Essentials Of The Faith / Sunday Morning Sermon Series / Genesis

Genesis 48 05/04/03

Intro: And Step by Step you’ll lead me. And I will follow you all of my days…all of my days? Really? Even the days when God leads you to your grave?

Someone once said ‘If you want to plan your life, think about your eulogy, and then go backwards.’ What would you want people to say about you at your death? What would you want them to remember about you when you are gone?

Not a bad idea. But instead of people talking about you and your achievements…
     -Why not talk about what God has done in and through you.
     -Why not talk about God’s love for you,
     -Why not talk about how He walked with you every day of your life,
     -Why not talk about how He sent His Son Jesus to die for you so that you might live eternally with Him,
     -Why not talk about the faith that God gave you and the power to live a life of faith that the Holy Spirit brought you?

Better yet, why wait for others to speak at your funeral? Talk about these things now, especially to your children, grandchildren whether blood relatives or those related to you by the Holy Spirit.

But we talk about other things…Have you ever heard  some one say ‘Before I die I want to…travel to China, skydive, ride a horse’, the list goes on. We are obsessed with doing more and more things, to cramp more and more into our already short lives.

Have you ever heard anyone say ‘Before I die, I want to share with my children, my family, everything God has done for me in my life.’?

We think the most important thing we can leave to our children as we approach the grave is a financial inheritance. But, what greater blessing can we leave our children and those closest to us than telling them of the Good News of Jesus Christ and how He has changed our life…right up till the very end.

We can encourage them that even though we may not be there with them…God will be.
We can encourage them that even though we will not be there to take care of them…God will be.
We can encourage them that even though we won’t be there to protect them…God will be, just as He always has.

That’s why it is a good idea to let  young people that are coming into the world get close to the older saints who are heading out of it. To let them see the ‘grave perspective’ of those…
     -who have found God to be faithful all their lives,
     -who have known the goodness of God all their lives,
     -who have experienced the wisdom of God all their lives.

It has been true throughout all of salvation history that the lives of those who have come before us, greatly influence us. Some for the better and some not.
     -Which one will you be?
     -How will you choose to live, knowing that one day you will go to the grave?
     -And what do you want to leave behind?

What I am talking about is ‘a grave perspective’. Jacob had one that we all can learn from.

Genesis 48:1-4
Jacob was bedridden at this time. He was old and very weak. But when Joseph and his sons came into the room, he mustered all his strength to sit up and speak with them because what he had to say to them really mattered in life.

Notice that Jacob didn’t speak about his successes or about his failures…instead Jacob, nearing death, spoke about Almighty God and what He had done for him.

You know how many older folks like to retell the great stories of their past? How they did this and did that in the business world..how they had it hard in life.so hard that they hard to walk to school, shoeless, in the snow, for 5 miles, uphill, both ways. And you hear the same stories over and over again. Come on grandpop, we heard this a hundred times.

You know, I don’t believe that is what Joseph thought, even though Jacobs story was not a new one.
You see, Jacob was passing life on to his children and grandchildren by giving them a sense of history, God’s history of intervention and compassion in his life.

Like Jacob, one of the best things you can do as your approach the grave, no matter where you are on that journey, is to pass on the  story of your spiritual journey. Tell others what Almighty God has done for you.

Genesis 48:5-6
Jacob here is legally adopting Josephs two sons as his own. Why? Because they were smart, handsome. No. It was to give them an inheritance in the promises of God. They were born in a foreign country, they knew foreign ways. He wanted them to know and experience God’s ways.

Without any effort of their own, Jacob adopted Joseph’s sons and made them his own. It wasn’t based on their performance in life, it was based wholly on his love for them. And his desire for them to know the blessings of God.

Sound familiar? It should. Every other relationship we have in life..marriage, work, family in some way is based on our performance. We have to do well and keep doing well in order to win and keep the respect and approval of others. In the best marriages and friendships, this is minimized. But every human relationship, at one time or another, will come down to performance.

Here we see Jacob adopting his grandsons not based on their performance, but based on his love for them.  Just like Jonathan was adopted by Gary and Susan w/o any effort on his part. He was adopted because Gary and Susan wanted and loved him.
And just as Jacob’s grandsons heard him say ‘You are mine’ Jonathan has heard and will continue to hear the same thing… ‘You are mine’ and so will all those whom God is calling to Himself. ‘You are mine.’ God has adopted you because He loves you.

What a blessing! We are accepted, we are loved and we have an inheritance..all because of God’s great love for us.

Genesis 48:7
Is Jacob’s mind wondering? Not really. Then why mention Rachel here? Well, Rachel is Jacobs true love. He has a passion for her that has not been equaled in all history, that is till Kathy and I.

I don’t believe he had intentionally set out to speak about Rachel, but when he looked into Josephs eyes, saw his face up close, he probably saw Rachel in Joseph and it caused him to remember her.

This is very touching. And it reminds me of how Mrs Leslie speaks of her late husband, Art. Yet, notice that Jacob was not bitter with God for taking Rachel. As He is for Mrs. Leslie, God was Jacobs consolation.

It is a blessing to see God’s comforting hand at work in someone’s life, even in times of great sorrow.

Genesis 48:8-16
Here Josephs two sons, now Jacobs sons by adoption are blessed by their new father. It is a moving scene with tender caressing as Jacob brings his adopted sons close to him.

Jacob wanted to leave these boys something of great importance. So he told them of God.
     -The God who was His God
     -The God who was his fathers God
     -The God who was his Shepherd all his life
     -The God who was his Angel that protected him

Jacob told the boys about God and then asked God to bless and be with them, all the days of their life. Just as He had been with his father and his fathers father. Isn’t that what we should pass on to our children?

Genesis 48:17-20
I want you to notice something. While there is no biblical evidence to support this, I still see something that connects Jacob’s adoption of his grandsons and God’s adoption of us.

Notice Jacob’s hands were crossed when he blessed the two boys. This is because Jacob gave a greater blessing to the second born Ephriam over the first born Manasseh. Can you see a cross, the cross of Jesus, perhaps? The sinners birth order is also reversed. We were first born a child of Adam in our sin and now we have been born again as a child of God in faith.
It is not the firstborn who receive eternal life in heaven, but those born again. Just a thought.

Genesis 48:21-22
Jacob blessed Manasseh and Ephriam. But did he do it equally? No. He gave a greater blessing, greater gifting to Ephriam. Was this fair? Joseph evidently didn’t think so. But he submitted to the will of his father. And so should we in the area of blessing and gifting.God gives some more than others: more talents and gifts, more grace, more comfort, more hair, more of the good things in life. And He often gives more to those who are the least likely to get it. God often chooses the weak link from the world’s perspective to be His strongest link.

And like Joseph, we may question, but we must always submit to the will and wisdom of our Heavenly father.

Conclusion
As I close, I want to offer a challenge. We sing the hymn ‘Make me a blessing to someone today’ I think we need to learn from Jacob to give a blessing to someone today as well.

ILL: The story is told of a concert pianist who gave a concert in Carneige Hall. He played for the people and when he finished the people stood to their feet and applauded. The man should have been elated…but instead he as in tears. When asked what the problem was he said ‘My teacher was in the first row of the balcony and he did not applaud.’ When a blessing is withheld from the most significant in our lives, the blessings of others mean little.’

All people, are starving for blessings from those closest to them. This is especially true for children and parents. But we are too busy or too much of a perfectionist to offer one.

Gary Smalley has written a book titled ‘The Blessing’ which is a contemporary application of the blessing given from the father to his sons in the OT.  How can we give a blessing to others? There are many ways.
     -You can affirm the positive character traits you see in someone.
    -You can recognize someone for a job well  done.
    -You can look at someone and see what they might be, then share it with them, as Jacob does in ch. 49 with his sons.
    -You can write someone a note telling them how you care for, respect or appreciate them.
    -You can simply say to someone… God bless you!

But there is more. Another level. I believe that the blessing we all most crave is from God. And I want everyone here to know that you matter to God. He knows you better than anyone, better than you know yourself.

And He considers you to be a person of infinite worth and value…and of incredible potential.

Yes, God even knows your failures and your sin. He knows your rebellion and disobedience. That is why He sent His Son Jesus to die; for your failures, your sin, your rebellion and disobedience..all because He loves you.

The blessings we can get from others feel pretty good. But you need to know that you will sense something missing, if you do not get God’s blessing.

A leper came to Jesus and said ‘If you are willing, you can make me clean.’ Jesus told him, ‘I am willing, be clean’.
My friend, God is willing to bless you. He is waiting to bless you. All you need to do is listen to his voice, turn from your past of failure, sin, rebellion and disobedience and come to Him.

Accept Jesus death on the cross as payment for your sin. Ask Jesus to forgive you of your sin and to give you eternal life. And you will find in God the blessings you have longed for all your life.

And as you approach the grave, you will have a very different perspective.