Can I pray for you in any way? Send any prayer requests to faithhopegodlove@aol.com In Christ, Mark
"Then Israel said to Joseph, "I am about to die, but God will be with you and take you back to the land of your fathers. And to you, as one who is over your brothers, I give the ridge of land I took from the Amorites with my sword and my bow." Then Jacob called for his sons and said: "Gather around so I can tell you what will happen to you in days to come. "Assemble and listen, sons of Jacob; listen to your father Israel. "Reuben, you are my firstborn, my might, the first sign of my strength, excelling in honor, excelling in power. Turbulent as the waters, you will no longer excel, for you went up onto your father's bed, onto my couch and defiled it. "Simeon and Levi are brothers— their swords are weapons of violence. Let me not enter their council, let me not join their assembly, for they have killed men in their anger and hamstrung oxen as they pleased. Cursed be their anger, so fierce, and their fury, so cruel! I will scatter them in Jacob and disperse them in Israel. "Judah, your brothers will praise you; your hand will be on the neck of your enemies; your father's sons will bow down to you. You are a lion's cub, O Judah; you return from the prey, my son. Like a lion he crouches and lies down, like a lioness—who dares to rouse him? The scepter will not depart from Judah, nor the ruler's staff from between his feet, until he comes to whom it belongs and the obedience of the nations is his. He will tether his donkey to a vine, his colt to the choicest branch; he will wash his garments in wine, his robes in the blood of grapes. His eyes will be darker than wine, his teeth whiter than milk." Genesis 48:21-22, 49:1-12
After Jacob finishes blessing Joseph and his sons, Ephraim and Manasseh, he calls the rest of his sons to be with him. All twelve gather around him as Jacob addresses each, one at a time, and prophecies what their tribe will be like in accordance with the characteristics of the son…the tribe’s namesake. In his prophecy, we can learn something about the importance of the word legacy.
First up, Jacob addresses Reuben…the eldest son…the firstborn…the one that deserved Jacob’s blessing. Instead, he earned his curse as Jacob predicted that his son "will no longer excel." Why? Because Reuben had committed adultery with Bilhah, Jacob’s wife, something that Jacob never forgot. So Reuben lost his chance to be blessed and left behind a legacy of deceit and infidelity…all because he decided that fulfilling his selfish needs were greater than staying true to God’s will and way. His one night stand cost him a lifetime of honor and respect.
Question: How about today? How often do we see people who seemingly have everything going for them throw it all away over pursuit of their own selfish desires vice doing what is right? It only takes one impropriety to wipe away years of work in establishing a solid reputation. And once you lose it…you may never regain it. If you went back and asked Reuben whether he thought it was worth it, I’m pretty sure he would have said it wasn’t. There are many people today who have erred similarly who would say likewise.
Next, Jacob addressed Simeon and Levi. Like Reuben, they had everything going for them as well. After Reuben’s fall, they would have been next in line to receive their father’s blessing. But there was that matter at Shechem. You’ll remember that Shechem himself lusted after their sister Dinah and ended up raping her. In revenge for their sister’s rape, Simeon and Levi tricked the men of Shechem into getting circumcised, promising that they would be allowed to marry the Israelite women if they did. But they really wanted to enter Shechem and murder all the men of the town before plundering the entire town. Their murderous rampage left Jacob angry and disgraced evident in his words to them as he said, "Let me not enter their council, let me not join their assembly, for they have killed men in their anger and hamstrung oxen as they pleased. Cursed be their anger, so fierce, and their fury, so cruel!" So Simeon and Levi left a legacy of revenge and bloodshed. Their killing spree cost them any chance of gaining what Reuben had thrown away before them.
Question: How about today? How many people get so overcome by anger and rage that they give in to murderous thoughts and kill others? Too often I’m afraid. The death that results from the fierce anger and accompanying fury truly is a curse and a tragedy on every occurrence.
Well, this would be a bad news devotional if it weren’t for Judah. Where the other three brothers had fallen from grace with their father, Judah was elevated to a state of honor. We read in Jacob’s words that how Judah will command respect ("your brothers will praise you; your hand will be on the neck of your enemies; your father's sons will bow down to you"), reign in power ("the scepter will not depart from Judah, nor the ruler's staff from between his feet, until he comes to whom it belongs and the obedience of the nations is his") and be successful (he will tether his donkey to a vine, his colt to the choicest branch; he will wash his garments in wine, his robes in the blood of grapes. His eyes will be darker than wine, his teeth whiter than milk). Why did Judah gain this level of honor?
Well we can see in scripture how Judah was the brother who was willing to sacrifice himself for the good of his youngest brother Benjamin if there arose a problem where he was not allowed to return home from Egypt. You’ll recall that Jacob was apprehensive about sending Benjamin but Judah stepped in to put him at ease.
You’ll also remember that it was Judah who spoke up and interceded for Benjamin and the rest of his brothers when Joseph had his silver cup planted in Benjamin’s bag. Judah’s impassioned plea showed his willingness to exhibit courage and honor during a crisis. It showed that he was willing to put himself on the line for the ones he loved.
Question: So what is your legacy? Is it one of sinful living and a bad reputation? Or is it the opposite? Are you respected and revered for your ability to stand up for what is right and to live a life that is driven by God’s will, not your own? It really is a matter of choice, you know. We all have the capacity to be as good or as bad as we want to be. It’s called free will. But there’s a catch. For exercising free will on your terms is often costly. Just ask Reuben…or Simeon…or Levi…or countless others today who fell and fell hard from their sinful actions. The Lord grants us free will but expects that will to be His will so we can be set free to accomplish His purpose. And there can be no greater legacy than one that followed God’s way from start to finish. Amen.
In Christ,
Mark
PS: Please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it.
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