One Year Bible, January 25

GENESIS 50:1 - EXODUS 2:10
We see here that the Book of Genesis began with "God", and ended with a "coffin". Joseph the Dreamer, forgave his half-brothers who had tried to destroy the dream, and declared on his deathbed, "You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives." Bitterness never relieves suffering. Forgiveness does. And Joseph had God's perspective on his life. Sometimes what we call "evil" is really the route to fulfillment.

Jacob and Joseph were both embalmed, or mummified to make the trip to Canaan. Joseph, additionally, was placed in a 2000-pound marble sarcophagus to be carried up 144 years later. Hebrews 11:22 says, "By faith Joseph, when his end was near, spoke about the exodus of the Israelites from Egypt and gave instructions about his bones."

EXODUS: Over the years, a new Pharaoh rose who had never heard of Joseph. He was worried about the Israelites because they had overgrown the country. If they "turned" on the Egyptians, they could overthrow their oppressors. The Bible says, "But the more they were oppressed, the more they multiplied and spread, so the Egyptians came to dread the Israelites and worked them ruthlessly. And made their lives bitter with labor."

Like Herod many years later, Pharaoh decided to kill all the male infants in order to keep the Israelites from increasing any more. But, "by faith Moses' parents hid him for three months after he was born, because they saw he was no ordinary child, and they were not afraid of the king's edict." (Hebrews 11:23) Thus began Moses' being raised in Pharaoh's court as the Princess's adopted son.

RESPONSE:   I see it is important to get God's perspective about everything in life. Not only will I be spared much heartache, but it is a place of safety. Bitterness could have destroyed Joseph's life, but he kept his eye on the "the prize" (1 Cor 9:24; Phil 3:14). He was able to see beyond his circumstances. Do the math. He ruled for 80 years! In that light, 13 years isn't so significant, is it? And he saved the lives of many people. Jesus, You said that being used in the Kingdom of God will cost me everything. What did you mean by "everything"?

MATTHEW 16:13 - 17:9
The fourth hindrance to the Kingdom of God is self-preservation. Self-preservation "shipwrecks faith" (1 Tim 1:19), and causes us to betray Jesus. "Self-preservation" in this passage is defined as "having in mind the things of men". The actual Greek word is "phroneo" which means "something I direct my attention to with the intention of acting on it". This is so serious that Jesus calls this "a stumbling block" and said there was a devil behind it! And then He explained how to see that this NEVER HAPPENED AGAIN: "lose your life." Sacrifice it away. Count yourself as already crucified and dead - now you have no rights, no reputation to worry about, no privileges.

Jesus took three witnesses: Peter, James, and John with Him to meet Moses and Elijah on the mountain. One represents the Law, and other the prophets, who were both interested in Jesus' soon death (Gr: exodus: "departure") and His resurrection (Luke 9:31), which would fulfill both the Law and the Prophets.

RESPONSE:   Whenever I am tempted to be offended at something someone said, I tell myself, "a dead man can't respond." I HAVE no life. I gave it to Jesus when I was born again and entered covenant with Him. I gave my life to Him, and He gave His life to me. If I live my life and respond to my environment, then He can't live His life through me. I would have covered Him up with my flesh.   Eeewwwww!

Every time I obey God - especially when my flesh is in opposition - something in my flesh dies off. This is a relatively EASY way to "lose my life", because at the same time, I am giving God pleasure, and I feel it. There is real joy in that. I rejoice when I can give my flesh a black eye! My flesh has given me grief, pain, embarrassment, self-pity, and depression, and anything else negative in me. So I avenge myself by joyfully obeying God and by sacrificing my flesh when opportunity arises.

PSALM 21:1-13:
Psalm 8 says that God has crowned us with glory and honor and given us dominion over His creation. In addition, Revelation 1:6 and 5:10 both say that God has made us to be "kings and priests" in His Kingdom. David wrote Psalm 21, calling himself "the king".  Call YOURSELF "the king" and read it the same way:

Look what God gives us! "Strength, salvation, victories, the desire of my heart, the request of my lips, rich blessings, a crown of gold, Life, length of days, glory, splendor and majesty, eternal blessings, the joy of God's presence."

I completely trust God's unfailing love and He gives me confidence for the future. I praise His strength and His might!  He rules the earth and ultimately "calls the shots" - NOT the nations! 

PROVERBS 5:1-6
In Proverbs, a "strange woman" is "a harlot or whore". FIGURATIVELY, she represents the substitutes for God that lure us away from Him.  She is for those who are not serious about being a "Christian" - they are in it for what they can get.   They want the privileges without the responsibility of a relationship.  HARLOTS ARE DANGEROUS. Their path leads us to death and the grave, and is "crooked" ("wavers, staggers, wanders, unstable") and we won't even know it!  We will lose all sense of spiritual reality. STAY AWAY FROM THEM.

RESPONSE:   I don't want substitutes for God.  I want the REAL THING.  Then I have a "crown, the rich blessings, the desire of my heart, His salvation", and much, much more. As I reassure my heart with these truths, my faith builds and with it, the power to say "no" to the enticement to straddle the fence. Why would anyone want to know the Way and then not walk in it? No wonder those people are bitter!

I repent of any inclination to "back away in fear" (Heb 10:38-39)  from knowing God better . I stir myself up to "red hot love" for God. I don't want to be lukewarm or passive. I aggressively pursue God's Presence.