God Still Blesses His Children

God Still Blesses His Children


Text: Genesis Chapters 48-50 Our Focus Text: 48:3-5; 49:1,2,28,33; 50: 7-9,13,15-21

What we will see is that the Nation of Israel has begun:

Gen 49:28 says All these are the twelve tribes of Israel: and this is it that their father spake unto them, and blessed them; every one according to his blessing he blessed them.

God allowed Jacob to spend 17 more years with his entire family before he died. It had been 12 years since the famine was over and some say Jacob should have taken his family back home. He was not in the promised land.

The Bible says:

Gen 12:1 Now the LORD had said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father's house, unto a land that I will shew thee:
Gen 12:2 And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing:
Gen 12:3 And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed.

We also know God told Abraham:

Gen 15:13 And he said unto Abram, Know of a surety that thy seed shall be a stranger in a land that is not theirs, and shall serve them; and they shall afflict them four hundred years;
Gen 15:14 And also that nation, whom they shall serve, will I judge: and afterward shall they come out with great substance.

No one could have known that this unknown nation would be Egypt. No one could have known when all this would come about, but it has begun as the scriptures are saying.

God's Word will be fulfilled because God knows all things.

Isa 46:9 Remember the former things of old: for I am God, and there is none else; I am God, and there is none like me,
Isa 46:10 [Declaring the end from the beginning], and from ancient times the things that are not yet done, saying, My counsel shall stand, and I will do all my pleasure:
Isa 46:11 Calling a ravenous bird from the east, the man that executeth my counsel from a far country: yea, I have spoken it, I will also bring it to pass; I have purposed it, I will also do it.
Isa 46:12 Hearken unto me, ye stouthearted, that are far from righteousness:
Isa 46:13 [I bring near my righteousness; it shall not be far off, and my salvation shall not tarry: and I will place salvation in Zion for Israel my glory.]

There is no one that can figure out what God is doing or how He created it all, other than we have His Word to tell us:

Ecc 3:11 He hath made every thing beautiful in his time: also he hath set the world in their heart, so that no man can find out the work that God maketh from the beginning to the end.

Joseph was still second in command of Egypt. We should believe that it would have been almost impossible for him to leave Egypt. He would provide for his family as long as he lived. The children of Israel were on the best land in Egypt and Pharaoh himself was paying them to do what they loved to do. They were herdsman and shepherds. They did not have to roam to find grass for their own herds. In our way of thinking, they really had the best of both worlds. Not many of them would even want to leave Egypt.

The Bible says:

Psa 37:25 I have been young, and now am old; yet have I not seen the righteous forsaken, nor his seed begging bread.

Jacob had seen peace in his family for these 17 years but Jacob knew that he did not want to be buried in this foreign land. He wanted to be buried where Abraham, Isaac were buried. That's not so much different than all of us. We seem to want to be buried next to our family. Jacob remembered what God had said to him:

Gen 35:12 And the land which I gave Abraham and Isaac, to thee I will give it, and to thy seed after thee will I give the land.

Joseph was a faithful son and made a promise to his father that he would take him home.

You know when we die our bones may be buried in the soil of this earth but Jesus is coming back to raise us up and to take all of us home. Our souls will be reunited in a glorified body. Our home is in Heaven:

1Th 4:13 But I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which are asleep, that ye sorrow not, even as others which have no hope.
1Th 4:14 For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, [even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him].
1Th 4:15 For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep.

Just as Jacob, when we die we will pass from time to eternity!

Jacob had played many parts in his life time:

1.) He had been a "trickster" with Esau:

Gen 25:30 And Esau said to Jacob, Feed me, I pray thee, with that same red pottage; for I am faint: therefore was his name called Edom.
Gen 25:31 And Jacob said, Sell me this day thy birthright.

2.) He had been a "runaway" for this same Esau:

Gen 27:41 And Esau hated Jacob because of the blessing wherewith his father blessed him: and Esau said in his heart, The days of mourning for my father are at hand; then will I slay my brother Jacob.

3.) He had been a "stranger" to Laban:

Gen 29:1 Then Jacob went on his journey, and came into the land of the people of the east.

4.) He was "hire hand":

Gen 30:28 And he said, Appoint me thy wages, and I will give it.

5.) He was God's "prince":

Gen 32:28 And he said, Thy name shall be called no more Jacob, but Israel: for as a prince hast thou power with God and with men, and hast prevailed.

6.) But he was the father of the nation of Israel:

Gen 49:28 All these are the twelve tribes of Israel: and this is it that their father spake unto them, and blessed them; every one according to his blessing he blessed them.

Jacob left a rich heritage for his family. He had not done many things right but once he found God he grew in faith and reliance and through it all his family was regathered and all in one accord at his death.

Jacob had found peace by knowing God!

Jacob would be remembered, even in the time of Jesus:

The woman at the well ask Jesus this question.

Joh 4:12 Art thou greater than our father Jacob, which gave us the well, and drank thereof himself, and his children, and his cattle?

*****Our Text:

Gen 48:3 And Jacob said unto Joseph, God Almighty appeared unto me at Luz in the land of Canaan, and blessed me,
Gen 48:4 And said unto me, Behold, I will make thee fruitful, and multiply thee, and I will make of thee a multitude of people; and will give this land to thy seed after thee for an everlasting possession.
Gen 48:5 And now thy two sons, Ephraim and Manasseh, which were born unto thee in the land of Egypt before I came unto thee into Egypt, are mine; as Reuben and Simeon, they shall be mine.

Gen 49:1 And Jacob called unto his sons, and said, Gather yourselves together, that I may tell you that which shall befall you in the last days.
Gen 49:2 Gather yourselves together, and hear, ye sons of Jacob; and hearken unto Israel your father.

Gen 49:28 All these are the twelve tribes of Israel: and this is it that their father spake unto them, and blessed them; every one according to his blessing he blessed them.

We know that Jacob became very emotional at this time near his death.

Gen 48:11 And Israel said unto Joseph, I had not thought to see thy face: and, lo, God hath shewed me also thy seed.

Jacob had never expected to see his son Joseph ever again and yet God had reunited this family in the last years of his life. Not only had he seen his son but he had gotten to see the children of Joseph. This was a great blessing to Jacob and he was showing it.

Now Jacob was explaining to Joseph the promise of God in the land of Canaan. This is the land God had promised to the Nation of Israel. Jacob knew that Joseph would never return to Canaan while he was alive and it was Joseph that would get the blessing of the first born. He was the first born of Rachel but Reuben was his first born son.

Because Reuben had defiled the relationship by committing a sin with the concubine of Jacob, he would not get the blessing of the firstborn son.

Gen 49:3 Reuben, thou art my firstborn, my might, and the beginning of my strength, the excellency of dignity, and the excellency of power:
Gen 49:4 Unstable as water, thou shalt not excel; because thou wentest up to thy father's bed; then defiledst thou it: he went up to my couch.

Jacob used this opportunity to tell Joseph that he was adopting the two sons Ephraim and Manasseh, and by doing this thing they would get their portion of the land in the new Israel. This would be the same as giving Joseph a double portion. By a legal adoption this could not be changed.

Heb 11:21 By faith Jacob, when he was a dying, blessed both the sons of Joseph; and worshipped, leaning upon the top of his staff.

In "type" we can see that this is a type of the Church being adopted and given a double portion of the inheritance of King Jesus as He will be the recipient of the promise to King David and Abraham.

1.) Abraham:

Gen 12:1 Now the LORD had said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father's house, unto a land that I will shew thee:
Gen 12:2 And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing:
Gen 12:3 And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed.

2.) David:

2Sa 7:11 And as since the time that I commanded judges to be over my people Israel, and have caused thee to rest from all thine enemies. Also the LORD telleth thee that he will make thee an house.
2Sa 7:12 And when thy days be fulfilled, and thou shalt sleep with thy fathers, I will set up thy seed after thee, which shall proceed out of thy bowels, and I will establish his kingdom.
2Sa 7:13 He shall build an house for my name, and I will stablish the throne of his kingdom for ever.

Psa 89:3 I have made a covenant with my chosen, I have sworn unto David my servant,
Psa 89:4 Thy seed will I establish for ever, and build up thy throne to all generations. Selah.

Psa 89:29 His seed also will I make to endure for ever, and his throne as the days of heaven.

Psa 89:33 Nevertheless my lovingkindness will I not utterly take from him, nor suffer my faithfulness to fail.
Psa 89:34 My covenant will I not break, nor alter the thing that is gone out of my lips.
Psa 89:35 Once have I sworn by my holiness that I will not lie unto David.
Psa 89:36 His seed shall endure for ever, and his throne as the sun before me.

Psa 132:11 The LORD hath sworn in truth unto David; he will not turn from it; Of the fruit of thy body will I set upon thy throne.

Act 2:30 Therefore being a prophet, and knowing that God had sworn with an oath to him, that of the fruit of his loins, according to the flesh, he would raise up Christ to sit on his throne;
Act 2:31 He seeing this before spake of the resurrection of Christ, that his soul was not left in hell, neither his flesh did see corruption.
Act 2:32 This Jesus hath God raised up, whereof we all are witnesses.

It is Jesus Christ that began the Church!

To continue we can see that Jacob had more concern for strength in the ways of God, character, and leadership than in the order of birth.

We also know that God is no respecter of persons as is proven throughout the Bible. God is a whosoever will God and does not limit His Ways to one group of people but to all people the exact same.

We hold these things in our own hands. All we need do is accept the free gift of Salvation and all these things will be given to each and every one of us.

The Bible says:

Joh 3:34 For he whom God hath sent speaketh the words of God: for God giveth not the Spirit by measure unto him.
Joh 3:35 The Father loveth the Son, and hath given all things into his hand.

Joh 17:7 Now they have known that all things whatsoever thou hast given me are of thee.

2Co 5:18 And all things are of God, who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ, and hath given to us the ministry of reconciliation;
2Co 5:19 To wit, that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them; and hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation.

2Pe 1:3 According as his divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that hath called us to glory and virtue:
2Pe 1:4 Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.
2Pe 1:5 And beside this, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue; and to virtue knowledge;
2Pe 1:6 And to knowledge temperance; and to temperance patience; and to patience godliness;
2Pe 1:7 And to godliness brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness charity.
2Pe 1:8 For if these things be in you, and abound, they make you that ye shall neither be barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.
2Pe 1:9 [But he that lacketh these things is blind, and cannot see afar off, and hath forgotten that he was purged from his old sins].

AND IT IS STILL BY FAITH!

*****Our text:

Gen 49:33 And when Jacob had made an end of commanding his sons, he gathered up his feet into the bed, and yielded up the ghost, and [was gathered unto his people].

Gen 50:7 And Joseph went up to bury his father: and with him went up all the servants of Pharaoh, the elders of his house, and all the elders of the land of Egypt,
Gen 50:8 And all the house of Joseph, and his brethren, and his father's house: only their little ones, and their flocks, and their herds, they left in the land of Goshen.
Gen 50:9 And there went up with him both chariots and horsemen: and it was a very great company.

Gen 50:13 For his sons carried him into the land of Canaan, and buried him in the cave of the field of Machpelah, which Abraham bought with the field for a possession of a buryingplace of Ephron the Hittite, before Mamre.

We can think what we want too but when the Bible says Jacob was gathered to his people it does not mean those that were left behind.

No, Jacob was gathered to to Rachel and Leah and to Abraham and Isaac and Sarah and Rebekah and all those that had gone on before him including Deborah the nurse to Rebekah.

All those that have gone on before us are in Heaven waiting on us to get there! Yet, if you do not know Jesus Christ as your Saviour you will never see them again!

Jacob was gathered up by all his family that awaited him in Heaven.

Genesis 50 tells us that Jacob had elaborate funeral. The Egyptians were experts at preserving dead bodies. Jacob's body had been preserved in order for all these things to happen. [Later in the time of Jesus, the Jews would have a custom to bury their dead on the same day that they died].

As far as we know Joseph remained in his position of authority until the day he died. Joseph was moved to tears to hear that after all these years his brothers still carried their burden of guilt.

You know if we do not ask for forgiveness daily through prayer, we then will carry our burden of sin and there is no doubt that this brings Our Lord Jesus to tears when we carry a burden that He suffered so much for to free us of our sin.

There are many that believe that you can lose your salvation. This also brings Jesus to tears because it takes away from what He did for us on the cross. Once saved, you are truly saved. You didn't do anything to deserve it and you cannot lose it. God does not take His gifts away.

Eph 2:8 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:
Eph 2:9 Not of works, lest any man should boast.

Joseph calmed their fears:

Col 3:12 Put on therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, bowels of mercies, kindness, humbleness of mind, meekness, longsuffering;
Col 3:13 Forbearing one another, and forgiving one another, if any man have a quarrel against any: even as Christ forgave you, so also do ye.
Col 3:14 And above all these things put on charity, which is the bond of perfectness.
Col 3:15 And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to the which also ye are called in one body; and be ye thankful.

Jesus calms our fears;

1Jn 5:13 These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; [that ye may know that ye have eternal life], [and that ye may believe on the name of the Son of God].

Our sin will not be remembered against us!

Mic 7:19 He will turn again, he will have compassion upon us; he will subdue our iniquities; and [thou wilt cast all their sins into the depths of the sea].

Psa 103:11 For as the heaven is high above the earth, so great is his mercy toward them that fear him.
Psa 103:12 [As far as the east is from the west, so far hath he removed our transgressions from us].

Isa 38:17 Behold, for peace I had great bitterness: but thou hast in love to my soul delivered it from the pit of corruption: [for thou hast cast all my sins behind thy back].

Jer 31:34 And they shall teach no more every man his neighbour, and every man his brother, saying, Know the LORD: for they shall all know me, from the least of them unto the greatest of them, saith the LORD: [for I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more].

Rom 8:2 For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death.
Rom 8:3 For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, [God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh]:

Tit 2:14 Who gave himself for us, [that he might redeem us from all iniquity], and purify unto himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works.
Tit 2:15 These things speak, and exhort, and rebuke with all authority. Let no man despise thee.

God would not say these things if He did not mean them!

The only "predestination" of any human being, is that all are predestined to go to Heaven that believe on the Lord Jesus Christ.

Joh 14:6 Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.
Joh 14:7 If ye had known me, ye should have known my Father also: and from henceforth ye know him, and have seen him.

Joseph lived to be 110 years old. He was about 17 years old when he came into Egypt. He was 30 years old when Pharaoh made him second in command of Egypt. He remained in that position for 80 years and for 80 years he served God and his people but he also served the Egyptians as fairly as the rest.

Psa 84:12 O LORD of hosts, blessed is the man that trusteth in thee.

1Co 3:11 For other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ.
1Co 3:12 Now if any man build upon this foundation gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, stubble;
1Co 3:13 Every man's work shall be made manifest: for the day shall declare it, because it shall be revealed by fire; and the fire shall try every man's work of what sort it is.
1Co 3:14 If any man's work abide which he hath built thereupon, he shall receive a reward.
1Co 3:15 If any man's work shall be burned, he shall suffer loss: but he himself shall be saved; yet so as by fire.

Joseph through a Holy God had saved many people from suffering death by starvation. He also helped change the course of history of many nations by preserving Israel.

We may think that one man or one woman cannot make a lot of difference in this world but when that one person is touched by the hand of God it can affect the world on a global scale.

Rom 8:35 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?
Rom 8:36 As it is written, For thy sake we are killed all the day long; we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter.
Rom 8:37 Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us.
Rom 8:38 For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come,
Rom 8:39 Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

God wrote:

2Pe 3:17 Ye therefore, beloved, seeing ye know these things before, beware lest ye also, being led away with the error of the wicked, fall from your own stedfastness.
2Pe 3:18 But grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. To him be glory both now and for ever. Amen.

We will also notice that when Joseph died he had not asked to be taken out of Egypt for burial at that time. By him being so honored by the Egyptians it was to the advantage of Israel for him to be buried in Egypt. But he did make them promise to take his bones with them in the future when he knew God would call them out.

God's promise to Abraham would be fulfilled.

Joseph would later be buried in Shechem:

Jos 24:32 And the bones of Joseph, which the children of Israel brought up out of Egypt, buried they in Shechem, in a parcel of ground which Jacob bought of the sons of Hamor the father of Shechem for an hundred pieces of silver: and [it became the inheritance of the children of Joseph].

Jacob had bought this land:

Gen 33:18 And Jacob came to Shalem, a city of Shechem, which is in the land of Canaan, when he came from Padanaram; and pitched his tent before the city.
Gen 33:19 And he bought a parcel of a field, where he had spread his tent, at the hand of the children of Hamor, Shechem's father, for an hundred pieces of money.

The covenant to Abraham had passed to Isaac, then to Jacob and now to these twelve sons. Joseph was not a patriarch in this same sense.

Gen 17:7 And I will establish my covenant between me and thee and thy seed after thee in their generations for an everlasting covenant, to be a God unto thee, and to thy seed after thee.
Gen 17:8 And I will give unto thee, and to thy seed after thee, the land wherein thou art a stranger, all the land of Canaan, for an everlasting possession; and I will be their God.
Gen 17:9 And God said unto Abraham, Thou shalt keep my covenant therefore, thou, and thy seed after thee in their generations.

The death of Joseph concludes the Book of Genesis but it did not end the story of God working with this nation but that story has just begun.

Joseph never got to read Romans 8:28:

Rom 8:28 And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.

But we can see that when the Apostle Paul was inspired to write it so we could read it that God had already proven this to Joseph.

Joseph said:

Gen 50:20 But as for you, ye thought evil against me; but God meant it unto good, to bring to pass, as it is this day, to save much people alive.

The brothers of Joseph had allowed fear to rule their lives for 17 years. How many of us have allowed our own guilt to rob us peace of mind just because we have not trusted in the Lord Jesus Christ.

We could never save our selves. We "never" could! We cannot keep ourselves saved. We can "never" do that! Only through the saving "Grace" of Christ Jesus" Our Lord can we get to Heaven. "Our only work is to be believe". It's not to blow up people. It's not to harm those that do not believe as we do.

When we do not accept that fact, [we are still living with a burden of sin].

Christ Jesus did all the work to get us saved and He said all that work was finished!

The Book of Genesis ends here but it is only the end of the book of the Beginnings. The last of the beginnings is the birth of the Nation of Israel.

God created and developed a World. God filled this world with creatures of all sort. Humanity is a story of people and their relationship with this Almighty God. We can still see how this world still tries to have their own answers for this Creator God. They will never know Him as He is until they accept Jesus Christ for who He is! The Supreme God and the Creator of it all.

Is God still searching for a faithful people?

Heb 11:6 But without faith it is impossible to please him: [for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him].

When Genesis began we first saw "Elohim".
Through Joseph we saw "El Shaddai".
We will next see "Jehovah God".

We have studied the beginning and we know God will complete what He has begun!

Php 1:6 Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ:

Joh 11:25 Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live:
Joh 11:26 And whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die. Believest thou this?

We can only discover what God intends for each of us as we see His blessings before our very eyes. Every blessing comes through faith. If we do not act on the truth of God we will remain LOST.

The Book of Genesis has taught us that God is absolutely necessary for a complete life on this Earth and Eternal Life in Heaven. Without God we will never understand this world we live in. The Book of Genesis teaches us that it is God who holds the secrets to life and He tells us all about it in His Holy Word.

Israel, since 1948 is still located in the promised land of God. It has nothing to do with America. It has nothing to do with the United Nations and it has nothing to do with all those surrounding Muslim nations.

Do you realize there was not one, not one Muslim in the world at the time of God's promise. There will always be trouble from those that deny the Word of God and make their own way!

Back at the beginning when Satan distorted God's Word:

Gen 3:2 And the woman said unto the serpent, We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden:
Gen 3:3 But of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die.
Gen 3:4 And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die:
Gen 3:5 For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, [and ye shall be as gods], knowing good and evil.

There can be only one God!

Psa 12:3 The LORD shall cut off all flattering lips, and the tongue that speaketh proud things:
Psa 12:4 Who have said, With our tongue will we prevail; our lips are our own: who is lord over us?

Let's take the new beginnings God gives us when we are saved and serve the Lord as long as we live. Joseph served 80 years that we can account for. I waited to late in life to attain that goal but I can make my own new record because I also have the newness of life through Jesus.

Let's Pray!