Joshua 1:8 Ministry

God Is Still Speaking

2011-01-18T08:06:00.001-08:00

Throughout the Bible we see God communicating to man in different ways. He spoke directly to men (Adam, Eve, Abraham, Paul, etc.), He used His angels (Gideon, Mary, etc.), He entered man's dreams (Jacob, Abimelech, Solomon, Joseph, etc.), my personal favorite is animals (Balaam), Jesus came also to speak to man, God utilized His Spirit to talk with man, and His Word cries out to men. If this is how God communicated to His children, then is this how He still communicates to them today? It is my belief God still talks to us in the same way, but I fully admitting to the fact I have never had an animal talk to me directly. I do not believe the communication problem is with God, the break down is with man.

The true question we should be asking is, am I listening for God? We are so bombarded with communication outlets we tone them out. How many times have you been reading, while the ballgame or your favorite show is on the TV? Still yet at the same time a radio is playing in the background, then you get a text. While replying to the text your phone rings. We are filled with communication tools in our society, but do we know how to communicate to our creator? Looking at the men and women throughout the Bible, we can see similar factors that enabled them to communicate with God. The first and most important factor is they recognized it was God or from God. Each then acted on His Words (although it was not always as God intended). They were willing to share with others what God was doing in his/her life. They also had a moment in their life for God to speak to them.

Is it possible we just are too busy, both physically and mentally, for God to be able to get our attention? Our God wants to talk to us, we sometimes think communicating with God is us praying (talking) to Him and that is all that is needed. Communication in all relationships works when both are listening and talking. Mercy Me has a song entitled Word of God Speak asking God to speak to and so we can listen. Take time this week to listen to God.

A Family Tree

2011-01-11T12:51:00.001-08:00

Many of us like to know where our families have their beginning. We begin looking at our 'family tree'. We may interview those who are living asking about stories they recall of those who have already passed on. We may start looking through newspapers, library files, even Google our family name to try and trace our family. Growing up my grandmother was working on our family tree (this was well before Google and ancestry.com), she would make phone calls and do research trying to trace our family line. As a child, my grandparents, parents and I would load up in my grandfather's station wagon just to go to cemeteries and collect paper etchings of grave stones of newly discovered family members. Some trips would include stories of the struggles and hardships or successes and failures, of each member. Each story captivated me and I felt like I understood more of who I was simply by knowing the struggles and the past of people I never met, but took a part in making me.

Often times we try to trace back and find out about where we came from by going backwards. In Genesis 9 & 10 we find out where we all can trace our families back to, Noah and his wife. He sons became the father's of the different nations, spreading throughout the earth, and increasing the number of man. Often when we read the Bible we over look the family trees of the individuals, but much like our own personal family trees we begin to see family heritage and the stories of the family as they unfold.

As we follow Japheth lineage we learn his sons and grandsons occupied Russia, Asia, and the region around the Aegean Sea. Tracing the line of Ham we find his sons and grandsons occupied Babylon, Nineveh, Sodom and Gomorrah. And finally looking at Shem's line we may not be struck with what was occupied but who was in his line; a man by the name of Abram, who was married to Sarai, who later would be known as Abraham and Sarah. In Genesis 17:3 we find God making the following covenant with Abram, "You will be the father of many nations. ⁵No longer will you be called Abram; your name will be Abraham, for I have made you a father of many nations. ⁶I will make you very fruitful; I will make nations of you, and kings will come from you. ⁷I will establish my covenant as an everlasting covenant between me and you and your descendants after you for the generations to come, to be your God and the God of your descendants after you. ⁸The whole land of Canaan, where you are now an alien, I will give as an everlasting possession to you and your descendants after you; and I will be their God."

This covenant confirms the curse Noah put on his grandson Canaan because of his father Ham's response to seeing his father drunk and naked. "Cursed be Canaan! The lowest of slaves will he be to his brothers." ²⁶He (Noah) also said, "Blessed be the Lord, the God of Shem! May Canaan be the slave of Shem.²⁷May God extend the territory of Japheth; may Japheth live in the tents of Shem, and may Canaan be his slave." (Genesis 10:25-27).

Noah's family being the trunk of our family tree has many branches growing and spreading from it. Some God may have already pruned (John 15:1-4), but our branches are still growing. We are now leaving a heritage for our children and grandchildren. Where is your branch taking them? May we all leave legacy that lead them to God and His Kingdom.

Endless Possibilities

2011-01-10T12:17:00.001-08:00

The life of Noah has always been one I have admired. Just consider building a large boat where there is no lake and your reason for building it is God is going to flood the earth when the earth had not seen more water than what God had place on the earth since the beginning. Every one of his neighbors and friends would have thought he was going crazy or at the least needs counseling. But Noah along with his sons built the ark, because God told him to. Here is a man who is breaking the pattern of life (referring to earlier blog)!! He was a righteous, blameless man who walked with God in a corrupt world (Genesis 6:9-11). Because Noah was obedient to God, God protected Noah and his family from the moment He asked Noah to build the ark all the way to the end when He asked Noah and his Family to step out of the ark.

I believe God is looking for more Noah's in our world. I will leave it to your own opinion if we live in a corrupt world. That is not the point that we really need to ponder and discuss. The real question is what is God asking you to build? Whatever he is asking you to build, have you started? If not, why not? Do you not think God will take care of you, just as he did Noah? If you are unsure of what God is asking you to do take the time to pray and ask Him. God used one obedient servant to save the earth from being destroyed, think of what God can do with more obedient servants. I believe the possibilities are endless!!

Patterns of Life have Been Repeating since the Beginning

2011-01-10T11:49:00.001-08:00

In the 4 opening chapters of Genesis we see the beginning of everything. Chapters 1 &2 tell us how everything we see was created. God made everything! In Chapter 3, we see the beginning of sin and consequences for sin. Chapter 4 we see jealousy arise to separate and lead to sin.

As I mentioned in the sermon on Sunday, we see a human pattern that developed and continues in our world today. First, we see the outcome of not fully understanding what God is telling man. When the serpent asks the question "did God really say you must not eat of the fruit?" Man replies by adding to what God had said regarding to the fruit (Genesis 2:16-17; Genesis 3:1-3). This misunderstanding leads to doubt. And it is this doubt that allowed the temptation to become a sinful act.

Once the sin has entered and God is near, man begins to feel guilt and hides. God asks, "Why are you hiding?" And Adam fails to take responsibility for his actions and looks for someone else to blame. God knowing man has not kept his command, hands out punishment, but then lovely provides for man by providing clothes for them.

This pattern of man not fully understanding what God desires, temptation leading to sin, failure to take responsibility for actions, and God providing continues to be seen throughout the Bible and our current world. For this reason it is our responsibility to stop this pattern and it starts with each of us reading the Bible and learning more about what God desires from us.