CONTINGENCY (Genesis 48:15)

See God in the Contingencies of Your Life.

• "..the God who has been my shepherd all my life to this day.." (Gen 48:15, NIV).
• "...the God who has looked after me all my life till this day..." (Robert Alter).

** Are you here today because every contingency throughout your life has led you to this very moment?

Contingency in every person's life:

Stephen is Killed for His Faith (Acts 7)

• Share your thoughts and reflections on Ethnic Cultural Racial Differences [between the Hellenistic and Hebraic Jews (Acts 6:1)].

1. Who are the people Stephen referenced in their historical order? What were the important events in each of their lives? [Persons Stephen spoke about in Acts 7]
1. The Patriarchal Period (7:1-16):
1. Ac 7:2 (Genesis 12-25).
2. Ac 7:8a (Genesis 21-28).
3. Ac 7:8b (Genesis 25-50).
4. Ac 7:9 (Genesis 37-50).
2. Moses and the wilderness wanderings (7:17-43):
1. Ac 7:20 (Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy).
2. Ac 7:40 (", ", ", ").
3. The Tabernacle and the Temple; the establishment of the monarchy (7:44-50):
1. Ac 7:45a (Exodus, Numbers, Deuteronomy, Joshua).
2. Ac 7:45b (1,2 Samuel, 1 Kings, 1 Chronicles, Psalms)
3. Ac 7:47 (2 Samuel, 1 Kings, 1,2 Chronicles, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Song).
2. What was his attitude toward his accusers (Ac 7:2a)? What frames Stephen's sermon (Ac 7:2, 55)?
3. Why is it important for Stephen to review this history in such detail in his "sermon"?  [Can Christians do so today?] Was he primarily defending himself? Was he anti-Law (Ac 7:38, 53)? What was the recurrent pattern of the people of Israel (Ac 7:9, 25-29, 39, 41)? What was his primary point (Ac 7:4, 37-40, 48-49, 51-53)?
4. What was the climax and conclusion of his speech (Ac 7:51-53, 8; Isa 63:10; Heb 11:32-38; 1 Ki 18:4, 13; Jer 26:20-24; Mt 5:10-12; Lk 6:22-23; 11:47-51)? How are Stephen's accusers guilty of the very same thing they are accusing Stephen of doing? Did he have to indict/enrage them by being blunt, direct and provocative?
5. What was Stephen's disposition (Ac 6:3, 5, 10, 15; 7:55; Mt 10:19-20; Lk 21:15)? Why were they so angry at such a God filled man (Ac 7:54, 57; Jn 3:19; 14:15; 16:2)? What basis did they have to stone him (Ac 7:58; Lev 24:11, 14-16)? Who were the ones who stoned him (Ac 6:12-14; Dt 17:7)?
6. What and who did Stephen see (Ac 7:55-56; 2:34-35; Ps 110:1; Dan 7:13)? How were Stephen's last words similar to that of Christ (Ac 7:59-60; Lk 23:34, 46; Ps 31:5)?
7. How did Stephen's death launch the Great Commission (Ac 8:1-3; 1:8; Mt 28:19)? Where were they scattered to and what did they do (Ac 8:4-5, 40; 9:32; 10:32; 11:19)?
8. Who agreed, approved and consented to killing Stephen (Ac 8:1; 6:10)? How did this affect him (Ac 8:3; 22:20; 26:9-12; Gal 1:13; Phil 3:6)? Why was he so determined to destroy the church (Dt 21:22-23)?

Jealousy, Life, Obedience & Joy (Acts 5).

Deceptions in Genesis

Genesis contains story after story of deception. The deception at times may be justified and at other times is sinful. If this book of the Bible were not named Genesis, it might well be named "Deception."

1. 
   [The serpent deceives Adam and Eve.]
2. Abraham deceives Pharaoh.
3. Abraham deceives Abimelech.
4. Lot's daughters deceive Lot.
5. Jacob deceives Esau twice.
6. Jacob and Rebecca deceives Isaac.
7. Laban and Leah deceive Jacob.
8. Jacob deceives Laban.
9. Rachel deceives Laban.
10. Simeon and Levi deceives the Shechemites.
11. Joseph's brothers deceives Jacob.
12. Er deceives Tamar.
13. Onan deceives Tamar and Judah.
14. Judah deceives Tamar.
15. Tamar deceives Judah.
16. Potiphar's wife deceives Potiphar.
17. Joseph deceives his brothers.

Reference: Dennis Prager. The Rational Bible. Genesis. God, Creation, and Destruction. 2019. Page 442.

Joseph's Coat, George Herbert

Sorrow ... such is his will

Who changes all things, as he pleases best.

For well he knows, if but one grief and smart (pain)

Among my many had his full career,

Sure it would carry with it even my heart.

And both would run until they found a bier.

Pain Makes You a Philosopher

Thanks so much for all your prayers and support for me as I had surgery to replace both my knees on Aug 10, 2018.

From July 9 to Sep 5, 2018 I was away in Malaysia. My bilateral knee replacement surgery was not planned, but I decided that it was the best option for me.

The constant symptom after surgery was the pain from the surgery, the sutures, the swelling, the stiffness and from the physical therapy daily. My daily activities was markedly curtailed, reading, studying and just sitting at the table was very difficult, and sleep was near impossible every single night, because there was no comfortable position and the pain felt worse than during the day. Thus, I thought about the "problem of pain" that all human beings experience with no exceptions.

The Girl Nobody Wanted (Genesis 29:15-35): Questions (3/11/14)

The Search for One True Love (Gen 29:15-35) [An alternate title (by Tim Keller): The Girl Nobody Wanted.]

I. The Desire of Love

1. What might Laban know about Jacob (Gen 29:10-14)? What was the motivation of Laban and Jacob (Gen 29:15-20)? How is Laban's scheme ingenious, though cruel (Gen 29:21-26)? What did Laban gain?

II. The Devastation of Love

2. Do you understand that "in the morning, it's always Leah...not Rachel" (Gen 29:25)? Though Jacob was shocked and furious (Gen 29:25), why did he agree so compliantly to Laban's explanation and further unreasonable offer (Gen 29:26-30)? How was Laban's deceit with Jacob parallel to Jacob's deceit with his old blind father? How might Leah feel through all of this?

3. How does the affirmation of Gen 28:13-15 and the discipline of Gen 29:15-30 work together for Jacob's good (Heb 12:5-6; Prov 3:12; Amos 3:2; Gen 50:20)?
   

III. The Deconstruction of Love

4. Identify the idols of Jacob (Gen 29:18,20,30), Leah (Gen 29:32-34), Rachel (Gen 30:1,8). How does God deal with the lovelessness of Leah (Gen 29:31)? The barrenness of Rachel (Gen 30:22-24)? What does this tell us about God's salvation (Isa 53:2; Jn 1:11; Mt 27:46; Mk 15:34; 1 Cor 1: 27-29)?

Reference: The Search For One True Love (Gen 29:15-35)

An Overview of the Pentateuch in Preparation for Studying Deuteronomy

Genesis, the first book of the Pentateuch, presents the stories of Creation (Gen 1:1-2:25), the Fall (Gen 3:1-24), and the beginning of God's plan of redemption through Abraham (Gen 12:1ff), his son Isaac (Gen 24:1ff), and Isaac's son Jacob (Gen 27:1ff), who is also called Israel. In the later chapters of Genesis, Jacob's son Joseph is taken down to Egypt (Gen 37:1ff), eventually to be followed by his brothers and father.

Exodus, which is next, records the greatest redemption event in the Bible prior to Christ's incarnation. The first chapter summarizes four hundred years in the life and slavery of the children of Israel in Egypt (Ex 1:1-22). The first eighty years of Moses' life follow in the second chapter (Ex 2:1-25). Then, the story line from Exodus 3 on through Leviticus and up to the middle of Numbers covers the span of only one year. It is a great year, for the Lord calls Moses as an eighty-year-old man to return to Egypt and lead the children of Israel out of slavery. Having redeemed his people, God guides them through the wilderness to Mount Sinai, where God gives the peo­ple his law (Ex 20:1-17), and instructs them in his ways, even though they sin repeatedly. This is always the order of the Bible: redemption first, then response; grace then law.

The Gospel in Genesis

I highly recommend the ESV Gospel Transformation Bible.

The foundation stories of Genesis set the stage for understanding the Gospel in many ways.

1. The Creator is the King over all his creation.
2. Sin entered the world and took away human freedom.
3. God reveals the depth of his love and grace, despite humanity's continual disobedience.
4. God called frail and profoundly flawed human beings to represent him: Noah, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and Joseph.
5. These giants of faith learned to love God more than the goods of this life.
6. The riches of God's grace render people without excuse.
7. The Lord of the universe committed himself by oath to one man, Abraham.
   

The Lord Came Down To See (Genesis 11:1-9)

"But the LORD came down to see..." (Genesis 11:5).

From this week we resume our study of Genesis. I had given 8 sermons from Gen 3:1-24 (The Fall of Man) to Gen 28:10-22 (The Stairway to Heaven) before I left for the Philippines for 2 months in July 2011. However, we did not study every passage from Genesis chap. 3 to 28. My plan now is to fill in the gaps and continue to the end of Genesis by early 2012.

Why do we study Genesis? What is the point of Genesis? More fundamentally, what is the Bible about? Briefly, the Bible is NOT a book of morals or instructions (even though it has both). It is a STORY. The story of the whole Bible can be summarized in 4 words:

Babel: Let's Do Away With God (Gen 11:1-9)

"Come, let us build ourselves a city and a tower with its top in the heavens, and let us make a name for ourselves" (Gen 11:4).

The onslaught of atheism against God is not a modern invention, nor a recent 20th century occurrence. It already happened ions ago when man built the tower of Babel to do away with God, and to regard God as irrelevant, redundant or non-existent. Yet there is still a need to affirmatively declare their own independent autonomy and self-rule. They indeed lay claim to a heaven without God, while the world continues to pine away amidst the constant din of ongoing and escalating unrest.

The "Joy" of Death (Gen 25:1-11)

"...he died at a ripe old age, having lived a long and satisfying life" (Gen 25:8, NLT).

Previous passage: The Lord Will Provide (Gen 22:1-14).
Contrasting passage: Lot's End is God's Judgment (Gen 19:1-38)

Death is gut wrenching and crippling to countless billions, to put it mildly. One of my most vivid memories is that of a successful Chicago lawyer in his mid to late 30s. He was a brilliant confident self-made man. He built up his law firm from the ground up, has dozens of lawyers working for him, lives in a 5 million dollar house (25 years ago), has countless luxury cars, and a stunning wife. I met him as a trainee oncologist. He came to see my mentor oncologist with complaints of mild difficulty in swallowing for 3 weeks. He just had a biopsy taken from his throat and came to the oncology office to discuss the findings. He was jovial as he entered the office with his gorgeous wife. He said jokingly, "Doc, am I gonna live?" But the mood soon changed. After some elaborate explanation by the oncologist, it gradually dawned on him what his biopsy report meant when his diagnosis read "small cell carcinoma of the esophagus." The moment arrived when he suddenly realized that he had inoperable terminal cancer and had about 4 months to live.

Am I Really That Bad? (Genesis 6:5)

"The LORD saw ... that every inclination of the thoughts of the human heart was only evil all the time" (Gen 6:5; NIV 2011).

Why so extreme? Gen 6:5 seems excessively extreme. It infuriates many a man. But Gen 6:5 always keeps me in check because it applies to me 100% of the time. It is not that I do evil or even think evil all the time, however you define evil. I would say that most of the time I do not do or think evil, at least not consciously, perhaps like most people, Christian or non-Christian. So how would Gen 6:5 apply to me 100% of the time? I previously addressed it here: Sin, Faith, Salvation (Gen 6:1-14).

What does Gen 6:5 mean? The Hebrew "yeser" from Gen 6:5 is translated as "inclination" (NIV), "intention" (ESV), or "imagination" (KJV). "Yeser" is derived from the potter's verb "to form" (cf. Gen 2:7), and it implies design or purpose. It is alluding to the direction of our heart, regardless of what we are thinking or doing. God's "severe" indictment and/or assessment is that our heart is going astray, even when we are doing good or doing our best.

How To Preach Christ (the Gospel) from Genesis

Related posts:

•  What is the Point of Genesis?
•  What Jesus Said the Old Testament Scriptures Are About
•  Counterfeit Gods
•  Rethinking Genesis: Man Equals Mission 
•  The Difference Between Religion (Imperatives) and the Gospel (Indicatives)
•  Imperatives - Indicatives = Impossibilities
  

D. A. Carson (NT scholar) quotes his pastor dad who says, “A text without a context is a pretext for a proof text.” Go figure out the meaning of this delightful sentence! OK, it means to teach the Bible out of context, thus distorting the intended meaning of the Bible passage.

Cataclysmic and Gradual Judgment (Gen 19:1-38)

"So when God destroyed the cities of the plain, he remembered Abraham, and he brought Lot out..." (Gen 19:29).

Previous passages: Friendship and Intimacy (Gen 18:1-16); The Wonder of Laughter (Gen 18:9-15; 21:1-7); Why God Choose Abraham (Gen 18:19); The Prayer of a True Friend (Gen 18:17-33).
Next passage: Abraham Offers Isaac (Gen 22:1-14).
Contrasting passage: A Full and Satisfying Life (Gen 25:1-11)

God's judgment on Sodom is the 3rd major judgment in Genesis after God's judgment on Adam and Eve (Gen 3:1-24) and the flood (Gen 6:1ff). God's judgment infuriates man and rubs them in reverse. Though they are convinced that God's judgment does not exist, yet their resentment, hostility and anger toward God's judgment often seems out of proportion to its "non-existence." Is Santa Claus sending people to hell upsetting? We laugh. But replace Santa with God and the response is intensified.

The Prayer of a True Friend (Gen 18:17-33)

Previous text: Friendship and Intimacy (Gen 18:1-16); Why God Choose Abraham (Gen 18:19).

Abraham is known in the Bible as God's friend (2 Chron 20:7; Isa 41:8; James 2:23). What is a friend? Tim Keller says, "A true friend always lets you in, but never lets you down." True friends share their hearts with you, hiding nothing, as God did with Abraham (Gen 18:17,20-21), and as Jesus did with his disciples (Jn 15:15). True friends are also faithfully committed to their friends, regardless. Prov 18:24 says, "A man of many companions may come to ruin, but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother" (ESV).

We often think that Christians should be totally submissive to God. Of course this is true. But in this breathtaking passage (Gen 18:17-33), Abraham comes before God in prayer not as a "Yes man." Rather, as God's friend, he "bargains" and "pushes" God boldly, almost unashamedly, and yet with the utmost of humility, respect and awe (Gen 18:27,31).

What 7 things can we learn from Gen 18:17-33 about the prayer of a friend of God (often known as intercessory prayer)?

Friendship and Intimacy (Gen 18:1-33)

"Then the LORD said, 'Shall I hide from Abraham what I am about to do?'" (Gen 18:17)

Previous passage: "Walk Before God Blamelessly" (Gen 17:1-27)
Related passages: "The Wonder of Laughter" (Gen 18:9-15; 21:1-7)
Why Did God Chose Abraham? (Gen 18:19)
The Prayer of a True Friend (Gen 18:17-33)

What do we really want in life? What do we need? We need money. We need a career. We need to have fun. On a more basic and foundational level we need some meaning and purpose to our own existence. (Theology or Me-ology.) Perhaps more than anything else, we need a good friend. If one is married, their best and most intimate friend should be their spouse. As the saying goes, "A happy wife is a happy life." Also, the more true friends one has, the better their "quality of life." Sadly and tragically, when one has no friends, their lives become a living hell. On Christmas and Thanksgiving day, the suicide rate spikes each year without fail, likely because of the absence of a loving and caring friend. Why might friendship be so foundational to a happy life?

Why did God Call/Chose Abraham? (Gen 18:19)

Previous passage: "Walk Before God Blamelessly" (Gen 17:1-27)
Next passage: "The Wonder of Laughter" (Gen 18:9-15; 21:1-7)

Christians often inadvertently think that they choose God, because they accepted the invitation to study the Bible, or to attend church, or to repent and accept Christ as Savior and Lord, or to go overseas as a missionary. But Jesus said, "You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should abide..." (Jn 15:16, ESV). This is the doctrine of election. Likewise, Gen 18:19 says, "For I have chosen him (Abraham)..." It is confounding and humbling. Why would a holy God humble himself to chose a proud sinner who thinks he knows better than God?

The God who chose Abraham gives us a clue as to why God chooses and calls proud sinners to be his humble servants. Consider these questions: How does God summarize Abraham's call (Gen 18:18-19)? How does Grace and Law, Calling and Obedience, relate to each other (Gen 18:19)?

Walk Before God Blamelessly (Gen 17:1-27)

“I am God Almighty; walk before me faithfully and be blameless” (Gen 17:1).

"Walk before (God) faithfully and blamelessly." Bible verses like this scare the living daylights out of people. They think that the Bible demands too much of them, that the Christian life is a straight-jacket, and too restrictive, and that there is no freedom and no fun at all in the Christian life. I once trembled at the thought of being a full time Christian minister, thinking that I can't watch any more movies for the rest of my life. So I completely gave up the thought of ever being a full time pastor! My own guilt caused my own ascetic thinking. Let's look at this verse in the context of Abram's life.

Intro: (Genesis 17 is arguably the hinge pin of all ministry, for it is quoted 10 times in Hebrews, 8 times in Galatians, and 8 times in Romans.) God comes to Abram to renew his covenant 13 years after Abram committed an illegitimate act built upon illegitimate thinking because of the acceptance of illegitimate cultural norms that have given rise to an illegitimate relationship that produces an illegitimate son (Gen 16:1-16). All of this is to actually attempt to "do" God's will in accord with God's covenant. One might expect Gen 17:1 to begin with "You're fired. You messed up too royally." Instead, the calling of God on Abraham is freshly declared in Gen 17:1ff.

In Gen 17:1, God reveals himself in a new way as "God Almighty" (Hebrew El-Shaddai)--the 5th name for God so far in Genesis. God's names so far are:

How can a Holy God "Credit" Sinners with Righteousness? (Gen 15:1-6)

"Abram believed the LORD, and he (God) credited it to him as righteousness" (Gen 15:6). "Credited" has also been translated "counted" or "reckoned." 

How can a holy God "credit" a sinner with righteousness? This seems to contradict the Bible, which says that God "does not leave the guilty unpunished" (Exo 34:7), and that God's "eyes are too pure to look on evil" (Hab 1:13). 

Yet, through out the OT, God rescues his people and establishes personal relationships with those who continually fail to meet his standard of righteousness (Gen 15:1-6). Also, God refuses to credit sin to sinners (Ps 32:1-2; Rom 4:7-8). On what basis can a just and holy God do such things?

Sin, Faith and Salvation (Gen 6:1-14)

"...it grieved him to his heart" (Gen 6:6; ESV).

Yesterday, I visited Fort Santiago in Manila, which housed the museum of Jose Rizal (1861-1896), the national hero of the Philippines. During the Spanish colonial era, he was tried and executed by a firing squad at age 35 for advocating reform and rebellion. But his martyrdom strengthened and united his people and eventually led to the Philippines revolution (1896-98) and secession and liberation from the Spanish Empire. His short life of great personal sacrifice because of his love for his country is moving and gripping, echoing shades of Christ's sacrifice to set men free from bondage to sin. His story shows that for true "salvation" there must be both justice and love. The "justice" of Spain cost him his dear life. But his love set his people free.

In Gen 4:1-16, we examined the story of Cain and Abel with the title, Sin, Grace and Salvation. In Gen 6:1-14, I want to think about the story of Noah and the Flood with the title, "Sin, Faith and Salvation." (Previously, I shared this passage with the title, Divine Judgment.) The Deluge reveals in rudimentary seed form that God's salvation always includes his judgment.

1. Sin (The devastation of sin)
   
2. Faith (The practicality of faith)
   
3. Salvation (The way of salvation through judgment)