We are truly guilty concerning our brother, ...

... for we saw the anguish of his soul when he pleaded with us, and we would not hear; therefore this distress has come upon us (Genesis 42:21). It was all happening just as God had revealed it would through prophetic dreams, first of Joseph, and then of Pharaoh. Jospeh had dreamt he would rule over his brothers, the seven years of plenty of Pharaoh's dream had passed, and they had entered the seven years of famine. Jacob has sent the ten sons who had sold Joseph into slavery to buy grain in Egypt. They encountered Joseph who was in control of selling the grain, but they had not recognized him. He had spoken roughly to them accusing them of being spies, and had put them in jail for three days. At the end of that time Joseph released nine of them leaving one as a guarantor that they would return with Joseph's younger brother, and this morning's quote is what the brothers were saying to each other.

Unless our conscience has been seared as with a red hot iron (1 Timothy 4:2), it is inevitable that the wrong we have done will come back to haunt us. The image from 1 Timothy of the hot iron, speaks of the insensitivity of the scar left by a branding iron after it has healed. Conscience is God given, and is ultimately designed to lead to repentance. The brothers were feeling and acknowledging guilt, but feeling guilt and acknowledging guilt are not the same thing as the repentance to which they are designed to lead us. True repentance is about turning away and making appropriate amends, and I want to suggest that the brothers were not there yet. Either that or Joseph, in spite of his tears (verse 24), was not yet ready to forgive them (see also Genesis 50:18-20).

A two verses came to mind as I thought on these things. The first is “Be sure your sin will find you out” (Numbers 32:23), the second “Do not be deceived, God cannot be mocked, whatsoever a man sows that will he also reap” (Galatians 6:7). The brothers thought they had gotten away with their sin. They had killed a goat and soaked Joseph's coat in the blood to deceive their father into believing a wild animal had killed Joseph (Genesis 37). They had added deceit to their sin. More sin always seems to follow sin. But God was no mocked, He was not mocked with the brothers, and He will not be mocked with you and I. Sin has consequences, and if we think we have gotten away with it, we are truly deceived. Sooner or later our sin will indeed find us out, and betray us. Thankfully there is a remedy. We do need to repent and turn from out wicked ways, and ask God and others to forgive us. God has promised that He will forgive (1 John 1:9). As for us, as much as possible we are to live at peace with others. We may need to make restitution, or an appropriate amends (as long as it does not hurt others).

Father, I want to thank You again this morning that when we confess our sins You are faithful and just not only to forgive us but also to cleanse us. Show us what You require of us in terms of the fruit of repentance and we will do, and give You the glory in Jesus Name Amen

I will restore the years the locusts have eaten

This verse from Joel 2:25 came to me as I read Genesis 41:17-42:17. After all that Joseph had gone through following being sold into slavery in Egypt, the Lord had promoted Joseph to second in command in the land. Pharaoh had also given him a wife and she had born him two children Manasseh meaning “God has caused me to forget,” and Ephraim meaning “two fruit land,” He said Manasseh: “For God has made me forget all my suffering and all my father’s house.” And Ephraim: “For God has caused me to be fruitful in the land of my affliction” (41:51, 52). The other verse that came to mind as I meditated on these things is “God is not unjust to forget your work and labor of love” (Hebrews 6:10). Joseph at each stage, had humbled himself, and God had exalted him in His "kairos" time.

Exaltation is promised when we humble ourselves “under the might hand of God” (1Peter 5:6). And it is in the here and now. However “There were those who were tortured, refusing to be released so that they might gain an even better resurrection” (Hebrews 11:35). That clearly was a choice, a choice which we perhaps we too may be able to make. On the other hand a verse that has meant a lot to me is Psalm 27:13 (NKJV) “I would have lost heart, unless I had believed that I would see the goodness of the LORD in the land of the living.” The next verse instructs us to “Wait on the LORD; be of good courage, and He shall strengthen your heart.” This is what He does in the midst of the trials when we stop fighting people and circumstances that He allows, and in doing so humble ourselves. In case we are in any doubt as to what to do, David repeats the instruction “Wait, I say on the Lord” (verse 14).

The word “kairos” mentioned above,  does not appear in the translation of 1Peter 5:6. There are in fact two words in the Greek that are both translated “time.” The one in the 1 Peter reference is kairos, the other is kronos. We take our word chronology from kronos, it is sequential time, the time of clocks and calendars; it can measured. Herod asked the wise men the time (kronos) since the star appeared (Matthew 2:7). Kronos is mechanistic, we say “Kronos stops for no one” and “Kronos is money.” The word kairos, on the other hand has the meaning of the right time, or a critical, or opportune time. Paul exhorts us to redeem the kairos time (make the most of it), because the days are evil (Ephesians 5:16). The angel tells Zacharias that his (prophetic) words would be fulfilled in their own kronos (Luke 1:20), and there was a kronos time for Joseph's dreams to be fulfilled. There is a kronos time to strike the iron (when it is hot). And there are kronos times and seasons for many often equal and opposite things (Ecclesiastes 3 LXX).

Father, thank You for Your promise to restore what the enemy has stolen. Give us the grace, as good soldiers,  to endure the hardships (2 Timothy 2:3). You have told us that in kairos time we will reap, if we do not faint (Galatians 6:9). Teach us Lord to recognize our kairos moments, and give us courage and wisdom to press into them and redeem them, for the days are indeed evil. We pray these things in Jesus Name Amen

After two full years, Pharaoh had a dream

Apart from being a tad unwise in sharing his dreams (Genesis 37:5-11), Joseph had done nothing wrong, but he had suffered anyway. Sold into slavery by his brothers (verse 28), falsely accused of rape and thrown into prison, he had at each stage found favour with those who were over him (39:7-23). Now in prison he had correctly interpreted the dreams of Pharaoh's cup bearer and baker who had also been thrown into prison. The meaning of the dreams were that the cup bearer woud be released, and the baker beheaded. Joseph asked the cup bearer to ask Pharaoh to release him on the grounds that he had done nothing wrong (Genesis 40:1-14). Clearly God was at work here, and this would be God's way of vindicating Joseph and getting him out of jail. But the cup bearer simply forgot! And now two full years later, Pharaoh had a dream which would jog the cup bearer's memory. Joseph was brought to Pharaoh,  and in fact was promoted to be second only to Pharaoh (Genesis 41:1-40).

Two full years! We are not told how long he had endured the injustices from the time was sold into slavery until the start of the two full years, but the emphasis on “full” points to the fact that waiting is often difficult, and in Jospeph's case the two years waiting was continued waiting after what must have seemed like a very long time. And perhaps it was testing his patience! Joseph was dealing with two difficult things here, first of all he was suffering unjustly for things that were not his fault, and secondly he was having to wait for what must have seemed like forever. Have you ever wondered why God allows what He allows, and have you ever felt the difficulty of waiting for a promise to be fulfilled,  or for things to be put right? It's not easy, but then He never promised it would be!

I am not saying that I understand why God allows what He allows, but I do know that He works all things together for good for those who love Him and are called according to His purposes (Romans 8:28). And a huge part of this, is character polishing (verse 29). In the midst of it all, we start to see what is in our hearts, it brings the dross to the surface where we can repent of false motives,  and the like. I know I would not be the same man had I not gone through and continue to go through the things He allows. Even when it is not “my fault,” I can sin by responding in the wrong way to wrong done. When we submit in humility to what He allows He has promised that He will exalt us in His (kairos) time.

Father, You have promised that those who wait in hope upon You will rise up on wings like eagles (Isaiah 40:31). Please give us (me) Your grace this morning to continue to wait on You. Thank You for Your promise and for Your help to continue to trust You through it all in Jesus Name Amen

Let us not be eager for empty glory, provoking and envying one another

I noticed that I find it relatively easy to be humble with those who are humble. It can be a different story with those who like to tell me how wonderful they are, and how much they have accomplished, be it for the Lord or otherwise. And I find, if I am not very careful, that I can allow something to rise up within me wanting to say – “Oh yeh, well let me tell you about me ...” To do this would be to seek for empty glory, seeking to bolster other's opinion of me. It's a bit like when we give to charity in order to be seen, we already have our reward, the praise of men (Matthew 6:1, 2). It can also come when we are feeling put down. I am not saying there is never a place to defend ourselves, but we do need to remember that when Jesus was reviled, He reviled not again (1 Peter 2:23).

In the same context as this morning's reference (his closing remarks to the Galatians) Paul says “God forbid that I should boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world” (5:26; 6:14). Tim Keller in an exposition of this passage comments that the essence of the gospel is Jesus giving His life for us, in order that we might give our lives for others. And part of what Paul is saying here, is that in the light of the cross what those who seek empty glory think and feel should firstly, be dead to us. That is, I mean that we should take no account of it, knowing what God thinks and feels about us is far more important and far more affirming of who we are in Him. Secondly our response to the vain glory of the world should be that we are dead to it, in particular I should neither retaliate, nor boast in me, but rather in the cross of Jesus Christ (“It is what He did for me and for you”).

Coming back to the title verse, when we boast in nothing other than the cross, not only is it seeking empty and vain glory, it is provocative and so often leads to envy and jealousy and even putdowns as we seek to exalt self by belittling others. It is natural fallen human nature and it is what needs to be put to crucified and put to death (Galatians 5:24; Romans 8:13). Since no one likely goes to ones' death without kicking and screaming, it is likely something of a battle!

Father, it is so easy to get caught up in the spirit of the World, and it is a spirit. Your Word tells us Lord that those who are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires (5:24). Help us therefore to reckon ourselves dead to sin, but alive to God (Romans 6:11), and to present ourselves as living sacrifices (Romans 12:1). We need Your help Lord to be steadfast immovable aways abounding in the work of the Lord, and I am asking for it again this morning Father in Jesus Name Amen

But Jesus knew their thoughts

It is important, in seeking to make an application of this statement about Jesus,  to get our theology straight. Most people in church have the correct theology about His Deity, but I hear over and over “Jesus could do such and such a thing,  because He is God.” In particular here “He could know their thoughts because He is God.” In this and all such thoughts,  if Jesus did these  things because He is God, then we can applaud and admire Him for it, but we could never expect to be like Him. In 1 John 4:3 John tells us that “every spirit that does not confess that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is not of God.” And saying that Jesus was not operating as a spirit filled man, rather that He was operating as God, is in effect denying that He came in the flesh.

When Jesus became flesh He in fact emptied Himself of His godhead (John 1:14; Philippians 2:7 ESV).  And He is our example of the Spirit filled man, and we are to follow Him and His example. So when I came across this morning's verse in my readings (Matthew 12:25), I thought to myself “I want to do that too!” And I felt the Lord asking me why I wanted it. Motives are important! Immediately the passage about Simon the sorcerer came to mind. Simon wanted to purchase the gifts and power of the Holy Spirit with money. We don't know His motives, but Peter could say that he was poisoned by bitterness (Acts 8:9-23). So yes motives are important!

But there is another question we need to ask, and that is how did He do this? Well it seems to me that this was a “word of knowledge” (1 Corinthians 12:8). As to the Lord's question to me, often we do not know our motives, and even when we think we do, they are likely mixed. So what I did is to ask myself why Jesus wanted it. Now what I know is that everything He does, He does in love. And even though the ones to whom He would speak would likely not hear, He wanted to speak so that those who do have ears to hear would understand why what they were thinking is wrong. In other words Jesus' motives were Kingdom motives.

Father, You Word encourages us to pursues love and to seek spiritual gifts (1 Corinthians 14:1). I know Lord that when I seek these things my motives are not always 100% pure. Help me Lord to be as zealous to have a pure heart,  as I am to receive Your gifts. Purify my heart Lord where it needs purifying, and  then and only then please help me to know how to give an answer as You did,  even before the question is asked, and I will give You all the glory in Jesus Name Amen

I will not let You go unless You bless me!

Jacob was worried, his brother was coming to meet him and his entourage with four hundred, likely armed, men. Twenty years earlier Jacob had swindled his brother out of both his blessing, and his birthright. Esau had vowed to kill him, and Jacob had fled. In the twenty years Jacob had prospered, and was returning as God had instructed him to do. When Jacob had learned of his brother coming to meet him with four hundred men, he had prepared and elaborate amends sending lavish gifts ahead of him to meet his brother on the way. Yes, God had told him to return, nevertheless he was understandably nervous, and he wrestled all night with the angel of the Lord. At the break of day the Angel told Jacob to let Him go, and the title of this post, is Jacob's reply (Genesis 32:27, see also chapters 25 – 33).

In many ways Jacob's amends is a model for the amends envisaged in step eight of twelve-step programs. I am thinking in particular of the humility and the timing, nudged by God etc., etc. But my focus this morning is about how Jacob dealt with his anxiety. The description of the encounter is of Jacob struggling with God and man, and prevailing. The word translated here as struggle, means to persist, to exert oneself, to persevere, and this too is a model for us, a model to follow when we find ourselves wrestling in our spirit with something. Jacob's wrestling match is no passive fatalistic response to the difficulties of his life. It is an active and persistent interaction with God. Though it is not play, it is deadly serious, nevertheless, it is reminiscent of the way a loving father wrestles with his young male child, and it is part of what builds a healthy relationship.

Part of why this analogy is appropriate is that clearly the father is much stronger than the child and could easily overpower him. But the father will only use appropriate strength to match that of the child's. And in this way not only is the relationship strengthened, but also the muscles of the child. When we wrestle with God He does the same thing spiritually, and with the same purpose to strengthen us spiritually. In fact the Lord loves us to do this, and when we persist He will indeed bless us, give us the necessary peace and strength and hope to continue and to face whatever it is we need, with His help, to face! In the midst of our difficulties we might not come to God in entirety the right way. I picture myself at times pummelling Him with my fists, even as He holds me in His embrace.

Father, I thank You this morning of this picture of struggling with You and prevailing. Forgive us Lord for the times we have allowed ourselves to be offended. Teach us to wrestle appropriately with You. Thank You Lord that are big enough Lord to deal with our inappropriate responses, and that You would rather that we brought our offence to You in accusation, rather than our allowing the offense to isolate us from You. Bless us this morning Lord in Jesus Name Amen 

 

Blessed is he who is not offended in Me

There were two verse that stood out to me in this morning's daily reading. The one above from Matthew 11:6, and “How long, O LORD? Will You forget me forever?” (Psalm 13:1). John (the Baptist) from prison had sent his disciples to Jesus asking “Are You the Coming One, or do we look for another?” Likely John could identify with the Psalmist (David) in this morning's Psalm. John had done everything right, and was being persecuted for righteousness' sake, but was (also) likely not at the place where he was rejoicing and being exceedingly glad (Matthew 5:10, 12). My own (much less severe) experience of negative responses to things I believe I have done right, start off well. I am suffering for the Lord (martyr complex?). But as time goes on, and there's not the promised vindication anywhere on the horizon (Psalm 37:6), it is easy to take my eyes off the Lord and start to identify with David's cry!

Have you ever felt abandoned by the Lord? Part of my life instructions are to wait patiently on Him (Psalm 40:1). And I have waited, but not always patiently (How long oh Lord?)! In answer to John, Jesus points John to what He (Jesus) is doing “The blind see and the lame walk” etc., etc (verse 5). What Jesus is doing, is pointing John (and us) us away from our focus on what He is not yet doing, and onto what He is doing. When we get fixated on what we want, and when we want it (now), it can lead to our being offended in Him. “What about me?”

Neither John nor David were wrong to cry out to the Lord. Indeed when his soul was overwhelmed, David poured out his complaint to the Lord (Psalm 142:2,3). It is an essential part of getting back the right perspective. In the process of doing this, David remembers that in the past he has trusted in God's mercy and declares “My heart shall rejoice in Your salvation.” He goes on to choose to sing to the Lord, recalling that God has always dealt bountifully with him (Psalm 13:5,6).

Father, thank You for Your Word, and for the example of Your saints. Thank You Lord that though You are never early, You are never late, and that what You allow, You allow so that Your purposes can be accomplished in me. I know that on that day, when I see things clearly, I will declare that You have done all things well. Thank You for the Grace to carry on, and to be steadfast and immovable always abounding in the work of the Lord in Jesus Name Amen