The Wagons Are On The Way

The Wagons Are On The Way

Genesis 45:16-28 KJV And the fame thereof was heard in Pharaoh’s house, saying, Joseph’s brethren are come: and it pleased Pharaoh well, and his servants. [17] And Pharaoh said unto Joseph, Say unto thy brethren, This do ye; lade your beasts, and go, get you unto the land of Canaan; [18] And take your father and your households, and come unto me: and I will give you the good of the land of Egypt, and ye shall eat the fat of the land. [19] Now thou art commanded, this do ye; take you wagons out of the land of Egypt for your little ones, and for your wives, and bring your father, and come. [20] Also regard not your stuff; for the good of all the land of Egypt is yours. [21] And the children of Israel did so: and Joseph gave them wagons, according to the commandment of Pharaoh, and gave them provision for the way. [22] To all of them he gave each man changes of raiment; but to Benjamin he gave three hundred pieces of silver, and five changes of raiment. [23] And to his father he sent after this manner; ten asses laden with the good things of Egypt, and ten she asses laden with corn and bread and meat for his father by the way. [24] So he sent his brethren away, and they departed: and he said unto them, See that ye fall not out by the way. [25] And they went up out of Egypt, and came into the land of Canaan unto Jacob their father, [26] And told him, saying, Joseph is yet alive, and he is governor over all the land of Egypt. And Jacob’s heart fainted, for he believed them not. [27] And they told him all the words of Joseph, which he had said unto them: and when he saw the wagons which Joseph had sent to carry him, the spirit of Jacob their father revived: [28] And Israel said, It is enough; Joseph my son is yet alive: I will go and see him before I die.

I. JACOB’S PREDISPOSITION TO DOUBT

A. The Voices of the Past

-If we look into a little background about Jacob, we see that he has a tendency to believe bad news. It started very early in his life.

• His mother would tell him, “Your father loves Esau more than he does you.”

• His mother would tell him, “Esau is going to kill you.”

• His mother would tell him, “Your father and brother are in a plot to leave you out of the inheritance.”

• His uncle would tell him, “You have seven more years before you get Rachel but in the meantime take Leah.”

• His uncle would tell him, “You are a conniving cheat and I am going to kill you.”

• His wife would tell him, “You hate me. . . You have no time for me. . .”

• His men would tell him, “Esau is waiting down by the river to kill you. . .”

• His sons would tell him, “We found this bloody coat. . .” With Jacob assuming the worst, the seed of doubt grew and implied that Joseph was dead at the paws of a wild animal.

-All of these voices over the course of his life and all of the situations that Jacob found himself in, predisposed him to huge doses of doubt.

-Add in the components of a hugely dysfunctional family:

• Four mothers.

• A tent full of boys that had dark markings on their character.

• The motivations of jealousy and constant conflict in the home.

• The planned murder of a brother.

• All sorts of immorality that would have been expected on the street but not in the home.

-I might be full of doubt and unable to believe any good news either if I had to live in that environment all the time.

-Doubt works in small doses. . . . but huge doses of doubt will overdose your spirit and kill your faith.

-That is why Paul left us with these words:

2 Corinthians 10:3-6 KJV [3] For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh: [4] (For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds;) [5] Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ; [6] And having in a readiness to revenge all disobedience, when your obedience is fulfilled.

-It is crucial that our mind be protected from the strongholds of the enemy.

-It is with a great certainty that there may be some who are dealing with voices that continue creeping out of the past. These voices are literally suffocating the life out of you. The voices can come from a thousand directions. .