Podcasts about like jacob

Sermon Summary: Temporary Residents, Eternal Home Chris's sermon this week delved into Genesis chapters 46 and 47, picking up the narrative of Jacob and his family's move to Egypt to escape the severe famine in Canaan. He structured his talk around six key "episodes" or scenes within these chapters, ultimately drawing out four significant takeaways for the congregation in Sheffield in 2025. Chris began by addressing the crucial question of relevance: how can a text written potentially 16-18 centuries before Jesus, set in a vastly different culture, speak to us today? His answer lies in the belief that the Bible is "God-breathed," inspired by God, who continues to speak through its pages to those who approach it with humility and an open heart. He emphasized the Bible's unique authority, stating that any teaching, including his own, should be disregarded if it contradicts scripture. Furthermore, Chris highlighted Romans 15:4, reminding listeners that the scriptures were written for our encouragement, hope, and perseverance in our Christian walk. Drawing a parallel to the London Marathon, he likened the Old Testament heroes of faith, including Jacob (mentioned in Hebrews 11), to a crowd of witnesses cheering us on in our own race of faith (Hebrews 12:1). Moving into the text, Chris outlined the six episodes: God appears to Jacob (Genesis 46): Despite being called to the Promised Land, God instructs Jacob to go to Egypt, a seemingly counterintuitive command. The journey to Egypt (Genesis 46): Jacob and his family undertake the journey. Reunion with Joseph (Genesis 46): Jacob is reunited with his son Joseph, whom he long believed to be dead. The brothers meet Pharaoh (Genesis 47:1-6): Joseph presents a delegation of his brothers to Pharaoh. They identify themselves as shepherds seeking temporary residence due to the famine. Chris noted their subservient tone ("We your servants") while also highlighting Joseph's prior coaching to secure their desired outcome. Pharaoh's response is directed to Joseph, granting them permission to settle in the land of Goshen and even offering positions managing his livestock if they possess special skills. Jacob meets Pharaoh (Genesis 47:7-10): Joseph then brings his father Jacob to meet Pharaoh. In contrast to his sons, Jacob seems to possess a greater sense of authority, even blessing Pharaoh twice. Pharaoh inquires about Jacob's age ("How many are the days of the years of your life?"), to which Jacob replies that he has lived 130 "hard years" and that the "days of the years of my temporary residence are few and hard." Chris emphasized Jacob's use of "temporary residence" (or "sojourner" in some translations), a significant theme throughout the chapter. Despite his hardships (fleeing his brother, losing his mother and wife, believing Joseph dead), Jacob's encounter with Pharaoh reveals a man carrying moral authority. Joseph's leadership during the famine (Genesis 47:11-26): This lengthy section details Joseph's strategic management of the famine. He provides the best land of Egypt, the region of Ramesses (another name for Goshen), for his family. As the famine intensifies, Joseph collects all the money in Egypt and Canaan in exchange for grain, eventually moving to exchange livestock and then land and the people themselves for food, making them Pharaoh's slaves. The priests are the only exception, receiving direct provisions from Pharaoh. Joseph then establishes a system where the people receive seed to plant and keep four-fifths of the harvest, with one-fifth going to Pharaoh. The people express immense gratitude for Joseph saving their lives. Chris acknowledged the potentially unsettling nature of this narrative, where Pharaoh's wealth increases significantly. However, he pointed out that the Egyptians willingly entered these arrangements and were grateful for survival. He also noted that their situation as "slaves" differed significantly from typical understandings of slavery, as they continued to live on their land and retain 80% of their produce, a potentially lower tax burden than experienced today in the UK. Chris cautioned against a literal "lift and drop" application of Old Testament narratives, using the example of the hand-under-thigh oath later in the chapter as a practice no longer relevant. He stressed the importance of respectfully engaging with the text while discerning its enduring message. Jacob prepares to die (Genesis 47:27-31): The Israelites settle in Goshen, acquire property, become fruitful, and their population grows rapidly, fulfilling God's promise in Genesis 46:3 that they would be prosperous in Egypt. Jacob lives for another 17 years, reaching the age of 147. As his death approaches, he calls Joseph and makes him swear an oath (placing his hand under Jacob's thigh) not to bury him in Egypt but to take him back to Canaan to be buried with his ancestors. Joseph agrees and takes the oath. Chris highlighted the significance of being buried with his ancestors, noting the memorial in Hebron revered by Jews, Christians, and Muslims as the family grave of Abraham, Isaac, Sarah, Rebekah, and Jacob. He also pointed out that the hand-under-thigh oath was a family tradition, previously used by Abraham when sending a servant to find a wife for Isaac. Jacob's focus on being buried in the Promised Land underscores his deep connection to it. From this passage, Chris identified four key takeaways for the congregation: Depending on God: Chris found Jacob in his final chapters to be an "appealing and beautiful character," contrasting him with figures like Solomon who started well but finished poorly. Despite his past flaws and hardships, Jacob is "finishing well," which Chris attributed to his dependence on God. He affirmed that while we hold onto God, it is ultimately God who holds onto us. He referenced Lauren Daigle's song "Hold On To Me" in this context. Chris encouraged the congregation to have the "desire to finish well" in their own lives, noting that many around us do not. Do to others as you would like them to do to you: This "golden rule" of Jesus is reflected in the cycle of blessing within the narrative. Jacob blesses Pharaoh, and through Joseph, both the Egyptians and Jacob's family are blessed. Chris expressed his hope that the church's activities are a blessing to the local community and encouraged individuals to be a blessing in their families, workplaces, and among their neighbors. He then referenced Deuteronomy 23:7 (in some translations, this is Deuteronomy 23:7-8 or Deuteronomy 23:7), "You must not mistreat or oppress foreigners in any way. Remember, you yourselves were once foreigners in the land of Egypt," noting its counter-cultural message in contemporary politics. Remember you are temporary residents: Chris drew attention to Peter's words in 1 Peter 2:11, "Dear friends, I warn you as temporary residents and foreigners to keep away from worldly desires that wage war against your very soul." He connected this back to the potential reasons for Joseph choosing Goshen – to protect his family from the idolatrous Egyptian culture and the risk of assimilation. He emphasized the importance of identity: if we truly believe we belong to God, there are certain things we should avoid. Identity acts as a protection against temptation and evil, echoing Jesus' prayer, "Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil" (Matthew 6:13). Where is your true country?: Chris explored the legal concept of "domicile" – permanent home – contrasting it with "residence" and "citizenship." He posed the question: where is our true home as Christians? Like Jacob, we are temporary residents in this world; our true home is with God. He quoted Hebrews 13:14, "For here we do not have an enduring city, but we are looking for the city that is to come." He concluded with a powerful quote from C.S. Lewis's The Last Battle, where a character entering heaven says, "I have come home at last! This is my real country! I belong here. This is the land I have been looking for all my life, though I never knew it till now."1 Chris shared that Karen had read this passage at Anne's funeral and expressed his hope that it would be read at his own, emphasizing the Christian understanding of our ultimate belonging in God's presence. Chris concluded with a prayer, thanking God for his mercy and love, acknowledging human failings, and expressing the desire to understand and embrace the truth of our eternal home in God. He then invited those who wished for prayer to come forward. Bible References: Genesis 46 Genesis 47 Romans 15:4 Hebrews 11 Hebrews 12:1 1 Peter 2:11 Matthew 6:13 Hebrews 13:14 Deuteronomy 23:7 (or Deuteronomy 23:7-8 depending on translation) Transcript Let's wait for the PowerPoint to appear on the screen. Great, there it goes. So we're continuing with Genesis and continuing really where we were a fortnight ago with the move of Joseph and his family, or Joseph's already there, the move of Jacob and the family into Egypt. So a few things I want to do today. I'm going to kind of walk us through the chapter and bring a few things out, and then at the end I'm going to kind of identify, I think, four things that I think we can particularly take away from this chapter. And after I finish speaking, we're also going to have an opportunity for people who want to be prayed for to come forward and be prayed. I'm not going to make a big deal of that, but we do believe in the work of the Holy Spirit, and if you've come and you would like prayer, then we'd be more than delighted to pray for you and pray that you will encounter God. But before I get into the chapter, I just want to go on to the next slide, because that's quite important, isn't it? We've been spending all this time studying this chapter, and Genesis is set, and nobody's exactly sure when, but probably 16 to 18 centuries before Jesus was born. And it's set in a very different culture and part of the world. So how can that be relevant to us living in the UK in 2025? So that is a very important question. And I think that the start of the answer to that question comes from our understanding of what the Bible is, and that is that we believe that the Bible is inspired by God. Paul actually used the phrase, God breathes—that the Bible is God breathed. And that God speaks through his Bible to us, and he actually continues to speak today through his Bible to us. And that if we approach it with the right attitude, if we come to it humbly and respectfully, not looking to pick arguments with it, but open to any nourishment going, then God will meet us and speak to us through the Bible. And so that's why Genesis is relevant. We also say that the Bible has unique authority. If I as a preacher, or indeed any other preacher here or anywhere else, says something to you that is not in agreement with the Bible, then feel free. In fact, definitely ignore what is being said by me or any other preacher. The Bible has the final authority on difficult points. But there's also something, I think, when we're looking at these Old Testament stories, about recognizing that these were written to inspire us in our Christian walk. Romans 15, verse 4 says something like, the Scriptures were written so that for our encouragement and hope, and to encourage us to persevere in the Christian life. Today is the London Marathon Day, isn't it? And over the past 20 years or so, I spent quite a few times at the finishing line, not of marathons, I will admit, but the finishing line of Iron Man races, and waiting for family members and friends to run the race. And you always stop by, you know, runners, some of them looking completely done in, would kind of turn the corner and see the finishing line ahead of them, and also hear the crowd at that point all clapping and cheering and shouting. And they would kind of brighten and pick up pace and cross the line. And that's kind of the image that the writer to the Hebrews has. In Hebrews 11, there's a long list of Old Testament heroes of faith. And Jacob, who we're particularly thinking about today, is on that list. And at the end of it, the writer goes on, he says, Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great crowd of witnesses, let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. And it's almost like these Old Testament heroes, with all their difficulties in their lives, are part of the crowd that is cheering you and I on in our race. And so we do say that Genesis is very relevant. Let's just pray briefly. Father, we do just pray, Father, that the goodness that you've got for us in your Word, Lord, that we would receive that today, Lord. We don't want to miss out on any good thing that you've got for us in your Word for us today, and in fact, every day. Amen. Next slide. So, Genesis 46 and 47 are really part of one story. And you can remember about a fortnight ago, Andy took us through Genesis 46. I kind of divided it up into what I'm calling episodes, probably more like scenes, really. But episodes one, God appears to Jacob and says to him, I want you to go to Egypt. And that must have felt really odd, because he called to the Promised Land, and God is saying, No, I want you to go to Egypt. But nevertheless, God speaks to him. So that's episode one. Episode two is he journeys to Egypt. And episode three, he's reunited with a son he had long believed dead. He's reunited with Joseph. And then today we have episode four, a meeting with Pharaoh of the brothers, a delegation of brothers meet Pharaoh. Episode five, Jacob then himself meets Pharaoh. Episode six, quite a longer section, all about Joseph's leadership during the famine that is affecting Egypt at this time. And in the final episode there, Jacob prepares to die. So let me read the chapter. It's been, I think, necessary but still a shame as we've been going through Genesis. Time has just been a pressure to read the whole chapter, but we go off to a good start today, and I want to read it to us, because this is God's Word. This is God-breathed. Then Joseph went to see Pharaoh and told him, My father and my brothers have arrived from the land of Canaan. They have come with all their flocks and herds and possessions, and they are now in the region of Goshen. Joseph took five of his brothers with him and presented them to Pharaoh. And Pharaoh asked the brothers, What is your occupation? They replied, We your servants are shepherds, just like our ancestors. We have come to live here in Egypt for a while, for there is no pasture for our flocks in Canaan. The famine is very severe there, so please, we request permission to live in the land of Goshen. Then Pharaoh said to Joseph, Now that your father and brothers have joined you here, choose any place in the entire land of Egypt for them to live. Give them the best land of Egypt. Let them live in the region of Goshen, and if any of them have special skills, put them in charge of my livestock too. Then Joseph brought in his father Jacob and presented him to Pharaoh, and Jacob blessed Pharaoh. How old are you? Pharaoh asked him. Jacob replied, I have traveled this earth for 130 hard years, but my life has been short compared to the lives of my ancestors. Then Jacob blessed Pharaoh again before leaving his court. So Joseph assigned the best land of Egypt, the land of Ramesses, to his father and brothers, and he settled them there just as Pharaoh had commanded. And Joseph provided food for his father and his brother in amounts appropriate to the number of their dependents, including the smallest children. Meanwhile, the famine became so severe that all the food was used up and people were starving throughout the lands of Egypt and Canaan. By selling grain to the people, Joseph eventually collected all the money in Egypt and Canaan, and he put the money in Pharaoh's treasury. And when the people of Egypt and Canaan ran out of money, all the Egyptians came to Joseph. Our money is gone, they cried, but please give us food or we will die before your very eyes. Joseph replied, since your money is gone, bring me livestock. I will give you food in exchange for your livestock. So they brought their livestock to Joseph in exchange for food, in exchange for their horses, flocks of sheep and goats, herds of cattle and donkeys. Joseph provided them with food for another year. But that year ended and the next year they came again and they said, we cannot hide the truth from you, our Lord. Our money is gone and all our livestock and cattle are yours. We have nothing left to give you but our bodies and our land. Why should we die before your very eyes? Buy us and our land in exchange for food. We offer our land and ourselves as slaves to Pharaoh. Please give us grain so we may live and not die so the land does not become empty and desolate. So Joseph brought all the land, bought all the land of Pharaoh for Egypt and all the Egyptians sold in their fields because the famine was so severe and soon all the land belonged to Pharaoh. As for the people, he made them all slaves from one end of Egypt to the other. The only land he did not buy was the land belonging to the priests. They received an allotment of food directly from Pharaoh so they didn't need to sell their land. Then Joseph said to the people, look today I have bought you and your land for Pharaoh. I will provide you with seed so you can plant the fields. Then when you harvest it, one fifth of your crop will belong to Pharaoh. You may keep the remaining four-fifths of seed for your fields and it's food for you, your households and your little ones. You have saved our lives, they exclaimed. May it please you my Lord to let us be Pharaoh's servants. Joseph then issued a decree still in effect in the land of Egypt that Pharaoh should receive one-fifth of all the crops grown on this land. Only land belonging to the priests was not given to Pharaoh. Meanwhile the people of Israel settled in the land of Goshen in Egypt. There they acquired property, they were fruitful and their population grew rapidly. Jacob lived for 17 years after his arrival in Egypt so he lived 147 years in all. As the time of his death drew near, Jacob called for his son Joseph and said to him, please do me this favor. Put your hand under my thigh and swear that you will treat me with unfailing love by honoring this last request. Do not bury me in Egypt. When I die, please take my body out of Egypt and bury me with my ancestors. So Joseph promised, I will do as you ask. Swear that you will do it, Jacob insisted. So Joseph gave his oath and Jacob bowed humbly at the head of his bed. Amen. So yes, if we can have that slide. Oh, can we go back to, can we go back a few slides to nearly the beginning? I think it's going to be the first couple of hours. Let's keep it back. That's it. So here we are in what I was calling episode four, and Joseph's taken a delegation of the brothers to meet Pharaoh. And we can probably picture the scene about, I mean, Pharaoh is the leader of a superpower. And they're really quite a small tribe from Canaan. And they are looking to be economic migrants. That's definitely what we call them today. They've come because there's no food left in their land, so they're coming as economic migrants. So it's kind of a subservient tone to it, isn't it? We're your servants, Pharaoh. But also kind of stressing things that they want. You know, we're shepherds. By the way, we've got flocks, but if you would let us stay for a while. And actually, at the end of the previous chapter, we see that actually Joseph had coached them to say this. Joseph was good at managing his boss, and he's prepared this. So this speech is important. Because, you know, this is a difficult moment. Pharaoh could have sent them away. So that's the first of the episodes. And you see that they're coming to live in Egypt for a while. So they're not saying, we're coming here to settle permanently. We're coming for a while. I'll mention that briefly, because that kind of phrase, for a while, or other versions of it, are quite important to this whole chapter. So I'm just picking out the first time it appears. Next slide. And this is interesting, actually, because you remember the brothers were speaking to Pharaoh. But Pharaoh's reply is addressed to Joseph. Now, you know, there's a couple of possibilities. One, of course, it's simply that Joseph is kind of the head of the delegation, isn't it? He's still the important guy. And so Pharaoh speaks to somebody of, you know, Joseph's number two in the land. So Pharaoh naturally speaks to him, not to the brothers. But it's also possible it might just be a side meeting. You know, in my career, I saw things like that. You know, somebody very senior would listen to what people had to say, and then have a kind of separate meeting with their inner group of most senior people and make a decision. And that's what kind of is happening here. Pharaoh is sitting down with his number two, and he's making a decision. And he's choosing to let them stay. And there's quite a mention of the word Goshen. I don't know if you picked that up as I was reading it, but Goshen, I think if you take the end of 46 and 47, it gets mentioned something like eight times, something like a lot of times. And Goshen is the place that Joseph has definitely engineered for them to be. So he's told them to go in Joseph. He's mentioned it to Pharaoh himself that they're already there. And then they've asked if they can stay in Goshen. So they definitely are after Goshen. And why is that? Well, I think at least three possibilities, or some mixture of them. One is simply that Joseph just thinks it's going to be a really good place for them and their flocks. So it can be as simple as that. The second possibility, though, is that Joseph is doing this in some ways to protect them. Because at this time, the kind of main center, the kind of equivalent of London, Egypt at that time, a place called Memphis. So Memphis is a big urban center with all the, so that's where the main stuff is happening. So Joseph doesn't want them in Memphis. He wants them kind of on the edge of the territory, and up in the kind of northeast corner of the Nile Delta is Goshen. And is he wanting them to protect them from the Egyptians to some extent? There have been hints, more than hints, actually, of prejudice of Egyptians towards Canaanites through the last couple of chapters. Egyptians didn't eat with Canaanites. Even Joseph didn't eat with them. And apparently they regard shepherds as pretty abominable. So they don't want to kind of mix with shepherds, because they're kind of sophisticated urban people. So is Joseph protecting them in that sense? And if that was right, he probably had seen something that is definitely there, because the whole book of Exodus is based on the fact that these Israelites end up getting very badly treated in Egypt. So, you know, racial prejudice is alive in this situation. I guess a third possibility is one that actually he wants to protect them from the Egyptians, but in a different sense. Does Joseph see that there's a risk of assimilation, that if they're just mingling in with all the Egyptians, that they will pick up Egyptian ways of life and Egyptian habits and start to live like Egyptians? They assimilate, and then they start worshiping Egyptian gods, and suddenly they're distinctive as the people of God has gone altogether. So it may be some mix of those factors. I'm not going to be too definite about it, because the Bible doesn't tell us. So it's conjecture to an extent, so I don't want to lay too much weight on that. But nevertheless, it's something like that that is going on. Next slide. And then we have Joseph brought in his father to see Pharaoh. And it's only because the tone of this one is slightly different, whereas the brothers were deeply respectful, kind of, you know, bowing and like that before Pharaoh. Jacob seems to carry a lot more authority in that situation. And that may be because he's given the respect due to an older man. It may be that, actually, Jacob carries some moral authority that somehow he's just present in the room when this is going on. There's also—not so much in this translation, but in some of the original language—that Jacob by this time has got some mobility issues, because it talks about Joseph bringing him in to see Pharaoh and then making him stand before Pharaoh. Now, you know, it might simply be that he's presenting him, but kind of sometimes I've seen in that that maybe actually Jacob had to be helped into the room and then helped to stand before Pharaoh. And then he has this conversation with Pharaoh, and Pharaoh says, How old are you? Again, the literal question that Pharaoh asked him is quite—Pharaoh says, How many are the days of the years of your life? How many are the days of the years of your life? And Jacob replies, The days of the years of my life—no, the days of the years of my temporary residence are few and hard. The days of the years of my life are 130 years, but they've been few and hard. And it's interesting that having been just asked, in a sense, for a number, he's introduced this phrase, temporary residence. And in some translations, you'll get that translated as sojourner. That's a kind of less common word these days, but it means temporary residence. And, you know, again, we heard that earlier, and one of the features of this chapter is that this thought of temporary residence is quite important to what this whole chapter is about. But Jacob blesses Pharaoh—in fact, he blesses Pharaoh twice. So he's not, in a sense, in a cringing situation. He's actually taking authority in the situation, and Pharaoh almost seems respectful of Jacob. You might think it odd to hear somebody who's 130 and whose son has become the number two in Egypt describe his days as being few and hard, but that is the expression that Jacob uses. And there's a lot in that, because if you think about Jacob's life, he undoubtedly had had a hard life. You know, he's had to run away from home while still quite a young man, immediately after his father's death, because otherwise he's at risk of being killed by his own brother. He had been particularly close to his mother, Rebekah, and he never sees her again. He gets tricked into an arranged marriage that proves unhappy, and he becomes the head of quite a dysfunctional family. The wife he deeply loved dies early in childbirth, and then the son that he's particularly close to he believes has been died, and he's lived with that belief for many years. So Jacob has had a hard life, but nevertheless there is something very beautiful, which I'll come back to, I think, about the Jacob we now see before us. Next slide. So, with the authority of Pharaoh, Joseph gives them the land in the region of Ramesses. Apparently that's just another word for Goshen, so it's the same place. And Joseph provides food for his father and his brother. Again, we see that Joseph is continuing to behave graciously in all this that he's had. He's been through very difficult episodes in his life directly at the hands of his brothers, but he's been continuing to behave graciously in this situation and providing for them all. Next one. And then the next section, which is actually the longest in the chapter, and you had me read it, really running from 13 to 26, is about the famine and what happens with the Egyptians during the famine. And that can strike us as a bit hard, because it's quite clear in all this, Pharaoh is getting very much wealthier. And so we can think, well, it's kind of not sure how I feel about that section. However, people who have kind of studied this deeply said, you know, first of all, you can see that the Egyptians are asking for this, and they seem very grateful. So what they're asking for is what Joseph gives them. He undoubtedly is responsible for saving perhaps even millions of lives, certainly many, many lives who are starving to death, and Joseph is instrumental in their being saved. And the end result for people who are being described as slaves doesn't sound much like slavery as we would understand it, because they're still living on their own farms, and they get to keep 80 percent of all that they grow and produce. So there's a kind of 20 percent flat rate tax and everything else is yours. Well, that's kind of probably not would have been your mind idea of what slavery would ordinarily look like. I mean, in this country today, I think the burden of taxation on people of average income is about 30 to 35 percent. So, you know, they're facing a much lower rate. Comparisons, of course. I don't suppose the NHS was up to much in Egypt. I don't suppose there was a state pension, so all the rest. But anything, just it's a little bit of an aside, but I think this kind of passage is helpful. I meant every word of what I said about the Bible being God's word and God speaking to us through it and about the authority of that word absolutely mean every word of that. But it doesn't mean that we lift and drop everything in the Old Testament and just say we take that on board. It doesn't mean that, say, the way in which Joseph managed that famine is instructive for us in how we might manage a situation today. There's another odd detail about a vow later in this chapter that you might have picked up about putting your hand under somebody's thigh while making a promise. We don't do that. There's a good reason. You know, it's not, so it's not lift and drop, but it is kind of hearing the voice of God and dealing with the passage respectfully. So that was a bit of an aside. Next slide. And the people of Israel settled in the land of Goshen, and there they acquired property and were fruitful and their population grew rapidly. And you remember what I said at the beginning about the previous chapter and about what Andy preached about was it must have felt very, very strange, particularly to Jacob, when having been called to the Promised Land and believed that that's where they belonged to be told to go to Egypt. But in that, God had promised, and it's in chapter 46, I think it's verse 3, he said, I am calling you to Egypt and you will be prosperous there. And this is God keeping this promise, and that is a promise that we've seen at earlier points in Genesis. So this has all been part of God's plan. God's timing in the way that he works can frequently be deeply puzzling to us, because to an extent his ways are not our ways, but God is keeping his promises, and that's what this verse is about. Next. The time of his death do near, Jacob called for his son Joseph and said, please do me this favor, put your hand under my thigh and swear that you will treat me, and don't bury me in Egypt. Take me home and bury me with my ancestors. And it almost seems quite a formal little thing for a father and son discussion, but you sense behind it all that Jacob, this is very, very important to Jacob, so he's very insistent about it. He doesn't want there to be any misunderstanding. He doesn't want there to be any wriggle room that would mean that after his death something different would happen. He wants Joseph to understand very definitely that he intends to be buried with his ancestors in Egypt, in Canaan. Actually, if you know this, there's a memorial today in Hebron in the West Bank, which is honored by Jews, Christians, and Muslims, which is the family grave so people believe of Abraham and Isaac and Sarah and Rebekah and Jacob. So this is very important to him, and in this reference to putting your hand under his thigh, he's recalling a bit of family history because his grandfather Abraham had used that same particular formula when sending a servant out to find a wife for who's to be Jacob's father. So he is, and he's thinking about the promised land is what Jacob's thinking about. And as we think about the application of this to us today, we'll definitely come back to that thought. Let's have the next slide. So the first thing I think that we learn from Jacob is about depending on God. I do find Jacob in these last chapters to be a deeply appealing and beautiful character. You know, there are plenty of examples in the Bible, and indeed in church life, of people who have a good start or a good middle with God but finish badly. Solomon would be an example of that. You read the early years of Solomon and how he gets made king, and he says some glorious things, and you think it's absolutely wonderful. But by the time of his death, he was a shadow of the man of faith he'd been when he was younger. Jacob is finishing well. Yes, he's had some bad days. Yes, some of the problems of his dysfunctional family have been of his own making. Yes, he had often been deceitful. Yes, he did days when he felt completely hopeless and sometimes strikes us as being quite self-pitying. What does that tell you? It tells you he's like you and I. But he's finishing well. He's finishing well, and that's about depending on God. Of course, we depend on God. We hold on to God because God is holding on to us. But there is something beautiful. By the way, I love that. If you're familiar with the song Hold On To Me that Lauren Daigle thought, beautiful lyrics. Anyway, that's again an aside. Next slide. I don't think I've warned you this. There's going to be some C.S. Lewis. I think Jacob would have loved this. No amount of falls will really undo us if we keep picking ourselves up each time. We shall, of course, be very muddy and tattered children by the time we reach home. But the bathrooms are ready, the towels put out, and the clean clothes are in the earring cupboard. It's a magnificent quote. But you get the sense of that's the kind of thing that Jacob's thinking. And it's beautiful, and it's about holding on to God. And I do hope you put that in your heart, the desire to finish well. There's plenty around of us who are not finishing well. Make that your life's work to finish well. Next one. Do to others as you would like them to do to you. That's, of course, the golden rule. That's Jesus. But we see in this chapter a kind of cycle of blessing. Jacob is blessing Pharaoh. And through Joseph, the Egyptians and Jacob are being blessed through the famine, through the work of Joseph. And the people of God are also being blessed, you know, treating others as you would like them to do. And I think it's great that we as a church, I hope that the things that we are doing as a church are a blessing to the community around us. You know, whether it's the library, the drop-in, the hub, whatever it is, I hope that we're a blessing to the community around us. I hope you're a blessing in your family and in your workplace and amongst your neighbors, called to be a blessing. But in this particular context, we can see actually that the Israelites did get this message. Let's look at the next verse, which is not one of the best known. You must not mistreat or oppress foreigners in any way. Remember, you yourselves were once foreigners in the land of Egypt. I think quite a few political parties, that's never going to get on the manifesto, is it? But you know, it's important to treat others as you'd have them treat you. Next slide. Dear friends, I warn you as temporary residents and foreigners to keep away from worldly desires that wage war against your very soul. Here we see Peter, and he's not the only one of these, Peter picking up on this temporary resident thing. And it becomes quite important in the New Testament, and both Peter and the book of Hebrews definitely on it big time. And you get something of what was possibly in Joseph's mind about the choice of Goshen. He's protecting them from this deeply idolatrous culture of the Egyptians. But you see, identity is important to that. You know, if you're living in a country, but you're not pretending to be there forever, there's some stuff you wouldn't get involved in, because actually that's not your long-term home. Some stuff you're not going to do. And there's something about who we are, who do we, if I really believe myself, I am, in Bob Dylan's words, the property of Jesus. If I belong to God, and if my future is with him, then there are some things that are dangerous to me that I ought to be avoiding. You know, Jesus prayed, lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil, because temptation and evil are very real things. But identity is one of the tools that we use that protect us from temptation and evil. Next one. Where is your true country? There's a concept in law, not only actually in English law, but it's in a number of other countries as well, including Nigeria, I believe, called domicile. And domicile means permanent home. And it's distinguished from, say, residence. Residence is the place you happen to be living. So if you're in the UK for more than six months, you're regarded as resident here. And citizenship is usually about, well, who gives you your passport? So it's about, you know, kind of legal status. But domicile meant something more like permanent home. It's actually probably the deeper of the concepts. And permanent home is something that also kind of sticks to you. So you could go and live abroad for 25 years and come back to the UK, and the UK would say, your domicile was always in this country because your strongest roots and who you felt yourself to be belong to this country. So domicile is about true home. And the very real sense in which, as Christians, we're saying, so where is my true home? Where do I truly belong? Do I understand and see myself to be in this world, as Jacob put it, as a temporary resident? But my true home is with God in hand. There's that difference from temporary residence today, true home and sense of belonging. And the writer of Hebrews says precisely that. Hebrews 13, verse 14-ish. Your permanent home is not in this life. Our permanent home is with God. And we'll have another C.S. Lewis quote. The last battle, I still think the last battle, although it's in a sense a children's book, it's still one of the best things written about the life everlasting. And I commend it to you. But this is a phrase when they've kind of got into heaven effectively, and someone says, I have come home at last. This is my real country. I belong here. This is the land I have been looking for all my life, though I never knew it till now. And it's that sense of belonging to our true country. We are temporary residents here. We belong to Jesus. We belong to God's people. And our true country is yet to be. And actually, Karen read this at Anne's funeral, and I hope someone will read it at my funeral. So let's pray, and then I'll hand back to Steve, and we'll give an opportunity if you'd like to be prayed for. Father, we thank you for your great mercy and love, Lord, for all our feelings and shortcomings, for all our messed up-ness, for all the mistakes that we've made in our life. You are faithful, and we can depend on you because you are holding on to us. But Lord, we do want to understand the truth about things, Lord. We do want to receive your truth into our lives, Lord. We do want to know in our hearts where our true home is. Lord, we thank you for Jesus, and we thank you for all that lies ahead of us. The best is yet to be. We thank you for Jesus. Amen.

There comes a point in the life of every person, organization, and relationship where you realize that the habits, attitudes, patterns, methods, and sometimes people that got you to one stage in life are not sufficient to get you to the next stage. And oftentimes, when you get to that point, you find yourself feeling stuck, torn, or stagnant. If that's the place you find yourself today, it's time to ask yourself this question: what are the things in your life that need to be addressed, the cycles that need to be broken, and the habits that need to be changed in order for you to achieve what God wants you to achieve? Like Jacob in today's key passage, we all have a place up ahead that God is calling us to. There is a dimension of faith and spirituality that God wants us to experience, but in order to experience it, we must realize that we can't keep going on living like this.

Everyone in life comes to defining moments when they can't go back, and they don't know how to go forward. How do you react in such moments? How can you overcome panic and pressure? How can you move into a better future, the best future, when a bad past threatens to undermine you?    These were issues faced by one of the most famous characters in the Bible. There was a moment in Jacob's life where he came to a great crisis and feared for his life and for his family. But this moment became the turning point where he moved with freedom and restoration into his God-given destiny (Read Genesis 32:22-32). We see some powerful lessons from this story.  1. You need to overcome your past (Genesis 25; Genesis 27:36-41; Genesis 32:22; Luke 5:5) 2. You need to learn how to call out to God in your time of great need (Genesis 32:7; Genesis 32:9-12,24-26; Luke 18) 3. You need to change (Genesis 32:25,31; Genesis 32:28; Genesis 33:4) Apply  1. You need to overcome your past. Every one of us has a past. And at some point, unless we have overcome all the things in our past, these will catch up with us and hinder us from stepping into all God has for our future. Jacob was a deceiver by nature, who twice deceived his older brother Esau. He took advantage of his brother when he was very vulnerable, and took his birthright as the firstborn (Genesis 25). And again, with the help of his mother, Jacob deceived his father Isaac into giving him the blessing due to Esau before their father died (Genesis 27:36,41). As a result, Jacob lived 20 years on the run. He knew that Esau was coming for him. Over time, Jacob acquired wives, many children and possessions, and although he had managed to overcome many challenges in his own life, the one thing he couldn't run away from was his broken relationship with his brother. To go forward he had to overcome the past. And there came a moment when he was confronted with his past (Genesis 32:22), hearing that his brother and 400 men are coming to meet him. Jacob was petrified. Have you been fully set free from your past? What words or experiences have shaped you and made you see yourself as you do? So many people have suffered many things in their lives, including abuse, dysfunctional families and broken families, or bullying. People can be successful, but they can carry the sense of being a victim because they have been marked in their spirit by being bullied/ They can feel, however successful they are or how other people see them, that they are a fraud. So many live with imposter syndrome, just waiting to be found out that you aren't as good as people think you are. Maybe you can relate to this. What is your fear? Do you live with the fear of failure, of not making it? There may be something in your past that today you have to overcome. Because you have to overcome your past to move forward in life. Just as when Jesus told his first disciples to launch out and prepare for a big catch of fish, Peter had to overcome his mindset of past failure before he could move into his future (Luke 5:5). Many of the world's greatest inventors didn't see their failures as failures. They saw them as stepping stones for how to succeed. You can't run away from your past, and you can't let the past keep hanging around in your present. If you don't overcome your past, it will overcome and rule you. Maybe you need to be healed from the pain of grief. Unless you're healed then you will be set back. Time is not a healer, you just get better at dealing with things. But the Lord can heal your past. No matter the past financial position of your family, or past addictions or unfaithfulness in your family, you can overcome it. You can overcome the mindset of it being inevitable that certain things will just keep repeating in your family line forever. So, no matter your past, just like Jacob, you need to overcome to have a new future. 2. You need to learn how to call out to God in your time of great need. Jacob was in a time of great need, and he knew that the only God's miraculous intervention in this situation could rescue him, nothing and no one else would do (Genesis 32:7). So, Jacob prayed (Genesis 32:9-12, 24-26). Jacob called out to the God of his fathers, and reminded God of all the promises he'd received despite his unworthiness. But more than that, Jacob called on God to come and save him. Jacob wrestled with the man and refused to let him go. As far as Jacob was concerned, he was wrestling with God Himself. Jacob knew the promises of God over his life, but he was worried. And that night, he had his encounter alone. You cannot rely on your husband or wife, your parents or anyone else for the encounter that only you can receive. You have to cry out to God, and keep on until you know you have broken through. Like Jacob, it might mean a whole night in prayer, wrestling with the Lord to overcome. It may mean that you take some time off or clear your diary so that you can just pray and call out to God so that you can receive a life changing breakthrough (see story of Billy Graham and Stephen Olford). The call of God is one thing. The anointing of God is quite another. And the anointing of God comes when you say to God, ‘I will not let you go unless you bless me'. Jesus taught a parable in Luke 18 about a persistent widow who would not stop bothering the unjust judge until she received her breakthrough. We too need to have that kind of persistent faith. Decide that whatever your situation, you will call out to God with absolute determination.  3. You need to change. To overcome and walk in the way God wants us to, we have to change. Jacob had a call on his life but wasn't ready for what was to come. He needed to change. Something had to give. Something had to change. And that was Jacob himself. There were changes in 2 main areas of change. Firstly, Jacob had to be weakened to depend on God (Genesis 32:25,31). God was opening up new opportunities. But he no longer walked so self-confidently or with his previous swagger. His encounter with God had changed him. Secondly, Jacob was given a new name. Names in the Bible signify identity. So by being given a new name, God was giving him a new identity. Before he was called Jacob which meant ‘deceiver' Now he was to be known as Israel, an overcomer (Genesis 32:28). He'd broken through to another level with God and with people. And God blessed him. And God wants to do the same for you. But first God wants to change you and remove things in your nature, your past, your reactions of anger, harshness, bitterness, negative speaking or living by your emotions. When you encounter God, you will be changed, and it will be evident to others. It was a new day of change for Jacob. And it was evident to everyone afterward that Jacob had encountered the Lord and been changed because he walked with a limp afterwards, and he had a new name and new nature. He'd broken through. God had made the way for him not only to be saved, but for him to see reconciliation in his family and a new future (Genesis 33:4). Today, you can overcome your past. You can call out to God in your time of great need, and you can be changed, ready for the great future the Lord has ahead of you. 

Everyone in life comes to defining moments when they can't go back, and they don't know how to go forward. How do you react in such moments? How can you overcome panic and pressure? How can you move into a better future, the best future, when a bad past threatens to undermine you?    These were issues faced by one of the most famous characters in the Bible. There was a moment in Jacob's life where he came to a great crisis and feared for his life and for his family. But this moment became the turning point where he moved with freedom and restoration into his God-given destiny (Read Genesis 32:22-32). We see some powerful lessons from this story.  1. You need to overcome your past (Genesis 25; Genesis 27:36-41; Genesis 32:22; Luke 5:5) 2. You need to learn how to call out to God in your time of great need (Genesis 32:7; Genesis 32:9-12,24-26; Luke 18) 3. You need to change (Genesis 32:25,31; Genesis 32:28; Genesis 33:4) Apply  1. You need to overcome your past. Every one of us has a past. And at some point, unless we have overcome all the things in our past, these will catch up with us and hinder us from stepping into all God has for our future. Jacob was a deceiver by nature, who twice deceived his older brother Esau. He took advantage of his brother when he was very vulnerable, and took his birthright as the firstborn (Genesis 25). And again, with the help of his mother, Jacob deceived his father Isaac into giving him the blessing due to Esau before their father died (Genesis 27:36,41). As a result, Jacob lived 20 years on the run. He knew that Esau was coming for him. Over time, Jacob acquired wives, many children and possessions, and although he had managed to overcome many challenges in his own life, the one thing he couldn't run away from was his broken relationship with his brother. To go forward he had to overcome the past. And there came a moment when he was confronted with his past (Genesis 32:22), hearing that his brother and 400 men are coming to meet him. Jacob was petrified. Have you been fully set free from your past? What words or experiences have shaped you and made you see yourself as you do? So many people have suffered many things in their lives, including abuse, dysfunctional families and broken families, or bullying. People can be successful, but they can carry the sense of being a victim because they have been marked in their spirit by being bullied/ They can feel, however successful they are or how other people see them, that they are a fraud. So many live with imposter syndrome, just waiting to be found out that you aren't as good as people think you are. Maybe you can relate to this. What is your fear? Do you live with the fear of failure, of not making it? There may be something in your past that today you have to overcome. Because you have to overcome your past to move forward in life. Just as when Jesus told his first disciples to launch out and prepare for a big catch of fish, Peter had to overcome his mindset of past failure before he could move into his future (Luke 5:5). Many of the world's greatest inventors didn't see their failures as failures. They saw them as stepping stones for how to succeed. You can't run away from your past, and you can't let the past keep hanging around in your present. If you don't overcome your past, it will overcome and rule you. Maybe you need to be healed from the pain of grief. Unless you're healed then you will be set back. Time is not a healer, you just get better at dealing with things. But the Lord can heal your past. No matter the past financial position of your family, or past addictions or unfaithfulness in your family, you can overcome it. You can overcome the mindset of it being inevitable that certain things will just keep repeating in your family line forever. So, no matter your past, just like Jacob, you need to overcome to have a new future. 2. You need to learn how to call out to God in your time of great need. Jacob was in a time of great need, and he knew that the only God's miraculous intervention in this situation could rescue him, nothing and no one else would do (Genesis 32:7). So, Jacob prayed (Genesis 32:9-12, 24-26). Jacob called out to the God of his fathers, and reminded God of all the promises he'd received despite his unworthiness. But more than that, Jacob called on God to come and save him. Jacob wrestled with the man and refused to let him go. As far as Jacob was concerned, he was wrestling with God Himself. Jacob knew the promises of God over his life, but he was worried. And that night, he had his encounter alone. You cannot rely on your husband or wife, your parents or anyone else for the encounter that only you can receive. You have to cry out to God, and keep on until you know you have broken through. Like Jacob, it might mean a whole night in prayer, wrestling with the Lord to overcome. It may mean that you take some time off or clear your diary so that you can just pray and call out to God so that you can receive a life changing breakthrough (see story of Billy Graham and Stephen Olford). The call of God is one thing. The anointing of God is quite another. And the anointing of God comes when you say to God, ‘I will not let you go unless you bless me'. Jesus taught a parable in Luke 18 about a persistent widow who would not stop bothering the unjust judge until she received her breakthrough. We too need to have that kind of persistent faith. Decide that whatever your situation, you will call out to God with absolute determination.  3. You need to change. To overcome and walk in the way God wants us to, we have to change. Jacob had a call on his life but wasn't ready for what was to come. He needed to change. Something had to give. Something had to change. And that was Jacob himself. There were changes in 2 main areas of change. Firstly, Jacob had to be weakened to depend on God (Genesis 32:25,31). God was opening up new opportunities. But he no longer walked so self-confidently or with his previous swagger. His encounter with God had changed him. Secondly, Jacob was given a new name. Names in the Bible signify identity. So by being given a new name, God was giving him a new identity. Before he was called Jacob which meant ‘deceiver' Now he was to be known as Israel, an overcomer (Genesis 32:28). He'd broken through to another level with God and with people. And God blessed him. And God wants to do the same for you. But first God wants to change you and remove things in your nature, your past, your reactions of anger, harshness, bitterness, negative speaking or living by your emotions. When you encounter God, you will be changed, and it will be evident to others. It was a new day of change for Jacob. And it was evident to everyone afterward that Jacob had encountered the Lord and been changed because he walked with a limp afterwards, and he had a new name and new nature. He'd broken through. God had made the way for him not only to be saved, but for him to see reconciliation in his family and a new future (Genesis 33:4). Today, you can overcome your past. You can call out to God in your time of great need, and you can be changed, ready for the great future the Lord has ahead of you. 

(2:36) Bible Study: Isaiah 1:10, 16-20 –This passage is about God’s power to transform even our sinfulness. Go can take our sinfulness and use it to reform us. Matthew 23:1-12 – Jesus goes up the mountain, sat down and spoke. Rabbi’s sat to teach their disciples. Peter according to tradition had a teaching chair. This idea of a chair of Moses is seen as Moses our teacher. Fr. Simon also explains what a phylactery is and what it means to be a father. (20:06) Break 1 (22:33) Letters: What does it mean to be in a state of mortal sin and how do you know if you are in it? Father answers this question and others. Send him a letter at simon@relevantradio.com (32:41) Break 2 (33:23) Word of the Day: Finger (35:47) Phones: Ken - I'm 82 years-old, not in best of health, pastor doesn't purify his hands before distributing communion. Last time I got sick for 3 weeks. He doesn't take criticism well. What should I do? Steve - Can you explain the tradition in the Bible of tying a red thread around the baby to mark them as the firstborn? Like Jacob and Esau? George - What is the definition of covenant? Does covenant allow divorce? Patrick - How is cremation justified in the Bible when the body is a temple of the Holy Spirit?

Prayer For The Week #3 - Genesis 32:22-32Heavenly Father, I wrestle with fears, doubts, and struggles that I don't always understand. Like Jacob, I have tried to rely on my own strength, but I need You. Teach me to persist in prayer, not just for answers, but to know You more. If I must struggle, let it draw me closer to You. If I must be broken, let it be so You can heal me. I trust Your purposes even when I don't see them. Strengthen and transform me, and make me wholly Yours. In Jesus' Name, Amen.

When we walk in the fear of the Lord, we find true ease, freedom, and transformation. Like Jacob, when we humble ourselves, acknowledge our flaws, and bring them to God, He doesn't condemn us—He changes us. From Jacob to Israel, God turns messes into miracles and weakness into strength. This is the generation that seeks Him with desperation, holding on until the blessing comes, until transformation is complete. Let God's fire purify your heart, removing what hinders, so His power can flow through you. As you walk in His authority, every room you enter will carry His peace, conviction, and presence. Let's let God do His perfect work in us—His plans for us are always higher and better!

As a kid, some things just made sense - until you got older and realized, wait… that's not how the world works.Like Jacob, who thought clouds were the ghosts of dinosaurs. Or Evan, who was terrified that swallowing a fruit seed would make a tree grow in his stomach (same, Evan. Same).And then there's Charlotte. She believed bird seed actually grew birds. So she planted some in the yard… and the next day? Birds everywhere. Proof!Honestly, kid logic is undefeated. What's something you believed as a child that you later realized was completely ridiculous?

True freedom isn't found in striving but in receiving the transformation only God can give. Jacob spent his life fighting—grasping for control, running from his past, and wrestling with who he was. But one encounter with God changed everything. Like Jacob, we often resist surrender because we don't fully see who God says we are.

True freedom isn't found in striving but in receiving the transformation only God can give. Jacob spent his life fighting—grasping for control, running from his past, and wrestling with who he was. But one encounter with God changed everything. Like Jacob, we often resist surrender because we don't fully see who God says we are.

Paul shares from Genesis 28:10-22 about Jacob who vowed to give a tithe to God, providing that God blessed him. This conditional vow demonstrated that Jacob was a work in process and so are we. Jacob had flaws that limited his ability to be fruitful but like Jacob, we can overcome them with God's help! Esau was hungry for stew, Jacob had a hunger for himself, the Prodigal Son was hungry for home. What are you hungry for? Like Jacob, let's be hungry for God and seek him in prayer and fasting. to God which was If God blesses him, he will give a tithe. For more information about Breathe New Life Church or if you'd like to make a decision to follow Jesus, visit our website here: https://breathenewlife.church/becomeachristian

Your Daily Prayer

Your Daily Prayer

[Gen 48:15-16] Like Jacob, we ought to see the Lord as our personal God in an intimate relationship with our shepherd and redeemer.

Episode SummaryChristmas often brings a sense of nostalgia—a longing for the warmth of cherished memories. In this episode, Jim Van Gelderen reflects on how those nostalgic moments can draw us back to times when we first met with God and sensed His purpose for our lives. As the holiday season stirs memories, this is a powerful opportunity to remember God's presence, His promises, and the destiny He has prepared for each of us.Topics DiscussedThe nostalgia of Christmas and its connection to cherished memoriesPersonal stories of meeting with God during formative yearsJacob's experience at Bethel: God's promises and purpose (Genesis 28)The encouragement of Deuteronomy 31:6, 8 in times of uncertaintyGod's gift of salvation and spiritual gifting for every believerHow young people can use the holiday season to seek God and His purposeKey TakeawaysNostalgic moments can point us to God's faithfulness and His presence in our lives.God has a purpose and sense of destiny for each of us—far greater than we can imagine.The holiday season provides a special time to reflect, seek God, and deepen your walk with Him.Like Jacob at Bethel, meeting with God in significant moments gives us confidence for the future.Make meaningful memories this Christmas by spending time with God and embracing His call. If you've been encouraged by this podcast, please take the time to give us a five-star rating and write a brief review. That would help tremendously in getting the word out and raising the visibility of the Thee Generation for others. For more faith inspiring resources and information about joining Thee Generation, please visit theegeneration.org.

Teacher: Josh Wilson  Text: Genesis 27:19–33 NIV  What if we took each moment of anxiety as a prompt for prayer? Pastor Josh reflects on the story of Jacob in Genesis 27 to explore our own human temptation to act out of manipulation or deceit when under stress. Like Jacob, we too often try to rely on ourselves rather than putting our trust in God; we tend to “power up” or “shut down” in the face of anxiety. Instead, Josh invites us to follow Jesus' example and entrust our worries to God.

Title: Be Fruitful and Multiply: Discipleship Through the Generations of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and Joseph Series: Be Fruitful & Multiply   Speakers: Pastor Josh & Minister Dave Introduction: Discipleship begins with being disciples ourselves and then discipling those in our household. The Lord desires to save households; godly families are the strength of a community. Satan, therefore, wants to destroy the family. It is how we weaken communities and take ground so he can hinder the work of God. The story of Abraham, Issac, Jacob, and Joseph is about the generational effect of family, the passing on of faith from one generation to the next. 1. Abraham: The Foundation of Faith and God's Covenant Key Scriptures: Genesis 12:1-3 "The Lord had said to Abram, 'Leave your native country, your relatives, and your father's family, and go to the land I will show you. I will make you into a great nation. I will bless you and make you famous, and you will be a blessing to others. I will bless those who bless you and curse those who treat you with contempt. All the families on earth will be blessed through you.'" Genesis 22:16-18 - This is what the Lord says: Because you have obeyed me and have not withheld even your son, your only son, I swear by my own name that  I will certainly bless you. I will multiply your descendants beyond number, like the stars in the sky and the sand on the seashore. Your descendants will conquer the cities of their enemies. And through your descendants all the nations of the earth will be blessed—all because you have obeyed me.” Discipleship Lesson: Abraham is often called the "father of faith" because his relationship with God was built on absolute trust and obedience. Despite not immediately seeing the fulfillment of God's promises, he faithfully followed God's direction. Abraham's story reveals that a foundational aspect of discipleship is faith in action—he heard God's Word, believed it, and obeyed. Romans 10:17 reminds us that "faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the Word of Christ." Abraham's example teaches us that the greatest gift we can pass to others, especially our families, is a legacy of faith. However, faith is not passive. It requires both listening and responding. Abraham's willingness to leave everything behind, even without knowing where God was leading him, demonstrates his heart posture toward God. For us, this means our hearing is intertwined with the condition of our hearts. If we aren't hearing from God, we must examine whether unconfessed sin, bitterness, or unforgiveness hinders us. Hebrews 8:10 reminds us that God's Word is written in our hearts. If our hearts are correct, we will feel convicted when we stray from God's path. Abraham's life also shows us the importance of perseverance in discipleship. God's promises to Abraham were not fulfilled immediately, yet he continued to walk with God through trials and uncertainties. Even when Abraham acted on impulse and created Ishmael, which led to difficult consequences, he remained faithful and did not give up on God's promise. This teaches us that even in our mistakes, faith involves returning to trust in God's plans. A powerful example of Abraham's faith came when he was tested with Isaac, his promised son. Despite the unimaginable difficulty of the situation, Abraham trusted God to provide a solution—even in the face of sacrificing his son. His obedience to God at that moment demonstrated a depth of faith that transcended his understanding, and God, faithful to His nature, provided a ram in place of Isaac. This foreshadows the ultimate sacrifice that God Himself would provide through Jesus Christ. Today, we who walk by faith are the fulfillment of the promise God made to Abraham—we are the stars in the sky that were foreshadowed in Genesis, a living testament to the legacy of Abraham's faith and obedience. Application: As disciples, we must cultivate a heart that listens and responds to God, ensuring our relationship with Him remains clear and unburdened by sin or unforgiveness. Like Abraham, we are called to not only receive God's blessings but to pass them on, especially to those we lead—whether in our families or communities. Through patience, perseverance, and unwavering trust, we can reflect Abraham's legacy and disciple others by sharing our faith daily. 2. Isaac: Inheriting and Continuing the Legacy Key Scriptures: Genesis 26:2-5 - The Lord appeared to Isaac and said, “Do not go down to Egypt, but do as I tell you. Live here as a foreigner in this land, and I will be with you and bless you. I hereby confirm that I will give all these lands to you and your descendants,[a] just as I solemnly promised Abraham, your father.  I will cause your descendants to become as numerous as the stars of the sky, and I will give them all these lands. And through your descendants all the nations of the earth will be blessed. 5 I will do this because Abraham listened to me and obeyed all my requirements, commands, decrees, and instructions.” Genesis 26:23-25 - 23 From there Isaac moved to Beersheba, 24 where the Lord appeared to him on the night of his arrival. “I am the God of your father, Abraham,” he said. “Do not be afraid, for I am with you and will bless you. I will multiply your descendants, and they will become a great nation. I will do this because of my promise to Abraham, my servant.” 25 Then Isaac built an altar there and worshiped the Lord. He set up his camp at that place, and his servants dug another well. Discipleship Lesson: Isaac inherited the promises given to Abraham, but those promises required him to establish his relationship with God. Just as no one can inherit their parents' faith, we must invite Jesus Christ into our hearts. Isaac's act of re-digging his father's wells (Genesis 26:18) symbolizes the discipleship journey: it teaches us that we must uphold and maintain the truths passed down to us while also making faith personal and alive in our lives. When the Lord spoke to Isaac, He reiterated the importance of obedience: "Do what I tell you" (Genesis 26:2-5). This is the essence of following Jesus—hearing His voice and obeying His commands, not our desires. As we disciple others, we must remember that our role is not to mold people into our image but to point them to Christ. Jesus will form them according to His will, shaping them into His likeness. Discipleship isn't about creating clones of ourselves; it's about leading people to Christ so they can encounter Him personally and be transformed. God's promises are multi-generational. Some promises made to previous generations may find fulfillment through us, while others will be fulfilled in future generations. Isaac's journey shows that inheriting God's blessing requires personal faith, obedience, and a willingness to follow the example. Isaac had to walk in the exact obedience as Abraham to receive the fullness of God's blessing. Isaac also had a personal encounter with God, and from that encounter, he built an altar to worship the Lord and established a well there (Genesis 26:25). This demonstrates a vital truth: we must seek our encounter with God. Until we know Him intimately, our worship will remain superficial. True worship springs from a personal relationship with God, rooted in a deep spiritual connection. The greatest gift we can offer others is not from our resources but from the deeper places we've encountered in the Lord. Jesus speaks of "living water" that flows from within (John 7:38), and as disciples, we are called to pass on that living water—truth and life that come from our relationship with God. Application:
In discipling others, we must encourage them to build their relationship with God. Like Isaac, they must "dig their wells" while upholding the foundational truths of their faith. Our role is to guide them to the source of living water—Jesus—so they can draw from Him and pass on that life to others. Only through a personal, living encounter with God can they grow in their faith and fulfill God's promises. Challenge Question: How are you maintaining and sharing the spiritual legacy entrusted to you? 3. Jacob: Transformation and the Multiplication of a Nation Key Scriptures:
Genesis 28:13-15
"At the top of the stairway stood the Lord, and He said, 'I am the Lord, the God of your grandfather Abraham, and the God of your father, Isaac. The ground you are lying on belongs to you. I am giving it to you and your descendants. Your descendants will be as numerous as the dust of the earth! They will spread out in all directions—to the west and the east, north and the south. And all the families of the earth will be blessed through you and your descendants. What's more, I am with you, and I will protect you wherever you go. One day, I will bring you back to this land. I will not leave you until I have finished giving you everything I have promised you.'" Genesis 35:9-12
"Now that Jacob had returned from Paddan-Aram, God appeared to him again at Bethel. God blessed him, saying, 'Your name is Jacob, but you will no longer be called Jacob. From now on, your name will be Israel.' So God renamed him Israel. Then God said, 'I am El-Shaddai—God Almighty. Be fruitful and multiply. You will become a great nation, even many nations. Kings will be among your descendants! And I will give you the land I once gave Abraham and Isaac. Yes, I will give it to you and your descendants after you.'" Discipleship Lesson:
Jacob's life illustrates a profound transformation journey—from a deceiver into Israel, the father of the twelve tribes. His story shows us that our flaws do not deter God; He specializes in transforming brokenness into a blessing. Just as Jacob was transformed, we were once deceived, and even deceivers, our lives have been radically changed through God's grace. Our transformation is living proof of God's power and faithfulness. In Christ, we become brand new creations; "the old has passed away, behold, all things have become new" (2 Corinthians 5:17). As disciple-makers, our calling is to help others shed the labels of their past and embrace their true identity in Christ. Discipleship isn't just about learning biblical facts—it's about knowing God intimately and experiencing His transforming power firsthand. It's one thing to know the Word of God but another to know the God of the Word. Jacob's transformation into Israel didn't come through head knowledge alone but through a life-changing encounter with God. The name "Paddan-Aram," where Jacob wrestled with God, means "face-to-face," symbolizing that discipleship requires an intimate, ongoing relationship with the Lord. Like Jacob, we must encounter God personally to be changed from the inside out. Christianity without a relationship is no different from works-based religions; it's our relationship with the living God that sets us apart. God moves powerfully on earth through those who walk with Him. As Jacob's name was changed to Israel, signifying a new identity and purpose, our lives are transformed as we walk closely with God. The Lord works through us, not just to change our own lives but to impact the world around us. True discipleship is about walking daily with God, allowing His presence to flow through us and multiply His blessings into the lives of others. Application:
Just as Jacob had to confront his past and wrestle with God to embrace his new identity, we must do the same in our spiritual journey. As we disciple others, we aim to guide them toward knowing God deeply and personally, helping them embrace their new identity in Christ. When people experience the reality of God for themselves, their lives are transformed, and they, like Jacob, can become a blessing to nations. Challenge Question: How can you encourage others through the transformation process in their spiritual journey? 4. Joseph: Multiplication Through Influence and Suffering Key Scriptures:
Genesis 45:4-8 - “Please, come closer," Joseph said to his brothers. So they came closer. And he said again, "I am Joseph, your brother, whom you sold into slavery in Egypt. But don't be upset, and don't be angry with yourselves for selling me to this place. God sent me here ahead of you to preserve your lives. This famine that has ravaged the land for two years will last five more years, and there will be neither plowing nor harvesting. God has sent me ahead of you to keep you and your families alive and to preserve many survivors. So it was God who sent me here, not you! And He is the one who made me an adviser to Pharaoh—the manager of his entire palace and the governor of all Egypt." Genesis 50:19-21: "But Joseph replied, 'Don't be afraid of me. Am I God that I can punish you? You intended to harm me, but God intended it all for good. He brought me to this position so I could save many people's lives. No, don't be afraid. I will continue to take care of you and your children.' So he reassured them by speaking kindly to them." Discipleship Lesson:
Joseph's life is a powerful example of God's use of suffering to accomplish His greater purposes. He is favored by his father but despised by his brothers. Joseph's journey from being sold into slavery to becoming the second most powerful man in Egypt is a testament to God's sovereignty. Even as Joseph endured betrayal, slavery, false accusations, and imprisonment, Scripture repeatedly emphasizes that "the Lord was with him." Despite his circumstances, Joseph found favor wherever he went—whether as Potiphar's servant, the head of a prison, or ultimately as the governor of Egypt. Joseph's life reminds us that God works for our good, even in the darkest moments. While Joseph's early dreams of greatness seemed far removed from his trials, God was weaving together a larger plan. Joseph's trials became the path that led to the fulfillment of his dreams and, more importantly, to the preservation of his family and the nation during a famine. Joseph's story also highlights the power of forgiveness. He could have harbored bitterness toward his brothers for their betrayal, but instead, he chose to see God's hand in his suffering. He acknowledged that though his brothers intended to harm, God used it for good to save many lives. Joseph's ability to forgive and see the bigger picture enabled him to reconcile with his family and extend grace and provision to them in their time of need. As disciple-makers, we learn from Joseph that our trials are not wasted. Through faithfulness in suffering, we can influence others, as Joseph did—multiplying God's grace, wisdom, and provision beyond our reach. Joseph's influence was not confined to his family; it extended to an entire nation, and his faithfulness in hardship testified to God's faithfulness and power. Application:
Sometimes, discipleship requires enduring hardship with faith and integrity, just as Joseph did. God often uses our most difficult seasons to shape us, not only for our personal growth but for the multiplication of His kingdom. Through perseverance, Joseph's influence grew beyond his immediate family to impact an entire nation. In the same way, our faithfulness in trials can have a ripple effect, influencing and discipling others through our example of trust in God. Challenge Question:
How can your faithfulness in trials disciple and influence others for God's kingdom? Conclusion: Fruitfulness in Discipleship Across Generations * The lives of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and Joseph show a pattern of discipleship through faithfulness, transformation, and influence. Each generation multiplied the impact of God's promise through their relationships and encounters with God. * Final Reflection: How can we be intentional about discipling others in a way that multiplies God's influence across generations? -- Praise Tabernacle Dr. Joshua Kennedy,  Pastor 2235 Ocean Heights  Egg Harbor Township, NJ 08234 pastorjosh@praisetabernacle.com praisetabernacle.church  (609) 927-4560(w), (609) 402-8869(c)

On today's PowerPoint, Pastor Jack Graham reminds us of the value of being alone with God. Like Jacob, we, too, can find God in our darkest times of struggle and learn to lean on Him. To support this ministry financially, visit: https://www.oneplace.com/donate/395/29

Today is a day of great mysteries revealed by the Lord. Join Prophet Hari Rao as he unveils the importance and power of a name. As you listen, may these profound truths sink deep into your spirit. While what you hear with your ears might be forgotten, what you receive in your spirit will remain.Jacob, a deeply flawed man named "deceiver" at birth, lived up to his name by deceiving his own family. Despite this, God was not intimidated by Jacob's mess or afraid to associate with him. Like Jacob, we all have lived up to the names given to us, which have become part of our identity. Sometimes, life is a journey of undoing a name. God, however, is not deterred by our frailties. When you come to God, you come to someone who can turn your life around.Jacob deceived his father and brother, usurping the blessing of the firstborn and stealing Esau's birthright. We often equate blessings with material possessions, but Jacob understood the power of the words his father was about to speak over his brother. Truly spiritual people understand that everything proceeds a word. Words spoken by a spirit are always more valuable than substance.Jacob's encounter in Genesis 28 occurs at the same location where his grandfather, Abraham, also encountered God and raised an altar to honor Him. This location had transformed from a mere physical place into a spiritual portal; the altar activated the spiritual DNA of the man who worshiped there decades ago. This is how you secure future generations. Your consecrations, altars, and sacrifices can speak for generations long after you are gone. You shape the future through the covenants you make, the prayers you pray, and the altars you raise. A legacy is not just an institution you build but the life you live before God.In Jacob's dream, he didn't just see a ladder; he saw mysteries, truths, and dimensions tabernacled in the Lord Jesus. The ladder is not just a physical element; it signifies a hierarchy of truths and mysteries. The distance between heaven and earth is bridged by truth, which is Jesus Himself. Jacob is now encountering this mystery and truth, receiving understanding from God. Every mystery conceals a reality, and this ladder leads Jacob to the God of his father. He learned mysteries that could provoke an encounter. Understanding these truths grants access to hidden realities.Jacob made a covenant with God, vowing to serve Him if he could return to his father's house in peace. Now, sixteen years later, Jacob wrestled for this covenant as he returned. Jacob was a man carrying mysteries; he understood the power of covenants and how to create lasting memorials before God. It wasn't by chance; he engineered and prepared for these encounters. Often, we receive a divine encounter or word and move on, unsure of how to immortalize that moment with God. Each divine encounter should be made a memorial, sealed by raising an altar before God. This is how you seal an encounter and make it immortal before God.Jacob wrestled with a mysterious being for his blessing, who, despite being stronger, needed to be released by Jacob before sunrise because he sought to remain a mystery and not become public domain! This is why you need fathers who wrestle with hidden mysteries and truths to reveal them. The angel refuses to bless Jacob and instead asks for his name, knowing Jacob doesn't understand that he was already blessed and that what he truly lacked was an identity.Every person has the opportunity to bury their struggle with them. But Rachel, overcome by her pain and past, named her son Benoni, a son of sorrow, repeating the mistake made by Jacob's mother. However, Jacob, aware of patterns and the power of a name, intervenes and calls him Benjamin, meaning "son of my right hand," affirming a new identity devoid of past sorrows.What is your name? Because your identity unlocks your blessing.May God open your eyes to reveal your true identity in Him. Receive grace for a new name that will unlock your blessings. 

“So, geopolitics really is more about defining possibilities and getting ready for any possibility so that if the crazy thing happens, ah, I've thought about it before. And I know what I'm going to do when that happens, rather than I'm going to perfectly be able to identify the scenario.” - Jacob Shapiro, Cognitive Investments--This week's episode features a future regular guest of Taylor Made Macro, Jacob Shapiro, from Cognitive Investments. Jacob is a true neutral geopolitical analyst that approaches the world and the markets with humility and back-breaking labor to arrive at his conclusions. Chase and Jacob discuss current events in global elections, the importance of finding original news sources, paying attention to news that seems strange, and implementing a ranking system for the avalanche of information one needs to get through to do this work each day. This helps you with the most important takeaway of the episode: scenario planning. Thinking about what could happen helps you prepare if it does happen. --Timestamps:(00:00) – Intro(01:38) – Charity: William and Anne Monroe Shapiro Endowment(02:16) – Mexican Elections: Shienbaum is a Scientist (08:13) – Modi's Age and Charisma Have Their Limits(11:29) – South Africa's Apartheid History Overshadows the Geopolitical Potential(14:39) – Individual Leaders Can Have a Great Amount of Agency in the Right Moment, with the Right Circumstances(17:54) – Milei's Economic Changes Could be Trading Short-Term Pain for Long-Term Meaningful Change(25:23) – Mexican, Brazilian, and Saudi Arabian ETFs Are (as of recording) Mispriced. (27:16) – Between Two Pines(32:43) – Scenario Imagination and Admitting You're Wrong are too Important When Money is on the Line(36:32) – Google Translate Your Way to More Accurate, Ground-level News, and Dissect the Piece of Info that Seems Strange(44:04) – Spanx vs. High Nutritional Reading (46:07) – Jacob's Books: All the King's Men by Robert Penn Warren & Psychology of Intelligence Analysis by Richards Heuer [Jr.](47:14) – Notion Helps Organize Information(51:44) – Finding the Original is the Most Important Task (53:37) – High Level Meeting Summaries: Pay Attention to Divergence (56:10) – Don't Put on a Trade Unless You Can Get to Confidence(58:40) – Geopolitical Analysis is not a Hard Science(1:02:14) – Swim to Connect Dots(1:03:10) – Half-Holocaust Survivors / Half D.C. Socialites – Bridging the Various Classes Perspectives for Better Political Analysis(1:06:36) - Plugs--This Episode's Charity:In honor of Jacob's parents, an endowment for First Generation American citizens has been established at Oxford College of Emory University. Please donate here.Jacob and Chase raised $20 for charity this week! --Referenced in the Show:Cognitive Dissidents (Soon The Jacob Shapiro Podcast): Depreciable Line of InformationMovie:

The Minor Prophets - Habakkuk #3Learning to Pray Like HabakkukRead Habakkuk 1:12-2:1Habakkuk is wrestling with God. Remember that his name means ‘embrace.' Not a passionate, loving embrace, like a hug, but the embrace of a man who is being rescued, holding on to his rescuer… Genesis 32:24 Like Jacob, Habakkuk wrestles with God in prayer, – over great issues that he does not understand. How can a God whose essential nature is love and holiness and mercy and justice possibly conceive a plan to use a wicked nation to chastise a nation whom he loves. So once again, Habakkuk runs to God and wrestles with him in prayer.Read the NOTES HERE. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Ladder Of Hope #RTTBROS #nightlight The Ladder of Hope "And he dreamed, and behold a ladder set up on the earth, and the top of it reached to heaven: and behold the angels of God ascending and descending on it." (Genesis 28:12, KJV) In the midst of life's trials and tribulations, it is easy to feel alone and forgotten. Like Jacob, we may find ourselves in a place of despair, fleeing from our past mistakes and uncertain of our future. Yet, even in our darkest moments, God is with us, offering a ladder of hope that reaches from earth to heaven. Jacob's story reminds us that no matter how far we may have strayed, God's grace is sufficient to bring us back to Him. "For the Son of man is come to seek and to save that which was lost." (Luke 19:10, KJV) Just as God met Jacob in his time of need, He is ready and willing to meet us in ours. The ladder in Jacob's dream represents the connection between heaven and earth, a bridge that God has provided for us through His Son, Jesus Christ. "Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me." (John 14:6, KJV) It is through Christ that we have access to the Father and the promise of eternal life. As we journey through life, we will face challenges and obstacles that threaten to overwhelm us. But like Jacob, we can find strength and comfort in the presence of God. "Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness." (Isaiah 41:10, KJV) The angels ascending and descending on the ladder serve as a reminder that God is constantly watching over us, sending His messengers to guide and protect us. "For he shall give his angels charge over thee, to keep thee in all thy ways." (Psalm 91:11, KJV) We are never alone, for God is always with us. When we find ourselves in a place of darkness and despair, we must remember to turn to God in worship and dedication. "God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth." (John 4:24, KJV) Like Jacob, we can transform our trials into altars of praise, acknowledging God's sovereignty and faithfulness in our lives. The morning of dedication marks the beginning of Jacob's transformation, a journey that will lead him from a deceiver to the Prince of Israel. "Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new." (2 Corinthians 5:17, KJV) No matter our past, God can redeem and transform us into the men and women He has called us to be. As we face the challenges and uncertainties of life, let us hold fast to the ladder of hope that God has provided. "Let us hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering; (for he is faithful that promised;)" (Hebrews 10:23, KJV) Let us trust in His unfailing love and grace, knowing that He is working all things together for our good and His glory. In the end, we can rest assured that God is weaving the tapestry of our lives according to His perfect plan. "For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the Lord, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end." (Jeremiah 29:11, KJV) Though the dark threads may be as necessary as the threads of gold and silver, we can trust that the final pattern will be one of beauty and purpose. https://linktr.ee/rttbros   Be sure to Like, Share, Follow and subscribe it helps get the word out. https://linktr.ee/rttbros

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS | WEEK 2 TALK WITH A FRIEND Grab a friend and discuss what you learned this weekend with them. 1. Like Abraham, God calls us to follow through obedience. Where is God calling you to a new step of obedience right now? 2. Like Isaac, you have received a spiritual heritage. How would you describe it? Describe the heritage you want to leave. 3. Like Jacob, sometimes we wrestle with God. What are you most likely to wrestle with God about (ex. doubts, questions, ungodly desires)? 4. Joseph had to put God's agenda ahead of his own, and this led him to forgive those who had offended him. What do you need to forgive for the Kingdom's sake? SEND IT Put what you are learning into action! How does this impact your life? What will you do or change as a result of what you've learned? TIME WITH GOD Our message this weekend covered some important ground in Scripture. Take time each day this week to dig into God's word and allow it to impact your life. Monday: Genesis 12 & Genesis 15-17 Tuesday: Genesis 21-22:19 Wednesday: Genesis 27-29; & Genesis 32-33 Thursday: Genesis 37 & Genesis 39-41 Friday: Genesis 42-46:7 & Genesis 49:8-12 If you're new to reading Scripture on your own, you can use the SOAP method. 1. Start with S-Scripture: read the passage. 2. Move on to O-Observation: what is interesting? What is confusing? What does this passage reveal about the world, God, and people (including yourself)? 3. Spend some time in A-Application: what do you sense you might need to do or change in response to what you have read? 4. Close your time with God in P-Prayer: talk to Him about your life, the day ahead, and what you are learning. == Sermon Series: CliffsNotes | Week 2 Speaker: Pastor Doyle Surratt Date: May 19th, 2024

Let's Go Crazy - Let's Go Crazy Like Jacob - Bishop Kevin Foreman

Like Jacob's flock, we reproduce what we behold. Our lives are transformed to be more like Jesus when we keep our eyes fixed on Jesus. If you prayed to repent of sin and make Jesus the Lord of your life text "Jesus" to 817-405-2244 and complete the form so we can pray for your new walk with God. For more information on our church community and to learn how you can get involved, visit our website at https://uncommonchurch.tv Have a prayer request? We would love to partner with you in prayer! Let us know how we can be praying with you by filling out a connect card https://uncommonchurch.tv/connect

Epaphras wrestled in prayer. That was Paul's description of this man. He was always wrestling prayer for his friends. He was doing the hard work of travailing on their behalf. Like Jacob in the Old Testament wrestled with God; he would not let go until God blessed him. For whom are you wrestling?I'm not saying there's something wrong with casual normal prayer; those occasional God, bless-em quick prayers. I'm just saying that travailing prayer is no more casual than giving birth. Wrestling is no more a quick easy moment, than it is out on the mat. But travailing prayer will change the world. I have little confidence in great sermons as the means of reaching people's hearts; but I have great faith in that simple Christian man or  woman, who will weep her eyes out over those who do not know Jesus. We can't travail about everything, but perhaps sometimes, we should travail about something. 

We take on a bunch of stuff. We start out talking about Newsom, San Francisco and welcoming the Communist government from China. We cover the homeless issue and cleaning the streets, as well as Biden calling Xi Jingping a dictator. Then, we cover rumors of a military coup headed by Trump, and even get in a word about the pro-palestinian protests trying to take over a DNC building. And finally, we cover the issue of how to wrestle with God. That's right WWE, we teach how to wrestle with GOD HIMSELF.

Like Jacob the Patriarch, real men wrestle with God. They don't pick fights with someone half their size.

Like Jacob the Patriarch, real men wrestle with God. They don't pick fights with someone half their size. 

Like Jacob the Patriarch, real men wrestle with God. They don't pick fights with someone half their size. 

When the ghost of Jacob Marley came to visit Ebenezer Scrooge, it seemed unlikely that Scrooge would ever change his ways. But as three other ghosts visited that Christmas Eve, Scrooge saw the error of his ways and changed forever.   There are times when it feels like we'll never be the people God created us to be. But the Holy Spirit is constantly at work in our lives, showing us where we mess up, so that we can become more like Jesus.

Are you tempted to deceive or manipulate to get your own way?

In the midst of life's twists and turns, we often find ourselves at the crossroads of dreams and reality. Just like Jacob in Genesis 27, whose pursuit of the birthright took him on a transformative journey, we too face choices that can shape our destiny. Every dream we chase comes at a cost. Jacob, in his pursuit of the birthright, forsook all that was familiar. Sometimes, we must leave the comfortable and embark on uncertain paths to realize our dreams. Jacob's journey teaches us that commitment to our dreams means letting go of the known to embrace the unknown. In embracing the journey, we find joy amidst challenges. Jacob's path was marked by uncertainty, yet God's presence illuminated his way. Just as Jacob's journey transformed him, our trials can mold us if we let them. Like Jacob, our lives are a journey from dream to destiny. The story of Jacob reminds us that dreams come with sacrifices, but God's plan is the ultimate destination. The birthright may cost us everything, but in surrendering to God's will, we find immeasurable joy. Subscribe to Our Channel!   New to LifeRock? Click here: liferockchurch.org/get-connected To support this ministry and help us reach people in our community. Click here: liferockchurch.org/give Do you need someone to pray for you? We will pray for you. Click here: liferockchurch.org/online-prayer Looking for weekly inspiration and guidance? Check out our devotionals. Click Here: liferockchurch.org/devotions Follow:  Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LifeRockColumbia Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/LifeRockChurch Twitter: https://twitter.com/LifeRockChurch

It can feel frustrating when you've tried really hard to follow God and it's not working anymore. In fact, it hurts.But God isn't trying to hurt us; He's trying to help us. Often these frustrations happen because we've unknowingly adopted unhealthy thought patterns and ways of living. Like Jacob wrestled with God in the Bible, we, too, have to wrestle with the lies and false beliefs that have taken root in our lives in order to experience healing and freedom. On this episode, author and Proverbs 31 Ministries staff member Ashley Morgan Jackson shares her story of wrestling with God. She helps us identify the lies we are believing and shows us how to turn to God when nothing else we've tried is working. You won't want to miss this episode!Related Resources: Order a copy of Ashley's new book, Tired of Trying: How to Hold On to God When You're Frustrated, Fed Up, and Feeling Forgotten. Download Ashley's free resource: “Disappointed with God” reflection guide. We created COMPEL Writers Training just for YOU! Stay accountable to practice your writing skills, and know you are not alone through our online community. Click here to join! Check out the other shows on the Proverbs 31 Ministries Podcast Network: Therapy & Theology with Lysa TerKeurst and the Encouragement for Today Podcast.  To the woman constantly pouring out, we created a day where all you have to do is show up and be filled. Join us for Reset: A Saturday To Tend to Your Soul at First Baptist Church in Charlotte, NC, on October 7, 2023.  Click here to download a transcript of this episode.

Part 1: https://youtu.be/8G6ohGFNQLs Part 2: https://youtu.be/sYnP19jQUyw In part 3 of our new series, 'Mourning Glory', we explore grieving through the lens of Numbers 13 and Genesis 32. Using these stories as perspective filters, we explore topics such as: 1) What is our Promised Land in the context of grieving? 2) What are the giants in our life and how we do conquer them? 3) Like Jacob, how do we wrestle with God the right way during our suffering? These are only a few of the questions we put under the microscope in this episode... Music creds: "Solar Ride" by Jamie Peter Fonti (APRA)

Like Jacob becoming Israel, we are rebranding. The podcast formerly known as The Bible Binge will now be known as Faith Adjacent! Join Jamie, Erin, and Evan as we celebrate our new name by having a conversation all about rebrands in the Bible. You'll hear about Jesus as a brand manager, Naomi's unsuccessful rebrand, and so much more! From torture devices as jewelry to fake accents in hot tubs, this episode has it all!  MENTIONS Tell me more about the Gap logo: See the failed rebrand here Erin's Rebrand: Check out the Boxcar Children  Scripture Referenced: Mara's Rebrand | Jesus as Shepherd Brand Manager | Noah's Ark  Relevant Past Episodes: Solomon, Pt 1 | Solomon, Pt 2 | Ruth and Boaz | The Serpent  Death Jewelry: Electric Chair Necklace | Guillotine Earrings Tell me more about English Bible Translations: Listen to this BSQTNA on Patreon Teach Me to Pray: Learn More Here | Get the Promo Code + Bonus Session    BONUS CONTENT Our Patreon supporters can access our Resource Deep-Dives, Office Hours episodes, monthly Fellowship Hall gatherings, and more! You can even test us out with a 7-day free trial. Become a partner. THE FAITH ADJACENT SHOP The only place on the Internet where you can find Bible studies and resources for those curious about faith AND Chris Hemsworth's abs. Check it out here!  THE POPCAST Check out our other podcast: The Popcast with Knox and Jamie. It's a weekly show about pop culture where we educate on the things that entertain, but don't matter. Here is our suggested Popcast starter playlist. Subscribe to our Newsletter: The Dish from Faith Adjacent Get The Bible Binge Merch: Shop here Shop our Amazon Link: amazon.com/shop/thepopcast Follow Faith Adjacent on Socials: Instagram | Twitter | Facebook Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Message by Pastor Jeff Schreve on Wednesday, July 12, 2023

The St. Paul Center's daily scripture reflections from the Mass for the Memorial of St. Benedict by Dr. Shane Owens. Benedict, Abbot, Religious Founder Obligatory Memorial First Reading: Genesis 32: 23-33 Responsorial Psalm: Psalms 17: 1b, 2-3, 6-7ab, 8b and 15 Alleluia: John 10: 14 Gospel: Matthew 9: 32-38 Learn more about the Mass at www.stpaulcenter.com

The St. Paul Center's daily scripture reflections from the Mass for the Memorial of St. Benedict by Dr. Shane Owens. Benedict, Abbot, Religious Founder Obligatory Memorial First Reading: Genesis 32: 23-33 Responsorial Psalm: Psalms 17: 1b, 2-3, 6-7ab, 8b and 15 Alleluia: John 10: 14 Gospel: Matthew 9: 32-38 Learn more about the Mass at www.stpaulcenter.com

This media has been made available by Mosaic Boston Church. If you'd like to check out more resources, learn about Mosaic Boston, or donate to this ministry, please visit mosaicboston.com.Today, we are continuing in our series, Graduate Level Grace, and we are walking through chapter by chapter through Genesis 37-50. Today, we're in Genesis 43, and we are studying the life of Joseph. The constant theme that keeps coming up is that salvation is by grace. It's not something that we earn. It's not a process that we initiate by our good works, our own efforts to conjure up righteousness before God. It's something that God initiates, that God blesses us with. He bestows us with His grace to get us into right relationship with him. As we go forward in the Christian life, he continues to give us more and more of it to carry out his work faithfully. Today, we're going to keep in touch into the theme of grace again, and talk further how Joseph points us to Christ in his engagement with his brothers. Again, these are long chapters. I'm going to read Genesis 43, the whole chapter. It's verses one through 34.Pastor Jan has not been reading at the beginning and doing more longer quotations, walking through the text. I'm going to read it now, and just go in and out of the text quickly throughout the sermon. So if you do have a Bible, open up to Genesis 43:1-34 and follow along, and we'll have it on the screen as well. Furthermore, we are going to partake in communion today. This is something that we, as a church, practice the first Sunday of every month. I'll preach the word, we'll respond, and then we will partake in communion and I'll explain the steps along the way once we get there. I'm going to read Genesis 43 verses 1-34, and the sermons is about the mercy of God. Genesis 43:1-34. Now, the famine was severe in the land and when they had eaten the grain that they had brought from Egypt, their father said to them, "Go again, buy us a little food."But Judah said to him, "The man solemnly warned us, saying, 'You shall not see my face unless your brother is with you. 'If you'll send our brother with us, we will go down and buy you food. But if you'll not send him, we'll not go down, for the man said to us, 'You shall not see my face, unless your brother is with you.'" Israel said, "Why did you treat me so badly as to tell that man that you had another brother?" They replied, "The man questioned us carefully about ourselves and our kindred, saying, 'Is your father still alive? Do you have another brother?' What we told him was an answer to these questions. Could we in any way know that he would say, 'Bring your brother down'?"And Judah said to Israel his father "Send the boy with me, and we'll rise and go, that we may live and not die, both we and you and also our little ones. I will be a pledge of his safety. For my hand you shall require him. If I do not bring him back to you and set him before you, then let me bear the blame forever. If we had not delayed, we would now have returned twice." Then their father Israel said to them, "If it must be so, then do this: take some of the choice fruits of the land in your bags, and carry a present down to the man, a little balm and a little honey, gum, myrrh, pistachio nuts and almonds. Take back with you the money that was returned in the mouth of your sacks. Perhaps it wasn't oversight. Take also your brother and arise, go again to the man. May God Almighty grant you mercy before the man, and may he send back your other brother and Benjamin. And as for me, if I am bereaved of my children, I am bereaved."So the men took this present, and they took double the money with them, and Benjamin. They arose and went down to Egypt and stood before Joseph. When Joseph saw Benjamin with them, he said to the steward of his house, "Bring the men into the house and slaughter an animal and make ready for the men, for the men are to dine with me at noon." The man did as Joseph told him and brought the men to Joseph's house. And the men were afraid because they were brought to Joseph's house, and they said, "It is because of the money which was replaced in our sacks the first time, that we were brought in, so that he may assault us and fall upon us to make us servants and seize our donkeys."So they went up to the steward of Joseph's house and spoke with him at the door of the house, and said, "Oh, my Lord, we came down the first time to buy food. And when we came to the lodging place we opened our sacks, and there was each man's money in the mouth of his sack and money in full weight. So we have brought it again with us, and we have brought other money down with us to buy food. We do not know who put our money in our sacks." He replied, "Peace to you. Do not be afraid. Your God and the God of your father has put treasure in your sacks for you. I received your money." Then he brought Simeon out to them. And when the man had brought the men into Joseph's house and given them water, and they had washed their feet and when he had given their donkeys fodder, they prepared the present for Joseph coming at noon, for they heard that they should eat bread there.When Joseph came home, they brought into the house to him the present that they had with them and bowed down to him to the ground. And he inquired about their welfare and said, "Is your father well, the old man of whom you spoke? Is he still alive?" They said, "You're serving our father as well. He's still alive." And they bowed their heads and prostrated themselves and he lifted up his eyes and saw his brother Benjamin, his mother's son, and said, "Is this your youngest brother of whom you spoke to me? God be gracious to you, my son." Then Joseph hurried out, for his compassion grew warm for his brother, and he saw a place to weep. And he entered his chamber and wept there. Then he washed his face and came out.And controlling himself he said, "Serve the food." They served him by himself, and then by themselves, and the Egyptians who ate with him by themselves, because the Egyptians could not eat with the Hebrews, for that is an abomination to the Egyptians. And they sat before him, the firstborn according to his birthright and the youngest according to his youth. And the men looked at one another in amazement. Portions were taken to them from Joseph's table, but Benjamin's portion was five times as much as any of theirs. And they drank and were Mary with him. This is the word of the Lord. Let us pray.Heavenly Father, we praise you that your word says the grass withers and the flower fades, but the word of the Lord remains forever. We thank you, Lord, for this ancient book that is so much more than a book. We thank you, Lord, for this story of the life of Jacob and his sons, Judah, Joseph. We thank you Lord that this story is not just a story, not just a piece of history. It's something that your spirit turn alive in our hearts that can use to sanctify us, to grow us, to mold us, to grow our dependence on you and see our need for you in greater forms. We pray, Lord, for the blessing of your word. Bless the word as I preach it, but it'd go out in power and force. Let each one of here convicted to trust you through the hardship of day-to-day life, convicted of their need to look for your work in their lives, more closely, convicted of their need to cling to your word in all trials and circumstances. Lord, I pray these things in Jesus' holy name. Amen.Well, today, we are talking about Genesis 43. And yesterday, I sent out an email. We sent out a weekly email before the sermons go out, and I ask you to think about if you were God, how would you tell him to work on you? And if you're a believer, I'm wanting you to think about how would you want God to grow you, to shape you. I know that for me, even though I know God, Christ calls us to take up our cross daily and follow in his footsteps. I think my plan for myself would involve lots of isolation. My wife would be there, my kids would be there, but sometimes I'd be able to escape and get full freedom from them. There'd be a babysitter for me and my wife when we want to spend time together. And then, there'd be a lot of opportunity to grow by watching soccer, to grow by exercising about three hours a day, to grow by just processing things, facts, knowledge, the word of God in isolation without really engaging other people.So, what is it for you? If you had the choice as a believer, how would you like God to grow you? What do you think is best? I think a lot of us, we don't really go, we know it's not really mature to think like that. But oftentimes, when God follows his classic means, shown to us in scripture, we resist and we think we could do it better. And if you're a nonbeliever, you say, "God, show me. Woo me. I want you to talk to me in this specific way." And what is that for you if you're a nonbeliever here today? Because this is a chapter where in Genesis 43, and God is dealing with Jacob and his sons... Who's Jacob? Jacob is the son of Isaac, the son of Abraham and God. This is the first book of the Bible, the book of the beginnings of the creation, the book of the beginnings of the family of God, and God's work in creation.God creates the world, all things are good. Adam and Eve walk in perfect unity and peace and perfect knowledge of him. There's no sin, there's no tension, there's no conflict, there's no brokenness in the world. And Genesis 2 comes, and Adam and Eve sinned. Genesis 3 talks about how there's going to be thorns and thistles to life. The creation is impacted by man's sin. And really, Genesis 3-12, it's a story of the spread of the sin of mankind, in the hearts of man and in relationships and in the creation. So God calls Abraham, and he says, "Abraham, I'm going to bless you. I'm going to make you into great people." He's a man. I think he's 75 years old when he calls him, and he doesn't have a child. He says, "I'm going to make you a great people, and I'm going to bless you. I'm going to make you the father of many kings, the father of many nations."So his son, Isaac, receives that promise. His son Jacob receives that promise. And what we're finding out in this series is that Jacob, though he had some good moments in his youth where he showed true faith in the Lord, he is a bit of a bonehead and his sons are worse than him. They are adulterers, his 12 sons. They've committed incest, they are prideful, they're slanderous. They're all fighting inwardly. They're competing with each other. And furthermore, at one point, 20 years ago, they put the Father Jacob's prize son, the son that he had with his favorite wife, they left him in a pit for dead. What they don't know is that God preserved his life, and put him through a process to bring him to the right hand of Pharaoh. So God's dealing with this broken family while the lingering promise that they're going to be a blessing to the earth stands, so God has to work.These people are not perfect. God's people are never perfect. But what we see is that these people probably aren't saved, these people probably don't know God, and it's kind of offensive that God would choose to work through these people. This is kind of a stance that, "God is doing something new. Why would he save the world from the slavery to sin through such a broken family?" It's a statement that religion that says, "I do right. I earn favor before God is wrong." It's a statement that salvation is initiated by God, not by any individual man as he tries to approach God. It's a statement that God uses broken people. And how can he use broken people? It's because he gives grace to them. We're talking about this family and their brokenness, but we're talking about how God is dealing with them.Again, think about how would you like God to deal with you? But in this chapter, compare that with how God is working on these people as a model of the family of faith. Last week, we discussed a lot of this already. In chapter 42, Genesis, we discussed how God has been working on them through the hardship of famine. When the famine hits the land for about a year, they're forced to look for a source of food. We discussed how God has been dealing with them through the hardship of sojourning, of temporarily turning to foreign land for help and relief. It's the hardship of being a refugee or a migrant worker looking for the best for their family. You're engaging with hard travel, engaging foreign officials, engaging with bureaucracy stacked against them. There's a language barrier and there's stereotypes that they're engaging with.We discussed how God has dealt with this family through the pain of unjust imprisonment. We saw that after three days in prison, they go to Egypt, there's the famine, you're one of the famine. They run out of food, they go to Egypt, and they approach the Egyptian ruler and they receive food, but he places them unjustly in a jail for three days. They don't know that it's their brother Joseph and he's trying to chip away, get a sense of have these men repented, "Are they right before God? Are their hearts still the same as when they put them in the pit?" And they go unjustly to prison, they're sent unjustly to prison, and in Genesis 42:21, they exclaim, "In truth, we are guilty concerning our brother." For them, this is the first time probably in 20 years since abandoning Joseph, leaving him for dead, telling their father that he is gone to the point that he thinks he's dead, this is the first time that their guilty conscience is probably coming alive.And furthermore or less, we talked about how actually the awakened conscience was actually a grace of God, a gift of God. As the men process all the hardship that happened to them in the chapter last week and the things that I just list listed out, they ask in verse 28, "What is this that God has done to us?" God is doing something. He's dealing with Jacob and his sons, but the process is slow. So in this chapter, God continues the work of bringing these men into his family. As we process how God chose to work on this family, we should ask him to show us how he is... If we're not walking with him calling us back, or those walking with him, we should be asking him to show us how he is continuing to stay near us, to refine us.What the New Testament shows us is that the Christian life is like that. We are a piece of gold in the refiner's fire. So we're saved, but then God is exposing us to trials to burn out the impurities that we... Until we grow to the fullness of Christ likeness, God is going to be refining us. So ask Lord, "How are you working in me to save me, to grow me?" And a key verse, "How does he do that?" The key verse in the chapter and one of the key verses in the book, all the Book of Genesis is verse 14. And this is Jacob saying, "May God Almighty grant you mercy before the man." This is the first occurrence of mercy in all of Genesis and all of the Bible. The chapter is all about God's mercy to guilty, fearful, hopeless, lost sinners.The condition of these men as they are contemplating having to go back to Egypt, when they approach Joseph at his house. This chapter is all about the mercy that God offers to guilty sinners like you and me. It's by the mercy of God that God is using life circumstances, and the Egyptian ruler, who Jacob and his sons don't know to be Joseph, to refine these men, to draw them into saving an intimate relationship. And what we see in this chapter is that God dispatches different kinds of mercy. You kind of see it. Last week we touched on it, and this week there's a little bit. Joseph to them, the Egyptian ruler, he deals with the brothers in kind of a bad cop, good cop method. At some moments, God, through Joseph, dishes out tender mercy to the men. And just through pure kindness, gentleness, there's some moments he dishes out severe mercy by inflicting tough circumstances upon them.We're going to learn about different kinds of mercy. How does God try to draw us in, draw non-believers in through mercy? How does God grow and refine Christians through mercy? I'm going to point out three different kinds of mercy. God calls his children home and grows them through severe mercy, common mercy, and tender mercy. And know, the term mercy and grace, and then how they relate to love as you grow in the faith, they're kind of hard terms used because you can't really use them by fully separating them from the other, particularly grace and mercy. Know that I use the term mercy in this outline because I think the key verse talks about God's mercy to the men in this process of going back to Egypt. But I could have equally used the term grace. So to say that God gives mercy to someone has a connotation that God gives leniency when it is not required of him.To say that God gives grace, it means that God gives favor when it is not merited by the recipient and that they're intertwined. Because when God is extending leniency, he is extending favor or grace. When God is extending grace or unmerited favor, he's extending leniency. But this, today, I want to step away from the title of the sermons here and talk about mercy as it relates to grace. God calls his children home and grows them through severe mercy. In verses 1-14, we see that God calls his children home, and I use the term, by extending severe mercy. This is a term that I first became acquainted with in the book, A Severe Mercy by an author Sheldon Vanauken. I probably butchered that. To say that God calls his children home and grows them through severe mercy, put most broadly, it's to say that God calls his children home and grows them by exposing them to severe situations.God purposes that his children face severe, hard, difficult, challenging situations in order to draw them in. In the book, Vanauken, he talks about how God used the death of his wife of a couple of decades. He thinks to actually save him, because ultimately he saw all of his engagement with Christianity was really tied to this desire to build this perfect marriage with his wife. He never really wanted God for God's sake. God had to strip, he says, and he talks about how his engagement through personal letters with CS Lewis helped him. He saw that through taking his wife, he could finally treasure a relationship with God. And that was a severe mercy. Because if that's what it took to get him into a right relationship with God, to see his need for God, to treasure relationship with God that's offered through Christ, then it's a mercy.It's a confusing term, a severe mercy. But when you chew on it, it can really help you understand how God works. To face the severe mercy is severe because it's hard and difficult to face such circumstances. To face the severe mercy is an experience of God's mercy. Because though the severe mercy may be severe and difficult to face or endure, the experience altogether is so much better than what a sinner deserves. So severe mercy, it leads to a person to have a greater understanding of who God is and it leads one to see their limitations of their own power. Furthermore, it leads one to see the boundless limits of God's infinite power, and it's hard to swallow. By exposing people as children to hardship, God is actually being very gentle or merciful to them. How is this true? The whole narrative of scripture says that God is a holy God, and that from the beginning, man was to walk in a holy manner before him.And if he did not, the penalty would be death. Eternal expulsion from the loving presence of God. For the just punishment of sin against an infinite holy God is infinite wrath and eternal punishment. Romans 3:23 says that all have fallen, all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. Because nobody has met the mark perfect holiness before God, any moment where God withholds or delays the carrying out of his wrath, it's a blessing, a severely merciful act where he is shown leniency. So even as Christians or people approaching the faith, when life is really difficult or hard for any person because it's not anything close to facing the just wrath of God, such a moment is an act of severe mercy extended to them by God. So in this, I'm going to step into the text verses 1-14. I'm going to talk about different forms of severe mercy that God extends, that he exposes his followers too.He uses it to save people, he uses it to grow people, and he is merciful in doing so again. Because the lessons that they learn are so much more important than the idols that they're clinging to, that he's stripping away. In this chapter, we find Jacob's brothers a long while after their initial experience of guilt in the last chapter. Remember, in verse 21, they said, "In truth, we are guilty concerning our brother, this is the last chapter, in that we saw the distress of his soul, they're talking about Joseph in the pit, when he begged us and we did not listen. That is why this distress has come upon us." They exclaimed this and felt their conscience stirred. But now that they're back home, away from Egypt, away from the tension of the moment, away from the threat of imprisonment, away from this man who has authority over them, things have gone back to normal.Maybe the famine will end, they think. Maybe they won't have to go back to Egypt, if that happens. Perhaps, they can forget their past sins. Maybe they can push those ideas of God that crept up in their mind and his authority over their lives, off their consciences forever. They've made an idol. They've gone back home and they've made an idol out of the facade of a peaceful status quo on the surface of their lives, while there's guilt for sin on their conscience they've not dealt with. If this is their thinking, whether the text shows us, is that God has another plan in mind. If you're wrestling with guilt or fighting to suppress guilt, God has another plan in mind for you. He's relentless in his pursuit of them. And in these verses, we see the three forms of severe mercy.First, he exposes them to famine. More broadly, he exposes them to the pressures of living in a fallen world. Genesis 43:1-2. Now, the famine was severe in the land. And when they had eaten the grain that they had bought brought from Egypt, their father said to them, "Go again, buy us a little food." So God exposes them to continued famine. This is probably close to the end of year two of famine based on what other chapters tell us. And famine, honestly, as a modern American, I can't fathom this. Apparently, 49 million people in 46 countries are experiencing severe food crisis or famine in the present day. And that's according to a quick Google search, an organization called Action Against Hunger. Famine occurs when drought and her infestation and her plant disease and her war continuously plague a huge region of land for months or years at a time.It's a severe hardship that, when faced, lingers on your mind all day every day until there is relief. Hardship that adds uncertainty to all matters of life, to every minute, every hour, every week. It kills you physically and it kills you psychologically, and there's nothing you can do to stop it. You're powerless to put an end to it. All you're left to do is know how to respond to it and engage with it and survive through it. Obviously, today, we praise God. We have a lot of knowledge, materials, technology, pesticides, and means of food preservation to try to confront famine, but it clearly arises in many lands today. But the point is, back then, they did not. Jacob and his family, this family called to bless the world and become numerous nation of people of kingdoms, they're facing famine. They are almost at the point of not surviving.So the famine, it exerts pressure on them, they have to deal with it and they're powerless. But famine, it's something that the greatest schemes of men, greatest schemes of America, of science and technology cannot control. There are other forms of natural disasters, severe forms of mercy that we face, drought, hurricanes, tsunamis, tornadoes, earthquakes, volcano eruptions, biological and airborne microorganisms. I was reminded of this while I'm reading this, studying this, writing this yesterday. I got multiple notifications on my phone and on my computer from Apple talking about the fine particulates that are floating around, the bad air quality because of the wildfires in Canada. We can't control the weather and the shifting of the earth and microorganisms and fine particulates. And our increased ability to track a lot of these things, it seems to cause more paranoia and anxiety than actually helps us at times.So God speaks to us again and again through pressures of famine still, but pressures of a fallen sin, fallen world through weather, through disease, through political, international turmoil that we cannot control. 9/11, floods, hurricane Katrina, hurricane Harvey in Houston several years back, COVID, heated elections, Russia-Ukraine, the threat of personal sickness and death at any minute, struggles with conception still plaguing the world. Miscarriage, race, gender, class battles, the Lord... These things have entered the world because of sin and we have to face them. What is God telling us in all of it? We are not in control. He is sovereign. He is in control to be brought to this knowledge, to love this knowledge, to find peace in this knowledge. It's a mercy, a grace of God. He's in control. He's in charge. We know he is good. Look at how he redeemed the travesty of the cross of Jesus Christ.So all of natural history, world history align with the words of St. Paul in Romans 8:18-22, I'm just going to read 22. For we know that the whole creation has been groaning together in the pains of childbirth until now, Jacob and his sons face it. We still face it. It impacts our lives and our decisions. So I ask you, what is God telling you through the Earth's groaning? It's going to keep happening until Jesus comes back to make all things new. Paul has to think about it. How has God used natural circumstances or pressures of a fallen world to make you think or act in life? What have you learned from them? What do you think you can learn right now? Second, God extends mercy to Jacob and his brothers to draw them into fellowship with him by exposing them to the pressure of broken people.Verse three. But Judah said to him, "The man, the Egyptian ruler, solemnly warned us saying, 'You shall not see my face unless your brother is with you.'" So the will of a relatively random governor in Egypt, according to the brothers as they don't know it is Joseph, he's forcing them in a certain direction. He's adding pressures and limitations to their freedom. They have to deal with the fact that one brother, Simeon, is still imprisoned by him there. And specifically in this chapter, they're pressured to send Benjamin to Egypt upon his command simply to have food for their families to survive. Like Jacob, we still face these unwanted pressures from other people and these are appointed by the severe mercy of God. We can try to create vacuums to avoid such people. We can seek out echo chambers of those who are like-minded. It's easier than ever.We can seek spouses with the exact same interests, companies and departments, literally through search algorithms on apps online. We can find neighbors, churches, work departments that are the perfect fit. But people are inevitable, they're broken, they're sinful. We can't escape them, we can't cancel them, and that's by God's design. The tendency when we engage people and they inflict their presence and authority on our lives, whether we seek it or not, is that we think we can change them. When we're first confronted with hard people, we say to ourselves, "That's okay. Give me a little time, I'll change you." But with time, we see that we can't. This is the husband and the wife almost on a day-to-day basis. This is parents trying to change their children, grow their children, save their children on their time. Children trying to change their parents.This is the boss trying to change the employee, the employee trying to change the boss. No matter how many phone apps, forms of counseling or technology we have that can teach us how to change people, we have to realize that we can't. Only God can. Only God can change someone from the inside out, change them at the heart level such that their behavior, their presence, their communication changes. We need to just approach these moments, this lack of power with humility. We can fight it, we can keep pressing on and nagging on the people of our lives to change them, or we can ask God what is he trying to do through this, the presence of these people.What is that you trying to do through the engagements of them? We have to allow our lives to be shaped by the necessity of engaging people. So ask God, how are you changing me? How are you calling me home to you to crave your presence, your sinless presence, your loving presence more? How are you refining me through other people? This is a severe mercy of God that we have to engage people. Third, God extends severe mercy to Jacob and his brothers to draw them into fellowship with him by exposing them to undesirable circumstances. Verse 6, Jacob says, "Why did you treat me so badly as to tell the man that you had another brother?" So Jacob, the neglectful father, comes off as an angry old curmudgeon, as a victim of the folly of his sons as he processes the situation. He's just whining. Honestly, my first engagement with this was laughing as I read it because I was just sitting and whining with my wife in the minutes before I'd started to study this.And I just want to say, "Men, we think that our wives and children are blessed when we sit down and tell them how we have it right, everyone else in our life has it wrong, and that we are victim of our circumstances." We need to stop. We need to be models of faith and steadfast faithfulness to God. There's no way to avoid difficult circumstances. Jacob and his sons had no control over the fact of the famine and the extension of the famine, and they had no control over the fact that Egypt had all the grain in that period. Similarly, in our lives, there's seasons, moments, trials that just fall into our lap. Things that we didn't invite into our households, our churches, our neighborhoods, our schools, our local state and national governments, financial downturns, wars that we have to engage, that we have no interest in engaging but we have to.We can get depressed, we can get paralyzed, we can busy ourselves to avoid the fact that these tensions and these situations exist. We can distract ourselves with relationships, devices, and shows, adrenaline rushes. We can try to ignore them by engaging in drink, smoke, other chemicals, or we can face the fact that circumstances are part of life. We're called to face them in faith, and find the faithful narrow way forward that brings glory to God. As we do that in the process, the Lord is teaching us, shaping us, saving many all along. These moments, these undesired circumstances shouldn't always be viewed as hindrances, but as opportunities for us to see God's wisdom at work in our lives, to see his power moving in our life. So in some, I've talked about the severe mercy of God as he exposes us to it through the effects of living in a sinful world through people, through random undesired circumstances.And know, the message that I want you to take is not just expect hardship to be a part of your life, but not become a stoic. It's not a, "Pick-up your bootstraps. This is life, just face it. Everybody has to deal with it. Find a way to cope." No, it's find a way to see God's hand through it all. Ask him to grow your wisdom, your insight to engage such moments in a way that pleases him. Ask him to show you what he's teaching you. Ask him how he wants you to respond, one day at a time, without getting overcome with anxiety, thinking about how hard it will be in the future. I like the framing of, "You need to see that as you think about severe mercies, a lot of these external circumstances forcing their pressure on onto your life. You need to see that what makes you you, and the Lord is not just the things that you have done but the things that also have happened to you.God's using it all in his grand plan and glorious plan to save you, to shape you, prepare you for his work. We've seen him do such work in the life of Joseph as we meditated upon his experience in the pit. We meditated upon facing false accusations of adultery. We meditated upon him being forced to be in an Egyptian jail for several years. We've seen how God prepared him to handle this moment with grace and mercy. So the same thing that he did with Joseph, the same thing he's doing with you and you need to trust him as he does it. See here, the text says that God is shaping these men through severe mercy. I just want to take time to look at Judah and Jacob to show you that transformation is actually happening. Let's look at Judah. Judah, who we know from our study in Genesis 38, was a very hard and stubborn man.He slept with his deceased son's wife when he thought she was a prostitute. This Judah is changing by God's severe mercy and becoming the family leader in this chapter. In the text, at the beginning when after Jacob resists sending the brothers back with Benjamin, Judah honestly, respectfully, directly speaks to his father. He still honors him, but he stands on truth before him. In verse 8, to convince his father, he takes a wise strategy. He repeats to his father, "Send the boy with me, and we will rise and go, that we may live and not die." Jacob said when he first sent the sons to Egypt, he said, "Go to Egypt to get grain, so that we may live and not die." He's using Jacob's words to convince him. And then he adds an element so that both we and you and also our little ones may be saved, may stay alive.Judah's not thinking of himself as we saw him do. Primarily, he's thinking of others. So further, Judah, the biggest thing that he does is he pledges his life to Jacob. He commits to taking personal responsibility if Benjamin does not return. This is in comparison to the author that Ruben makes in the last chapter in verse 7. Ruben says to Jacob, this harsh approach, "Kill my two sons if I go to Egypt with Benjamin and don't return with him." We see Jacob's wisdom. We see him taking responsibility. And this foreshadows, a little side note, the precedence that the tribe of Judah eventually takes among the other tribes of the nation of Israel. It points to the time that Jesus Christ, a descendant of Judah, the line of the tribe of Judah's scripture calls him, takes responsibility for the sins of the lost sons of God by going to the cross, offering himself in their place.Judah changes but we see an incredible change in Jacob through the severe mercy of God, through the providential appointment of hardship. Jacob, again, he is a whiny curmudgeon at the start of the chapter, blaming everyone else for the situation that they're in. He's still showing extreme preference for his son Benjamin over the other 10, but there's great change taking place as the chapter goes forward. This is noted most clearly by the fact that, for most of the story today, Jacob's story is that God does save him. Jacob does have faith in God. And God, at that point, he passes his promises of the covenant from Abraham and Isaac to him, and God gives him a covenant named Israel. But Jacob, even after a profound experience in earlier chapters of Genesis, he goes back to his old ways. So the story, the narrative throughout Genesis primarily calls him Jacob over and over again.In chapter 42, he's Jacob. In this chapter, he moves from the old angry man to the new man Israel. He starts off complaining, but then he takes charge as these situations force him to. He provides decisive and wise leadership in granting the brother's permission to bring Benjamin, and giving them instructions to pack gifts, local delicacies that they don't have in Egypt to earn the favor of the ruler, to double the money that they bring back after the Egyptians did not keep their money last time. He takes practical matters. He thinks responsibly. But the most notable change that we see in Jacob as he faces the severe mercy of God is that he has revival in his faith. In verse 14, he's brought to the point where he knows he's powerless to change the situation, and he says, "May God Almighty grant you mercy before the man, and may send back your other brother and Benjamin. And as for me, if I'm bereaved of my children, I'm bereaved."Jacob, now Israel, he appeals to the covenant name of God of Genesis, El Shaddai, Genesis 17 particularly, the mighty God. This God, he's trusted in before, he will trust in again. Furthermore, in this verse, he appeals to the mercy of God for the success of the journey for Egypt. He knows only God can give them favorable outcome here. Lastly, what's most profound, he entrusts Benjamin's safety and the desire for the return of Benjamin's brother Joseph to God, right? He's been grieving the loss of Joseph, basically not functioning, not engaging the other brothers for 20 years, all the while preserving Benjamin's life at all costs and just ignoring those other brothers. And Jacob relinquish his grip on the matter. He goes as far as showing peace over the fact that if it's the Lord's will to bereave him of his children, then so be it.You got to remember, he did not forget that God said that He's carrying this promise to be the father of many nations, like that was passed down from Abraham and Isaac. He says, "God, I trust you. You have the power to fulfill your promises even when there seems to be no hope." So I elaborate on Judas' transformation, Jacob's transformation to illustrate how God uses severe mercy, hard circumstances to change them, to save them, to grow them in the faith. We can spend all of our life begrudgingly facing the appointed personal, familial, cultural, global circumstances that we're born into or approach them with faith. We can see how they deepen our dependence on God, make us better men and women, grow our vision and appreciation for the daily mercies and graces of God, and increase the fruit of the spirit within us. We're becoming more like Christ as we engage them faithfully.Some may ask, why does God act like this? Why does he have a point to choose to use severe mercy? This is my second point, and it's really short. If God calls his children home and grows them through severe mercy, common mercy, why does he use severe mercy? Because he is offering common mercy constantly, and we don't receive it. Matthew 5:45 says, "For he makes the sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust." God is actually trying to tell us through the basic mercies, basic graces of daily life that he is God and he is in control, and we owe him our worship and faithfulness. Through the rising of the sun, every day on all people, through the sending of rains, through daily health, through the beauty of nature, through the provision of daily bread, through the joyful spirit and faith that children have as they wake up and just expect God to provide through the majesty of just the creative world, he's talking to us and it's not enough for us.We are stubborn. We are selfish. We choose to say that that is not enough. We place ourselves in the position of God, and we don't accept his means of communicating that. That's the mistake that Adam and Eve made in the garden. They think that God is keeping something from them in just the basic provision of life in the garden. So we commit the same sin and we don't receive common mercy, which I'm also basically saying is the same thing, historically-referred to as common grace. But praise God, he doesn't stop at common mercy. He doesn't stop at severe mercy to draw us in. He gives us tender mercy, and this is my third point. God calls his children home through severe mercy, common mercy, tender mercy.The use of tender mercy, it's a little redundant. I could have just said mercy. But to drive home in the point and emphasize how good it is, I went forward with tender mercy. He said that he speaks to us through tender mercy, expose us to tender mercy. He treats us and speaks to us with very loving treatment. He engages our fears and guilt uniquely. He mercifully and graciously condescends to speak to us at a level that we understand, in his process of calling us to him and refining us once we're in the family. This is what verses 15-34 really show us. God calls the brothers back by tender mercy. Verse 18 says, "And the men were afraid because they were brought to Joseph's house." So they bring the goods, they bring the money, they bring Benjamin back to Egypt, and they're told by a servant to go to his house.Can you imagine these tent dwellers, these back country men when they're about to go to the house, the property of this powerful Egyptian ruler, essentially a billionaire of their day? They're rolling up on their donkeys, not even camels, to palace with dozens of camels. It's like driving a rusty old pickup truck to a mansion with multiple Teslas and model cars. And they're weary from facing God's severe mercy, the famine, the travel. The anxiety of how they will be received by the ruler after they return, as they know that the ruler did not receive the money the first time, it would've been paralyzing them. Just not knowing, "Is this ruler just going to come down and arrest us and make us his slave?" Their worst fear would probably be over the fact, "That as we engage this man, are we going to be brought to that point where we feel guilty again for throwing Joseph into the pit?"Again, they don't know that Joseph is the ruler. But they know that through engagement with this man, they were brought back to this thing that they just want to depress. But God brings these men back to Egypt as part of the process to draw him in. And how are they received? It's with kindness, with love. Remember, Jacob/Israel's prayer in verse 14, May God Almighty grant you mercy before him. Jacob's prayers come true. It's answered. The ruler and his servant receive them with tender mercy. They arise in Egypt, guilty, fearful. What does the servant say to them? He says, "Peace," shalom in Hebrew, "Peace to you. Do not be afraid. Your God and the God of your father has put treasure in your sacks for you." This is after they say hello and confess that they went home with the money. It says, "Don't worry about it."As the text continues, the servant brings him out, Simeon. He's released as promised, upon their return in their last chapter, and he's in good shape. Then though they're foreigners, they are brought into the private residence of a ruler. Further, the text says they're given water, their feet are washed, their donkeys aren't stolen but are given fodder from the royal feed, and they're invited to a feast. When they approach Joseph at the feast, they bow down to him. And what does he do? He inquires of their welfare, asks them how they are doing, and I'm sure it would've been a little bit of a sugarcoated answer of, "Oh, we're great." Like not acknowledging the fact that they're in turmoil for the months and weeks as this moment approached. But he inquires about their welfare, asks about their father. The ruler further goes to greet the younger brother that he didn't meet during the last visit, Benjamin, and blesses him saying, "God be gracious to you, my son."Altogether, God, after providentially offering common mercy throughout their lives, after offering a lot of severe mercy recently, God has arranged for them to taste his tender mercy as part of the process to draw him in, to fellowship with him. In a situation where Joseph, the ruler, could have brought down justice for the situation with the money as things appeared. For his sin, their sin against him 20 years ago, he treats him with mercy. He treats him with love and kindness. One of the most notable things about the merciful treatment that God has arranged for the brothers is that he goes above and beyond to show the brothers that he's speaking to them through these mercies in ways that are uniquely designed for them. Verse 33 says, And they sat before him, the firstborn according to his birthright and the youngest according to his youth. And the men looked at one another in amazement. God, through Joseph, announces this moment in such a way that the brothers should know that they're talking to him.Just think, there's 11 brothers sitting down. And in this moment, they're arranged from oldest to youngest. If you think about how many ways that the ruler could have arranged them, it's equal to 11 factorial. Yes, I'm making you think about middle school math right now. 11 factorial ways that he could have arranged these men. That's 39,916,800 ways that the ruler could have seeded them, and one of them is the perfect way and he does it. God is clearly speaking to them. And do they see it? Further, in verse 34, the text mentions that the ruler gives Benjamin, the brother of Joseph, five times the portion of food. God's trying to communicate to them that he is God. He knows what they did, and he is mercifully dealing with their sin toward Joseph right now by bringing attention to Benjamin. In this specific communication to the brothers, God is just calling them home.He wants them to cry out mercy as they see that he is God. And they need his mercy for their sin, for their rebellion against his authority over their life, for their specific sins, and particularly, the sin against Joseph. Through tender mercy and the generalness of the ruler's reception, through the specific details of the seating arrangement and serving, God's talking to them. He's trying to stir their minds to acknowledge him as God. But what is their response? Verse 33 says, They looked at one another in amazement. They looked around at each other as if the way they were seated was a coincidence. They looked at each other and said, "Well, forgot about it," and set their minds to the feast before them. Verse 34 says, after Benjamin was given a huge portion, they just enjoyed themselves and had a nice meal like at any other banquet. With their youngest brother, nobody would ever have given the youngest brother this kind of portion. He gets five times more than them in this patriarchal society.And furthermore, at the start of the next chapter, the brothers after this experience where God is just talking to them, offering them mercy, showing them gentleness, tender mercy, they're just content to wake up and go home. They're not inclined to think about everything that's happening. Their reception of the mercy of God, it's dull. They're not moved. It gives them no more than a smile and the satisfaction of a good day and full belly gives them. Isn't that very similar to the reaction that the world has toward God and his mercy? Isn't that very similar to the reaction that you have toward it, on some days? If you're a believer, you can't be a believer without truly cherishing this moment, at one point. But it grows dry and worn out. That's because we're not seeing how God is moving through everything to save us, grow us, shape us.You see, Joseph's brothers, they have an excuse. The ruler didn't reveal himself as Joseph. They don't know that's him, but we know who the ruler is. We know who the governor is. We know who the king of kings, the Lord of Lord is, over all of the earth and over us all as individuals. It's the Lord Jesus Christ. It's written on our heart, our conscience, and it's written in the creation. We long for God's perfect and just rule and reign and the comfort of his presence, when the storms and trials, the rulers and people and circumstances of the broken world impress their unjust influence on our lives and decision making. We long for his unique and tender love toward us as we face these hardships. We know that for all of history, all the time, God has supremely shown his love to man.He has communicated his desire to extend love and grace to each of us in a million unique different ways. Most clearly, he has mercifully and graciously shown his love for us. In coming to deal with our greatest need as parched, guilty, dead sinners. He took on flesh, went from heaven to earth and walked the earth. He came to deal with our greatest need, our thirst for him. God broke the barrier by sending a son to take on flesh, bear the hardship and temptations of this world perfectly as we could not, and to go to the cross in our place. We know that God chosen his love for us and, that while we are still sinners, Christ died for us. How much more clearly could God in all of his glory condescend to speak to us in our greatest need to communicate his love to us? And yet we're often reluctant to receive it.We're reluctant to see our need to entrust our lives to him. Joseph and his brothers had an excuse, but we don't. So Colossians 2:9-10, it says, we're in him the whole fullness of the deity dwells bodily. And you have been filled in him who is the head of all rule and authority. We have no excuse. God is showing his mercy, communicating his love and desire to be in relationship with us over and over again, and we need to receive it. Christ, he broke the divide between heaven and earth. His crowning act of glory with all of his authority was to lay side as glory and die for us. That's really what Joseph is doing. Joseph could be using his authority to squash these sinners to just pour out wrath, but he doesn't. God, Christ did all of this in order that we might live and dine at the same table with him, with a portion due to the firstborn and rule with him and his eternal kingdom.That's what Joseph was doing. That's what Christ offers to us. So I ask you today to close, how is God extending severe mercy to you? How is he extending common mercy? How can you see it better? How is he extending tender mercy, specifically speaking to you, in ways that speak to your greatest fears, your greatest sense, your areas of guilt, your questions of the truth? As you see that, just bow and humble submission to him. Genesis 43 says, you're doubtful, sinful, guilty people like Jacob's family and us with a bad record of bad conscience. There is one power. One of great power and great honor who loves you, who wants to bless you and deliver you from the guilt of your sin and circumstances. He's doing so much to get you to see that. Try to see it. Come into his family, his love, his grace, his mercy. It's sufficient. Let us pray.Heavenly Father, we praise you that Christ has come and he came out of love. He initiated the process that procured our salvation. It's not anything that we can do, but it's all that he has done. And Lord, we praise you that you do not leave us in the condition that we're in. When you save us, you give us your righteousness, but you appoint seasons and trials and circumstances and engagement with the fallen world to grow us. We get to see your hand of redemption at work in us and through us every day. Lord, we praise you that we know we have a savior who has lived perfectly, died in our place, roses from the dead, and ascended to your right hand of authority just like Joseph was at the right hand of Pharaoh. And he is working for our good, for our preservation, for our growth in the faith. We pray all these things in Jesus' name. Amen.Now, we're going to transition to a time in the service of communion. This is something that we do as believers to commemorate the fact that by offering his body, pouring out his blood for us on the cross, Jesus invites us to live and dine guilt free at his table. For whom is holy communion—it's for repentant Christians, repentant children of God. If you're not a Christian, not sure where you stand before God, we ask you to withhold from partaking and meditate on the gospel, meditate upon the sermon, the message of today. But if you have decided today to receive Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, you're welcome to partake. And if are a Christian, we emphasize that this is for repentant believers. If you have unreconciled sin in your life that you have not brought to the Lord, if you have it on your conscience to approach other brothers and sisters where there is sin, we ask you to with withhold.So if you haven't received a cup with a little wafer and the elements, please raise your hand. As I pray, one of the ushers will give you one. Heavenly Father, we praise you for your grace and mercy. Jesus, we thank you for procuring salvation for us. You suffered, Lord, and triumphed for us. Today, we remember your suffering. Holy Spirit, I pray that you prepare our hearts now to focus on the attention of the cross of Jesus Christ dying for us, the primary act of showing your tender mercy toward us. We pray this in Jesus' name. Amen. Take off the bottom layer. I think all of our cups now have the bread on the bottom. Take the bread out and follow along with me. On the night that Jesus was betrayed, he took the bread and after eating it, he said, "This is my body broken for you. Take, eat, and do this in remembrance of me."He then proceeded to take the cup, and he said, "This cup is the cup of the new covenant of my blood, which is poured out for the sins of many. Take, drink, and do this in remembrance of me." Let's pray. Lord God, we glorify you. We pray, Lord, Holy Spirit, help us in glorifying God as we meditate upon the wisdom of his ways, the ability to redeem and use the brokenness of this world, the broken moments of our life, the broken moments of our personality, and redeem them and use them to be a blessing to others. Help us, Lord, as we worship. Help us to cast off all of our burdens and anxieties and stresses for situations, relationships that we cannot control to you. Help us to focus on you on the greatness of your power, your majesty, holiness, righteousness, truth, perfect plans, and sovereignty. Help us to sing with all that we have because you are worthy of all worship and glory and honor in all seasons. We pray this all in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

This media has been made available by Mosaic Boston Church. If you'd like to check out more resources, learn about Mosaic Boston, or donate to this ministry, please visit mosaicboston.com.Today, we are continuing in our series, Graduate Level Grace, and we are walking through chapter by chapter through Genesis 37-50. Today, we're in Genesis 43, and we are studying the life of Joseph. The constant theme that keeps coming up is that salvation is by grace. It's not something that we earn. It's not a process that we initiate by our good works, our own efforts to conjure up righteousness before God. It's something that God initiates, that God blesses us with. He bestows us with His grace to get us into right relationship with him. As we go forward in the Christian life, he continues to give us more and more of it to carry out his work faithfully. Today, we're going to keep in touch into the theme of grace again, and talk further how Joseph points us to Christ in his engagement with his brothers. Again, these are long chapters. I'm going to read Genesis 43, the whole chapter. It's verses one through 34.Pastor Jan has not been reading at the beginning and doing more longer quotations, walking through the text. I'm going to read it now, and just go in and out of the text quickly throughout the sermon. So if you do have a Bible, open up to Genesis 43:1-34 and follow along, and we'll have it on the screen as well. Furthermore, we are going to partake in communion today. This is something that we, as a church, practice the first Sunday of every month. I'll preach the word, we'll respond, and then we will partake in communion and I'll explain the steps along the way once we get there. I'm going to read Genesis 43 verses 1-34, and the sermons is about the mercy of God. Genesis 43:1-34. Now, the famine was severe in the land and when they had eaten the grain that they had brought from Egypt, their father said to them, "Go again, buy us a little food."But Judah said to him, "The man solemnly warned us, saying, 'You shall not see my face unless your brother is with you. 'If you'll send our brother with us, we will go down and buy you food. But if you'll not send him, we'll not go down, for the man said to us, 'You shall not see my face, unless your brother is with you.'" Israel said, "Why did you treat me so badly as to tell that man that you had another brother?" They replied, "The man questioned us carefully about ourselves and our kindred, saying, 'Is your father still alive? Do you have another brother?' What we told him was an answer to these questions. Could we in any way know that he would say, 'Bring your brother down'?"And Judah said to Israel his father "Send the boy with me, and we'll rise and go, that we may live and not die, both we and you and also our little ones. I will be a pledge of his safety. For my hand you shall require him. If I do not bring him back to you and set him before you, then let me bear the blame forever. If we had not delayed, we would now have returned twice." Then their father Israel said to them, "If it must be so, then do this: take some of the choice fruits of the land in your bags, and carry a present down to the man, a little balm and a little honey, gum, myrrh, pistachio nuts and almonds. Take back with you the money that was returned in the mouth of your sacks. Perhaps it wasn't oversight. Take also your brother and arise, go again to the man. May God Almighty grant you mercy before the man, and may he send back your other brother and Benjamin. And as for me, if I am bereaved of my children, I am bereaved."So the men took this present, and they took double the money with them, and Benjamin. They arose and went down to Egypt and stood before Joseph. When Joseph saw Benjamin with them, he said to the steward of his house, "Bring the men into the house and slaughter an animal and make ready for the men, for the men are to dine with me at noon." The man did as Joseph told him and brought the men to Joseph's house. And the men were afraid because they were brought to Joseph's house, and they said, "It is because of the money which was replaced in our sacks the first time, that we were brought in, so that he may assault us and fall upon us to make us servants and seize our donkeys."So they went up to the steward of Joseph's house and spoke with him at the door of the house, and said, "Oh, my Lord, we came down the first time to buy food. And when we came to the lodging place we opened our sacks, and there was each man's money in the mouth of his sack and money in full weight. So we have brought it again with us, and we have brought other money down with us to buy food. We do not know who put our money in our sacks." He replied, "Peace to you. Do not be afraid. Your God and the God of your father has put treasure in your sacks for you. I received your money." Then he brought Simeon out to them. And when the man had brought the men into Joseph's house and given them water, and they had washed their feet and when he had given their donkeys fodder, they prepared the present for Joseph coming at noon, for they heard that they should eat bread there.When Joseph came home, they brought into the house to him the present that they had with them and bowed down to him to the ground. And he inquired about their welfare and said, "Is your father well, the old man of whom you spoke? Is he still alive?" They said, "You're serving our father as well. He's still alive." And they bowed their heads and prostrated themselves and he lifted up his eyes and saw his brother Benjamin, his mother's son, and said, "Is this your youngest brother of whom you spoke to me? God be gracious to you, my son." Then Joseph hurried out, for his compassion grew warm for his brother, and he saw a place to weep. And he entered his chamber and wept there. Then he washed his face and came out.And controlling himself he said, "Serve the food." They served him by himself, and then by themselves, and the Egyptians who ate with him by themselves, because the Egyptians could not eat with the Hebrews, for that is an abomination to the Egyptians. And they sat before him, the firstborn according to his birthright and the youngest according to his youth. And the men looked at one another in amazement. Portions were taken to them from Joseph's table, but Benjamin's portion was five times as much as any of theirs. And they drank and were Mary with him. This is the word of the Lord. Let us pray.Heavenly Father, we praise you that your word says the grass withers and the flower fades, but the word of the Lord remains forever. We thank you, Lord, for this ancient book that is so much more than a book. We thank you, Lord, for this story of the life of Jacob and his sons, Judah, Joseph. We thank you Lord that this story is not just a story, not just a piece of history. It's something that your spirit turn alive in our hearts that can use to sanctify us, to grow us, to mold us, to grow our dependence on you and see our need for you in greater forms. We pray, Lord, for the blessing of your word. Bless the word as I preach it, but it'd go out in power and force. Let each one of here convicted to trust you through the hardship of day-to-day life, convicted of their need to look for your work in their lives, more closely, convicted of their need to cling to your word in all trials and circumstances. Lord, I pray these things in Jesus' holy name. Amen.Well, today, we are talking about Genesis 43. And yesterday, I sent out an email. We sent out a weekly email before the sermons go out, and I ask you to think about if you were God, how would you tell him to work on you? And if you're a believer, I'm wanting you to think about how would you want God to grow you, to shape you. I know that for me, even though I know God, Christ calls us to take up our cross daily and follow in his footsteps. I think my plan for myself would involve lots of isolation. My wife would be there, my kids would be there, but sometimes I'd be able to escape and get full freedom from them. There'd be a babysitter for me and my wife when we want to spend time together. And then, there'd be a lot of opportunity to grow by watching soccer, to grow by exercising about three hours a day, to grow by just processing things, facts, knowledge, the word of God in isolation without really engaging other people.So, what is it for you? If you had the choice as a believer, how would you like God to grow you? What do you think is best? I think a lot of us, we don't really go, we know it's not really mature to think like that. But oftentimes, when God follows his classic means, shown to us in scripture, we resist and we think we could do it better. And if you're a nonbeliever, you say, "God, show me. Woo me. I want you to talk to me in this specific way." And what is that for you if you're a nonbeliever here today? Because this is a chapter where in Genesis 43, and God is dealing with Jacob and his sons... Who's Jacob? Jacob is the son of Isaac, the son of Abraham and God. This is the first book of the Bible, the book of the beginnings of the creation, the book of the beginnings of the family of God, and God's work in creation.God creates the world, all things are good. Adam and Eve walk in perfect unity and peace and perfect knowledge of him. There's no sin, there's no tension, there's no conflict, there's no brokenness in the world. And Genesis 2 comes, and Adam and Eve sinned. Genesis 3 talks about how there's going to be thorns and thistles to life. The creation is impacted by man's sin. And really, Genesis 3-12, it's a story of the spread of the sin of mankind, in the hearts of man and in relationships and in the creation. So God calls Abraham, and he says, "Abraham, I'm going to bless you. I'm going to make you into great people." He's a man. I think he's 75 years old when he calls him, and he doesn't have a child. He says, "I'm going to make you a great people, and I'm going to bless you. I'm going to make you the father of many kings, the father of many nations."So his son, Isaac, receives that promise. His son Jacob receives that promise. And what we're finding out in this series is that Jacob, though he had some good moments in his youth where he showed true faith in the Lord, he is a bit of a bonehead and his sons are worse than him. They are adulterers, his 12 sons. They've committed incest, they are prideful, they're slanderous. They're all fighting inwardly. They're competing with each other. And furthermore, at one point, 20 years ago, they put the Father Jacob's prize son, the son that he had with his favorite wife, they left him in a pit for dead. What they don't know is that God preserved his life, and put him through a process to bring him to the right hand of Pharaoh. So God's dealing with this broken family while the lingering promise that they're going to be a blessing to the earth stands, so God has to work.These people are not perfect. God's people are never perfect. But what we see is that these people probably aren't saved, these people probably don't know God, and it's kind of offensive that God would choose to work through these people. This is kind of a stance that, "God is doing something new. Why would he save the world from the slavery to sin through such a broken family?" It's a statement that religion that says, "I do right. I earn favor before God is wrong." It's a statement that salvation is initiated by God, not by any individual man as he tries to approach God. It's a statement that God uses broken people. And how can he use broken people? It's because he gives grace to them. We're talking about this family and their brokenness, but we're talking about how God is dealing with them.Again, think about how would you like God to deal with you? But in this chapter, compare that with how God is working on these people as a model of the family of faith. Last week, we discussed a lot of this already. In chapter 42, Genesis, we discussed how God has been working on them through the hardship of famine. When the famine hits the land for about a year, they're forced to look for a source of food. We discussed how God has been dealing with them through the hardship of sojourning, of temporarily turning to foreign land for help and relief. It's the hardship of being a refugee or a migrant worker looking for the best for their family. You're engaging with hard travel, engaging foreign officials, engaging with bureaucracy stacked against them. There's a language barrier and there's stereotypes that they're engaging with.We discussed how God has dealt with this family through the pain of unjust imprisonment. We saw that after three days in prison, they go to Egypt, there's the famine, you're one of the famine. They run out of food, they go to Egypt, and they approach the Egyptian ruler and they receive food, but he places them unjustly in a jail for three days. They don't know that it's their brother Joseph and he's trying to chip away, get a sense of have these men repented, "Are they right before God? Are their hearts still the same as when they put them in the pit?" And they go unjustly to prison, they're sent unjustly to prison, and in Genesis 42:21, they exclaim, "In truth, we are guilty concerning our brother." For them, this is the first time probably in 20 years since abandoning Joseph, leaving him for dead, telling their father that he is gone to the point that he thinks he's dead, this is the first time that their guilty conscience is probably coming alive.And furthermore or less, we talked about how actually the awakened conscience was actually a grace of God, a gift of God. As the men process all the hardship that happened to them in the chapter last week and the things that I just list listed out, they ask in verse 28, "What is this that God has done to us?" God is doing something. He's dealing with Jacob and his sons, but the process is slow. So in this chapter, God continues the work of bringing these men into his family. As we process how God chose to work on this family, we should ask him to show us how he is... If we're not walking with him calling us back, or those walking with him, we should be asking him to show us how he is continuing to stay near us, to refine us.What the New Testament shows us is that the Christian life is like that. We are a piece of gold in the refiner's fire. So we're saved, but then God is exposing us to trials to burn out the impurities that we... Until we grow to the fullness of Christ likeness, God is going to be refining us. So ask Lord, "How are you working in me to save me, to grow me?" And a key verse, "How does he do that?" The key verse in the chapter and one of the key verses in the book, all the Book of Genesis is verse 14. And this is Jacob saying, "May God Almighty grant you mercy before the man." This is the first occurrence of mercy in all of Genesis and all of the Bible. The chapter is all about God's mercy to guilty, fearful, hopeless, lost sinners.The condition of these men as they are contemplating having to go back to Egypt, when they approach Joseph at his house. This chapter is all about the mercy that God offers to guilty sinners like you and me. It's by the mercy of God that God is using life circumstances, and the Egyptian ruler, who Jacob and his sons don't know to be Joseph, to refine these men, to draw them into saving an intimate relationship. And what we see in this chapter is that God dispatches different kinds of mercy. You kind of see it. Last week we touched on it, and this week there's a little bit. Joseph to them, the Egyptian ruler, he deals with the brothers in kind of a bad cop, good cop method. At some moments, God, through Joseph, dishes out tender mercy to the men. And just through pure kindness, gentleness, there's some moments he dishes out severe mercy by inflicting tough circumstances upon them.We're going to learn about different kinds of mercy. How does God try to draw us in, draw non-believers in through mercy? How does God grow and refine Christians through mercy? I'm going to point out three different kinds of mercy. God calls his children home and grows them through severe mercy, common mercy, and tender mercy. And know, the term mercy and grace, and then how they relate to love as you grow in the faith, they're kind of hard terms used because you can't really use them by fully separating them from the other, particularly grace and mercy. Know that I use the term mercy in this outline because I think the key verse talks about God's mercy to the men in this process of going back to Egypt. But I could have equally used the term grace. So to say that God gives mercy to someone has a connotation that God gives leniency when it is not required of him.To say that God gives grace, it means that God gives favor when it is not merited by the recipient and that they're intertwined. Because when God is extending leniency, he is extending favor or grace. When God is extending grace or unmerited favor, he's extending leniency. But this, today, I want to step away from the title of the sermons here and talk about mercy as it relates to grace. God calls his children home and grows them through severe mercy. In verses 1-14, we see that God calls his children home, and I use the term, by extending severe mercy. This is a term that I first became acquainted with in the book, A Severe Mercy by an author Sheldon Vanauken. I probably butchered that. To say that God calls his children home and grows them through severe mercy, put most broadly, it's to say that God calls his children home and grows them by exposing them to severe situations.God purposes that his children face severe, hard, difficult, challenging situations in order to draw them in. In the book, Vanauken, he talks about how God used the death of his wife of a couple of decades. He thinks to actually save him, because ultimately he saw all of his engagement with Christianity was really tied to this desire to build this perfect marriage with his wife. He never really wanted God for God's sake. God had to strip, he says, and he talks about how his engagement through personal letters with CS Lewis helped him. He saw that through taking his wife, he could finally treasure a relationship with God. And that was a severe mercy. Because if that's what it took to get him into a right relationship with God, to see his need for God, to treasure relationship with God that's offered through Christ, then it's a mercy.It's a confusing term, a severe mercy. But when you chew on it, it can really help you understand how God works. To face the severe mercy is severe because it's hard and difficult to face such circumstances. To face the severe mercy is an experience of God's mercy. Because though the severe mercy may be severe and difficult to face or endure, the experience altogether is so much better than what a sinner deserves. So severe mercy, it leads to a person to have a greater understanding of who God is and it leads one to see their limitations of their own power. Furthermore, it leads one to see the boundless limits of God's infinite power, and it's hard to swallow. By exposing people as children to hardship, God is actually being very gentle or merciful to them. How is this true? The whole narrative of scripture says that God is a holy God, and that from the beginning, man was to walk in a holy manner before him.And if he did not, the penalty would be death. Eternal expulsion from the loving presence of God. For the just punishment of sin against an infinite holy God is infinite wrath and eternal punishment. Romans 3:23 says that all have fallen, all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. Because nobody has met the mark perfect holiness before God, any moment where God withholds or delays the carrying out of his wrath, it's a blessing, a severely merciful act where he is shown leniency. So even as Christians or people approaching the faith, when life is really difficult or hard for any person because it's not anything close to facing the just wrath of God, such a moment is an act of severe mercy extended to them by God. So in this, I'm going to step into the text verses 1-14. I'm going to talk about different forms of severe mercy that God extends, that he exposes his followers too.He uses it to save people, he uses it to grow people, and he is merciful in doing so again. Because the lessons that they learn are so much more important than the idols that they're clinging to, that he's stripping away. In this chapter, we find Jacob's brothers a long while after their initial experience of guilt in the last chapter. Remember, in verse 21, they said, "In truth, we are guilty concerning our brother, this is the last chapter, in that we saw the distress of his soul, they're talking about Joseph in the pit, when he begged us and we did not listen. That is why this distress has come upon us." They exclaimed this and felt their conscience stirred. But now that they're back home, away from Egypt, away from the tension of the moment, away from the threat of imprisonment, away from this man who has authority over them, things have gone back to normal.Maybe the famine will end, they think. Maybe they won't have to go back to Egypt, if that happens. Perhaps, they can forget their past sins. Maybe they can push those ideas of God that crept up in their mind and his authority over their lives, off their consciences forever. They've made an idol. They've gone back home and they've made an idol out of the facade of a peaceful status quo on the surface of their lives, while there's guilt for sin on their conscience they've not dealt with. If this is their thinking, whether the text shows us, is that God has another plan in mind. If you're wrestling with guilt or fighting to suppress guilt, God has another plan in mind for you. He's relentless in his pursuit of them. And in these verses, we see the three forms of severe mercy.First, he exposes them to famine. More broadly, he exposes them to the pressures of living in a fallen world. Genesis 43:1-2. Now, the famine was severe in the land. And when they had eaten the grain that they had bought brought from Egypt, their father said to them, "Go again, buy us a little food." So God exposes them to continued famine. This is probably close to the end of year two of famine based on what other chapters tell us. And famine, honestly, as a modern American, I can't fathom this. Apparently, 49 million people in 46 countries are experiencing severe food crisis or famine in the present day. And that's according to a quick Google search, an organization called Action Against Hunger. Famine occurs when drought and her infestation and her plant disease and her war continuously plague a huge region of land for months or years at a time.It's a severe hardship that, when faced, lingers on your mind all day every day until there is relief. Hardship that adds uncertainty to all matters of life, to every minute, every hour, every week. It kills you physically and it kills you psychologically, and there's nothing you can do to stop it. You're powerless to put an end to it. All you're left to do is know how to respond to it and engage with it and survive through it. Obviously, today, we praise God. We have a lot of knowledge, materials, technology, pesticides, and means of food preservation to try to confront famine, but it clearly arises in many lands today. But the point is, back then, they did not. Jacob and his family, this family called to bless the world and become numerous nation of people of kingdoms, they're facing famine. They are almost at the point of not surviving.So the famine, it exerts pressure on them, they have to deal with it and they're powerless. But famine, it's something that the greatest schemes of men, greatest schemes of America, of science and technology cannot control. There are other forms of natural disasters, severe forms of mercy that we face, drought, hurricanes, tsunamis, tornadoes, earthquakes, volcano eruptions, biological and airborne microorganisms. I was reminded of this while I'm reading this, studying this, writing this yesterday. I got multiple notifications on my phone and on my computer from Apple talking about the fine particulates that are floating around, the bad air quality because of the wildfires in Canada. We can't control the weather and the shifting of the earth and microorganisms and fine particulates. And our increased ability to track a lot of these things, it seems to cause more paranoia and anxiety than actually helps us at times.So God speaks to us again and again through pressures of famine still, but pressures of a fallen sin, fallen world through weather, through disease, through political, international turmoil that we cannot control. 9/11, floods, hurricane Katrina, hurricane Harvey in Houston several years back, COVID, heated elections, Russia-Ukraine, the threat of personal sickness and death at any minute, struggles with conception still plaguing the world. Miscarriage, race, gender, class battles, the Lord... These things have entered the world because of sin and we have to face them. What is God telling us in all of it? We are not in control. He is sovereign. He is in control to be brought to this knowledge, to love this knowledge, to find peace in this knowledge. It's a mercy, a grace of God. He's in control. He's in charge. We know he is good. Look at how he redeemed the travesty of the cross of Jesus Christ.So all of natural history, world history align with the words of St. Paul in Romans 8:18-22, I'm just going to read 22. For we know that the whole creation has been groaning together in the pains of childbirth until now, Jacob and his sons face it. We still face it. It impacts our lives and our decisions. So I ask you, what is God telling you through the Earth's groaning? It's going to keep happening until Jesus comes back to make all things new. Paul has to think about it. How has God used natural circumstances or pressures of a fallen world to make you think or act in life? What have you learned from them? What do you think you can learn right now? Second, God extends mercy to Jacob and his brothers to draw them into fellowship with him by exposing them to the pressure of broken people.Verse three. But Judah said to him, "The man, the Egyptian ruler, solemnly warned us saying, 'You shall not see my face unless your brother is with you.'" So the will of a relatively random governor in Egypt, according to the brothers as they don't know it is Joseph, he's forcing them in a certain direction. He's adding pressures and limitations to their freedom. They have to deal with the fact that one brother, Simeon, is still imprisoned by him there. And specifically in this chapter, they're pressured to send Benjamin to Egypt upon his command simply to have food for their families to survive. Like Jacob, we still face these unwanted pressures from other people and these are appointed by the severe mercy of God. We can try to create vacuums to avoid such people. We can seek out echo chambers of those who are like-minded. It's easier than ever.We can seek spouses with the exact same interests, companies and departments, literally through search algorithms on apps online. We can find neighbors, churches, work departments that are the perfect fit. But people are inevitable, they're broken, they're sinful. We can't escape them, we can't cancel them, and that's by God's design. The tendency when we engage people and they inflict their presence and authority on our lives, whether we seek it or not, is that we think we can change them. When we're first confronted with hard people, we say to ourselves, "That's okay. Give me a little time, I'll change you." But with time, we see that we can't. This is the husband and the wife almost on a day-to-day basis. This is parents trying to change their children, grow their children, save their children on their time. Children trying to change their parents.This is the boss trying to change the employee, the employee trying to change the boss. No matter how many phone apps, forms of counseling or technology we have that can teach us how to change people, we have to realize that we can't. Only God can. Only God can change someone from the inside out, change them at the heart level such that their behavior, their presence, their communication changes. We need to just approach these moments, this lack of power with humility. We can fight it, we can keep pressing on and nagging on the people of our lives to change them, or we can ask God what is he trying to do through this, the presence of these people.What is that you trying to do through the engagements of them? We have to allow our lives to be shaped by the necessity of engaging people. So ask God, how are you changing me? How are you calling me home to you to crave your presence, your sinless presence, your loving presence more? How are you refining me through other people? This is a severe mercy of God that we have to engage people. Third, God extends severe mercy to Jacob and his brothers to draw them into fellowship with him by exposing them to undesirable circumstances. Verse 6, Jacob says, "Why did you treat me so badly as to tell the man that you had another brother?" So Jacob, the neglectful father, comes off as an angry old curmudgeon, as a victim of the folly of his sons as he processes the situation. He's just whining. Honestly, my first engagement with this was laughing as I read it because I was just sitting and whining with my wife in the minutes before I'd started to study this.And I just want to say, "Men, we think that our wives and children are blessed when we sit down and tell them how we have it right, everyone else in our life has it wrong, and that we are victim of our circumstances." We need to stop. We need to be models of faith and steadfast faithfulness to God. There's no way to avoid difficult circumstances. Jacob and his sons had no control over the fact of the famine and the extension of the famine, and they had no control over the fact that Egypt had all the grain in that period. Similarly, in our lives, there's seasons, moments, trials that just fall into our lap. Things that we didn't invite into our households, our churches, our neighborhoods, our schools, our local state and national governments, financial downturns, wars that we have to engage, that we have no interest in engaging but we have to.We can get depressed, we can get paralyzed, we can busy ourselves to avoid the fact that these tensions and these situations exist. We can distract ourselves with relationships, devices, and shows, adrenaline rushes. We can try to ignore them by engaging in drink, smoke, other chemicals, or we can face the fact that circumstances are part of life. We're called to face them in faith, and find the faithful narrow way forward that brings glory to God. As we do that in the process, the Lord is teaching us, shaping us, saving many all along. These moments, these undesired circumstances shouldn't always be viewed as hindrances, but as opportunities for us to see God's wisdom at work in our lives, to see his power moving in our life. So in some, I've talked about the severe mercy of God as he exposes us to it through the effects of living in a sinful world through people, through random undesired circumstances.And know, the message that I want you to take is not just expect hardship to be a part of your life, but not become a stoic. It's not a, "Pick-up your bootstraps. This is life, just face it. Everybody has to deal with it. Find a way to cope." No, it's find a way to see God's hand through it all. Ask him to grow your wisdom, your insight to engage such moments in a way that pleases him. Ask him to show you what he's teaching you. Ask him how he wants you to respond, one day at a time, without getting overcome with anxiety, thinking about how hard it will be in the future. I like the framing of, "You need to see that as you think about severe mercies, a lot of these external circumstances forcing their pressure on onto your life. You need to see that what makes you you, and the Lord is not just the things that you have done but the things that also have happened to you.God's using it all in his grand plan and glorious plan to save you, to shape you, prepare you for his work. We've seen him do such work in the life of Joseph as we meditated upon his experience in the pit. We meditated upon facing false accusations of adultery. We meditated upon him being forced to be in an Egyptian jail for several years. We've seen how God prepared him to handle this moment with grace and mercy. So the same thing that he did with Joseph, the same thing he's doing with you and you need to trust him as he does it. See here, the text says that God is shaping these men through severe mercy. I just want to take time to look at Judah and Jacob to show you that transformation is actually happening. Let's look at Judah. Judah, who we know from our study in Genesis 38, was a very hard and stubborn man.He slept with his deceased son's wife when he thought she was a prostitute. This Judah is changing by God's severe mercy and becoming the family leader in this chapter. In the text, at the beginning when after Jacob resists sending the brothers back with Benjamin, Judah honestly, respectfully, directly speaks to his father. He still honors him, but he stands on truth before him. In verse 8, to convince his father, he takes a wise strategy. He repeats to his father, "Send the boy with me, and we will rise and go, that we may live and not die." Jacob said when he first sent the sons to Egypt, he said, "Go to Egypt to get grain, so that we may live and not die." He's using Jacob's words to convince him. And then he adds an element so that both we and you and also our little ones may be saved, may stay alive.Judah's not thinking of himself as we saw him do. Primarily, he's thinking of others. So further, Judah, the biggest thing that he does is he pledges his life to Jacob. He commits to taking personal responsibility if Benjamin does not return. This is in comparison to the author that Ruben makes in the last chapter in verse 7. Ruben says to Jacob, this harsh approach, "Kill my two sons if I go to Egypt with Benjamin and don't return with him." We see Jacob's wisdom. We see him taking responsibility. And this foreshadows, a little side note, the precedence that the tribe of Judah eventually takes among the other tribes of the nation of Israel. It points to the time that Jesus Christ, a descendant of Judah, the line of the tribe of Judah's scripture calls him, takes responsibility for the sins of the lost sons of God by going to the cross, offering himself in their place.Judah changes but we see an incredible change in Jacob through the severe mercy of God, through the providential appointment of hardship. Jacob, again, he is a whiny curmudgeon at the start of the chapter, blaming everyone else for the situation that they're in. He's still showing extreme preference for his son Benjamin over the other 10, but there's great change taking place as the chapter goes forward. This is noted most clearly by the fact that, for most of the story today, Jacob's story is that God does save him. Jacob does have faith in God. And God, at that point, he passes his promises of the covenant from Abraham and Isaac to him, and God gives him a covenant named Israel. But Jacob, even after a profound experience in earlier chapters of Genesis, he goes back to his old ways. So the story, the narrative throughout Genesis primarily calls him Jacob over and over again.In chapter 42, he's Jacob. In this chapter, he moves from the old angry man to the new man Israel. He starts off complaining, but then he takes charge as these situations force him to. He provides decisive and wise leadership in granting the brother's permission to bring Benjamin, and giving them instructions to pack gifts, local delicacies that they don't have in Egypt to earn the favor of the ruler, to double the money that they bring back after the Egyptians did not keep their money last time. He takes practical matters. He thinks responsibly. But the most notable change that we see in Jacob as he faces the severe mercy of God is that he has revival in his faith. In verse 14, he's brought to the point where he knows he's powerless to change the situation, and he says, "May God Almighty grant you mercy before the man, and may send back your other brother and Benjamin. And as for me, if I'm bereaved of my children, I'm bereaved."Jacob, now Israel, he appeals to the covenant name of God of Genesis, El Shaddai, Genesis 17 particularly, the mighty God. This God, he's trusted in before, he will trust in again. Furthermore, in this verse, he appeals to the mercy of God for the success of the journey for Egypt. He knows only God can give them favorable outcome here. Lastly, what's most profound, he entrusts Benjamin's safety and the desire for the return of Benjamin's brother Joseph to God, right? He's been grieving the loss of Joseph, basically not functioning, not engaging the other brothers for 20 years, all the while preserving Benjamin's life at all costs and just ignoring those other brothers. And Jacob relinquish his grip on the matter. He goes as far as showing peace over the fact that if it's the Lord's will to bereave him of his children, then so be it.You got to remember, he did not forget that God said that He's carrying this promise to be the father of many nations, like that was passed down from Abraham and Isaac. He says, "God, I trust you. You have the power to fulfill your promises even when there seems to be no hope." So I elaborate on Judas' transformation, Jacob's transformation to illustrate how God uses severe mercy, hard circumstances to change them, to save them, to grow them in the faith. We can spend all of our life begrudgingly facing the appointed personal, familial, cultural, global circumstances that we're born into or approach them with faith. We can see how they deepen our dependence on God, make us better men and women, grow our vision and appreciation for the daily mercies and graces of God, and increase the fruit of the spirit within us. We're becoming more like Christ as we engage them faithfully.Some may ask, why does God act like this? Why does he have a point to choose to use severe mercy? This is my second point, and it's really short. If God calls his children home and grows them through severe mercy, common mercy, why does he use severe mercy? Because he is offering common mercy constantly, and we don't receive it. Matthew 5:45 says, "For he makes the sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust." God is actually trying to tell us through the basic mercies, basic graces of daily life that he is God and he is in control, and we owe him our worship and faithfulness. Through the rising of the sun, every day on all people, through the sending of rains, through daily health, through the beauty of nature, through the provision of daily bread, through the joyful spirit and faith that children have as they wake up and just expect God to provide through the majesty of just the creative world, he's talking to us and it's not enough for us.We are stubborn. We are selfish. We choose to say that that is not enough. We place ourselves in the position of God, and we don't accept his means of communicating that. That's the mistake that Adam and Eve made in the garden. They think that God is keeping something from them in just the basic provision of life in the garden. So we commit the same sin and we don't receive common mercy, which I'm also basically saying is the same thing, historically-referred to as common grace. But praise God, he doesn't stop at common mercy. He doesn't stop at severe mercy to draw us in. He gives us tender mercy, and this is my third point. God calls his children home through severe mercy, common mercy, tender mercy.The use of tender mercy, it's a little redundant. I could have just said mercy. But to drive home in the point and emphasize how good it is, I went forward with tender mercy. He said that he speaks to us through tender mercy, expose us to tender mercy. He treats us and speaks to us with very loving treatment. He engages our fears and guilt uniquely. He mercifully and graciously condescends to speak to us at a level that we understand, in his process of calling us to him and refining us once we're in the family. This is what verses 15-34 really show us. God calls the brothers back by tender mercy. Verse 18 says, "And the men were afraid because they were brought to Joseph's house." So they bring the goods, they bring the money, they bring Benjamin back to Egypt, and they're told by a servant to go to his house.Can you imagine these tent dwellers, these back country men when they're about to go to the house, the property of this powerful Egyptian ruler, essentially a billionaire of their day? They're rolling up on their donkeys, not even camels, to palace with dozens of camels. It's like driving a rusty old pickup truck to a mansion with multiple Teslas and model cars. And they're weary from facing God's severe mercy, the famine, the travel. The anxiety of how they will be received by the ruler after they return, as they know that the ruler did not receive the money the first time, it would've been paralyzing them. Just not knowing, "Is this ruler just going to come down and arrest us and make us his slave?" Their worst fear would probably be over the fact, "That as we engage this man, are we going to be brought to that point where we feel guilty again for throwing Joseph into the pit?"Again, they don't know that Joseph is the ruler. But they know that through engagement with this man, they were brought back to this thing that they just want to depress. But God brings these men back to Egypt as part of the process to draw him in. And how are they received? It's with kindness, with love. Remember, Jacob/Israel's prayer in verse 14, May God Almighty grant you mercy before him. Jacob's prayers come true. It's answered. The ruler and his servant receive them with tender mercy. They arise in Egypt, guilty, fearful. What does the servant say to them? He says, "Peace," shalom in Hebrew, "Peace to you. Do not be afraid. Your God and the God of your father has put treasure in your sacks for you." This is after they say hello and confess that they went home with the money. It says, "Don't worry about it."As the text continues, the servant brings him out, Simeon. He's released as promised, upon their return in their last chapter, and he's in good shape. Then though they're foreigners, they are brought into the private residence of a ruler. Further, the text says they're given water, their feet are washed, their donkeys aren't stolen but are given fodder from the royal feed, and they're invited to a feast. When they approach Joseph at the feast, they bow down to him. And what does he do? He inquires of their welfare, asks them how they are doing, and I'm sure it would've been a little bit of a sugarcoated answer of, "Oh, we're great." Like not acknowledging the fact that they're in turmoil for the months and weeks as this moment approached. But he inquires about their welfare, asks about their father. The ruler further goes to greet the younger brother that he didn't meet during the last visit, Benjamin, and blesses him saying, "God be gracious to you, my son."Altogether, God, after providentially offering common mercy throughout their lives, after offering a lot of severe mercy recently, God has arranged for them to taste his tender mercy as part of the process to draw him in, to fellowship with him. In a situation where Joseph, the ruler, could have brought down justice for the situation with the money as things appeared. For his sin, their sin against him 20 years ago, he treats him with mercy. He treats him with love and kindness. One of the most notable things about the merciful treatment that God has arranged for the brothers is that he goes above and beyond to show the brothers that he's speaking to them through these mercies in ways that are uniquely designed for them. Verse 33 says, And they sat before him, the firstborn according to his birthright and the youngest according to his youth. And the men looked at one another in amazement. God, through Joseph, announces this moment in such a way that the brothers should know that they're talking to him.Just think, there's 11 brothers sitting down. And in this moment, they're arranged from oldest to youngest. If you think about how many ways that the ruler could have arranged them, it's equal to 11 factorial. Yes, I'm making you think about middle school math right now. 11 factorial ways that he could have arranged these men. That's 39,916,800 ways that the ruler could have seeded them, and one of them is the perfect way and he does it. God is clearly speaking to them. And do they see it? Further, in verse 34, the text mentions that the ruler gives Benjamin, the brother of Joseph, five times the portion of food. God's trying to communicate to them that he is God. He knows what they did, and he is mercifully dealing with their sin toward Joseph right now by bringing attention to Benjamin. In this specific communication to the brothers, God is just calling them home.He wants them to cry out mercy as they see that he is God. And they need his mercy for their sin, for their rebellion against his authority over their life, for their specific sins, and particularly, the sin against Joseph. Through tender mercy and the generalness of the ruler's reception, through the specific details of the seating arrangement and serving, God's talking to them. He's trying to stir their minds to acknowledge him as God. But what is their response? Verse 33 says, They looked at one another in amazement. They looked around at each other as if the way they were seated was a coincidence. They looked at each other and said, "Well, forgot about it," and set their minds to the feast before them. Verse 34 says, after Benjamin was given a huge portion, they just enjoyed themselves and had a nice meal like at any other banquet. With their youngest brother, nobody would ever have given the youngest brother this kind of portion. He gets five times more than them in this patriarchal society.And furthermore, at the start of the next chapter, the brothers after this experience where God is just talking to them, offering them mercy, showing them gentleness, tender mercy, they're just content to wake up and go home. They're not inclined to think about everything that's happening. Their reception of the mercy of God, it's dull. They're not moved. It gives them no more than a smile and the satisfaction of a good day and full belly gives them. Isn't that very similar to the reaction that the world has toward God and his mercy? Isn't that very similar to the reaction that you have toward it, on some days? If you're a believer, you can't be a believer without truly cherishing this moment, at one point. But it grows dry and worn out. That's because we're not seeing how God is moving through everything to save us, grow us, shape us.You see, Joseph's brothers, they have an excuse. The ruler didn't reveal himself as Joseph. They don't know that's him, but we know who the ruler is. We know who the governor is. We know who the king of kings, the Lord of Lord is, over all of the earth and over us all as individuals. It's the Lord Jesus Christ. It's written on our heart, our conscience, and it's written in the creation. We long for God's perfect and just rule and reign and the comfort of his presence, when the storms and trials, the rulers and people and circumstances of the broken world impress their unjust influence on our lives and decision making. We long for his unique and tender love toward us as we face these hardships. We know that for all of history, all the time, God has supremely shown his love to man.He has communicated his desire to extend love and grace to each of us in a million unique different ways. Most clearly, he has mercifully and graciously shown his love for us. In coming to deal with our greatest need as parched, guilty, dead sinners. He took on flesh, went from heaven to earth and walked the earth. He came to deal with our greatest need, our thirst for him. God broke the barrier by sending a son to take on flesh, bear the hardship and temptations of this world perfectly as we could not, and to go to the cross in our place. We know that God chosen his love for us and, that while we are still sinners, Christ died for us. How much more clearly could God in all of his glory condescend to speak to us in our greatest need to communicate his love to us? And yet we're often reluctant to receive it.We're reluctant to see our need to entrust our lives to him. Joseph and his brothers had an excuse, but we don't. So Colossians 2:9-10, it says, we're in him the whole fullness of the deity dwells bodily. And you have been filled in him who is the head of all rule and authority. We have no excuse. God is showing his mercy, communicating his love and desire to be in relationship with us over and over again, and we need to receive it. Christ, he broke the divide between heaven and earth. His crowning act of glory with all of his authority was to lay side as glory and die for us. That's really what Joseph is doing. Joseph could be using his authority to squash these sinners to just pour out wrath, but he doesn't. God, Christ did all of this in order that we might live and dine at the same table with him, with a portion due to the firstborn and rule with him and his eternal kingdom.That's what Joseph was doing. That's what Christ offers to us. So I ask you today to close, how is God extending severe mercy to you? How is he extending common mercy? How can you see it better? How is he extending tender mercy, specifically speaking to you, in ways that speak to your greatest fears, your greatest sense, your areas of guilt, your questions of the truth? As you see that, just bow and humble submission to him. Genesis 43 says, you're doubtful, sinful, guilty people like Jacob's family and us with a bad record of bad conscience. There is one power. One of great power and great honor who loves you, who wants to bless you and deliver you from the guilt of your sin and circumstances. He's doing so much to get you to see that. Try to see it. Come into his family, his love, his grace, his mercy. It's sufficient. Let us pray.Heavenly Father, we praise you that Christ has come and he came out of love. He initiated the process that procured our salvation. It's not anything that we can do, but it's all that he has done. And Lord, we praise you that you do not leave us in the condition that we're in. When you save us, you give us your righteousness, but you appoint seasons and trials and circumstances and engagement with the fallen world to grow us. We get to see your hand of redemption at work in us and through us every day. Lord, we praise you that we know we have a savior who has lived perfectly, died in our place, roses from the dead, and ascended to your right hand of authority just like Joseph was at the right hand of Pharaoh. And he is working for our good, for our preservation, for our growth in the faith. We pray all these things in Jesus' name. Amen.Now, we're going to transition to a time in the service of communion. This is something that we do as believers to commemorate the fact that by offering his body, pouring out his blood for us on the cross, Jesus invites us to live and dine guilt free at his table. For whom is holy communion—it's for repentant Christians, repentant children of God. If you're not a Christian, not sure where you stand before God, we ask you to withhold from partaking and meditate on the gospel, meditate upon the sermon, the message of today. But if you have decided today to receive Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, you're welcome to partake. And if are a Christian, we emphasize that this is for repentant believers. If you have unreconciled sin in your life that you have not brought to the Lord, if you have it on your conscience to approach other brothers and sisters where there is sin, we ask you to with withhold.So if you haven't received a cup with a little wafer and the elements, please raise your hand. As I pray, one of the ushers will give you one. Heavenly Father, we praise you for your grace and mercy. Jesus, we thank you for procuring salvation for us. You suffered, Lord, and triumphed for us. Today, we remember your suffering. Holy Spirit, I pray that you prepare our hearts now to focus on the attention of the cross of Jesus Christ dying for us, the primary act of showing your tender mercy toward us. We pray this in Jesus' name. Amen. Take off the bottom layer. I think all of our cups now have the bread on the bottom. Take the bread out and follow along with me. On the night that Jesus was betrayed, he took the bread and after eating it, he said, "This is my body broken for you. Take, eat, and do this in remembrance of me."He then proceeded to take the cup, and he said, "This cup is the cup of the new covenant of my blood, which is poured out for the sins of many. Take, drink, and do this in remembrance of me." Let's pray. Lord God, we glorify you. We pray, Lord, Holy Spirit, help us in glorifying God as we meditate upon the wisdom of his ways, the ability to redeem and use the brokenness of this world, the broken moments of our life, the broken moments of our personality, and redeem them and use them to be a blessing to others. Help us, Lord, as we worship. Help us to cast off all of our burdens and anxieties and stresses for situations, relationships that we cannot control to you. Help us to focus on you on the greatness of your power, your majesty, holiness, righteousness, truth, perfect plans, and sovereignty. Help us to sing with all that we have because you are worthy of all worship and glory and honor in all seasons. We pray this all in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Genesis 35 – What happens when we die? Like Jacob, all of us experience the sting and sorrow of death when our family and beloved friends die. Jacob loses the love of his life, his wife Rachel, and his father Isaac. Although the Bible is silent on Jacob’s heartache, God’s Word provides profound insight that brings […] The post Genesis 35 – What Happens When We Die? appeared first on The Mission Church.

Genesis 35:1-15 – Regeneration in the House of God. Like Jacob, many people want a deep relationship with God, but find themselves falling into the same sinful and frustrating patterns keeping them from abiding in Jesus. This sermon is dripping with God’s grace and provides instructions to those who are growing weary and wondering; Will […] The post Genesis 35:1-15 – Regeneration in the House of God appeared first on The Mission Church.

In this episode, we discuss the wonderful traits of Jacob Kowalski. Enjoy!Topics/Summary:·      2:12 Jacob is a good person. That single fact drives his entire character. He is a fantastic companion and friend to Newt. Newt has always been on the outs of society and has had trouble finding friends. But with Jacob, Newt had no trouble at all fitting in. Jacob was also a good support system for Newt. Jacob is the living representation of “we must always make the choice between what is right and what is easy”. When Lally came to the bakery in the Secrets of Dumbledore, Jacob made the decision to go with her and help save the world even though he knew it could be the end of him as well.·      8:18 Jacob helps even though he isn't a wizard. He can't cast spells or take part in duels, but he still aids in other ways. For example, he helped Newt find the erumpent in Central Park. Without Jacob Newt wouldn't have found the erumpent and might still be looking for it today. Jacob also was the thrower of the bug in the teapot in the Macey's department store. He also helps Newt in his case with all the magical creatures. He may not be a wizard, but Jacob can still help out.·      12:49 Jacob understands people. One thing in particular sets his understand apart from everyone else. That is his attempts at getting Newt and Tina together. Jacob can see they're perfect together and they should be together, so he tries to urge Newt to make an effort to show his affection for Tina. ·      16:58 Jacob's branding is on point. There is a distinct set of trademarks the Jacob has that make him the person we know and love. Dan Fogler delivers his lines in such a charming way that really shows the person behind Jacob. Jacob also has a fantastic musical motif associated with his person. He also has a great set of lines. From “Hey Mr. English Guy. I think you egg is hatching!” to “That's me. I'm the pan.”, Jacob has awesome lines the put a great spin on the story.·      25:42 Jacob can handle magic. That is a quality that a muggle like him could dearly use. Though he may have not been so happy about it in the beginning, he developed a tolerance for spells flying left and right. The story would be very different if he was terrified of just the simplest spell.Having anything you want to hear or say? Click here for a voice submission or here for text. The Quill and Ink NewsletterThePotterDiscussion@gmail.com@thepotterdiscussion on Instagram@potter_discuss on TwitterWebsite

Of all the patriarchs in Genesis, Jacob's life was characterized by conflict and struggle. In this eight-part series we'll take an in-depth look at the conflicts and struggles of Jacob's long, and often sad, life. Though it is an ancient story, there is so much here for us, its modern readers. We will be inspired, encouraged, challenged, and warned. Like Jacob himself, we will not leave these experiences unchanged. The series begins… and so does the struggle…

Of all the patriarchs in Genesis, Jacob's life was characterized by conflict and struggle. In this eight-part series we'll take an in-depth look at the conflicts and struggles of Jacob's long, and often sad, life. Though it is an ancient story, there is so much here for us, its modern readers. We will be inspired, encouraged, challenged, and warned. Like Jacob himself, we will not leave these experiences unchanged. The series begins… and so does the struggle…

Jacob wrestling with Angel. The mystery of the name. We have to let God ask us who we are or will you resist and remain isolated? Our prayer is only going to be fruitful if we surrender ourselves to the question...who are you? Like Jacob, once we give over our name then God can begin to transfigure that name, or in other words, our persons to be more inline with His will, His love, His power. Eventually, in prayer, we have to enter into the struggle...what is really going on in our souls, in our hearts and are our wrestling with God's love. We yield our identity to God's love. The wounding of Jacob by the Angel. It is the symbol of the wound, the opening of the self, which symbolizes an entryway to vulnerability...God is deeply affecting us. God's love, concern, and fascination with us is how He enters into our being and "wounds" us. If we could "be still" and allow Him to love us, He becomes victorious within us. The name we yield to God is our heart...the core of our being. At Baptism, we give over our name, so we give the power over to God over us. How the "wrestling occurs" and if we stay in it long enough God "wounds" us, into His hands we commend our "spirits". How does Jesus transform even this event? The post SOP4 – Who Are We? Wrestling with God – The School of Prayer: Reflections on the teachings of Pope Benedict XVI w/ Deacon James Keating appeared first on Discerning Hearts Catholic Podcasts.

Matthew 28:18-20 Thanks to everyone who supports TMBH at patreon.com/thetmbhpodcast You're the reason we can all do this together! Discuss the episode here Music written and performed by Jeff Foote

Just like last offseason, the San Francisco Giants are faced with whether or not to bring back a free-agent ace. Carlos Rodón re-enters the market after one season with the SF Giants, and there's good chance the Giants let him walk just like they did with Kevin Gausman. ESPN and FanGraphs predict Rodón to receive a five-year deal worth about $25 million per year (about $125 million in total). That's very similar to the 5/$110M deal Kevin Gausman received from the Blue Jays last offseason.If the San Francisco Giants choose to let Rodón get his big deal from another team, what should they do? They've been clear that they intend to pair Logan Webb with another top-of-the-rotation arm. Even after letting Gausman leave, the Giants managed to replace his production beautifully in the form of Rodón, who got the same AAV as Gausman but over far fewer years.The alternatives on the market include Jacob deGrom, who's expected to land a short-term deal worth $40+ million, Justin Verlander, who's expected to come in around 2/$70 million, and Clayton Kershaw, who may be willing to accept a one-year deal but almost certainly wouldn't sign with the San Francisco Giants. Among those options, Verlander may be the most appealing because it's a nice middle ground between the absurd AAV deGrom may command and the five-plus years Rodón may command.Find and follow Locked On Giants on your favorite podcast platforms:

Just like last offseason, the San Francisco Giants are faced with whether or not to bring back a free-agent ace. Carlos Rodón re-enters the market after one season with the SF Giants, and there's good chance the Giants let him walk just like they did with Kevin Gausman. ESPN and FanGraphs predict Rodón to receive a five-year deal worth about $25 million per year (about $125 million in total). That's very similar to the 5/$110M deal Kevin Gausman received from the Blue Jays last offseason. If the San Francisco Giants choose to let Rodón get his big deal from another team, what should they do? They've been clear that they intend to pair Logan Webb with another top-of-the-rotation arm. Even after letting Gausman leave, the Giants managed to replace his production beautifully in the form of Rodón, who got the same AAV as Gausman but over far fewer years. The alternatives on the market include Jacob deGrom, who's expected to land a short-term deal worth $40+ million, Justin Verlander, who's expected to come in around 2/$70 million, and Clayton Kershaw, who may be willing to accept a one-year deal but almost certainly wouldn't sign with the San Francisco Giants. Among those options, Verlander may be the most appealing because it's a nice middle ground between the absurd AAV deGrom may command and the five-plus years Rodón may command. Find and follow Locked On Giants on your favorite podcast platforms: