God's trial - Chapter 12
Continue to believe in God's protection and guidance
Some time later the King of Egypt's steward and his chief baker offended the King.He was angry with these two officials and put them in prison ････.They spent a long time in prison, each had a dream,and the dreams had different meanings.When Joseph came to them in the morning,he saw that they were upset.He asked them, ”Why do you look so worried today?” They answered , “Each of us had a dream,and there is no one here to explain what the dreams mean.” ････ Joseph said. “Tell me your dreams！”
【Genesis40:1～8】
Even as we go through the valley of the shadow of death
Potiphar, the Egyptian who bought Joseph as a slave, was the house of the captain of the guard Egyptian king,Pharaoh,who guarded him in house,a senior official like the commander of the Kings-guard.He also served as the Commissioner of the Internal Police, who was in charge of controlling various crimes that occurred in the court and forcibly imprisoning criminals by order of the king.
Therefore, in the case of Joseph,Potiphar could unilaterally imprison Joseph,even though it was a private incident.I have no idea how many years the biblical statement "Some time later"(verse 1) is referring to,but even if we assume a few years,he was in a situation where he did not know when he would be released from prison.During that time,he is mentally and physically torn apart,and suffers from unreasonable thoughts such as "I didn't do anything wrong, but ････".
The prison is a small space where only darkness covers,where the situation continues without end.If he had a fixed term of imprisonment,he could manage to be patient until the time of his release.But in his case,it is a life imprisonment-like sentence due to Potiphar's personal resentment.Why did he not lose his faith under such a terrible situation? Perhaps because he was a person too,he must have wailed and prayed to God many times.
As a matter of fact,through the inexcusable imprisonment due to the false accusation,God intervened strongly in Joseph and handled him more than before,revealing his refined and sanctified character.One of my favorite verses in the Bible,Psalm 23,says, "Even if I go through the deepest darkness,I will not be afraid,Lord,for you are with me.Your shepherd's rod and staff protect me." (verse 4), a wonderful Davidic song.
David's experience as a shepherd led him to say to himself,"Even when the worst comes,I will continue to walk step by step in the reverence of the Lord God alone! Not only will the Lord God always be with me and walk with me,but He will also continue to protect me and guide me,so I don't need to fear any disaster!
Relying on God's Protection and Guidance
The secret of this verse is that the reason why I don't need to be afraid of anything is that (1)God's protection and (2)God's guidance always dominate my entire life and hold my hand like a baby.That's right! God our Father continues to watch over us day and night, guiding us to the right path.
In fact,Joseph's experience of darkness was not the first time,but because of the first experience,the handling of God that he learned at that time was spiritually beneficial.The experience of being thrown into a cave by a sudden trap,or even assassinated,by his brothers whom he respected and adored,was a trauma that he could not wipe away.But then,through God's amazing intervention,he was redeemed from the deep water of death and sold to a high-ranking Egyptian official,where he learned through the work of his hands that God was with him.
So this second experience,even more so spiritually than the first,was a one-sided false judgment by the master,and the wounds in his heart were even deeper.However,even though he did not know when he would be released from prison,he did not think of revenge. He continued to do his duty faithfully as before.A few years later,two high-ranking officials were imprisoned.
So what was Joseph's stronghold in life? It was to live by the firm faith that the Lord is the God of Immanuel,the one who is always with him,who will surely (1)protect his life and (2)guide him to the right path!
However,how human beings,relying on what they can see,become ignorant and weak,as if they were worshipping visible idols! The disaster at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant showed us this.For example, a world where we live in, we think "If we have this, we will be fine!” is based on the capitalist economy,or money.
However,as soon as a drop of plague fell into this global flow of money,it immediately froze all flows and stalled all movements.Only the fear of distrust prevailed,and the economy stopped running.
The spread of radiation following the nuclear accident and the spread of the new coronavirus are not on the same physical level,but from the perspective of a sudden disaster,they teach us something very similar.Perhaps in the case of the new coronavirus, once the vaccine is developed and actually started to be administered,the situation will gradually come under control.However,we must not let the lessons of the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear accident fade away.If we had learned the lessons of the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant accident and kept them alive,we might have been able to take preemptive measures of the corona disaster.
The Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant(1F) was completed in March 1971 and started supplying electric energy.Not everything was made in Japan,and the plant construction technology was provided by the American company General Electric.At the time,the people of Fukushima Prefecture rejoiced: "There is no other clean electric energy like this,and the huge economic benefits will enrich the local people indefinitely!” They believed it.
However,40 years later,on March 11,the unprecedented East Japan Great Earthquake struck,flooding Units 1 through 5 with tsunami and causing a meltdown.Unit 1 to 3 to unit 4,each unit buildings were broken off by hydrogen explosion,and radioactivity began to leak in large quantities. While Fukushima nuclear power-plant workers were concentrating on preventing an explosion in the Unit 2 building,the Prime Minister muttered,"Japan is finished !"
But then something strange happens.As the air pressure inside the Unit 2 building swelled due to the meltdown,just before a hydrogen explosion was about to occur,a part of the outer wall of the building was broken off without the help of human power,allowing the expanded air to escape through the opening,thus preventing a hydrogen explosion.After listening to the report,the Prime Minister couldn't help but let out a few words. "There was a blessing from God! “
Foreseeing the Next Turning Point
When the two high-ranking officials were imprisoned,what kind of attitude did Joseph have toward them? In particular,in their case,since they were court officials under Pharaoh, their arrogant behavior did not change even though they were imprisoned.However,Joseph conversed with them politely and humbly as he did with other prisoners,and treated them with a soft manner,and they gradually came to trust him.
One day,both of them had a strange dream at the same time.The next morning,seeing both of them in a state of depression,Joseph spoke to them. "What's the matter with you two? You don't seem to have slept at all, ・・・・". They were reluctant to speak, but began to tell them about their dreams. Then Joseph closed his eyes for a while and prayed. "Thank you, Lord,that I was there for this moment.Please show me the meaning of the dream they had, through your wisdom! “
Joseph had been given the heavenly gift of foreseeing the next turning point.This turning point is never about the time of man,but about the time of God's movement.Joseph knew well enough that he was protected and guided in many ways by this divine movement, and he was convinced that there was a divinely intended movement in the dreams of these two officials !
So will we also be given that heavenly gift?This question does not mean that we are to be like prognosticator who can foresee the future! It is a gift of faith that requires a certain amount of patience,to quietly watch for God's moves and only act through the guidance of the Holy Spirit,beginning when God gives the "go-ahead" and never relying on our own moves.
That's right! We Christians are a people who praise the Lord and keep moving forward, believing that God's protection and guidance is always with me(you)! Therefore,we must continue to believe that God's protection and guidance is always with us! I pray in the Holy Name of the Lord Jesus Christ that you will be blessed with the gift of heaven,which will enable you,like Joseph,to foresee and understand the next turning point,even in this time. Amen! (Message on 22/Mar/ 2020)
God's trial - Chapter 11
A faith that sees God's will in everything that happens.
Now the Ishmaelies had taken Joseph to Egypt and sold him to Potiphar ････ who was the captain of palace guard.The Lord was with Joseph and made him successful. ････ From then on,because of Joseph the Lord blessed the household of the Egyptian and everything that he had in his house and in his fields. ････ Then she(Potiphar's wife) told him(Potiphar) the same story:”That Hebrew slave that you brought here came into my room and insulted me.But when I screamed,he ran outside,leaving his robe beside me.” Joseph's master was furious and had Joseph arrested and put in the prison where the King's prisoners were kept,and there he stayed, ････ because the Lord was with Joseph and made him succeed in everything he did.【Genesis39:1～33】
Reversing the Calamities of the Past
In November 2002,a new coronavirus disease called SARS broke out in Guangdong Province,China,and spread to the rest of the world (32 regions and countries) the following year in 2003.In Toronto,Canada,44 people died as a result of the spread of the disease through the Chinese.
At that time,Dr.Kamran Khan,a Toronto-based physician specializing in infection control and prevention,felt the helplessness of his patients dying one after another without any treatment for their illnesses.Reversing his defeat feeling,he made a company “Bluedot”. The purpose of the company was to (1)identify the source of new viruses that suddenly appeared,and (2)predict the exact route of infection by collecting vast amounts of information from all over the world and analyzing it with artificial intelligence(AI) developed by the company.
Bluedot began to move,and then collected a huge amount of information.This information included (1)all e-mails and rumors about symptoms of unknown infectious diseases that had never been reported before,and papers on new infectious diseases. (2)It was to visualize the social and economic relations of the Chinese people who are the most active in various parts of the world,including the routes of their movements,who are using what routes and means of transportation(including air and sea) to do what and where.
At the end of December 2019,Bluedot's AI will send out a warning signal to relevant organizations around the world,ahead of the US CDC and WHO. "There is an outbreak of a new coronavirus in Wuhan,China,with undiagnosed pneumonia and other symptoms.Please be careful! Not only that,but based on the analysis of the air routes from Wuhan,I predicted with near-accuracy that this new type of infectious disease would spread to Bangkok,Hong Kong,Taipei,Seoul,and Tokyo.
Envy without a reason
When people encounter a sad or unexpected incident or disaster,they react in various ways. Some are swallowed up in despair and die prematurely.Others fear the experience and flee in another direction.Others,however,do not see the event as an adversity,but continue to move forward in silence,thinking that the pain and sorrow they are experiencing now will surely be useful in the future.
Depending on how we perceive trials,the way we live our lives afterwards will change in various ways.To be honest,I don't like the word trial very much.If we only look at the latter half of Joseph's life,we can see him as a young successful man who came on the scene,but most of his life was actually full of trials just like his father Jacob.
Each time he was tested,he seized it with faith,everything the Lord does,even if it doesn't seem like a good thing at the time,makes sense to God himself.In other words,God's will is in every event! Because of our sin,we are unable to find God's will. We don't want to look at it head-on,especially when it is painful or unpleasant. ”Lord,I can't take this anymore!”
In particular,Joseph's trial in this article is clearly a case of false accusation! The first point we should learn from Joseph's incident is that those who faithfully follow the Lord alone will surely suffer envy without reason! It is a dimension that the more we obey,the more intense the envy becomes.
The spiritual prototype originated from the famous incident of eating the fruit of the tree of good and evil,when Satan planned to separate Adam and Eve from their Creator.Why did Satan tempt them?He was once the most beloved of God the Father and the greatest vessel in heaven.Yet,he suddenly became jealous of his Creator and rebelled against God.He said, "I can't stand it anymore that only the Lord is loved.I want to be loved first!”
Satan turns his spiritual blade against those who are loved most by the Creator.As a result, Satan's evil will cleverly leads them to commit treason just like him.Remember,we too are subject to spiritual envy for no reason at all! If there is a righteous reason,If there is a right reason,it is because "the real Creator is with us!”
In Joseph's case,he was sold as a slave to Pharaoh's captain of palace guard,not according to his own plan,not according to his own will,but in the God's will,and he began to work there faithfully and silently for many years.As a result,his master entrusted him with the entire management of the house.However,Joseph at this time is still unaware that the envy without reason has begun.
The Way Out
The second point of this article is the key word,God was with him.As a result,everything he did was an expansion of the sphere of God's blessing,which extended to the Potiphar's house and farmland.In other words,because God's will was manifested in everything Joseph did,God's blessing expanded as a matter of course.
Then Satan's jealousy began to move in and sow seeds in the heart of the Potiphar's wife.If you only read the Bible,you would think that Joseph,a young and handsome man,was a good-looking,well-fleshed man. So,it seems as if she attendant seduced him sexually.
But the spiritual background is that Satan couldn't stand everything Joseph did,just as Adam was entrusted by the Creator with the entire management of the Garden of Eden,and as a result of his faithful work with God,God's blessing was extended to the entire garden. And just as he had done with Eve,and his means of "seducing" her sexually was to draw him away from God and into Satan's domain.
When the world tries to make us spiritual slaves,the spiritual origin is always envy.Potiphar's wife attendant tempted Joseph sexually to make him her slave,but he was able to escape.This is another example of the spiritual protection provided by the Holy Spirit.When we encounter trials,it is almost always in the "I can't take it anymore!” dimension,but the Lord also provides a way out that allows us to overcome those trials.
By the way,is this new coronavirus that spread all over the world in 2020 a trial of God's will for mankind? It is true that Joseph was unilaterally imprisoned without a formal trial due to the perjury of of the Potiphar's wife.But even at that time,he continued to pray for God's wisdom. ”What does this trial mean to me? Lord, give me your foresight!”
Clearly,we can't seek prophetic wisdom to decipher the current global trials.But there is no need to panic! This is all in God's will,and we Christians are surely being redeemed! This will be an opportunity for us to know through the testimonies of many people that we are redeemed! This does not mean that we will never be infected! We should not panic,but just go about our lives as usual,taking the same precautions as we would for a cold.
In times like these,we should be calm and pray for a way out by faithfully discerning what is important and receiving God's wisdom.Those who follow God will surely suffer from spiritual envy,but after that,the next step is waiting for us through the path of redemption that God has prepared in advance.
Envy will come.But do not be afraid! The way out has already been prepared for you through the redemptive work of Jesus Christ,the Son. And we will learn then,like Bluedot, that the trials of now are to establish our readiness for what lies ahead,through God's wisdom.
May the Holy Spirit further call you,like Joseph,to be such a great worker of God that you will expand the realm of God's blessing among those who are suffering the trials of the present calamity.As an apostle of Jesus Christ,may your current ministry expand so that you can bring God's living-water to all who are spiritually sick,I pray,blessing you in the Holy Name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen! (Message on 15/Mar/ 2020)
God's trial - Chapter 10
Trials to be Suffered as a Sacrifice
When Jacob came up to his brothers,they ････ took him and threw him into the well,which was dry.････ Judah said to his brothers,”Wha will we gain by killing our brother and covering up the murder？ Let's sell him to these Ishmaelities. ････ “ ････ and when some Midianite traders came by,the brothers pulled out of the sell and sold him for twenty pieces of silver to the Ishmaelities,who took him to Egypt. 【Genesis 37:23～28】
A stormy Life of Joseph
This article describes the biggest crisis in the life of Joseph, whom Jacob doted on. He was in the middle of an emergency situation where his brothers conspired to assassinate him, but through the amazing protection and guidance of God,he was sold as a slave to some Midianite traders.As a result,his life was literally prepared for a way to escape death.
As you can see,Joseph's life has been in danger many times since then,but this article shows us another and wonderful spiritual secret:The Lord God does things in a dimension far beyond our human understanding,and even if the events are unbearable at the time,His time will surely come,and He will prepare a way of escape and ultimately make it beneficial!
For Joseph,the sudden treatment by his brothers was beyond his comprehension and difficult to accept.He was not usually at odds with his brothers.However,there was one thing that his brothers did not like about Joseph.He was loved first by his father Jacob! This was a pent up anger that stemmed from human envy.
God's Handling as a Sacrifice
The important point to be learned from this article is that God's handling of Joseph's life was such that he suffered hardships,sorrows,and unexpected trials one after another,and even in the midst of it,God dealt with him in various ways to make him grow to the next level in a dimension far beyond Joseph's thoughts.In the end,the prophetic life that God shows him will surely happen as a divine fact in his life! This is the point.
If we read Joseph's life with the first key word of living sacrifice,we will find that,in fact, even the various events in our lives that we cannot understand with our shallow three-dimensional thinking,from the dimension of God's sincere handling,through the same process as Joseph,we can see that the prophetic life that God shows us is always prepared for us at each stage of our lives.
If we actually saw the process of sacrifice, we would say, "Oh my God! This is such a terrible ritual!” I don't think we would be able to look at the horrible act.The first process of living sacrifice is (1) to be chosen as the object.It takes courage on the side of the person who chooses,but there is a sense of "What! Doesn't it have to be me? It is always difficult to accept.
Being chosen also means being cut off from the community.This is what happened to Joseph this time.He was suddenly betrayed by his beloved brothers and was sold into slavery to a distant foreign land.
The second process of sacrifice involves (2)the unimaginable goal of being killed.That's right!Sacrifice is meaningless without the shedding of blood in the process of killing,not just keeping them alive.We cannot easily accept a sacrificial ordeal like Joseph's, because it is accompanied by the physical fear of "I might be killed someday!”
The third process of sacrifice involves (3)the most excruciating final treatment,which is to be cut into parts.The head and limbs are cut first,followed by the abdomen in the middle. From the cut open abdomen,all the internal organs are cut out,and each part is cleaned and placed on a tray.After that,each part is placed on the altar as a sacrifice,and we finally move on to the divine ignition of total burning.
These are the three processes that we need to keep in mind,because spiritually speaking, we Christians cannot escape them in order to be spiritually fit as the bride of Jesus Christ.
We say,"What! I don't need to be chosen as a bride if I'm going to go through that” But the ultimate purpose of God's "handling" of us is not to kill us,but to create a "you(I) who are(am) new" and transform us into true worshipers.
The Changing drama of a leading role
The second key word in God's handling of Joseph is "separate and set apart” As a result of Adam's (Eve's) sin,we possess certain precious things.That precious thing is our life(our reason for living,our way of life).If God commands,"I will take it from you!” In other words, "I have the right to your life, so entrust it to me!” You may be able to reply,in the spiritual dimension."Yes, Lord, I will give it all to you!”,but in the deepest part of my soul,my voice may say,"But ････," and you may not be able to give it all.
However,ultimately,Joseph receives God's handling of his life,and although his actions and intentions,such as "I will ････",were prominent in his case at the beginning, gradually those things are changing spiritually,such as thinking that " God will lead (me)to ････".Yes！There is a spiritually Changing drama of a leading role.
In other words,he realizes through the Holy Spirit that God controls his life in any way and deals with him in the right direction.He thought his life was "full of negatives!” But when it comes to the result, “It is always positive!” In a dimension beyond his own human knowledge,there was always a reversal drama！
Especially in the case of this article,the brothers' original human plan was to have Joseph's blood sacrifice,or his death.However,through the amazing guidance and plan of God,he was delivered into the hands of the Midianites.That is,Joseph's life is always in God's hands, and no man's plan can interfere with God's constant protection and guidance.
That's right! Even though we may look like a clunker,in God's eyes,he sees us as "you(I) who are(am) precious”, and therefor we should confess,”He is the One who is true,who protects and guides us abundantly with his passionate love.The God who created me will surely work in many ways to bring me to the dimension of blessing and give me the best life I can truly have!”, and more confess,"It is not I who is the leading role,but God who is always true!”
May the God who works all things together for good,who prepares what is ahead of us for what we need now,richly govern your life and protect and guide and bless you always with unchanging grace,I pray,blessing you in the Holy Name of the Lord Jesus Christ.Amen! (Message on 8/Mar/ 2020)
God's trial - Chapter 9
Dwell again in Beth-El!
God said to Jacob,”Go to Bethel at once,and live there.Build an alter there to me,the God who appeared to you ････”So Jacob said to his family and all who were with him.”Get rid of the foreign gods that you have purify yourselves and put on clean clothes.････”････Jacob came with all his people to ････ Bethel ････.he built an alter there and named the place for the God of Bethel, ････ God appeared to him again and ････ said to him,”Your name is Jacob,but from now on it will be Israel.”So God named him Israel.････ He named the place Bethel.
【Genesis 35:1～15】
Throw "everything" away.
Of the two prayers of vows that Jacob dealt with,this time it is about God's rich reward for the second prayer.He said,"Lord,if you can bring me safely back to my father Isaac's house,I will obey and serve you all my life!”This was a very shallow request he made to God.As a result,he would go through many trials and tribulations.
The first point to be learned from this article is that God can deal with us many times to make us throw all our human bonds and ties away!That's the point.Finally,he was able to escape from Laban,but he was unable to shed his human nature's ego.
At last,he was given the great treatment of wrestling with the angel of God.Even at this time, he said,"I will never lose! But in the end,the angel struck him on the thigh and he was defeated. However,during the struggle,the angel of God never confronts Jacob with a look of anger,but rather with the same face as the Lord when he met him on the stone pillow,"Your name is Israel! He said in a mysterious way.
At that moment,Jacob said,"Now that I am face to face with God,I can no longer live!”He threw up his hands in surrender.It's like a solid block of rock being shattered into pieces.It would have been nice if everything had ended happily,but after this,a problem continues to haunt him.
His sons and daughters,by interacting with the foreign youths,have become tainted with unholy practices such as wearing foreign gods as ornaments.And to top it all off,one of his daughter was sexually raped by a foreign man,an incident that he could not bear as a parent,and it tore him apart mentally.”We can't do this anymore!”he said.
Dwell again in Beth-El again!
The words of God spoken at that time are the famous words,"Go to Bethel at once,and live there ････"(Chapter 36,verse 1).Then he thought,"Lord,how can someone like me,who is falling apart, go to Bethel and build an altar for you? This is the beginning of the new Jacob.
This time,he was treated by the Holy Spirit like a discarded car that was no longer working.The Lord spoke to him again.”It is not for you to do this! It is I,the Lord,who will bring you back, so just believe and go home,and dwell again in there！”
At that time,he still did not know the true destination of his return.At first,he saw it in his human nature's image as the home of his father Isaac.But the Lord had commanded him to go to Bethel. When Jacob realized the true place of return,he said,"Yes! We should return to the place where we made a holy vow with the Lord Himself on that stone pillow! Under the direction of the Holy Spirit,he prepares himself in three equipment.
The second point that we need to learn from this article is that we need to know about the Holy Spirit's guidance that led Jacob not to return to his father's hometown,but to return to the house of God,or Bethel.
By the way,what the new coronavirus has made us realize is how vulnerable we are to the invisible! Especially when it comes to invisible information such as words,because we can't see them in reality, so we create images of the human nature.When it comes to invisible images,we need to be careful not to let the spirit of fear control us!
What do we fear in our daily lives? Most of us have a weakness to worry about the future (tomorrow, next month,next year,the future,etc.) and fear this and that.Instead of thinking in the right direction,they are invoking the spirit of fear,of what if,for better reliable security.
Now,when the time came for Jacob to return to Bethel,he carried out three equipment preparations as directed by the Holy Spirit.First,(1)he had to throw away all the idols that clung to him. Secondly,(2)to purify himself thoroughly to renew the dirt he had been wearing.Thirdly,(3)dispose of all clothing and ornaments purchased from the foreigners,and put on the original simple and clean clothes.
God calls him by a new name.
Finally,the family of Jacob returned to Bethel.At that time,the Lord personally called out to Jacob,"O Israel!” It must have been a surprise for him to be called by his new name."What! I was Jacob.････ But maybe I really am who God calls me as Israel.”
The word Israel is made up of three Hebrew words: i(you),sra(fight against),and el(God).This is his new name,the one who fights seriously against God.When he was called by this new name,he realized what a foolish dimension of human nature's warfare he had been engaged in.He realized once again that the only one he should be seriously fighting against spiritually is the Lord Himself!
That's right! Jacob,who first learned through his fight against God,then said,"Yes! Israel is here.After that,he will be sanctified more and more as a good,pure,obedient servant.He finally found Bethel(the Temple of God)in the midst of his spirit,as the Lord,always watching over him as he fought against God,brought him up to Bethel and made him live there again.
The one who controls our lives,protects us from the invisible enemy(the new coronavirus),and establishes a firm faith that will not be deceived by various falsehoods,is "El Bethel"(the God who makes his temple in you his home)! The God we believe in is the Highest Being who continues to dwell in the midst of our spirit and constantly protects and guides all of us in great blessings.
Jacob,at this point,surrendered everything to God.We are not called to fight against the human nature's dimension.We are called to make a strong case against God in the spiritual dimension, where evil forces try to separate us from the Temple of God and defile it in various ways with the beauty of the world.
The invisible enemy is indeed a scary thing for us.But don't worry! For the spiritual doorway of your temple of God has been richly painted and sanctified with the precious blood of Jesus Christ.I pray that you will be sanctified as a pure believer who always places the presence of the Lord Jesus Christ at the end of your walk,just like Jacob who was ordered by God, "Keep dwelling again in Beth-El!" Blessed be the Holy Name of the Lord Jesus Christ.Amen!(Message on 1/Mar/2020)
God's trial - Chapter 8
Here is victory in what you cannot see!
････Jacob said to Laban,”Let me go,so that I can return home.････You know how well I have served you.”････ “What shall I pay you ? ” Laban asked.Jacob answered,”Let me go through all your flocks today,and take every black lamb and every spotted or speckled young goats. That is all the wages I want.････”But that day Laban removed the male goats that had stripes or spots and all the females that were speckled and spotted.････ he put his sons in charge of them,and then were away from Jacob with this flock as far as he could travel in three days.････ He put them there,because the animals made when they come to drink.････ When the healthy animals were mating. Jacob put the branches in front of them at the drinking troughs,so that they would breed among the branches.But he did not put the branches in front of the weak animals.････ In this way Jacob became very wealthy.
【Genesis 30:25～43】
The Greatness of God's Wisdom
Jacob in this article works in such a superhuman way,manipulating genetic information as if he were the world's leading authority on biology.As we all know,the laws of heredity do not yet exist in this age.
According to the laws of nature,the color,quality,and sweetness of fruits and berries change in various ways as a result of various mating between female and male plants,and people in the past were somewhat aware of this.
However,I believe that Jacob was the first person in history to dare to experiment with artificial breeding of domesticated animals,as opposed to natural mating.How did Jacob come to know the wonderful laws of heredity in the realm of the God's creation?
The first thing we need to know from this article is the greatness of God's wisdom,which can deceive even the wicked.Laban is a prime example of a wicked man.He conspired with his own son not to give his nephew Jacob any part of the "blessings" as a reward.
By the way,what did Jacob get as a result of his human dealings through Laban? It was because he had been under the devious control of Laban's family for a long time.The first reward he received was two companions(Leah and Rachel). This was a reward so great that it ruined the design he had drawn for his life.But through this,he finally realized the perfect timing of the Lord's dealings.
The second reward was an amazing reproductive rhythm that occurred in the herds of livestock, a divine law that he had learned from the long years of Laban's control.After carefully observing (1) the "season" set by the Lord God,(2) the timing of mating between males and females,and (3) the excellent instincts of the females to select the strongest males, he realized that the key to the law of blessing might be the timing set by God,“The key is the timing spiritually! If I miss it,I will miss out on the blessings of the Lord!”
However,Laban,through Satan's wiles,transferred all the visibly fat spot and speckled seed from Jacob's livestock to his own family,so Jacob was left with only a few poor white seeds.At that moment,he didn't think, "Oh, I'm screwed!" he thought,"Lord, you've set a trap for Laban and the others.”And he decides to entrust on God's time.
One night,he had another revelation in a dream.In it,the Holy Spirit gave him specific instructions. “Jacob,the time of God has finally come! The time of man does not go as he wishes,but when the time of God comes,it will be as it should be.Now,use the wisdom of God that I have shown you from time to time! and you will see a greater harvest of blessings in your livestock than you thought possible.They think that only white seed can come from white seed!”
As a result of following God's time and God's method of reproduction, what kind of seeds appeared as fruit in Jacob's livestock in the fullness of time? More than the number of white seeds,more than the number of spot and speckled seeds were multiplying one after another.Then Laban and his family checked the branding of all the livestock to see if Jacob had stolen their livestock,but of course none of the livestock had been branded by Laban's family.
The invisible fact of God has a chance to win!
Now,the second secret shown from this article is that we,like Jacob,have such a weakness to offer human negotiations in our prayers.But as a result,we need to be aware of this danger of receiving worldly transactions at the same time.
But remember! That's why the Holy Spirit works on such weaknesses in me(you) and gives me the appropriate God's wisdom. "You are not a servant of the riches of the world,but of the invisible, eternal fact of God,which is the fountain of blessing that gushes forth!” He said.
Jacob,through Laban's prolonged ordeal,said, "I have never known this fact of God before.Lord, teach me the time of deliverance that you will provide so that I can once again place all of me in your holy will,not in human prayer! If I stay like this,I will not be able to inherit the blessings of your rich promises from my grandfather Abraham and my father Isaac! Please help me in my weakness.” He was finally able to pray with a modest posture.
The Lord never approves of human negotiate prayers! But He will give great revelation(God's wisdom) to those who,like him at that time,ask God with a repentant and modest posture,with a sacrifice of faithful prayer.
Jacob was told by his father,"In the invisible things are hidden the great blessings of God.So if we miss it,we will not have what is promised! The things that are visible are full of falsehood, even if they appear to be good. Do not forget this!” He was taught this every time his Father spoke.
There are many people in this world who believe in the visible God(Idols made by man),but unfortunately,we Christians are the only ones who believe in the invisible God (the Lord who created man).And we are living in the invisible fact of God.Jacob found God's wisdom,and he found God's fact:"In God's overwhelming and great guidance,I am always protected and sustained!
We are spiritually weak,but the Lord has chosen and called us as spiritual Israeli,and with the help and handling of the Holy Spirit,He will surely make us into a wise bride of Christ.
May the protecting "hand" of God the Father always support you strongly.I pray in the Holy Name of the Lord Jesus Christ that you may be covered with the invisible facts of the God,and that you may move forward each day with each revelation of the Holy Spirit.Amen!(Message on 23/Feb/2020)
God's trial - Chapter 7
People's "vows" are fragile
He named the place Beth-El.Then Jacob made a vow to the Lord:”If you will be with me and protect me on the journey I am making and give me food and clothing,and if I return safly to my father's home,then you will be my God.This memorial stone which I have set up will be the place where you are worshiped,and I will give you a tenth of everything you give me.”
【Genesis 28:19～22】
The Conflict Between Spiritual Impressions and Human's natural excitements
As we know, Jacob is a man whose human's natural thoughts are particularly strong.Even though he had a wonderful spiritual experience through the revelation of a dream,the spiritual conflict, that is,the struggle between the human's natural thoughts and the spiritual thoughts,continued throughout the day.
Finally,the next morning,He made a decision.He consecrated the place as a memorial of God speaking to him,named it Beth-El,and prayed the vow.Strangely enough,he foolishly offered two deals to the Lord in his vow prayer.
In some respects,human vows are like glass vessels that can be broken under certain conditions. For example,we sometimes experience spiritual impressions,such as being touched by the Holy Spirit and being in the presence of God,at a big holy meeting.
However,when we experience such spiritual impressions,Satan also works nearby and tries to replace the spiritual impressions with physical excitement by showing us various three-dimensional realities.This is why we,like Jacob,sometimes make foolish deals with God.
Thus,we need to know that spiritual impressions and human's natural excitement are incompatible. We want to be moved spiritually,but at the same time,our human's natural excitement begins to work like a reaction to counteract it.We are,quite frankly,fragile vessels,especially against to verbal information.
The Chain of Seen and Unseen Fears
For example,right now,a word is spreading around the world with fear through various information and rumors.It is an epidemic called the "new coronavirus.Normally,the word "new" is associated with good interest because it is the latest thing, but the mere mention of a new virus is enough to cause unprecedented fear because there is currently no vaccine for it.
In this way,even in the invisible spiritual dimension,Satan works on our sin factors,manipulating information such as fears and emotional wounds that some people are more susceptible to,as well as various stresses that we have suffered in our relationships,to spread spiritual virus such as fear in the visible dimension.
But remember!That is why the Lord is the God of Emmanuel!To the God who created all things,whether a new type or any type,those fears are powerless,and only the fact of God,which can completely destroy the fear of words,precedes and protects and guides us.
All we have to do is call out to Him, "Jesus, our Savior!” we can be completely delivered from the spiritual bondage of all sins,sickness,fear and curse by simply calling on His name!Jesus Christ is the one who proved that."He who is sick,be of good health!" and "He who is wounded, immediately get up！ as a person having a new body.let him be healed！” He always redeems us with His powerful living words.
Two "Vows" of People
Jacob anointed this stone pillow,which he named Beth-El,and prayed."Lord,I will follow you all the days of my life,using my experience here as a spiritual token!” These were the true spiritual words of his spiritual mind.But immediately after that,his
human's natural thoughts brought in fear and anxiety,and he made two foolish "vows" to God.
Why?Nothing has started yet! Because his human's natural thoughts were trying to destroy the spiritual facts.The two vows he offered were not bad,but they may have been prayed because he is a fragile being.Yes! These are the wishes and vows that arise from human's natural thoughts. And we do offer our human 's natural vows to God from time to time.
But the Holy Spirit warns us."Don't let prayer become a transaction! "If you are ････,I would like to････” It is our weakness to deal in various ways.But remember! "The Lord will continue to give you true love and grace in abundance,no matter what your condition is!And so on.”But when we,the recipients,say,"Really? I'm not worthy to receive it." We tend to be reserved and want to trade off the prayer as a vow.
What exactly did Jacob vow?The first vow was a very childish one:"If you will be with me,and will always protect and guide me,and will give me food to live on and clothes to wear,････."(Even though in reality no calamity had come to him.)
The second vow was,"If you could return me safely to the house of my father Isaac,････", again exposing his own stupidity.Why is this?There are no bad signs,such as Esau's pursuers right in front of us! And yet, we are afraid.
We are weak creatures who can only take a step forward when we see a little sign of something good.That's why we try to fulfill our vows to God with a little bit of a deal,rather than honestly exposing our weaknesses.
Jacob was a simple man spiritually,but he was also conspicuous for his honesty in the human's nature.Later on,these two "vows" that he made would take a long time to deal with him spiritually.
In fact,there is spiritual comfort in these two foolishnesses of Jacob.It's okay that we are fragile! It is because of sin.We are weak without support,without protection,and without the constant grace of God! When we make foolish vows,it is only through the Holy Spirit that our weakness is revealed.
In response to the two vows,the Lord does not get angry,but simply remains silent.And the Holy Spirit,the Helper,would have continued to be with Jacob and encourage him.
Even though we know the goal of our life's journey,we still have a long way to go. ”I don't know what will happen to me in the future!" or "Will God's goodness really be done to me? I don't know what my future journey will be like!”
But remember!The Lord is not one to ignore the foolish vows we make!The Lord will cover our honest hearts with the shade of His wings and deal abundantly with our first confession of our weaknesses.
May the True God always protect and guide you to the rich realm of God.I pray in the Holy Name of the Lord Jesus Christ that you will be able to move forward step by step,confirming in faith that God's will,which is far beyond human desire,is ahead of you. Amen!(Message on 9/Feb/2020)
God's trial - Chapter 6
Solitary Backpacker
Jacob left Beersheba and started toward Harran.At sunset he came to a holy place and camped there.He lay down to sleep,resting hie head on a stone.････ He dreamed ････ And there was the Lord standing beside him.”････ Remember,I will be with you and protect you wherever you go,and I will bring you back to this land.I will not leave you until I have done all that I have promised you. ” Jacob woke up and said,”The Lord is here！He is in this place,and I did not know it！”
【Genesis 28:10～16】
A solitary "traveler
The word "backpacker" is derived from the word "backpack," and refers to a person who travels freely from place to place with a backpack that can be carried easily.My image of a backpacker is that of a traveler who looks somewhat like Snufkin.
In this sense,Jacob was a lonely backpacker who left in the shadows of the night without being seen off by anyone.In fact,this trip is Jacob's last goodbye to his mother,Rebecca.And for his mother,she did not know what would happen to her son,Jacob,after his departure,but it was a decision she was ready to make,leaving everything to God.
From this article,it is about God's treatment of Jacob.However,the life of this lonely traveler, Jacob,is an automobile metaphor for a useless clunker.He doesn't even think about his own fuel consumption condition,and is always proud that he can get by if he drives under his own power.
However,this article was so full of loneliness that I could not see his nature at all.The first characteristic of his journey this time is that he is a lonely backpacker who set out with nothing. His state of mind is that he is separated from his parents,whom he has been relying on,and that his brother may come after him at any moment,but all he knows is that he is moving forward to Mesopotamia,the destination of his journey.
His mental states are firstly,(1)it was his first time to travel alone,so he sometimes was feeling homesick,saying "I want to go home already!”As Jesus Christ so,I wonder how he must have felt when he suddenly left his family and set out on his missionary journey,even though it was a "command" from God the Father!Secondly,(2)fear of his brother's persistent pursuit.This point is also similar to Jesus Christ.The more he preached,the more he was attacked by the watchdog groups (Pharisees, scribes).And thirdly,(3)consciousness that he was still lonely wanderer with no protect.
Jacob had no "peace of mind," but there was one thing that sustained him.He had an unshakable faith in the teachings of his parents:"The word of promise that the Lord has commanded will come true! But to Jacob,the teachings of his parents were still just the human's voices.
As he continued his journey in solitude,he gradually grew tired and exhausted.He walked and walked during the day,but could not see his goal at all,and at night he could not sleep in peace.Finally, one evening,as he lay limp,he found a stone that was just right,and as soon as he laid his head on it,he fell into a deep sleep.
The God's treatments with us are like a lonely traveler,wandering through the world,but with the voice of truth that comes from Himself,He provides sure guidance and protection.However,in the midst of the loneliness like Jacob and the fatigue of not knowing where we are going,most of us end up in a fog of confusion as we struggle with the voices of others and our own.
Hearing God's voice for the first time
Don't worry if you are in such a state! For that is the starting point for the great treatment of the true God!In the midst of his deep sleep,Jacob was finally shown a spiritual revelation from God in the form of a dream.God Himself stood beside Jacob in his sleep and spoke directly to him.The God's voice sounded richer and more beautiful to his ears than anything he had ever heard before.
That's right! The first time he heard God's voice,this is the second point that happened in Jacob's journey.Although he didn't actually hear it with his own ears,the voice he heard in his dream said,"I am the Lord,who always blessed and protected your grandfather Abraham and your father Isaac!”,like when was a informed of the first meeting.
God continued to say to the bewildered Jacob,"Be firm,and remember! I have something important to tell you." He gives him a pep talk.Why did the Lord speak to Jacob? It is difficult for the voice of the spirit from God to reach those who have a strong voice of the human's nature,but sometimes God speaks right to the point.But sometimes God speaks to us with a snap!
In the case of Jacob,he resisted God's voice this time.But resisting means not forgetting (not ignoring) the voice.Because it is always the God's voice that leads.To resist means that you dare to reject that voice because you think it may be ････.
The difference between an unbeliever and a believer is,simply put,whether you rely on the voice of your human's nature or the voice of God.If you try to base your faith on the voice of the human's nature,you will surely resist the voice of the Spirit of God.This is because the voice of the spirit is too simple.
When Jacob heard the voice of God's great Spirit that surpassed his fears,he said, "The Lord God has chosen this place to stay with me until this very moment.And yet I was not aware of it,nor did I understand it at all(v.16).” He was astonished.In other words,he may have found a stone and slept on it of his own free will,but in fact,God had worked all things together for his good, and had prepared many things for his careful handling! He was foolishly unaware of this.
The voice in my human's nature said,"It's just a dream experience!” But the voice of the spirit within me said, "Wait! This is ････," and he can still feel the presence of God and hear His great voice in his ears.
So,what was the actual content of the God's voice that spoke to Jacob? First of all,(1)it was a confirmation of the fact that "I am always with you!” Secondly,(2)the assurance of the promise, "I will surely protect you at all times!”.Thirdly,(3) "I will bring you back here! and fourthly, With my mighty arm,I will not abandon you,but will protect and guide you forever!” These are the very simple words of the covenant.
Jacob thought he was a lonely traveler until he heard these great words of promise from God.But when he learned the truth about God,he accepted that the very place where the stone pillow was located (here) was the house of God (Beth-El)! He was convinced that the place where the true God was present and dwelt with him was the true home he had been seeking.
The Lord is the God of Emmanuel!Even if we,like Jacob,run in the power of our own human's nature, or walk around in any direction we want,and stumble and fall in the middle,He is the Lord of truth, right beside us, supporting us! God's unfailing presence and eternal protection and guidance is the true and promised guarantee of our lives!
May the God of Emmanuel always be with us,and may the Holy Spirit,our Helper,always make our steps sure,even if our life's journey leads us to a state of loneliness,where there is nothing.And may the Holy Spirit protect and guide all of us to the great spiritual dimension of God,in the Holy Name of the Lord Jesus Christ.Amen！(Messageon 2/Feb/2020)
