is reliance on God the best way to reconcile with the past? What are the signs of true reconciliation? How are repentance and transformation related to reconciliation?

Experience God in Your Weakness
6 When the messengers returned to Jacob, they said, "We went to your brother Esau, and now he is coming to meet you, and four hundred men are with him." 7 In great fear and distress Jacob divided the people who were with him into two groups, and the flocks and herds and camels as well. 8 He thought, "If Esau comes and attacks one group, the group that is left may escape." 9 Then Jacob prayed, "O God of my father Abraham, God of my father Isaac, O LORD, who said to me, 'Go back to your country and your relatives, and I will make you prosper,' 10 I am unworthy of all the kindness and faithfulness you have shown your servant. I had only my staff when I crossed this Jordan, but now I have become two groups. 11 Save me, I pray, from the hand of my brother Esau, for I am afraid he will come and attack me, and also the mothers with their children. 12 But you have said, 'I will surely make you prosper and will make your descendants like the sand of the sea, which cannot be counted.'" (Gen 32:6-12)

The lion was proud of his mastery of the animal kingdom. One day he decided to make sure all the other animals knew that he was the king of the jungle. He bypassed the smaller animals and went straight to the bear. “Who is the king of the jungle?” the lion asked. The bear replied, “Why, you are, of course.”

Next, he asked the tiger, “Who is the king of the jungle?” The tiger quickly responded, “Everybody knows that you are, O mighty lion.”

Unfortunately, the elephant did not respond the same way to the question. The elephant immediately grabbed the lion with his trunk, whirled him around in the air five or six times and slammed him into a tree. Then he pounded him onto the ground several times, dunked him under the water in a nearby lake and finally threw him up on the shore.

The lion - beaten, bruised and battered - struggled to his feet. He looked at the elephant through sad and bloody eyes and said, “Look, just because you don't know the answer is no reason for you to get mean about it.”

Jacob was older, wiser and richer after two decades in Haran, but his real maturity, proven wisdom and true riches were the realization that he was a nobody if not for God’s help. Without God, he could be rich, successful and intelligent, but empty, miserable and pitiful. Jacob’s life, held together admirably for many years, was spiraling out of control, his mind was running out of ideas and his world was coming to a crash.

The only thing Jacob could do was to flee to God in prayer. In his prayer, Jacob recognized how undeserving he was of God’s goodwill and the generous gifts of goods and family (v 10). Surprisingly, Jacob was the first and only Old Testament character that confessed his unworthiness, or the Hebrew word for “smallness.” In the previous “vow” he made at Bethel twenty years ago (Gen 18:20) – the first such word in the Bible, he asked for a safe journey, food to eat, clothes to wear and eventual return to his father’s land. Though he had asked for God’s presence, protection and provision previously (Gen 28:20-22), he prayed again for a different reason this time.

Jacob’s previous vow was made to serve himself, others not included. Now he had wives, children and servants whose very lives and livelihood depended on him. No more than two of his children were teenagers. Jacob rightly feared Esau and his 400 armed men more than Laban, who would at least spare his own daughters and grandchildren. Before, he had only his own neck to save; now he had mouths to feed, kids to raise and lives to protect.

Ironically, God’s strength was perfected in Jacob’s fear, flashbacks and fixation. He was never closer to God than when he paused, pondered and prayed, or when he shivered, sweated and suffered.

We cannot scuttle the past, escape yesterday or ignore history; neither should we revisit, repeat or relive it. Agathon, a 5th Century poet, said, “The only thing is denied even to God: the power to undo the past.” The wise thing to do is to invite God to reconcile us with the past – to make sense of the past, make peace with the past and make up for the past.

Empty Yourself of Your Willfulness
24 Then God came to Laban the Aramean in a dream at night and said to him, "Be careful not to say anything to Jacob, either good or bad."
25 Jacob had pitched his tent in the hill country of Gilead when Laban overtook him, and Laban and his relatives camped there too. 26 Then Laban said to Jacob, "What have you done? You've deceived me, and you've carried off my daughters like captives in war. 27 Why did you run off secretly and deceive me? Why didn't you tell me, so I could send you away with joy and singing to the music of tambourines and harps? 28 You didn't even let me kiss my grandchildren and my daughters good-by. You have done a foolish thing. 29 I have the power to harm you; but last night the God of your father said to me, 'Be careful not to say anything to Jacob, either good or bad.' 30 Now you have gone off because you longed to return to your father's house. But why did you steal my gods?" 31 Jacob answered Laban, "I was afraid, because I thought you would take your daughters away from me by force. (Gen 32:24-31)

During the American Civil War fought between the years 1861–1865, over 600,000 soldiers from the South perished, but a beautiful and heartfelt prayer that survived was the Prayer of the Unknown Confederate Soldier, a soldier’s unrequited but unsurpassed prayer:

I asked God for strength, that I might achieve,
I was made weak, that I might learn humbly to obey...

I asked for health, that I might do greater things,
I was given infirmity that I might do better things...

I asked for riches, that I might be happy,
I was given poverty that I might be wise...

I asked for power, that I might have the praise of men,
I was given weakness, that I might feel the need of God...

I asked for all things, that I might enjoy life,
I was given life, that I might enjoy all things...

I got nothing that I asked for- but everything I hoped for,
Almost despite myself, my unspoken prayers were answered.

I am among all men, most richly blessed.

Jacob’s real problem was his willfulness, which was reckless, extreme and destructive. He had an iron will, an indomitable spirit and a crass attitude. Playing God, hurting people and destroying lives did not bother or upset him the least.

God made his move to break Jacob’s stubborn will. After Jacob had sent his family over into Canaan, he met a man who wrestled him and prevented him from joining his family over the ford. Jacob had avoided his problems head-on all his life, running away successfully from Esau and Laban, but the Lord clamped down hard on him. A wrestling match is unlike a boxing match. A wrestler has no chance to spar; he could only scrap. Boxers can win at fist’s length, but wrestlers cannot win without body contact. Wrestlers have to clamp down on their opponents to win. Rearranging, relaxing or releasing one’s grip is not possible rest until one surrenders.

Jacob heard that he had prevailed (v 28), but he knew he did not have the advantage. The truth was that man was able to touch, immobilize and injure him at will (v 25). The man left in terrific shape, but Jacob left with a limp. The victory did not make sense to Jacob. His triumph was symbolical, short and surreal. He felt stiff, tired and numb.

Hosea 12:3-4 explains Jacob’s life in a nutshell: “In the womb he grasped his brother's heel; as a man he struggled with God. He struggled with the angel and overcame him; he wept and begged for his favor.”

God reminded Jacob that even though he had profited and prospered at the expense of others, the path to God’s blessing had to come from the Fount and Foundation - God Himself, the One from whom all blessings flow. After twenty shifting years, Jacob, who had suffered needless pain, finally asked the right person for the right thing in the right manner. God waited two decades for Jacob to obtain from Him, and not from his father or his brother, the blessing and inheritance God intended for him. In the end, Jacob earned it with his tears, on his knees and in his brokenness.

End Enmity with Others Willingly
33:1 Jacob looked up and there was Esau, coming with his four hundred men; so he divided the children among Leah, Rachel and the two maidservants. 2 He put the maidservants and their children in front, Leah and her children next, and Rachel and Joseph in the rear. 3 He himself went on ahead and bowed down to the ground seven times as he approached his brother. 4 But Esau ran to meet Jacob and embraced him; he threw his arms around his neck and kissed him. And they wept. 5 Then Esau looked up and saw the women and children. "Who are these with you?" he asked. Jacob answered, "They are the children God has graciously given your servant." 6 Then the maidservants and their children approached and bowed down. 7 Next, Leah and her children came and bowed down. Last of all came Joseph and Rachel, and they too bowed down. 8 Esau asked, "What do you mean by all these droves I met?" "To find favor in your eyes, my lord," he said. 9 But Esau said, "I already have plenty, my brother. Keep what you have for yourself." (Gen 33:1-9)

In 1994, Alvin Straight, a 75-year old man who required the use of a cane after falling for the third time, sensed that time was running out for him. So he drove a lawn mover 280 miles to see his estranged brother who had suffered a stroke. His story was captured in the heartwarming movie “The Straight Story.”

Straight was determined to see his ailing brother but the DMV had invalidated his driver’s license years ago for poor eyesight. The determined man bought a $300 lawnmower and drove across state boundary from Iowa to Wisconsin, to the concern of her daughter and the disbelief of town folks and passing motorists.

When his lawnmower broke down 60 miles before reaching his destination, a pair of bickering twin brothers serviced his lawnmower, but at the same time they argued constantly, stood in the way of one another and often stared angrily at each other.

Before he boarded his lawnmower and continued the trip, Straight revealed for the first time to the fighting twins why he wanted so much to see his brother: “My brother lives there and I haven’t seen him in 10 years. There’s no one who knows your life better than a brother that’s near your age. He knows who you are and what you are better than anyone one on earth. A brother’s a brother. My brother and I said some unforgivable things and the last time we left and I’m trying to put it behind me.”

The humbled Jacob had come around to his senses. No action or apology was too difficult, too costly or too extreme to offer to get on his brother’s better side, to save his family and return to his father’s land. He who had the upper hand and perfected the one up game walked ahead and offered himself as the first casualty, stooping and bowing seven times toward Esau (v 7), meekly and freely giving away at least 550 animals (Gen 32:14), a big part of what he had worked so hard for the last twenty years. Not only did he not claim, demand or inherit the family fortune, he added to Esau’s fortune.

Jacob specified himself four times as Esau’s servant (Gen 32:4, 18, 20, 33:5), and eight times he consistently referred to Esau as “my lord.” (Gen 32:4, 5, 18, 33: 8, 13, 14, 14, 15). Jacob knew he had no business, justification or face to call himself or Esau “brother.” The humbled Jacob gave lavishly to Esau, gave praise to God and gave witness of his adequacy, with no intention, design or expectation of getting anything back from his older brother (v 11).

By God’s grace, twenty years of betrayal, resentment and fear was resolved face to face in one reunion, in one instance, in one day. Esau ran to Jacob, kissed him and called him “my brother.” (Gen 33:9). Esau was not the monster, avenger or killer in Jacob’s imagination. The older brother had experienced growth and changes, too. Before, Esau said to himself, “I will kill my brother Jacob” (Gen 27:41). The next and last time Esau used the word “brother,” he said to Jacob, “I already have plenty, my brother. Keep what you have for yourself.”

Life on one’s own is hard enough without enemies, rivals and opponents stabbing you from behind, breathing down your neck and getting into your mind. There would be less enmity in the world if people were willing to take the first step, go the second mile and say three words, “I am sorry.”

Conclusion: Have you experienced God’s unfailing love that surrounds those who trusts in him (Ps 32:10)? Are you still grappling and living with past mistakes, persisting fears or future despair? God’s path to restoration is clear. Have you confessed “I am unworthy” (Gen 32:10)? Told God, “I will not let You go” (Gen 32:26)? Testified to others, “God has been gracious to me and I have all I need” (Gen 33:11)? If so, you are really ready to move on, grow up, make, find and have peace with God, others and yourself. The powerful presence of God is always available to the weak: “Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ's sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong” (2 Cor 12:9-10).

Joseph, Pt. 1: "The Possible Dream" (Gen 37)

2007-09-22T22:28:00.001-07:00

JOSEPH: GOD WILL MAKE A WAY
Four individuals shaped and defined Israel's rise as a nation and emergence into a force. Abraham was the spiritual giant who walked by faith, and not by sight. Isaac was the perfect gentleman who treated friends and neighbors fairly. Jacob was the consummate gladiator who grappled with God and man, and Joseph was the unsung hero who single-handedly delivered Israel and his family, all seventy of them, from a severe seven year famine.

Joseph's life was a dream that digressed into a nightmare on the road to glory. A friend noted rightly: “Vision without action is daydream; action without vision is nightmare.” His life intertwined not only with dreams, but with garments. When he was a teenager, his father made a robe for him that landed him in a pit (Gen 37:3). As a slave, Potiphar's wife caught Joseph’s cloak in her hands that landed him in prison (Gen 39:12). Finally, the robes of fine linen Pharaoh gave Joseph landed him in the palace (Gen 41:42).

THE POSSIBLE DREAM (GENESIS 37:1-36, 39:1-2)
My dreams are really insignificant and meaningless. Once I dreamed of taking a flight on a trip. In my dream, I could not decide if I should lodge at a hotel near the airport the night before the next day's trip, stay with a friend near the airport that I never had or stay at home and commute to the airport in prime time traffic. The following week, I had another dream. I was persuading my wife not to give away a cat she never had in real life, too!

Dreams are generally irrelevant, silly and overblown. Contrary to reality, people do not usually spend their sleep lives dreaming of getting rich, being successful, gaining fame or craving sex most or all of the time.

However, creative people have credited dreams for their discoveries. French chemist Auguste Kekule saw snakes biting their tales in a dream before he stumbled onto the mystery of the correct ring structure for the benzene molecule. Inventor Elias Howe attributed the discovery of the sewing machine to a nightmare of being captured by cannibals. Howe noticed the holes at the tip of the natives’ spears and designed the sewing machine accordingly. Vladimir Horowitz and other well-known pianists have described playing piano pieces or discovering a new fingering in their dreams that turned out to work perfectly. Robert Louis Stevenson said that his book “The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr. Hyde” came to him in a dream. http://www.britannica.com/bcom/magazine/article/0,5744,335625,00.html?query=dreams

The seventeen year-old Joseph (v 2) was Jacob and Rachel's miracle child, golden boy and teenage prodigy. Jacob, the father, loved Joseph to a family feud, sibling rivalry and to a house divided. Unfortunately, Rachel, the mother, who died after giving birth to Benjamin, her second child, was not there to bring up or reel in her firstborn.

The stage was set for the Israel’s four hundred years of enslavement in Egypt that God had disclosed to Abraham (Gen 15:13-16), except that the leading character, the star player and the show stopper was not ready for his debut. Joseph had a possible dream in his sleep and a promising future in the stars, but a potential crisis on his hands. He was ahead of himself, sure of himself and full of himself. When he was young, Joseph was talkative, insensitive, blunt, naïve and immature.

How does a person mature from a boy or youth to a man or an adult? What does one have to learn, understand and concede along the way? Where does immaturity end and maturity begin?

Recognize that God is Omniscient When Your Understanding is Incomplete
37:1 Jacob lived in the land where his father had stayed, the land of Canaan. 2 This is the account of Jacob. Joseph, a young man of seventeen, was tending the flocks with his brothers, the sons of Bilhah and the sons of Zilpah, his father's wives, and he brought their father a bad report about them. 3 Now Israel loved Joseph more than any of his other sons, because he had been born to him in his old age; and he made a richly ornamented robe for him. 4 When his brothers saw that their father loved him more than any of them, they hated him and could not speak a kind word to him. 5 Joseph had a dream, and when he told it to his brothers, they hated him all the more. 6 He said to them, “Listen to this dream I had: 7 We were binding sheaves of grain out in the field when suddenly my sheaf rose and stood upright, while your sheaves gathered around mine and bowed down to it.” 8 His brothers said to him, “Do you intend to reign over us? Will you actually rule us?” And they hated him all the more because of his dream and what he had said. 9 Then he had another dream, and he told it to his brothers. “Listen,” he said, “I had another dream, and this time the sun and moon and eleven stars were bowing down to me.”
10 When he told his father as well as his brothers, his father rebuked him and said, “What is this dream you had? Will your mother and I and your brothers actually come and bow down to the ground before you?” 11 His brothers were jealous of him, but his father kept the matter in mind. (Gen 37:1-11)

Once, young Calvin of the Calvin and Hobbes comic strip fame had a money-making idea. So he overturned a box for a stand, wrote some words on it, placed it on the street and waited patiently for prospective buyers; however, none came. Before too long, Hobbes, Calvin's stuffed tiger, visited him and asked him, “How's business?” Calvin replied tersely: “Terrible.” Hobbes looked at the box, noticed the words on the box that read: “A swift kick in the butt - $1.00” and sympathized with Calvin’s lack of business: “Boy, that's hard to believe.”

The equally befuddled and disappointed Calvin rested his head on his hands, threw out his arms in exasperation and complained about his unsuccessful venture: “I can't understand it. Everybody I know needs what I'm selling.”

What Ralph Waldo Emerson once said is true of Joseph: “What you are speaks so loud that I cannot hear what you say.”

Joseph was destined for great things, but he also had grand weaknesses and big egos to overcome. Craving for his brothers’ attention, acceptance and affection, he appeared where he was not invited, said what nobody wanted to hear and flaunted what no one else had, from paternal favors to heavenly visions. The young upstart often made a big fuss about his dreams, wore his loud, colorful and exclusive garment everywhere, getting on every one's nerves, case and blacklist. He was not wise, likable or tolerable. In short, he was a spoilt brat and a little monster - a pet to his father but a rat, a mole and a pest to his brothers.

The sons of Bilhah and Zilpah, the children of the lowly maids and not the powerful wives of Jacob, were Joseph’s first targets when he brought a bad report to his father (v 2). The words “bad report” is translated elsewhere as mean slander (Ps 31:13), defamation (Jer 20:10) and malicious talk (Ezek 36:3). Maybe what Joseph said of his less privileged brothers to their father Jacob was true, but he was unkind, unfair and unbearable.

In no time, Joseph's brothers were jealous of him (Gen 37:11), bitter at him and rude to him (Gen 37:4). They were up to their neck with him, giving the evil eye to him and sick to the stomach of him. No relationship could rival the brothers’ murderous hatred for Joseph; the Hebrew word for “hate” (Gen 37:4, 5, 8) appears more in this chapter and in their relationship than any in the Bible. Even Jacob, the father, who adored him and couldn't resist his charms, couldn't stand his bizarre and grandiose dreams.

Up to this point, Joseph did not know, understand or realize that God did not give the talents, the opportunity and the destiny for him alone, but for the salvation of the Jews, Egyptians and the rest of mankind. He did not pray for understanding, reassure his brothers or uphold family unity, reconciliation or harmony. The way he communicated, detailed and retold his dream elevated himself over others, set brother against brother and divided the whole family. When his brothers asked the second question (v 8), “Will you actually ‘rule’ us?” Joseph had no reply, did not elaborate and showed no restraint, irking his parents next. Only in the end when the brothers bowed to Joseph in Egypt will the verb “bow” reappear thrice (Gen 42:6, 43: 26, 28), revealing that they were not bowing to Joseph the brother, but Joseph the minister (Gen 42:8-9).

You may be capable, talented and promising, but are you wise, disciplined, and mature? Do you treat people honorably, tactfully and cordially? Is your head swollen with pride? Is your head thinking straight? Or is your head bigger than your heart?

Recognize that God is Omnipotent When Your Power is Inadequate
12 Now his brothers had gone to graze their father's flocks near Shechem, 13 and Israel said to Joseph, “As you know, your brothers are grazing the flocks near Shechem. Come, I am going to send you to them.” “Very well,” he replied. 14 So he said to him, “Go and see if all is well with your brothers and with the flocks, and bring word back to me.” Then he sent him off from the Valley of Hebron. When Joseph arrived at Shechem, 15 a man found him wandering around in the fields and asked him, “What are you looking for?” 16 He replied, “I'm looking for my brothers. Can you tell me where they are grazing their flocks?” 17 “They have moved on from here,” the man answered. “I heard them say, 'Let's go to Dothan.'“ So Joseph went after his brothers and found them near Dothan. 18 But they saw him in the distance, and before he reached them, they plotted to kill him.
19 “Here comes that dreamer!” they said to each other. 20 “Come now, let's kill him and throw him into one of these cisterns and say that a ferocious animal devoured him. Then we'll see what comes of his dreams.” 21 When Reuben heard this, he tried to rescue him from their hands. “Let's not take his life,” he said. 22 “Don't shed any blood. Throw him into this cistern here in the desert, but don't lay a hand on him.” Reuben said this to rescue him from them and take him back to his father. 23 So when Joseph came to his brothers, they stripped him of his robe--the richly ornamented robe he was wearing-- 24 and they took him and threw him into the cistern. Now the cistern was empty; there was no water in it. 25 As they sat down to eat their meal, they looked up and saw a caravan of Ishmaelites coming from Gilead. Their camels were loaded with spices, balm and myrrh, and they were on their way to take them down to Egypt. 26 Judah said to his brothers, “What will we gain if we kill our brother and cover up his blood? 27 Come, let's sell him to the Ishmaelites and not lay our hands on him; after all, he is our brother, our own flesh and blood.” His brothers agreed. (Gen 37:18-27)

After my wife and I had sold our first home, we rented a two-bedroom house for a few months before we found one. One day as the garage door opened to greet my return, I noticed that one of the moving boxes that were stored in the garage was on the floor right in the middle of my parking space. I assumed that the box had fallen from poor stacking or strong winds. But on second thought, why did the box fall or travel so far away from its corner spot, and how could the winds seep into the garage? Just then, I noticed the door to the house was open and my worst fears came true: Someone had broken into the house!

The burglars left nothing untouched. They rummaged through the pocket of every piece of clothing, upended and searched each box and container and even opened our mail. Immediately, I looked for our passports, checks, extra car keys, jewelry and small safe. The burglars, apparently, did not take our passports, car keys or checks. Fortunately, we had left the small safe open, so the burglars did not take it when they noticed it only contained documents and not jewelry or cash. Like everything else, the documents were strewn all over the floor. My wife also found all her jewelry, which she hid in a special place, and the $50 cash and extra foreign currency she had placed in a cabinet.

Tabulating our losses, we concluded that the burglars were youngsters looking for cash and had left most of our belongings alone, except for her laptop, two backpacks and a few cans of Coke! Though we were thankful, feelings of disappointment, disgruntlement and disgust naturally and often surfaced, until we met my sister who is renting the unit next to ours. She told us: “I was so fortunate. I had left $10,000 cash in my house that day when I was at work.” Then I understood God's grace to us. I had suffered a scare, a break-in and a minor loss, but if the burglars had broken into my sister's house next door instead, she would have suffered a hardship, a disaster and a major blow!

God’s wisdom is indisputable. His power is perfect and His ways are inscrutable!

Joseph's brothers acted out of jealousy, greed and spite. It was not a prank, a joke, or even a warning. What they did was vicious, wicked, senseless and reprehensible. It was inexcusable, unjustified and unnecessary. However, note that though the brothers were in charge, they were not in control. Their plans were weaker, stranger and changing by the minute. Plan A, which failed, was to kill Joseph (v 19). Plan B, which did not succeed, was to starve him to death. So they resorted to Plan C, trading him for money, the least dangerous of the three. Providentially and perplexingly, Reuben and Judah, the sons of Leah, the fiercest rival of Rachel, Joseph's mother, saved him.

God is omnipotent. Although the name and mention of God were absent from this chapter, His hand, wisdom, and intervention were present, prominent and precious. God allowed bad things to happen to Joseph, though He did not make or cause them. He also did not stop or reverse it, but used and transformed it for His purpose and glory. Though He did not write or rewrite the chapter's beginning, He reworked and revised the middle and the end.

Joseph the dreamer learned a hard lesson. He was not as intelligent, as indispensable and as influential as he thought. God had given him the passage of dreams but not the power of interpretation, the dream’s beginning and the end but not the middle. Allen Ross noted that Joseph's dreams differ from other dreams in the book of Genesis, in that his dreams had symbols, images and visuals only, but no verbal communication. (Genesis 596, Allen Ross, Baker) Joseph should have kept his weird dreams to himself, especially when he implied that his late mother would show up and bow to him (v 10). Even in jail, his answers were good for other dreamers, but never himself. He was not the master dreamer, or “baal dreamer” in Hebrew (Gen 37:19), his brothers labeled him. Only when he was humbled by prison did he have an explanation, a forum and a use for his dreams.

Recognize that God is Omnipresent When Your Life is Isolated
36 Meanwhile, the Midianites sold Joseph in Egypt to Potiphar, one of Pharaoh's officials, the captain of the guard. (Gen 37:36)

There was an old story of an unhappy princess who was unhappy that she was not a beauty. She did not like the way she looked, could not find anyone or anyway to improve on it, and worried herself to no end as to what others would think of her, say about her or feel about her.

One day a kind old aunt visited her, comforted her and gave her three beauty tips. The princess took her aunt's advice to heart, busied herself practicing what she was taught and, before too long, not only had she forgotten about her previous state of unhappiness, she had garnered rave reviews throughout the land and beyond as a princess of incomparable beauty.

Of course, young ladies all over the land then sought the princess to ask her for the secret of her popularity. They listened attentively as she sweetly, faithfully and helpfully recounted her old aunt’s three age-old beauty tips: “One, smile at everyone you meet. Two, look for all the beautiful things you could find. Third, say something kind to everyone.”

It's been said, “We turn to God for help when our foundations are shaking, only to learn that it is God who is shaking them.”

Ironically, Joseph’s brothers did him a favor by selling him. Canaan was a place of death with the coming famine, his brothers were a brotherhood of blood and the family was not unanimous in grief. Only one of the brothers - Reuben – felt the pain (Gen 37:29-30) even as Jacob tore his clothes, put on sackcloth and mourned for his son many days – the longest expression of grief in the Bible (Gen 37:34). The family members comforted their father (Gen 37:35), but did not mourn or miss their brother’s absence.

With God’s presence in Joseph's life, Egypt was a place of refuge, the descendants of Ishmael, Abraham's rival, were harmless merchants and Joseph was at peace. Exile was better than home for Joseph. It saved him his neck, head and life. Not only that, he was a changed man, a mature adult and a good neighbor.

Joseph was mistreated, victimized and sold by his brothers, but God delivered, transformed and used him. For the next thirteen years (Gen 41:46) he had no one but God to rely on, to turn to and fellowship with. God was with Joseph in Canaan, too, but Joseph did not know, acknowledge or show it, but in Egypt, he treated God no longer as a stranger or a visitor, but a friend and companion.

Hudson Taylor said: “It does not matter how great the pressure is. What really matters is where the pressure lies- whether it comes between you and God, or whether it presses you nearer His heart.” (Charles Swindoll, Grind I 99)

Conclusion: Hannah Smith said, “The greatest burden we have to carry in life is self; the most difficult thing we have to manage is self.” Maturity is not a gift. It cannot be rushed, bought or inherited. You can dream dreams, but reading dreams, people and situations is a different matter. Are you part of the problem to a trouble, strife or misunderstanding, or are you part of the solution? Do you help or hinder? What does it take to mend fences, build bridges and smooth feathers? Do obstacles, problems and difficulties sink or surge your spiritual growth? Do you confidently, cheerfully and continually trust in God through the long, winding and uneven path of life?

Joseph, Pt. 2: "Someone to Watch Over Me" (Gen 39)

2007-09-22T22:27:00.001-07:00

SOMEONE TO WATCH OVER ME (GENESIS 39)
A biographer of Michelangelo told about the famous artist's nagging problem with his work on a statue and his unconventional way of arriving at a solution to the problem. As he was working on a sculptor, the brilliant artist found that his own shadow on the statue was in the way of his usually reliable better judgment. The candles in the room caught the reflection of his body, cast a shade on the statue and interfered with the objectivity of the sculptor, the lighting of the room and the integrity of the statue. So he thought long and hard of a way to keep his shadow off the statue.

After repositioning himself numerous times, switching to different candles, and adjusting his approach, surroundings, and angle in vain, a thought hit him like a ton of bricks, an idea flashed into his head, and a smile came to his lips. Why not try putting the candlelight over the head? But how was he to balance a candle on his head? Ding! He remembered the miners who balanced their lamps on their head at work in the caves. So he devised a candleholder, placed a candle on it, tied it to his head, and completed his work to his satisfaction (Telling the Old, Old Story 227, David Larsen, Wheaton, Crossway Books, 1995).

Joseph's father and brothers were not the only stumbling blocks to the youngster's maturity, greatness and destiny. When he was young, Joseph’s ego, personality and childishness cast the biggest shadow on his future. He talked much of his dreams but nothing of God. He had sweet dreams, but he had yet to understand God's purpose, experience His power or practice His presence. The dreamer turned slave experienced God in the most unlikely place - Egypt, and His presence meant success in all the work of his hand (Gen 39:2, 3, 23) and favor in the eyes of others (Gen 39:4, 21).

What kind of triumph awaits those who trust in God’s power, presence and providence? How is God actively helping those who are going through suffering, struggles and setbacks?

God Helps Us to Triumph over Misery
39:1 Now Joseph had been taken down to Egypt. Potiphar, an Egyptian who was one of Pharaoh's officials, the captain of the guard, bought him from the Ishmaelites who had taken him there. 2 The LORD was with Joseph and he prospered, and he lived in the house of his Egyptian master. 3 When his master saw that the LORD was with him and that the LORD gave him success in everything he did, 4 Joseph found favor in his eyes and became his attendant. Potiphar put him in charge of his household, and he entrusted to his care everything he owned. 5 From the time he put him in charge of his household and of all that he owned, the LORD blessed the household of the Egyptian because of Joseph. The blessing of the LORD was on everything Potiphar had, both in the house and in the field. (Gen 39:1-5)

Once, Lucy, the wannabe psychiatrist from the Peanuts gang, set up a table to offer consultation services to neighborhood kids. Lo and behold, her first patient was Charlie Brown, the eternal pessimist, who came with a heavy heart over a fire that destroyed the house of Snoopy his dog.

Charlie Brown took a seat, barely said anything but stared at the ground. Seeing his silence, Lucy raised her right hand, gestured passionately and offered advice to the dejected Charlie Brown: “There was a real lesson to be learned from seeing Snoopy's house burned down. Adversity builds character. Without adversity, a person could never mature and face up to all of the things in life!”

Immediately Charlie Brown perked up with hope at the wisdom of the statement. He lifted his gaze from the ground, turned to Lucy and asked, “What things?” Lucy turned away from Charlie Brown, thumbed her nose in the air and smugly said, “More adversity!”

Someone once said, “A Christian is one who is completely fearless, continually cheerful, and constantly in trouble.”

Joseph did not just survive exile, slavery and anonymity - he thrived under it. The road to Egypt was heartrending, torturous and lonely, and he was unprepared, outnumbered and immobilized. The Ishmaelite merchants, buyers and travelers put his feet in shackles, jammed his neck with irons (Ps 105:18) and tied his hands with cords as they dragged him on a long, wretched and dangerous journey across the Sinai wilderness to Egypt. In Egypt Joseph heard an unknown language (Ps 81:5), saw strange customs and faced an alien civilization.

But yet, in Genesis 39:2, 3, 23, the recurring word “prosper,” translated as “success” in the NIV, accompanied Joseph. Tragedy daunted him, but it did not doom him because the Lord was with him. Joseph had every reason to be miserable, depressed and resentful; after all, his own brothers had tricked, betrayed and sold him. Instead of wanting to die, he wanted to live, to persevere and to hope. He did not merely survive; he thrived under oppression, stress and anguish. Someone once said, “Pain and suffering are inevitable, but misery is optional.”

The Lord's blessing was on Joseph no matter where he was, what he did and whom he served. Joseph showed a good attitude at work, made a strong impact on his master and rose to the top in style. The Hebrew word “all” or “everything” occurs an astonishing nine times in the chapter – all that Joseph did (v 3), all that was entrusted to him in the house and in the field (vv 4, 5, 5, 6, 8), all who were in prison (v 22), all that was done there (v 22) and all under his care (v 23). God's presence brought him sanity, gave him strength and provided him stability.

Joseph was a matchless worker, a model slave, a transformed man and a transparent individual. His master Potiphar could see the Lord behind the person and the work (v 3). The slave was not a disgruntled employee, a hapless victim or a homesick sufferer. After all, it was better to shed tears and face sweat in Egypt than shed blood and face murder in Canaan. Instead of crying foul, thinking pessimistically and moping around, Joseph became a hardworking, productive and trustworthy steward. Potiphar had no problem leaving all he had to Joseph's care - his servants, fields and properties, and he did not have to watch Joseph supervise others, worry about his wealth or withhold anything from Joseph.

Are you humble, hardworking and helpful to people you work with, work for and work under? Everyone goes through suffering, but do you know what causes your misery, where to turn to and how to get help? Do people see the presence, the peace and the priority of Jesus in your life?

God Helps Us to Triumph over Mischief
6 So he left in Joseph's care everything he had; with Joseph in charge, he did not concern himself with anything except the food he ate. Now Joseph was well-built and handsome, 7 and after a while his master's wife took notice of Joseph and said, “Come to bed with me!” 8 But he refused. “With me in charge,” he told her, “my master does not concern himself with anything in the house; everything he owns he has entrusted to my care. 9 No one is greater in this house than I am. My master has withheld nothing from me except you, because you are his wife. How then could I do such a wicked thing and sin against God?” 10 And though she spoke to Joseph day after day, he refused to go to bed with her or even be with her. 11 One day he went into the house to attend to his duties, and none of the household servants was inside. 12 She caught him by his cloak and said, “Come to bed with me!” But he left his cloak in her hand and ran out of the house. (Gen 39:6-12)

At the end of the American Civil War, General Lee, the general of the defeated Southern army, was broke, as were many of his countrymen. Money was scare, the economy suffered and transgressions were remembered. It was a bleak time for the general, branded a traitor by many who wished to see him imprisoned and hanged. But many others had a high regard for Lee, defended his honor and responded with generous offers of financial help and various jobs.

Many were intrigued by the greater than life story of the general and his version of the war, but Lee never relived the war nor wrote about his wartime experiences, even when he was old. He had many offers for his memoirs, which an adoring public wished to read, but he turned the offers flat down. When a state lottery offered him ten thousand dollars a year for the use of his name, Lee replied infamously, “Gentlemen, my name is all I have left, and that is not for sale.”
http://www.heartlight.org/timely_truths/name.html

It's been said, “Character is who you are when no one is looking.”

Joseph's character was tested, undermined and scorned by Potiphar's wife everyday, but he did not waver, compromise or succumb - not even when nobody knew, noticed or minded. He had the courage of convictions, the respect for loyalty and the fear of God in him. The young overseer had a good understanding of good and evil, a strong stand on what's right and wrong, and an unmistakable theology of sin and consequences. He said to Potiphar’s wife: “My master has withheld nothing from me except you, because you are his wife. How then could I do such a wicked thing and sin against God?” (v 9). Joseph fled instantly, instinctively and impolitely from Potiphar's household. The same verb describes Moses' actions as he ran for his life from a snake (Ex 4:3) and David's flight from Saul (1 Sam 19:10).

I heard a speaker who warned this way of the allure evil: “When you look at someone, the first look is accidental, the second look is analytical and the third look is acceptable.”

Joseph had first-hand insight into the complexity of human relations, the deceitfulness of human nature and the frailty of the human condition. When push came to shove, he repeatedly rebuffed the efforts of Potiphar's wife, reasserted his stand, removed himself from her presence before trouble began (v 10), ran from her when trouble happened and remained outside the house when trouble persisted until the master came home! He was not a toy, a pawn or a slave in any sense of the word.

Young Joseph feared nothing but sin and feared no one but God. No position, promotion or praise was worth the penalty, payback and pain of sin. God was in his heart, on his lips and by his side. He could lose the shirt but not the shorts and shoes! The shirt not worth the sweat! Joseph was out of the way, out of reach and out of the league of Potiphar's wife. Not only did Joseph acknowledge sin was an affront against God, he was the only person in the Bible to characterize sin as “great wickedness,” or “such a wicked thing” in NIV.

Do you have God-honoring values? God-fearing ethics and morals?

God Helps Us to Triumph over Mistreatment
20 Joseph's master took him and put him in prison, the place where the king's prisoners were confined. But while Joseph was there in the prison, 21 the LORD was with him; he showed him kindness and granted him favor in the eyes of the prison warden. 22 So the warden put Joseph in charge of all those held in the prison, and he was made responsible for all that was done there. 23 The warden paid no attention to anything under Joseph's care, because the LORD was with Joseph and gave him success in whatever he did. (Gen 39:20-23)

One of the two songs the congregation we chose for our wedding was “Make Me A Channel Of Your Peace,” also known as The Prayer of St. Francis. The lyrics are:
Make me a channel of your peace.
Where there is hatred let me bring your love;
Where there is injury your pardon, Lord;
And where there's doubt true faith in you.

Refrain:
Oh, Master grant that I may never seek
So much to be consoled as to console;
To be understood as to understand;
To be loved as to love with all my soul.

Make me a channel of your peace.
Where there's despair in life let me bring hope;
Where there is darkness, only light;
And where there's sadness, ever joy.

Make me a channel of your peace.
It is in pardoning that we are pardoned;
In giving to all men that we receive;
And in dying that we're born to eternal life.

Paul said, “To this very hour we go hungry and thirsty, we are in rags, we are brutally treated, we are homeless. We work hard with our own hands. When we are cursed, we bless; when we are persecuted, we endure it; when we are slandered, we answer kindly.” (1 Cor 4:11-13)

Joseph was misrepresented, misunderstood and mistreated, but he did not lose heart, lose sleep or lose much. His mind, body and heart were safe, healthy and sound. For the second time he was betrayed – the first time by his brothers, but when he committed his situation to God, once more God worked in his favor. Potiphar was fuming, his wife was gloating but Joseph was unyielding. His master decided Joseph's sentence, but only God could decide Joseph’s fate. Potiphar's wife determined Joseph's blameworthiness but not his behavior. Imprisonment confronted Joseph once again but he was unbowed, unblemished and unbroken. Prison could not cripple, choke or crush his beliefs. He was down but not out, humiliated but not haunted, dejected but not despairing.

Joseph did not explain himself to Potiphar, expect a confession from his wife or evade responsibility, blame or imprisonment. It was better to be faithful in low and obscure places than to be frisky in high and mighty places. He endangered himself before Potiphar, enraged him and his wife, but entrusted himself before God.

The presence of God does not mean the absence of enemies, but the triumph over man-made tricks, traps and troubles. Jeremiah 20:11 says, “But the LORD is with me like a mighty warrior; so my persecutors will stumble and not prevail. They will fail and be thoroughly disgraced; their dishonor will never be forgotten.”

In Joseph's case, no matter what people did to him, said about him and think of him, Joseph triumphed with courage, wisdom and dignity. The Lord's presence is the most precious and reliable company in life. Just when all was lost, hope was gone and life was bleak, Joseph again experienced God's nearness and faithfulness. Instead of facing destitution, despair and death, Joseph found an explanation for his deliverance, a reason for his existence and a hope for his release.

Conclusion: What if sin knocks at your door, gives you a nudge and throws itself at your feet not once, not twice, but continually? Would you resist and rebuke it? What if sin approaches you behind closed doors and drawn curtains? Proverbs 3:5-6 says, “Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight.” Won’t you seek God and let Him guide and guard you when you face temptation and are tested?

Joseph, Pt. 3: "I Can See Clearly Now" (Gen 41)

2007-09-22T22:26:00.000-07:00

I CAN SEE CLEARLY NOW (GENESIS 41:1-41)
Growing up, I had my fair share of “Why” and “Why not” questions. Why was I the overlooked youngest child, and not the popular middle or influential eldest child in the family? Why was I not better looking, better built or better off? Why did I have a flat nose, bad teeth and weak knees?

Of course, some questions do not bother me anymore, like “Who will I marry?” “Will she love me?” “Will we be happy together?” However, some questions refuse to go away, like “Why were my parents divorced?” “Why did they not reconcile?” “Why did the kids have to suffer the consequences?”

Life is not a crystal ball, a fortune cookie or a psychic hotline. Not all questions have an answer and not all answers are satisfactory. Further, not all questions are worth asking and not all answers are worth knowing. Sometimes secrets are better left buried, history is better left undisturbed and questions are better left unanswered. They are better off known to God, taken to God and left to God. A song says, “Many things about tomorrow I don't seem to understand; But I know who holds tomorrow, And I know He holds my hand.”

Joseph did not know why he experienced so much heartaches, misunderstandings and garbage in life. Nothing made sense, everything went wrong and something was amiss. However, he did not think negatively, envy others and blame God throughout his ordeals. Instead, his faith in God was strengthened, his belief in humanity was genuine and his patience was rewarded.

What do you do when you feel life is passing you by, throwing you a lemon and spiraling out of control? What if you do not find help, deliverance or relief today, tomorrow or soon? What if things are unclear, unconvincing or uncomfortable? What is true when things change, time flies and people disappoint, as they always do?

Surrender to God’s Will
41:1 When two full years had passed, Pharaoh had a dream (Gen 41:1)
14 So Pharaoh sent for Joseph, and he was quickly brought from the dungeon. When he had shaved and changed his clothes, he came before Pharaoh. (Gen 41:14)

The Wall Street Journal reported the unusual case of a 35 year-old Japanese man who was so tired of doing nothing for five months that he sued his company. Toshiyuki Sakai was told by his bosses at video-game maker Sega Enterprises Ltd that his work was below par. They suggested that he quit and offered him a severance package of 2.6 million yen (US$23,900).

Mr. Sakai turned the offer down on the spot. He felt his performance was fine and that he was a scapegoat. Three days later, Sega told him to take home all personal belongings, turn in all company property and report to an office dubbed the Personnel Room. To his surprise, he found a desk, three chairs, a bare locker and a telephone that couldn't make outside calls. He was also given no work to perform, allowed no diversions and ordered to stay in the room every day from precisely 8:30 a.m. to 5:15 p.m., with 55 minutes break for lunch. The company also barred him from bringing in personal belongings.

Life in solitary confinement took a toll on Mr. Sakai. He stared at the phone that hardly rang, at the digital clock that barely moved and at anything that occupied his time till the long day was over. His resolve to survive the day was often tested by his fear of returning the next. Every day, he got up from his chair, did leg bents, or lied on the floor to stretch his back. Pretty soon, he was snapping at store clerks over trivial matters, sleeping for as little as two hours a night and eating nothing but ice-cream for lunch. An unnamed Sega worker at the same Personnel Room who was also going nuts after a couple of days said, “Its just negative thinking- and more negative thinking.” (Wall Street Journal 9/14/99)

Joseph was a strapping seventeen year-old teenager when he had the first of his unusual dreams of success, but eleven long years later, after he had done his part to communicate to Pharaoh, his chief cupbearer and all who cared to listen to his identity, ordeal and innocence, the twenty-eight year old Joseph was still languishing in prison. Though no bad news visited Joseph in prison, no good news came either. While he had relative freedom, he was still behind bars, doing time and conveniently forgotten for still another two full years (Gen 41:1) before the chief cupbearer remembered his earnest plea, his unlikely story and his talent of unraveling dreams (Gen 40:23). His release was due Pharaoh’s bad night sleep, Egypt’s long crippling famine and the cupbearer’s awakened delayed response (Gen 41:9). Joseph left home at seventeen (Gen 37:2) and met Pharaoh when he was thirty (Gen 41:46), so altogether he waited thirteen years before Pharaoh summoned him to interpret his dreams.

Thirteen years is a long time – enough for a baby to turn to a teenager, enough for a child to qualify for college and enough for a youth to complete a doctoral degree.
For more than a decade, Joseph was out of sight, out of mind and out on a limb.
Time and tide did not wait for Joseph, his brothers did not look for him and the chief cupbearer did not call on him.

Someone once said, “Idle hands are the devil's playthings.” Joseph had been enslaved, imprisoned and betrayed for more than a decade, but his surroundings, status and setbacks did not change him. He faced the dangers of isolation, inactivity and ineffectiveness, but his mind was not dulled, idle or wasted in prison. Neither did he harbor resentment against the cupbearer, keep record of the ungrateful or lose hope in all people. It was the worst of times and the best of times. He was locked but the key was not lost. The bottom slid out but it did not fall off. God was not finished with him yet. As before, his well-being, fate and success were in the hands of God alone. When Joseph reached Pharaoh he was fit as a fiddle, strong as an ox and wise as an owl.

Are you hurt, surprised or discouraged by people's disregard, irresponsibility and unreliability? Only God knows His purpose, plans and path for you. In the meantime, have you kept yourself spiritually, mentally, physically, rationally, emotionally fit for God's use? Have you kept hobbies, pursued activities, read books, updated information and done tasks to improve your life, maintain your vigor and keep the course? Have you surrendered your life unconditionally, unreservedly and untiringly to God?

Speak of God’s Work
25 Then Joseph said to Pharaoh, “The dreams of Pharaoh are one and the same. God has revealed to Pharaoh what he is about to do. 26 The seven good cows are seven years, and the seven good heads of grain are seven years; it is one and the same dream. 27 The seven lean, ugly cows that came up afterward are seven years, and so are the seven worthless heads of grain scorched by the east wind: They are seven years of famine. 28 “It is just as I said to Pharaoh: God has shown Pharaoh what he is about to do. 29 Seven years of great abundance are coming throughout the land of Egypt, 30 but seven years of famine will follow them. Then all the abundance in Egypt will be forgotten, and the famine will ravage the land. 31 The abundance in the land will not be remembered, because the famine that follows it will be so severe. 32 The reason the dream was given to Pharaoh in two forms is that the matter has been firmly decided by God, and God will do it soon. (Gen 41:25-32)

The Lord appeared in a dream to a man, showed him a large rock and charged him to push against the rock with all his might. For many years he toiled from sun up to sun down, his shoulder set squarely against the cold, massive surface of the unmoving rock, pushing it with all his might. Each night the man returned to his cabin sore and worn out, feeling that his whole day had been spent in vain.

One day, the adversary effectively placed thoughts into the man's weary mind: “You have been pushing against the rock for a long time, and it hasn't budged. Why kill yourself over this? You are never going to move it.” “Why kill myself over this?” the man agreed. “I'll just put in my time, giving just the minimum effort and that will be good enough.” But the man also took his thoughts to the Lord. “Lord, he said, “I have labored long and hard in your service, putting all my strength to do which you have asked. Yet, after all this time, I have not been able to budge that rock. What is wrong? Why am I failing?”

The Lord responded compassionately, “My friend, when I asked you to serve me with all your strength, which you have done, never once did I mention to you that I expected you to move it. Your task was to push. And now you come to me with your strength spent, thinking that you have failed. But, is that really so? Look at yourself. Your arms are strong and muscled, your back sinewy and brown, and your legs have become massive and hard. Through opposition you have grown much and your abilities now surpass that which you used to have, yet you haven't moved the rock. But your calling was to be obedient and to push and to exercise your faith and trust in my wisdom.”

Even after enduring thirteen grueling, taxing and boring years, Joseph gave glory, honor and praise to God for his overnight success, the cupbearer’s coming around and Pharaoh's good mood and instant liking. Once, he was a jailbird, a number and a victim; now he is the top dog, big cheese and head honcho. Prison did not cause him to doubt, distrust or deny God. The concentric circles of Joseph's influence were getting larger. Before, he had to care only for himself, later he looked after the sullen baker and cupbearer’s well-being. The stage was finally set for him to be the primary provider for Egypt, neighboring nations and the rest of mankind. Given the greatest stage of his life, Joseph gave glory and testimony to God's work in his life. In his lengthy reply to Pharaoh (vv 25-32), Joseph mentioned himself just once, God four times (Gen 41:25, 28, 32) and God's name before Pharaoh’s name twice (Gen 41:25, “God has revealed to Pharaoh” & v 28 “God has shown Pharaoh”). He punctuated his ending with a double reference to God (v 32, “the matter has been firmly decided by God, and God will do it soon”). Two years ago (Gen 40:14-15), given a lesser stage, Joseph's words to the cupbearer was about himself, his origins and his plight, but now he used the opportunity, occasion and opening with Pharaoh to talk about Pharaoh's dream, Egypt's plight and God's decree – anything but himself and nothing of himself. Joseph eventually understood he was an instrument, a mouthpiece and a beacon for God's use.

God was guiding, testing and preparing Joseph all these years, working on him, in him and through him. Joseph knew he could not have made that much improvement or success by himself, even if he tried. Before, his youthful dreams were short single verses (Gen 37:7, 9), but the two dreams he interpreted for the baker (Gen 40:12-15) and cupbearer were extended to two to three verses each (Gen 40:16-17), but now the explanation to Pharaoh's two dreams extended to eleven verses. The longer Joseph lived, the more bizarre the dreams he experienced, but the more astute, accurate and articulate he was. Joseph needed supernatural, heavenly and miraculous insight and help to sort through the layers, the nuances and the complexities of Pharaoh's dreams.

The teenage Joseph’s playful nature, carefree attitude and youthful ways were mischievous, misdirected and mishandled, but the adult Joseph cared more for God's name, His work and glory than at any time in his life. His eyes were opened to God's perspective in things, God's priorities in life and God's purpose for himself.

Would you believe, confess and follow your Lord Jesus Christ if you undergo two, 11, or 13 tempestuous, troubling and testing years?

Serve in God’s Wisdom
33 “And now let Pharaoh look for a discerning and wise man and put him in charge of the land of Egypt. 34 Let Pharaoh appoint commissioners over the land to take a fifth of the harvest of Egypt during the seven years of abundance. 35 They should collect all the food of these good years that are coming and store up the grain under the authority of Pharaoh, to be kept in the cities for food. 36 This food should be held in reserve for the country, to be used during the seven years of famine that will come upon Egypt, so that the country may not be ruined by the famine.” 37 The plan seemed good to Pharaoh and to all his officials. 38 So Pharaoh asked them, “Can we find anyone like this man, one in whom is the spirit of God?” 39 Then Pharaoh said to Joseph, “Since God has made all this known to you, there is no one so discerning and wise as you. 40 You shall be in charge of my palace, and all my people are to submit to your orders. Only with respect to the throne will I be greater than you.” 41 So Pharaoh said to Joseph, “I hereby put you in charge of the whole land of Egypt.” (Gen 41:33-41)

A chicken farmer was losing a lot of his flock, and wrote to the Department of Agriculture: “Gentlemen: Something is wrong with my chickens. Every morning when I come out, I find two or three lying on the ground cold and stiff with their feet in the air. Can you tell me what is the matter?”

Eight weeks later he received this letter from Washington: “Dear Sir: Your chickens are dead.” (Toastmasters # 461)

It's been said, “To look is one thing. To see what you look is another. To understand what you see is a third. To learn from what you understand is still something else. But to act on what you learn is all that really matters.” (Quotable Quotations 11)

Previously Joseph was a dreamer, a novice and an underachiever. As a youth, he could not handle all the knowledge, potential and favors he had. He had no interpretation for his own dreams, offered no solution to the baker and cupbearer, but two years later he had a simple, practical and effective proposal that made sense, convinced Pharaoh and transformed Egypt into a rich, powerful, and superior nation.

Joseph was a genius. He had no equal in his generation. Pharaoh deemed Joseph wise and understanding (v 39). Charles Spurgeon said: “Wisdom is the right use of knowledge. To know is not to be wise. Many men know a great deal, and are all the greater fools for it. There is no fool so great as a knowing fool. But to know how to use knowledge is to have wisdom” (3,000 Quotation on Christian Themes #2661, Carroll E. Simcox, The Seabury Press, 1975). Generations later, centuries passed and lands apart another such person would appear. The biblical expression “wise and understanding” was applied to only one other person - King Solomon (1 Ki 3:12). Joseph rose above, soared over and got through the troubles, the turns and the turmoil in his life. The teenage dreams of Joseph did not count until thirteen years later. When he was twenty-eight, he told the baker and cupbearer what would happen to them in the next three days. Now at thirty, his plan was implemented overnight. His wisdom was a work in progress.

The truthful, trustworthy and transparent Joseph wisely allowed Pharaoh to take the lead. In his advice to Pharaoh, the word “I” never left his mouth. He was unimportant, unnecessary and unflustered. He told Pharaoh what the dream meant (Gen 41:29-32), how to solve the crisis and withheld nothing from Pharaoh, including giving away his game plan to Pharaoh - to find an overseer for the job who will appoint commissioners to levy a sore 20% tax plan over the next seven years of abundance to save for the coming seven years of famine.

Joseph was a wise and understanding man. The more he told, the more he was trusted; the more he spoke, the more God was glorified; the more he humbled himself, the more others were blessed. He understood God's wisdom was at work in his life, too. God saw the unlimited potential in him, stuck with him for thirteen years and, in the end, slowly introduced him to the waiting world.

Conclusion: John Bainbridge said, “A man with 50 problems is twice as alive as a man with 25. If you haven't got any problems, you should get down on your knees and ask, Lord, don't you trust me anymore?” Do you know that The LORD is your refuge and your strength in times of trouble (Ps 9:9, 37:39)? That your times are in His hands (Ps 31:15)? And that you can trust in Him at all times (Ps 62:8)? Ecclesiastes 3:1 says, “To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven.” What is His purpose, plans and path for your life?

Joseph, Pt. 4: "Forgiveness Means Never Having to Say You're Sorry"

2007-09-22T22:25:00.001-07:00

FORGIVENESS MEANS HAVING TO SAY YOU’RE SORRY
(GENESIS 42:21-22, 44:33-45:8, 50:15-21)
The first time we experience clogging in our double-basin kitchen sink was a nightmare. The water would drain from the left basin and come up on the right basin. We tested the garbage disposal but it was working fine. Because our regular handyman was out of town, we waited until we could not stand the smell anymore. Then we called a friend and asked for the name and phone of his handyman.

When the husband and wife team arrived four days later, they first unscrewed the pipes and collected the leftover smelly water with a bowl into a plastic bag. Later they used a 40-feet snake to drain the clogged pipes. They said with satisfaction that the 40-foot snake was close to tunneling its way to the main street drain. I was impressed! After collecting and washing the snake, the husband turned on the tap water to test the drain. He collected a pool of water in the sink and then unplugged the strainer, expecting to see the water whirling down the drain.

Unfortunately, the water still rushed up the other basin. He then went to his van to get a 100-foot long snake to finish the job. The man showed us the oil solids that were clogging up our pipes and advised us to use hot water more to drain the pipes. We paid $50 for an hour of work, but the money was well spent on fresh air, a clean home and a peace of mind.

The unforgiving person has been compared to a cesspool of still, dirty and foul water. It's been said that forgiveness is a choice not to hold a sin against a person any longer. The longer you leave the blockage alone, the more resistant it gets. What is stuck, decomposed and coagulated in an unforgiving heart is an ugly sight. Every hard-earned dollar you spend on cleaning up, flushing out and washing down the accumulated garbage from unforgiving is worth its long-term investment.

Seven years after the good years had passed, Joseph's brother traveled down to Egypt for food. The famine had not only affected Egypt but also the surrounding regions. The brothers had forgotten about him, but Joseph did not forget what they did to him. However, he also remembered what God had done for him and recognized that the power of forgiveness was in his hands. The word “forgive” made its first Bible appearance in Genesis 50:17, a fitting end to the development of the book and a glorious start to the birth of the new nation.

What is the purpose of forgiveness? Why is forgiving better than avoidance, resentment or vengeance? How do we begin to forgive, how and when does it end?

Don’t Carry Baggage; Apply Bandages
21 They said to one another, “Surely we are being punished because of our brother. We saw how distressed he was when he pleaded with us for his life, but we would not listen; that's why this distress has come upon us.” 22 Reuben replied, “Didn't I tell you not to sin against the boy? But you wouldn't listen! Now we must give an accounting for his blood.” (Gen 42:21-22)

The Los Angeles Times (2/26/93) reported that a high school coach mistakenly listed only one of the Stucky twins, Jon and Jay Stucky, in the official scorebook to play a basketball game with a rival school.

In the course of the match, one of the twins was injured just before the first half ended. At halftime, the coach wanted to use the other twin to substitute for the injured brother, but that would result in a technical foul because his name was not previously submitted. So the coach instructed the substitute twin to use his injured brother's jersey and assumed his brother’s identity, thereby avoiding a technical foul for using an unlisted player.

The Stuckys looked so much alike that even the other team's coach and players were unaware of the switch. The substitute twin helped his team win a tight game, 68-65. After the game, the coach knew he had done wrong and his conscience bothered him. He talked to the principal of the school and voluntarily turned himself in to the state. The coach and the substitute twin gladly submitted themselves to the punishment handed to them and sat out the one-game suspension.

Joseph's brothers finally confessed to a family secret they had harbored for more than twenty years. They were perennial hostages to their hatred (Gen 37:4-5, 8), jealousy (Gen 37:11) and lie (Gen 37:11-12). Two decades after their senseless act of selling their brother, they used three verbs to confess and bury their previous nagging, mounting and indicting feelings. The brothers were haunted by their actions: “Surely we are ‘being punished’ because of our brother. We saw how distressed he was when he pleaded with us for his life, but we would not listen; that's why this distress has come upon us” (Gen 42:21).The first NIV verb in verse 21 “being punished” appears like an action imposed on them as offenders, but the Hebrew phrase “very guilty” movingly reflects the emotions lodged in their hearts and pointedly described what had been scaring, stifling, strangling them. The verb described the turmoil in their hearts, how ill at ease they were for the last twenty years.

Next, Joseph's brothers used the second verb “distress” twice in verse 21. They remembered the shock on Joseph's face, the physical pain, the emotional stress and mental anguish their brother suffered and his frantic, flapping but futile actions when they first stripped him of his robe, then threw him into a pit and finally sold him away to strangers.

Finally, the brothers moaned about how they “wouldn't listen” (v 21), seconded by Reuben who chided his brothers (v 22). The two decades of bondage to guilt was not only felt by Reuben (Gen 42:22), but by Judah, too (Gen 44:18). Reuben’s admission of “blood” in verse 22 is interesting. The brothers actually did not shed any blood. Reuben's strong words to his brothers prevented them from shedding any blood or laying their hand on Joseph (Gen 37:22). In fact, they did not even hit him, though they did eventually cast him into a pit. But whether the brothers touched Joseph or not, struck him or not, hurt him or not, Joseph's blood was still stamped on their hands, fresh in their minds and counted to their record.

Forgiveness brings healing. It sets someone free from the chains, burdens and years of bondage. Have you hated, despised and begrudged someone for weeks, months, and years? Set them free, find relief for yourself and make brothers of your enemies.

Don’t Exact Blood; Embrace Brotherhood
33 “Now then, please let your servant remain here as my lord's slave in place of the boy, and let the boy return with his brothers. 34 How can I go back to my father if the boy is not with me? No! Do not let me see the misery that would come upon my father.” 45:1 Then Joseph could no longer control himself before all his attendants, and he cried out, “Have everyone leave my presence!” So there was no one with Joseph when he made himself known to his brothers. 2 And he wept so loudly that the Egyptians heard him, and Pharaoh's household heard about it. 3 Joseph said to his brothers, “I am Joseph! Is my father still living?” But his brothers were not able to answer him, because they were terrified at his presence. 4 Then Joseph said to his brothers, “Come close to me.” When they had done so, he said, “I am your brother Joseph, the one you sold into Egypt! 5 And now, do not be distressed and do not be angry with yourselves for selling me here, because it was to save lives that God sent me ahead of you. 6 For two years now there has been famine in the land, and for the next five years there will not be plowing and reaping. 7 But God sent me ahead of you to preserve for you a remnant on earth and to save your lives by a great deliverance. 8 “So then, it was not you who sent me here, but God. He made me father to Pharaoh, lord of his entire household and ruler of all Egypt (Gen 44:33-45:8)

Once upon a time, two brothers who lived on adjoining farms had a serious conflict. They had farmed side by side, shared machinery, and traded labor and goods without a hitch for 40 years. A small misunderstanding had widened into a major difference and exploded into an exchange of bitter words.

One morning a carpenter knocked on the older brother's door. “I'm looking for a few days of work,” he said. “Perhaps you would have a few small jobs here and there.” “Yes,” said the older brother. “Look across the creek at that farm. That's my neighbor, in fact, he's my brother. Last week my brother took his bulldozer to the river levee and created this creek between us from what was a meadow. So I want you to build an 8-foot fence so I won't need to see his place anymore.” The carpenter said, “I think I understand the situation.”

The older brother helped the carpenter get the materials ready before he disappeared. The carpenter worked hard all day measuring, sawing, nailing. About sunset when the farmer returned, his eyes opened wide, his jaws dropped. A bridge -with handrails and all - stretched from one side of the creek to another. His younger brother was crossing the bridge, his hands outstretched, and said, “You are quite a brother to build this bridge after all I've said and done.” The two brothers stood at each end of the bridge, met in the middle, took each other's hand. They turned to see the carpenter leave. “No, wait, stay a few days. I've a lot of projects for you to do,” said the older bother. The carpenter replied, “I'd love to stay, but I have many bridges to build.” (Adapted)

Barbarians, cavemen and headhunters do not forgive. It takes a wise, kind and godly man to forgive. Joseph saw that his brothers really meant what they said. They tore their clothes (Gen 44:13) upon the realization of losing Benjamin - just like their father Jacob did when Joseph was supposedly dead. Judah (44:38), who proposed selling Joseph to slave-traders for profit (Gen 37:26) in a previous era, shared that they had seen how their father had suffered for many years (44:27-33) and offered himself as a slave to Joseph in place of Benjamin, as compensation for the way he had mistreated Joseph, Benjamin’s brother. Judah's willing sacrifice showed his heartfelt sincerity, radical transformation and true conversion. Joseph was touched by the heart-to-heart, eye-to-eye, word-to-word confrontation with his offenders.

Joseph not only forgave his brothers in words, he treated them kindly. He loved them, hugged them and kissed them. The brokenhearted brother explained to them, wept on them and conversed with them (Gen 45:15). He knew they were stricken in their hearts, scared out of their mind and shaking their heads in disbelief. The offended brother counseled them not to be distressed and angry with themselves (Gen 45:5), and not to blame, criticize, or fight one another (Gen 45:24). Joseph reiterated that God was at work to send him ahead to Egypt: (1) to preserve life on earth (Gen 45:5), (2) to save Israel from extinction (Gen 45:7) and (3) to advise Pharaoh in Egypt (Gen 45:8, 9).

Who could blame Joseph if he had reacted negatively, answered rudely and behaved cruelly? If physical, emotional and mental abuse were not options, he could at least have scolded, criticized or warned them to shape up or ship out and not to count their chickens or blessings so fast. Most of us might cry for the wayward brothers, but not with them; speak to them, not with them; shake hands, but not embrace them. Most of us would at least make them write lines, do community service or take hatred, jealousy and lying management classes! However, a forgiving person offers a bandage to people in bondage - the kind of bandage that heals wounds, scabs and incisions.

Are you still throwing eggs, bricks or daggers at others? Have you applied bandages on yourself or on those who hurt you? Have the suffering and salvation of Jesus affected your relationship with the unloving, the unkind and the ungracious?

Don’t Keep Blacklists; Close Books
15 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?” 16 So they sent word to Joseph, saying, “Your father left these instructions before he died: 17'This is what you are to say to Joseph: I ask you to forgive your brothers the sins and the wrongs they committed in treating you so badly.' Now please forgive the sins of the servants of the God of your father.” When their message came to him, Joseph wept. 18 His brothers then came and threw themselves down before him. “We are your slaves,” they said. 19 But Joseph said to them, “Don't be afraid. Am I in the place of God? 20 You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives. 21 So then, don't be afraid. I will provide for you and your children.” And he reassured them and spoke kindly to them. (Gen 50:15-21)

A long time ago, a newly married girl named Li-li couldn't get along with her mother-in-law who lived with the newly weds. Their personalities and habits clashed. They never stopped arguing and fighting. And traditionally, Li-li had to bow to her mother-in-law and obey her every wish. Finally, Li-li could not stand her mother-in-law's bad temper and dictatorship any longer.

Li-li went to see a family friend, Mr. Huang, who sold herbs, told him the situation and asked for some poison to slip into her mother-in-law's meals. She even agreed to do whatever Mr. Huang told her. Mr. Huang then gave her a package of herbs and told Li-li, “To eliminate suspicion, I have given you a number of herbs to slowly build up poison in her body. Every other day prepare some pork or chicken and put a little of these herbs in her serving. Also, act very friendly towards her so that nobody suspects you when she dies. Don't argue with her, obey her every wish, and treat her like a queen.”

Li-li began serving the specially prepared food to her mother-in-law. She controlled her temper, obeyed her mother-in-law, and treated her like her own mother. For the next six months, Li-li was almost never upset or had an argument with her kindler and friendlier mother-in-law. They were like mother and daughter.

In horror, Li-li came to Mr. Huang and pleaded tearfully, “Mr. Huang, please help me to keep the poison from killing my own mother-in-law! She's changed into such a nice woman, and I love her like my own mother. I do not want her to die.” Mr. Huang comforted her, “Li-li, I never gave you any poison. I gave you vitamins to improve her health. The only poison you had was in your mind and your attitude.” (Adapted)

Forgiveness is not cheap grace, empty talk or trouble-free. Many years had passed since the brothers arrived in Egypt. Their father Jacob passed away in Egypt after seventeen years in the new country (Gen 47:28). After the funeral, the brothers again begged for Joseph's forgiveness. They were afraid that reality, regret and repercussions might set in, and Joseph would show resentment, demand reparation and pursue revenge. The brothers did not understand that the path to forgiveness was completed seventeen years ago (Gen 41:46, 53) when they returned with Benjamin. The death of their father did nothing to cancel or annul Joseph’s forgiveness.

The gracious Joseph never regretted forgiving his brothers. When Joseph forgave his brothers seventeen years ago, he forgave them consciously, compassionately and continuously. No one in the Bible wept as often as Joseph (Gen 42:24, 43:30, 30, 45:14, 14, 15, 46:29, 50:1, 3). He meant his word, decision and stance - not for his father's sake, but for their sake, and not out of his sympathy for them, but out God's kindness to him.

Joseph made a decision to commute his brother’s sentence, shorten their sorrow, and expunge their record there and then. Amazingly, Joseph never mentioned to Jacob his betrayal, slavery or imprisonment. His message to his brothers for their father was terse: “Tell my father about all the honor accorded me in Egypt and about everything you have seen” (Gen 45:13). The past that haunted the brothers for the twenty two years of Joseph’s disappearance was more than adequate punishment by itself. Joseph did not know that they were still carrying the guilt with them for the seventeen years their father was in Egypt, and he again released them from carrying their guilt to their deathbed. Altogether, they had carried the burden for thirty-nine years – twenty-two years before meeting Benjamin (Gen 37:2, 41:46, 45:6) and seventeen years of Jacob’s sojourn in Egypt (Gen 47:28).

Forgiveness is not based on merit, but out of grace and love. The barriers were removed and the bridge was built seventeen years ago when Joseph reunited with his brothers. There was no reason to rehash, revisit or reverse the past anymore.

Conclusion: Lucy explained to his manager Charlie Brown at the end of a game why she lost sight of the baseball: “Sorry I missed that easy fly ball, manager. I thought I had it, but suddenly I remembered all the others I've missed, and the past got in my eyes.” Is the sight, talk and recollection of a time, a person or an accident in the past stuck in your eyes? Has it stirred up anger, pain or resentment? Have you become cynical, calculative or cold in your heart? Have you asked the Lord to help you to forgive the past, to dwell on the present and to pray for a new day?

Moses, Pt. 1: "Love is Stronger Than Death" (Ex 1)

2007-09-22T22:23:00.000-07:00

MOSES: THE SERVANT OF GOD
Moses led a colorful, controversial and commended life. He was The Prince of Egypt, the Giver of the Law (John 1:17) and God’s Faithful Servant (Heb 3:2, 5). A man more humble than anyone else (Num 12:3), he spoke to God face to face, as a man speaking with his friend (Ex 33:11), communicated God’s word to the people and even showed up in the New Testament to talk with Jesus (Lk 9:31). He was also a psalmist (Ex 15:1-18, Deut 32, Ps. 90, Rev 15:3), an historian (Num 33:2) and a prophet like no other (Deut 34:10).

Exodus to Deuteronomy relates the story of Moses’ personal redemption, Israel’s national deliverance and God’s implementation of His promise to Abraham. At the end of the wilderness sojourning, Israel emerged as a nation, the apple of God’s eye and a thorn to their enemies, and God displayed His sovereignty over Egypt, Israel and all the nations of the earth in a powerful way.

In this 15-part series, we will learn of the names of individuals, tribes and places; read of personal conflict, group dynamics and national wars; and understand a bit more about Moses’ effort, the people’s experience and God’s expectations of His people.

1. LOVE IS STRONGER THAN DEATH (EXODUS 1:1-2:10)
Columbine was supposedly nothing but the loss and the end of innocence. On April 20, 1999, two students armed themselves with shotguns, semiautomatics and bombs, entered Colorado’s Columbine High School and killed twelve students and a teacher. However, the courage, bravery, and heroism of the students and teachers in the school gave optimism to the country that all was not lost.

The story of younger brother Craig Scott and his sister Rachel Scott have touched millions of people. Craig was in the library with his African-American friend Isaiah Shoels when they heard shots in the hallway. Craig instinctively played dead and prayed, but when the killers saw Isaiah, they said some racist remarks to him and shot him to death.

After the killers had left the room, Craig displayed a maturity beyond his years. He shouted for those in the library to run for their lives. Once outside, he comforted the crying students and prayed with them for those who were inside. However, deep in his heart, Craig had a hollow feeling. Scott did not only lose his good friend to killers; unknown to him, he also lost his sister, Rachel Joy Scott.

According to a Denver newspaper, Rachel was truly a joy to be around. A classmate said, “When she came into my class, she was going through some difficult family times. But you wouldn’t know that at all, because she shined. She shined for God at all times. She made a choice to love life.” A friend shared, “Life was just like one big amusement park to Rachel.” A potential roommate, who was planning to rent an apartment with Rachel in August, said, “She saved me in so many ways. She taught me the value of life. She taught me to love every second you have.”
( “17-year-old girl ‘shined for God at all times” Denver Rocky Mountain News, April 25, 1999) http://denver.rockymountainnews.com/shooting/0425rach2.shtml

During the worst of times, people rise to the occasion. The first two chapters of Exodus tell of a cruel king, an oppressed people and a few heroes, who were all women. The account began with slavery and moved quickly to forced abortion and infant genocide. Love, kindness and hope prevailed when violence, bloodshed and fear threatened.

When Israel was in danger of extinction, a few stubborn ladies outsmarted the heartless, headstrong and heavy-handed Pharaoh, who considered the Israelites a political liability, a national danger and an inferior race. God blessed the ladies and treated them well and favorably for displaying faith instead of fear.

How should believers act in times of adversity, hostility and tragedy, especially when others’ lives are at stake, depend on us and require critical assistance?

Share Your Compassion
8 Then a new king, who did not know about Joseph, came to power in Egypt. 9 “Look,” he said to his people, “the Israelites have become much too numerous for us. 10 Come, we must deal shrewdly with them or they will become even more numerous and, if war breaks out, will join our enemies, fight against us and leave the country.” (Ex 1:8-10)

Some time ago the movie Elephant Man made a big impression on me. The Elephant Man was a deformed man who was made into a circus act because he looked part-man, part-elephant. The circus owner exacted money from the curious crowd that paid to see the disfigured man.

A kind surgeon saw the man’s misery, rescued him from his tragic plight at the circus, brought him into normal society and persuaded the general public to accept him as a man, and not a freak. The welcome was short-lived and, inevitably, the public regarded him as a creature or monster - disgusting, deranged and dangerous.

The surgeon, however, was more determined than ever to help the Elephant Man as he got to know the sorry figure more and more. He knew that the man was not a creature but a normal person with an ordinary name and an engaging personality. The victim’s name was Joseph Merrick; he was funny, sensitive and vain, and his dream was to be like any other human being. The surgeon relentlessly taught people not to be afraid of Merrick, took him to social functions and introduced him to people of high society, even though he won few admirers, friends or converts.

Fear and ignorance enslave people, but kindness and compassion free them. Compassion is a kindred feeling, a restless heart and a ready response when people are suffering, troubled or in need. Rabbi Samuel H. Holdenson says kindness is “the inability to remain at ease in the presence of another person who is ill at ease, the inability to remain comfortable in the presence of another who is uncomfortable, the inability to have peace of mind when one’s neighbor is troubled.” (Bits and Pieces 1/4/96)

The Israelites’ situation was dire. All of them were enslaved - none of them was spared. They had no national identity and more than 400 years of history could disappear in one generation. However, Pharaoh’s plan backfired. His contempt for the Israelites’ baby boom (Ex 1:7) accelerated the founding of a nation, quickened the exodus to the Promised Land and invited the wrath of God upon Pharaoh himself, his subjects and the land. The Israelites’ numbers, loyalty and independence were not issues; Pharaoh’s plan to snag, afflict and exploit them was the problem (1:11, 1:12). The ruthless way Pharaoh worked and treated the Israelites were abominable. Slavery was strictly forbidden among the Israelites in the future (Lev 25:43, 46, 53).

The compassion of old worked better than the contempt of late. The previous king had built a solid relationship with Joseph and the Israelites based on trust, friendship, and respect. The two races had prospered over hundreds of years, beyond all expectations, to everyone’s delight.

Unfortunately, the legacy of the previous Pharaohs, the goodwill of the Egyptians and the harmony between the Israelites and the Egyptians were shattered because of the new Pharaoh’s dishonesty, fear and ambition. The new Pharaoh thought he could change history, control things and chain people, but the new king was just digging his own grave. The Israelites spread (1:12) - the word means break out. They made a breakthrough not only in numbers, but also in identity and in intensity. Pharaoh’s fear was not appeased, no matter his actions; in fact, he felt more aggrieved and threatened (1:12). The tyrant felt more terror than ever.

Strengthen Your Conviction
15 The king of Egypt said to the Hebrew midwives, whose names were Shiphrah and Puah, 16 “When you help the Hebrew women in childbirth and observe them on the delivery stool, if it is a boy, kill him; but if it is a girl, let her live.” 17 The midwives, however, feared God and did not do what the king of Egypt had told them to do; they let the boys live. 18 Then the king of Egypt summoned the midwives and asked them, "Why have you done this? Why have you let the boys live?" 19 The midwives answered Pharaoh, "Hebrew women are not like Egyptian women; they are vigorous and give birth before the midwives arrive." 20 So God was kind to the midwives and the people increased and became even more numerous. 21 And because the midwives feared God, he gave them families of their own. (Ex 1:15-21)

I had the privilege of hearing the testimony of Dutchman John Scultz, a retired Christian and Missionary Alliance missionary, when he made a missionary stop at my church. When the Nazis invaded Holland in 1940 to begin a 5-year occupation of the country, the family of the ten-year old Scultz made a daring decision to help the Jews, who were issued ID cards with the word “Jew” stamped on the cards and forced to wear a yellow Star of David on their coats.

One night the whole population of the Jewish ghetto of Amsterdam was rounded up and transported to Jewish concentration camps. John’s father, who was in charge of the food coupons that were given out, made periodic visits to deliver food rationing booklets to the Ten Boom family that was renowned for hiding and saving Jews.

On February 29, 1944, John’s father was caught red-handed in front of the Ten Boom house. While the bulk of his delivery was safely hidden in his undershirt, a few food stamps were in his pocket. He immediately put the stamps in his mouth as he pretended to cough. When the stamps were softened enough, he swallowed them. His suspicious but smart actions resulted in a mere six-week cell confinement to the thankful but undeterred Dutch (Stone Age Diary 1-4, John and Janine Schultz, Christian Publications).

Pharaoh enlisted the service of the midwives in keeping Israel’s population under control but they refused to cooperate. Why not? Where was their loyalty? What gave them the strength of conviction to defy the king? They were motivated by a sense of responsibility to God, a sense of regard for others and a sense of relief when they sleep.

Of course they were afraid of Pharaoh, but they were more afraid of the One who was superior to Pharaoh - God. A healthy dose of godly fear causes people to live their lives in a praiseworthy, sensible and dignified manner. As Pat Riley, the ex-Lakers coach, warned his players who talked to the media about the coach or teammates: “Don’t embarrass me, and I won’t embarrass you” (Magic Johnson, “My Life” 170).

The defining word that swung the midwives’ opinion was how they perceived the victims: “...they let the ‘boys’ live” (Ex 1:17). The midwives couldn’t bring themselves to obey the king because they felt that the victims were just boys, children and babies. Note the midwives cleverly changed the subject before Pharaoh to Hebrew women instead of Hebrew children (Ex 1:19).

Finally, the midwives felt strongly that they had to what was decent, right and moral so that they could sleep well and stand tall at the end of the day. The Chinese have a saying, “Do nothing that condemns your heart and you don’t have to fear midnight’s door knocking.”

Show Your Charity
2:1 Now a man of the house of Levi married a Levite woman, 2 and she became pregnant and gave birth to a son. When she saw that he was a fine child, she hid him for three months. (Ex 2:1-2)

A tyrannical husband demanded that his wife conform to rigid standards of his choosing. She was to do certain things for him as a wife, mother and homemaker. In time she came to hate her husband as much as she hated his lists of rules and regulations. Then, one day he died- mercifully as far as she was concerned.

Some time later, she fell in love with another man and married him. She and her new husband lived on a perpetual honeymoon. Joyfully, she devoted herself to his happiness and welfare. One day she ran across one if the sheets of do’s and don’ts her first husband had written for her. To her amazement she found that she was doing for her second husband all the things her first husband had demanded of her, even though her new husband had never once suggested them.

Perfect love drives out fear (1 John 4:18); continuous fear brings no happiness, hope or harmony to a home or a society.

Pharaoh commanded the death of all infant Hebrew males, but now two more ladies had the courage to defy his orders - Moses’ mother (Ex 2:1-2) and Pharaoh’s own daughter (Ex 2:5).

What inspired Moses’ mother and Pharaoh’s daughter courage to overcome fear? The words of Jochebed when she gave up her son in movie “The Prince of Egypt” touched me: “My son, I have nothing left to give, but this chance that you may live...”

The Hebrew text says that Moses’ mother saw that her baby was good (v 2) – the very word for God’s creation in Genesis 1. The baby was beautiful, innocent and God-sent. Moses’ mother disregarded the warning of Pharaoh, hid her young at the risk of her life and waited at the river until the baby was safe. She could not resist the baby’s charm, could not replace the baby’s life and she did not regret the baby’s birth.

Pharaoh’s daughter was another story. She knowingly adopted the Hebrew baby when Moses cried and she felt sorry for him (Ex 2:6). The baby’s cries broke her heart and defense. A bond was built at his first cry. The Hebrew text noted that she had compassion on him, or the Hebrew for “she spared him.” The responsible side of her responded to the reprehension she saw around her. Pharaoh’s daughter felt strongly that the baby belonged to her (Ex 2:10). After all, she found, fed and fostered the child.

The loser in the end was Pharaoh. The very thing that Pharaoh feared and the very thing that he tried to prevent – that the Israelites would multiply (Ex 1:10) - was the very thing that he set into motion (Ex 1:12, 20).

Conclusion: The winners in life are those who demonstrate conviction, compassion and charity. Many are the plans in a man’s heart, but it is the Lord’s purpose that prevails (Prov 19:21). Are you bent on destroying or delivering? Do you hate, envy and discriminate, or are you willing to forgive, bless and save? Are you afraid of involvement – speaking out, standing firm, and saving lives – when you can make a difference, change the course and point the way? It is a better and healthier way to live than continuing in fear, denial, and darkness.

Moses, Pt. 2: "What's the Rush?" (Ex 2)

2007-09-22T22:22:00.000-07:00

WHAT’S THE RUSH? (EXODUS 2:11-25)
People value quickness, service and convenience, and smart businesses know how to capitalize on and profit from that need.

Customers can get their photographs done in an hour, shoppers can use the express lane for 10 items or less and subscribers can receive up-to-the-minute stock quotes, sports score and breaking news with new technology. Some enterprising eateries or restaurants even guarantee their customers a free lunch if they do not get their order by a specific time. For example, Black Angus had offered free lunch to those who were not served in 10 minutes and Domino’s Pizza had dangled free food for pizza delivered past 30 minutes.

Waiting is the pits for me. For me, only the last two minutes of a game - NBA, NCAA or NFL – are worth watching.

Moses grew to be a promising prince, but he was not yet ready to command a following - Egyptians, Jews or both. He was prejudiced, impulsive and violent, making a mistake in his early life and paying dearly for it the next 40 years of his life in exile, leaving his people, the Egyptian palace and a promising future. However, the long wait was anything but a big waste. Moses learned to live life outside his comfort zone, to relate to others and to respond to God’s orders.

It’s been said that we do not always get what we want when we pray. God answers us in three ways - yes, no and wait. Why wait? What are its reasons, benefits and rewards?

Applaud the Necessary Example
11 One day, after Moses had grown up, he went out to where his own people were and watched them at their hard labor. He saw an Egyptian beating a Hebrew, one of his own people. 12 Glancing this way and that and seeing no one, he killed the Egyptian and hid him in the sand. 13 The next day he went out and saw two Hebrews fighting. He asked the one in the wrong, “Why are you hitting your fellow Hebrew?” 14 The man said, “Who made you ruler and judge over us? Are you thinking of killing me as you killed the Egyptian?” Then Moses was afraid and thought, “What I did must have become known.” (Ex 2:11-14)

During the Los Angeles riots, an NBC radio reporter (Steve Futterman) who was covering the Los Angeles riot asked looters emerging from a store what goods they were taking from stores. He asked a looter, “What did you take?” The man, caught like a deer in headlights in his futile attempt to dodge the reporter, the question, and the camera, replied, “Nothing!”

The same question to a second man resulted in angry cussing. Not giving up, the reporter pursued a third man. “What did you take?” he asked the third man.” The looter replied, “I got some gospel music. I love Jesus.” (Los Angeles Times, 10/4/92)

Moses the Hebrew learned that negative aspiration, ambition and aggression were unacceptable - murder was not an option. Moses’ behavior was exposed, denounced and penalized.

There is no wrong way to do the right thing, the end does not justify the means and quick fixes are no long-term solutions. Ironically, Moses thought that the way to alleviate the Israelites’ burdens (Ex 2:11) was by force. His attempt to return blow for blow blew up in his face. The word for “beating” that an Egyptian previously dished out to a Hebrew (Ex 2:11) was the same word for what Moses meted out to another Egyptian that killed the Egyptian (Ex 2:12).

When Moses next met two Hebrew men who were in an intense struggle, the one in the wrong (v 13), not the one in the right, had the audacity to question and challenging Moses’ authority! The power of Moses the prince over others was toothless. His question was answered with two questions: “Who made you ruler and judge over us? Are you thinking of killing me as you killed the Egyptian?” (Ex 2:14)!

Leading by power is unacceptable, leading by persuasion is commendable, but leading by permission is superior. The Hebrew slave gave Moses an earful on the freedom of slaves. Slave-owners could rebuke, arrest and even kill their slaves, but they could never tell their slaves how to think, what to believe and what is right. Slave-owners could only control their slaves’ body, but not their mind. They could determine slaves’ freedom to act, but not their freedom to think. Power forces people to obey, listen and fear you, but persuasion changes the way people think, feel or say, yet only with permission can the final changes be applied.

Moses was used to doing things without permission. He killed the Egyptian because he thought he could as an Egyptian prince or because he thought he should as a loyal Hebrew, but as a fellow Hebrew and an equal, he fell short because he did not seek another’s permission. A slave must endure things done to him, but an equal can only tolerate things done with him or by him. Moses’ effort to arbitrate, control and right the situation would be praiseworthy if he had others’ permission.

Appreciate the Necessary Education
15 When Pharaoh heard of this, he tried to kill Moses, but Moses fled from Pharaoh and went to live in Midian, where he sat down by a well. 16 Now a priest of Midian had seven daughters, and they came to draw water and fill the troughs to water their father’s flock. 17 Some shepherds came along and drove them away, but Moses got up and came to their rescue and watered their flock. (Ex 2:15-17)

A Jewish story tells of the education of Moses as a shepherd: One day, while Moses was grazing his flock, he noticed a little goat had strayed away, so he ran after it for fear that it would get lost and die of hunger and thirst in the wilderness.

Suddenly, from a distance, Moses saw the little goat stop and drink eagerly from a spring. Then he understood that the little animal was thirsty and for that reason had left the flock. When Moses came nigh it he said, “My dear little goatkin! Had I known that you were only thirsty I would not have run after you.”

When the little goat had quenched its thirst, Moses placed it upon his shoulders and carried it all the way back to the flock. “The little goat is weak and young,” he thought compassionately, “therefore I must carry it.”

When God saw what Moses had done He was greatly pleased and said to him, “Deep is your compassion, O Moses! Because of your kindness to this little animal you will be the leader of My people Israel, and are destined to serve as their devoted shepherd.” (Treasury of Jewish Folklore 457-58, ed. By Nathan Ausubel (New York: Crown Publishers, Inc., 1948)

In the face of two questions and challenges by a fellow Hebrew, Moses was overwhelmed with fear, escaped the country and changed his identity. But in the wilderness of Midian his real training and education began, as a shepherd, servant and stranger.

Moses’ best education was not in the palace of Egypt, but in the fields of Midian. He received his degree in the school of shepherding, in gathering, guarding and guiding flocks of defenseless, dirty and dumb sheep. In time, he learned the nature of sheep, their habits and the peculiarities, and how to embrace, love and nurture these dependent animals. At 40, Moses was not too old or too late to change.

The former prince also learned to serve instead of being served, a far cry from his privileged background and position. He also learned the value of working hard, braving the heat, doing the chores and getting things done. On top of that, Moses mastered the art of defending helpless people (Ex 2:17), surviving waterless spots and tending powerless animals. No request, reward or reminder from others was necessary for him. Waking up early, showing up punctually and tying up loose ends were understood. Dr. Howard Whaley remarked on Moses: “Somebody has said that he had a bigger head earlier than he does now, but then he had a bigger heart after God spoke to him than he had previously.”

Finally, with fatherhood Moses asserted, “I have become an alien in a foreign land”
(Ex 2:22). The education of Moses as a foreigner, a wanderer and a stranger bode well for him in the future. His alien mentality would help him to survive the forty years’ wilderness wanderings. Later Moses had no problems coping with the desert, because he had lived in tents, sat by wells and learned to cope with being alone, afraid and away.

Acquire the Necessary Experience
21 Moses agreed to stay with the man, who gave his daughter Zipporah to Moses in marriage. 22 Zipporah gave birth to a son, and Moses named him Gershom, saying, “I have become an alien in a foreign land.” 23 During that long period, the king of Egypt died. The Israelites groaned in their slavery and cried out, and their cry for help because of their slavery went up to God. 24 God heard their groaning and he remembered his covenant with Abraham, with Isaac and with Jacob. 25 So God looked on the Israelites and was concerned about them. (Ex 2:21-25)

Experience takes time. As the wise-guy, smart-alecky Calvin of Calvin and Hobbes comic strip told Hobbes while they were in the living room, in front of the television set: “I don’t like real experience. It’s too hard to figure out! You never know what’s going on! You don’t have any control over events! I prefer to have life filtered through television. That way you know events have been packaged for your convenience! I like a narrative imposed on life, so everything logically proceeds to a tidy conclusion. And if you don’t like what’s happening, “Click,” you change the channel and there’s something different! That’s how real life should be.” (LA Times 10/4/92).

I looked up a typical week in the job marketplace and discovered the high regard our society has for experience:
Hotel: Front Office Manager. Minimum 1 year experience with proven results.
Computer- Re-engineering: Masters & 3+ years consulting experience with original design.
Management- Customer Service Manager. Min 5 years successful customer service management experience
Administrator - 8 years minimum experience in residential facility for the elderly.

Verse 23 puts the waiting period of Moses in the proper perspective. It says, “During that long period.” In Hebrew, it means great or many days.

Why did God spend decades to train Moses, even when the Israelites were suffering, groaning and crying out to God for as long as 430 years before God took them out of Egypt (Ex 12:40)? Wasn’t it urgent for God to act and return Moses to Egypt as soon as possible? Urgent, no. Rather, it was more important for Moses to acquire the necessary experience.

Moses needed to learn how to live practically, patiently and purposefully again. To his credit, Moses was a success in the practical realm of family life. As a whole, he was a proven husband, father, son-in-law and brother-in-law. He had no major complain (2:21) about marrying into the family and he survived six sisters-in-law and a father-in-law who was a priest (Ex 2:16), an achiever, a live-in (2:21) and a talker (18:19). A friend jokingly said that a man cannot marry a girl who has all these three conditions: richer, taller and smarter! Two was OK, he said.

Moses also learned the patience of dwelling as an alien in a foreign land. He remained 40 years in the wilderness of Midian (Acts 7:30) in preparation for the 40 years he will spend in Sinai. God has a reason and an occasion for everything. Forty years was time enough for Moses to get over the past, get rid of his baggage and get on with his life.

Conclusion: Are you still stalling in your growth? Where are you stuck? Are there things in your life hindering your personal growth, your relationship to God and others? Do you have a crummy attitude when you have to wait and when things are delayed? Seek to trust God, still yourself, and appreciate people, life, and things. Do not allow annoying people, disturbing circumstances, and urgent tasks control you. Like Moses, maybe some of us need to lie flat on our face for a while before we can stand tall.

Moses, Pt. 3: "Let Go and Let's Go" (Ex 3)

2007-09-22T22:21:00.002-07:00

LET GO AND LET’S GO (EXODUS 3:1-4:17)
My wife always teased me about my resistance to change. When we first met, I declared to her that I already had a Master of Theology degree and that I did not need more study to do the work of ministry. Within a year, I left Los Angeles for studies at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School in Chicago. When she asked me to obtain an e-mail account when the Internet was the rage in 1998, again I simply brushed aside the suggestion, remarking, “Is that the way to communicate?” Now I wonder how people can live without it! Another time she referred a Bible software program (PC Study Bible) to me, I looked at her funny, thinking out loud, “Why do I need computer software to study God’s word?” Now I use it for sermon preparation without fail and require my students to learn it.

The list goes on and on, from refusing to replace a problem car to replace worn-out clothes. I go from ridiculing or lampooning the suggestion to stonewalling and resenting the person. Usually the emotional and mental wall of resistance crumbles by itself within a few minutes, a few days or, at worst, a few weeks after groaning and moaning.

Of all the people receiving God’s commission in the Bible, Moses’ resistance was unmatched. He was an expert in saying no; he began with a submissive “Here I am,” but the moment he heard the word “go” he dug in his heels and resisted like a mule. He said the Hebrew “No” four times (4:1, 1, 1, 10). In the beginning he protested, “No, not me!” and at the end he whined, “Anyone but me!” (4:13) He argued cleverly, passionately and fearlessly, portraying himself as a victim, a failure and a misfit, but through it all God showed His mercy to Moses, His faithfulness to Israel and sovereignty over all things.

God desires His people to let go of past circumstances, unpleasant history and lame excuses. For forty years Moses had severed his ties to royalty, his sense of justice and his aspiration for reformation, but God directly said “Go” to Moses three times in their exchange (3:10, 3:16, 4:12). Altogether, the word “go” occurs ten times in chapters 3 and 4 – four times in chapter 3 (3:10, 16, 18, 19) and six times in chapter four (4:12, 18, 18, 18, 21, 29).

How does God unchain us from the past? What is His use for us in the present? Why is trust in Him never a letdown?

God’s Deliverance is Present
10 So now, go. I am sending you to Pharaoh to bring my people the Israelites out of Egypt.” 11 But Moses said to God, “Who am I, that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the Israelites out of Egypt?” 12 And God said, “I will be with you. And this will be the sign to you that it is I who have sent you: When you have brought the people out of Egypt, you will worship God on this mountain.” 13 Moses said to God, "Suppose I go to the Israelites and say to them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you,’ and they ask me, ‘What is his name?’ Then what shall I tell them?" 14 God said to Moses, "I AM WHO I AM. This is what you are to say to the Israelites: ‘I AM has sent me to you.’" 15 God also said to Moses, "Say to the Israelites, ‘The LORD, the God of your fathers--the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob--has sent me to you.’ This is my name forever, the name by which I am to be remembered from generation to generation. (Ex 3:10-15)

Several years ago Charles Killian, professor at Ashbury Theological Seminary, admitted that he had failed to understand God’s unconditional love, Christ’s atoning death and the meaning of grace. Many nights when he was young, he cried himself to bed, apologizing for failing to measure up to God’s standards, including failing to read the Bible, praying enough or being the right kind of person. He was raised in a godly but strict home, attending church twice on Sunday and once during the week and often stepping forward when the altar call was given.

One day he heard an evangelist preached a powerful message that hearers like him were the ones who nailed Christ to the cross. That image stuck in his mind and that evening he cried himself to sleep, apologizing to God for killing his Son. For the next twenty to thirty years, he aimed for perfection, mastered spiritual disciplines and served God faithfully as a seminary professor.

One time, during a difficult period in his life, his wife tried to help him see the meaning of grace. He came home and found yellow ribbons wrapped around the family coat rack that was placed in the middle of the hallway, with a note attached to the tree that said: “So what if it’s not a real oak tree. Any old tree will do. I love you.” For the first time he saw that God loved him unconditionally. (Leadership, Fall 1993 “Spiritual Disciplines for the Undisciplined”)

Moses was a murderer, a traitor and a fugitive. His talents, abilities and passion were effectively silenced by what took place forty years ago. However, God’s deliverance was before him presently, but first Moses had to acknowledge God, his past and his destiny.

The real problem of Moses now was not Pharaoh; it was himself. The king of Egypt had died (2:23), but Moses was not free – free from the rejection of a single fellow Hebrew, free from the threat of Pharaoh on his life (Ex 2:15) or free from the label, the baggage or the mistakes of the past. Times took flight, but Moses stood still. “Who am I?” was a good question Moses asked (3:11) but never answered. The real Moses was a prince, not a shepherd; a Hebrew, not a Midian; a champion, and not a coward.

No one is perfect. No one should bear with forty years of shame, guilt and denial. The church father St. Francis de Sales said: “Be patient with everyone, but above all with yourself.” No matter how awkward, unworthy or incapable he felt, God was not mistaken in His choice of Moses. Moses did not feel right, powerful or convinced, but he was always the one in God’s mind, and God would use Moses with or without his personal approval, others’ popular support or team leadership skills. God saw and tapped the potential in Moses because He knew Moses better than Moses knew himself. He calls, corrects and changes those who have failed and those who are fallen.

God’s Design is Prudent
13 But Moses said, “O Lord, please send someone else to do it.” 14 Then the LORD’s anger burned against Moses and he said, “What about your brother, Aaron the Levite? I know he can speak well. He is already on his way to meet you, and his heart will be glad when he sees you. 15 You shall speak to him and put words in his mouth; I will help both of you speak and will teach you what to do. 16 He will speak to the people for you, and it will be as if he were your mouth and as if you were God to him. 17 But take this staff in your hand so you can perform miraculous signs with it.” (Ex 4:13-17)

Lucy went up to the pitcher’s mound after the game was over and apologized to the dejected Charlie Brown who had pitched a brilliant game in another loss, explaining why she had missed an easy fly ball that cost the team the game in a narrow loss to their opponents: “Sorry I missed that easy fly ball, manager. I thought I had it. But suddenly I remembered all the others I’ve missed. The past got in my eyes.”

It’s been said, “A Christian is not perfect; he is just forgiven.”

For the first time God revealed His name - “I AM WHO I AM.” Some say that “I AM WHO I AM” is in the present tense, others argued that it is in the future tense, and still others say it is both, but for sure it is not in past tense. Better, the name of God attests to His presence, His promise and provision.

God vowed His presence with Moses in his task. God said to Moses, “I will be with you. And this will be the sign to you that it is I who have sent you: When you have brought the people out of Egypt, you will worship God on this mountain.” (Ex 3:12) God assured Moses of His presence not only before Pharaoh and out of Egypt but up the mountain, until his task was done.

God’s word never fails. His promises are the same from age to age. The promise He had declared in the past to the fathers (Ex 3:6) was relevant to Moses in the present and to all future generation. God said to Moses, “Say to the Israelites, ‘The LORD, the God of your fathers--the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob (past) - has sent me to you (present).’ This is my name forever, the name by which I am to be remembered from generation to generation (future).” (Ex 3:15)

God had the power to fulfill His promise to the Israelites. He was forever, faithful and fearsome (Ex 3:20). He was a God of wonders (Ex 3:20), signs (Ex 4:8) and miracles (Ex 4:21), and He had the power to give Israel the Promised Land that was attractive to the eyes, vast in size and good for the stomach. The land was described as good and spacious (Ex 3:8), flowing with milk and honey (Ex 3:8, 17).

God’s Determination is Perfect
10 Moses said to the LORD, “O Lord, I have never been eloquent, neither in the past nor since you have spoken to your servant. I am slow of speech and tongue.” 11 The LORD said to him, “Who gave man his mouth? Who makes him deaf or mute? Who gives him sight or makes him blind? Is it not I, the LORD? 12 Now go; I will help you speak and will teach you what to say.” 13 But Moses said, “O Lord, please send someone else to do it.” (Ex 4:10-13)

Moses’ crisis was like a Charlie Brown situation in the middle of the night. One night he couldn’t get to sleep and Snoopy was sound asleep on his tummy. After tossing and turning for a long time, He sighed to himself, “Sometimes I lie awake at night, and I ask, “Who, Why, What and Where?” Then a voice comes back to me that says, ‘Wait a minute...I think you’ve lost me.’” (Los Angeles Times 6/2/94)

No one feels 100% ready or fit for a task.

Martin Luther King, the civil rights leader, said, “Everybody can be great because anybody can serve. You don’t have to have a college degree to serve, you don’t have to make your subject and verb to agree, you don’t have to know about Plato and Aristotle to serve, you don’t have to know Einstein’s’ Theory of Relativity to serve, you don’t have to know the Second Theory of Thermodynamics and Physics to serve. You only need a heart full of grace, a soul generated by love.” (Susan Nieberg Terkel, Ethics 20, Lodestar Books quotes “Drum Major Instinct” sermon given at Ebenezer Baptist Church, Atlanta, Georgia 2/4/68)

Moses’ replies to God consisted of a “Who” (3:11, “Who am I?”), two “What” (Ex 3:13 – ‘What is his name?’ Then what shall I tell them?), and a “Behold” when he ran out of questions. The Hebrew text reads: “Behold, they will not believe me or listen to my voice.” (Ex 4:1) Moses practically said, “I am a Nobody, Everybody won’t believe me, and You find Somebody else!”

God is never mistaken in judgment, deceived by appearance or hesitant to correct.
Amusingly, God answered Moses using his choice of words. God began with a “What” (Ex 4:2 “What is that in your hand?”), two “Who” (Ex 4:11 in NASB, “Who has made man’s mouth? Or who makes him mute or deaf, or seeing or blind?”) and also a “behold” (Ex 4:14 in NASB, “Is there not your brother Aaron the Levite? I know that he speaks fluently. And moreover, behold, he is coming out to meet you.”)

If the word play wasn’t enough, God also provided the means, the message and a messenger. He gave Moses a staff (Ex 4:2) and the power over all creation, whether beasts (snake - Ex 4:3), disease (leprosy - Ex 4:6) or nature (Nile - Ex 4:9). When Moses declared that he was never eloquent and that he was slow of speech and tongue (Ex 4:10), God responded by saying that He will provide the content of the message, the command of words and the confidence and composure needed (Ex 4:12).

Finally, Moses’ request for a substitute was not met, but God provided a helper. Unfortunately, Moses’ request was bitter sweet. Aaron, Moses’ brother, turned out to be an encouragement, but yet an encroachment and an endangerment to Moses’ leadership as well.

Conclusion: The Lord is understanding, forgiving and caring. Have you been trying to flee Him, fool Him or forsake Him? Letting go means leaving behind the past, learning in the present and looking to the future. Are you dwelling on the past, bitter with the present and grudging of the future? Is there an immediate task, a long-term project and a regular ministry that you can engage in? Just as Moses had consultation with Jethro (Ex 4:18), do you need a second opinion? Is God’s first step for you to lead, follow or co-labor with others?