Gen 49:33 And when Jacob had made an end of commanding his sons, he gathered up his feet into the bed, and yielded up the ghost, and was gathered unto his people.

Gen 49:33  And when Jacob had made an end of commanding his sons, he gathered up his feet into the bed, and yielded up the ghost, and was gathered unto his people.  As Jacob prepares to die, he gathers his sons and declares to them the things that should befallen each of them. We must remember that Jacob spoke under inspiration of God. He made prophetic prophecies on each of his sons. We can’t do like what Jacob did. We can wish our children and grandchildren would do well, be successful, and become doctors and lawyers. But Jacob was not making wishes for his children. He was making prophecies about their descendants. We learn from his prophecies that the future of his children’s descendants has to do with the character of each of his son. A son with weak moral character will result in weak future generations. For example, the children of Reuben were marked by spiritual compromise and weakness: “Unstable as water, thou shalt not excel; because thou wentest up to thy father's bed” (v.4). Reuben was the firstborn and rightfully should claim the prominence. But his wicked deed to take his father’s wife to his bed caused him to forfeit this place of honour. Noting this fundamental weakness of character in his son Reuben, Jacob prophesied his descendants would be like him unstable in character. The kingly line went to the tribe of Judah (v.10). How did Judah achieve this highest honour? First, he spared the life of Joseph when his brethren wanted to kill him (Genesis 37:26, 27). Later, he demonstrated love and sacrifice when he volunteered to take the place of his brother Benjamin who was sentenced to prison (Genesis 44:33). His actions resemble the love of Christ who died for the sins of the world (John 3:16). Future generations of each tribe were affected by the character of each patriarch of the twelve tribes. It is telling us that the life of a father really matters. That one life will profoundly influence the lives of many in succeeding generations. All fathers, please take heed to this warning: Watch your steps; your children are following you. What fathers do, not only affect their own lives for better or for worse, but they may also impact the lives of millions who come after them. When I look at the teenagers and young adults who have left the faith after been in the church since the day they were born, I look at their fathers. In most of the cases, I see a father who is lukewarm in his walk with God. I see a father who comes to church late and is not attentive in worship. I see a father who is not serving the Lord. By his example, can he teach his children to be faithful to God? Fathers, your children are watching you. You can’t tell them: “Do what I say, not what I do.” It doesn’t work that way; they will do what you do! If you always shout when you are angry, your children will do the same when they are angry. Spoilt parents will bring up spoilt children. You can’t bring up faithful children in a house where the name of God is not mentioned and heard, where the Bible is not read, and prayers not heard. God commanded fathers: “And ye shall teach them your children, speaking of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, when thou liest down, and when thou risest up” (Deuteronomy 11:19). Fathers, are you bringing up your children in the nurture and admonition of God? (Ephesians 6:4). Solomon says: “Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it” (Proverbs 22:6). Where are you bringing your children? Which way do you want them to go? If you want your children to go to heaven, please ensure that you are travelling the same way.

Gen 50:20 But as for you, ye thought evil against me; but God meant it unto good, to bring to pass, as it is this day, to save much people alive.

Jacob died. After the funeral, Joseph’s brethren began to fear for their lives. They said: “Joseph will peradventure hate us, and will certainly requite us all the evil which we did unto him” (v.15). They came begging Joseph to forgive them for what they had done to him. They said they were willing to become his slaves (v.15-19). Joseph wept when they spoke to him. He wept when he recalled being thrown into a dark pit. He wept when he recalled the betrayal by his own brethren. He wept when he recalled the time he spent in a prison in Egypt. He was just a teenager, alone and afraid. Those were sorrowful times.   But Joseph probably wept because his brothers thought so little of him. How could they doubt his character so greatly? Joseph said to them: “But as for you, ye thought evil against me; but God meant it unto good, to bring to pass, as it is this day, to save much people alive” (v.20). Joseph gave them the strongest assurances of his forgiveness. God meant it unto good – It reminds me of this verse in Romans 8:28: “And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.” It is hard to accept a thing can be good when you are the one that is suffering. But Joseph demonstrated great faith in God. He was hit with much adversity. Another man I could think of is Job. Job was hit with great afflictions too. It could be easier for Job and Jacob to ask: "What have I done wrong?" "Why is God punishing me?" But Joseph said: “God meant it for good” (v.20). Job said: “Naked came I out of my mother's womb, and naked shall I return thither: the LORD gave, and the LORD hath taken away; blessed be the name of the LORD” (Job 1:21). Our Lord Jesus said: “Thy will be done” (Matthew 26:42). How does one look at adversity depends largely on his faith in God and his understanding of God’s purpose through adversity. It is difficult to appreciate adversity when you are the one that is suffering. Hence, adversity can be our deadliest means of discouragement or our motivation towards spiritual maturity. How did the apostle Paul look at his adversity? He said: “Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ's sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong” (2 Corinthians 12:10). Paul is not saying he is smiling all the way whenever adversity comes to him. He is not saying he loves adversity. He is saying only if it is for Christ’s sake. If he is suffering because of his sins and poor decisions, he would be ashamed. The apostle Peter concurs: “If ye be reproached for the name of Christ, happy are ye” (1 Peter 4:14). Barnes wrote: “Some of the happiest persons I have known are those who have been deeply afflicted; some of the purest joys which I have witnessed have been manifested on a sick-bed, and in the prospect of death.” (Barnes’ Notes, e-sword). I agree with Barnes. A faithful sister-in-Christ passed on just a few days ago. She had a terminal cancer. She knew her time was near. Was she sad? Visiting her to encourage her, I was instead encouraged by her positive attitude and her joy that she will be receiving her eternal reward. Her death resulted in the conversion of her sister who had been with a denomination all her life to the truth. Her sister was baptised on the day she passed on to eternity. Yes, God meant it unto good! Every Christian should be able to see the loving and providential hand of God in their life, to know that no matter what “evil” they may be experiencing in their life, God can use it for good. “But we glory in tribulations also: knowing that tribulation worketh patience; And patience, experience; and experience, hope” (Romans 5:3, 4).

Mar 1:22 And they were astonished at his doctrine: for he taught them as one that had authority, and not as the scribes.

Mark records the deeds of Jesus in fast sequences. Here, we find Christ teaching in a synagogue in Capernaum (v.21). When the people heard Him, they were astonished because “He taught them as one that had authority, and not as the scribes” (v.22). For He taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes. What does it tell us? It tells us that the messenger is as important as the message. Some preachers have this false notion that the power is in the message and not the messenger. Hence, if they preach and nobody gets converted, they blame it solely on the hardness of hearts of the hearers. True, the power is in the message: “For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth” (Romans 1:16). But the message needs a messenger to deliver it: “How shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher?” (Romans 10:14). The message can be made ineffective by the messenger. For example, when he delivers it half-heartedly; when he does not understand the message himself; when his life is a shame; when his speech is unclear; or when his message is disorganised and tardy. How did the scribes deliver the message of God? Read Matthew 23. 1. Inconsistent: “They say, and do not” (v.3). 2. Vain: “All their works they do for to be seen of me” (v.5). 3. Proud: “And love the uppermost rooms at feasts….. and to be called of men, Rabbi, Rabbi” (v.6, 7). 4. Hypocrites: “Devour widows' houses, and for a pretence make long prayer” (v.14). 5. Ignorant: “Ye fools and blind: for whether is greater, the gift, or the altar that sanctifieth the gift?” (v.19). The scribes were just doing a job. They thought too highly of themselves. Preachers can sometimes commit the same sin as the scribes and forget their vocation. Some stand up with an air that just because they graduated from some Bible seminaries and possess a string of theological degrees, they are better than others. They need to take heed to Romans 12:3: “For I say, through the grace given unto me, to every man that is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think; but to think soberly, according as God hath dealt to every man the measure of faith.” The scribes could only read and keep on reading the Law of Moses. Remember that they did not have the same kind of revelation and understanding of the Scripture that we have. How could they explain Daniel’s vision or Isaiah 53?  Whereas, the evangelist Philip could explain to an Ethiopian eunuch Isaiah 53 because it was revealed to him (Acts 8:30-38). Jesus taught with an authority lacking in the other teachers in His days because He could explain the Law and the prophecies. People were astonished at His explanation of the Scripture: “And the Jews marvelled, saying, How knoweth this man letters, having never learned?” (John 7:15). Jesus taught with authority because He knew what He was talking about. Jesus taught with authority because He walked the talk. His life was unlike the scribes and Pharisees. People saw His humility and His good deeds. He preached with passion and compassion. You can't teach with authority if you aren’t familiar with your material. You can’t teach with authority if you are not respected by your hearers. You can’t teach with authority if you don’t walk the talk. When you truly believe what you teach and live it, it will come through to your audience with authority. Think about it.

Mar 2:14 And as he passed by, he saw Levi the son of Alphaeus sitting at the receipt of custom, and said unto him, Follow me. And he arose and followed him.

The call of Levi provides many rich lessons for us. 1. God is no respecter of persons. Jesus accepts people just as they are. The Jews hated the tax collectors. They considered them traitors because they worked for the Roman government, and with the support of Roman soldiers behind them, persecuted those who did not pay their taxes. They also considered them extortioners because they would over-collect and keep the “profit” for themselves. Hence, the tax collectors were very rich. Zacchaeus was a chief tax collector and he could afford to pay back four times to those he had cheated on taxes (Luke 19:8). Perhaps to the amazement of many, Jesus called out to the tax collector Levi to follow Him (v.14). Jesus saw something good in Levi. Jesus was right. This tax collector gave up his lucrative business to follow Him. He became the author of the gospel of Matthew. 2. Don’t Judge A Person By His Profession or Look. How about us? Who among our neighbours, friends, and strangers, do we think are most likely to receive the gospel? Is it our inclination to reach out only to the respectable and “beautiful” people? How many times have we missed winning a soul for Christ because we judged a person as someone who would not believe the gospel? Would you reach out to a Samaritan woman, Saul the persecutor, or Zacchaeus the chief publican? Christ reached out to them and they were converted. God is no respecter of persons (Acts 10:34). There is not a single person in this world who is so sinful that the blood of Christ cannot wash away his sins (John 1:29). 3. A Changed Man Levi left his lucrative business and followed Jesus. How many men do you know who were successful and rich but gave them up because they wanted to follow Jesus? Levi made a feast and invited his friends to meet Jesus (v.15). He was thrilled to know Jesus and wanted his friends to know Him too. The result was many of his friends became followers of Jesus. Are we willing to give up like Levi to follow Jesus? “If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me” (Luke 9:23). Have we been telling our friends about Jesus? “Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature” (Mark 16:15). 4. Be Separate; not Isolate. The religious sects of the Jews were shocked that Jesus ate with sinners. They asked Christ’s disciples why their master was eating with sinners (v.16). Jesus replied: “They that are whole have no need of the physician, but they that are sick: I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance” (v.17). If we say Christ is the Chief Physician, then the church is a hospital for sick people. A church can never grow by turning away sinners. We cannot convert sinners if we treat them like lepers. We must be separate from sin but not sinners. Paul says: “I wrote unto you in an epistle not to company with fornicators: Yet not altogether with the fornicators of this world, or with the covetous, or extortioners, or with idolaters; for then must ye needs go out of the world” (1 Corinthians 5:8, 9).         While we must be concerned about the influence of the wrong kind of friends (1 Corinthians 15:33), we must be concerned about those who are lost! Think about those who were Levi’s guests. Jesus met them and taught them and they were converted. Jesus loved Levi in spite of knowing his profession. He did not ask him to quit his profession first if he wanted to follow Him. He simply said: Follow Me.” When we ask men to follow Jesus, they will change.

Get Back To Basics!

Think about this for a moment. Eighty-seven year-old Sister Mabel had been a member of the same local church for 60 years. One Sunday she limped up to the preacher who was shaking people out after the morning service. He knew from the look on her face that she had something on her mind and she was going to let him know what it was. "Preacher," she said, "if God were alive today, He would be shocked at the changes in this church." We can be sure Sister Mabel was wrong on one point – God is not dead! In the words of the apostle Paul at 1 Timothy 3:15 the God who disclosed Himself to mankind through His Son Jesus Christ is "the living God." Seven hundred years before Paul lived the prophet Isaiah assured God’s Old Testament people God was alive and well even though they faced difficulty, referring to God as, "The everlasting God, the Lord, The Creator of the ends of the earth" who "Neither faints nor is weary ..." (Isaiah 40:28). People out-side of Christ are "dead in trespasses and sins" (Ephesians 2:1). Women (and men should be included in this, too) who live in and for pleasure and self-indulgence are said to be "dead while [they] live" (1 Timothy 5:6). Churches can be dead, and Jesus Himself made that sobering pronouncement about the church in Sardis in Revelation 3:1, saying to them, "I know your works, that you have a name that you are alive, but you are dead." Yep, spiritually speaking there are a lot of dead people and dead members of the church and even dead congregations. Millions have pronounced God dead – but in every age He just keeps on outliving His critics! God is forevermore the living God.

Let us return to 1 Timothy 3:15 where the apostle Paul spells out his reason for writing the letter of 1 Timothy – "but if I am delayed, I write so that you may know how you ought to conduct your- self in the house of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and ground of the truth." The NIV makes clear Timothy was not misbehaving, but Paul wanted him to know "how people ought to conduct themselves in God’s household." The church at Ephesus found herself floating in a sea of false and erroneous religious beliefs and practices (see Acts 19 * 1 Timothy 1:3ff). The polluted water of that sea was threatening to seep into the church. Precisely for that reason Paul urged the church to stay focused on her fundamental and primary task – be a "pillar and ground of the truth." Whatever else the church is called to do, her function as a bastion and bulwark for God’s truth remains primary. The truth contained in the gospel is a sacred trust. We must never forget that fundamental task. Coach Vince Lombardi’s Green Bay Packers football team was famous for winning games and championships. They did so because they knew how to tackle, block, and execute. In one game they didn’t do it very well. A frustrated Lombardi stood before the team, held up a football, and announced, "Gentlemen, this is a football." He was calling them back to the basics, reminding them of the urgent nature of fundamentals. No matter what else a church has going for it, the key to enjoying God’s favor is to remain faithful as a pillar and ground of the truth. Are you concerned about that basic task? Well, are you? Just asking. 

          – Dan Gulley, Smithville, TN 

Deacons - Playing For the Lord’s Team!

Herman Edwards is the colorful and witty head coach of the Arizona State University Sun Devils football team (since December, 2017). Edwards played cornerback for ten seasons with the Philadelphia Eagles and also served stints as head coach of the Kansas City Chiefs and also the New York Jets along the way. While coaching for the Chiefs, Edwards was asked for his thoughts on teamwork in an interview. In response, he said, "The players that play on this football team will play for the name on the side of the helmet and not the name on the back of the jersey" (source Houston Chronicle, 1/6/2010). Edwards reminds me of the statement, "There’s no ‘I’ in ‘TEAM.’ " Successful football teams are the ones where all team members work together for the good of the team.

That same principle is vitally important in the church. There is no "I" in "TEAM," and there is no "I" in "CHURCH." Christians must all work together to the glory of God and the salvation of souls. The apostle Paul describes a special group of "team players" in the church in 1 Timothy 3:8-13. They are the deacons. Take time to read that list and at least three things become clear. First, these men specialize in serving. Verse 10 directs the church to "let them serve as deacons" once they have been "tested" and "found blameless," and verse 13 declares, "For those who have served well as deacons obtain for themselves a good standing and great boldness in the faith which is in Christ Jesus" (is Paul hinting some may wear the name but not really play for the Lord’s team?). Deacons serve. Second, deacons are men of high moral and spiritual character. Included in (but not limited to) the list of their qualifications are that they "must be reverent, not double-tongued, not given to much wine, not greedy for money, holding the mystery of the faith with a pure conscience ... husbands of one wife, ruling their children and their own houses well" (verses 8, 9, 12). Deacons must be men whose lives reflect a deep commitment to Christ-like character and moral integrity. A story tells about a little boy who walked down the beach. As he did, he spied an older gentleman sitting under an umbrella on the sand. The boy walked up to the man and asked, "Are you a Christian?" He said, "Yes." The boy then asked, "Do you read your Bible every day?" Again the man said, "Yes." The boy followed up with, "Do you pray often?" For the third time old gentleman answered, "Yes." With that the boy asked one final question, "Will you hold my quarter while I go swimming?" Deacons are men who can be trusted by God, their wives, their children, and the church! The third thing we learn from the 1 Timothy passage is that God wants the church to respect and encourage men in the church who serve as deacons. Verse 13 says they "obtain a good standing" (the New American Standard Bible says "high standing") and great boldness in the faith which is in Christ Jesus." Who wouldn’t want to be in high standing with God (and the church)?! Faithful deacons enjoy such a standing. Not by barking out orders or being a deacon in name only, but by being team players and serving well. Faithful deacons love and honor God and serve people. They are vital for the health of the church. God esteems them. Let us do the same.

  – Dan Gulley, Smithville, TN

A Higher Love!

A number of years ago my wife Donna and I were in a Jimmy John’s gourmet sandwich shop in Rapid City, South Dakota while on vacation. A poster on the wall beside the table where we were eating our lunch declared this sentence in bold letters: "Offer your seat to senior citizens, pregnant women, and people with guns." Nobody we could see fit either description, so we stayed put and enjoyed our sandwiches. That poster raises an important question. How are we to relate and respond to people in our lives who "rub us the wrong way," or at times act in hateful and hostile ways toward us? Or, perhaps as bad, those who are totally indifferent toward us? Jesus addresses that issue in Matthew 5:43-48 in words that are much easier to read and preach than practice. In verses 43 and 44 of that text the Son of God declared, "You have heard that it was said, 'You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.' But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you." It is clear as crystal this is a much higher kind of love than that practiced by those who don’t know God. I don’t want to offend anyone who claims to follow Christ, but, sadly, this is a higher kind of love than that practiced by some who call themselves Christians. Christ calls His disciples to a higher kind of love – a God-like kind of love that does good to and prays for those who might seek to use and hurt us.

I threw in with Jesus 50 years ago, and I don’t find those words any easier to practice now than I did then. Indifferent and irritating and even hostile people who are out to hurt us or at least don’t care if they hurt us are not all that scarce. And they may not be in Iraq or Iran or Afghanistan. They may be on the other side of town or the office or the living room or even on the other end of the church pew. If they hate us we face a choice – hate them back, or love them. If people curse and hurt us, Jesus makes the choice we face clear – curse them back, or bless them; return their spite, or pray for them. If we love and do them good, they may soften and become more loving and kind, or they may not. But one thing is sure – loving unloving people, as Christ modeled and taught by His life and His death, will make us better people, more Christ-like people, every time it happens.
Francis Bacon said, "A man that studieth revenge keeps his own wounds green." Someone has astutely observed there are four possible responses when someone does you wrong: #1 Curse it. #2 Nurse it. #3 Rehearse it. #4 Reverse it. We can fight fire with fire, but as the old saying goes that only makes the fire twice as hot. At the cross of Christ hate-filled men spit on, cursed, abused, slapped and then crucified the only sinless Man who ever walked on　Planet Earth. Luke 23:34 reminds us Jesus practiced a higher love. From the cross He prayed for those crucifying Him – "Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do." How can we love and forgive our enemies when we find it hard to love family and friends and folks we share a pew with on Sunday mornings? I don’t know but one way we can do it, and that is with God’s help. Let’s pursue and practice God’s higher love . Only then can we ever hope to overcome the hellish hostility the devil continues to promote and produce in our world. 

 – Dan Gulley, Smithville, TN