bsf blog – Page 4 – The Notes are Good

BSF Genesis: Week 31, Day 2

Questions:

3.
a.
No. He spent his last breath blessing others. He looked forward to being gathered to his people, pulled his feet up into his bed and died

b.
God is the God of Jacob – He is not the God of the dead but of the living – Jacob is experiencing eternal life

4.
a.
H.
people are destined to die once and after that to face judgment

R.
All have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God, Wages of sin are death but the gift of God is eternal life

J5.
Whoever hears word and believes God has eternal life, will not be judged but has crossed over from death to life

J8.
told that you would die in yoru sins, if don’t believe then you will indeed die in your sins

J11.
Whoever lives by believing in me will never die. Do you believe this?

b.
Spiritually ready and confident. I believe there is still work for me to do here and more lives to touch and shepherd

5.
Honored the promise he made to his father. Sought Pharaoh’s blessing.

My Daily Journal:

Death. Until Christ comes again and calls us up to Him in heaven, we are all going to die. Death is a doorway we all must cross through.

For a few years I had the opportunity to work with a motivational speaker who used board breaking in coaching and leading people. The piece of pine represented a barrier to the individual, something that prevented them from “breaking through” to a higher level or better place. One of the key things that he taught, and which I saw to be true, was that the more you focus on the board, the harder it is to break. You don’t try to hit the board, you pick a focus point beyond the board and strike to it. You don’t focus on the barrier, your focus on what things look like beyond the barrier.

The challenge for us is that we tend to focus on the door more than what’s on the other side when it comes to death. Some might say that we don’t know what is on the other side, but I disagree. While the door may be a solid door, Christ has provided a window for us to look through. He tells us that “in My father’s house there are many mansions, if it were not so, I would have told you.” He tells us that upon death “Today you will be with me in paradise.” We know from Revelation that heaven is a real place, measurable, with walls of jasper and city of pure gold. But, most importantly, we know it is where God is and where we go to be with Him. This was revealed in the martyrdom of Stephen when he saw Jesus standing at the right hand of God in heaven. Jesus tells us about God and Heaven over and over again. I am the way… no one comes to the Father but by me. I am the vine, you are the branches. He who believes in me shall not perish but have eternal life.

When Christ came back from the dead he showed that death has no hold over us. There need be no uncertainty of what is on the other side of the door of death, Christ has shown us. We, like Jacob need to be willing to trust in Him and put our focus on the beauty of breaking through to the other side, not on the door. When we focus on death, we bang in to something hard and difficult and painful, just like when someone would focus on the board, they would bang into the board. Instead, we must focus on the life after death and break through death in joy and celebration.

BSF Genesis: Week 30, Day 5

Today’s Scriptures

Questions:

13.
To be buried in the cave of the patriarchs. He had confidence his people would return to the promised land

14.
a.
in hard work be weak, it is more blessed to give than to receive

r.
whose transgressions are forgiven, sins are covered, whose sin the Lord will never count

e.
in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ

t.
in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ

j.
who perseveres under trial, having stood the test, receive the crown of life that Lord promised

p.
do not repay evil with evil/insult with insult, but evil with blessing – called

r.
read aloud the words of this prophecy, hear it, take it to heart – time is near

My Daily Journal:

I was torn at first with the line asking what a person must do to receive blessings. Clearly we don’t do anything to earn blessings, no more than we do something to earn a gift. If you earn it, it isn’t a gift, it is payment. I see blessings in the same way.

But in preparing my lecture I was reminded of an older gentleman I worked with at a retail store in the mall when I was in high school. This man suffered from periodontal disease and, to use the vernacular, had really bad breath. He was aware of the problem and did things to try to cover up the situation. He constantly ate breath mints. He wore very strong cologne, he would attempt to not get too close to people when talking. But all of those were simply steps to cover or mask the problem, they did nothing to fix it.

For us, sin is the problem and it stinks. The bible says our prayers are like a pleasing aroma to God. In the same way, our sin is a stench. We do all kinds of things, all kinds of “good works” to try to mask it, but we can’t. The only fix is to fix the problem. That is called sanctification and it is a process that God, our great physician, takes in our lives to remove the infection of sin in our lives and transform us into His image. Christ is the only cure, and while we can’t do anything to earn Him in our lives, if we fail to accept Him then we miss the cure.

In the same way, if we fail to do spiritual work, we miss the blessings of that work, if we fail to be in Christ we miss the blessings of the heavenly realm, if we avoid trials and tests we miss the growth they provide. This isn’t earned, it is lived. It isn’t covering over, it is submitting to the only one who can heal.

BSF Genesis: Week 30, Day 3

Today’s Scriptures

Questions:

5.
Hand on neck of enemies, brothers praise you, relatives bow down, Lion, scepter will not depart, ruler’s staff…until the coming of the one to whom it belongs, whom all nations will honor

6.
a.
all bow to him, victorious against his prey, holds the scepter and ruler’s staff for they belong to him, from the line of Judah, the one whom all nations will honor

b.
1 Cr 15:54, Death has been swallowed up in victory; Rom 6:9 Death no longer has mastery over him; Luke 22:69 The Son of Man will be seated at the right hand of the mighty God; Heb 1:2 by His Son whom he appointed heir of all things; Heb 1:8 about the Son he says, “Your throne, O God, will last for ever and ever; a scepter of justice will be the scepter…, Matt 27:18 Christ was dressed in a crimson robe (crimson would be the color of a robe died in the blood of grapes, it was also the color representing sin, e.g., the crimson sash hung outside the window by Rahab.)

c.
He is victorious over death so I need not fear the grave. He is at the right hand of God and holds the scepter of heaven, so I can trust in His rule.

7.
His region was beside the sea of Galilee and included Capernaum. Many gentiles (ships) lived there and were saved (safe harbor)

8.
The tribe of Issachar were to be farmers. We know from the time of Adam that farming would be hard work and toil, but we know also from Eccles 3:12-13 that toil is a gift from God. God encourages us to work and do good hard work which yields benefits to us now and eternally

9.
Samson – Judges 13-18 – killed many Philistines who ruled over Israel at the time

My Daily Journal:

Many of us know the story of Samson and his incredible strength when the spirit would come upon him in strength. But as I reread the story I was struck by his parents.

Manoah, who was from the tribe of Dan, lived in the land unjustly ruled by the Philistines. The Israelites had been turned over to the Philistines because of their sin. Manoah was married to a woman who was childless. The angel of the Lord came to her and told her she would give birth to a son who would be a Nazirite and he will take the lead in delivering Israel from the hands of the Philistines.

The part that came next is what really struck me in relation to our lesson this week. In Judges 13:18, “Then Manoah prayed to the LORD: “Pardon your servant, Lord. I beg you to let the man of God you sent to us come again to teach us how to bring up the boy who is to be born.””

In our scripture this week Jacob has assembled and is speaking truth about the future to his sons, including many things they either don’t understand or, in some instances, things they don’t want to hear. This made me think about what I should do if God delivered news about my future to me. What if he told me something about my health, my finances, my children, my church? Should I worry about it? Should I jump into action? Should I just take the news and do nothing? Should I use my own intellect to “figure things out”?

But, the example we learn from Manoah is the right response. Given revelation about the future, my first step should be to drop to my knees and humbly pray to God to come into my life and teach me how to do what He wants with this revelation. To teach me how to honor Him and be true in my work in the future to His calling for my life.

BSF Genesis: Week 29, Day 2

Today’s Scriptures

Questions:

3.
a.
Plan had changed. Was not supposed to go to Egypt before, now it was OK

b.
i.
It is current/timely. based on time and situation

ii.
Trust wholeheartedly, not leaning on own understanding. submit and things will be straight

iii.
Ask for wisdom, believe and not doubt – trust!

4.
a.
1. I will make you a great nation in Egypt, 2. I will go down to Egypt with you, 3. I will surely bring you back again. 4. Joseph’s hand will close your eyes.

b.
1. Ex 1:7 the Israelites were exceedingly fruitful; they multiplied greatly, increased in numbers and became so numerous that the land was filled with them 2. Ex 6:2-5 I have heard the groaning of the Israelites 3.Ex 12:31 Leave my people and go 4. Gen 49:33 Jacob dies, 50:1 Joseph threw himself on his father and wept and kissed him

My Daily Journal:

These first few verses of Genesis 46 are such a powerful reminder of a present God. We can easily fall into an impression of God as being distant both in time and space. So many of our depictions of God are cast in images of people walking around in robes and sandals. We can fall into a trap of thinking of God as divine and loving but with a message that is set in stone for us to follow.

What we see in these verses is a different God. He is present. He is timely. At an earlier time Jacob was not supposed to go to Egypt, but now he is. God gives him new direction. God is the author of the book (and of the universe) but it is an interactive story that includes us today.

What an encouragement to prayer and what a powerful image of a personal and present God. We are encouraged to get into a proper state to talk with God, taking on a sacrificial attitude as Jacob did and then honor God’s direction in our life for who He is. This means trust in what we hear from Him wholeheartedly, without doubt, and begin walking the path he lays out for us to go.

BSF Genesis: Week 28, Day 5

Today’s Scriptures

Questions:

15.
a.
wept loudly, come close to me, do not be distressed or angry with yourselves – it was to save lives, God did this, tell and bring father, threw his arms around them and wept

b.
embracing, wept, spoke truth and willingness to sacrifice for each other

16.
be truthful and heartfelt. Forgive and see God’s good in all.

My Daily Journal:

I loved Genesis 45:1.

We have talked over the past few weeks about the parallels between Joseph and Christ and how, in many ways, Joseph was a foreshadowing pointing to Christ. I think we see that so strongly in verse 1.

I’m a dad and there are times I need to use my dad voice and make decisions that, while not necessarily popular, are in the best interests of my family. I have to discipline my children and allow them to make mistakes even when I know they are mistakes. My natural desire is to protect them, to help them, to do for them and provide for them. But for them to grow and learn, I have to control that nature and allow them to experience and learn.

In Genesis 45:1, we see how God has placed that same “control” for Joseph to direct with his brothers. Then, Joseph could control himself no longer and we see the heart of God that beat inside Joseph pour out. What did he do when he was “out of control”? He poured out love. He poured out tears of joy. He poured kisses upon his brothers. He hugged them. He forgave them. He told them about God. He told them not to condemn themselves. He provided a new home for them. He provided everything they would need for themselves, their children, their grandchildren. He commanded them to reunite the entire family.

So, what does your “out of control” look like?

BSF Genesis: Week 28, Day 4

Today’s Scriptures

Questions:

11.
a.
They would understand the feeling of being falsely accused, his brothers had thought of Joseph as a spy for their father – a snitch

b.
They would feel being falsely imprisoned

c.
They would see the pain of separation

d.
They would see the pain they brought to his father

e.
Tested their honesty

f.
Test of jealousy and favoritism

g.
Would they stand up for a brother or sacrifice him

h.
Test of sacrificial love

12.
42:13 spoke honestly, 42:21 our sin, 28 God has done to us 43:12 2xsilver 28 bowed down prostrate, 34 feasted freely 44:16 we are all slaves 33 volunteered as tribute for Benjamin

13.
a.
God is Almighty and in control of all

b.
grant mercy before the man

c.
let your other brother and Benjamin come back with you

d.
If I am bereaved, I am bereaved.

e.
Trust in God and submit fully to his might and mercy

14.
submission, thinking first of others (his father, brother), substitutional sacrifice, honor to his promise

My Daily Journal:

I took exception to one of our questions. I don’t think it was Joseph that was testing his brothers. I think it was God who was testing and training the brothers through Joseph. Why now would we bestow the credit onto Joseph when all along he has time and again funneled it all to God?

With that perspective, God allowed the brothers to experience all of the things He had used to train up Joseph. Accused of being a spy, falsely accused, falsely imprisoned, the pain of separation, the fear of being without any power or authority, being a slave, having their clothing torn, etc., etc., etc.

By living these experiences they did not just have to imagine what their actions had wrought, they could fully empathize. They fully understand and, as a result, Judah’s willingness to be a substitutional sacrifice was all the more powerful when he pleaded at the throne of the almighty ruler. (catching the parallels to Christ?)

Speaking of parallels, the other one that I enjoyed was when Joseph made Benjamin the cupbearer, by literally having him bear the cup in his bag. He could have put any item in Benjamin’s bag, a candlestick, a ring, but he chose to have him bear the cup.

From this, first we are reminded of the cupbearer to Pharoah. Look at all the parallels, he was thrown into prison but later redeemed and restored to his position of honor to the Pharaoh. The cupbearer was the messenger to carry the message, when appropriate, to Pharaoh to set Joseph free from bondage. Benjamin is the one Joseph turns to to testify that he is his brother to restore the family to Joseph. The cupbearer’s actions set things in place to save his nation from starvation. Benjamin is thrust into the same role with his nation – doing nothing but remembering and being willing to testify.

Secondly, we are reminded of Christ and the cup He drank on the cross to pay the price of our sins. The fact that Christ comes from the line of Judah and Judah is the one giving the speech of substitutional sacrifice should not be missed.

BSF Genesis: Week 28, Day 3

Today’s Scriptures

Questions:

7.
16.I cannot do it but God can, 25.God has revealed 28.God has shown what He is about to do 32.firmly decided by God and God will do it soon 38.find anyone with spirit of God 39.God made known to you 51.Manasseh, God made forget 52. Ephraim.God made fruitful

8.
a.
1. Dreams are one and same, 2. Seven good years, 3. Seven years of famine 4. firmly decided and happening soon

b.
1. find discerning and wise man 2. put him in charge of the land 3. appoint commissioners to take 20% of harvest 4. Store up the grain. 5. Keep it in cities for food 6. use reserves during famine

9.
God has made all known to you, no one so discerning and wise, in charge of palace, all people submit to your orders, Only with respect to the throne will I be greater. In charge

10.
a.
Faith, discernment, wisdom, ability to speak to royalty, honor, truthfulness

b.
The fact that he knew it was nothing he had earned or deserved, in the same way that he had not earned or deserved the hard times. It was simply a new coat

c.
Seek daily to do the will of God and remind everyone that He is all glory, honor and praiseworthy

My Daily Journal:

Did you catch the provision in the math?

Joseph is 100% confident in the interpretation of Pharaoh’s dreams. 7 years of plenty, 7 years of famine. Later we see him talk with his brothers and say we have seen 2 years of famine and we have 5 left. It wasn’t approximately 7 years. It was 7 years.

So, how much food to you need to hold in store from the 7 years of plenty to prepare for exactly 7 years of famine? 1/7th of the harvest per year for 7 years would provide the exact right amount of food for all the people of Egypt. That is about 14.3% per year.

So how much food did God have Joseph tell Pharaoh to store up? 1/5th! 20%!

Was he hedging? Adding a bit extra just in case? Or was there provision in the amount held to expand Egypt. Maybe to bring another hungry nation into the land of Goshen in the very midst of the famine?

BSF Genesis: Week 28: Day 2

Today’s Scriptures

Questions:

3.
Nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit Served others, declined Potiphars wife, accepted prison

in humility value others above self Placed loyalty to master and warden over own self interest

taking the nature of a servant Served Potiphar, served household, served prisoners

obedient All glory to God, obedient to God and men

4.
He, through God, interpreted the dream of the cupbearer and asked him to remember him before Pharoah. 2 years later, he did.

5.
Number 7. Cows out of a river, skinny cows eating fat cows, 2nd dream, 7 , grain swallowed up other grain

6.
16.I cannot do it but God can, 25.God has revealed 28.God has shown what He is about to do 32.firmly decided by God and God will do it soon

My Daily Journal:

I love the way that God reached out and grabbed Pharaoh’s heart. We tend to focus so much on Joseph and his brothers in this story that we can miss Pharaoh.

As the leader of what was probably the most significant nation on the face of the earth Pharaoh would have been a very wise and powerful leader. As a leader, however, he recognized several key limitations. One was information. He could only make decisions based on the information he had available. The second was weather and it’s impact on food supplies. No amount of sorcery or magicians could accurately predict the weather and it’s affects on harvests. As today’s politicians know “it’s the economy”, leaders of that day would have known, “it’s the food.”

So this is exactly how God got Pharaoh’s attention. He gave 2 dreams to pharaoh. He could have given the dreams to anyone to communicate to Pharaoh, but he made them personal to him. But, while He gave Pharaoh the dreams, he did not provide him with the ability to understand their meaning. Without that, they were simply troubling dreams.

God withheld the ability to interpret the dreams from anyone who would not testify to the fact that the interpretation came from God. Enter Joseph.

And the result? Gen 41:38-39, Pharaoh recognizes the God of Israel. He seeks to put someone with the spirit of God in charge and turns everything over to God through the stewardship of such a man.

BSF Genesis: Week 27, Day 4

Today’s Scriptures

Questions:

8.
a.
He came to them in the morning. He noticed they were dejected. He inquired. He witnessed (interpretations belong to God?) He told them what God interpreted in their dreams

b.
To witness to both men. To be remembered by the cupbearer and be shown kindness, to be mentioned to Pharaoh as wrongfully imprisoned

c.
Rely on God. Pay attention and be fully present each day with them. Look for their concerns and turn them over to God. Be honest with them.

9.
a.
It is not of man or by man but comes from God alone

b.
The feeling of being forgotten. But, also, the feeling of unjustness. He was imprisoned in Potiphar’s house. He would have been able to see all that was under him before but now instead of a slave he was a prisoner. While Potiphar didn’t believe him (or did but had to save face with his wife) Potiphar continued to use Joseph and rely on the blessings of God delivered through Joseph.

10.
Hard work, care, concern, patience, honesty, trustworthiness, management, presence

My Daily Journal:

There were a number of things in today’s lesson that grabbed me. One was the pain and disappointment that people often feel when they are cast out of a relationship but still in the same physical location. This made me think about the pain and disappointment divorce can cause. Like Joseph and Potiphar, there was a change of relationship, but Joseph still lived in his household and still interacted with him.

Secondly, one of the men in our group pointed out that this was the first prison ministry on record. An interesting bible trivia point.

Third, I was struck by how present Joseph was with the cupbearer, baker and God. When we go through hardship it can be distracting and cause us to distance ourselves from others. Sometimes we create that situation by allowing ourselves to become distracted by things we clearly do not hold in higher value but we let fill our attention. For example, our family was at dinner in a restaurant and I noticed another table with a mom, dad and 2 children. Mom and dad both had their phones out texting or surfing or playing games. Who knows, they may have been texting each other. But they were totally ignoring the kids. While they were at a restaurant eating as a family, they weren’t present. For us to be like Joseph and find opportunities to witness, to take peoples’ burdens and lay them at the feet of God (as he did), we must first be present.

What is distracting me that I need to turn off? When do I need to fill my mind more with meditating on the word of God than surfing on facebook?

Our TL pointed us to 2 Corinthians 10:5 and the challenge to “take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.”

BSF Genesis: Week 27, Day 3

Today’s Scriptures

Questions

6.
a.
my master has withheld nothing from me except you. How then could I do such a wicked thing and sin against God? Not only did he flee the scene but he let go of his cloak

b.
Recognize it as a sin against God, not just men and not just myself. Look for God’s strength and provision and blessing

7.
a.
While he was a servant, he was put in charge of everything in the household and in the field. Recognized and relied on God being with him and showing him favor and kindness through his obedience

b.
By being with me and continuing to teach me to trust and rely in Him alone and not myself. By reminding me to be humble and obedient and show that all the glory is His.

My Daily Journal:

There are some great lessons in temptation in today’s lesson with Joseph. To start with, Joseph knew the rules and didn’t try to bend them or find loop holes. His right and wrong were black and white, not scales of gray. In this regard he recognized that to do wrong was not only against his earthly master but was a sin against God. When we do wrong we tarnish our ability to reflect God’s righteousness.

Within this I also found it very interesting that Joseph had to part with his cloak to be obedient to God. His brothers had already stripped him of his ornate coat, a gift from his father. Now Potiphar’s wife strips him of the cloak given to him as a slave by his master. Each of these trials seems to result in stripping coats from Joseph. This brought to mind the process involved in refinishing furniture. I wonder if God might have a new coat planned in Joseph’s future that, to wear, he needs to abandon his old uniform.

What do I need to let go of so God can bless me with something new? How firm is my conviction to keeping my mirror clean to reflect God’s full glory instead of tarnishing it with sin?