Read: Genesis 16:18-19; Matthew 6:1-24; Psalm 7:1-17; Proverbs 2:1-5
It is hard to read the Bible with western eyes and understand the mentality of the people. It was very common to have concubines during that day to bring about children even though it was not right in the sight of God.
The story of Sarai and Hagar reads like a soap opera. Sarai thought she was running out of time and needed to help God. We can all relate to that! She took Hagar and gave her to Abraham to make a baby.
Hagar was the innocent party, but once she got pregnant thought less of Sarai and Sarai felt her hostility. When Sarai couldn’t take it any more, she blamed Abraham for having the silly notion of having a baby at their age. To keep the peace, Abraham told her to do whatever she wanted to do with Hagar. She made it so uncomfortable for Hagar that she finally left penniless and pregnant.
The angel of the Lord found Hagar by a spring in the desert. He told her to go back and submit to Sarai and that God would increase her descendants so that they would be too large to count. He told her that the name of the child was Ishmael and he would be a wild man who even his brothers would hate. What a prophecy!
She returned to Sarai and had her baby. Abram was 86. Thirteen years later God appeared to him again to confirm his first covenant with Abram. He changed his name from Abram to Abraham because he enlarged his word. He would not just be a father of a nation but many nations. Kings would come from his people, the whole land of Canaan would be his possession and he would be their God. Then God gave Abraham the covenant of circumcision. Every make who is eight days old was to be circumcised, including those born in his household and those he bought with money.
God recommitted his covenant that Sarai would have a son and he would be the son of the promise, not Ishmael, though Ishmael would become great and have many descendants also.
Abraham obeyed and circumcised his whole family.
In Matthew, Jesus continues his sermon on the mountain. They got a lesson on what true humility is and on how to pray. He summed it up with this: “You cannot serve two masters.”
Lord, help us to turn our ears to wisdom and apply our heart to understanding. Help us to understand the fear of the Lord and find your knowledge.
Monday, January 7, 2019
Sunday, January 6, 2019
Sun.’s Devo - God’s Covenants
Read: Genesis 13:5-15:21; Matthew 5:27-48; Psalm 6:1-10; Proverbs 1:29-33
Abram and Lot each had their own cattle and servants. When they grew too large to stay in the same place, they decided to split. Abram gave Lot first choice so he chose the greenest grass with the most water toward the east. When he had gone, God told Abram to look north, south, east and west. All the land would be his one day…even Lot’s land.
Lot lived in the city of Sodom where living was easier than living off the land, but sin was greater and more assessible. Abram chose to stay a nomad farmer. Kedorlaomer was king of Elam and most of the kingdoms were under him. Sodom was one of the cities that paid tribute to him in exchange for his protection. Sodom, along with four other cities decided they wanted to rebel. Kedorlaomer gathered three other allies and they all met in the valley of Siddim. Sodom and Gomorrah were ravaged and lost everything. Lot was carried off with all his possessions. Abram was told what had happened to Lot so he took 318 of his trained men and defeated the army of Kedorlaomer which had to be a miracle. They rescued Lot and the other people along with everything they had stolen. After this miraculous defeat, God sent his own High Priest, Melchizedek to meet Abram. Abram gave him a tenth of all his spoils.
The king of Sodom wanted to reward Abram with the goods of Sodom, but Abram refused. He didn’t want the king of Sodom ever saying that he had made Abram great. God reminded Abram that He was his reward. Abram reminded him that there was nothing he could give him that would mean anything without an heir. God took him to the stars and told him that his descendants would be as numerous as the stars. Abram believed him and his faith was the same as righteousness to God. God made a blood covenant with him and told him the future of his people. They would be strangers in a foreign nation and made slaves there for 400 years. Then, they would come out with much possessions. His descendants would return in the forth generation. God promised him the land once more.
In Matthew we have the most misunderstood passage about divorce. You have to read it in the King James to really understand what it is saying. Jesus said that whoever put away his wife must give her a writ of divorcement. If he put her away without it, he was committing adultery when he remarried and he would cause her to commit adultery if she wanted to remarry because they were not legally divorced. God hates the putting away (Malachi 2:16 “For the Lord, the God of Israel, says that he hates putting away.”) KJV
Committing adultery would be the only automatic reason that might not require a writ of divorcement. When God divorced Israel and Judah, he wrote them a writ of divorcement making it a legal act. Jeremiah 3:8.
Jesus blew their minds when he told them to love their enemies and pray for the ones who persecuted them. He practiced what he preached.
Lord, help us to live by your Word.
Abram and Lot each had their own cattle and servants. When they grew too large to stay in the same place, they decided to split. Abram gave Lot first choice so he chose the greenest grass with the most water toward the east. When he had gone, God told Abram to look north, south, east and west. All the land would be his one day…even Lot’s land.
Lot lived in the city of Sodom where living was easier than living off the land, but sin was greater and more assessible. Abram chose to stay a nomad farmer. Kedorlaomer was king of Elam and most of the kingdoms were under him. Sodom was one of the cities that paid tribute to him in exchange for his protection. Sodom, along with four other cities decided they wanted to rebel. Kedorlaomer gathered three other allies and they all met in the valley of Siddim. Sodom and Gomorrah were ravaged and lost everything. Lot was carried off with all his possessions. Abram was told what had happened to Lot so he took 318 of his trained men and defeated the army of Kedorlaomer which had to be a miracle. They rescued Lot and the other people along with everything they had stolen. After this miraculous defeat, God sent his own High Priest, Melchizedek to meet Abram. Abram gave him a tenth of all his spoils.
The king of Sodom wanted to reward Abram with the goods of Sodom, but Abram refused. He didn’t want the king of Sodom ever saying that he had made Abram great. God reminded Abram that He was his reward. Abram reminded him that there was nothing he could give him that would mean anything without an heir. God took him to the stars and told him that his descendants would be as numerous as the stars. Abram believed him and his faith was the same as righteousness to God. God made a blood covenant with him and told him the future of his people. They would be strangers in a foreign nation and made slaves there for 400 years. Then, they would come out with much possessions. His descendants would return in the forth generation. God promised him the land once more.
In Matthew we have the most misunderstood passage about divorce. You have to read it in the King James to really understand what it is saying. Jesus said that whoever put away his wife must give her a writ of divorcement. If he put her away without it, he was committing adultery when he remarried and he would cause her to commit adultery if she wanted to remarry because they were not legally divorced. God hates the putting away (Malachi 2:16 “For the Lord, the God of Israel, says that he hates putting away.”) KJV
Committing adultery would be the only automatic reason that might not require a writ of divorcement. When God divorced Israel and Judah, he wrote them a writ of divorcement making it a legal act. Jeremiah 3:8.
Jesus blew their minds when he told them to love their enemies and pray for the ones who persecuted them. He practiced what he preached.
Lord, help us to live by your Word.
Saturday, January 5, 2019
Sat.’s Devo - The Blessing of Abraham
Read: Genesis 11:1-13:4; Matthew 5:1-26; Psalm 5:1-12; Proverbs 1:24-28
This is my 45th year through the Bible and I am amazed at all the new things I see every year. Abram’s father Terah was on his way to Canaan when he stopped short in Haran. It must have been God’s plan that Abram be the one who went all the way to Canaan. (Many times we as parents pave the way for our children to continue the calling on our family line.) Terah died young compared to his predecessors. When he died, God called Abram to leave Haran and go to the land he would show him. He promised to make Abram a great nation and bless him. His name would be great and he would be a blessing to others. Those that blessed him would be blessed and those who cursed him would be cursed. All the people on the earth would be blessed because of his descendants.
Abram took his fatherless nephew, Lot with him and he and Sarai raised Lot as their own.
They arrived in Canaan and accumulated much wealth and followers along the way. By a tree in Moreh God appeared to Abram and told him that he would give this land to his offspring so Abram built an altar to the Lord. From there he went toward Bethel. If you take the meaning of the places it reads: at the end of time there will be a teacher who will bring the former rain of the Holy Spirit. He will be the first to rise from the dead and lead others to the house of God.
There was a famine in the land which means the people were not living for God. Abram and Sarai went to Egypt to make it through the famine. Even in famine, Abram prospered and came out wealthier than before the famine and learned to trust God deeper.
In Matthew, Jesus taught the sermon we call “The Sermon on the Mount”. He taught them that they were blessed no matter what their circumstance was. They were to flavor and light the world with the God who lived in them. Their righteousness was to exceed that of the Pharisees and teachers of the law. They laid such detailed laws on the people that they couldn’t do. Their deeds were only on the outside to make themselves look good when in their hearts most of them were great sinners. There were some of the leaders who were holy and seeking the Lord’s kingdom with all their heart. These became followers of Jesus.
Lord, help us to walk in confidence that no matter what our circumstance is, you are our blessing.
This is my 45th year through the Bible and I am amazed at all the new things I see every year. Abram’s father Terah was on his way to Canaan when he stopped short in Haran. It must have been God’s plan that Abram be the one who went all the way to Canaan. (Many times we as parents pave the way for our children to continue the calling on our family line.) Terah died young compared to his predecessors. When he died, God called Abram to leave Haran and go to the land he would show him. He promised to make Abram a great nation and bless him. His name would be great and he would be a blessing to others. Those that blessed him would be blessed and those who cursed him would be cursed. All the people on the earth would be blessed because of his descendants.
Abram took his fatherless nephew, Lot with him and he and Sarai raised Lot as their own.
They arrived in Canaan and accumulated much wealth and followers along the way. By a tree in Moreh God appeared to Abram and told him that he would give this land to his offspring so Abram built an altar to the Lord. From there he went toward Bethel. If you take the meaning of the places it reads: at the end of time there will be a teacher who will bring the former rain of the Holy Spirit. He will be the first to rise from the dead and lead others to the house of God.
There was a famine in the land which means the people were not living for God. Abram and Sarai went to Egypt to make it through the famine. Even in famine, Abram prospered and came out wealthier than before the famine and learned to trust God deeper.
In Matthew, Jesus taught the sermon we call “The Sermon on the Mount”. He taught them that they were blessed no matter what their circumstance was. They were to flavor and light the world with the God who lived in them. Their righteousness was to exceed that of the Pharisees and teachers of the law. They laid such detailed laws on the people that they couldn’t do. Their deeds were only on the outside to make themselves look good when in their hearts most of them were great sinners. There were some of the leaders who were holy and seeking the Lord’s kingdom with all their heart. These became followers of Jesus.
Lord, help us to walk in confidence that no matter what our circumstance is, you are our blessing.
Friday, January 4, 2019
Fri.’s Devo - After the Flood
Read: Genesis 8:1-10:32; Matthew 4:12-25; Psalm 4:1-8; Proverbs 1:20-23
When the waters flooded the earth they came from the springs of the deep and the floodgates of heaven. So they were like jets on the floor and the ceiling. The waters began on the 17th day of the 2nd month and had gone by the 17th day of the 7th month when the ark rested on Mt. Ararat which means “the curse reversed”. The curse was the rain which now rain is a blessing that stands for the outpouring of the Holy Spirit. God promised to never curse the earth again because of man even though every inclination of his heart was evil from childhood. After the flood, things changed. Even what they ate changed. Before, man was told to eat herbs and plants but now he was told he could eat meat. For the first time, God put the fear of man in the heart of animals so that they would protect themselves from being killed. They were not to eat meat of an animal that was still alive. Neither were animals to eat living creatures; they were to make sure they were dead first.
God said, “just as I gave you the green plants, I now give you everything.” This is a picture of the millennial reign where everything will be ours to eat. They were told to be fruitful and increase in number and multiply on the earth. God placed the rainbow, the glory that shines around his throne, as a picture of his covenant he made with us never to destroy the earth with water again. God was bringing a piece of heaven to earth. It is comical that the homosexual community uses a rainbow as their logo. God will not share his glory with darkness.
Noah had three sons and from them the world repopulated. Shem was the oldest and the Syrian, Hebrew, Arab and Assyrian nations came from him. Ham’s name means “black”. He was cursed by his father for dishonoring his father and uncovering his nakedness. His descendants build Babylon and lived in Arabia and Ethiopia. Japheth was responsible for the Celts , the Medes, and the Ionians or Greeks.
Once John the Baptist was imprisoned, Jesus began preaching John’s message of repentance. Jesus chose his first two disciples which were brothers: Simon Peter and Andrew. They were fishermen but Jesus called them to catch something more important than fish. They would now catch men. The next people he chose were also brothers and fishermen: James and John. The four of them left everything to follow Jesus.
Jesus went throughout Galilee teaching and healing every disease and sickness and his name became known.
Our Psalm is man crying out to God and our Proverb is God calling out to man.
Lord, may we respond to your call as you are always responding to ours.
When the waters flooded the earth they came from the springs of the deep and the floodgates of heaven. So they were like jets on the floor and the ceiling. The waters began on the 17th day of the 2nd month and had gone by the 17th day of the 7th month when the ark rested on Mt. Ararat which means “the curse reversed”. The curse was the rain which now rain is a blessing that stands for the outpouring of the Holy Spirit. God promised to never curse the earth again because of man even though every inclination of his heart was evil from childhood. After the flood, things changed. Even what they ate changed. Before, man was told to eat herbs and plants but now he was told he could eat meat. For the first time, God put the fear of man in the heart of animals so that they would protect themselves from being killed. They were not to eat meat of an animal that was still alive. Neither were animals to eat living creatures; they were to make sure they were dead first.
God said, “just as I gave you the green plants, I now give you everything.” This is a picture of the millennial reign where everything will be ours to eat. They were told to be fruitful and increase in number and multiply on the earth. God placed the rainbow, the glory that shines around his throne, as a picture of his covenant he made with us never to destroy the earth with water again. God was bringing a piece of heaven to earth. It is comical that the homosexual community uses a rainbow as their logo. God will not share his glory with darkness.
Noah had three sons and from them the world repopulated. Shem was the oldest and the Syrian, Hebrew, Arab and Assyrian nations came from him. Ham’s name means “black”. He was cursed by his father for dishonoring his father and uncovering his nakedness. His descendants build Babylon and lived in Arabia and Ethiopia. Japheth was responsible for the Celts , the Medes, and the Ionians or Greeks.
Once John the Baptist was imprisoned, Jesus began preaching John’s message of repentance. Jesus chose his first two disciples which were brothers: Simon Peter and Andrew. They were fishermen but Jesus called them to catch something more important than fish. They would now catch men. The next people he chose were also brothers and fishermen: James and John. The four of them left everything to follow Jesus.
Jesus went throughout Galilee teaching and healing every disease and sickness and his name became known.
Our Psalm is man crying out to God and our Proverb is God calling out to man.
Lord, may we respond to your call as you are always responding to ours.
Thursday, January 3, 2019
Thurs.’s Devo- The Forty’s
Read: Genesis 5:1-7:24; Matthew 3:7-4:11; Psalms 3:1-8; Proverbs 1:10-19
God calls all the men and women created: “Adam”, which means “human beings, or mankind”. God gives us Adam’s genealogy that doesn’t even mention Cain or Abel as if they didn’t exist. He counts Adam’s generation from Seth. Man didn’t walk with God until Enoch. Once Enoch had his first born son, Methuselah, he began to walk with God. Enoch lived 365 years and was raptured. Methuselah’s name means “when he dies, it will be sent.” The day Methuselah died, Noah entered the ark and the flood began. Methuselah was the father of Lamech who lived 777 years.
God sent angels down to earth to teach man of righteousness but they were given the ability to sin and that they did. They fell for the women of the world and married them having offspring that were warriors and had authority. Some think these became demons. Instead to teaching man righteousness, they taught them evil. The Book of Enoch says that they taught them how to make weapons of mass destruction, hallucinagenics from the chemicals in the earth and all sorts of bad things. Their seed multiplyied on the earth and threatened to altar mankind so God in his sovereignty and love had to destroy the earth. He found one man who had not polluted his body with this DNA of demons. The Bible says of Noah that he was “perfect in his generations” so God chose him to be the savior of the world. What a picture of Jesus.
Noah’s story has so many references to the Children of Israel through the wilderness and the end of the ages. Enoch is a picture of the true church being raptured before judgment comes and Noah is a picture of the new believers who will go through the Great Tribulation with Jesus. They will be put in the ark or tabernacle of God and saved from the elements of the world. The flood took 40 days for all mankind to die just as it took 40 years for all the rebellious Israelites to die in the wilderness. This is a picture of the Tribulation of the end of days. God always preserves his people in a place of safety like the ark.
The waters of the ark and the waters of the Red Sea were a type of baptism to cleanse the people of sin. John the Baptist came with the call to repent and be baptized because he knew if they chose to kill their flesh in the waters of baptism they would escape the fire of the next judgment.
God used Jesus’ baptism to announce his coming to the world. He was cleansed from the filth of the world so he could be led into the wilderness to be tempted and stand. Remember, Jesus was half human, half God, just like we are if we are born again. The devil tempted Jesus by attacking his identity saying, “IF you are the son of God.” He tempts us the same way. He will use the very things God has called us to to intimidate us. He will question us with whether God sent us or not. We have to use the Word of God and our confidence in God against him.
Lord you are a shield around us. You share your glory with us and lift up our heads. Let your blessings be on your people today.
God calls all the men and women created: “Adam”, which means “human beings, or mankind”. God gives us Adam’s genealogy that doesn’t even mention Cain or Abel as if they didn’t exist. He counts Adam’s generation from Seth. Man didn’t walk with God until Enoch. Once Enoch had his first born son, Methuselah, he began to walk with God. Enoch lived 365 years and was raptured. Methuselah’s name means “when he dies, it will be sent.” The day Methuselah died, Noah entered the ark and the flood began. Methuselah was the father of Lamech who lived 777 years.
God sent angels down to earth to teach man of righteousness but they were given the ability to sin and that they did. They fell for the women of the world and married them having offspring that were warriors and had authority. Some think these became demons. Instead to teaching man righteousness, they taught them evil. The Book of Enoch says that they taught them how to make weapons of mass destruction, hallucinagenics from the chemicals in the earth and all sorts of bad things. Their seed multiplyied on the earth and threatened to altar mankind so God in his sovereignty and love had to destroy the earth. He found one man who had not polluted his body with this DNA of demons. The Bible says of Noah that he was “perfect in his generations” so God chose him to be the savior of the world. What a picture of Jesus.
Noah’s story has so many references to the Children of Israel through the wilderness and the end of the ages. Enoch is a picture of the true church being raptured before judgment comes and Noah is a picture of the new believers who will go through the Great Tribulation with Jesus. They will be put in the ark or tabernacle of God and saved from the elements of the world. The flood took 40 days for all mankind to die just as it took 40 years for all the rebellious Israelites to die in the wilderness. This is a picture of the Tribulation of the end of days. God always preserves his people in a place of safety like the ark.
The waters of the ark and the waters of the Red Sea were a type of baptism to cleanse the people of sin. John the Baptist came with the call to repent and be baptized because he knew if they chose to kill their flesh in the waters of baptism they would escape the fire of the next judgment.
God used Jesus’ baptism to announce his coming to the world. He was cleansed from the filth of the world so he could be led into the wilderness to be tempted and stand. Remember, Jesus was half human, half God, just like we are if we are born again. The devil tempted Jesus by attacking his identity saying, “IF you are the son of God.” He tempts us the same way. He will use the very things God has called us to to intimidate us. He will question us with whether God sent us or not. We have to use the Word of God and our confidence in God against him.
Lord you are a shield around us. You share your glory with us and lift up our heads. Let your blessings be on your people today.
Wednesday, January 2, 2019
Wed.’s Devo - Repent, For the Kingdom is Near
Read: Genesis 3:1-4:26; Matthew 2:13-3:6; Palms 2:1-12; Proverbs 1:7-9
We learned that every seed manifested the fruit of that seed. The tree of the knowledge of good and evil manifested that fruit. To know good and evil was to know all the details about them. We are drawn to want to know all the gory details which is the fruit of that tree. Ephesians 5:12 says that it is a shame even to speak of the things evil people do in secret. The devil tempts us to want to eat of this tree all the time. The tree of life gives only life. Think of how our day would go if we only ate of that tree all day; our discernment would be very accurate. Everyone who had a part in deceiving Eve or eating of the fruit was cursed. 1 Timothy 2:14 says that Adam was not deceived, but the woman, Eve was. Adam willfully ate of the apple causing the whole earth to be cursed. It was through Adam, sin entered the world and through the second Adam, Jesus, sin was defeated.
Through the curse given to Eve, we learn that Satan has offspring just like God does and we also learn who wins.
God killed animals and covered Adam and Eve’s nakedness with the skins teaching them how to atone for sin. Cain decided he could please God his way. He offered a sacrifice of his works that was not his first fruit or alive or of blood. Abel offered a sacrifice of his first fruit, it was alive and had blood. His offering was accepted by the Lord. Cain couldn’t take the rejection and rejected God instead of repenting of his wrong. He killed his brother out of jealousy and hatred and became the seed of evil. Abel was a type of Christ who offered the perfect sacrifice that pleased God and whose blood had power to speak even from the grave.
Adam later had a son to replace Abel named Seth which means “dedicated”.
In Matthew, an angel led Joseph to take Jesus to Egypt to save his life, then to bring him back when it was safe and then where to live. I wonder if Joseph realized he was fulfilling prophecy. Jesus grew up in Nazareth while his cousin, John was beginning his ministry to prepare the world for Jesus. John’s message could be summed up in one statement, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near.” That is the same statement the spirit is saying for his second coming.
Lord, may we repent and realize how near your kingdom is to us.
We learned that every seed manifested the fruit of that seed. The tree of the knowledge of good and evil manifested that fruit. To know good and evil was to know all the details about them. We are drawn to want to know all the gory details which is the fruit of that tree. Ephesians 5:12 says that it is a shame even to speak of the things evil people do in secret. The devil tempts us to want to eat of this tree all the time. The tree of life gives only life. Think of how our day would go if we only ate of that tree all day; our discernment would be very accurate. Everyone who had a part in deceiving Eve or eating of the fruit was cursed. 1 Timothy 2:14 says that Adam was not deceived, but the woman, Eve was. Adam willfully ate of the apple causing the whole earth to be cursed. It was through Adam, sin entered the world and through the second Adam, Jesus, sin was defeated.
Through the curse given to Eve, we learn that Satan has offspring just like God does and we also learn who wins.
God killed animals and covered Adam and Eve’s nakedness with the skins teaching them how to atone for sin. Cain decided he could please God his way. He offered a sacrifice of his works that was not his first fruit or alive or of blood. Abel offered a sacrifice of his first fruit, it was alive and had blood. His offering was accepted by the Lord. Cain couldn’t take the rejection and rejected God instead of repenting of his wrong. He killed his brother out of jealousy and hatred and became the seed of evil. Abel was a type of Christ who offered the perfect sacrifice that pleased God and whose blood had power to speak even from the grave.
Adam later had a son to replace Abel named Seth which means “dedicated”.
In Matthew, an angel led Joseph to take Jesus to Egypt to save his life, then to bring him back when it was safe and then where to live. I wonder if Joseph realized he was fulfilling prophecy. Jesus grew up in Nazareth while his cousin, John was beginning his ministry to prepare the world for Jesus. John’s message could be summed up in one statement, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near.” That is the same statement the spirit is saying for his second coming.
Lord, may we repent and realize how near your kingdom is to us.
Tuesday, January 1, 2019
Tues.’s Devo - The Plan
I can’t believe another year has come and gone. Every year, I ask God for a word for the year. Last year’s word was “clarity”. I think God did give us clarity in so many areas. He will continue to give us more and more clarity this year but I have felt like 2019 is going to be a year of “magnificent manifestations”. God’s plan has always been to fellowship with us and have a relationship with man so it doesn’t surprise me that manifestations would be something God would want to do. He is trying to communicate with us and show us his power. He wants us to be a people that he can trust with his power and his glory. The way to be that person is to keep the cross very close. It is only through humility and death that we can truly be exalted and live. God wants us to come where he is and is inviting us to his home to visit with him. He comes to ours all the time. The door is open in heaven and we have an open invitation to come and dine.
Read: Genesis 1:1-2:25; Matthew 1:1-2:12; Psalm 1:1-6; Proverbs 1:1-6
Yesterday we read in Revelation that in the end there would be no need for a sun and moon because the light of God would be the light. In Genesis, that was the first thing that God did. He shone his glory over the earth and light flooded the earth. Every day, God taught a different principle.
On the first day he separated light from darkness and gave them names. Light is called day and darkness is called night. On the second day he separated the waters. Some waters went above the expanse and some to the earth. The expanse in between heaven and earth was called Heaven which is the second heaven. In the Strongs it means “the sky, the higher ether where the celestial bodies revolve.” There are three heavens: the first is our sky, the second is the place where angels and demons clash and the third is where the throne of God is. One the third day, God gathered the waters under the sky to one place. Waters stand for spirits. He called the waters on the earth “seas”. We call spirits on the earth the sea of humanity. The dry ground was called “Earth” which means common ground. Then God brought life in the form of a seed. Here is the Word of God coming to earth. Whatever seed was planted, it bore a plant that conformed to that seed. How true in our life. Whatever seed we are planting into our lives, we are bearing the fruit of it.
On the forth day, God called for lights in the heavens to separate the day from the night. These lights were to mark seasons, days and years. They were called the sun, the moon and the stars. The sun would stand for God, the moon would be the church and the stars would be the constellations that would stand for the individual people.
On the fifth day, God created living creature to fly above the earth and creatures to swim under the earth in the sea. These look like angelic and demonic leaders or princes.
On the sixth day, God created creatures to walk the earth both animals and man. These would be the objects of sacrifice for both kingdoms. Man was to rule the earth and he was blessed. He was to eat the seed-bearing plants so that he could be fruitful.
God rested the seventh day and blessed it. It was to be a holy day.
There is no way I can give justice to Genesis One so I’m going to highlight some and leave the rest. Notice that God saw that it was not good for man to be alone and he wanted man to realize it, so he told Adam to name the animals. In doing that, Adam noticed that he didn’t have a helpmeet. That is when God put him to sleep and formed Eve out of his chest. He took one of his ribs. Our ribs coincide with the 12 tribes of Israel and the 12 apostles. We have 24 ribs. I’m betting that God took the rib marked Judah and formed the Bride. God chose a tribe out of the twelve to birth the Messiah that all the world would be blessed and be able to come to the Marriage Feast of the Lamb.
We see this in the genealogy of Jesus in Matthew. He was born of Judah. Then we have the written account of Jesus birth - a miracle conception showing that Jesus had a heavenly father and an earthly mother…just as we do. When we become saved, our we get a new father and are born again into a new family. Joseph had to be shown the ways of this new kingdom through dreams which he submitted to. Mary and Joseph were hand-picked by God because he knew they would obey just as we were hand-picked by God to live in these last days.
God reveals what he is doing in the sky and the Magi knew this. They were waiting for birth of the king of the Jews and when they saw his star appear, they knew it was different from all the other stars. When they came to Jerusalem and told King Herod, he and all of Jerusalem was disturbed because they knew the prophesy. This information got many babies killed, but God preserved Jesus. Satan did everything he knew to keep Jesus from living and it is his plan to kill, steal and destroy us also but God’s plan is to give us life and it is more powerful.
Lord, thank you for another year to read your awesome story of redemption.
Read: Genesis 1:1-2:25; Matthew 1:1-2:12; Psalm 1:1-6; Proverbs 1:1-6
Yesterday we read in Revelation that in the end there would be no need for a sun and moon because the light of God would be the light. In Genesis, that was the first thing that God did. He shone his glory over the earth and light flooded the earth. Every day, God taught a different principle.
On the first day he separated light from darkness and gave them names. Light is called day and darkness is called night. On the second day he separated the waters. Some waters went above the expanse and some to the earth. The expanse in between heaven and earth was called Heaven which is the second heaven. In the Strongs it means “the sky, the higher ether where the celestial bodies revolve.” There are three heavens: the first is our sky, the second is the place where angels and demons clash and the third is where the throne of God is. One the third day, God gathered the waters under the sky to one place. Waters stand for spirits. He called the waters on the earth “seas”. We call spirits on the earth the sea of humanity. The dry ground was called “Earth” which means common ground. Then God brought life in the form of a seed. Here is the Word of God coming to earth. Whatever seed was planted, it bore a plant that conformed to that seed. How true in our life. Whatever seed we are planting into our lives, we are bearing the fruit of it.
On the forth day, God called for lights in the heavens to separate the day from the night. These lights were to mark seasons, days and years. They were called the sun, the moon and the stars. The sun would stand for God, the moon would be the church and the stars would be the constellations that would stand for the individual people.
On the fifth day, God created living creature to fly above the earth and creatures to swim under the earth in the sea. These look like angelic and demonic leaders or princes.
On the sixth day, God created creatures to walk the earth both animals and man. These would be the objects of sacrifice for both kingdoms. Man was to rule the earth and he was blessed. He was to eat the seed-bearing plants so that he could be fruitful.
God rested the seventh day and blessed it. It was to be a holy day.
There is no way I can give justice to Genesis One so I’m going to highlight some and leave the rest. Notice that God saw that it was not good for man to be alone and he wanted man to realize it, so he told Adam to name the animals. In doing that, Adam noticed that he didn’t have a helpmeet. That is when God put him to sleep and formed Eve out of his chest. He took one of his ribs. Our ribs coincide with the 12 tribes of Israel and the 12 apostles. We have 24 ribs. I’m betting that God took the rib marked Judah and formed the Bride. God chose a tribe out of the twelve to birth the Messiah that all the world would be blessed and be able to come to the Marriage Feast of the Lamb.
We see this in the genealogy of Jesus in Matthew. He was born of Judah. Then we have the written account of Jesus birth - a miracle conception showing that Jesus had a heavenly father and an earthly mother…just as we do. When we become saved, our we get a new father and are born again into a new family. Joseph had to be shown the ways of this new kingdom through dreams which he submitted to. Mary and Joseph were hand-picked by God because he knew they would obey just as we were hand-picked by God to live in these last days.
God reveals what he is doing in the sky and the Magi knew this. They were waiting for birth of the king of the Jews and when they saw his star appear, they knew it was different from all the other stars. When they came to Jerusalem and told King Herod, he and all of Jerusalem was disturbed because they knew the prophesy. This information got many babies killed, but God preserved Jesus. Satan did everything he knew to keep Jesus from living and it is his plan to kill, steal and destroy us also but God’s plan is to give us life and it is more powerful.
Lord, thank you for another year to read your awesome story of redemption.
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