Deuteronomy 30

"The LORD your God will circumcise your hearts and the hearts of your descendants, so that you may love him with all your heart and with all your soul, and live."

{Deuteronomy 30:6} (NIV 1984) 

Oh the grace of YHWH! In the midst of the promises and warnings of temporal blessing or curses, here we have a promise of spiritual grace. Our Lord taught us that the most important of all the commandments, is this one: to love the Lord your God with all your heart and soul...

Here we have the promise of the Spirit given to us by Moses. God is the One who will cause us to love Him. How? By circumcising our hearts. How can a man or a woman circumcise their hearts? The Lord is the heart surgeon! It is He who reaches into our innermost being and by the power of the Holy Spirit cuts away the sin nature and brings forth pure and righteous love for our Creator and our God. The end result of this surgery is life for us! It is what we need. We need to love God, for loving Him brings life! We need to obey God, for obedience to Him brings life! We need to worship God, for worship of Him brings life! Friend, is the love of God in our heart this day? 

Renew our love for You, O Lord. O Holy Spirit, bring forth pure love for the Father, from the depths of my being. May we be people who love you will all of our hearts, all of our souls, all of our lives. 

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Exodus 12

"An alien living among you who wants to celebrate the LORD's Passover must have all the males in his household circumcised; then he may take part like one born in the land. No uncircumcised male may eat of it." 

{Exodus 12:48} (NIV 1984) 

A person living among the people of Israel, enjoying their life among God's people, might want to join with them in the Feast that celebrates God passing over them as He struck down the firstborn of the Eygptians. If they want to, then they must receive the seal/sign of joining into the pormise of God before they will be allowed to celebrate by eating. 

So it is in churches of The Lord Jesus Christ. He invites us to eat a meal together in His Presence, celebrating His death and atonement for us. We participate in many different traditions, but we recognize that participation in the Lord's communion requires a person to have first received the Holy Spirit; the seal/sighn that we have joined into the promise of God. 

And so it is also with the wedding feast of the Lamb. If you want, only if you want, to join in the wedding supper of the Lamb in the life to come, then you must receive the Holy Spirit; the seal/sign that you have joined into the promise of God. Eating a cracker/bread and drinking juice/wine in this life, despite the vain blessing of men, will not give you entrance into the wedding supper of the Lamb. 

O friend, do you have the Holy Spirit within you? Look for Him this day. Ask Him to show Himself to you, and He will testify to your spirit if you are a child of God (Romans 8:16). 

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Genesis 17

"I will confirm my covenant between me and you and will greatly increase your numbers.”

{Genesis 17:2} (NIV 1984) 

God Almighty was and is determined to make Abraham’s descendants numerous! He stated it as an irrevocable promise to Abram (Genesis 15) and here He appears to Abram again to speak of the large numbers of descendants that God will cause to come from Abram’s body. 

God makes the promise, but Abraham must do something to his body and to the body of every male as a sign/seal that he and his people have joined into the promise of God. It isn’t a coincidence that the part of his body that he has to cut away is the part of the male’s body that is the descendant maker. This takes faith on the part of Abraham. He believed God and he obeyed Him. He took something really sharp and cut away a piece of skin from the part of the body each man treats with special care, and keeps private. 

Paul tells us to remember this; he makes the point that Abram received the seal of righteousness before he was circumcised (Rom 4:9-12). So it is with us, we by faith believe the gospel and then after we believe we are circumcised by the Spirit, our sin nature is cut away by the hand of God (Col 2:11,12). 

Friend, is there anything missing in our lives? Is our sin nature gone? Can we look back over our lives and see that something is missing? Is there any sign that we joined into the promise of God? Thank Him for sealing us with the promised Holy Spirit, who cuts away our sin nature.

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Isaiah 46

"I make known the end from the beginning, from ancient times, what is still to come. I say: My purpose will stand, and I will do all that I please."

{Isaiah 46:10} (NIV 1984) 

Idols are a burden on the people who carry them; they stoop down together, but the LORD carries His people, sustains and rescues them. As Isaiah compares God to humans and to other gods, this verse sets the LORD above all humans and all other gods. It seems that some can perhaps speak of the future before it comes about, perhaps. But no one can claim to make known the end from the beginning! 

All of the people, the rulers, the nations, the armies and the schemes and cunning of the forces of evil, do not affect God in any way. He has declared the end from the beginning. We can read this declaration for ourselves. If we would read the Bible from start to finish, it tells the whole story. We could know this declaration in our lives, if we would surrender and seek His will each day. Who can say something like this? The LORD (I AM) who is truly God, not something created by the imagination of people, but the One who created all people. Not a natural phenomenon that has been misunderstood, but the One who created nature. 

Friend, we can trust Him. Trust Him with our eternity, trust Him with our life and trust Him with this day.

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Isaiah 45

"For this is what the LORD says— he who created the heavens, he is God; he who fashioned and made the earth, he founded it;

he did not create it to be empty, but formed it to be inhabited— he says: “I am the LORD, and there is no other”.

{Isaiah 45:18} (NIV 1984) 

The so called “experts” of the world tell us that humans are a scourge on the face of the earth. They would like to limit the number of people on the earth. They would like to set up places on earth where humans aren’t allowed to go. These “experts” are completely opposed to God’s Word and the LORD Himself. 

The LORD who made everything, made everything so that it would be inhabited. Inhabited by whom? By people, for the LORD loves people. He created a place for us to live; He spoke to us in Words we can understand, and He performed great and mighty deeds so that we would know His character. He did all of what He has done so that people would seek His face and turn to Him and be saved. There will be a Day when every knee will bow before Him; those who raged against Him will come before Him and be put to shame, but those who sought His face, and turned and called on Him to save them, they will be found righteous and exalted in His Presence. 

The LORD loves people, all people! His love reaches to the heavens, His faithfulness stretches to the skies. Praise His glorious Name.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hWJWKadxYME

{Your Love Oh Lord, Third Day, via YouTube}

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Isaiah 44

“This is what the LORD says—

    your Redeemer, who formed you in the womb: I am the LORD, who has made all things, who alone stretched out the heavens, who spread out the earth by myself..."

{Isaiah 44:24} (NIV 1984)

We call gravity a law of nature. We observe how our bodies operate within this world that we exist in and we call these observations laws. We cannot escape these laws; they hold us captive, and they protect us and keep us alive, but we make a big mistake when we start to think that God must operate under those laws. It is true that He does His work on earth through people who are subject to these laws. But it is a greater truth that He operates in this world outside of those laws. 

The Bible is full of what we call miracles, which are simply instances when the LORD operates outside of the laws of nature. Every time that I see a newborn, I think, 'what a miracle!' The LORD reminds us in this verse and in this chapter that He alone makes each person in the womb, and that He alone made all of creation. He alone is God and there is no other beside Him, and that He alone bought us at a price. 

What does this truth mean to you this morning friend? Is there anything that you are asking of God that He can’t do? Not a chance! Our God is able and our God loves us so much that He paid a price for us. May we draw near to Him this day.

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Isaiah 43

"For I am the LORD, your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior; I give Egypt for your ransom, Cush and Seba in your stead. Since you are precious and honored in my sight, and because I love you, I will give men in exchange for you, and people in exchange for your life."

{Isaiah 43:3,4} (NIV 1984) 

This Sovereign LORD is the Redeemer and Saviour of His people. He places His love on His people and He brings them out of slavery into glorious freedom! But there is a price for this that we cannot pay, for we are owned by another. In these verses the LORD tells Israel that He will give Egypt for them. That is, the LORD has decided that one group of humans will pay the price required for His people. This happened when the firstborn males of Egypt were killed, which caused Pharoah to let Israel go. This is a humbling truth, for an honest person knows that they don’t deserve someone dying in their place, especially children. 

This act of salvation and redemption of the people of Israel was only a foretaste of what was to come. The New Testament teaches us that the LORD of all the earth loved the world so much that He sent His Son to the pay the price for us all (1 Jn 2:2). The Holy One, our Saviour, gave Himself for our ransom. His Life was given in exchange for ours. Why? The answer humbles us: because we are precious and honoured in His sight.

“He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things?” (Rom 8:32) 

Oh friend, give glory to His Name!

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Isaiah 42

“I am the LORD; that is my name!

    I will not give my glory to another or my praise to idols."

{Isaiah 42:8} (NIV 1984)

God calls the nation Israel, His servant (Isa 41:8) and declares His wonderful plan for this worm of a nation. But Israel turns to idols and will not listen to God (Isa 41:21-29), nor obey God (Isa 42:23-25) so God chooses a servant out of Israel, one in whom I delight (vs1). 

What a marvelous message of hope is laid out in verses 1-7. What a description of our Lord! The LORD who made the earth and gave breath to its entire people, will send His servant, our Lord Jesus, who will be a light to all peoples of the world, and deliver not just Israel, but the peoples of the earth. Why would He do this? Why would He send His Son in humility? For the sake of His Name! So that the LORD will receive the glory, and that no one could claim that false gods brought salvation. Salvation is the work of the LORD, no one else can take any credit. He will not share His glory. 

Friend, are you saved? Are you His child? Have you met Christ at the cross and given Him your life? Do you have the Holy Spirit present in your sinful body? Then give glory to His Name!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FHRB4pHvvWg

{Down at the Cross, Bart Millard, via YouTube}

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Isaiah 41

"Do not be afraid, O worm Jacob, O little Israel, for I myself will help you,” declares the LORD, your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel."

{Isaiah 41:14} (NIV 1984) 

No one likes being called a worm. But compared to God that is what we are. If we will accept from the LORD our true title of worm, it will lead us into worship. Would we go in the backyard and find a worm, love the worm and develop a plan to save the worm and bring it into fellowship with us? You say, "Come on; a worm is a lower life form than us". Well we are a lower life form than God! Until we realize this truth, we will never grasp the depth of the humility of our Lord Jesus as described in Philippians 2. 

Some nations are worms compared to other nations. They have no influence, no authority, no power, which is an apt description of Israel at the time of the Babylonian invasion. The message of God is because He is Israel’s Redeemer, He will help them, and they will be His servant to the world. He will make them victorious over the nations. God is the One over all the nations, thru all time; He lifts up the humble and breaks the proud. He exalted His Son to His right hand, and He has seated those who kiss His Son in the heavenlies with Him in glory. 

This worm praises my Redeemer today! Praise His Holy Name, for He has done it.

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Isaiah 40

"See, the Sovereign LORD comes with power, and his arm rules for him. See, his reward is with him, and his recompense accompanies him."

{Isaiah 40:10} (NIV 1984)

Sovereign LORD; powerful LORD;  the LORD whose arm rules for Him! This is our God!  Sovereign, but not in the sense of One who sits on a throne away a long ways away like the Queen of England. No! Sovereign in the sense that He Himself has power, and He Himself with His own arm works the victory. 

Isaiah could see the LORD so clearly, and he describes him in beautiful language. This LORD comes with power and yet gently cares for His people, like a shepherd caring for His flock. This LORD made everything that is, by Himself, and is so powerful that He sustains all the universe, and names each of the innumerable (to us) stars! This LORD stands alone and towers high above all false Gods who are created by our imaginations and hands. This LORD brings human rulers to nothing, yet gives strength to the weary and helps the weak. This LORD renews the strength of those who wait/hope for Him, for He will never get tired, weary or confused. Yet we call this Sovereign LORD, our Father. 

Praise God for the blessing we have in Christ Jesus, that we are called the children of God! 

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Hebrews 3

"So, as the Holy Spirit says: “Today, if you hear his voice."
{Hebrews 3:7} (NIV 1984)

Does God speak to individuals today? This passage says a resounding YES! Some say that because the apostolic age is over, God will not speak to a specific individual about their life anymore. I love how our Lord puts it in John 10:4, “his sheep follow him because they know his voice”. What about the letters to the churches in Revelation? “He who has an ear to hear let him hear” (2:7) and “if anyone hears my voice and opens the door” (3:20).

No friend, we need to hear God’s voice. May He speak to us today, and may we recognize this Voice over all the other voices in our lives. He speaks to us through His Word and through His Holy Spirit. Sometimes He uses women and men to speak His truth into our lives; sometimes He uses what we call our conscience, and sometimes He speaks to us so directly, we wonder if it was an audible voice. Hebrews 3 is all about believing and obeying His voice; it is really a warning against unbelief. Let us be those who believe what God says and obey it. Let us be those who enter into His rest!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VaVg0cWkgAw
{Voice of Truth, Casting Crowns, via YouTube}

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Acts 9:1-31

 "He fell to the ground and heard a voice say to him, “Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?”"

{Acts 9:4} (NIV 1984) 

The call and ministry of Saul has many similarities to the call and ministry of Moses.

“Saul, Saul”, “Moses, Moses”; what tenderness, what love for both men, what intimate knowledge of these men our Lord has. The timing seems off although we know it is perfect. Much of the early church had been persecuted; surely God should have called Saul earlier? Moses spent 40 years wandering the dessert while God’s people suffered; surely God should have called Moses earlier? 

Moses had been trained and excelled in the system that he was to deliver God’s people from. Saul had been trained and excelled in the system that the church must be delivered from. Saul would stand alone for the gospel of grace against the majority of the apostles. Moses stood alone over and over again; him against the rest of God’s people. 

God used Moses in a mighty way, an amazing way, to forge His people into a holy nation ready to take the promised land. God used Saul in the same way, to prepare His church to live in the glory and victory that we have in the finished work of our Lord on the cross.

Friend, the Lord is still calling men and women to be His chosen instruments to save people. To whom has God sent you? His timing and choices are perfect!

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John 21

 "When they had finished eating, Jesus said to Simon Peter, “Simon son of John, do you truly love me more than these?”

{John 21:15a} (NIV 1984)

Peter was called by the Lord to be His disciple three years previously. The gospel accounts of Peter’s actions, show us that this man is human like us. Up and down, all over the map; trying but not succeeding. Every time his name appears in the gospels I look closely to see what he is going to say or do. In this account when he realizes it is the risen Lord on the shore, he jumps ship and comes by His side. The text says that none of the disciples dared to ask Him who He was. I imagine that Peter dared the least! What could he say? He had already made his boast; already argued with the Lord that he would be faithful to death! No he dared to say nothing. But the Lord, in His gracious, beautiful way asked Peter a simple question, a question that has been asked by the Lord, of countless Christians since that day. Peter answered quickly, then emphatically and then mournfully. But then he answered with his life, for Peter gave his life loving his Lord by feeding the children of God. Friend what is our answer this day?

Oh precious Lord, I love Thee more than all of these

More than fame

More than wealth

More than the world

More than fame

More than wealth

More than the world

{"Lovest Thou Me", Bill Gaither}

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Genesis 32

The man asked him, “What is your name?” “Jacob,” he answered.

{Genesis 32:27} (NIV 1984) 

Jacob calls the man, God (vs30), which means that God showed Himself to Jacob! The Almighty God, the Creator of heaven and earth, the Beginning and the End, the Ancient of Days, the Holy One, the High and Exalted God came down and allowed Jacob to grab a hold of Him and wrestle with Him! Not only to wrestle with Him, but He allowed Jacob to overcome Him.

Who is this God? He is a God who seeks us out; who comes close to us in a humble way. If God had appeared in all His glory, Jacob would have never laid a hand on Him. But God comes to us in such a way that we are bold enough to lay a hold of Him and wrestle with Him. God asked him to say his name, grasper of heels (25:26), then God gave him a new name, struggles with God. 

God loves us so. He comes to where we are in our distress. He humbles Himself, allows us to lay a hold of Him. He lets us struggle with Him, like a father allowing a toddler to wrestle with him and then overcome him. Like a father, He is our Father. He made us. He loves us and He names us!  This is God; the Giver of new names! People give us names that won’t last, but the name that God gives us lasts forever.

There’s a new name written down in glory,

And it’s mine, O yes, it’s mine!

And the white robed angels sing the story,

“A sinner has come home.”

For there’s a new name written down in glory,

And it’s mine, O yes, it’s mine!

With my sins forgiven I am bound for Heaven,

Never more to roam.

("There's a New Name in Glory", Charles Austin Miles, 1905)

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1 Kings 19

"When Elijah heard it, he pulled his cloak over his face and went out and stood at the mouth of the cave. Then a voice said to him, “What are you doing here, Elijah?”

{1 Kings 19:3} (NIV 1984) 

Elijah was spent; wasted; finished! What he had done was remarkable, for God had used him in a mighty way. James holds him up as an example of fervent effective prayer. But that was then, and now is now, and he is finished. He runs toward God, and by God’s provision makes it to the same mountain that God met Moses on. 

God comes to him, and asks him, “What are you doing here, Elijah?” God knows exactly why Elijah is there, so the question is for Elijah’s benefit, and therefore for our benefit. What is he doing there? Why isn’t he ministering in the place God called him? It isn’t because God hasn’t blessed his ministry. It is because Elijah was discouraged by his enemies; people who want to destroy him. Elijah served a gentle God, a God who came to him, and spoke to him gently and who sent him back into his ministry. 

Friend, has God been asking you that question? It is good for us to spend time with God, and with His people who love us. But there will come a time when God will ask us, “What are you doing here, ______?” When we hear that question from our God, we know it is time to get back at it, to go into the world and be the light that He has called and enabled us to be.

I’d stay in the garden with Him

Though the night around me be falling,

But He bids me go; through the voice of woe

His voice to me is calling.

("In the Garden", C. Austin Miles, 1912) 

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John 3:1-21

 "But the LORD God called to the man, “Where are you?”

{Genesis 3:9} (NIV 1984)

God came after them! The Almighty God, the Creator of heaven and earth, the Beginning and the End, the Ancient of Days, the Holy One, the High and Exalted God came after them! Not in anger but with a question, “Where are you?” Because He is the One who sees all and knows all, we know that the question was for their benefit not His. If it was for their benefit, then it is for our benefit, for they are our parents. It shows His love, His desire to have us close to Him, His desire to have relationship with us. It shows His humility, for He comes to us. It shows His method, for He “called them”. It shows us our problem, for sin separates us from God. It also shows us that our sin will not stop God from coming after us in love. God actively seeks out sinners and calls them to Himself. 

All through the Bible, story after story, God seeks out sinners and calls them to Himself. He loves us! He loves you! So I wonder, what is our answer to God’s question this morning? Where are we? Are we in close relationship with the Spirit of God this morning? Have we drawn near to this God who seeks us? May we draw near to Him and linger in His love!  

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oWnvmKoLWUU

(The Love of God ~ Mercy Me) 

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Acts 7

“At that time Moses was born, and he was no ordinary child. For three months he was cared for in his father’s house.”

{Acts 7:20} (NIV 1984)

I have often wondered, what does “no ordinary child” mean? Hebrews 11:23 repeats it and Exodus 2:2 says “a fine child”. It is especially puzzling to me, because there is no mention of anything special about the baby Jesus. There was obviously something special about Moses; something that his parents noticed and caused them to treat him in a special way. 

We are talking here of an infant, a tiny little infant, and yet the Bible, in 3 different passages, makes it clear that this baby was born for the specific purpose of delivering Abraham’s descendants into a rightful worship relationship with the Almighty God. God formed Moses in his mother’s womb and shaped him in such a way that he would be able to be the leader that was required. One baby out of all the others, was given the body, the mind, the personality, the emotional make up, and the spiritual make up, to be the leader that the people needed. 

This is how God operates; He creates us in our mother’s womb in such a way that we are equipped to do His will! What about us? What about these little ones in our homes? These infants in our church?  Do we see anything special in any of them, or all of them? May we pray this morning for the little ones around us; that God’s purposes will be fulfilled in their lives, that God’s grace would work powerfully in them.

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Matthew 22:23-33

"‘I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob’? He is not the God of the dead but of the living.”

{Matthew 22:32} (NIV 1984)

The next verse tells us that the people were astonished at His teaching. So am I! Here our Lord (who came from heaven to earth) is responding to men who are supposedly believers in YHWH, but who do not believe that there will be a resurrection of our bodies. 

Our Lord points them back to the words of the Great I AM at the burning bush. When God spoke these words to Moses, the three patriarchs had been in the grave for centuries, their bodies were dust. Our Lord’s point is that if they were dead, how could the Living God still be in a covenantal relationship with them? 

Put another way, personal relationships require both persons to be alive. These men, to whom God made wonderful promises, are alive and will see the kingdom of God come in power, they will see the great resurrection of the dead, and they will see the great King seated on His throne in the land that God promised they would inhabit. God is the God of the living not the dead! 

Is He your God? Are you His child? If so, then you are truly alive! May we say to our Lord Jesus this day, what Martha said 2,000 years ago, “I believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God, who was to come into the world." (John 11:27)

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Genesis 25:21-26; 32:22-32; 35:1-15

 And God said to him, “I am God Almighty; be fruitful and increase in number. A nation and a community of nations will come from you, and kings will come from your body.

Genesis 35:11 (NIV1984)

God promised Jacob nations; a community of nations and kings. Although in our politically correct culture we have watered down the meaning of the word nation, the biblical definition is found in Genesis 10:5, peoples, territories, clans, language. A nation is comprised of clans of people, speaking a common language(s), within a defined geographical area. 

In our age, where we have so much information about historic people groups, nations that have risen and fallen, kings that are no longer, plans of men and women scattered in the dust, this promise that God made to Jacob, stands out. The Bible is the story of this promise coming true. Exodus is the story of the fulfillment of the promise of many descendants and the creation of a nation. But this nation will still not possess the land at the end of the story of Exodus, nor will they have a human king, but they will possess the manifest presence of God, and He will be their King. 

What was it about Jacob that would cause God to make a promise like this? Well, Jacob is just an ordinary man, grasping for whatever he could get. Nothing special about Jacob, but everything is special about God Almighty that He would make a promise like this to a man!  “No matter how many promises God has made, they are “Yes” in Christ” (2 Cor 1:20).

Bless His Holy Name!

Click here to read:

Genesis 25:21-26

Genesis 32:22-32

Genesis 35:1-15

Amos 5:4-27

“In the fourth generation your descendants will come back here, for the sin of the Amorites has not yet reached its full measure.”

{Genesis 15:16} (NIV1984)

God’s irrevocable promise to Abram had two parts; many descendants through his son who was not yet born and possession of the land on which Abram wandered. To have many descendants takes time. Babies become children, children become teenagers, teenagers become adults, adults become parents, and then the cycle starts again. The word 'generation', describes that cycle of time, and in this text, a generation is a 100 years (Acts 7:6). 

Our human reasoning tells us God needed that time in order for enough people to be born to make a nation. Yet this verse tells us that the purpose of the 400 years was a spiritual purpose. We are given insight in this verse into our Holy God’s approach to time and sinful humans. God doesn’t need time, but we need time. Time doesn’t affect Him, but it affects us for we are creatures of time. There are set times allotted for us, including a set time period for us to repent, or conversely a set time that God will allow humans to continue in sin, before coming to them in wrath. The set time for the Amorites was 400 years. 

The apostle Peter (2 Pe 3:9) tells us that a thousand years are like a day to God, and that He is not slow but He is patient with us, waiting for us to repent. Praise God for His patience, His long suffering, His willingness to give us time, and to strive with us! May we seek Him daily in confession and repentance.

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Genesis 15

Then the Lord said to him, “Know for certain that your descendants will be strangers in a country not their own, and they will be enslaved and mistreated four hundred years.

{Genesis 15:13} NIV 1984

Genesis 15 is one of my favorite passages of Scripture! To read again the account of God declaring Abram righteous on account of his faith, gives me great peace and assurance of my salvation. This state of righteousness before God, that is being declared righteous by God, happened before circumcision happened or the Law was given. 

What we have in Genesis 15 is an irrevocable promise made by God to a man who believed what God said. So it is with us my friend! Because we believed in our hearts and confessed with our mouths the Lord Jesus Christ, we are the receivers of the eternal deposit, the Holy Spirit who guarantees our inheritance in the kingdom of God! This is irrevocable, and is based on God’s Word, God’s Son and God’s Work, not based on us at all. Praise God! 

The only unsettling part of Genesis 15 is the dreadful darkness and the promise from God of 400 years of oppression. We would, no doubt, like to be Abram who was able to lay down in peace, however we have a promise from our Lord to consider, “In this world you will have trouble.” (Jn 16:33). Be encouraged this day in this world of trouble! We are righteous before God Almighty! We have the precious Holy Spirit!  And most encouraging of all, our Lord overcame the world! Let’s entrust ourselves to the God who holds the future in His hand.

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Genesis 47

"You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives."

{Genesis 50:20} (NIV 1984) 

Joseph was a man whom I admire deeply. He was a dreamer who received special revelation from God. He was a survivor, who suffered abuse from his brothers and the Egyptians. He was pure and fled the temptation to touch Potiphar’s wife. He was diligent in all the tasks that were given to him. He was a family man; his dad and brothers were very important to him. This man above all other things trusted God explicitly! He knew God, and lived his life in front of God, despite all the wrong happening to him. 

This statement that he makes to his brothers tells us that Joseph believed that God makes plans and carries His plans out. It tells us that Joseph believed that God’s plans are always good and the fact that humans intend wrong as they unknowingly carry out God’s plans is secondary. 

As we read Genesis 47 and see how Joseph set the stage for Pharaoh to “own” his people, we might wonder if God really knows what He is doing. Could it be that God’s plan to save the lives of Jacob’s family and the lives of the Egyptians, has an unintended consequence of slavery? Joseph wouldn’t think so, and neither should we! 

There are no unintended consequences to God’s plans. May we trust God this day, as much as Joseph trusted Him!

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