John Ortberg, in his book If You Want to Walk on Water, You’ve Got to Get Out of the Boat, cites a medical study in which 122 men who had suffered their first heart attack were evaluated on their degree of hopefulness and pessimism: “Of the 25 most pessimistic men, 21 had died eight years later. Of the 25 most optimistic, only 6 had died! Loss of hope increased the odds of death more than 300 percent; it predicted death more accurately than any medical risk factor, including blood pressure, amount of damage to the heart, or cholesterol level.”
Then Ortberg adds his own humorous thought to the study: “Better to eat Twinkies in hope than to eat broccoli in despair.” (John Ortberg, If You Want to Walk on Water, You've Got to Get Out of the Boat, Zondervan, 2001, p. 159; www.PreachingToday.com)
The question is, “Where do we find such life-giving hope?” Especially for those of us who have struggled in the last year, where do we find hope as we begin a new year tomorrow?
The question reminds me of an ad I once saw offering a cash reward for help with locating a lost dog with a description of the dog. It said: “He's got three legs; he's blind in the left eye and missing a right ear; his tail has been broken off; he was neutered accidentally by a fence – ouch! – he's almost deaf, and he answers to the name ‘Lucky.’” (Philip Griffin, A God Who Redeems, www.PreachingToday.com)
Poor dog. I think his luck has run out, and maybe you feel the same especially when we’re talking about hope. Where do the hopeless find hope? Well, if you have your Bibles I invite you to turn with me to Genesis 48, Genesis 48, where an old man on his death bed found hope beyond the grave not only for himself but for his entire family.
Genesis 48:1-4 After this, Joseph was told, “Behold, your father is ill.” So he took with him his two sons, Manasseh and Ephraim. And it was told to Jacob, “Your son Joseph has come to you.” Then Israel summoned his strength and sat up in bed. And Jacob said to Joseph, “God Almighty appeared to me at Luz in the land of Canaan and blessed me, and said to me, ‘Behold, I will make you fruitful and multiply you, and I will make of you a company of peoples and will give this land to your offspring after you for an everlasting possession.’ (ESV)
Jacob recalls the promises God had made to him at Luz (later called Bethel); and there he finds hope, so much so that he adopts Joseph’s two sons as his own.
Genesis 48:5 And now your two sons, who were born to you in the land of Egypt before I came to you in Egypt, are mine; Ephraim and Manasseh shall be mine, as Reuben and Simeon are. (ESV)
Reuben and Simeon were Jacob’s first-born sons. They were the ones who by right and by custom should have received a double portion of Jacob’s estate, twice as much as any of their brothers. But now, Jacob adopts Ephraim and Manasseh, Joseph’s sons, as his own first-born sons. They will replace Reuben and Simeon as first-born sons and receive their inheritance.
This elevates Joseph’s position, as the 11th born son, to an even greater position than the 1st born son. That’s because he, through his first two children, now receives four portions of his father’s estate. Usually, the first-born son receives two portions of the estate and the rest of the children only one, but Joseph gets four portions! Jacob elevates Joseph through this adoption, then he continues…
Genesis 48:6-7 And the children that you fathered after them shall be yours. They shall be called by the name of their brothers in their inheritance. As for me, when I came from Paddan, to my sorrow Rachel died in the land of Canaan on the way, when there was still some distance to go to Ephrath, and I buried her there on the way to Ephrath (that is, Bethlehem).” –ESV
The elevation of Joseph to the status of 1st born, reminds Jacob of Joseph’s mother, Rachel. He still feels the pain of her loss even after all those years; but in the midst of the pain, and in the midst of his own terminal condition, he looks to the future with confidence.
He adopts two boys as his own and promises them a double portion of his estate even though he has nothing to give them at this time. Jacob is living in a strange land. In fact, he has no land of his own except a small burial plot hundreds of miles away. Yet he speaks with all the confidence of a promising future for his family.
Why? Because Jacob has found his hope in the promises of God, and that’s where you find your hope as well. It doesn’t matter if you have nothing. It doesn’t matter if you’re in pain. It doesn’t matter if the last year has been a struggle. If you rely on the promises of God, you can still…
LOOK AHEAD WITH CONFIDENCE.
You can look forward to the coming year with an absolute assurance that God will keep His Word. You can face the future with joy in anticipation of all that God has for you in the days ahead.
Bob Seiple, in Princeton Seminary Bulletin, talks about his father, who at the age of 75 planted a number of very small fruit trees. “What an optimist,” Bob had told him, somewhat mockingly.
Well, his dad passed away a few years ago, and now when Bob returns to the old homestead, he says, “I have an option. I can go to the grassy cemetery on top of the hill and brood over his grave, or I can eat the fruit of his trees and reflect on a man who knew a great deal about hope.” (Bob Seiple, Princeton Seminary Bulletin, Vol. xxvii, number 2, 2006, p. 119-120; www.Preaching Today.com)
Tell me, are you planting “fruit trees?” Or are you just complaining about your circumstances?
I like the way John Maxwell once put it. He says, “When confronted with a difficult situation, a person with an outstanding attitude makes the best of it while he gets the worst of it. (John C. Maxwell, Attitude 101, Thomas Nelson, 2003; www.Preaching Today.com)
So how do you do that? Well, you do it like Jacob did. You rely on the promises of God.
Two young girls were talking and one of the girls said she had ten pennies. The other girl looked in her hand and saw only five. She told her, “You only have five pennies.”
“No,” said the first girl. “I have five and my father told me he would give me five tonight. So I have ten!” To her, her father’s promise was as good as done.
And that’s the way it is with our Heavenly Father’s promises. They’re as good as done. My God will supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus (Philippians 4:19) – It’s as good as done! God has said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you” (Hebrews 13:5) – It’s as good as done! I can do all things through him who strengthens me (Philippians 4:13) – It’s as good as done! And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose (Romans 8:28) – It’s as good as done!
Find your own promises in the Bible. There are hundreds of them in this Book, and they are ALL as good as done! So count on them, because in difficult times, when you rely on the promises of God, you can look ahead with confidence. But not only that, when you rely on the promises of God, you can also…
LOOK UP TO THE LORD WITH COMMITMENT.
You can remain strong in your determination to obey the Lord no matter what others think. You can choose to honor the Lord even if it is contrary to what people might expect of you. That’s what Jacob (or Israel) did.
Genesis 48:8-10 When Israel saw Joseph’s sons, he said, “Who are these?” Joseph said to his father, “They are my sons, whom God has given me here.” And he said, “Bring them to me, please, that I may bless them.” Now the eyes of Israel were dim with age, so that he could not see. So Joseph brought them near him, and he kissed them and embraced them. (ESV)
Israel’s eyes are just like his father’s were when his father blessed him. Only that was accomplished in a context of deception and trickery. Israel had deceived his blind father into thinking he was the first-born and so received the blessing of the first-born. Here, there is no deception. Israel, though blind, knows exactly what he is doing and who he is blessing. His physical eyes may be dim, but the eyes of his faith are wide open.
Genesis 48:11-13 And Israel said to Joseph, “I never expected to see your face; and behold, God has let me see your offspring also.” Then Joseph removed them from his knees, and he bowed himself with his face to the earth. And Joseph took them both, Ephraim in his right hand toward Israel’s left hand, and Manasseh in his left hand toward Israel’s right hand, and brought them near him. (ESV)
Joseph has positioned his sons so that the oldest is on Israel’s right and the youngest on Israel’s left. The right side is the prominent side, and Joseph wants his first-born son to have the prominence, but look at what Israel does.
Genesis 48:14-20 And Israel stretched out his right hand and laid it on the head of Ephraim, who was the younger, and his left hand on the head of Manasseh, crossing his hands (for Manasseh was the firstborn). And he blessed Joseph and said, “The God before whom my fathers Abraham and Isaac walked, the God who has been my shepherd all my life long to this day, the angel who has redeemed me from all evil, bless the boys; and in them let my name be carried on, and the name of my fathers Abraham and Isaac; and let them grow into a multitude in the midst of the earth.” When Joseph saw that his father laid his right hand on the head of Ephraim, it displeased him, and he took his father’s hand to move it from Ephraim’s head to Manasseh’s head. And Joseph said to his father, “Not this way, my father; since this one is the firstborn, put your right hand on his head.” But his father refused and said, “I know, my son, I know. He also shall become a people, and he also shall be great. Nevertheless, his younger brother shall be greater than he, and his offspring shall become a multitude of nations.” So he blessed them that day, saying, “By you Israel will pronounce blessings, saying, ‘God make you as Ephraim and as Manasseh.’” Thus he put Ephraim before Manasseh. (ESV)
In spite of society’s expectations and in spite of his own sons protests, Israel blesses the younger son over the older. He gives the younger boy the prominence and puts Ephraim before Manasseh.
This has been God’s pattern now for four generations in Genesis. God put Isaac over Ishmael, Jacob over Esau, Joseph over Reuben, and now Ephraim over Manasseh. All of them younger sons over the oldest. So Israel chooses to follow God’s pattern instead of human patterns. Through the eyes of faith, he chooses God’s way instead of man’s way and blesses the younger over the older.
It’s because he believed in the promises of God. God had promised him a rich inheritance, so it didn’t matter what people said. It only mattered what God had said, and that gave him all the security he needed to go against the opinions of others, even that of his own son, Joseph.
You see, when you rely on the promises of God, you can do the same thing. You can do what God wants you to do no matter what anybody else says.
One of the sad stories of this last year (2017) was the closing of the Ringling Brothers & Barnum and Baily Circus. My favorite part of the circus has always been watching the trapeze artists with their breathtaking moves as they fly through the air with amazing dexterity and timing. We gasp at their near-misses, but in most cases, there is a net underneath. When they fall, they jump up and bounce back to the trapeze.
That’s what we have in the promises of God. Those promises are like a safety net, which allows us to do amazing things! We can love one another. Husbands can treat their wives with honor. We can be the best workers, the best neighbors, and the best students while the world marvels at these amazing feats.
But what happens when we slip? The net is surely there. The blood of Jesus Christ, God’s Son, cleanses us from ALL sin (1 John 1:7), so we are emboldened to fly higher and do more! God’s grace gives us the ability to stay on the “trapeze”, and it catches us when we fall. However, if you’re constantly sleeping on the net, you might not be a real trapeze artist. (Juan Carlos Ortiz, “As I Have Loved You,” Leadership, Vol. 5, no. 4; www.Preaching Today.com)
The true believer relies on the promises of God and is therefore able to do whatever God wants him or her to do. The true believer relies on the promises of God and is therefore able to do what others say is impossible.
When you rely on the promises of God, you can look ahead to the future with confidence; you can look up to the Lord with total commitment. And finally, when you depend on God’s Word, you can…
LOOK AROUND WITH COMPASSION.
You can encourage those you love despite your own condition. You can inspire others even when your health is failing.
That’s what Israel did. He encouraged his son on his deathbed.
Genesis 48:21 Then Israel said to Joseph, “Behold, I am about to die, but God will be with you and will bring you again to the land of your fathers. (ESV)
Just as he promised
Genesis 48:22 Moreover, I have given to you rather than to your brothers one mountain slope that I took from the hand of the Amorites with my sword and with my bow.” (ESV)
Now, there is no record that Israel ever took anything from the Amorites with his sword and bow. Rather, Israel is looking ahead to the time when he, through his descendants, will take land from the Amorites just as God promised. And when that happens, Israel says, Joseph’s tribes will get a double portion of it all. On his deathbed, Israel is giving Joseph a vision of a victorious future for their descendants. It’s a vision born out of Israel’s confidence in God’s promises.
Israel encourages his son even on his own deathbed, and that’s what you can do when you have the same confidence in God’s promises as Israel did. You can be an encouragement to others even when you are going through difficult times.
2 Corinthians 1 says, “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God” (2 Corinthians 1:3-4).
When you depend on the Lord, He comforts you in your times of trouble, so you can comfort others in their times of trouble.
Damien Spikereit, Executive Vice President at Ozark Christian College, talks about his father passing away rather suddenly when he was in high school. It was just two days before his high school graduation, and he was just a baby Christian at the time, immature and shallow. He says, “I was still drying off the baptistery waters. All I cared about was not going to hell.”
Then his dad died, and he found himself in a place he'd never been before. He wanted to hear God speak. He wanted to know what God had to say about this situation; how God was going to get him and his family through this difficult time. So Damien prayed and waited for God to speak.
On the day of the funeral, the church was packed. Damien sat on the front pew with his mother and two younger sisters. The Lutheran priest spoke, but Damien didn’t remember what he said. Damien continued to wait for God to say something. Then the service was over. It was the tradition of this church to have the family line up in the foyer. Everyone would file past them and offer words of condolence and encouragement. Tears were shed, hugs offered, and words were given. Damien says he didn't remember what anybody said to him in that time, but he continued to wait for God to speak.
Then he saw Kim O'Quinn. She was Damien’s age. They were in the youth group together. When she got to Damien, she didn't say a word. She had tears in her eyes, and she simply hugged him and walked off, but Damien finally heard God speak. He said, “It dawned on me. Just months before, I had attended another funeral; the funeral for Kim O'Quinn's father. In that moment she knew exactly what it meant to be me.” (Damien Spikereit, The Story Before the Story, preached at Lincoln Christian College, 11-25-03; www.PreachingToday.com)
She could comfort Damien in a way no one else could, because she had suffered as Damien did.
By the way, there is Someone else who knows exactly what it’s like to be you. We just celebrated His birth last week. He is Jesus, God in the flesh, who knows what it is to be human. He knows what it is to suffer. He knows what it is to be rejected. Let Him comfort you in your pain, so you can comfort others in their pain.
That’s the nature of true faith. When you depend on the Lord, He uses you even in your pain to help others in their pain.
Amy Carmichael (1867–1951), a missionary to India, was no stranger to pain and suffering. She once asked the question, “What if every stroke of pain, or hour of weariness or loneliness, or any other trial of flesh or spirit, could carry us a pulse beat nearer some other life, some life for which the ministry of prayer is needed. Would it not be worthwhile to suffer? Ten thousand times yes. And surely it must be so, for the further we are drawn into the fellowship of Calvary with our dear Lord, the [more tender] we are toward others. God never wastes His children's pain.” (Michael Bauman, Lawrence Kimbrough, Martin I. Klauber, and Keith P. Wells, 90 Days with the Christian Classics, B&H Publishing, 1999; www.PreachingToday.com)
My friends, as you rely on the Lord, you will find the same thing: God NEVER wastes his children’s pain. He can and he will use you even in your pain to be a blessing to others.
When you rely on the promises of God, you can look ahead with confidence; you can look up with commitment; and you can look around with compassion.
I like the way Joni Erickson Tada once put it. She said, “You don't have to be alone in your hurt! Comfort is yours. Joy is an option. And it's all been made possible by your Savior. He went without comfort so you might have it. He postponed joy so you might share in it. He willingly chose isolation so you might never be alone in your hurt and sorrow. (Joni Eareckson Tada, Christian Reader, Vol. 32, no. 2; www.PreachingToday.com)
So look to Jesus today. Trust Him with your life and find the joy and comfort only He can bring.
