Genesis 16

Not a shining moment for the future patriarch.  Listening to the voice of his wife (be careful boys! women can be very influential and not always in good directions), Abram agrees to take a new "wife" to get children, rather than wait on the Lord.  And this chapter comes right after that amazing covenant ceremony where God once more affirms all His promises to Abram.

What really catches my attention is how God shows special concern for Hagar, a simple servant girl (and a bratty one at that.)  At this first reference to "The Angel of the Lord", my commentary says that when "The Angel of the Lord" appears in the Old Testament, it is probably Christ Himself ("The Angel of the Lord" doesn't appear after Christ's birth.)  Hagar certainly thought it was God and called him "The God Who Sees", or "El Roi" in Hebrew.   And El Roi tells her to name her son Ishmael, which means "God hears".

How astonishing that God himself would "see" and "hear" her affliction; however, notice that Hagar's circumstances don't really change.  God doesn't direct her to a new luxury tent or give her a handsome new master.

He tells her to go back.  Go back and submit to your mean mistress, who will probably give you a beating for running away and your elderly master, who obviously doesn't care what happens to you even though you carry his child.

But He also gave her a promise.  He gave her the promise of a nation of descendants, which would have been astounding for someone in her position; but think about it....a promise that she would never see fulfilled in her lifetime.

This is such a great reminder that God always sees and hears my cries for help and gives me many promises of love and faithfulness in His Word, but often, my circumstances do not change.  God wants me to rest in His plan for my life, and trust that all things really do work together for my good (Romans 8:28).  This is hard.  I do not like being uncomfortable.  Like Hagar, I don't like living in difficult circumstances.  But God's promise to her, His very presence, was so life-changing that she obediently went back.

He does that for us too....any time we go to His Word, seeking fellowship with Him.  And unlike Hagar and other Old Testament believers, we don't have to hope for one special visitation from God.  We have the Holy Spirit living in us every day....His presence is assessable 24/7.

"I love the Lord because He hears my voice and my supplications.  Because He has inclined His ear to me, therefore I shall call upon Him as long as I live."  Psalm 116:1-2

Living it today:  I will remember that the Lord sees and hears my prayers even if my circumstances don't change.

Living it yesterday:  Fellowship with God is such a cool think...I even think better.  New ideas were coming to my mind all day for my up-coming classes.  And I had the opportunity to share with two other moms on the soccer field some truth the Lord was bringing to mind, and I think it was helpful for them.

Genesis 15

The Lord tells Abram in verse 2, "I am your shield, your exceedingly great reward."  I wonder if Abram had any clue what God was about to tell him?   I wonder what Abram was thinking?  I have an exceedingly great reward???  Isn't is awesome when something wonderful unexpectedly happens to you?  Can you imagine hearing that you have won the lottery and then waiting with growing excitement to find out how much you won?  Abram truly hits the jackpot and so do we....

I first learned about the concept of "covenant" and Old Testament faith in this chapter so it is really special to me and reminds me of many amazing truths.  God officially makes promises to Abram which include an heir, descendants that would be as numerous as stars, and a prime piece of land.  All things that would have brought great joy to Abram, an old man living as a nomad with no children. And Abram "believed in the Lord, and He accounted it to him for righteousness."  This should have seemed like an impossibility to Abram,  but he believed in the future promises of God which is what "saved" him.  God counted his belief/faith as "righteousness"....Abram was made righteous because of his belief that God would do what He said.  Paul refers to this verse often when he discusses that salvation is by faith, not works (Romans 4:3,9, 22; Galations 3:6)  He goes on to say in Romans 4:21 that Abram "being fully assured that what He (God) had promised, He (God) was able also to perform."  What a great definition of FAITH!  So Old Testament people (before Christ) were saved by believing in the promises of God, specifically, the promise of a Savior.  Just to be clear....to be made righteous....right before God....one believes, trusts, puts faith in God.

After Abram declared his belief, God "sealed" His promise with a covenant ceremony that was common in ancient days.  When two parties came to an agreement or made a contract, they would take an animal, cut it in two, lay the pieces on the ground, and walk through the pieces together in a ceremony.  Symbolically, they were saying may God do to me what we did to this animal should either of us break this contract.  In verse 18, it says "the Lord made a covenant".  The Hebrew word for "made" is "karath" which means to cut, and "covenant" in Hebrew is "beriyth" which is "an alliance of friendship" when the reference is between God and man and also "a divine ordinance".

So God cut (literally and figuratively) a divine (everlasting) alliance of friendship with Abram with the terms dependent only on Himself.

Abram was put to sleep and only God, represented by the smoking oven and burning torch, walked through the pieces sealing the deal.  This is an incredible act....God promises not only descendants and land but that He will be Abram's friend.  Simply as a result of his belief, God will honor his end of the bargain.  This would have been incomprehensible in ancient times....that you could be the friend of the supreme deity, Jehovah..."the existing one".  But it is incomprehensible today really.....that we can be called God's friend??  Yet, that is exactly what Paul describes in Romans 4....that God did this not just for Abram's sake, but "for our sake also, to whom it will be reckoned, as those who believe in Him who raised Jesus our Lord from the dead."  Like Abram, we become God's friend.  I love the words, "reckoned", "reconciliation", "reconciled" that Paul uses throughout the next chapter; all words that show we are no longer "enemies of God" (Colossians 1:21), but we have been brought into rightness with Him.....friendship.

Living it today:  No matter what happens today, I will remember that I am a friend of God.  That as my best friend, I will obediently follow Him in the way He leads me today.  I love you guys so much....please make Him your best friend, too.  He is so worth it.

Genesis 13 and 14

Abram gives Lot his choice of land which shows Abram trusts God in allowing Lot this privilege.  Abram is obviously growing in his faith.  Lot chooses the best land but its to the "east" near Sodom and Gomorrah.  Often, Bible reference to the "east" are an indication of spiritual darkness or wickedness.

This reminds me to be careful about making big decisions.  The most seemingly desirable choice may be disastrous spiritually.  Always consider how a choice might have negative spiritual consequences.  And I notice that after Abram gives up his right to choose first, God blesses Him by reaffirming the covenant in showing him all that will be his legacy, his family's forever...

"....for all the land which you see I give to you and your descendants forever.  And I will make your descendants as the dust of the earth; so that if a man could number the dust of the earth, then your descendants also could be numbered."  verses 15, 16

What a great blessing for an old nomad with no children.

Typical of the times, chapter 14 describes a lot of fighting over land and people (come to think of it, that is typical of all times in history.)  When Sodom is attacked, Lot is captured with all the people and all their possessions.  According to commentaries that I read, Abram would have been a well-seasoned military man, used to defending his very large clan and leading in battles.  He had his own private, well-trained militia ("318 trained servants") who apparently marched over 150 miles to reach the enemy just north of Damascus.  They successfully defeated the armies and rescued the people.  (Again, Abram's trust in the Lord had come a long way.)  But rather than take the spoils of war, which is customary for the victor, Abram takes nothing so he can give all the credit for the victory to El Elyon, God Most High, Sovereign Lord.

Living it today:  Carefully consider the spiritual consequences of a decision.  Remember that God is in control and He directs my path and deserves the credit for my success.  But that path may be difficult and challenging (150 mile march and THEN a battle) requiring preparation, stead-fastness and boldness.

Living it yesterday:  No major trials yesterday, but several small "character tests" did occur.  It was good to remember that trials are a good thing.  They produce endurance leading to a "perfect result".

Genesis 2 - one more thing:)

OK....I couldn't resist....one more thought about Genesis 2.  It says, "the Lord God made every tree grow that is pleasant to the sight and good for food."  The Hebrew word for "pleasant" is "chamad" which means "covet", "delectable", "desirable", "greatly beloved".  So God provided an amazing smorgasbord (great $ word:) of food for Adam and Eve.  I'm not sure we can really imagine what that looked and tasted like since we live in a twice changed Earth (curse after man's fall and after the flood). As great as our fruits and veggies are today, they can't possibly taste or look as good as "in the beginning."  I guess the best we can do is imagine being surrounded by perfect orchards and fields of peaches, apples, oranges, mangos, bananas, strawberries, kiwis, papayas, coconuts, blueberries AND who knows what other flavors???  steak or lobster flavored fruit?  OK...that might be a stretch, but apparently it was ALL "greatly beloved and desirable".....to eat any time, day or night, as much as they wanted (just think of it my big eaters who will remain nameless!)

And yet, in spite of all this amazing provision, a succulent banquet every day,  Adam and Eve would later choose the one food they couldn't have.

I am Adam and Eve.

So often, I fail to see and appreciate the abundant provision all around me, wanting instead something else....something bigger, better, easier, more comfortable.

Living it today:  I will purpose to see and appreciate God's amazing provision all around me.  I will be thankful for all things for this is God's will for me in Christ Jesus.

Genesis 12

In chapter 12, we are introduced to the "Abrahamic Covenant."  God tells Abram to leave his country, his extended family and go to some mystery land to be revealed later.  God promises children (a nation), land, divine blessing and protection.

In great faith and obedience, Abram does it...at 75 years old.  (I wonder if he remembered Great Grandfather Noah's faith?)  Abram makes it to the land but has to leave because of famine.  He goes to Egypt, and has a major lapse in trusting the Lord.  Because his wife is beautiful and he fears the Egyptians might kill him to have her, he tells Sarai to pretend to be his sister.  Sure enough, she is taken.  I'm imagining the scene as she is being abducted and Abram says nothing, does nothing to defend her.  That was some serious, paralyzing fear that prevented him from helping the person he most loved in the world.  And later, he still doesn't have the courage and faith in God to rescue her.  God finally intervenes.

I also notice that this failure happened after Abram made it to the promised land and built an alter to worship, basically establishing his worship of and faith in the one true God in the new land.

Abram was all in.

And then he goes to Egypt and fails the faith test.  This seems to happen a lot in scripture.  A believer will trust God, commit to God in a big way and then fail a big faith test (think Jacob, King Saul, Peter.)
God will test our faith.  And the more times we are tested, the more we grow in our faith...

"Consider all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance and let endurance have its perfect result, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing."  James 1:3-4

Interestingly, when we fail faith tests, we experience God's grace and forgiveness covering our heavy guilt feelings.  When we pass faith tests, we grow more in our love and trust in God because we see Him taking care of us.

Even the most Godly people have moments of failure.  We are all broken people who make mistakes, but our God uses all those failures to grow us in our faith, for our good and ultimately, for His glory.  Abram was a fairly new believer when this happened, but after many years of walking with God, we see later how Abram passed the ultimate faith test by his willingness to sacrifice Isaac.

Living it today:  Thank the Lord for any trial today, knowing that testing produces endurance.  Purpose to pass the test:)

Living it yesterday:  Believing I'm too busy to take on any new responsibilities, I've resisted committing to any new teaching responsibilities.  But knowing my spiritual gifts are teaching and encouraging, I've committed to leading a much needed women's Bible study in the fall with Mrs. Meredith.

Genesis 11

Today we come to the end of the "beginnings" chapters.  So much more could have been studied and gleaned from the first 11 chapters of Genesis, but please remember that God's word does give us all the information we need for any origins' arguments.  Remember to start with scripture first when asking foundational, scientific questions....not the other way around.

In verses 1-9, I see the whole earth had one language and they lived together in Shinar, which is modern-day Iraq.  Shinar is also the area we call Mesopotamia, known as "the cradle of civilization."  (Much later, Babylon and Assyria, Israel's enemies, will control this region.)  Verse 4 describes how the people decide to build a city and tower to show off their greatness and encourage national unity, "Let us make a name for ourselves lest we be scattered abroad over the face of the whole earth."

Remember God's command to Noah and his sons after the flood?  Multiply and fill the earth.  "Populate the earth abundantly." So God wanted them to spread out.  They refused.  So He "scattered them abroad from there over the face of all the earth." (verse 8)  For me, is God commanding me to do something and I am refusing?

Also in this chapter I see Shem's descendants and their ages when they had children.  Isn't it interesting that the lifespans get shorter?  I notice the ages go 500-403-403-430-209-207-200-119.  Though there is much speculation about how people really lived hundreds of years (some over 900 years), it is clear that life span changed after the flood.

Once again, I'm reminded that rebellion against God---sin---has consequences.

Living it today:  What can I do today to obey God in an area where I have been resisting His direction?

Living it yesterday:  Thinking back over the last few days of study, several unfortunate "living it yesterdays" come to mind:  I made some impulsive decisions when I was clearly counseled by the Word not to do so (trip decisions.)  I had the opportunity to share the Gospel with different types of people (the Wal-Mart employee clearly wanted to chat) but I didn't make the time.  I purposed not to hurt the heart of God and I totally ignored the Word for three days in my busyness and trip preparations.  I lost my temper with one of you....enough said.  I had a major pity party over some unexpected expenses (after a week of praising God for His provision.)  BUT the Gospel is good...grace is good...because I'm his child, God will not love me any less (or any more) because of my actions.

Interesting link about lifespan after the flood....

http://www.answersingenesis.org/articles/2010/07/16/feedback-why-did-people-have-shorter-lives-after-flood

Genesis 10

Occasionally, you will read a chapter and wonder what in the world can I learn from this???
This is one of those chapters:)  But as you prayerfully read through it, the Holy Spirit will bring to mind something to take away....and sometimes, I just read the next chapter, too.

This chapter describes the descendants of Noah's sons:  Shem, Ham and Japheth.  Fast forward to verse 25 where it says, "....the name of one was Peleg, for in his days the earth was divided..."  The Hebrew word for earth is "erets" which means "the whole earth under God's dominion; land; nations." This word is used over 2500 times in the Old Testament which tells me to remember that God does own it ALL.  The word "divided" is "palag" (sounds like Peleg doesn't it?), and it means to "divide, split".
Verse 25 is describing what happens later, doing Peleg's life,  at the tower of Babel when God "divides" the people and confuses their languages.  (Just for fun, I looked up Peleg and it actually means, "earthquake"....very symbolic I would say.)

Three times we read the phrase, "These were the sons of ____ according to their languages, in their lands and in their nations" and about the sons of Noah, "according to their generations, in their nations, and from these the nations were divided on the earth after the flood."

This reminds me of verse 7:9 in Revelation where John sees multitudes, "from every nation and all  tribes and peoples and tongues, standing before the throne and before the Lamb...." worshipping Jesus. God created the nations.  He is orderly and loves variety.

I also see the first reference to Babel started by Nimrod, Ham's grandson, in what is modern-day Iraq.  It's interesting to think about the parallels between what happened in that part of the world thousands of years ago and the conflict that is still happening today.

Living it today:  Remember today that Christ loves variety; He loves ALL people.  He wants people from all nations to be in His Kingdom.  I will be mindful of this truth today and be very aware of any prejudice I may have.

Living it yesterday:  Nothing specific happened the last few days that made me wait on any weighty decisions, but it was interesting how just meditating on that thought, and honoring and loving God with all my heart, made me order my day more carefully.  The things I said and did were more intentional.  The Lord also gave me two opportunities to encourage friends with the scripture I've been praying for myself.  God is good all the time.

Interesting article on race, prejudice and interracial marriage....

http://www.answersingenesis.org/articles/nab/are-there-different-races