Thursday Thought -- October 31, 2013

Good Morning Friends,

The Apostle John received a great privilege -- the opportunity to get a glimpse of what is to come -- of heaven and what goes on there. Few others have made that journey and come back to tell of it.

At the center of heaven is a throne and someone is sitting on it. The one sitting on the throne has a brilliance that can only be described by picturing the most brilliant precious gems and He is surrounded by glory. “At once I was in the Spirit, and there before me was a throne in heaven with someone sitting on it. And the one who sat there had the appearance of jasper and carnelian. A rainbow, resembling an emerald, encircled the throne.” (Revelation 4:2-3)

Around the throne are beings that can hardly be described. There are 24 elders, all with crowns that represent their authority and honor. In front of the throne are 7 lamps and they are the 7 spirits of God. Before the throne are four creatures -- one like a lion, one like an ox, one like a man, one like an eagle.

The 24 elders and the four creatures have something in common -- they all raise their voices in praise to the one on the throne. Of the creatures, John writes, “Day and night they never stop saying: ‘Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty, who was, and is, and is to come.’” (Revelation 4:8)

And the 24 elders also give praise, “You are worthy, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power, for you created all things, and by your will they were created and have their being.” (Revelation 4:11)

John’s description is not a perfect description of heaven and he’ll try again in other places in Revelation. It’s the best he can do with the words he can use and the images he can envision. All of heaven is so far beyond imagination that it cannot be described in human language. But, from John’s description we can learn these things:

·         Heaven is a place of glory and honor to God, the One on the throne. There is no doubt about where the power and authority lies in heaven. The throne is visible for all to see and the One sitting upon it has majesty and power that can't even be described.

·         Heaven is a place of constant praise to God. The creatures and the elders, and later we’ll hear of the multitudes, and none of them can stay quiet. They all raise their voices in praise to God.

God deserves that praise. We’ll see that clearly in heaven when His glory and honor are unveiled. We can see it now, too, if we’ll look more closely at who God is and what He has done. Praise should be on our lips here, too.

His, by Grace,

Steve

Wednesday Thought -- October 30, 2013

Good Morning Friends,

“To the angel of the church in Laodicea write: These are the words of the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the ruler of God’s creation. I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either one or the other! So, because you are lukewarm -- neither hot nor cold -- I am about to spit you out of my mouth. You say, 'I am rich; I have acquired wealth and do not need a thing.' But you do not realize that you are wretched, pitiful, poor, blind and naked. I counsel you to buy from me gold refined in the fire, so you can become rich; and white clothes to wear, so you can cover your shameful nakedness; and salve to put on your eyes, so you can see. Those whom I love I rebuke and discipline. So be earnest, and repent. Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with him, and he with me.” (Revelation 3:14-20)

The church at Laodicea looked good from outward appearances. It was a wealthy church. It looked like it was being blessed by God. Instead, it was a church that made God sick!

What sickened God about that church was their apathy. Like coffee that has sat in the cup too long, they weren’t hot enough or cold enough to be enjoyable. They were lukewarm, and good for nothing.

The cure for their apathy was to realize how needy they were and to come to the Lord to meet those needs. As long as they thought they were O.K., they wouldn’t be. When they recognized that they needed help they would have made the first, big step toward being healed.

Despite their problems, help was only a request away. Jesus was ready to help them. He was right at the door. All it would take was a small step of initiative on their part.

Apathetic describes a huge part of the American church and a huge number of American Christians. We’re rich and comfortable and consider those things to be the blessings of God. Perhaps they are more like a curse. In those blessings, we can easily ignore the fact that we desperately need God.

We all need to check our temperature. Are you hot, cold or just lukewarm?

His, by Grace,

Steve

Tuesday Thought -- October 29, 2013

Good Morning Friends,

“I know your deeds; you have a reputation for being alive, but you are dead. Wake up! Strengthen what remains and is about to die, for I have not found your deeds complete in the sight of my God. Remember, therefore, what you have received and heard; obey it, and repent. But if you do not wake up, I will come like a thief, and you will not know at what time I will come to you.” (Revelation 3:1-3)

The letter of Jesus to the church at Sardis was blunt and straightforward and didn’t have much in it that was positive. Don’t you think Jesus could have softened the message a little bit to make it more palatable to the church? Jesus doesn’t sound very merciful or full of compassion in this letter. Or did He?

Let me ask you this – if someone is in grave danger and you soften or sugar-coat the warning, who does that hurt? It hurts the one who is moving headlong toward the danger that is ahead. What they need – the compassionate thing that you can give them – is a blunt and straightforward warning in the hope that they will listen and change the course on which they are headed. And that is exactly what Jesus did for the church at Sardis. Those Christians were in grave danger. They were about to be visited with judgment that would devastate them. They desperately needed to change course. Jesus WAS merciful in His message because He gave them what they really needed – even if it wasn’t easy for them to hear.

Certainly God doesn’t call us to be as blunt as this letter is with everyone you see with some kind of problem. Not every warning that Jesus gave was as direct and harsh as this one. But there are times when just this kind bluntness is needed – when someone is heading toward a cliff and they don’t realize it.

The question is – are we sensitive enough to God to know when we need to speak to someone we care about with the kind of direct confrontation that Jesus used here? Are we bold enough to say what people really need hear – or do we care more about what people will think about us than we do about the danger that lies ahead for them?

I’m glad there have been a few times in my life when someone confronted me with such directness. What they did was a grace from God.

His, by Grace,

Steve

Monday Thought -- October 28, 2013

Good Morning Friends,

“These are the words of the Son of God, whose eyes are like blazing fire and whose feet are like burnished bronze.” (Revelation 2:18)

Jesus uses different pictures to describe Himself as He writes the messages to the seven churches. To the church at Thyatira, He describes His eyes and His feet.

He says His eyes are like blazing fire. They are penetrating. They are able to see everything, even those things that people would like to keep hidden from Him. He doesn’t just see what is on the outside – our actions. He sees even what is on the inside, the thoughts and motives and intents of the heart. He sees us through and through.

That’s bad news for those who would like to fake it before God – it can’t be done. Hypocrisy will be seen by God for what it is. But the penetrating vision of Jesus is good news for those who want God to see us clearly in order to help us become more and more like Jesus. The work God does in our lives will be the work that we really need – because He really knows us – knows all about us.

He says His feet are like burnished bronze. Bronze was the strongest metal of that day, so the image of feet out of bronze relates to the strength that Jesus has to stand no matter what forces come against Him. Satan cannot move Him. The powers of the world cannot move Him. The forces of nature cannot move Him. Death cannot move Him. Nothing can move Him. What He promises, He will be strong enough to fulfill. We can count on Jesus because of His awesome strength.

Penetrating vision so that He sees what is going on around us clearly and sees us clearly. And awesome strength so that we are assured that He has the strength to help no matter what the powers arrayed against us and no matter what our need is.

That is the Jesus we can rely on!

His, by Grace,

Steve

Friday Thought -- October 25, 2013

Good Morning Friends,

“I have a few things against you: You have people there who hold to the teaching of Balaam, who taught Balak to entire the Israelites to sin by eating food sacrificed to idols and by committing sexual immorality. Likewise you also have those who hold to the teaching of the Nicolaitans. Repent therefore! Otherwise, I will soon come to you and will fight against them with the sword of my mouth.” (Revelation 2:14-16)

The church at Pergamum was plagued by false teachers. Every church is. That isn’t something that can be avoided, especially in a pluralistic society like the one in which we live. All Christians are subject to hearing false teachings in their workplace, where they go to school, among their friends, and within their families.

But here is the problem Jesus was upset about with Pergamum – the false teachings were not ones that plagued the Christians there in their interactions with a pagan culture. Rather, the false teachings Jesus was concerned about were allowed to happen within the church itself. Did the church tolerate false teaching from their pulpit? Did they allow those who held to false teachings to be involved in teaching in other capacities in the church? We don’t know the details of how they allowed the false teachings – just that they did.

I know our tendency is to be tolerant and tolerance has some very good applications. Without tolerance we would never be able to live in the kind of society we live in and would never be able to help draw our non-Christian friends and neighbors toward Christ. But there is no place for tolerating false teaching within the church. Such tolerance is sin and Jesus calls for the church at Pergamum to repent of that sin. He would call us to repent if we are guilty of the same sin.

The leaders of the church – and that’s who the letter to Pergamum was written to – are

responsible for protecting the rest of the church from false teaching that threatens to infiltrate the church.

His, by Grace,

Steve

Thursday Thought -- October 24, 2013

Good Morning Friends,

“These are the words of him who is the First and the Last, who died and came to life again. I know your afflictions and your poverty – yet you are rich! … Be faithful even to the point of death, and I will give you the crown of life.” (Revelation 2:8-10)

There are problems and hurts in our lives that we don’t understand and some that we don’t deserve. We often wonder why God allows such things to afflict us. Does God even know what is going on in our lives?

The Christians of Smyrna had the same questions that plague us. And Jesus answered their question. He reminded the church at Smyrna that God does know about their afflictions and their problems. He sees and He cares. To their questions – and to ours – God offers these answers …

Don’t think that afflictions only affect you. They even affected Jesus! The afflictions were so severe for Jesus that He died because of them. Death might have been ahead for the Christians at Smyrna, and it might be ahead for us, but they hadn’t faced afflictions that severe yet, and neither have we. If Jesus faced that kind of affliction, then why should we think that we would be able to avoid them. The afflictions Jesus faced did not mean that God did not know what was going in His life and they did not mean that God did not love Him. They just meant that is what He had to face in this world.

Affliction is not where Jesus ended. Affliction was only part of the story and it wasn’t the final chapter. The final chapter for Jesus was resurrection and glory – He came to life again. The afflictions were just something He had to pass through on the way to glory. That’s true for us, too. Afflictions are only part of the story of our lives and they are not the final chapter. The final chapter for us – just like for Jesus – will be resurrection and glory. The afflictions are only something we have to pass through in this life. We walk “through” the valley of the shadow of death – we don’t stay there forever!

If we look only at our afflictions and troubles, then we are focusing only on part of what is going in our lives right now. For the Christians of Smyrna, there was affliction and poverty – that is what the material world presented to them. But in truth they were rich. Their riches were not in material things. They were rich in ways that were far more important than material things. They were rich in spiritual things!

So, the challenge that Jesus gave to the Christians of Smyrna is the same challenge He would give to us. He challenged them to hang on despite their afflictions and their poverty. To be faithful even if they were taken to their deaths, to be faithful till they breathed their last breath. And on the other side of affliction and poverty and death there would glory and a crown and life! That was true for them and it’s true for us, too.

His, by Grace,

Steve

Wednesday Thought -- October 23, 2013

Good Morning Friends,

“I know your deeds, your hard work and your perseverance. I know that you cannot tolerate wicked men, that you have tested those who claim to be apostles but are not, and have found them false. You have persevered and have endured hardships for my name, and have not grown weary. Yet I hold this against you: You have forsaken your first love. Remember the height from which you have fallen! Repent and do the things you did at first. If you do not repent, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place.” (Revelation 2:2-5)

Hard work, perseverance through trials, rejection of wicked men, doctrinal purity, and faithfulness. Now those seem like great characteristics in a church -- and they are! They describe the church at Ephesus as Jesus dictated this letter to John for them. What they looked like on the outside was very positive.

Their hearts painted a different story about them! For the most part, they were just going through the motions. They weren’t clinging to Jesus out of love, but out of duty. They weren’t responding to Him out of passion, but in a performance mode. There was something wrong with their hearts -- they had forsaken their first love!

Can you remember what it was like when you first came into a relationship with God through Jesus Christ? Can you remember how meaningful the hymns and praise songs were to you? Can you recall how much you enjoyed reading the Bible and how it came alive to you as you read? Can you remember the tears of joy you cried when you considered how much God loved you and how unworthy you were to have received His love?

Do those characteristics still describe your relationship with God, or have things cooled some -- or a lot?

Jesus’ advice to a group of people whose hearts had grown calloused to His love -- repent and do the things they did at first. It’s good advice for all of us. Keep doing those things that fired the flame of love in the first place. Read the Bible on your own, not for lesson preparation, but just to marvel at what it says. Listen to praise songs and sing along with them. Get into a small group and share with them about what God is doing in your life. Pray, not just with a long list of requests, but just to talk with God.

Rekindle your love!

His, by Grace,

Steve

Tuesday Thought -- October 22, 2013

Good Morning Friends,

“From Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth. To him who loves us and has freed us from our sins by his blood, and has made us to be a kingdom and priests to serve his God and Father -- to him be glory and power for ever and ever! Amen. Look, he is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see him, even those who pierced him; and all the peoples of the earth will mourn because of him. So shall it be! Amen. ‘I am the Alpha and the Omega,’ says the Lord God, ‘who is, and who was, and who is to come, the Almighty.’” (Revelation 1:5-8)

One of the great marks of the book of Revelation is the picture of Jesus that it paints. The Gospels paint one picture of Jesus, as the humble and compassionate Savior. That is a true picture, but not the only picture that can be painted to describe Him. Revelation paints a picture of Jesus in all His glory and majesty. That is just as true a picture, and one that we’ll see revealed at His Second Coming and for all eternity. You see that picture begin to unfold in the first chapter of Revelation. Consider who Jesus is …

He is the faithful witness. All that He has proclaimed is true and you can count on it in this life and in eternity.

He is the firstborn from the dead. The resurrection identifies Jesus as God’s Anointed, His Messiah. Not even death could put an end to Him and His authority.

He is the ruler of the kings of the earth. No authority on earth compares to Him.

He loves us. He is high and majestic, but no exalted position will ever change the fact that He cares deeply for each one of us.

He has freed us from our sins by His blood. He has accomplished what we could not do, what no one else could do for us, He has dealt with our sin and guilt.

He has made us to be a kingdom and priests to serve God. He has brought us to His Father as those who are acceptable to Him, useful to Him, and holy to Him.

He is coming with the clouds. His work is not done. He will not leave the world as it is. He will not forget His people. He will come to establish His kingdom, take His children home, and right the wrong in the world.

Every eye will see Him. No one will be able to escape from His coming, not the living or the dead!

Those are just a few of the word pictures that describe Jesus that we'll see as we move through Revelation. It’s easy to get caught up in the prophecies and the figurative language and the uncertainties in Revelation and miss the main points. One of the main points is to help us to understand more fully who Jesus is. Fix your gaze upon Him and marvel at His power and authority, His love and compassion, His coming and His promises.

His, by Grace,

Steve

Monday Thought -- October 21, 2013

Good Morning Friends,

“Judah, your brothers will praise you; your hand will be on the neck of your enemies; your father’s sons will bow down to you. You are a lion's cub, O Judah; you return from the prey, my son. Like a lion he crouches and lies down, like a lioness -- who dares to rouse him? The scepter will not depart from Judah, nor the ruler’s staff from between his feet, until he comes to whom it belongs and the obedience of the nations is his.” (Genesis 49:8-10)

As Jacob was nearing death, he called each of his sons to him and spoke words of blessing over them. These are prophetic words given to Jacob by the Lord.

To Judah, Jacob spoke words about rulership. Judah’s descendants would become the kings of their people. That was a prophesy that would come true many years later when David – from the tribe of Judah – ascended the throne of Israel.

But Jacob’s blessing looked beyond David and his descendants who would stay on the throne for many, many years. Jacob saw thousands of years into the future to a descendant of Judah who would take the scepter. It would be a scepter that rightly belonged to him and he would be the final descendant of Judah to hold the scepter.

That descendant of Judah is Jesus and He is the last descendant of Judah to take the scepter. The scepter does rightly belong to Him for eternity, the scepter to rule all of creation.

How could Jacob look into the future and see David and his descendants and see Jesus? Jacob couldn’t see the future, but God could. The words that Jacob spoke were not his words, but the words the Lord gave to him. They are a powerful testimony to God’s control of the destiny of men. God guides history to accomplish His purposes. He planned David’s kingship thousands of years before it came about. He planned the coming of Jesus from the beginning of time.

The world, as wicked as it might become, never moves beyond the control of the Lord. Even through the most evil time He can continue to guide man according to His purposes. You can trust God for that. In the end, history will move to the place God has decided.

His, by Grace,

Steve

Friday Thought -- October 18, 2013

Good Morning Friends,

“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! 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. For two years now there has been famine in the land, and for the next five years there will not be plowing and reaping. But God sent me ahead of you to preserve for you a remnant on earth and to save your lives by a great deliverance. 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.’” (Genesis 45:4-8)

It’s easy to see why God sent Joseph to Egypt. God used the jealousy and hatred of Joseph’s brothers to send Joseph to Egypt as a slave so that he would be in the perfect position to help all of his family – and all the people of Egypt – when the famine struck.

It took many years before God’s purpose became clear to Joseph, but even he could see God’s plan by the time his brothers came to him for food. The years as a slave and the years in prison would have been difficult and it would have been easy for Joseph to give up and grow bitter. But they were all a part of God’s serpentine plan to bring Joseph to just the place He needed him, at just the time He needed him there.

God didn’t cause Joseph’s brothers to be jealous and to hate Joseph. They were responding to the wickedness in their hearts by giving in to those attitudes. God wasn’t pleased with their sinful attitudes toward Joseph, they grieved Him deeply, like all sin does. God wasn’t pleased that their hatred moved them to want to get rid of Joseph. But, God did use their sinful attitudes and actions. At just the right time, God sent a caravan past the spot where Joseph’s brothers were plotting against him. Without that caravan Joseph would probably have been killed. The caravan saved Joseph’s life and sent him on his way to Egypt.

God’s ability to use even the sinful actions of mankind is a part of His amazing wisdom and power. God’s plans are never thwarted by man’s sins.

Joseph’s story is a reminder of the truth of what Paul declared in Romans 8:28, “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.”

His, by Grace,

Steve

Thursday Thought -- October 17, 2013

Good Morning Friends,

The time came when Joseph’s brothers came to Egypt to buy food because of the famine. Jacob first sent ten of his sons, keeping Benjamin at home with him. Jacob had not changed, he still treated the sons of his favored wife with greater love than his other sons. Like he had shown Joseph favor years earlier, now he was showing favoritism to Benjamin.

But though Jacob had not changed, the brothers had. When they arrived in Egypt, Joseph recognized them but they did not recognize him. He kept Simeon in Egypt in prison and demanded that they bring their younger brother back with them as a test before Simeon would be released.

When the brothers arrived back at their father’s house, Jacob refused to send Benjamin to Egypt. Simeon stayed in prison with Jacob unwilling to risk Benjamin to rescue him. But the famine continued and the food ran out again and they had to return to Egypt. They could not return without Benjamin. Both Reuben and Judah vowed to protect Benjamin.

Reuben declared, “You may put both of my sons to death if I do not bring him back to you. Entrust him to my care, and I will bring him back.” (Genesis 42:37)

And Judah said, “Send the boy along with me and we will go at once, so that we and you and our children may live and not die. I myself will guarantee his safety; you can hold me personally responsible for him. If I do not bring him back to you and set him here before you, I will bear the blame before you all my life.” (Genesis 43:8-9)

God was at work in the lives of the sons of Jacob. They had not stayed the way they had been earlier when they were so angry at the unfairness of their father’s favoritism that they got rid of Joseph. Now they were willing to put themselves and their families at risk to protect the favored son.

Consider your own life and how you’ve changed and grown over the years. If God is at work in your life, you’re not the same as you were years ago. God is faithful to work in the lives of His children. Rejoice in the changes He has made in you!

His, by Grace,

Steve

Wednesday Thought -- October 16, 2013

Good Morning Friends,

“Then Pharaoh said to Joseph, ‘Since God has made all this known to you, there is no one so discerning and wise as you. 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.’ So Pharaoh said to Joseph, ‘I hereby put you in charge of the whole land of Egypt.’ Then Pharaoh took his signet ring from his finger and put it on Joseph’s finger. He dressed him in robes of fine linen and put a gold chain around his neck. He had him ride in a chariot as his second-in-command, and men shouted before him, ‘Make way!’ Thus he put him in charge of the whole land of Egypt. Then Pharaoh said to Joseph, ‘I am Pharaoh, but without your word no one will lift hand or foot in all Egypt.’” (Genesis 41:39-44)

Joseph was a young man with grand dreams when he lived in the house of his father. He dreamed that one day his brothers, and even his father, would bow down to him. But as a young man, Joseph never dreamed a dream as grand as that which God had in store for him. Not just his brothers and father, but the whole nation of Egypt – the most powerful land in the world – would bow to him.

Remember, though, that it wasn’t for Joseph’s glory that God raised him to the place of leadership to which he came. It wasn’t because God wanted to pat Joseph on the back and let him know how great he was. It wasn’t to pay Joseph for the earlier pain that he had experienced at the hands of his brothers and then his master. No, God raised Joseph to his place of leadership to save the nation of Israel from the famine that was coming. God put him there to serve His kingdom and to accomplish His will.

This was the place that God had ordained for Joseph. It was the way God had chosen for him to serve. Joseph had prepared himself to serve the Lord by maintaining righteousness and developing sensitivity to the Lord. When God called, Joseph was ready to step into the place of service God had for him.

And God has a place and time of service for every man and woman. Not every place is as grand as Joseph’s place was, but every place contributes to God’s purposes and will.

Like Joseph, are you preparing yourself for the place of service God has for you by maintaining righteousness and developing sensitivity to the Lord? Who knows when God’s call might come – will you be ready to hear it?

His, by Grace,

Steve

Tuesday Thought -- October 15, 2013

Good Morning Friends,

After his run-in with his master’s wife, Joseph was put into prison in Egypt. He didn’t deserve prison. He had done nothing wrong with his master’s wife. It seemed like God had abandoned Joseph. Most people would have given in to the temptation to give up and become bitter. But that’s not how Joseph responded to his confinement in the Egyptian prison.

“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, the LORD was with him; he showed him kindness and granted him favor in the eyes of the prison warden. 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. 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.” (Genesis 39:20-23)

Joseph continued to serve the Lord, even in prison. Joseph didn’t give up and become a bitter and worthless prisoner. Instead, his attitude and willingness to serve was so noticeable that he was put in charge of a section of the prison. The Lord was with Joseph, even in prison.

As it turned out, it was in prison that Joseph would make a connection to someone who would mention his name to Pharaoh. Joseph’s imprisonment turned out to be the staging ground for him to become the second most powerful man in Egypt.  But that wouldn’t have happened if Joseph had given up and refused to do anything for the Lord.

Joseph’s example teaches us that no matter where we are, even in circumstances that are painful to us and that we don’t deserve, we should continue to look for ways to be available to the Lord. We aren’t to serve the Lord only in the good times, but also in the darkest times of our lives. It may be in the darkest times that God will open our greatest opportunities to serve Him.

His, by Grace,

Steve

Monday Thought -- October 14, 2013

Good Morning Friends,

“Now Joseph was well-built and handsome, and after a while his master’s wife took notice of Joseph and said, ‘Come to bed with me!’ 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. 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?’ And though she spoke to Joseph day after day, he refused to go to bed with her or even be with her. One day he went into the house to attend to his duties, and none of the household servants was inside. 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.” (Genesis 39:6-12)

The woman in this story had to have been a beautiful woman. She was the wife of a powerful man and that would have meant she was a very desirable woman. Joseph was a slave, a respected slave with much responsibility, but still a slave. It must have been a powerful temptation for him to receive such respect from the woman of the house.

But Joseph said “no” to the temptation and he continued to say “no.” He even fled from the temptation when that was what it took to get away from it.

Joseph had two reasons for saying no:

·         He didn’t want to hurt the man who trusted him so much.

·         He knew it would be a sin against God.

Joseph understood the consequences of the sin for those around him. And Joseph knew the Word well enough to recognize sin.

Those are good aids in overcoming temptation: realize how much the sin with which you are being tempted will hurt those around you and know the Word well enough to recognize sin.

And when you recognize the sin, flee the temptation! “Flee the evil desires of youth, and pursue righteousness.” (2 Timothy 2:22)

His, by Grace,

Steve

Friday Thought -- October 11, 2013

Good Morning Friends,

“So Joseph went after his brothers and found them near Dothan. But they saw him in the distance, and before he reached them, they plotted to kill him. ‘Here comes that dreamer!’ they said to each other. ‘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.’ When Reuben heard this, he tried to rescue him from their hands. ‘Let’s not take his life,’ he said. ‘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. So when Joseph came to his brothers, they stripped him of his robe — the richly ornamented robe he was wearing — and they took him and threw him into the cistern. Now the cistern was empty; there was no water in it. 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. Judah said to his brothers, ‘What will we gain if we kill our brother and cover up his blood? 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. So when the Midianite merchants came by, his brothers pulled Joseph up out of the cistern and sold him for twenty shekels of silver to the Ishmaelites, who took him to Egypt.” (Genesis 37:18-28)

Joseph was treated with special attention by his father – including the gift of a multi-colored coat. To his brothers, it seemed like the attention Joseph received from their father had inflated his ego and caused him to think that he was someone special. His brothers called Joseph “that dreamer.” He dreamed of greatness and shared his dream with his brothers. He dreamed of authority – even over his older brothers – even over his father. But Joseph’s dreams were not his own visions of grandeur – they were God’s visions of what Joseph’s future would be like. They were visions of God’s plans for him.

How do you respond when God gives authority and blessing and dreams to someone else and not to you?

Joseph’s brothers didn’t know if was God’s doing – but they were jealous of Joseph’s blessings and of what Joseph thought the future would hold for him. And in their jealousy, they responded with hatred and plotted to bring an end to Joseph’s dreams – to bring an end to Joseph.

I doubt that any of us have allowed our jealousies to take us that far. I doubt that any of have of us done any physical harm to someone else because we were jealous of their gifts and their opportunities – at least not since we were children. Still, there are other negative ways to respond to feelings of jealousy that rise in our spirits. We can wish ill on the one of whom we are jealous and rejoice (secretly) when things turn negative for them. We can refuse to support them – not wanting to make their way any easier than it already seems – and even work to undermine them when given the chance. We can withdraw our friendship and kindness from them. All of those – and more – are choices that we can make in response to our jealousy.

Or we can recognize jealousy as a temptation from the devil and bring it to the Lord for

cleansing.

How do you respond to your jealousy?

His, by Grace,

Steve 

Thursday Thought -- October 10, 2013

Good Morning Friends,

"Joseph had a dream, and when he told it to his brothers, they hated him all the more. He said to them, 'Listen to this dream I had: 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.' 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. 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.' 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?' His brothers were jealous of him, but his father kept the matter in mind." (Genesis 37:5-11)

Jacob had 12 sons, but not all of them were given the same responsibility by God. Joseph would be a leader and the other 11 sons would be followers. That is what God ordained. Was it fair? That's not the question, it is what God ordained, that's all that matters.

Not everyone is given the same responsibility in life. Some are called to be leaders and others are not. Some are given great and obvious gifts and some people have gifts that aren’t as obvious or great. Are those things fair? That really is not the question, it is what God has ordained, that's all that matters.

Joseph's brothers were jealous of the position Joseph was being called to. Yet think of the position God had in mind for Joseph and the sacrifices God would require of him to make it a reality. Joseph would be sold into slavery, serve in the household of another, be thrown into prison on a false charge, and only then would Joseph finally be raised to leadership. And it was leadership away from his own family and away from all he knew and loved. The price of leadership was high for Joseph. The price of God’s call on his life was huge. I'm not sure he would have chosen it if he had known how much it would cost him! But it was what God ordained.

There will be those around you who will be given responsibility that you are not given. Some will be leaders, others followers. Remember – that is how God ordains it!

His, by Grace,

Steve

Wednesday Thought -- October 9, 2013

Good Morning Friends,

Jacob fled his homeland because he had deceived Esau. Jacob was afraid of Esau’s anger. For over 20 years, Jacob stayed away from his home, afraid to go back because of what Esau might do to him. Finally, Jacob decided to go home.

On the way he prayed that God would save him from Esau. When he approached Esau’s home, he sent gifts ahead to Esau, seeking to appease his anger.

“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. He put the maidservants and their children in front, Leah and her children next, and Rachel and Joseph in the rear. He himself went on ahead and bowed down to the ground seven times as he approached his brother.” (Genesis 33:1-3)

Jacob did everything he could think of to appease Esau and then when he saw Esau he arranged his family so that his most beloved were at the back, furthest from danger. In fear, Jacob moved toward Esau.

“But Esau ran to meet Jacob and embraced him; he threw his arms around his neck and kissed him. And they wept.” (Genesis 33:4)

What Jacob had feared for over 20 years turned out to be nothing to fear at all. His appeasement of Esau was not necessary. Protecting his beloved was not necessary. Cowering as he approached his brother was not necessary.

How long did Jacob stay away from home unnecessarily? How much fear and anguish did Jacob feel that he didn't have to? How much sleep did he lose for no reason?

Sometimes the things we avoid because of fear turn out to be much less of a problem than we make them out to be in our minds.

Are there fears that you have that God is asking you to confront? They may turn out to be only a shadow of what you think they are.

His, by Grace,

Steve

Tuesday Thought -- October 8, 2013

Good Morning Friends,

“Jacob was left alone, and a man wrestled with him till daybreak. When the man saw that he could not overpower him, he touched the socket of Jacob’s hip so that his hip was wrenched as he wrestled with the man. Then the man said, ‘Let me go, for it is daybreak.’ But Jacob replied, ‘I will not let you go unless you bless me.’ The man asked him, ‘What is your name?’ ‘Jacob,’ he answered. Then the man said, ‘Your name will no longer be Jacob, but Israel, because you have struggled with God and with men and have overcome.’ Jacob said, ‘Please tell me your name.’ But he replied, ‘Why do you ask my name?’ Then he blessed him there. So Jacob called the place Peniel, saying, ‘It is because I saw God face to face, and yet my life was spared.’ The sun rose above him as he passed Peniel, and he was limping because of his hip.” (Genesis 32:24-31)

Jacob, his wives and children, with all of his flocks and possessions was headed back to his home land, the land of Canaan. When he had left Canaan over 20 years earlier it had been in a hurry, running from his brother Esau whom he had schemed out of his birthright and father’s blessing. Now he was going home and he was afraid to face his brother. He was afraid of his brother’s anger and his brother’s retribution. As Jacob and his company approached Canaan, he sent his wives, children, servants, flocks and possessions across the river and Jacob stayed behind alone. It was there – while Jacob was alone that God met him and Jacob came away from that encounter a changed man.

Jacob was changed physically by the encounter. God struck Jacob’s hip as they wrestled and Jacob walked with a limp from that day to the end of his life.

Jacob was changed in name. God changed his name on that very spot. He would no longer be called Jacob. From then on his name would be Israel – the name he would pass on to the people who descended from him.  Abraham had descendants who would not be a part of the people of Israel – the descendants of Ishmael and all the descendants of sons of Abraham’s old age with his second wife. Isaac would also have descendants who were not a part of the people of Israel – the descendants of Esau would become the nation of Edom and not a part of Israel. But all of Jacob’s descendants would become the people of Israel – taking their name from this ancestor.

Jacob was changed spiritually. Jacob knew that he had come face to face with God. Jacob knew that he had wrestled with God and been touched by God. Jacob knew that he had been blessed by God.

The encounters of men with God are rarely as dramatic as Jacob’s encounter was – but when a man encounters God he never comes away without being changed in some way.

His, by Grace,

Steve 

Monday Thought -- October 7, 2013

Good Morning Friends,

“‘Don’t give me anything,’ Jacob replied. ‘But if you will do this one thing for me, I will go on tending your flocks and watching over them: Let me go through all your flocks today and remove from them every speckled or spotted sheep, every dark-colored lamb and every spotted or speckled goat. They will be my wages. And my honesty will testify for me in the future, whenever you check on the wages you have paid me. Any goat in my possession that is not speckled or spotted, or any lamb that is not dark-colored, will be considered stolen.’” (Genesis 30:31-33)

Jacob was ready to leave his father-in-law and return to his own land – to Canaan. Laban was pleased with the work Jacob had done for him and recognized that he had prospered greatly while Jacob was caring for his flocks. Laban asked Jacob what he should give him for the years of labor Jacob had provided him. Jacob’s answer is recorded in the passage above, “Don’t give me anything.” The only thing Jacob asked for were the speckled, spotted and dark-colored sheep – those that were deemed to be worth less than the pure white sheep. And Laban readily agreed.

Before leaving Laban, Jacob spent additional time tending Laban’s flocks. And God blessed Jacob so that many speckled, spotted and dark-colored lambs were born. Each of them became Jacob’s own. Jacob prospered and Laban’s flocks decreased. God was faithful to provide for Jacob. Those animals that produced the discolored lambs were among the strongest of Laban’s flocks and those that produced the white lambs were among the weakest. So the scripture reports, “So the weak animals went to Laban and the strong ones to Jacob. In this way the man grew exceedingly prosperous and came to own large flocks, and maidservants and menservants, and camels and donkeys.” (Genesis 30:42-43)

Jacob was always a schemer. Even in this story he tried to determine which sheep would give birth to discolored lambs by setting striped sticks in front of the sheep as they conceived. But Jacob’s scheming was not the reason he prospered. God’s blessing was. No amount of striped sticks placed in view of conceiving sheep will cause speckled, spotted and dark-colored lambs. Only God could move to cause Jacob’s flocks to grow and Laban’s to shrink under the plan that Laban had approved.

I don’t know if Jacob ever learned that lesson. Did he ever learn that it is God --  and not our scheming – that brings blessing to us. That is a principle that is still true today.

His, by Grace,

Steve

Friday Thought -- October 4, 2013

Good Morning Friends,

We live in an instant culture. We can get almost anything we want in very quick order. There are few things that we must labor long and hard to obtain.

Jacob found the woman that he loved and wanted her as his wife. He told Rachel’s father, “I will work for you seven years in return for your younger daughter Rachel.” (Genesis 29:18) “So Jacob served seven years to get Rachel, but they seemed like only a few days to him because of his love for her.” (Genesis 29:20)

Jacob demonstrated tremendous patience in working for so long to get what he wanted. Then, even after seven years of labor, Rachel’s father tricked Jacob and gave him the daughter that Jacob didn’t want, Leah, as a wife instead of Rachel. Rachel became his wife, too, a short time later, but another seven years of labor was required of Jacob for her.

Patience and perseverance are characteristics God seeks to develop in the lives of His children. We are told to wait patiently for God and to persevere in praying for what we desire. Often, only in patience and perseverance do we receive what we desire from God.

His, by Grace,

Steve

Thursday Thought -- October 3, 2013

Good Morning Friends,

“Jacob left Beersheba and set out for Haran. 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. 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. 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. 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. 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.’” (Genesis 28:10-15)

One thing the Lord said to Jacob in the dream stands out to me, it is the last phrase: “I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you.”

That sentence speaks of the ultimate faithfulness of God. It is not just true of this promise to Jacob, but of every promise God has made. God will ALWAYS keep His promises.

We can’t stand in the way of God keeping His promises. Paul declared, “If we are faithless, he will remain faithful.” (2 Timothy 2:13) God’s promises are not dependent upon us, but upon Him.

Neither Satan, nor any other power that might exist in the universe can keep God from keeping His promises. Nothing and no one is strong enough to tie God’s hands so that He cannot move to do what He said He would do.

God made a promise to Jacob, and He kept it! What promises has God made to you?

Know this: God will keep those promises! You can count on it. You can count on Him!

His, by Grace,

Steve

Wednesday Thought -- October 2, 2013

Good Morning Friends,

“Now there was a famine in the land — besides the earlier famine of Abraham’s time — and Isaac went to Abimelech king of the Philistines in Gerar. The LORD appeared to Isaac and said, ‘Do not go down to Egypt; live in the land where I tell you to live. Stay in this land for a while, and I will be with you and will bless you. For to you and your descendants I will give all these lands and will confirm the oath I swore to your father Abraham. I will make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and will give them all these lands, and through your offspring all nations on earth will be blessed, because Abraham obeyed me and kept my requirements, my commands, my decrees and my laws.’ So Isaac stayed in Gerar. When the men of that place asked him about his wife, he said, ‘She is my sister,’ because he was afraid to say, ‘She is my wife.’ He thought, ‘The men of this place might kill me on account of Rebekah, because she is beautiful.’” (Genesis 26:1-7)

Faith and fear are two competing and contradictory attitudes.

The problem is that even men and women of great faith don’t exclusively live in faith. Times of fear also dominate our lives and our actions. The story above from the life of Isaac emphasizes that reality. In that one story of just seven verses we see Isaac act in great faith -- and we see Isaac respond in fear, too!

When famine struck the land the prudent thing for Isaac to do was to leave that land and seek a land that was not experiencing the famine. But God spoke to Isaac and told Isaac to stay where he was – in the land of famine and that He would provide for him and his family. It wasn’t prudence that kept Isaac in Gerar, it was faith. Isaac believed what God spoke to him. Isaac trusted God to provide.

But when the men of Gerar asked about Isaac’s wife, he responded in fear. He told the men that she was his sister, not his wife. It wasn’t faith that made Isaac respond that way – it was fear. He was afraid that the men of Gerar would kill him in order to take his wife. Where was Isaac’s faith? God had promised to provide for Isaac – couldn’t God protect his wife? Of course God could protect Rebekah, but Isaac didn’t see that, instead he gave in to his fear.

Faith and fear – are seen in the same man in just a short span of time. I would think Isaac was two-faced and strange, except that I see the same dynamic at work in so many other followers of God – including myself! There are times when I respond to God in faith. There I times when I give in to fear. And I know that the same is true in your life.

Thank God that He was patient with Isaac – thank God that He is patient with us!

His, by Grace,

Steve

Tuesday Thought -- October 1, 2013

Good Morning Friends,

“Once when Jacob was cooking some stew, Esau came in from the open country, famished. He said to Jacob, ‘Quick, let me have some of that red stew! I’m famished!’ (That is why he was also called Edom.) Jacob replied, ‘First sell me your birthright.’ ‘Look, I am about to die,’ Esau said. ‘What good is the birthright to me?’ But Jacob said, ‘Swear to me first.’ So he swore an oath to him, selling his birthright to Jacob. 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.” (Genesis 25:29-34)

What a strange incident, and it had a profound impact on the lives of both Jacob and Esau. I would think that both would be ashamed of what they did.

Esau thought very little of the birthright that was his by virtue of being the first born. He lived for the moment, not thinking of the long term impact of his actions.

Jacob was a schemer and selfish, unwilling to help his brother just because it was the right thing to do. Jacob thought long term, and used the opportunity of the moment to help him in the future.

We can learn from them both, not examples to follow, but examples to avoid!

From Esau, don’t let the passions of the moment damage or destroy your future. One of the characteristics God desires to work in our lives is self-control. (Galatians 5:23)

From Jacob, don’t compromise the present in order to improve the future. The ends do not justify the means. What Jacob obtained was good, how he obtained it left it tainted. In fact, his scheming seemed to ensure his future, but it would backfire on him.

How you obtain something is just as important as what you obtain.

His, by Grace,

Steve