January 25
Gen 50-Ex 2:10 | PS 21 | Prov 5:1-6 | Matt 16:13-17:9
Many ask what distinguishes the Bible from every other book of antiquity, especially concerning those of other religions. The Bible is the only book with fulfilled prophecy. In fact, approximately 25% of Scripture is prophecy. Every prophetic prediction which could be fulfilled has been fulfilled with precise accuracy. The Bible has also been shown to be textually, historically and archaeologically accurate. An interesting finding in the area of Avaris which is the area of Goshen in the Bible was uncovered. An Egyptian palace was found, but the occupant was not Egyptian. By the rooms it belonged to a very important state official, who was honored for his work for the state. The palace had 12 pillars. In the garden behind the palace, archaeologists found 12 graves with memorial chapels on top of them. One of these tombs was very special because it was a pyramid tomb which is generally reserved for only Pharoahs and queens. Inside the tomb was a large statue, twice the size of a man. The statue of the man had red hair in a mushroom cut and pale yellow skin which is how the Egyptians depicted Semites. On the back of the statue is seen the faintest remains of paint in stripes revealing a multicolored coat. Lastly, aside from the smashed statue, there were no bones, no mummy beads, no coffin wood. The body was removed by someone. We know from Genesis 47:1 that this is where Joseph's family settled, "Then Joseph went and told Pharoah, and said, "My father and my brothers, their flocks and their herds and all that they possess, have come from the land of Canaan; and indeed they are in the land of Goshen." At the end of Genesis, we read in 50:24-26, "And Joseph said to his brethren, "I am dying; but God will surely visit you, and bring you out of this land to the land of which He swore to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob." Then Joseph took an oath from the children of Israel, saying, "God will surely visit you, and you shall carry up my bones from here." So Joseph died, being one hundred and ten years old; and they embalmed him, and he was put in a coffin in Egypt." The story continues approximately 400 years later when Moses leads the Israelites out of Egypt. We read in Exodus 13:19, "And Moses took the bones of Joseph with him, for he placed the children of Israel under solemn oath, saying, "God will surely visit you, and you shall carry up my bones from here with you."
As we move throughout Scripture, at times what is missed is the time frame. Realize that from Joseph arriving in Egypt until the actual Exodus was around 400 years (around 300 years from end of Genesis to the Exodus). To put that in perspective, the Pilgrims arrived on the Mayflower in 1620, around 400 years ago in our own nation. Joseph was a godly man, and he helped lead the nation. But we read in Exodus 1:8-10, "Now there arose a new king over Egypt, who did not know Joseph. And he said to his people, “Look, the people of the children of Israel are more and mightier than we; come, let us deal shrewdly with them,...". We then see Pharoah, for fear of the Jewish multitude, leading his nation into infanticide, as he first tries to coerce the midwives to murder the newborn males, which fails (Exodus 1:15-21). Then he simply issued the command for all newborn male Israelite children to be cast into the Nile River. This is horrible, and should be unthinkable. Yet before we wag our fingers too long at the Egyptians, let us consider our own roots. The Pilgrims were godly individuals. If you erase how Hollywood depicts them and evaluate their writings, such as Pilgrim's Progress by John Bunyan, along with others, you will see the deep reverence for the things of God that these men and women had. Now 400 years later, our own state of New Jersey (which is not the first state to do so), just passed legislation allowing death in the womb under the banner of abortion and Woman's rights to take place up to the full term of gestation. Just because we have devised evil techniques to do this inside the womb rather than after birth does not negate what is being done. Babies who could be born without any support other than being fed and cared for in the usual manner, are now able to be killed. This should not just be illegal, but should be just as unthinkable as the infanticide put forth by Pharoah so long ago.
You might be thinking, "What can I do, I'm only one person". We read Jesus' words in Matthew 16:24-26, "Then Jesus said to His disciples, “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me. For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it. For what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?" Though some are called to publicly demonstrate, others may not be able to for one reason or another. But we still have mouths, and we have our own mission fields. Your sphere of influence differs from mine. Have you let others know about this recent ruling on abortion in our own state? Have you let others know how you feel about this? More importantly, have you let others know about Jesus, and His free offer of salvation? If not, what is it that stops you? God simply asks us to be bold and not cowardly. He will help us with the words if we present ourselves willing and empty vessels for His purpose. The Bible can be trusted and is just as relevant now as when it was first written. In our nation we have a rich heritage, but we are living in godless times, as our nation looks nothing like it did when it first began. Though being outspoken for His kingdom may cost us personally, take to heart Mordecai's words to Queen Esther in Esther 4:14, "For if you remain completely silent at this time, relief and deliverance will arise for the Jews from another place, but you and your father’s house will perish. Yet who knows whether you have come to the kingdom for such a time as this?” This is exactly where we belong, "for such a time as this".
Messages from Pastor Lloyd Pulley: