Day 16
Genesis 32:1-33:20
(32 | 33)
When God tells Jacob to leave Laban and head back to his father's household, he's more than happy to obey. But there's one problem; his brother Esau who had sworn to kill him. Jacob sends a messenger ahead to Esau to try to placate him. When the messenger returns to Jacob with news that his brother is coming to greet him with 400 men, Jacob panics. He thinks that Esau is going to kill him, his wives and children, which is a legitimate concern. He decides the best way forward is to send servants ahead with herds of his cattle as a gift to pacify his brother. Jacob spends the night alone in the camp, sending everyone, including his wives and children ahead of him.
That night, Jacob wrestles with God. But not in the way that you or I might wrestle with a concept. Instead, a man came and actually wrestled Jacob. When daybreak came, and neither had emerged victorious, the man asked Jacob to let him go. Jacob said he would only if the man blessed him. The man revealed himself to be God, and told Jacob his name would now be Israel, or God wrestler. The man then blessed Jacob, and they parted. Jacob left with a slight limp as the man had injured Jacob's hip.
So Jacob caught up with the rest of the group, and they carried on. When they saw Esau approaching, Jacob left his children with their respective mothers and went on ahead to meet his brother, and the two embraced and cried. Far from wanting to kill Jacob, Esau was delighted to see his brother again after twenty years. Initially Esau tried to decline Jacob's gifts, but when Jacob insisted, he accepted. Jacob's children, as well as his livestock and their young, might not have survived had they been forced to make the journey quickly, so Jacob insists that Esau go on ahead without him. Jacob eventually makes it home, although he doesn't actually go back to the city in Canaan where his brother lived, rather he set up camp just outside.
God told Jacob to go back to Canaan and his father's household, promising to prosper him if he did so. Jacob left despite two huge potential problems; Laban and Esau both had cause to do him, his wives and his children harm. Jacob leaves suddenly and quietly in order to avoid the former, but Laban catches up to him, and the two part on good terms. Jacob then tries to placate the latter with gifts, but Esau is only interested in meeting his brother again for the first time in twenty years. When God makes us promises, he keeps them, no matter how difficult it may seem to us for him to do so.
Matthew 12:22-45
(12:22-45)
At the start of this passage, the people begin to suspect that Jesus might be the Christ, or the Son of David, as they call him. The Pharisees quickly attempt to subdue such talk by proclaiming that Jesus was driving out demons in the name of Beelzebub, prince of demons. Jesus' response is one that the body of Christ - that is, the Church - needs to consider carefully. He says driving demons out in the name of Beelzebub is absurd. "If Satan drives out Satan," he argues, "he is divided against himself. How then can his kingdom stand?" How indeed.
Jesus challenges the Pharisees on how it is they drive out demons; if he's casting out demons in the name of the prince of demons, by whose name do the Pharisees cast them out? Jesus then says blasphemy against him can be forgiven, but blasphemy against the Holy Spirit (in whose name Jesus was, in fact, casting out the demons) can not. He then goes on to explain that men will be judged by their words, as words reveal their nature.
Some of the Pharisees then ask to see a miraculous sign from Jesus. Jesus refuses to give them any, saying that the only sign they will receive will be "the sign of Jonah" - Jonah spent three days and three nights in the belly of the huge fish before getting out. Likewise, the Son of Man (Jesus) will spend three days and three nights in the earth before coming back - Jesus' first hint at the resurrection. (This makes perfect sense too. Jesus was already performing miracles by healing people. The Pharisees wanted miracles to be performed on demand. If they didn't believe that Jesus was who he said he was based on that, why would any other miracle change that. Apart from anything else, prophecy, Revelation in particular, warns against false prophets, most of whom would attempt to prove their authenticity by performing signs and wonders in plain sight and on demand. Jesus proves his authenticity by performing miracles discretely, and only where it would help people - not just to satisfy the intellectual curiosity of a group of people.)
Proverbs 2:1-11
(2:1-11)
The passage describes the benefits of accepting wisdom into your life. The search for wisdom will help you understand fear of the LORD, and it will help you know God. Once you have that, you'll understand life's good paths, and you'll seek more knowledge. Since wisdom and knowledge come from God, continuing to seek it is continuing to get to know God.
Genesis 32:1-33:20
(32 | 33)
When God tells Jacob to leave Laban and head back to his father's household, he's more than happy to obey. But there's one problem; his brother Esau who had sworn to kill him. Jacob sends a messenger ahead to Esau to try to placate him. When the messenger returns to Jacob with news that his brother is coming to greet him with 400 men, Jacob panics. He thinks that Esau is going to kill him, his wives and children, which is a legitimate concern. He decides the best way forward is to send servants ahead with herds of his cattle as a gift to pacify his brother. Jacob spends the night alone in the camp, sending everyone, including his wives and children ahead of him.
That night, Jacob wrestles with God. But not in the way that you or I might wrestle with a concept. Instead, a man came and actually wrestled Jacob. When daybreak came, and neither had emerged victorious, the man asked Jacob to let him go. Jacob said he would only if the man blessed him. The man revealed himself to be God, and told Jacob his name would now be Israel, or God wrestler. The man then blessed Jacob, and they parted. Jacob left with a slight limp as the man had injured Jacob's hip.
So Jacob caught up with the rest of the group, and they carried on. When they saw Esau approaching, Jacob left his children with their respective mothers and went on ahead to meet his brother, and the two embraced and cried. Far from wanting to kill Jacob, Esau was delighted to see his brother again after twenty years. Initially Esau tried to decline Jacob's gifts, but when Jacob insisted, he accepted. Jacob's children, as well as his livestock and their young, might not have survived had they been forced to make the journey quickly, so Jacob insists that Esau go on ahead without him. Jacob eventually makes it home, although he doesn't actually go back to the city in Canaan where his brother lived, rather he set up camp just outside.
God told Jacob to go back to Canaan and his father's household, promising to prosper him if he did so. Jacob left despite two huge potential problems; Laban and Esau both had cause to do him, his wives and his children harm. Jacob leaves suddenly and quietly in order to avoid the former, but Laban catches up to him, and the two part on good terms. Jacob then tries to placate the latter with gifts, but Esau is only interested in meeting his brother again for the first time in twenty years. When God makes us promises, he keeps them, no matter how difficult it may seem to us for him to do so.
Matthew 12:22-45
(12:22-45)
At the start of this passage, the people begin to suspect that Jesus might be the Christ, or the Son of David, as they call him. The Pharisees quickly attempt to subdue such talk by proclaiming that Jesus was driving out demons in the name of Beelzebub, prince of demons. Jesus' response is one that the body of Christ - that is, the Church - needs to consider carefully. He says driving demons out in the name of Beelzebub is absurd. "If Satan drives out Satan," he argues, "he is divided against himself. How then can his kingdom stand?" How indeed.
Jesus challenges the Pharisees on how it is they drive out demons; if he's casting out demons in the name of the prince of demons, by whose name do the Pharisees cast them out? Jesus then says blasphemy against him can be forgiven, but blasphemy against the Holy Spirit (in whose name Jesus was, in fact, casting out the demons) can not. He then goes on to explain that men will be judged by their words, as words reveal their nature.
Some of the Pharisees then ask to see a miraculous sign from Jesus. Jesus refuses to give them any, saying that the only sign they will receive will be "the sign of Jonah" - Jonah spent three days and three nights in the belly of the huge fish before getting out. Likewise, the Son of Man (Jesus) will spend three days and three nights in the earth before coming back - Jesus' first hint at the resurrection. (This makes perfect sense too. Jesus was already performing miracles by healing people. The Pharisees wanted miracles to be performed on demand. If they didn't believe that Jesus was who he said he was based on that, why would any other miracle change that. Apart from anything else, prophecy, Revelation in particular, warns against false prophets, most of whom would attempt to prove their authenticity by performing signs and wonders in plain sight and on demand. Jesus proves his authenticity by performing miracles discretely, and only where it would help people - not just to satisfy the intellectual curiosity of a group of people.)
Proverbs 2:1-11
(2:1-11)
The passage describes the benefits of accepting wisdom into your life. The search for wisdom will help you understand fear of the LORD, and it will help you know God. Once you have that, you'll understand life's good paths, and you'll seek more knowledge. Since wisdom and knowledge come from God, continuing to seek it is continuing to get to know God.
No comments:
Post a Comment