The Stages of a Dream

Abraham and Joseph are examples of what I want to call "The Stages of a Dream" or "The Stages of a Vision". It seems in both Abraham's life and in Joseph's life they experienced the same stages. The four stages are:

1.) The Birth of a Dream.
2.) The Life of a Dream.
3.) The Death of a Dream.
4.) The Resurrection of a Dream.

Now in these stages we see the Life of Jesus Christ. We see the birth, life, death and resurrection of our Lord and we can see this in each stage of Abraham's vision and in Joseph's dream. The first stage is the Birth of the Dream. Abraham and Joseph experienced this birth when God came to them sovereignly and providentially to tell them what He would do in and through their lives. In Abraham's case we see the Abrahamic Covenant in Genesis 12:1-3. In Joseph's case we see his boyhood dream in Genesis 37.

The second stage is the Life of a Dream. God gives life to the dream as we walk obediently to His vision or dream. In Abraham's case he leaves his family and moves to Canaan. He was being led by God. It seemed everything was going right. In Joseph's case we can get a clearer picture because Joseph follows the Lord and becomes the 2nd in command at home as Jacob places him in charge of his possession and brothers in Genesis 37-38. He is 2nd in command in Potiphar's house in Genesis 38-40. Joseph was 2nd in command in prison under the prison guard in Genesis 40-41. And in the end Joseph becomes 2nd in command over all of Egypt in Genesis 41 to 50. 

The third stage is the Death of a Dream. God gives death for the purpose of exaltation. As God continues to bless us in His vision or dream we may become prideful or self-centered. Therefore we begin to think God has no part in fulfilling the dream and its because we've done all the right things and God has nothing to do with it. In the Life of Abraham God causes Sarah to be barren and Abraham and Sarah start feeling the vision is dead and uses Hagar to give birth to Ishmael to help God out. Abraham takes matters into his own hands. God puts a vision to death for a time until you realize God is raising you up for His Name's Sake not yours. Joseph had the same experience. He found himself hated by his brothers. He was placed in a pit, sold into slavery, and put into prison. From Joseph's perspective he certainly was not seeing how God was fulfilling his dream in Joseph's life.

The fourth stage is the Resurrection of a Dream and it occurs when all things seems helpless. The disciples are hiding in confusion wondering what is going to happen now that Jesus is dead only to have their hopes resurrected when Mary brings word that JESUS IS ALIVE!! Abraham and Sarah were beyond child bearing years. Joseph was 13 years in on a 20 year prison sentence and he gets word that the Pharaoh had a dream and wants to speak with him. Joseph could follow the Providence of God in his interaction with all the dreams in his life; two as a child, two different dreams of the butler and baker and now two dreams of Pharaoh. Joseph could also follow the Providence of God in the favor of God in his leadership as he was 2nd in command in every position he had in life. He was able at the end of his life to see the Life of Jesus all the way to the end that he could stand in front his brothers as they offered and apology and say, "you meant it for evil but God meant it for good" (Genesis 50:20).

If you've experienced an encounter with God in a vision or a dream the first thing you should do is make sure it is Biblical. God offers no further revelation and Satan is an Angel of light.  However God will call you through a vision from God's Word or from a dream. He may press something upon your heart that you just know God is going to do something through your life. It is nothing more than a conception or an understanding of the task God has called you too.  You want to follow that up with works for James said "faith without works is dead". Everything may go great for a while and you may get confident or a bit cocky about it. God will certainly put it to death moving you to uncertainty and frustration. You may take it further into your hands and work even harder and take on more responsibility trying to make the dream come about. God will wait until your done. He will let it die in your life. You will question whether you've heard God correctly. You will get to the end of yourself and turn yourself over to God. You will say with Jesus "Not My will but Your Will". It is at this point that God may choose to resurrect the dream. You've realized that it is about God's Name Sake not your own.  You will have a fresh new dependence upon God and you will once again find and see victory in your life. I hope you find this helpful. God Bless!

God's Providence in the Life of Joseph

Joseph himself tells us that the circumstances of his life represents God's providence. Joseph said in Genesis 50:20 "But as for you, you meant evil against me; but God meant it for good, in order to bring it about as it is this day, to save many people alive." Therefore when you study the life of Joseph everything Joseph's brothers do to him is seen by Joseph as the hand of God in his life.

Merriam-Webster Dictionary

Meant:

transitive verb

1

a : to have in the mind as a purpose : intend

b : to design for or destine to a specified purpose or future

2 : to serve or intend to convey, show, or indicate : signify 

3 : to have importance to the degree of

4 : to direct to a particular individual

 

intransitive verb

: to have an intended purpose

 

The interesting terms are intend or destine. In keeping with Scriptures we are familiar with the word predestined. Therefore we can say this was Joseph's destiny because God intended to predestine him to these situations. God meant it for good while Joseph's brothers meant it for evil. Therefore as we read and study the details of Joseph's life we are simultaneously reading and studying the predestined providence of God in the life of Joseph. In this story we are reading what Joseph was doing, what his brothers were doing and most importantly what God was doing.

The first thing we notice is Jacob setting apart Joseph from the rest of his children. "Now Israel loved Joseph more than all his children, because he was the son of his old age. Also he made him a tunic of many colors. But when his brothers saw that their father loved him more than all his brothers, they hated him and could not speak peaceably to him" (Genesis 37:3-4).

 

The second thing we see is God setting Joseph apart from the rest of his family by making Joseph the main character of two dreams. "Now Joseph had a dream, and he told it to his brothers; and they hated him even more. So he said to them, “Please hear this dream which I have dreamed: There we were, binding sheaves in the field. Then behold, my sheaf arose and also stood upright; and indeed your sheaves stood all around and bowed down to my sheaf".....Then he dreamed still another dream and told it to his brothers, and said, “Look, I have dreamed another dream. And this time, the sun, the moon, and the eleven stars bowed down to me".”  (Genesis 37:5-7,9) I believe we see to "poster children" here. Joseph being the "poster child" of the elect and his brothers being the "poster children" of natural man. God shows favor and sets Christians apart and above the world and natural man hates it. God is providentially and sovereignly setting apart Joseph and his brothers want him dead. 

 

Joseph is a man of character and his father trusts him with supervising his brothers who have shown themselves untrustworthy. The brothers are off to Shechem to feed Jacob's flock and Jacob summons Joseph to go get a report from the brothers. Joseph gets to Shechem only to discover that they've moved on to Dothan. So Joseph leaves Shechem to meet his brothers in Dothan. Joseph was coming into Dothan and the brothers saw him and began to plot how they would kill him.

Reuben spoke up and said lets throw him in a pit with the hopes he could come back later and help Joseph out of the pit. But while Reuben was gone Judah spoke up and suggested that they sell him to slave traders from Egypt. So when they saw the Ishmaelite's coming they pulled Joseph out of the pit and onto the slave wagon for 20 pieces of silver. Once Joseph arrived into Egypt he was sold to the Potiphar on the auction block.

God placed His favor upon Joseph and he prospered and rose to be Potiphar's right hand man. He was trusted with all of Potiphar's possession except his wife. The Potiphar's wife lusted after Joseph and attempted to seduce him on several occasions. The last advance by the Potiphar's wife was the last because Joseph left the house running. The wife of Potiphar lied about the situation and Joseph found himself unjustly in prison.  

 

I don't know where you are this hour as you read this blog but when Joseph found himself in a pit his brothers meant it or intended it for evil but God predestined it, meant it, intended it, purposed it all for good - our good. Joseph was sold into slavery. He was bound - in bondage. The brothers meant it, intended it, purposed it, but God predestined it, meant it, intended it, purposed it all for good - our good. Joseph also found himself in prison.  The brothers meant it, intended it, purposed it, but God predestined it, meant it, intended it, purposed it all for good - our good and His.

 

So if your feeling like your in a pit or in bondage or in slavery remember God is providentially at work in your life to set you free. In fact you are free to trust and believe God is sovereignly and providentially working every thing for the purpose of good in your life. He is preparing you for glory - His glory. He is preparing you for Heaven. Do not succumb to your circumstances. Trust God to lead you in them and through them. There is no record of Joseph trying to escape or flee Egypt. Joseph simply obeyed God where he was. We are so quick to escape uncomfortable and hurtful situations and we lose the training trials were created to give. Stay faithful and trustworthy no matter what life offers you.

 

Judge Not... Is Not a Biblical Principle!!

There are several reasons why I do not believe the Bible teaches that we are not to judge.

1.) God would be the author of sin because He established Judges in the Old Testament in the Book of Judges.
2.) Paul himself judges a man guilty of incest and commands the church to excommunicate him (1Corinthians 5).
3.) The Bible tells us to exercise church discipline (Matthew 18).
4.) The Bible tells us we know a tree by its fruit (Matthew 7).
5.) Jesus said He did not come to judge or condemn because "we stand condemned already". The Word of God judges you and condemns you. Therefore the Bible is a Book of Sin "if" God said do not judge (John 3:18).

So...

What does Matthew 7:1-6 teach us?

Matthew 7:1-2
“Judge not, that you be not judged. For with what judgment you judge, you will be judged; and with the measure you use, it will be measured back to you."

First, notice that it says Judge not, THAT you be not judged. In other words it says judge not if you do not want to be judged. Then it continues by telling you why, for with what judgment you judge, you will be judged; and with what measure you use, it will be measured back to you. Therefore there is a warning to be considered before you judge. Judge not for if you judge they will turn it around on you and make you look just as bad or guilty as they are.

This happens with my wife and I all the time. My wife will judge me in a situation and I will spin it around and explain my actions as an effect of her behavior. I will make all of my faults look like its her fault. I'll say well what about you. I may have done this but let me give you the list of your shortcomings. Therefore one thing to take into consideration before judging is the other person will turn it back on you.

Matthew 7:3-5
"And why do you look at the speck in your brother’s eye, but do not consider the plank in your own eye? Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me remove the speck from your eye’; and look, a plank is in your own eye? Hypocrite! First remove the plank from your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye."

The second thing to consider is the flow of thought in Matthew 7:1-6. If this was a principle of do not judge then don't you think the Bible passage would say, You have a plank in your own eye so just focus on your plank and leave your buddy with the splinter to himself. But it does not say that. It says deal with the plank so you can better deal with the splinter. Your judging the splinter and Jesus is telling you how to better equip yourself to remove the splinter. So Jesus is not saying don't judge but rather equip yourself to be a righteous judge or better yet equip yourself to be spiritually discerning. Don't be a hypocrite or self righteous or condemning but allow your judgment to be redemptive and restorative in nature.

Third, we need to watch how we use this verse. When someone lovingly judges us we do not want to fire back "Judge not less ye be judged". Paul Washer said "Twist not Scriptures less ye be like Satan." We might respond, "Am I my brother's keeper?" Who said that? Cain said it (Genesis 4:9). Cain was hiding the murder of his brother Abel from God. I'm afraid when we say, "Judge not less ye be judged" we are simply trying to hide our sin from God. We should not quote murderers!! Less we see ourselves in the same camp as them.

Matthew 7:6
“Do not give what is holy to the dogs; nor cast your pearls before swine, lest they trample them under their feet, and turn and tear you in pieces."

Four, as we continue the flow of thought in Matthew 7:1-6 notice that we must not "give what is holy to dogs" and we must not cast "pearls before swine". How can we not judge and know the pigs and swine of the world? How do we not break this command of Jesus if we are not able to discern pigs and swine? Jesus is talking about kinds of people. Pigs, I believe, are people like the Prodigal Son who spent his father's riches on the world ending up eating with the pigs or swine. IN other words do not encourage carnal and worldly Christians with God's Holy Word. Treat them as though they are not saved and evangelize them and get them to repent. Dog's are Christians who have returned to their sin. As Peter said in 2Peter 2:22, they are like dogs who return to their vomit as they keep repeating their folly. In other Words if you are a worldly person that habitually continues to repeat your folly then the Bible calls you a pig and a swine and you have no good reason to lay claim of God's Word or His promises.  

Judging is actually a beautiful thing. Judging one another is wonderful. However this can only be embraced by people who are serious about their faith and truly want to become holy - those who truly want to be conformed into God's image. Which is really the motive behind those who quote this verse - they really do not want to be holy, conform to Jesus or repent of their sin. They love their dog vomit to much. They love their folly. They love darkness rather than the light. They don't want to be judged because they do not want their sin exposed.

We have an incredible ability to overlook our own sin as we put others under a microscope. Therefore, we become self righteous and condemning in nature. There is no redemption or restoration in our motives - just condemnation. This is unbiblical judging and should be repudiated at every level. We should spend less time judging the world and more time judging ourselves in light of God's Word. To embrace this we have to want true holiness, true Christlikeness. The beauty of accepting biblical judgment is God made us dependent upon each other in the Body of Christ. If you can see splinters in others better than planks in yourself then others can see your sins more clearly than you can see your own. WHAT A GIFT GOD HAS GIVEN TO THE CHURCH AS WE PURSUE HOLINESS AND CHRISTLIKENESS!!!

A brother or sister or church who loves you enough to judge you righteously, redemptively, restoratively, mercifully, graciously, for the sake of the purity of the church and it's members is incredibly beautiful. Masterfully wonderful! So... it comes down to this, are you going to link arms with the Devil and continue to twist Scriptures and quote murderers or are you going to embrace God and His Word and seek holiness and Christlikeness within the context of the Body of Christ? I personally feel every believer should stop judging the world until the church is holy. And the only way we are going to do this is stop quoting Scriptures to justify our worldliness. Find someone who loves Jesus and truly loves the Body of Christ and wants to see it pure and holy and embrace the reality that you and I can see other's sin better than we can see our own and use that for the purpose of holiness and purification. Let's mortify the flesh together. Let's put to death and lay aside the sin that tangles. Hate your folly and allow your sin to be exposed by your brother or sister so you can bear fruit in keeping with repentance. Let's fight this fight together and win this war against sin!!

God Intends to Make You Humble To Make You Holy

Jacob was God's chosen to be the next Patriarch of Israel after his father Isaac and his grandfather Abraham. Rebekah was concerned about prenatal pain and activity she was experiencing. God intervened in her concern to inform her the struggle was between two male twins in her womb, two nations who would always be at odds with each other. He told Rebekah and Isaac the older would serve the younger going against customary practice and social norms. Though it would cause problems in the life of this family God is not held by any traditional or societal practices. It is more important for all of us to remember that God is Sovereignly orchestrating events outside of public opinion and expectations. The church is trapped by people who are concerned with "the way we've always done it."

As Jacob aged he began to realized he needed to make end of life decisions. He wanted to make sure he had a living will. He wanted to make sure after his death all of his property would go to the appropriate place. He had forgotten God's Word in establishing the birthright as going to the youngest. Isaac perhaps felt a little odd going against public opinion and customary practices. So he chooses to go against God and gives his blessing to his eldest son Esau.

God spoke directly to Rebekah concerning His arrangement. She had God on her side. But neither Isaac or Rebekah would seek God's will in establishing their final will and testament. Rebekah, whose favorite child was Jacob, plots a deceitful plan against God, Isaac and her son Esau. Jacob in accordance with his nature complies and joins Rebekah in her plan. They deceive Isaac into giving Jacob the blessing of the birthright teaching us that man's wisdom never prevails for all of Isaac's senses failed him. Just as soon as Jacob leaves the room with the birthright Esau comes in from the field - stunned that he has lost the birthright to Jacob.

The Old Testament falls short in giving us what we need. Here was Isaac the father handing out the birthright. Once Isaac gave the birthright to Jacob there was nothing left for Esau; a father whose resources could be depleted! A birthright with limitations!! And a brother who is deceitful and selfish!!! We need an infinite and eternal Father whose resources are never depleted. We need an infinite and eternal resource that is never limited. We need a first born Son who unselfishly shares all of the Father's blessing. We have that in the Godhead. The infinite Father that is never depleted of His Heavenly blessings, An infinite birthright that is unlimited in quantity and quality, and an unselfish Son who would be an heir to the Father who would share His birthright with all of His brother and sisters. This is who we have in Jesus Christ. We are joint heir with Jesus. We have the right to pray "Our Father who art in Heaven!"

This event angered Esau so much he wanted to kill Jacob. Rebekah, once again scheming, sends Jacob to her brother's house for safety. She did not want to lose two sons in one day. She told Jacob, go to Uncle Laban's house and get your wife from his household and wait there until I send word that Esau is no longer angry. Well Rebekah's plan didn't work. She would die and wouldn't ever see Jacob again. The deceitful Jacob would be deceived by his Uncle Laban.

Jacob wanted Rachel but he would have to work seven years to get her. The seven years past by quickly because of the love Jacob felt for Rachel but Laban deceived Jacob by giving him Leah. She was given to Jacob and Jacob slept with her only to wake up the next morning to find Leah in his bed. Once again we see how our senses and sensibilities will deceive us. They cannot be trusted, not our senses and not our hearts. We can only trust God and his wisdom. Jacob should have been content and left with Leah, after all Leah was the Spiritual one. She is the one trusting in God but Jacob wasn't thinking with his brain so he agrees to work another seven years to acquire the woman of his dreams.

Jacob works another seven years and is finally given Rachel and the drama of family relationship continue. Jacob decides its time to head home when Laban manipulates him again into staying and working six more years. After these six years Jacob hears from God and is told to go back home and to reconcile with Esau. Therefore he leaves with the intent of meeting Esau first before going back to Isaac's place. He gets word that Esau is coming to meet him and Jacob knows nothing about him except he was angry and wanted to kill him 20 years ago. He takes precautionary measures and sends him gifts and a message of reconciliation. The messengers return with no word from Esau just that he is coming and he's bringing 400 men with him. Jacob's conclusion was he's going to be killed. He divides up his family and property into three groups. Three times Esau would meet Jacob's entourage with gifts and a message of restoration. Jacob runs to the river Jabbok and sends his wife and children to the other side of the stream and now he is all alone.

Alone, in the woods, left only to his own thoughts - thoughts of his deception, thoughts of his trickery, thoughts of his dishonesty not really sure he could count on God. At the end of himself God enters the scene and Jacob begins to wrestle with God. Jacob tried to convince Esau but he's still coming, still pursuing. Jacob feels scared and vulnerable and begins wrestling and pleading with God. He wants a blessing. He wants assurance. He wants help to find victory over the mess he made out of his life. He has a battle he must win and God..... dislocates his hip!!

Jacob thought he needed an army. He thought he needed strength. He thought God would summons the angels to come to his aid and God... dislocated his hip!!! Why does bad things happen to good people? Because God doesn't want to make you a proud, boastful, self sufficient person in this world. He wants to make you a humble, dependent, holy child of His. I am convinced death exists because of sin but it is also the one thing that will humble a sinner. Jacob would limp into what he thought would be a war. He was totally wrong for God prepared Esau for this meeting as well. Esau would be just as ready for reconciliation as Jacob was. God can be trusted. He wants you to humble yourself before him. The thing that we think we need to win in life may not be what we need to win in Heaven. Heaven is won by humility. Wars are won by strength. So the next time you are in a conflict that requires faith remember the blessing may come in the form of a dislocated hip. It may bring about a permanent limp. But God has to make you humble so He can make you holy.

If you are bitter with God because of some health issue or misfortune, relook at those things. See if you can see the Sovereign hand of God making you humble so He can make you holy. Look at your misfortune with an attitude of - God make me holy rather than making me strong and see if that doesn't change the way you look at your life. I've personally found many more "Spiritual Markers" where God intervened to make me humble by "separating my hip" to make me holy. I have to admit it wasn't the blessing I was looking for. I missed it because I missed God's purpose in this life. I don't want to be humble. I want to be successful, popular, famous or rich - none of these things prepare me for Heaven and God's presence the way humility does!! Thank God for the dislocated hips in my life!!

- Narrative of Genesis 26-33