A large portion of the Old Testament book of Genesis is about Joseph. I could speak on this section of Scripture for a few months. But today I want to focus on a profound observation Joseph made. Before we get there, however, let’s quickly do an overview of the story of Joseph. Read the rest of this entry »

Issac had twin sons – Esau and Jacob. As the oldest son, Esau had the generational birthright – this was a sacred thing. The oldest son received a double inheritance, a special blessing from the father, and the judicial authority of the father – the birthright was a huge deal in that culture. The concept of birthright was part of the very fabric of society. In fact, if we look in the book of Deuteronomy (ch 21) we see that the rules for “birthright” are in the law – this was big. The birthright set the oldest son apart as THE family representative. He was to lead the family “line” into the future with authority and honor. Read the rest of this entry »

It’s easy to read stories about the great Old Testament characters in a way that doesn’t really connect with my world – after all these amazing things happened over 2,000 years ago.  That is a big mistake.  The story we’re going to visit today is your story – it is my story.  The story of Abraham’s call to sacrifice his son is the same call we have on our lives – the very same call.  God is calling each of us to a relationship, a faith, that gives him everything. Read the rest of this entry »

The author of Genesis gave us a very clear message in the first two sections of this book. Genesis chapters one and two speak of Gods good creation – all things exist because a good and holy God wills this to be so – “and it was good”. God’s intention in creating humanity is that, in our relationship to to him, we are to image him, be his representatives – his ambassadors. Read the rest of this entry »

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In Genesis 12 we read about an event that took place some 4,000 years ago. God chose a pagan man named Abram to be the one through whom he would rescue the lost. Abram was the start of a chosen people whom God would love and not hate. Read the rest of this entry »

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When you think of or ponder God, what is the dominant attribute that comes to mind? Is it God’s omniscience – God knowing everything? Maybe it’s the mystery of God’s sovereignty – God being in complete control of what he has created. And of course we struggle with God’s sovereignty and the existence of evil, and the truth that while God is sovereign, my decisions matter – how can that be? Many people stand on God’s love as being God’s dominant attribute – and that’s worth consideration. A God of perfection actually caring for a frail and finite and stupid people that often, in rebellion, would insert themselves in the place of him – it is amazing that he would love us.

Today I’d like to submit that one reality that permeates God and flows through any accurate thought of God is God’s holiness. No place in the Bible do we read that the heavenly choir sings, “Love, love, love is the Lord Almighty.” or “Sovereign, sovereign, sovereign is the Lord Almighty.”. But we do read about Isaiah and his vision: Read the rest of this entry »

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Sin is a very interesting topic. On the one hand, everyone knows that sin exists and is a part of life. On the other hand, the implications of the reality of sin are so profound that we squirm when we seriously face them because we know our sin is a pointer to God – the One who sees us sin. If there were two themes that permeate the Bible from beginning to end they would be: First, GOD as the primary theme – God’s power, God’s relational intention,  God’s holiness, God’s love, etc. And second, SIN and the incredible pain and chaos and destruction and death that follows in the wake of our desire to serve self rather than God. Read the rest of this entry »

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So what does it mean to be made in the image of God? What am I here to do? What’s the point? I think we usually get this only partially right. The Bible talks about this – a lot! In Genesis 1:26-28 we have three short verses that speak volumes about our purpose – in a very pragmatic, practical way. Here Scripture talks about that issue when it uses the term, “image of God”. Read the rest of this entry »

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Has anyone here been watching the Olympics? Pretty amazing isn’t it? World record after world record has fallen. This year we have a 41 year old swimmer, Dara Torres, who, has won metals in five Olympics. The list of participants that have turned in phenomenal performances is long and the number of people that set aside hours to watch are millions (I’m one of them). Read the rest of this entry »

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The Genesis 1 account of creation has always been a lightning rod for many reasons. Humanity has always struggled with a couple of foundational questions – “Why is there something rather than nothing?” and “Who am I?” or “Who are we?” These questions are intuitive for us – they simply “fall out” of our consciousness and cannot be left alone. We ask these questions as a deranged people however. On the one hand we know we are unique from the animals around us – we sense eternity and purpose in our hearts, and we know there is right and wrong. On the other hand we want an answer that tells us that, in the end, we are simply animals without purpose or accountability. Read the rest of this entry »

Greg Fellman gives us a wonderful primer on the series to follow – “Rediscovering the Old Testament” [Listen]