PRAYER - "Altar and Offerings at Bethel"
After being displaced from Shechem, Jacob returned the "the house of God," Bethel. He built an altar and made offerings to the Lord. Shortly thereafter, his precious wife, Rachel, died giving birth to Benjamin, and soon his father, Isaac, died. Our inevitable tragedies are much easier to bear when we have already been to the altar beforehand. Why not consecrate today?
Genesis 35:14 - "And Jacob set up a pillar in the place where he talked with him, even a pillar of stone: and he poured a drink offering thereon, and he poured oil thereon."
PRINCIPALS - "Leah and Rachel"
Marriage laws did not exist prior to Moses' trip to Sinai. Polygamy was commonplace. Jacob married Leah and Rachel. Rachel was initially barren, so she gave her handmaiden, Bilhah to Jacob as a surrogate. Later, Leah "left off bearing," so gave Zilpah, her handmaiden to Jacob. The four wives bore twelve sons to Jacob - the twelve tribes of Israel.
Genesis 35:23-26 - "The sons of Leah; Reuben, ...Simeon, ...Levi, ...Judah, ...Issachar, and Zebulun: The sons of Rachel; Joseph, and Benjamin: And the sons of Bilhah, ...Dan, and Naphtali: And the sons of Zilpah, ...Gad, and Asher."
PRINCIPLES - "Clean Up Your Act"
Calamity struck Jacob at Shechem. His daughter was raped by the king's son. His sons murderously retaliated against the Shechemites. Jacob fled the region. God called him back to Bethel for spiritual revival.
Genesis 35:2-5 - "Jacob said unto his household..., Put away the strange gods that are among you, and be clean, and change your garments: ...And they gave unto Jacob all the strange gods which were in their hand, and all their earrings which were in their ears; ...and the terror of God was upon the cities that were round about them."
PROPHECIES - "Esau is Edom"
God knew in advance that Esau was not going to work out. Esau went to strange nations to find wives. He settled east of Jordan, in the region of Mount Seir. His descendants became known as Edom - the Edomites. When Moses came through with the children of Israel, the Edomites would not let them through. Esau's grandchildren, the Amalekites, were first to declare war on the children of Israel. Many of Esau's descendants became enemies of Israel.
Genesis 36:9 - "And these are the generations of Esau the father of the Edomites in mount Seir.
Don't Forget the Joy
Rejoice in the Lord always: and again I say, Rejoice.
– Philippians 4:4
Years ago, I decided I was going to walk by the Word of God. I told God that, as far as I was concerned, His Word was final and I’d confess it the rest of my life no matter what. That was the most important decision I’ve ever made.
Not too long after that, I decided that no matter what happened, whether I felt like it or not, I’d walk in love. Because the Bible clearly says “faith worketh by love.” It won’t work any other way.
Those two decisions—to operate by faith in the Word of God and to walk in love—are the two most important decisions I’ve ever made in my life.
Recently, though, God pointed out to me that there was something I’d been leaving out. The force of joy. He told me I have no right to walk by faith and love and just leave joy dormant in my spirit. It’s too important. As He taught me about it, I soon came to realize that joy is an essential part of a life of victory. Without it, I might have an occasional triumph now and then, but I wouldn’t be able to sustain them. They’d quickly slip away.
You see, joy is what gives you the strength (Nehemiah 8:10) to hold steady when the circumstances get rough. Joy gives you the ability to laugh in the devil’s face when he starts trying to knock you off your faith. It gives you a kind of staying power that will make you a winner again and again.
So make a commitment to God that you’re going to walk, not only in faith and in love but in joy as well. Make it a point to rejoice in the Lord always...and there won’t be anything the devil can do or say to steal your victory from you!
LEG GROWS BISHOP EXPLAINS
WHAT HE SAW.
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