Don't Miss Your Blessing

After reading Genesis this year, I thought about the continued blessing that God gave to His chosen people.

I will make you a great nation, And I will bless you, And make your name great; And so you shall be a blessing; And I will bless those who bless you, And the one who curses you I will curse. And in you all the families of the earth will be blessed (Genesis 12:2–3).

This blessing was handed off from Abraham to Isaac, from Isaac to Jacob (over Esau the older), and from Jacob to Judah. The whole family of Israel experienced the blessing, but specific individuals were blessed with the position of leadership ushering in the ultimate blessing--Jesus. 

Judah was fourth in the line of birth order from Jacob. His older brothers, Rueben, Simeon and Levi, missed out on the continued blessing because of sin. Whereas a general blessing from Jacob was given to all his sons (49:28), these three were skipped over for the special "leadership blessing." Reuben, the oldest, was passed over because of his sexual sin with Jacob's wife (49:4, 35:22). Simeon and Levi were skipped over for the revenge-killing of the Hivites, disregarding their father's wishes (49:5, 34:30-31). Sin had its consequences.

It would seem that mainstream culture today eschews consequences for any wrongdoing that robs an individual of opportunities. Think about it, it used to be that even the suggestion of a political candidate having an extra-marital affair was enough to disqualify them from public service (ie. Gary Hart/Donna Rice). And yet today an extra-marital affair does not stop one from climbing the ladder of success in politics. 

In God's grace, the blessing of continued relationship is not taken away because of sin. However, sin does matter and it can have lasting consequences on those who commit it. Even though Jacob only blesses one of his sons to lead, He does bless ALL of his sons. 

"Judah is a lion's whelp; From the prey, my son you have gone up. He couches, he lies down as a lion, And as a lion, who dares rouse him up? The scepter shall not depart from Judah, Nor the ruler's staff from between his feet" (49:9–10).

"He blessed them, every one with the blessing appropriate to him" (49:28).

It's important that we own our sin and not complain about the consequences we experience. We still have the opportunity for blessing after we sin. But, it is true, our sin may disqualify us from certain opportunities. Levi missed out on the "leadership blessing", but in my humble opinion, he received a better blessing than that of his brothers when they entered the promised land. Rather than inheriting the land, Levi inherited God Himself (Deuteronomy 10:9). 

Bottom Line: Be willing to accept the consequences of your sin so that you don't miss the relational blessings God has for you. 

High And Lifted Up Is The Person Blessed By God

A three-word phrase caught my eye this morning in Genesis 47, verse 7:

"Jacob blessed Pharaoh"

A picture shot through my mind of me praying over an important world figure (pick your favorite). It would be considered an honor, as I'm sure it was for Jacob praying over Pharaoh. It would be a privilege for any world leader to be blessed by a child of God (whether the world figure recognizes that or not). But most significantly, it would be a testament for any Christ-follower, of the faithfulness of God. God takes our lowly positions and exalts us beyond our imagination as we humble ourselves before Him as our modus operandi for life. 

I don't have to think too long before I see how God has exalted the circumstances of my own life (I know I could come up with many examples). One of the most obvious examples that I remember every day--especially on February 14th--is God's faithfulness in blessing me with the wife that I have.

The thought of this reminded me of another one of my favorite passages. And as luck or fate--or sovereignty would have it--this passage was also part of my daily Bible readings:

For consider your calling, brethren, that there were not many wise according to the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble; but God has chosen the foolish things of the world to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to shame the things which are strong, and the base things of the world and the despised God has chosen, the things that are not, so that He may nullify the things that are, so that no man may boast before God. But by His doing you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, and righteousness and sanctification, and redemption, so that, just as it is written, "LET HIM WHO BOASTS, BOAST IN THE LORD" (1st Corinthians 1:26–31).

So today, why not spend some time boasting in the Lord. You may not be called upon to bless a king… but you have been blessed by the KING!

I thank God for you every day Karen!

Ministering From Your Overflow

Thinking of Jesus as fully divine comes easy. Thinking of Him as fully human does not. In my recent readings--Mark chapter 11 through chapter 14--I saw something I hadn't noticed before. While reading chapters 11 and 12 I began to see something new. Verse 10 is drawing from Psalm 118:26, and then in chapter 12, Jesus quotes from the same Psalm.  

"The Stone which the builders rejected, this became the chief corner stone; This came about from the Lord, and it is marvelous in our eyes" (Mark 12:10–11 and Psalm 118:22–23). 

Jesus's mind appears to have been camped out in these Psalm passages. 

Later on, in the same chapter (Mark 12) Jesus schools the Pharisees, Sadducees, and the Scribes on the resurrection and who the Messiah would be by using another nearby Psalm, this time from chapter 110.

The Lord said to my Lord, 'Sit at My right hand, until I put Your enemies beneath Your feet'" (Mark 12:36, Mark 14:62 and Psalm 110:1).

Again, Jesus's thoughts were focused on this portion of Scripture leading up to His death. A couple chapters later He uses the same Psalm when declaring that He is the Christ before the high priest. 

Here's what I saw that I hadn't noticed before: Jesus was sharing what He had been studying with those around Him. These passages were fresh in His mind because He was pouring over them.  

Have you ever had that experience? You read/study the Word of God, and then you are able to share with others throughout your day the truth from those passages. This is called "ministering from your overflow." You fill yourself up with the truth of God's Word and then you pour out an extra blessing on others with whom you have contact. 

I think that's what Jesus was modeling. I'm not sure if He had scrolls with Him as He traveled around. I've met people who have been very good at memorizing Scripture. I'm sure Jesus excelled in this discipline. I imagine as Jesus got closer to the cross He was studying or thinking through everything from Scripture about the plan of God for the Messiah. Of course, He knew what His Father was calling Him to do, but that wouldn't have stopped Him from pouring over God's Word on the subject. I believe Jesus had been filling up on these passages in Psalms and was--in His full humanity--ministering from His overflow.

Jesus modeled how we're all supposed to function; the same way that Timothy instructed:

"Preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort, with great patience and instruction." 2nd Timothy 4:2

It is neat to think of Jesus having daily devotions similar to what we have. It's cool to think He lived a life just like we're living life. He truly was fully human as well as fully divine.

Easter Egg for Jeffrey and Jasmine

There is so much to share from the recent Bible readings--God's Word is so rich. Today in my readings I'm in Genesis, Job, Mark, and Romans. I could write a post for each reading. But I'll just focus on my FAVORITE passage. 

Romans 7–8 is my all-time favorite passage. 

Today I'll share what I wrote in the margin of my Bible--one of the Bibles I'm gifting to my kids at the end of the year. By year's end, it will be filled with *Easter Eggs such as this. 

"This is my favorite passage in all the Bible as it explains the victory that is possible through the Holy Spirit of God. It describes our identity and holds the key to our ability to experience consistent victory over sin. Jeffrey and Jasmine, when you read this I hope that you understand my desire is for you to STUDY this passage in-depth so as to understand how to live in victory this side of eternity."

My primary desire is for Jeffrey and Jasmine to "get this." But in a close second, I hope that if your reading, you "get" this as well.

 You are more than a conqueror (8:17) because of God in Christ. 

* In popular culture, Easters eggs are text, images, visual gags, jokes, or other content that authors intentionally hide in their works for their viewers' discovery.

Jesus Is the Son of God

The past several days the M'Cheyne readings have taken us through Mark 3–6. We know that these chapters are connected in that they are one story. However, I often treat the chapters and the sub-headings as smaller (if not separate) stories. These chapters in Mark demonstrate the importance of connecting them as one story for a greater understanding. 

In chapter 3, Jesus healed a man with a deformed hand. Because of this healing and Jesus's teaching, He was attracting large crowds. The religious leaders felt threatened and began accusing Him saying,

"He is possessed by Beelzebul," and "He casts out the demons by the ruler of demons." 

Jesus addressed the crowd, explaining that their claim was not possible--it wasn't logical. 

"How can Satan cast out Satan? If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand."

Jesus then went on to teach using parables (earthly stories with a divine meaning). The disciples wondered why He taught that way. Why not just teach plainly and directly so that everyone will understand. Jesus answered,

"To you has been given the mystery of the kingdom of God but those who are outside get everything in parables, so that while seeing, they may see and not perceive, and while hearing, they may hear and not understand, otherwise they might return and be forgiven."

Jesus was quoting Isaiah 6:9 to teach His disciples that they were part of God's greater plan. A plan that would lead to His sacrifice for us at the cross. Jesus taught directly and plainly to those who were given the mystery of the kingdom and would continue the work of that kingdom work after His death and resurrection. In the following chapters, we'll experience that direct and plain teaching.

Jesus taught the disciples that He was the Son of God… that He was, in fact, God. In Mark 4:35–41 He showed them that He has control over nature. The disciples asked themselves:

"Who then is this, that even the wind and the sea obey Him?"

The obvious answer is that He is the Son of God… He is God. 

In Mark 5:1–13 Jesus cast out the man who was possessed by Legion, several thousand demons. This was a front-row seat for the practicum that proved Jesus's answer to the religious leaders "How can Satan cast out Satan?" Satan can't and he wouldn't cast out his demons, but Jesus can. The disciples at this point should have been asking themselves, "Is this the Son of God? Is this God?"

In Mark 5:21–43, Jesus healed the woman that had been bleeding for twelve years and raised Jairus's daughter (btw, he was a religious leader) from the dead. The woman who was healed of her hemorrhaging was healed as she intentionally reached out in a crowd and touched His robe. Jesus stopped in a crowded street and asked:

"Who touched My garments?"

The disciples were puzzled, they asked in essence, "What do you mean who touched you? Hundreds of people have touched you." Once again they should have been thinking and talking about how Jesus must certainly be from God to know when someone touches Him for healing. And they should have been proclaiming it boldly when He brought someone back from the dead. 

Imagine the wonder the disciples were experiencing when Jesus fed five thousand people (that's only counting the men) from five loaves of bread and two fish. They must have been saying "Surely He is from God. He is the Son of God. He is God."  

But then just a few verses over, in verse 49, they thought He was a ghost when they saw Him walking on the water past their boat. If we don't read these accounts as one complete story, we will question the harshness of the commentary found in Mark 6:52.

"He got in the boat with them, and the wind stopped and they were utterly astonished, for they had not gained any insight from the incident of the loaves, but their heart was hardened."

It's true, their hearts were hardened. Who wouldn't be jumping out of their shoes proclaiming Him as God after all these miraculous events take place? He had given the disciples a front-row seat to His plain and direct teaching and had them participate in the miracles that proved His teaching. And yet, they still didn't understand. 

I can't wait until Wednesday when we're scheduled to read Mark chapter 8. It's there that Peter finally proclaims what we think they should have been saying all along.

"You are the Christ." 

I Want To Be Satisfied With The Life I Live, part 2

In today's reading (Genesis 32) we're introduced to a transformed Jacob. The Jacob we know from earlier is the one who traded soup for Esau's birthright, who stole his father's blessing from his brother and whose name we learn is "deceiver."  He's since lived in the land of his mother's family where he got a taste of his own medicine as uncle Laban tricked Jacob into marrying Leah and took advantage of him by changing his wages ten times. This process seemed to have changed Jacob for the better through the years, as we see him now as a much humbler man. In chapter 32, Jacob's humbler demeanor was clear as he referred to Esau as his "lord" and to himself as Esau's "servant."

In the middle of the two brother's reunion, as Jacob demonstrates his new and improved self, God blesses him. We see the blessing in verses 24–32 as Jacob wrestles with the man of God. It's an amazing test of strength--or maybe pure grit--to have wrestled all night long without giving up. In the past, I've rationalized that Jacob received the blessing through force, strength or pure determination. I now realize there is a different reason for Jacob's blessing having recently re-read Abraham's blessing being promised in chapter 12, the blessing being given only after growing in faith in chapter 22 and then the blessing realized in chapter 24. The blessing is experienced only after the change/transformation takes place. Jacob's blessing came just like his grandfather's came because he grew mature in his faith evidenced by change.

My question today is: In what area does God want me to grow?

I hope that we have the strength of character and the determination that comes with faith so that we too can experience all of the blessings that God has for us.