Praise the Lord!!! Additional praises . . . From Rebecca at the Ruth House - you may recall we have been praying for those injured in the van accident. This update was posted in their newsletter I received . . . Wow, have we ever seen the hand of God move at Ruth House this past month! We have seen medical miracles with our two precious ones who were hurt in the automobile accident. God himself ministered to us all through this accident and we are so very grateful that our two are back home and getting better by the day. Thank you to each and every one of you who prayed over us, brought food for the body and the spirit, brought medical services and a word of hope. We weathered this storm because you blessed us. = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = Tonight we went to the movies to see God's Not Dead 2. We were blessed with the presence of some of our Sisters' friends who joined us. Judi's friend Peggy, Jan's friend Gail, Esther's friend Doris and Judy's friend Elaine. Do you remember Elaine? We've been praying for her - she suffered a severely broken foot in California which required surgery. She traveled from California to the east coast with it broken and then had surgery. She was in great spirits and we even caught her carry her walker once in a while and putting full weight on her foot. Those of us who did not already know her were happy to meet her. God Is Soooo Good!!! Storm the Heavens and ask our Lord to Intercede On Our Behalf!!! Additional prayer requests . . . Judi's nephew and niece just learned today that their landlord, Mark, has been given a very short-term life expectancy due to melanoma that has metastacized to his lungs. Please pray for Mark and his family as they struggle with and accept this tragic news. Judy W's niece, Logan, got the results of her colonoscopy yesterday. There were some changes since her last one that are pretty serious. They are going to be following her more aggressively. Next colonoscopy in three months and it will be some sort of super-colonoscopy. She has both Crohn's and ulcerative colitis. It is very common to get colon cancer after having this disease around 8yrs. That is what they are watching for. Pretty tough news for a young woman. Please continue to pray for an effective medication. And peace for the whole family. She is an only child. Also, baby Kane that I mentioned is still in critical but stable condition. The main issue is his heart but there are others. Mama is only 19. Shands is giving wonderful tender care to all of them. Dr. Dawn from Ecuador wrote thanking us for our prayers for Ecuador. She updated me on the tragic numbers: 25,000+ are homeless, 12,000+ are still suffering injuries. She asks for our continued prayers for her adopted-countrymen. = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = Since we did not have any formal prayer requests last night I am posting what I know and requesting continued prayers for others we've received in the past . . . Keith was supposed to be finishing his second week of chemo this week, but instead we're waiting on an infection to pass until they can get started again. He looks and feels great, but had a stomach virus of some kind that is delaying the chemo. Hopefully they'll admit him tomorrow and get started. We lose ground on his numbers with every delay. And any pause gives his body's amazing immune system a chance to "strategize" and build immunity toward the last chemo. Serious war time right now....Prayers would be so appreciated. Shannon and Keith Stepp Heavenly Father - we are calling on all Your angels and for all of us to storm the heavens with our prayers for our dear brother, Pastor Keith. We are asking for Your intercession. Lord, You know him - You know his entire life is about serving You. You know the lives he touches and how he gives You all the glory. We ask you to eradicate this infection in his body to enable him to continue with the chemo treatments he so desperately needs in order to be eligible for the bone marrow transplant. We know YOU and YOU alone can heal him. We love You and praise You. May all the glory be Yours. Amen Please continue your prayers for: - Judi's friend, Luann - as you may recall she is recovering from a stroke in a rehab facility after multiple colon surgeries. She continues to fight to be able to come back from the effects of the stroke - to speak and be able to use the right side of her body again. - Neighborhood friends of many of the WJTTB ladies, Jim and Deb as Jim continues to remain in the hospital in Tampa fighting lung infection. - Lois' brother Danny and his wife as he continues to rehab from hip surgery and return to his cancer treatment. - Judi's mentees and all those incarcerated, regardless of their crime, that they may come to know and love the Lord, and that the Holy Spirit will change their heart and their ways. - Bette's neighbors Jo and Craig as he continues to deal with lymph node cancer and explore possible treatments. - Lois' husband Charlie as he continues to suffer from chronic migraines and recently kidney stones. - Judi's brother, Bobby, and S-I-L, Kathy as they finalize their packing, last minute appointments and enjoy their "so long" celebrations in preparation for their move from NJ to FL the beginning of May. - The people of Ecuador who are still reeling from the 600+ people who were killed in the earthquake and aftershocks, along with people of other nations who are suffering from natural disasters, lack of water and food, disease, the hands of terrorists, crime and persecution. We ended our Bible study The Promised One: Seeing Jesus in Genesis by enjoying a celebratory repast on Monday night. For a fleeting moment I reminded myself to take pictures but WHOOPS that thought flew out of my head as our precious ladies were entering the room with joy in their hearts and trays of food in their hands. One thing we all know how to do and that is to prepare some very good eats to share with one another!!!
We all had such a great time chatting and getting to know more about one another. There were plenty of left-overs to go back home and that was after plates were filled (sometimes more than once!). I'd like to thank each and every one of your for your participation, sharing, fellowship, praises to the Lord and prayer requests throughout this study. Each and everyone of us grew in our faith, our love of the Lord, understanding of the Word and how to apply what we have learned when we walk out the doors of the church. May the Lord continue to bless you and may you continue to bless others. Monday night (April 25) the Bible study will be held at The Old Mill Playhouse in Sumter Landing where we will watch the move God Is Not Dead 2. Please join us by arriving inside the lobby at 6:15. LIFT UP YOUR VOICES AND PRAISE HIM!!! Pastor Keith Stepp's cancer markers are way down! This is wonderful news. He will complete this 30 day period of treatment and then go through two more 30 day periods of treatment . All of this is in preparation for a bone marrow transplant which hopefully will be his healing . The treatments are working! CAROL'S friend Kathleen had her second chemo treatment and unlike the first, it went very, very well. JUDI'S mentee, Summer, saw Judi at a mentoring meeting last week. She told Judi that she listened to her voicemail message because she missed her so much. Thank God for this relationship! Summer was 22 last week. JUDI'S brother, Bobby , is still responding well to his new medication. In preparation for their move to The Villages the family pod arrived today! JUDY'S niece, Logan, is out of the hospital and back to work. Logan needs to find a medication that will control or cure her Crohn's/Ulcerative Colitis. Judi is asking for prayer for the Mentoring program at the county jail. A meeting will be held at 2:00 tomorrow (Tuesday) with the Administrator of the jail programs which will lead to some major changes for some of the Mentors. Judi is asking God for leadership and a curb on her tongue. Judi is leaning on Scripture Mark 2:14-17 to be her guide. BETSY and her sister, Bobbie, request travel mercies as they travel to Holland later this week. Kane is a preemie newborn with heart difficulties. He has been transferred to Shands for care . Please pray for parents, grandparents and great grandparents as their hearts are breaking. LUCILLE asks us to pray for Janet A. She is seeing a surgeon on April 28 to try and arrange a difficult surgery. She is a rectal cancer survivor and that history makes hernia surgery unusually difficult. She is afraid. LOIS' brother, Danny, is still in rehab and not doing well. Lois fears depression is setting in. Please pray for the entire family and the difficulties they face. Also, pray protection over Lois as she goes into the situation. JAN'S friend Megan is suffering breast cancer and just found out she needs a mastectomy. ROSE has several unnamed personal and family requests. LOIS visited her neighbor Jim who has been and continues to be so gravely ill. Please continue to pray for him and his wife Deb. BETTE'S neighbors , Jo and Craig are dealing with his stage four lymphoma. The treatment is very harsh and difficult to endure. As we pray for these individual situations please always remember to pray for the families and caregivers as well as the person who is ill. We can all relate to the huge physical, emotional and spiritual burden these loved ones carry and their need for support. Below is a snippet of praise from Shannon - Keith's wife. PRAISE GOD!!!
Hey y'all! I am LOVING sending this quick message! It appears that the strong chemo regiment that Keith is on is working! Walking into this regiment less than a month ago, his cancer markers (that should be around 25-26), were up over 1500 and growing aggressively. We finally got the first cancer-marker check for this regiment, and as of yesterday, they were at 685. Praises, praises!!! Now I'm just guessing at this point, but we're thinking that they will probably run him through this 30-day regiment one more time (maybe two), then push him for the stem cell transplant. They are already in process with the paperwork, and we haven't seen any snags yet. What great news! We'll see how it rolls, but he's seriously considering preaching this week. :-) Just wanted to drop a quick note to say KEEP THOSE PRAYERS COMING!!!! Love and Blessings! --Shannon :-) by Tyler Edwards - April 21, 2015
Has a culture of convenience and consumerism changed the way we preach the Gospel? What if I told you that Jesus didn’t want us to win converts? What if I said that in all of Scripture we are never told to convert anyone? What if I proposed that people accepting Jesus into their life does not fulfill our mission? We may share the Gospel, but it’s not always the same Gospel Jesus shared. Our version can be a little softer. It can be easier. The message, too often, has been watered down. Many of us don’t want to be called radicals. Many of us take the message of Jesus, and we omit some of the more intense parts because they might scare people away. An Inconvenient Truth Out of our desire to win converts we’ve often tried to make Jesus more convenient. That’s what our culture is all about. So watering down the Gospel to reflect the culture can be an easy trap to fall into. We often make following Jesus comfortable and easy, reducing the expectations: You don’t have to do anything different. Just believe. When we sell people on a Jesus who is easy to follow, can we really blame them for bailing out or drifting off when things don’t go smoothly? Carrying our cross has been reduced from a radical relationship of self-sacrificing love and humility to cheap advertisements with bracelets, jewelry and bumper stickers. We turned following Jesus into little more than eternal “fire” insurance. In so doing we made Him something He is not: safe. What happened to Dietrich Bonhoeffer’s idea of, “When Christ calls a man, he bids him come and die”? The Consumerism Gospel When we sell people on a Jesus who is easy to follow, can we really blame them for bailing out or drifting off when things don’t go smoothly? It shouldn’t be surprising living in a consumer-based culture, that many times people bring the same attitudes into church: It’s my way, my preferences, my desires that are important. If I don’t get my way, I’ll take my business elsewhere. In watering down the Gospel we have taken what is all about Jesus and made it all about us. Jesus is a part of our lives when He should be our life. He is life. Following Him requires all our life. The disciples ate, drank, sweat and slept ministry from when Jesus called them to the day they died. Jesus wasn’t a part of their lives. He was their life. We all are guilty of putting things above Jesus. Whether it's health, wealth, comfort, causes, dreams, hobbies or interests, we all come to Jesus with expectations of what He will do for us. We all have our passions and causes. But Jesus didn’t come to take sides. Jesus came to take over. Disciples vs. Converts Many people come to Jesus thinking it is enough to believe, to stand on the sidelines and root for Him. Jesus isn’t looking for cheerleaders. He is seeking men and women who will follow Him whatever the cost. He is looking for radical devotion, unreasonable commitment and undivided dedication. Jesus isn’t looking for converts. He’s looking for disciples. Converts are new believers. We all start as converts. Too often we stop there. We make Christianity all about what we believe. Converts aren’t bad or wrong. They are like babies. There’s nothing wrong with being a baby. The problem comes when that doesn’t change. When a baby acts like a baby, it’s cute. When a 35-year-old does, it’s sad. As Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 13:11, “When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put the ways of childhood behind me.” For years churches have worked to get people to make a decision to accept Christ, which is a great thing. It’s important. But what happens next? Where’s the follow up? How do we train up new Christians? Not only is a disciple willing to die for Jesus, but they are dedicated to living every day of their life for Him. Our mission isn’t to win converts; it’s to make disciples. So what is the difference?
A disciple is someone who whole-heartedly follows the life and example of Jesus, who makes His mission their mission, His values their values, and His heart their heart. A disciple is someone who desperately seeks to be like Jesus. A disciple is someone so committed to the cause of Christ that they would follow Him through the gates of hell and back. A disciple is someone who finds their entire identity, purpose and meaning in Jesus. Jesus is the center of their lives. They are all in, fully committed. Not only is a disciple willing to die for Jesus, but they are dedicated to living every day of their life for Him. A Change of Heart Jesus doesn’t call us to be converts or to win converts. Jesus calls us to make disciples. Jesus offers us grace and love without condition, but not without expectation. When we try to water down the message by saying things like, You don’t have give up sin. You don’t have to change. You don’t have to be transformed. You don’t have to die to yourself. You just need to believe. In doing this, not only are we depriving people of the truth. We are denying them access to a real, transforming relationship with the almighty God. Christianity isn’t just a system of belief. It isn’t a lifestyle. It’s a life transformed by Jesus. Jesus doesn’t call everyone to leave everything every day. He calls us to be willing to give up everything at any point. His call for each of us is different. He has uniquely gifted every person to carry out a unique and valuable function in His kingdom. While what we are called to may be unique, the call is an extreme standard: Jesus must be greater than everything else. Read more at http://www.relevantmagazine.com/god/were-called-make-disciples-not-converts#P1vQdClqE8MxrLC7.99 Eucharisteo to the Lord - YOU ARE SO GOOD TO US!!! Judy's friend Elaine who broke her ankle is back in town and doing well. She's now having physical therapy. Judi's has seen her mentee, Summer, and feels she is thinner but looks good. Judi's brother, Bobby, is adapting well to his new meds and seems more calm and peaceful. His imaginary friends continue to be a problem. Lois's brother, Danny, seems to be moving better with his hip issues. Lois is hopeful that she'll be able to go and celebrate his birthday with him. Lucille's southern mom, Louise, seems to be doing well. She had a great week. Lois's Charlie is still not feeling well but he has been vertical for three days which is a victory. Judi's Dad received his new electric wheelchair but it was not completely put together. Judi was able to get the situation worked out and her dad handled it very well. LIFT UP YOUR VOICES AND STORM THE HEAVENS!!! Becky's husband Ray is having a knee replacement tomorrow. Please pray for no complications. Lois has a neighbor, Jim, who is very ill. He has lots of issues but basically all the parts of his body seem to be breaking down. Please pray for him and his wife Deb to experience God's will, peace, a calm spirit especially in regarding fear as to what their future holds. UPDATE 04/14 From Lois: Jim is stable and his numbers are better. Deb said they will keep him sedated today to let his body rest and slowly bring the oxygen level on the vent down some. It is still believed to have been a pulmonary embolism. Deb stayed with Jim all night. Jim's three sons arrive today. Lord, we continue to lift Jim, Deb, Sandy and Jim's three sons (Scott, Keith and Kevin) up to you. We ask for traveling mercies for the boys from NY to Tampa. We ask for continued strength, grace and mercy on all the Brown family today. We know You know their needs and we know You care for them. Multiply their energy and strength for the day before them. Thank you that we can come to You once again on their behalf. We trust You for all of this in the name of Jesus, I pray. Amen. UPDATE 04/13 - 8:45pm From Lois - Jim is stabilized at the moment. They believe he had a pulmonary embolism and are treating it as such. They aren't able to do a test on him at this moment. It seems that the nurses began working on him when Jim's doctor just happened to be walking by his room. Praise the Lord! Deb is sitting beside him right now, holding his hand. He is resting now under sedation. Please continue to pray for anything and everything you can think of for them. Cindy Willard reminded me of a beautiful scripture: "When I am afraid, I put my trust in You." Psalm 56:3. Alleluia. Lord God Almighty. You are Holy. You are Perfect. You are the Great Physician. You care about every detail of Jim's life right now. You are Omnipresent. We praise you Lord for you are the One whom we trust with our fears and with the unknown. Lord, we once again come to you asking that you place a calming peace about Jim, Deb, Sandy and Jim's sons. We pray for Jim's well-being this evening. Place your angels of protection around his bed and hold Jim, Deb, Sandy and Jim's sons in Your arms this evening and give them peace. I pray in the strong name of Jesus. Amen. Update: 4/12 - Hello Prayer Warriors for Jim and Deb, Please continue to storm the gates of heaven with your prayers for Jim and Deb. This morning, the doctors told Deb that the air leaks in his lungs is less and he's breathing with back up respiratory support. However, there is no news on the infections nor on some other physical issues that Jim is battling. Jim is very weak and not very responsive. The doctors continue to say that this will be a very long road for him. Father God, Lord Jesus, Holy Spirit, You are holy. You are faithful. You know all things. You know Jim and You know Deb. You know what they are going through right now. Our hearts ache for Jim and Deb, so we come to You on their behalf. We pray that You cover them with Your grace, Your mercy and Your healing hand. Continue to give the doctors wisdom and discernment. We pray for the medication to tackle the infections and heal Jim's body. We ask that You continue to pour out Your strength on Deb - emotionally, physically, and spiritually. We pray for the safe arrival of Jim's sons in the next few days and Sandy's travel to CT. We continue to pray in the strong name of Jesus. Amen. UPDATE 04/14 This was sent last night (04/13) from Lois - Jim is stabilized at the moment. They believe he had a pulmonary embolism and are treating it as such. They aren't able to do a test on him at this moment. It seems that the nurses began working on him when Jim's doctor just happened to be walking by his room. Praise the Lord! Deb is sitting beside him right now, holding his hand. He is resting now under sedation. Please continue to pray for anything and everything you can think of for them. Cindy Willard reminded me of a beautiful scripture: "When I am afraid, I put my trust in You." Psalm 56:3. Alleluia. Lord God Almighty. You are Holy. You are Perfect. You are the Great Physician. You care about every detail of Jim's life right now. You are Omnipresent. We praise you Lord for you are the One whom we trust with our fears and with the unknown. Lord, we once again come to you asking that you place a calming peace about Jim, Deb, Sandy and Jim's sons. We pray for Jim's well-being this evening. Place your angels of protection around his bed and hold Jim, Deb, Sandy and Jim's sons in Your arms this evening and give them peace. I pray in the strong name of Jesus. Amen. Esther's niece, Sammy, has been fighting cancer for many years. She was just told she has 1 to 4 weeks to live. Carol's sister's friend, Kathleen, has her second chemo treatment coming up. The first was very difficult so they're praying this one will be easier. Judy's friend Barbara had a hip replacement 10 weeks ago and is not doing well. She received a message from her doctors office today to come in . She thinks they found something in her ultrasound so perhaps that is the beginning of solving the problem. Roxy, Linda and Rose will be traveling over the next few weeks so pray for traveling mercies for them please. 04/12 - New prayer request from Judy: Please pray for our neice Logan. She is Mike and Sue's daughter who is 26. She has Crohn's disease and is experiencing a severe attack. They have been unable to find a medication that works for her. She is hospitalized so please pray they find a direction to help her. Thanks so much, Art and Judy They Say You Can't Choose Your Family . . . If you could have chosen your family, would you have chosen a different one? Do you ever look around at your friend's family and feel a little envious thinking . . . why wasn't I born into a family like that? I sometimes do - I wish I had been born into a family that went to church together, that prayed together, that read the Bible together, that honored and respected each other. But . . . none of us got to choose. But . . . God did! When we look in the book of Genesis we see God calling and forming the family He would one day be born into. WOW! Remember that we saw God call Abraham away from his own family so that he would establish a new family - one that God would call "my people". God chose that the descendants of Abraham, through Isaac - and the descendants of Isaac, through Jacob - and the descendants of the twelve sons of Jacob would form a new family, a new people, a new nation. These would be the people that God would call "my people" and from these people would be the family into whom the Promised One would be born - God would enfold himself into a virgin's womb - a woman who was a descendant of this family. WOW! During our weekly studies we've often talked about how flawed "these people" were - they deceived, they lied, they cheated (the list goes on and on). Even now - thousands of years later - we think we could have made better choices for God. But guess what? He didn't ask us! He chose! He decided! He planned and He fulfilled. I don't know about you but I often try to hide anything embarrassing about my life / my family. Let's leave the skeletons in the closet where they beong and not let them out in the daylight. But God did not do that! He definitely could have. He could have told Moses . . . "leave that part out - it's not very appealing and it certainly does not flatter Me - what will people think in 5,000 years or so?" But that's not who our God is. He chose for all of us to see and understand that none of us are perfect - we are all broken - we are all affected by the Fall - and yet - He chooses us and loves us anyway. He uses us to fulfill His purpose. Jacob, his sons, their wives/concubines/families and servants (about 70 people) have gathered in Egypt to survive the famine. This family is marred by polygamy, manipulation, incest, prostitution, jealousy, murder, rape, sibling rivalry, idolatry, deceit and estrangement. Pretty much covers it, eh? These are the people God has chosen. We might think they are not worthy of this honor, but He does! The Family Tree Jacob chooses Rachel from Laban's family (remember Laban was brother to Jacob's mom, Rebekah) and is tricked into marrying Leah instead. Poor Leah was unloved, but she was blessed with a brood of children - 6 sons and a daughter (Reuben, Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar, Zebulun and Dinah). Rachel was loved, but barren for many years so she gives her maidservant, Billah, to her husband to sleep with - Dan and Naphtali are the children of that union. Of course, Leah is not to be outdone so she too gives her maidservant, Zilpah, to her husband to lie with. Two more sons are added to the family tree - Gad and Asher. God remembers Rachel and enables her to conceive and Joseph is born. For twenty years Jacob was a hired hand to Laban. It is time to leave with his family and his possessions. You will remember what a nightmare that all was for Jacob. Then Laban tried to stop him at the last minute, but with more trickery (Rachel had stolen his idols - Laban wants to search for them - but Rachel is sitting on top of them and . . . it's her "time of the month" so no search takes place). Finally, Laban says goodbye to his daughters and all his grandchildren from them. A Family Reunion Before Jacob could return to his family, as instructed by God, he knew he had to first meet up with his brother, Esau - the one he deceived, the one he stole from (birthright and blessings). It was time to make amends - even if that meant he would lose his life. He had to make things right - not only with Esau, but with God. Have you ever dreaded going to your family reunion because you weren't right with one of your brothers, sisters, cousins, aunts, uncles, parents? Well, this was no different for Jacob. Remember . . . the last words he heard from his brother were that he was going to wait until the time was right, and then kill him. Esau's response to Jacob was much different than he expected. Esau didn't say "I was going to kill you, but all these gifts you sent ahead to me changed my mind" Instead Esau's response was to embrace him. Esau had moved on from the anger and shown his younger brother forgiveness. A Layover Jacob heads toward home, but only half listens to what God told him. He said "go to Bethel", but instead Jacob settles in Shechem. The narrow pass is where ancient Shechem is located at the modern city of Nablus. Mount Gerizim is on the left and Mount Ebal is on the right. While there, Jacob's daughter, Dinah, is raped by the son of the local prince. Jacob does not appear to be bothered by this, but her brothers Simeon and Levi are furious. They plot to kill every male in the town even though the son of the prince loves Dinah and wants to marry her. Her brothers tell them that all the males of Shechem must first be circumcised. (This is where we need to remember that circumcision was an outward sign of the sacred covenant between God and His people.) Jacob's sons used it for revenge - to debilitate all the males then to slaughter them while they lay about healing - then while they were at it to help themselves to all their possessions. Jacob and his family are forced to leave Shechem in disgrace. He stops by a tree near there and buries all the pagan idols his sons accumulated in their pilfering. Jacob starts anew by obeying God and going where He told him to go in the first place - to Bethel. Jacob builds an altar and renews his vow of wholehearted devotion to God. Sad Farewells to Loved Ones Rachel delivers one more son to Jacob and dies in childbirth. The son is named Benjamin. Jacob and Esau's dad, Isaac dies as they gather around him. Reuben, tries to take control of the family from Jacob and in an act of sedition sleeps with Bilhah, one of Jacob's concubines. Reuben is stripped of his firstborn status and associated inheritance. Jacob transfers the firstborn status to Joseph and honors him with a special multi-colored robe which signifies his place in the family. As you can imagine - this does not sit well with the 10 older brothers. We know the details of that story!!! (If not read the last blog pages). One Leaves the Nest Judah moves away - marries a Canaanite woman - has two sons (Er and Onan), then a third (Shelah). It was customary for a brother to marry the widowed wife of a brother. Tamar was married to Er, then to Onan who both died by God's hand because they were evil. No way was Judah going to allow her to marry Shelah as well, so he sends her away. Tamar is not to be denied a child by Judah. She disguises herself as a street prostitute to deceive him into sleeping with her. He unknowingly sleeps with his daughter-in-law and impregnates her. When Judah learns that she is pregnant through prostitution he orders her burned to death. She declares, "I am pregnant by the man who owns these." You see - she was smart enough to have acquired proof that Judah was the father by taking his signet, his cord and his staff. Judah realizes she was more righteous than he was (because he refused to give Shelah to her in marriage). There is nothing left to do aside from claim her twins as his heirs. The twins were named Zerah and Perez. The Journey to Egypt We studied how the famine caused Jacob and his family to travel to Egypt where they met up with Joseph whom God had sent ahead of them so that he would be in a place to provide for them when the famine came. They all witnessed Joseph's dream come true as they bowed down to him - the Prime Minister of Egypt. The Blessings We watched God, once again, shake up the order of the firstborns when Jacob blesses Joseph's sons, Manasseh and Ephraim. Joseph is disturbed when he sees his father cross his hands (puts his right hand on the left son and left hand on the right son), but Jacob knows exactly what God is doing - just as God did with Abraham and his sons, Ishmael and Isaac - just as God did with Isaac's sons, Esau and Jacob - now He is doing it again with Manasseh and Ephraim. Jacob adopted Joseph's sons as his own sons and they became part of the 12 Tribes of Israel. (Check out the maps in the back of your Bible and you will see the territory named after them - none named after Joseph or Levi). Even though Joseph was the favored son - the firstborn of his true love with Rachel - the son Jacob transferred the firstborn status and inheritance from Reuben . . . it was Judah who would receive the greatest blessing. He would be the direct ancestor of both Mary and Joseph. Jesus would be born into the Tribe of Judah. Yes - Judah was the son whose idea it was to sell Joseph into slavery; he was the son who left home and married a Canaanite woman and had two evil sons; he was the son who impregnated a prostitute/his daughter-in-law, Tamar. He was also the one who repented; who offered his life in place of Benjamin's rather than allow his father to grieve the loss of another favored son again. Judah knew that he deserved a curse rather than a blessing from his father. Instead his father says: We have heard God's call - to be "His people" and we are holding onto His promise. We too wait for God's salvation, for Yeshua. Praise God!!!
Here is a "nugget" for you from one of my favorite shows - Day of Discovery. Please feel free to watch this at a convenient time.
Chapter 6 of this book reminds us that during the biblical world, only a small minority of persons could read or write. The author states if we do not study documents in their original contexts, we are bound to misread them. He tells his students, when it comes to reading the Bible: a text without a context is just a pretext for whatever you want it to mean.
We have often discussed this during our weekly Bible study sessions - if we take the Scripture out of context we can mold it into what we want it to mean instead of what the Lord meant. If we believe the Bible is God's inspired word, written by inspired persons, we ought to have the courtesy of reading their work in the ways they intended for it to be read; and this requires that we have knowledge of the contexts out of which and into which these documents were written. All of the ancient cultures of the biblical world were oral cultures. The oral world was primary, and documents were secondary. Jesus said to his disciples, "let those with two good ears hear". Most eyes could not read, therefore the oral nature of the culture shaped the way people wrote and read documents - they were oral documents - meant to be read out loud. There was a whole class of people who did most of the writing - scribes. Scribes were used because 1) the materials were expensive, 2) there was little room for error (no "white out" in those days) and 3) only 10 - 20% of the ancient world could read or write, and actually those were two different skills. More people could read than could write. Reading was for the rich who could afford an education AND afford to purchase manuscripts. Whereas, writing was a specialized skill obtained by training and education - a minority of the elite and wealthy. A copier of a document was not merely literate, but skilled. If you look at an ancient manuscript you will see a continuous flow of letters (the less papyrus used the cheaper the document was to produce). It would be difficult to read the document unless you 1) already knew the content and/or 2) you read it out loud to figure out where the divisions between words, sentences and paragraphs were meant to go. I never thought I'd say it but . . . I am thankful for punctuation!!!! Fact: The Bible was not divided into chapters and verses until an archbishop, Stephen Langton (1150-1228) provided us with our modern form of the Bible. So . . . what we begin to understand here is that ancient documents were not normally produced for the general public - because they could not afford to buy them nor could they read them (they had enough trouble reading a short inscription or a tombstone). Unlike today, there was no concept of the general public's "right to know" or to be educated. Early Christianity was an evangelistic religion - therefore the documents they produced were used for persuasion of nonbelievers. The OT documents were "insider literature" meant to be read out loud, but not for the purpose of promoting their religion to the world. Esther and Daniel, are examples of two documents having Jews in high places in pagan courts in order to protect the lives of fellow Jews, not to convert pagans. While both the OT and the NT are forms of "preaching to the choir" (addressing those who were already part of the religion), the NT also has an eye on evangelizing the whole world. The NT uses the form of persuasion (Greco-Roman rhetoric) familiar to Gentiles all over the Roman Empire. You will not find Greco-Roman rhetoric in the OT - although you will certainly find some Jewish means of persuasion. Since Christians believed it was their job to share the good news of Jesus Christ with all, many of their documents were written to whole groups of people from the elites down to the slaves and children. These were ethnic and gender-inclusive documents, not written just for literate males. So . . . how were these made available to the widest possible audience including the illiterate? They were read by literate readers (lectors) trained to read with appropriate feeling, pauses and insights. Revelation of John of Patmos in Revelation 1:3 reads: "Blessed is the one who reads aloud the words of this prophecy, and blessed are those who hear it and take to heart what is written in it." While John is the author of the document - he is exiled on the island of Patmos (off the west coast of modern Turkey). He knows that he will not be the person to read these words out loud to the churches and elsewhere. That will be the job of the "lector" who would already have read the document, know how to pause while reading the continuous flow of letters and even explain some things along the way. The hearers are clearly distinguished from the reader - note that the reader is singular "the one who reads". Another example is found in the Gospel of Mark 13:14 where he is discussing the defiling of the Temple in Jerusalem, the author inserts "let the reader understand". Notice that the word reader is singular. Now that we understand this better we realize that while Mark's audience is a group of people, they are merely the hearers of this document. The lector is sent with the job of reading it out loud. I don't know about you - but this has shed an entirely new light on my understanding of how the Word was written for and disseminated to the masses of ancient times. Clearly, the world of the Bible was a world of oral cultures; and where text existed, they were mainly "oral texts", most of them intended to be read out loud - even if written to only one or a few people. This also clears up a lot in my mind. We've had many discussions on "why wasn't this or that included?" or "why wasn't this or that woman / child mentioned?" As I now understand it, what was included was what was important - details provided were details needed to convey the message of God - understanding how costly it was to produce manuscripts during Biblical times. The audience being "read to" were mostly men - heads of households - who would return to their homes and share with their family. Unlike today where women are treated as equals with the "right to know", women of Biblical times remained at home and received "word" from the male(s) in their lives. Therefore, instead of trying to force-fit our culture into ancient times, it is to our benefit that we understand their culture. "The Bible is the greatest of all books; to study it is the noblest of all pursuits; to understand it, the highest of all goals." Charles C. Ryrie The story of Joseph is an amazing one. We first learn of the favored child of Jacob (Israel) and how he dreams that his siblings, and even his mother and father, will one day bow down to him. As if being the favorite child wasn't enough, his brothers were less than thrilled with Joseph's dreams. First they plot to kill him, then one brother comes up with a great idea of selling him into slavery - why not make some money out of the deal? And . . . as for that multi-colored "dream" coat - why not tear it up and cover it in animal blood then present it to their father as "proof" that Joseph was killed by some wild animal. Imagine . . . witnessing their father's grief over the loss of his favorite child - a loss they caused. Joseph becomes a slave, a prisoner, a prime minister and a savior.
How different he was from the way that we are. Whenever we find ourselves in a hard and dark place we naturally assume that God has somehow fallen down on the job - after all - don't we "assume" that He should be hovering around us ensuring our comfort? There should be no pit or no pain we should have to endure. Instead, for Joseph, he emerges from prison celebrating what God has done in his life by the very means of his suffering. We learn that Joseph is another foreshadowing of Jesus. Remember after Jesus was resurrected and He's walking on the road to Emmaus with two men - they thought their new companion must have been on another planet when Cleopas asks him, “Are you the only one visiting Jerusalem who does not know the things that have happened there in these days?” (Luke 24:18) Jesus then opens their minds to the Scriptures. Now it is not as if they haven't heard the Torah before - maybe they have never understood it. Perhaps Jesus tells them the story of Joseph this way:
Joseph's emergence from the pit of death and eventual ascension to the right hand of Pharaoh also provides to us a picture of the resurrection of glorification of God's beloved son, Jesus. When Joseph was a Hebrew slave in an Egyptian prison, he interpreted a dream of the Pharaoh. He predicted a famine, he developed a plan which was accepted by Pharaoh who then put him in charge and made him the prime minister of all of Egypt. Year after year he collected food from the Egyptians and stored it in the cities - there was so much food stored it could not even be counted. Then . . . seven years later the famine struck and there was no food for anyone - not just the Egyptians. People came from all around the world because they had heard about the storehouses of grain Joseph had laid up. Pharaoh sent them to Joseph who sold food to them. "Moreover, all the earth came to Egypt to Joseph to buy grain because the famine was severe all over the earth." (Genesis 41:57). Just as Joseph was the one to whom the whole world came to be fed, just as he became the savior of the world in his day, so Jesus is the one to whom the whole world must come. "I am the bread of life, whoever comes to me shall not hunger." (John 6:35) Reflecting on Joseph's story and all his suffering - all his humiliation of slavery, imprisonment, longing for his father and his home - God had been at work to put him in place to provide for family when the famine came. But . . . REMEMBER . . . this was not just any family, but the family from whom the Promised One would come. Joseph tells his family, "As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good, to bring it about that many people should be kept alive, as they are today." (Genesis 50:20) Our author, Nancy Guthrie, asks us . . . "What in your life would change everything in your life if you were to write across it . . . 'You meant it for evil, but God meant it for good' ? " GIVE THANKS AND PRAISE THE LORD!!! Lois lifted up praises to the Lord for her hubby, Charlie. He did not have a TIA, but the doctors have not been able to figure out what happened to him yet. Carol was excited to share with us that her friend Diane’s husband, Tom’s brain infection is clearing up. That means he will not need another surgery. Thank you Jesus! Lois shared the amazing news with us that her neighbor, Jim (if you recall his wife had lung cancer surgery a month or so ago) did not have lung cancer. It was determined (through surgery) to be an inflammation that they will be able to clear up. Praise the Lord for this gift to this family!!! Judi shared a mixed blessing – one she has been praying for daily. Summer has been found and is safe. She has been returned to the Sumter County Detention Center awaiting her new sentence. Judi shared that she received news from Kathy and she and her brother, Bobby will be arriving in Florida earlier than planned. No date has been set yet. Please pray that all goes according to their plan (and God’s). Praises!!! WOW – Bette shared some wonderful news with us. She and her husband, Bob, have been invited to Matthew’s (Bob’s son) Christian baptism. This is an answer to a long time prayer. Matthew had not declared either faith of his parents (Christianity / Judaism). He met a lovely Christian girl and is welcoming the Lord Jesus into his life at the end of this month. Hallelujah!!! PRAYER REQUESTS – LIFT YOUR VOICES UNTO THE LORD Lois asks for continued prayers for her brother, Danny. Remember he is battling cancer and just had hip surgery last week. She was scheduled to travel on Tuesday (4/5) to visit him and now is awaiting clearance from his rehab therapy. She gets to speak to him daily, along with his wife. Please pray for his continued recovery, that he will accept the Lord Jesus into his heart and that Lois will receive guidance on the best time to make her trip. Please also pray for Lois to totally recover from her bronchial infection so that she is healthy when she gets to visit Danny. Bette asks us to continue to lift up prayers for her neighbors Jo and Craig as he begins an intense 12 hours of toxic chemo for lymphoma at the Moffitt Cancer Center. Please ask for healing, endurance and acceptance. Mary Lou’s neighbor, Jim is still in the hospital dealing with multiple medical issues. Please pray for understanding, treatment, healing and release so that he can return home. Carol’s sister’s friend, Kathleen, continues to struggle from her first round of chemo and is scheduled for another round next week. Please pray for comfort, strength and endurance that will lead to total healing. Please keep Pastor Keith in your prayers as he continues with his extensive 30-day chemo treatment - let no germs find their way to him as his immune system is destroyed - let his markers fall below the level required to enable him to be a candidate for the bone marrow transplant. |
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April 2018
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