Jesus deeply desired that people understand and acknowledge the truth.  It made His heart hurt, surely grieving Him to the core, knowing that the truth would be rejected over and over again throughout the ages before He’d come a second time to judge people according to this very truth.  “Simply human?  Got it,” thought Jesus, “but it’s not the same as innocent or ignorant.  This was rebellion, plain and simple.  They know the truth and reject it.” 

Living by the truth is much harder when people refuse to acknowledge truth as the starting point.

These were among the thoughts in Jesus’ mind as He headed toward Jerusalem with the hot dusty wind leaving a cake of dust on His sweaty face.  Finding a welcoming place to stay at night and to wash, He then went to the place where people gathered, and He sat down to teach them.  After all, He knew the truth firsthand and wanted them to know it too.  He smiled to Himself as one of those gathered, an expert in the law, stood up to ask Him a question.  “It’s a test,” He thought suppressing a laugh. “It’s always a test which is not the same as expressing a genuine desire to learn.” 

“Teacher,” the expert asked, “what must I do to inherit eternal life?”

(Luke 10:25)

Jesus’ expression remained welcoming but thoughtful. “OK, expert in the law,” He thought while inwardly chuckling, “Let’s play your game, let you shine, and then let’s ask the questions that will truly teach you.”  He asked,

Luke 10:26 “What is written in the Law? How do you read it?”

The expert eagerly answered 27 ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind’; and, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ ”

28 “You have answered correctly,” Jesus replied. “Do this and you will live.”

(Jesus smiled and His eyes twinkled. This expert answered with the easy answer. Sure, he was well educated for grandstanding, but this expert’s life could experience some greater evidence of love and truth.)

29 But the expert in the law wanted to justify himself, so he asked Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?”

(Jesus smiled again.  It was completely predictable, this self-justification.  But herein lies the true teaching, so Jesus tells a parable, kind of like a story, or a little riddle, but easily enough understood for those with eyes to see. The beauty of this teaching was the way truths were peeled away like many layers of an onion. The core truth was what He wanted the expert to acknowledge.)

Luke 10:30 In reply Jesus said: “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, when he was attacked by robbers. They stripped him of his clothes, beat him and went away, leaving him half dead. 31 A priest happened to be going down the same road, and when he saw the man, he passed by on the other side. 32 So too, a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. 33 But a Samaritan, as he traveled, came where the man was; and when he saw him, he took pity on him. 34 He went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he put the man on his own donkey, brought him to an inn and took care of him. 35 The next day he took out two denarii and gave them to the innkeeper. ‘Look after him,’ he said, ‘and when I return, I will reimburse you for any extra expense you may have.’

With the parable concluded, Jesus reframed the expert’s question “And who is my neighbor?” with the bigger question in Luke 10:36 “Which of these three do you think was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of robbers?” 37 The expert in the law replied, “The one who had mercy on him.” Jesus told him, “Go and do likewise.”

It’s not just a matter of testing what you know or showing off what you know.  It’s a matter of doing what you know to do.  Think about it:

• In what ways do we fail to practice what we preach? 
• Why does God presume we already love ourselves? 
• How is loving a neighbor to that standard of loving others as we love ourselves already a challenge? 
• How are loving our enemies (Matthew 5:44) and loving them as Christ loved us (John 15:22) revealing a whole new standard?
• Why do you think that people were chronically testing Jesus? 
• How does this differ from God’s testing us to prove that our faith is genuine (1 Peter 1:7 NASB)?

Thank You, Lord Jesus, for the gentle ways You teach us, ways that do not condemn, but also do not sugarcoat reality of the depravity of the human heart. Thank You, Lord God, for not lowering the standards of righteousness to meet us somewhere in the middle between Your holy and righteous standards and our sinful behavior. Thank You for higher, better, and uncompromising standards of conduct and especially, Lord Jesus, for the forgiveness You purchased on our behalf at the Cross because we fail to meet these standards at every turn. Thank You Holy Spirit for quickening our hearts and helping us to see our neighbor in order to love and serve others. In Jesus’ Name, we offer thanks to God our Father. Amen.

If you’re already signed up on my Home Page sidebar to receive posts, you’ll get the 2019 Lent Devotionals automatically. Or you can “Like” Seminary Gal on Facebook and they’ll be delivered to your Facebook news feed. If you haven’t signed up, today is a great day to do so. Advent and Lenten devotionals remain among my most popular offerings. You don’t want to miss this great look at the Easter story to prepare your heart for Easter! Understanding that prior years’ devotionals remain popular,

• Lent 2013 looked at The Letter to the Romans: Paul’s Masterpiece to reclaim foundations of our Christian heritage and began February 13, 2013.
•  A very special and ever popular offering was Lent 2014’s Be Still and Know that I AM God  which can be obtained through the archives beginning in March 2014. 
• Lent 2015 began on February 18, 2015 with a series entitled With Christ in the Upper Room: Final Preparations.  We explored what is often called “The Upper Room Discourse” found in John chapters 13-17. 
• ReKindle, the Lent 2016 series, began on February 10, 2016 and encouraged us to rekindle our spiritual lives.
• Light: There’s Nothing Like It was the 2017 Lent series and explored this metaphor often used to portray Christ.  It is archived beginning March 1, 2017.
• Lent 2018, we explored the questions of Pi and Chi (the Greek letter beginning the word Christos, which means Christ, Messiah, the Anointed One). We asked and answered the questions “Why?” from the movie Life of Pi as we discovered the uniqueness of Jesus Christ in a world of many faiths.

Psalm 113:3 From the rising of the sun to the place where it sets, the name of the LORD is to be praised. (NIV)

Lent 2019 devotionals “More to the Easter Story” resume tomorrow after the Sabbath rest. Enjoy a day of worship!

Jesus saw them returning in pairs and could hardly contain His smile when each pair arrived.  It was the smile of a parent who sees his child do something for the first time, that smile of accomplishment because He knew they could do it, and the smile of a man who loved His disciples!  He was gratified that they’d learned. 

Luke 10: 17 The seventy-two returned with joy and said, “Lord, even the demons submit to us in your name.” But He didn’t want them to get the wrong idea so He replied first with encouragement, 18″I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven.”

Jesus saw their triumphant faces and so He emphasized where the power truly came from and the matters truly worth rejoicing over.  It’d be way too easy for them to think that it was their accomplishment alone, but “simply humans” can’t do that kind of thing.  It’d be easy for them to get big heads and turn arrogant which leads to unloving behavior…which of course, would ruin their whole ministry so Jesus said,

Luke 10:19 I have given you authority to trample on snakes and scorpions and to overcome all the power of the enemy; nothing will harm you. 20 However, do not rejoice that the spirits submit to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven.”

Correction aside, Jesus was really pleased. It was a joyful report!  They’d been tested, and they passed. 

So Jesus prayed aloud 21 At that time Jesus, full of joy through the Holy Spirit, said, “I praise you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and learned, and revealed them to little children. Yes, Father, for this is what you were pleased to do.

 22 “All things have been committed to me by my Father. No one knows who the Son is except the Father, and no one knows who the Father is except the Son and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal him.” 23 Then he turned to his disciples and said privately, “Blessed are the eyes that see what you see. 24 For I tell you that many prophets and kings wanted to see what you see but did not see it, and to hear what you hear but did not hear it.”

Think about it:

• When you think about Jesus, do you picture Him as smiling and laughing, or only profoundly serious?
• Why do you think Jesus praised the Father in front of the disciples, letting them hear His prayer?
• In what way did that reinforce where the power for ministry comes from?
• Verse 23 suggests that the larger group of 72 (Luke 10:17) were not the audience for the blessing, only the Twelve. Why do you think that is?

Thank You, Father, for the wisdom in giving blessing where blessing will be received with open hearts and bear fruit for the Kingdom. Thank You, Lord, for joy and pleasure and knowing You experience those things too. Thank You, Lord Jesus, for revealing things about Yourself to Your disciples then, and through the power of the Holy Spirit, revealing and teaching things about Yourself to us today. We praise You that we are generations entrusted with the precious Gospel and given power to proclaim it faithfully so we can bring glory to You. Keep us mindful from where both the power to proclaim and the gift of salvation arise! Amen.

If you’re already signed up on my Home Page sidebar to receive posts, you’ll get the 2019 Lent Devotionals automatically. Or you can “Like” Seminary Gal on Facebook and they’ll be delivered to your Facebook news feed. If you haven’t signed up, today is a great day to do so. Advent and Lenten devotionals remain among my most popular offerings. You don’t want to miss this great look at the Easter story to prepare your heart for Easter! Understanding that prior years’ devotionals remain popular,

• Lent 2013 looked at The Letter to the Romans: Paul’s Masterpiece to reclaim foundations of our Christian heritage and began February 13, 2013.
•  A very special and ever popular offering was Lent 2014’s Be Still and Know that I AM God  which can be obtained through the archives beginning in March 2014. 
• Lent 2015 began on February 18, 2015 with a series entitled With Christ in the Upper Room: Final Preparations.  We explored what is often called “The Upper Room Discourse” found in John chapters 13-17. 
• ReKindle, the Lent 2016 series, began on February 10, 2016 and encouraged us to rekindle our spiritual lives.
• Light: There’s Nothing Like It was the 2017 Lent series and explored this metaphor often used to portray Christ.  It is archived beginning March 1, 2017.
• Lent 2018, we explored the questions of Pi and Chi (the Greek letter beginning the word Christos, which means Christ, Messiah, the Anointed One). We asked and answered the questions “Why?” from the movie Life of Pi as we discovered the uniqueness of Jesus Christ in a world of many faiths.

Jesus knew that heading to Jerusalem meant heading to His death.  He knew it was going to be hard on His disciples and that they’d feel lost without Him.  They must be prepared!  Of course, He’d been talking about this very thing for a while now, but those “simply humans” couldn’t understand right now.  He knew that. 

But He loved His disciples and therefore, wanted to use every moment that remained to train the disciples to lead after He had returned to His Father and to lead to the next generations.  There was much work to do and initially there would be very few to do it.  That few would be decreased dramatically before there would be an infusion of many more. 

Jesus endeavored always to train them up, send them out, bring them back and do a debrief.  That way He could train them in an ongoing way, overcome any problems that arose, and answer any questions they had.  He knew that ministry can be confusing and it’s good to have friends.  It gets lonely and it can be dangerous, so He sent them out in pairs. 

Luke 10:1 After this the Lord appointed seventy-two others and sent them two by two ahead of him to every town and place where he was about to go. 2 He told them, “The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field. 3 Go! I am sending you out like lambs among wolves. 4 Do not take a purse or bag or sandals; and do not greet anyone on the road.

Their welcome would be every bit as risky and uncertain as was His own.  Some would embrace the message His disciples brought, but others would reject them and become unworthy of peace they came to bring.  Peace that was painful—as peace often is–and would be bought with a price, a price so high that no man who is simply human could ever afford to pay.

Think about it:

• Why is it important to have succession planning for a mission that spans longer than any worker’s season? 
• In what way does this make mankind more dependent upon God? 
• If every task could be accomplished by one able-bodied person, would God even be necessary for the work to happen?

Father God, we thank You that Your plan of redemption is taking centuries to accomplish.  We thank You that in Your wisdom, You chose to save many generations and not just a few.  We thank You that we are building upon the faithfulness of generations of evangelists from 2000 years ago and beyond!  We thank You, Lord Jesus for not leaving us alone, but for asking the Father to send the Holy Spirit, this beautiful gift of Yourself to lead us and guide us after You left the earth!  We praise You that the Holy Spirit can indwell many believers simultaneously and so multiply Your fruit upon this earth.  May the words of our mouths bring glory to You and salt to the earth.  Be glorified in us today!  Amen!

If you’re already signed up on my Home Page sidebar to receive posts, you’ll get the 2019 Lent Devotionals automatically. Or you can “Like” Seminary Gal on Facebook and they’ll be delivered to your Facebook news feed. If you haven’t signed up, today is a great day to do so. Advent and Lenten devotionals remain among my most popular offerings. You don’t want to miss this great look at the Easter story to prepare your heart for Easter! Understanding that prior years’ devotionals remain popular,

• Lent 2013 looked at The Letter to the Romans: Paul’s Masterpiece to reclaim foundations of our Christian heritage and began February 13, 2013.
•  A very special and ever popular offering was Lent 2014’s Be Still and Know that I AM God  which can be obtained through the archives beginning in March 2014. 
• Lent 2015 began on February 18, 2015 with a series entitled With Christ in the Upper Room: Final Preparations.  We explored what is often called “The Upper Room Discourse” found in John chapters 13-17. 
• ReKindle, the Lent 2016 series, began on February 10, 2016 and encouraged us to rekindle our spiritual lives.
• Light: There’s Nothing Like It was the 2017 Lent series and explored this metaphor often used to portray Christ.  It is archived beginning March 1, 2017.
• Lent 2018, we explored the questions of Pi and Chi (the Greek letter beginning the word Christos, which means Christ, Messiah, the Anointed One). We asked and answered the questions “Why?” from the movie Life of Pi as we discovered the uniqueness of Jesus Christ in a world of many faiths.

He was heading to Jerusalem and already had plenty of disciples.  He’d gain and lose quite a few more before it’s all said and done.  He had the Twelve, that more-or-less faithful band (individually and as a group) who stuck by His side over many miles of the journey.  Even when they were arguing about who was the greatest, Jesus loved them.  They didn’t get it that He was the greatest. (After all, He was leading and they were following.) But Jesus just chalked it up to “simply human” and let it go.

There were so many people–all of whom were simply human. They were sometimes hangers-on, wannabes, gapers or yes, critics.  He knew He was a tough act to follow. 

And it would get tougher.  Some people would hate Him and His disciples simply because they were Jews (religious hatred).  Some would hate Him because He was headed for Jerusalem (hatred for a place).  Others would find His teachings too controversial (hating what He stands for).  And then there were the people jumping on Jesus’ demon-driving-bandwagon. They wanted to be part of good things, but for all the wrong reasons.  His disciples pointing out that some are “of us” and some of them “are not” didn’t contribute to unity. In fact, it undermined the cause of discipleship.  To that “you’re not part of our club” mentality, Jesus said to them firmly,

“Don’t stop him, for whoever is not against you is for you.” 

They’d need to remember that advice because going to Jerusalem meant that following would get even harder to do.  Discipleship would have enough obstacles there without creating them.  Crowds come, some maybe wanting to be a part of the next big thing, but crowds also go.  And serving the King of Heaven is always easier desired than accomplished.

52 And he sent messengers on ahead, who went into a Samaritan village to get things ready for him; 53 but the people there did not welcome him, because he was heading for Jerusalem. 54 When the disciples James and John saw this, they asked, “Lord, do you want us to call fire down from heaven to destroy them?” 55 But Jesus turned and rebuked them. 56 Then he and his disciples went to another village. 57 As they were walking along the road, a man said to him, “I will follow you wherever you go.” 58 Jesus replied, “Foxes have dens and birds have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay his head.”

 59 He said to another man, “Follow me.” But he replied, “Lord, first let me go and bury my father.” 60 Jesus said to him, “Let the dead bury their own dead, but you go and proclaim the kingdom of God.” 61 Still another said, “I will follow you, Lord; but first let me go back and say goodbye to my family.” 62 Jesus replied, “No one who puts a hand to the plow and looks back is fit for service in the kingdom of God.”

Think about it:

• In what ways is Jesus still a tough act to follow?
• Is it getting easier or harder? Why?
• What kinds of excuses do you see in your life or in the lives of those you know for an unwillingness to follow Jesus?

Father God, please grant us the courage for these last days, that we might bring glory to You by our faithful endurance. Lord Jesus, thank You for being the author and perfecter of our faith and for paving the way ahead of us, showing us by Your example what overcoming looks like. Holy Spirit, embolden us with Your truth and Your righteousness so we may bear fruit for the Kingdom. Make us fit for service to the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords. Amen.

= = =

Beginning with the time that Jesus set out resolutely for Jerusalem until the empty tomb, there’s so much more to Jesus’ story at the time we call Easter, for Him the Passover. Let’s listen in His own words from the Gospel of Luke (with a few of mine for painting the scene) to let His Word shine.

If you’re already signed up on my Home Page sidebar to receive posts, you’ll get the 2019 Lent Devotionals automatically. Or you can “Like” Seminary Gal on Facebook and they’ll be delivered to your Facebook news feed. If you haven’t signed up, today is a great day to do so. Advent and Lenten devotionals remain among my most popular offerings. You don’t want to miss this great look at the Easter story to prepare your heart for Easter!

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Acknowledging that former years’ devotional series remain popular:

• Lent 2013 looked at The Letter to the Romans: Paul’s Masterpiece to reclaim foundations of our Christian heritage and began February 13, 2013.
•  A very special and ever popular offering was Lent 2014’s Be Still and Know that I AM God  which can be obtained through the archives beginning in March 2014. 
• Lent 2015 began on February 18, 2015 with a series entitled With Christ in the Upper Room: Final Preparations.  We explored what is often called “The Upper Room Discourse” found in John chapters 13-17. 
• ReKindle, the Lent 2016 series, began on February 10, 2016 and encouraged us to rekindle our spiritual lives.
• Light: There’s Nothing Like It was the 2017 Lent series and explored this metaphor often used to portray Christ.  It is archived beginning March 1, 2017.
• Lent 2018, we explored the questions of Pi and Chi (the Greek letter beginning the word Christos, which means Christ, Messiah, the Anointed One). We asked and answered the questions “Why?” from the movie Life of Pi as we discovered the uniqueness of Jesus Christ in a world of many faiths.

How He’d looked forward to this so many times!  Going home!  He thought back to just a few days earlier when He’d had a mountaintop moment in the presence of His disciples Peter, John, and James (Luke 9:28-36).  It refreshed Him endlessly to have been speaking with Moses and Elijah about His departure which He was about to bring to fulfillment in Jerusalem.  Sure, He’d been at this work since before He was born, but now 30 years into the Incarnation, He was overjoyed at the prospect of being reunified … in the eternal realm … with His Father.  He missed dwelling there away from the earthly realm with all the problems caused by human sin.  But that was the reason He was sent and the reason He came. 

Luke 9:51 As the time approached for him to be taken up to heaven, Jesus resolutely set out for Jerusalem.  52 And he sent messengers on ahead, who went into a Samaritan village to get things ready for him; 53 but the people there did not welcome him, because he was heading for Jerusalem. 

Jerusalem!  It is there He’d find the one last and pivotal piece of work to finish: The Cross.  It loomed ahead of Him like a glorious and grim finish line.  Glorious, because the moment of reunification in the heavenly realm …but grim also, because there was plenty of rejection between here and there and the battle to be won in His death. 

Think about it:

• Do we often view earth as being so good we wouldn’t want to leave it? 
• Are there any things about the earthly realm you’d miss (e.g. marriage, childbirth, etc.)? 
• What do you think heaven offers that makes those things irrelevant? 

Lord Jesus, we praise You and thank You for being sent to earth to teach us and redeem us.  Thank You, Father, for the sacrifice You also made to show us what love truly looks like.  Thank You, Holy Spirit, for teaching us by taking from what belongs to Christ Jesus and making it known to us.  Help us, Lord, to anticipate Your return and our homecoming with great joy and watchful obedience.  Amen.

= = =

Beginning with the time that Jesus set out resolutely for Jerusalem until the empty tomb, there’s so much more to Jesus’ story at the time we call Easter, for Him the Passover. Let’s listen in His own words from the Gospel of Luke (with a few of mine for painting the scene) to let His Word shine.

If you’re already signed up on my Home Page sidebar to receive posts, you’ll get the 2019 Lent Devotionals automatically. Or you can “Like” Seminary Gal on Facebook and they’ll be delivered to your Facebook news feed. If you haven’t signed up, today is a great day to do so. Advent and Lenten devotionals remain among my most popular offerings. You don’t want to miss this great look at the Easter story to prepare your heart for Easter! Understanding that prior years’ devotionals remain popular,

===

Acknowledging that former years’ devotional series remain popular:

• Lent 2013 looked at The Letter to the Romans: Paul’s Masterpiece to reclaim foundations of our Christian heritage and began February 13, 2013.
•  A very special and ever popular offering was Lent 2014’s Be Still and Know that I AM God  which can be obtained through the archives beginning in March 2014. 
• Lent 2015 began on February 18, 2015 with a series entitled With Christ in the Upper Room: Final Preparations.  We explored what is often called “The Upper Room Discourse” found in John chapters 13-17. 
• ReKindle, the Lent 2016 series, began on February 10, 2016 and encouraged us to rekindle our spiritual lives.
• Light: There’s Nothing Like It was the 2017 Lent series and explored this metaphor often used to portray Christ.  It is archived beginning March 1, 2017.
• Lent 2018, we explored the questions of Pi and Chi (the Greek letter beginning the word Christos, which means Christ, Messiah, the Anointed One). We asked and answered the questions “Why?” from the movie Life of Pi as we discovered the uniqueness of Jesus Christ in a world of many faiths.

Lent begins on Ash Wednesday, March 6th and will continue for 40 days plus the Sabbath rests. This year, the Lent Devotional Series is entitled “More to the Easter Story” and applies the admonition from Advent (“Just tell My story”) to the Easter story because there’s always more than meets the eye.

Given the retail store displays appearing right after any Valentine’s love for chocolate has grown cold–and gets set up in the Clearance Aisle at 70% off– you’d think that Easter was really all about chicks and bunnies, eggs and candies of varying kinds. But there’s more to the Easter story than a superficial commercialization. You won’t find chicks, bunnies, or candies in this Easter story. There’s an egg, but not for hunting.

Beginning with the time that Jesus set out resolutely for Jerusalem until the empty tomb, there’s so much more to Jesus’ story at the time we call Easter, for Him the Passover. Let’s listen in His own words from the Gospel of Luke (with a few of mine for painting the scene) to let His Word shine.

If you’re already signed up on my Home Page sidebar to receive posts, you’ll get the 2019 Lent Devotionals automatically. Or you can “Like” Seminary Gal on Facebook and they’ll be delivered to your Facebook news feed. If you haven’t signed up, today is a great day to do so. Advent and Lenten devotionals remain among my most popular offerings. You don’t want to miss this great look at the Easter story to prepare your heart for Easter!

===

Acknowledging that former years’ devotional series remain popular:

• Lent 2013 looked at The Letter to the Romans: Paul’s Masterpiece to reclaim foundations of our Christian heritage and began February 13, 2013.
•  A very special and ever popular offering was Lent 2014’s Be Still and Know that I AM God  which can be obtained through the archives beginning in March 2014. 
• Lent 2015 began on February 18, 2015 with a series entitled With Christ in the Upper Room: Final Preparations.  We explored what is often called “The Upper Room Discourse” found in John chapters 13-17. 
• ReKindle, the Lent 2016 series, began on February 10, 2016 and encouraged us to rekindle our spiritual lives.
• Light: There’s Nothing Like It was the 2017 Lent series and explored this metaphor often used to portray Christ.  It is archived beginning March 1, 2017.
• Lent 2018, we explored the questions of Pi and Chi (the Greek letter beginning the word Christos, which means Christ, Messiah, the Anointed One). We asked and answered the questions “Why?” from the movie Life of Pi as we discovered the uniqueness of Jesus Christ in a world of many faiths.

Genesis 37: 12 Now his brothers had gone to graze their father’s flocks near Shechem, 13 and Israel said to Joseph, “As you know, your brothers are grazing the flocks near Shechem. Come, I am going to send you to them.” “Very well,” he replied. 14 So he said to him, “Go and see if all is well with your brothers and with the flocks, and bring word back to me.” Then he sent him off from the Valley of Hebron.

All of Joseph’s brothers except probably 10-year-old Benjamin were out working with the sheep.  Only Joseph and Benjamin (sons of favorite wife Rachel) would have been at home.  Let that sink in.  How must the other brothers have felt about this?  They’re slaving away near Shechem with their lesser pedigrees in the hot sun with a bunch of stinkin’ sheep.  But Joseph—seventeen and old enough to dream of authority with his famous coat–is hanging out with baby brother and dear old Dad in the shade of a tent in the Valley of Hebron.

Then it’s like he’s Agent 007 getting sent on a mission.  Jacob says, “As you know” … and then sends him to investigate the brothers and report back. 

Only Jacob didn’t know it was a dangerous mission or that Joseph as emissary wouldn’t return as planned.

But let’s not jump ahead of ourselves.  Joseph is sent on a mission to Shechem which was a good four or five-day journey.  He no doubt had a lot to think about as he traveled in the now famous coat.  Pondering dreams?  Fear of the wilderness?  The Ancient Near East equivalent of being afraid to wear Canada Goose jackets or Air Jordans for fear of being killed for what you’re wearing because it’s a prestige item and an invitation for robbers?  Who knows?

.

One wonders if Joseph saw anyone earlier along the journey and whether they thought he might be a dignitary or a rich guy or wanted to get his autograph or kill him and take his coat.  Scripture doesn’t say, hinting that those details are unimportant for the story’s progression. 

What is important is that Joseph obeyed a direct command from Dad to go look in on his brothers and to issue another report.  Since it went so well the last time.  Not.

Think about it:

1. If Joseph had taken it upon himself to observe his brothers and report back, the responsibility would have been his alone and his father would have experienced one level of regret.  What type of regret would that have been?
2. To send your favorite son into a situation that your favoritism created–but you did not see–what does this tell you about the willful blindness of Jacob to the danger he was sending his son into by sending him to do another report? 
3. Have you ever had such a blind spot toward someone or something that you couldn’t see clearly?
4. How does a father sending his son into a situation where he’d be rejected by his brothers and after a time of suffering, rise to being a ruler set a pattern that we’d later see displayed in the life of Christ? 
5. However, when God sent Jesus into this world to suffer and die for human sin, they both knew exactly what was going to happen.  How do we know God knew?  How do we know Jesus knew? 
6. How does Jacob’s not knowing amplify his later regret and reframe his complicity?

As we continue our look at Joseph: A Life With Many Colors, we see the dreamer keeps on dreaming.  And talking about it.  This time, not just to his brothers who are more than tired of this dreamer.  Now he’s telling his father too.

Genesis 37:9 Then he had another dream, and he told it to his brothers. “Listen,” he said, “I had another dream, and this time the sun and moon and eleven stars were bowing down to me.” 10 When he told his father as well as his brothers, his father rebuked him and said, “What is this dream you had? Will your mother and I and your brothers actually come and bow down to the ground before you?”

.

Two dreams, two reactions. 

His brothers were jealous of him, but his father kept the matter in mind. (Genesis 37:11)

What does it mean that Jacob would keep the matter in mind?

By this point in Joseph’s life (age 17ish), his mother Rachel has already been dead 7 years (which may have created the favoritism to begin with, a transfer of his affections from wife to son).  Rachel died giving birth to Benjamin, Joseph’s only full brother. 

In the dream, who is this “mother” … is she Rachel from beyond the grave?  Leah as adoptive mother?  One of the concubines (Jewish tradition has Bilhah as Jacob’s favorite after Rachel died)?  It’s hard to say.  What isn’t hard to say is that it was tough for the brothers to choke back their total indignation and extreme envy.  What isn’t hard to say is that it’s one thing to give a bad report about siblings, receive and wear a coat of authority given by your father, and to dream about brother-sheaves bowing, but it’s another thing entirely to suggest to your dad and “mom” that your authority will extend over them, too.

(Pausing from the storyline for a moment, we begin to see in the progression in Scripture of the idea of kingship and ruling.  It’s emerging from within the Chosen People, the tribes of Israel.  Maybe that’s why Jacob pondered the significance and whether there was something spiritual, beyond-the-grave-ish about the whole thing.  Maybe he was sensing a dawning of God’s work in fulfilling the covenant he’d heard from God.  Maybe that’s just wishful thinking on my part, wanting to imagine he’s like Mary, the mother of Jesus, treasuring these things up in her heart because there’s a sense of significance even if one can’t put a finger on exactly what it is.  Understanding that what was happening was powerful and real, yet confusing, mysterious, and intriguing all wrapped up into one.)

But it could be Jacob was brooding over having given that stupid coat since it appeared to be a factor causing all this big-headed audacity.  Maybe he was just annoyed because this kid is giving evidence of bucking a long-held tradition of respecting your elders.  It’s hard to say why Jacob kept the matter in mind.

Think about it:

1. In what ways do you think Jacob might be seeing an outcome of his favoritism? 
2. But, also there’s this issue: Jacob had had his own dreams and knew their significance in his life.  In Genesis 28:10-22, Jacob dreamed about angels descending and ascending a staircase and it was evidence to him of God’s presence and the covenant promise of God being extended to himself.  In Genesis 31:1-13, Jacob had a dream that was from God about blessing and providing inside knowledge that God was fully aware of what deception his father-in-law Laban had been doing.  It was unmistakable evidence of God’s omniscience.  Might Jacob have wondered about God’s activity in Joseph’s dreams, too?
3. It’s easy for us to speculate about the dreams and people’s reactions knowing the end of the story.  The truth is Scripture doesn’t tell us why Jacob kept the matter in mind, only that he did.  In what ways does this story of two dreams—even the brothers’ envy—advance the overall narrative of the Chosen People, headed toward slavery and a Mosaic deliverance, a Davidic kingship, and the coming of the Messiah?  That all Scripture is an integrated whole is a thought to keep in mind as we continue to look at Joseph: A Life With Many Colors.