February 10

Genesis 43; Mark 13

Daily Catechism

QUESTION 17: DID OUR FIRST PARENTS CONTINUE IN THE GLAD OBEDIENCE FOR WHICH THEY WERE CREATED?
Answer: No, but desiring to be like God, our first parents forsook the obedience of faith, ate of the forbidden tree, sinned against God, and fell from the innocence in which they were created.
Scripture: Genesis 3:1-7; Ecclesiastes 7:29; Romans 5:12.

Genesis 43

Ready:
Yesterday we read about Jacob sending his sons to Egypt for grain and saw how Joseph tested his brothers and in the end Simeon remained in prison while Jacob and the 10 remaining brothers atet the grain and remind in Canaan for fear of losing more of the family to the “Egyptian Governor” (Joseph).

Seeing What’s There:
In this chapter the famine continues and Israel’s family runs low on food.  Jacob agrees to let all of his remaining sons (including Benjamin) to return to Egypt again to buy more food.  They agree to take all the money that was placed back in their sacks the first time plus more and then also gifts for Joseph in order to gain his favor.  Jacob fears losing Benjamin but Judah comforts him and warmly assumes responsibility for his younger brother…far different that Cain’s response to God in the Garden.  Jacob asks God to intervene with the Egyptian so that he would have mercy upon his boys and allow their safe return.  Next the brothers are all taken to Joseph’s house to dine.  But they all feared that they would be made slaves because of the money that was not left behind last time and they plead with a steward of Joseph’s house before Joseph returns.  They are assured that there was no mistake regarding the money and that God has indeed blessed them.  All 11 brothers wind up before Joseph bowed just as in him dream more than 20 years earlier, but Joseph still does not reveal himself.  The sight of Benjamin, his younger full brother, makes Joseph come to tears and he has to leave the room quickly to hide his tears.  Composed, he continues the meal and the brothers are all seated in order or birth to the amazement of the brothers, who surely did not reveal this detail.  They also notice that Benjamin is given 5 times as much food as the others.  The meal was “merry” and it must have been a wonderful surprise for the brothers who had feared greatly.

Key Verses:

“1 Now the famine was severe in the land. 2 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.”” (Genesis 43:1–2, ESV)

“4 If you will send our brother with us, we will go down and buy you food. 5 But if you will not send him, we will not go down, for the man said to us, ‘You
shall not see my face, unless your brother is with you.’ ”” (Genesis 43:4–5, ESV)

“9 I will be a pledge of his safety. From 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.” (Genesis 43:9, ESV)

“13 Take also your brother, and arise, go again to the man. 14 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.”” (Genesis 43:13–14, ESV)

“18 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 are brought in, so that he may assault us and fall upon us to make us servants and seize our donkeys.”” (Genesis 43:18, ESV)

“23 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.” (Genesis 43:23, ESV)

“26 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.” (Genesis 43:26, ESV)

“30 Then Joseph hurried out, for his compassion grew warm for his brother, and he sought a place to weep. And he entered his chamber and wept there. 31 Then he washed his face and came out. And controlling himself he said, “Serve the food.”” (Genesis 43:30–31, ESV)

“33 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.” (Genesis 43:33, ESV)

Theme:
God can be trusted with everything despite all circumstances or threats because he is almighty.

Thinking About the Message:
    v1-15.  In this passage Jacob and Judah have a dialogue about going back to Egypt.  Judah explains that they simply cannot return without Benjamin and Jacob is distressed.  Ultimately Judah pledges himself as completely responsible for Benjamin’s safety and Jacob finally relents.  Jacob sends them off asking with a trust that God is able to show them mercy at the hand of this man that they fear.  In verse 14 Jacob uses the title “Almighty God” which in Hebrew transliteration is El Shaddai and this name is only used thus far in relation to the renaming of Abraham and when Isaac sent Jacob off to get a wife, and then when Jacob was renamed by God.  This name suggests that God is unstoppable and omnipotent and when initially used in Genesis 17:1 it is associated with God renaming Abram to Abraham and declaring that he has already made Abraham a father of many nations (Gen 17:5) before it comes to pass.  God is stressing his sovereignty over all circumstances to come and the certainty of the outcome even though it is not yet realized.  Similarly, Jacob is trusting that this unstoppable God has power to interrupt man’s will and intentions (like he did with King Abimelech in Gen 20:6) in order to protect his family.  Jacob trusts that God is able, if he pleases, to grant that the man will be merciful.  However, despite this trust they do not dismiss all partnership with God.  They plan to win the man’s favor by brining a gift and also brining with them the money that was not taken last time plus additional money for the new purchase of food.
    v16-25.  Here the brothers fear that they are going to be taken into slavery for having not paid for the food the first time.  In an effort to maintain their freedom and recover Simeon they plead before the steward and explain what happened and offer the full price from last time as well as the money for the new purchase.  In verse 23 the steward warmly comforts them and assures them that their money was received the first time but he does not give them explanation for why is was replaced in their bags except to tell them that God, the God of their fathers was responsible.  I take this steward as recognizing that God’s sovereign hand is in this unfolding story and this must have been interesting to the brothers to hear an Egyptian acknowledging their God and giving him credit for their blessings.  Simeon is returned to the brothers by the steward as assurance that they are not in danger.
    v26-34.  In this passage all the brothers end up bowing before him in fulfillment of his dream those 20+ years ago.  Joseph is especially moved by the sight of his little brother Benjamin.  He still hides his identity and treats them to a feast.  He gives them a clue by seating them in birth order to their amazement and he also gives a clue in giving 5 times the food to his little brother Benjamin.    

Meaning, Implications, and Significance-
I take the main message from this part of the story to be that God is to be trusted because he is completely able to protect us from anything and anyone and he is not restricted by anything but his own good pleasure.  Jacob still puts human effort toward providing for the safety of his family and he had made a judgement that they were better off losing Simeon than losing more, which may not have been the noble decision but none the less he was protecting his family that remained.  It took a new threat in the form of starvation to push him into new risk taking.  But Jacob is calculating and he now acknowledges that there is no real risk except that God’s will may not always seem favorable in the moment.  Like Shadrach and his buddies Jacob still falls upon God in the end understanding that he does not know what outcome will be found, only that God is in control of it.  This is seen in the last statement of verse 14 where he basically says “if I am bereaved of my children, I am bereaved.”  I take this to be another way of saying “Thy will be done O Lord."

Valuing the Message:
To value the lesson here we must decide how we understand God’s sovereignty and rule over our circumstances that involve the will and intentions of other humans.  This lesson is significant to great extremes of assurance when dealing with terrible evils and tragedies if indeed God is completely in control of all that befalls us.  If we believe that he is not exercising control due to him respecting man’s free will as more valuable, then we must resolve how to deal with tragedy that no longer has purpose or meaning (intentionality) except to illustrate how wicked man is in the exercise of his own will and perhaps to lean us toward longing for God’s restoration of his full reign.

Reflecting on the Message:
I take this message as teaching me about God’s character and how he works in ways we can never hope to understand here on earth.  Ponder what you think about God and how he is involved or not in the daily circumstances of your life.  Think about how much you see yourself under the reign of chaos or under God’s loving care.  Search for other scripture to help you reflect on God and on your own heart.  Think about how this truth should make you feel toward God and toward the world you face.

Responding to God & Reacting to His Lesson:
Tell God about your observations and your thoughts and your struggles with each chapter and determine how it will change or impact your thinking and your decisions.  Be sure to react in some way to the truth rather than remain silent.

Proclaiming the Truth to Others:
Decide who you can share what you have learned with and ask for God’s help in reaching out to love others.

Mark 13

Ready:
The last chapter taught me about the eternal devotion that I enjoy toward Jesus and that true religion (walking in this devotion to Jesus) results in a life of humble service and dependence upon God rather than self-seeking consumption and self-exaltation.

Seeing What’s There:
This chapter has been divided to consist completely of prophetic statements by Jesus made privately to just a few disciples.  Jesus tells about the end of temple worship and he tells about some signs of the end times where the whole creation as well as its inhabitants are affected by what he calls “birth pains”.  He tells them that there will be people who falsely claim to be the Messiah and that there will be wars and rumors of wars before the end comes.  He describes earthquakes and famines upon the earth.  Then he tells the disciples to be on their guard because they must take the gospel to all nations, but they will be heavily persecuted for this.  He promises them that it will be the Holy Spirit who does the real speaking when the gospel is preached.  Jesus describes some scenario where there will be a great tribulation kicked off by a unique religious event that is not good.  He warns that there will be great suffering and that God will cut the period short to preserve the lives of some chosen group of believers.  He tells them to not pay attention to anyone who claims to know where Christ is because it will be evident to every human on earth when he arrives.  This is because the entire earth will be darkened and stars will be falling from the sky and something crazy in space will happen that will be obvious to the entire world.  He explains that everyone will see him coming down from heaven and that the angels will gather together all the Christians from the ends of the earth and the ends of heaven.  Then Jesus uses the fig tree as a picture of how to recognize these end times approaching by watching for the changes.  He tells them that "this generation” will not pass away until all of this comes to pass but that nobody knows exactly when it will happen.  He even reveals that the information is veiled to Jesus (in his humanity).  He concludes with a warning to stay awake and pay attention and be ready.

Thinking About the Message:
    v1-2.  Jesus responds here to a statement praising the beauty of the temple buildings.  It seems that Jesus may be referring to the end of temple worship here in a broad sense or he could be specifically talking about the destruction of the temple that came in AD 70 by the Romans.  Either way I see Jesus making it clear that the temple is not the substance, but like marriage it is a symbol representing a bigger truth.  Let us not become too enamored with temporary guardians but hunger for the real deal that will never pass away or crumble.
    v3-8.  Here Jesus introduces the idea of birth pains and I take this to be related to how the creation waits with eager longing (as Paul says in Romans 8:18-25) for the revealing of the sons of God.  It is as if the earth knows that it was created for a purpose.  It is as if God’s creation becomes restless as the end draws near and anticipates the final revealing of the remaining children of God.
    v9-13.  Without trying to nap down the timing of how what Jesus speaks of is fulfilled I hear the message of this paragraph as telling the disciples that they will suffer for the gospel and that they must trust God to give them words and to have a purpose for their suffering…to bear witness.  I see the correlation to John 14:26 where Jesus promises to send the Holy Spirit who will cause them to remember all that Jesus had said and this no doubt would informer their witness.  Even for the apostles, what greater words could they give them to tell them what Jesus said…with his mouth and with his life?  I see Colossians 1:24 where Paul says that he is filling up the sufferings of Christ for them, which I take to mean that there is purpose to his suffering in that it bears them witness of the suffering of Christ for his sheep by example.  2 Timothy 1:6-14 also speaks of suffering for the gospel and how the Holy Spirit guards a good deposit in them, which is the word and witness of Christ.  Paul’s confidence in the gospel being the power of God to salvation leads him to a willingness to suffer on behalf of this message.  And the suffering is now even part of the message itself according to Colossians.  Families will be split up and great divisions will occur over Christ in this life and we are to endure until the end with a hope in Jesus and an ultimate devotion to God when earthly relationships fail.
    v14-27.  I take from this passage the fact that we must not listen to others about some appearance of Christ but we must listen to his Word and we must know that there will be impostors.  We need to trust that he will make himself plainly known when he comes in glory and not buy the lies of any secret arrival of Christ.
    v28-37.  I take the fig tree and then the closing statement about not knowing the day or the hour to be a balance of recognizing the signs of the times and being prepared but not trying to claim knowledge of the degree of imminence. We must focus on being awake and ready always and not on trying to figure out the exact timing…which should not make a difference in how we live…unless we intend to get ready at the last second.  This was covered with the parable of the 10 virgins where 5 of them were out buying oil at the last minute and they missed the arrival of the bride groom!   Paul captures this in Romans 13:11-14 where he tells us that our salvation is near (he is coming!) and that it is time to wake up.  The night is far gone (which I take to be our former ignorance) and the day has come (our enlightenment) so we should cast off the works of darkness (stop living for sin) and put on the armor of light (Christ).  We should walk properly and not fulfill our selfish passions that are devoted to this seen world around us but we should focus on Christ in order to not let this flesh rule us…because this keeps us from loving others, which is the goal that gives reason for this being awake (Romans 13:8-10).  Sleeping is selfish.

Meaning, Implications, and Significance
    1.  I hear the message of being resolved to stand on the truth of God’s Word and to not buy into falsehood about any secret arrival.  I hear that there will indeed be such impostors and tricks and so these words will not be wasted.  The implication is that Christians need to interpret what they see and hear according to God’s Word and not according to emotion or experience because their will be great effort by the enemy to fool even the true believers…diligence in holding fast to God’s Word is needed.  The significance to me is that I need to know his Word and I need to not be ignorant.
    2.  I hear the message that we must be prepared for the arrival of our King and we must remain awake.  I take the implications to be that Jesus expects his followers to be fixed on living with purpose of love, which requires not sleeping, but labor.  The significance to me is that I am not to lounge around soaking up the world but I am to cast off all that keeps me from loving God and loving others so that I can charge ahead as a faithful witness of the hope of Jesus…because the end is coming (by death or by Christ's arrival).
    3.  I hear the message that if someone wants to have a response to the trials and the tests and if they want to redeem their struggles and suffering by making them a testimony of God’s almighty goodness, then they need to use those opportunities to be witness of the life and words of Jesus.  I see the implication being that the disciples (and us today) were to look to the Holy Spirit to inform their witness and to remind them of Jesus’ words and life.  The significance for me is that my reading and familiarization and even memorization of God’s Word is important and since I did not live the experience of the disciples the only way the Holy Spirit will “Bring to remembrance” Jesus’ words and testimony is if I read his words…regularly.

Valuing the Message:
I see this message as being very important based on the emphasis that Jesus put on remaining awake and on the nature of the warning about even the true believers (elect) being fooled.  This message is one that should result in some action and some reflection on my preparedness.

Reflecting on the Message:
I need to consider how I am doing at living on mission and at being focused on the witness of my life.  I need to wrestle with God over my heart and my divided desires and my distractions and my tendency to be selfish and to spend my time not for witness and love of others but for myself.  I need to consider how much I study his word and inform myself to be prepared and to have words to speak that have real authority.  I need to consider if I am letting the works of darkness rule me or if I am letting Christ rule me.
Soli Deo Gloria!