Tag: genesis

Receive the Blessing (Genesis 48:8-19)

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Christian Spirituality Blog, Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year BLeave a comment
Jacob Blessing Ephraim and Manasseh, by Rembrandt van Rijn (1606-1669)

When Israel saw the sons of Joseph, he asked, “Who are these?”

“They are the sons God has given me here,” Joseph said to his father.

Then Israel said, “Bring them to me so I may bless them.”

Now Israel’s eyes were failing because of old age, and he could hardly see. So Joseph brought his sons close to him, and his father kissed them and embraced them.

Israel said to Joseph, “I never expected to see your face again, and now God has allowed me to see your children too.”

Then Joseph removed them from Israel’s knees and bowed down with his face to the ground. And Joseph took both of them, Ephraim on his right toward Israel’s left hand and Manasseh on his left toward Israel’s right hand, and brought them close to him. But Israel reached out his right hand and put it on Ephraim’s head, though he was the younger, and crossing his arms, he put his left hand on Manasseh’s head, even though Manasseh was the firstborn.

Then he blessed Joseph and said,

“May the God before whom my fathers,
    Abraham and Isaac, walked faithfully,
the God who has been my shepherd
    all my life to this day,
the Angel who has delivered me from all harm
    —may he bless these boys.
May they be called by my name
    and the names of my fathers, Abraham and Isaac,
and may they increase greatly
    on the earth.”

When Joseph saw his father placing his right hand on Ephraim’s head he was displeased; so he took hold of his father’s hand to move it from Ephraim’s head to Manasseh’s head. Joseph said to him, “No, my father, this one is the firstborn; put your right hand on his head.”

But his father refused and said, “I know, my son, I know. He too will become a people, and he too will become great. Nevertheless, his younger brother will be greater than he, and his descendants will become a group of nations.” (New International Version)

Jacob Blessing Ephraim and Manasseh, by Frederick Pickersgill (1820-1900)

Jacob (Israel) was on his deathbed. His son, Joseph, was in charge of all Egypt. Jacob had Joseph bring his two sons to him so that he could bless them. Joseph fully expected that his father would follow the convention of primogeniture, that is, the elder son receives a double inheritance. But that is not what happened. Jacob purposely went against normal convention.

It was not, however, against biblical convention. In the stories of Ishmael and Isaac, Esau and Jacob, the rights of the first-born are superseded by the promises of the next-born.

Family rules, ethnic customs, and cultural procedures are fine. Yet, when those practices become inflexible laws which are never to be different, then we get into trouble. Joseph had an expectation of how the blessing of his sons was to go. Jacob had another idea about it.

“We’ve never done it that way before,” are the seven last words of any institution. Any group organized around that belief is doomed. If we cannot make a distinction between the letter and the spirit of a law, rule, or custom, then our inflexibility will eventually break us.

In the ancient world, and even in many cultures today, birth order determines how things go with families, societal rights, and personal obligations. The firstborn occupies an esteemed position. In Judaism, when the temple still stood, the first fruits and firstborn of animals were considered the best sacrifices.

By blessing the younger son, and going against expected convention, Jacob taught future generations a valuable lesson: A person’s actions and character matter more than birth order. What’s more, being blessed first or last or whenever is not what guarantees future success.

Jacob had firsthand knowledge and experience that life is unpredictable and requires faith in God. One’s life cannot be projected and determined along an upward linear trajectory. We cannot predict what will happen in our lives by laying things out with Cartesian coordinates. Ultimate control belongs to God, not us. And that’s a good thing, because the Lord is good, all the time.

Our Lord, everything you do
    is kind and thoughtful,
and you are near to everyone
    whose prayers are sincere.
You satisfy the desires
    of all your worshipers,
and you come to save them
    when they ask for help.
You take care of everyone
who loves you,
    but you destroy the wicked. (Psalm 145:17-20, CEV)

It’s best to trust in pure goodness than to rely upon human ingenuity. Abraham – who was not a firstborn son, but the youngest of three – received the call from God to receive blessing. Isaac inherited the birthright over his older half-brother Ishmael. Jacob himself received the birthright over his older twin brother Esau. And Joseph, next to the youngest in a long line of sons from Jacob, was the clear head of the clan.

In matters of human faith and divine promises, birth order and typical cultural mores don’t apply. More important is fidelity to God, concern for one’s fellow humanity, and upholding love for the family. And it is these very things that are important going forward. Inevitably, suffering comes. And when it does, birth order, primogeniture, and societal expectations aren’t going to get you through it.

It is likely that the main reason why some folks embrace the adage “we’ve never done it that way before” is because of fear. Doing the same thing over and over again, even if it isn’t helpful anymore or is useless in a particular situation, still feels normal and secure. Moving out in faith is scary; we don’t really know how things are going to shake out.

This is why our concept and understanding of God is so crucial. A good God acts on our best interests and does not act with malevolence toward us.

I prayed to the Lord, and he answered me;
    he freed me from all my fears.
The oppressed look to him and are glad;
    they will never be disappointed. (Psalm 34:4-5, GNT)

Only obeying the letter of the law leads to fear. Only acknowledging the spirit of the law results in bondage. Only by observing both the letter and the spirit of the law will we experience freedom from fear and deliverance from anxious striving for blessing.

Blessing is given freely by the God who delights in doing so. Let the Lord bless you in the ways God wants to do so.

May God have mercy on you, bless you, and show you kindness, today and every day. And may the grace of the Lord Jesus, the love of God the Father, and the encouragement of the Holy Spirit be with you, now and forever. Amen. 

Life (Genesis 1:20-2:4a)

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Christian Spirituality Blog, Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year BLeave a comment
The Creation of Heaven and Earth, by Unknown artist, c.18th century

God said, “Let the waters swarm with living things, and let birds fly above the earth up in the dome of the sky.” God created the great sea animals and all the tiny living things that swarm in the waters, each according to its kind, and all the winged birds, each according to its kind. God saw how good it was. Then God blessed them: “Be fertile and multiply and fill the waters in the seas, and let the birds multiply on the earth.”

There was evening and there was morning: the fifth day.

God said, “Let the earth produce every kind of living thing: livestock, crawling things, and wildlife.” And that’s what happened. God made every kind of wildlife, every kind of livestock, and every kind of creature that crawls on the ground. God saw how good it was. Then God said, “Let us make humanity in our image to resemble us so that they may take charge of the fish of the sea, the birds in the sky, the livestock, all the earth, and all the crawling things on earth.”

God created humanity in God’s own image,
        in the divine image God created them,
            male and female God created them.

God blessed them and said to them, “Be fertile and multiply; fill the earth and master it. Take charge of the fish of the sea, the birds in the sky, and everything crawling on the ground.” Then God said, “I now give to you all the plants on the earth that yield seeds and all the trees whose fruit produces its seeds within it. These will be your food. To all wildlife, to all the birds in the sky, and to everything crawling on the ground—to everything that breathes—I give all the green grasses for food.” And that’s what happened. God saw everything he had made; it was supremely good.

There was evening and there was morning: the sixth day.

The heavens and the earth and all who live in them were completed. On the sixth day God completed all the work that he had done, and on the seventh day God rested from all the work that he had done. God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it God rested from all the work of creation. This is the account of the heavens and the earth when they were created. (Common English Bible)

God Created Man in His Image – Male and Female, by Jill Steenhuis

In this Christian season of Eastertide, believers remember and celebrate new life in Jesus Christ. In today’s Old Testament lesson, the lectionary reminds us of original life – when God created the heavens and the earth.

The Beginning of Life

This was the beginning, before there were any words like sin, disobedience, guilt, and shame. This was the time when the original people, Adam and Eve, knew nothing about trying to chase after unconditional love. They had no concept of estrangement or heartache. Everything was fresh and alive and shiny. Disappointment, hurt, and sadness were unknown to them. Everywhere, the earth was teeming with abundant life.

God made it all; and all that was created was very good, supremely reflecting the goodness of the Creator. Life existed everywhere. The predictable and consistent rhythms of the universe were in place. Day and night, work and rest, creation and care, were all woven into the fabric of the world’s sights and seasons. The possibilities for growth were incredible. Life was indeed good.

“New” was simply part of all there was. Without any want or need, every day was an adventure of discovering all the newness which existed.

The Complicated Life

We all, however, know that it did not remain this way. People are now all too familiar with the myriad ways of injustice, and with the film of sin that covers the entire world like a noxious pollutant. And it is this situation, of course, which created the need for a “new” life, because the present life had become a moldy old leftover in the refrigerator of a life that doesn’t keep anything cold nor fresh.

People were created as good human beings. Even though sin has profoundly touched everything in creation, goodness is still within us as God’s image-bearers. The later introduction of human sin into the world in no way whatsoever removes the inherent stamp of the divine image upon us.

Humanity is the only creature who bears this likeness to God. We are related to the animal world, having been created on the same day, and sharing the same blessings of life. Yet, people are distinctive, set above all other creatures.

The Responsible Life

This is why people are given dominion over all other creatures. This is not a claim to privilege; it is, however, very much a claim to responsibility. People have been tasked with being faithful stewards of creation, entrusted with caring for other creatures and the created order.

And humanity was created as both male and female, together expressing the will and character of God in creation as they tend to it and care for it. Together with God, we are relational beings, and not just a race of individuals inhabiting the same earth.

God is a social being, existing as a community within the Godhead. Therefore, to exist as an image-bearer of God means that people are social creatures who need community – with both God and other people.

After God did all the work of creating the world with all its plants and animals and birds and fishes and people, God “rested.” This is why the seventh day is set aside as sacred; its different than the other days, sort of like how people are similar but different from the other creation.

God is clearly separated from the work and the creation itself, that is, God is transcendent and above all things as the Creator. The world is good, but the world is not divine. In the same way, by observing a day of rest, humanity recognizes and affirms and remembers that the work they have done is not divine.

Our human works, good as they may be, are not a thing to be worshiped or equated with God. Therefore, the Sabbath both celebrates the creation and the created order of things, as well as separates us from the idol worship of our hands.

To live into our inherent image of God means that we will work hard and tend to the gardens that are around us. Yet, at the same time, we will understand that in doing our responsible tasks, people are to live in community and love one another, without idolizing any other part of creation or what we creatively build with our own two hands. That is for God alone, who is distinct from all that God has created.

God our Father, you created the world and sent your own Son to live among us, made of the same stuff, breathing the same air, marveling at sunrise and sunset just as we do. Help us to participate in the life around and within us as your life, as you living in us and we living in you and in each other.

God of love and life, restore us to your peace, renew us through your power and teach us to love all that you have created and to care for the earth as your gift and our home. Amen.

Seen by God (Genesis 16:7-15)

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Christian Spirituality Blog, Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year BLeave a comment

The angel of the Lord found Hagar near a spring in the desert; it was the spring that is beside the road to Shur. And he said, “Hagar, slave of Sarai, where have you come from, and where are you going?”

“I’m running away from my mistress Sarai,” she answered.

Then the angel of the Lord told her, “Go back to your mistress and submit to her.” The angel added, “I will increase your descendants so much that they will be too numerous to count.”

The angel of the Lord also said to her:

“You are now pregnant
    and you will give birth to a son.
You shall name him Ishmael,
    for the Lord has heard of your misery.
He will be a wild donkey of a man;
    his hand will be against everyone
    and everyone’s hand against him,
and he will live in hostility
    toward all his brothers.”

She gave this name to the Lord who spoke to her: “You are the God who sees me,” for she said, “I have now seen the One who sees me.” That is why the well was called Beer Lahai Roi; it is still there, between Kadesh and Bered.

So Hagar bore Abram a son, and Abram gave the name Ishmael to the son she had borne. (New International Version)

I’m blind as a bat without my glasses. They’re the first thing I put on when waking in the morning, and the last thing I take off before retiring at night. Without them I can’t distinguish anything very well, at all. I cannot see others unless they are inches from my face.

As bad as it would be if I didn’t have my glasses, it would be even worse if you were not seen by anyone. I believe that one of the great tragedies of modern Western civilization is that we can live among so many other people, yet not be seen by so many of them. The loneliness of not being seen is a terrible situation.

Hagar certainly felt that way. Perhaps even worse, she felt that God didn’t see her. It was as if God lost his glasses somewhere. 

Because a slave, Hagar’s body was not her own. Through a bunch of decisions out her control, she became pregnant with Abraham’s son. It was messy and complicated. Dysfunction was all around. A very pregnant Hagar ran away.

Having been abused by her mistress, we can feel Hagar’s despair… but there was someone watching, someone seeing the desperation on the face of a pregnant slave: God. 

The Lord saw everything – all the craziness, all the mistreatment – and stepped-in and acted on behalf of Hagar and her unborn son.

As a result, Hagar began to call God, “The God Who Sees Me.” She never again had to wonder or doubt whether she was seen. 

You might feel today that God doesn’t see your pain, is aloof and distant from your hurt, and is blind to your deep wounds. But God sees… all of it. The Lord may not be working on the same timetable as you and me, but nevertheless, you are seen with divine eyes.

You “see,” there is someone watching who specializes in hard cases. The Lord came alongside Hagar and spoke a promise to her that she could hold onto in her time of trouble. It was a promise way beyond what she could have dreamed of, far above her station in life.

Hagar gave a name to God. “El Roi” means “the God who sees.” At a low point in Hagar’s life when it seemed she was an unseen nobody, God showed up and let her know different.

I’m sure there have been times in your life, just like there have been situations in my life, where you wonder if anybody sees you, including God. You feel that if you stepped off the earth today, nobody would even notice or care.

Conversely, to be seen brings wonder, joy, and awe into life. To know the God who sees you is to be transported into the garden of paradise, enjoying divine presence and fellowship.

You are not alone. The Lord knows your every move. God watches because God loves and adores you. The almighty Lord is not a god who is aloof and distant. The One true God looks upon you and me with the kind of affection that a new parent has standing over the crib of their infant child. It’s a look of care, protection, joy, pride, and compassion.

One of the most fundamental theological statements we could say about God is: The Lord sees each individual person, and the Lord of all creation cares for each one.

Yes, terrible tragedies and gut-wrenching evil exist in this twisted mixed-up world. And God has anger and wrath, and is not okay with all the injustice throughout the earth. Yet, God’s wrath exists because of God’s love. The Lord will do something about it, and will do it in the proper time.

God is working out good purposes and plans. God will judge the living and the dead. The Lord has not forgotten you. God sees you, created in the divine image and likeness, and will act on your behalf.

Blessed are you, Sovereign God of all, to you be praise and glory forever. In your tender compassion the dawn from on high is breaking upon us to dispel the lingering shadows of night. As we look for your coming among us, open our eyes to behold your presence. Strengthen our hands to do your will, so that the world may rejoice and give you praise. Blessed be you, God almighty. Amen.

Impatient (Genesis 16:1-6)

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Christian Spirituality Blog, Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year BLeave a comment
Sarai and Hagar, by Cody F. Miller

Now Sarai, Abram’s wife, had borne him no children. But she had an Egyptian slave named Hagar; so she said to Abram, “The Lord has kept me from having children. Go, sleep with my slave; perhaps I can build a family through her.”

Abram agreed to what Sarai said. So after Abram had been living in Canaan ten years, Sarai his wife took her Egyptian slave Hagar and gave her to her husband to be his wife. He slept with Hagar, and she conceived.

When she knew she was pregnant, she began to despise her mistress. Then Sarai said to Abram, “You are responsible for the wrong I am suffering. I put my slave in your arms, and now that she knows she is pregnant, she despises me. May the Lord judge between you and me.”

“Your slave is in your hands,” Abram said. “Do with her whatever you think best.” Then Sarai mistreated Hagar; so she fled from her. (New International Version)

In a convoluted series of decisions, mostly outside of her control, Hagar became pregnant with Abraham’s son. Although it may seem strange to us today, the practice of building a family line through a surrogate – in this case the slave of the household’s mistress Sarai – was not an unusual way of handling infertility in the ancient world.

Yet, things went awry with that approach. God had promised that a son of Abram’s own flesh and blood would inherit the divine covenant. But it wasn’t happening quickly enough for his wife Sarai. And this impatience led to the worldly approach of trying to gain an heir.

Impatience

Throughout Holy Scripture, patience is a virtue, as well as a spiritual practice to be cultivated. Impatience is the ants-in-your-pants response of wanting something now, without all the fuss and effort of planting and cultivating. The inability to wait is the desire for an instant harvest of righteousness.

The spiritual life of patience, however, like every other virtue, requires progressive growth over a long period of time. That is the only way of attaining any sort of spiritual maturity in this life. To go with shortcuts, or ingenious plans for quickness and efficiency, will not end well.

And it only short circuits the spiritual growth and formation of the believer. Like a farm-factory-raised animal who has been given growth hormones to speed things along, the fallout is the mistreatment of creatures – both animal and human – in shortened lifespans and poor quality of life.

Perhaps the original ancestor of Sarai, Eve, also had a bit of impatience in wanting to gain wisdom, now, from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. And maybe the original ancestor of Abram, Adam, was okay with letting Eve follow through with an impatient plan.

It could be that both Adam and Abram just wanted to keep their spouses happy; and so, they let them do whatever the heck they wanted in order to keep the peace. It certainly wouldn’t be the only time this ever happened in history.

A commitment to submitting to the process of developing patience is a must – otherwise, the believer will give up and retreat into half-baked ideas for getting what they want, without all the hard work. We also need to realize that patience itself is a great reward, and worth all the energy it takes to possess it.

Be patient, then, brothers and sisters, until the Lord’s coming. See how the farmer waits for the land to yield its valuable crop, patiently waiting for the autumn and spring rains. You too, be patient and stand firm, because the Lord’s coming is near.

James 5:7-8, NIV

What’s more, the effects of impatience are murmuring and complaining to God and others, leading to depression and anxiety. That’s what happened to the ancient Israelites in the desert when it was taking too long to get to the Promised Land:

They traveled from Mount Hor along the route to the Red Sea, to go around Edom. But the people grew impatient on the way; they spoke against God and against Moses, and said, “Why have you brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? There is no bread! There is no water! And we detest this miserable food!” (Numbers 21:4-5, NIV)

Worldliness

If we give the attainment of patience it’s due attention, then a lot of ungodly worldliness can be avoided. In Holy Scripture, “the world” is many times used not as a reference to the people of the earth, but as an inordinate interest in, concern with, or devotion to the systems, organizations, and institutions of this world that operate by unjust means.

Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, love for the Father is not in them. For everything in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—comes not from the Father but from the world. The world and its desires pass away, but whoever does the will of God lives forever. (1 John 2:15-17, NIV)

Worldliness, then, is an obstacle to that which is good, right, and just; it is in opposition to and independence from God. In short, worldliness isn’t some sort of sophisticated intelligence, but is a way to get what we want apart from virtue and godliness. But God’s grace can be our teacher to a better way of life:

For the grace of God has appeared that offers salvation to all people. It teaches us to say “No” to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age, while we wait for the blessed hope—the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ.

Titus 2:11-13, NIV

Conclusion

Patience is one of the hardest lessons in life to learn. Yet, a devotion to becoming skilled in the art of patience, and of forsaking the practice of impatience, can reap both existential and eternal rewards. And it will keep us from going down the path of worldly temptation; and delivered from the machinations of the evil one.

Perhaps with patience, Sarai could have avoided mistreating her servant; and maybe Abram could have stood up and held her accountable. Together, they would eventually embrace faith in it’s fullness and enjoy the blessing of a son from Sarai’s own womb. Yet, today’s Old Testament lesson would always serve as part of their history to learn from. And, thankfully, we can learn from it, as well.

Almighty God, support your people and grant us patience in all our circumstances and miseries.
Lord, when in the midst of trials and temptations, suffering and injustice, give us patience.
When wracked with pain, illness, and lack of sleep, give us patience.
When burdened with afflictions, wonderings, and loneliness, give us patience.
When overcome by fear, and all our spiritual energy is dried up, give us patience.
When distractions grab our attention, bring us back, and grant us patience, O Lord. Amen.