Making a Differencewith Pastor Phil Erickson

Jan 16th Are You Willing to Wait?

Today’s Passage – Genesis 41 – 42 (Click on the references to listen to the audio – Click here to view the passage from Blue Letter Bible)

(Second Milers also read – Mark 3 – 4 ; Proverbs 16; Psalms 76 – 80)

Listen to this morning’s Scripture Song – Psalm 92:1

Read the “0116 Evening and Morning“ devotion for today, by the late Charles Haddon Spurgeon.

Read a previous post from today’s reading passage – “Saving for the Future”

“And Pharaoh said unto his servants, Can we find such a one as this is, a man in whom the Spirit of God is? And Pharaoh said unto Joseph, Forasmuch as God hath shewed thee all this, there is none so discreet and wise as thou art: Thou shalt be over my house, and according unto thy word shall all my people be ruled: only in the throne will I be greater than thou. And Pharaoh said unto Joseph, See, I have set thee over all the land of Egypt.” – (Genesis 41:38-41)

There are two questions that I would like to consider this morning:

1  Would you be willing to wait all of the years that Joseph waited if you new there was a marvelous and exciting plan for your life in the distant future?

2  Would you be willing to endure all of the hardship that Joseph endured and remain faithful to the Lord if you knew that those trials were necessary to advance the plans and purposes of God?

The story of Joseph begins in Genesis 37. In these chapters we discover that Joseph goes from being a favored son of Jacob to a slave in the house of Potipher, and then to a prisoner in Pharaoh’s kingdom. Joseph’s downward slide began with a dream that he had which revealed to him that God was going to elevate him above his brothers, and even above his father. His brothers would have none of Joseph’s dreams and sought to be rid of him, and for a long time they were. However, many years after they sold their brother into bondage, the sons of Jacob went down into Egypt at the request of their father to purchase food, and who do you think was the guy in charge of the food? You guessed it: Joseph. Egypt was the only place that had food in this time of famine, and the only reason they were prepared  was because Joseph had revealed to Pharaoh that he should store up food in the days of plenty, so that Egypt would have enough when times got hard. By the way, that’s not a bad idea for us, either.

At any rate, when the brothers finally come to Egypt, their little brother is no longer a slave; he is the prime minister of all of Egypt. However, it took a long times and a lot of hardship before Joseph was elevated by God to this prominent position. I am sure that there were times in those many years that he doubted God; but he never wavered. Joseph remained faithful to God. In God’s time, Joseph was delivered from his brothers, from the bondage, from the prison, and from the humiliation of it all; and all of the world could see that Joseph was God’s man. Though, Joseph certainly did not enjoy all of the days of trial and affliction, I bet that at the end of his life he would say that it was all worth what God finally gave him.

We sing a song that says “It will be worth it all when we see Jesus”. I bet when Joseph hears us singing that song from his vantage point in Heaven, he says “Amen. It was worth it all”.

Stay faithful to God. You may be in Pharaoh’s dungeon right now, but if you are a child of God, I promise you, that He will some day pull you out of that awful place. Trust God. He has a purpose and a plan for it all. God doesn’t often fill us in about all of the details of His sovereign plan, but we can trust that He will work it all out in the end.

“For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us.” – (Romans 8:18)

“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.” – (Romans 8:28)

“But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.” – (Isaiah 40:31)

Jan 11th Moving Forward

Today’s Passage – Genesis 29 – 30 

(Second Milers also read –Matthew 21 – 22; Proverbs 11; Psalms 51 – 55)

“And the man increased exceedingly, and had much cattle, and maidservants, and menservants, and camels, and asses.” – (Genesis 30:43)

“Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.” – (Philippians 3:13-14)

Our passage today reveals the blessing of God upon the life of Jacob. Jacob was a man who was certainly not always deserving of the abundant favor of God upon his work and his family, yet God always took good care of him. In chapter 30, we see God increasing the livestock of Jacob. Notice in vv. 37 – 42 that Jacob devises a peculiar and rather devious plan in order to make sure that his cattle prosper. However, I do not believe that Jacob’s “scientific” methods were the reason for the increase. It was God that had His hand upon Jacob’s life. I believe that God blessed Jacob the way He did because God saw the big picture. He was not blessing Jacob because of the things that Jacob had done in the past to deserve the blessing, because Jacob really hadn’t done anything yet. Up until this point, Jacob is mostly a deceptive person who takes matters into his own hands rather than place his trust in God. However, God saw what Jacob would become. God will change his name from Jacob (which means trickster or deceiver) to Israel, which means a prince with God. God was going to do something someday with Jacob. He saw what Jacob would become.

When we look at people, we also need to look past what they have been in the past, and even what they may be right now, and we need instead to try to see what they could be in the future. God has a wonderful tendency to make something marvelous out of ordinary, sinful people like us. In order to do this God has chosen to forget about the sins that we have committed in the past, and He even chooses not to “impute”, or record the sins of today and tomorrow. God had a plan for Jacob in the future that was not yet apparent at this point in Jacob’s life. I bet God has a plan for us too. If God chooses to see what we can and will be tomorrow, why don’t we do the same thing. Let’s not let the past bog us down, and cause to stay where we are. Let’s move forward into that abundant life of God’s blessing.

There is a passage of Scripture regarding Abraham that supports this thought:

“For I know him, that he will command his children and his household after him, and they shall keep the way of the LORD, to do justice and judgment; that the LORD may bring upon Abraham that which he hath spoken of him.” – (Genesis 18:19)

Notice in this verse that God knows some good things about Abraham, yet the things that He knows are all in Abraham’s future. God reveals His plan to Abraham, not based upon what He remembers about Abraham’s past, but what He sees in Abraham’s future. God saw what Abraham would be, and He did’t choose to remember any of the failures in Abraham’s past. We need to develop our spiritual eyesight so that we can see the possibilities of someone’s future rather than dwelling on what they were in the past. We have to learn to see people as God sees them.

Jan 9th The Apple Doesn’t Fall Far From The Tree

Today’s Passages – Genesis 25 – 26 

(Second Milers also read – Matthew 17 – 18; Proverbs 9; Psalms 41 – 45)

“And the men of the place asked him of his wife; and he said,

She is my sister: for he feared to say,

She is my wife; lest, said he, the men of the place should kill me for Rebekah;

because she was fair to look upon.” – (Genesis 26:7)

In order for you to fully understand this morning’s thought, you might want to go back and read Genesis chapter twenty. If this account of Isaac lying about the true identity of his wife sounds familiar to you, it is because we read back in Genesis 20 that his father, Abraham, did the exact same thing to Abimelech. It appears that the apple doesn’t fall very far the tree. Isaac apparently had picked up some of his father’s bad habits.

There is an old expression which states that parents don’t get what they want in child-rearing, they get what they are. I have observed that to be true. Our children definitely begin to emulate our values, character traits, and even our mannerisms. As a school teacher, I have closely observed the children in  my charge, and it is amazing how much the children are like their parents. It’s kind of scary to think that we are also passing on our bad habits. Isaac learned how to lie from his dad.

As parents, we must be very careful to remember that our children are always watching us; almost analyzing us. They mistakenly think that everything we do is right, so they have no reason not to mimic who we are. Even later when they are taught with words regarding bad behavior, the message that they received from the life of the parent will often leave a stronger impression. Parents, and mentors, need to be very careful to watch their own behavior, especially around those young ones that are so impressionable. We need to be what we want them to be. Be the right example to your children.

Jan 5th Gardens and Green Grass; or God’s Will

Today’s Passage – Genesis 13 – 16 

(Second Milers also read –Matthew 9 – 10; Proverbs 5; Psalms 21 – 25)

“And Lot lifted up his eyes, and beheld all the plain of Jordan, that it was well watered everywhere, before the Lord destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah, even as the garden of the Lord, like the land of Egypt, as thou comest unto Zoar.” (Genesis 13:10)

“But the men of Sodom were wicked before the Lord exceedingly” (Genesis 13:13)

The story of Lot is really a sad one. Lot came from the same stock as Abraham, lived in the same places, seemingly had the same training and influences; yet Lot had dreams and desires that were diametrically opposite to those of Abraham. In the account given us here in Genesis 13, we see Abraham and Lot both returning from a time of sojourning in Egypt. Egypt was certainly a busy place: people on top of people; culture; education; and pleasures: more pleasure than Lot had ever seen. Abraham had his fill of the big city. He wanted to get back to place in Canaan where he built an altar for the Lord: the place where God promised to bless him. You see, Abraham finally realized that he didn’t need all of the excitement of the big city: he just needed God.

Not long after they returned to Canaan, the land of promise, it seems that Lot and Abraham began to fuss about the size of land their cattle were grazing on, whether or not it was big enough to provide for both of their herds. These men were both already very wealthy, yet it seems that Lot wanted more. Maybe he was tired of living under the shadow of Uncle Abraham. Maybe he didn’t like all of those righteous rules that Abraham governed his home by. Lot missed Egypt: he missed the exhilaration of the city life. Abraham senses Lot’s frustration and offers to let Lot separate from him. I am sure he divided up the livestock, and sent Lot away with plenty. He also gives Lot the pick of the surrounding land. He told Lot that if he chose east, he would go west. You see, Abraham didn’t need what this earth could offer him: he only needed God. It seems that he had learned much from the error of his previous move into Egypt.

Lot, however, decides that Sodom is the place he ought to raise his family. I believe that there were three attractions that lured Lot to Sodom:

1      There were lots of people in Sodom. Now there is nothing wrong with people. I love people and, more importantly, God loves people. Jesus died to save people. However, it seems that whenever you get a lot of people grouped together in one place, wickedness just pours right in. Verse 13 tells us that Sodom was an exceedingly wicked place. Lot should have been repulsed by it, yet instead he was enamored by it. By the way, his attraction to this large number of people was clearly not for the purpose of evangelizing them. We will learn later in chapter 19 that Lot influences no one in the city for God.

2      There was a lot of pleasure in Sodom. He said it reminded him of Egypt. The Bible tells us that there is pleasure in sin for a season; but the wages of that kind of pleasure is death. Lot was attracted to the fast life.

3      Thirdly, we see that Sodom was a place of wealth and prosperity. There was plenty of money in Sodom. It was well watered.  The livestock would do well there. Lot saw the chance to make some good money: maybe even a little more than ole Uncle Abe. Again, there is nothing wrong with money. I like what money can buy; but the love of money is the root of all evil. Lot wasn’t really concerned with the wickedness because all he could see was the dollars.

Through the years, I have seen a lot of saved people (remember, the Bible calls him “just Lot”) make the same mistake that Lot made.  They leave the place of blessing where God is protecting them and providing for them, only to trade it in for a place where they think the grass is “well-watered” My pastor in Bible College used to say that the grass may look greener, but it just might be artificial turf. Be very careful that you stay inside the perfect will of God. Don’t trade in the spiritual, eternal blessings for the temporary pleasures of this world.

Jan 4th Don’t Move – Unless God Moves You

Today’s Passage – Genesis 10 – 12 

“And Abraham journeyed, going on still toward the south” (Genesis 12:9)

There has only been two times in my life that God has clearly revealed His perfect will to me. I am not referring to the will of God that is revealed to all of us in the Word. What I am referring to is when God miraculously showed me where He wanted me to go and what He wanted me to do. The first time was when God showed me where to go to Bible College. I had been searching for His will regarding my training for the ministry and frankly I was not sure what to do. I won’t go into to all of the details, but after spending a lot of time in prayer, God made it crystal clear to me where He wanted me to go.

I will tell you a little bit more about the second time. I was in my last year of Bible College and the day of my graduation was at hand. I did not know at that time what God had planned for me after I finished. I had some thoughts about what I wanted to do, but I wanted to make sure that I was following God, not trying to get Him to follow me. I was out on my bus route in Texarkana one Saturday, and again I was praying about what to do. All of a sudden I thought about Pastor Charlie Clark, a preacher that I had known back in New Jersey. I decided to give him a call and ask his advice. I remember that he had once told me that he wanted to help start twenty new churches in south Jersey. Maybe God would allow me to be the pastor of one of them. I called 411, got his number, and then called him, and surprisingly Pastor Clark picked up the phone. I shared with him my dilemma, and after a long conversation, he agreed to help me start a church when I returned home. I later found out that as soon as he hung up the phone with me, the phone rang again. This time it was Pastor Dan Owens, the pastor of Jersey Shore Baptist Church. Pastor Dan had been called by God to become a chaplain in the military, and he needed somebody to take the church that he had started in Galloway. God used Pastor Clark to connect me with Dan Owens, and the rest, as they say, is history. I never candidated anywhere else, and I didn’t really candidate here at Jersey Shore. I just met with the pastor, and preached a couple of times for him; and upon his recommendation, the church voted me in. I believe with all of my heart that God, through those circumstances, revealed His perfect will regarding where He wanted me to go after I graduated from college.

Now I told you all of that to tell you this: it was thirteen years ago this week that the people of Jersey Shore Baptist Church voted me in to be their pastor. But before they chose me, God did. Now through these years there have been many good days, but there have also been many times of trial and testing. However, because I knew that I was where God wanted me to be, I did not quit. Though I have been tempted to do so many times, I did not move away.

In Genesis 12:6 – 8, Abraham entered into the land of Canaan, and God appeared to him and told him this was the place where He was going to bless him. X marks the spot. You don’t need to go anywhere else, Abraham, because this is the place of God’s blessing. How sad it is that in verse 9, Abraham is leaving the place of God’s calling. Verse 10 reveals that when a famine comes, he moves further away into Egypt. Do you know that God does not speak to Abraham again until he gets back to the place where God had told him to stay? (Genesis 13:14)

Christian, be very careful about the decisions you make in life. Things like where you live, whom you marry, what school you go to. All of the major decisions should be carefully prayed over, and counsel needs to be sought after. Don’t move unless you are sure you are in the perfect will of God. All of these decisions have long-term consequences. Make sure you get it right.  And once you find God’s perfect plan for your life, don’t move, unless you are absolutely sure that God is moving you.

Jan 1st He Is Still Creating Me

Today’s Passage – Genesis 1 – 3

(Second Milers also read – Mathew 1 – 2; Proverbs 1; Psalms 1 – 5)

“In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters. And God said, Let there be light: and there was light. And God saw the light, that it was good: and God divided the light from the darkness. And God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And the evening and the morning were the first day.” (Genesis 1:1-5)

Before I share my thought from this morning’s Bible reading passage, I would like to make perfectly clear something that I believe to be very important. I believe that the Scriptures teach that the earth was created in six literal days and that it is also a very young earth, existing only for thousands of years, not billions as the evolutionist often tell us. The reason that I wanted clarify my position on creation is because I didn’t want there to be any doubt about it as I develop the following thought from these first five verses in Genesis.

Genesis 1:2 teaches, “the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep“, which means that in the beginning of the creation process, on the first day, the earth was incomplete. God would develop the earth into a beautiful and finished product over the next seven days. I see a picture here in Genesis 1:1 – 5. Man in his lost state is incomplete without God. In fact, we know from the New Testament that man is actually spiritually dead in his trespasses and sins. (Ephesians 2:1 – 5; Colossians 2:13) Man is literally in spiritual darkness until the Spirit of God moves upon him and shines the light of spiritual understanding to his lost and  dark condition. When the Holy Ghost of God illuminates and brings conviction upon the lost sinner, he can then realize his need for the salvation that can only come through the Lord Jesus Christ. This does not mean that a person is saved automatically because the Holy Spirit brings him to this understanding, as he still has a choice as to whether or not he wants to be saved. John tells us that some men love darkness rather than light. (John 3:19) However, the Holy Spirit must move upon a person and Light must be given in order for a person to be saved; born again into the family of God. I remember very clearly the day that I trusted Christ as my Savior. It was literally as if somebody turned on a light, and I could finally see (understand) my need for Christ’s salvation. I finally “got it” because the Holy Ghost shined a light on my dark soul.

The exciting thing about this first day of creation is that it didn’t end there. There was more work to be done, and for five more days God continued to create. And, there is still a lot more work that must be done by God on the lost sinner after he receives the Lord Jesus as his Savior. The Holy Spirit will continue to move and transform the lives of those who become the children of God. God has been working on me for nearly three decades, and He is far from being finished. He will continue to work on me until He brings me into the very presence of Christ.

“Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is.” (1 John 3:2)

“Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.” (2 Corinthians 5:17)

“And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.” (Romans 12:2)

“For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren.” (Romans 8:29)