Why he came 3

“For God so loved the world, that He gave his only begotten son that whosever believeth in him should not perish but have everlasting life”- John 3 :16  KJV King James Version

“But when the set time had fully come, God sent his son ,born of a woman ,born under the Law “-Galatians 4:4 NIV New International Version

The second reason we would address in these series is the fact that Jesus came because he was sent. Jesus was humble enough to be sent (Philippians 2:5-8 ).Although a member of the Godhead(John 1;1-3), he was obedient enough to be sent. Jesus was willing to take the place of a messenger (Isaiah 6:8). He did not come of his own accord but was sent. One of the most famous Bible verses (John 3:16) tell us that this was because of the love of the Father.

Jesus himself  was sent  and so did not come to advance his own purpose. Rather he came to do the will of God who sent him(John 6:38). On one occasion, he commented that he did the things he had seen his father do (John 5:19-20) in the true spirit of servanthood.When Jesus prayed finally in the Garden of Gethsemane , he prayed that only the father s will be done(Luke 22: 42).This inevitably is  the mark of a true and faithful servant who has been sent.

Jesus came because he was sent and we also have been sent by God to preach the good news, baptize and make disciples (Matthew 28:19-20 ;Mark 16:15-16). Someone has rightly commented that this is the Great Commission and not the Great suggestion.

As we consider in this season that Jesus came because he was sent and indeed fulfilled the reason for which he was sent, we need to reflect on how well we are doing with what God has sent us to do. Let us also pray that the Lord will send labourers to the harvest field   Matthew 9 38 ) and “Lord, please start with me”.

In His Service,

Grace Tom -Lawyer

Why he came 2

“Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign ,Behold a virgin shall conceive,and bear a son , and shall call his name Immanuel “-Isaiah 7:15 KJV King James Version

“Now all this was done ,that it might be fulfilled which was spoken of the Lord by the prophet saying ,”- Matthew 1:22 KJV King James Version

“For we are his workmanship ,created in Christ Jesus for good works which God prepared ahead of time for us to do”- Ephesians 2:10 CSB Christain  Standard Bible

I do not know how familiar you are with Lego blocks but there are several and sometimes our children try to build things using Lego blocks. However if you  have ever watched a child build things successfully using lego, you would probably have noticed that there are usually some foundational blocks they use before they are able to continue  to build .When we started  this series “Why he came”. To reiterate these, the coming of Jesus was not an afterthought but was properly planned by God and the second of these is that the coming of Jesus to the earth was not the beginning of his existence.

Moving on from this, the first reason to consider is the fact that Jesus coming was a fulfilment of prophecy. Long before he ever appeared on the scene, even before he was born, it was predicted that a virgin will bring forth a son (Isaiah 7:14).

Matthew writes the gospel that bears his name to the Jews and as such kept referring to the Old Testament with an emphasis of “that it may be fulfilled” and when he records the birth of Jesus in Matthew 1 :18-25, he repeatedly used the same phrase “that it may be fulfilled” .This prior prophecy was what the angel pointed out to Joseph the betrothed husband of Mary during his time of confusion after Mary informed him of her pregnancy. The coming of Jesus was a fulfilment of prophecy given almost six hundred years before he was born(Isaiah 7:14) .

Even after  Jesus was born, when his parents took him in obedience to the temple to be dedicated, there were two witnesses who confirmed that the coming of Jesus was what they were waiting for . The first of this air was Simeon(Luke 2 :25- 26).When he saw Jesus, he was able to ask God to release him to go as he has seen the salvation that was promised  promised to Israel (Luke 2:2:29-33).

The other individual who confirmed this was Anna who was a widow and had been serving God with fasting and prayer in the temple(Luke 2:36-37).This woman’s sensitivity to the Holy Spirit enabled her to be there when Jesus was dedicated(Luke 2:38).

So for today, as we examine the fact that Jesus came so as to fulfil prophecy, we need to ask ourselves in this season “what prophecy am I fulfilling? Sometimes we may become daunted by the fact that some people had things written about them specifically but if we study our Scriptures very well, we would see that we too, as long as we have been recreated in Christ have a prophecy we are supposed to fulfil. It is something that God has planned for us to do which the next verse states so plainly,

 “God planned for us to do good things  and to live as he has always wanted us to live .That is why he sent Christ to make us what we are”-CEV Contemporary English Version

“God has made us what we are in Christ Jesus. God made us new people so that we would spend our lives doing the good things he had already planned or us to do “-ERV English Revised Version   

Although these good works do not guarantee salvation, they are the product and fruit of our salvation. Jesus came to fulfil prophecy and we are also here to fulfil prophecy. May the Lord help us to fulfil what he has called us to .

In His Service,

 Grace Tom-Lawyer

Ash wednesday-Why he came

“This is how much God loved the world: He gave his Son, his one and only Son. And this is why: so that no one need be destroyed; by believing in him, anyone can have a whole and lasting life.-John 3:16 MSG The Message

I must confess that sometimes while I am writing or teaching  a particular  series,I am usually not sure about what the next series would be.It is not for lack of content but there are usually so many things going on that I begin to wonder ,”Lord what is the best direction to take the next series” .I do do this quite ahead of time and eventually get something, sometimes it comes  quite close to when the new series is about to begin.

So recently ,it got impressed on my heart to start treating in this Lent season what we will call "The Why Series". The Why series is a look at three questions that relate to Jesus Firstly we will deal with” Why Jesus came”,secondly  “Why Jesus died “and then finally “Why Jesus rose”. Sometimes we may think we do know more than we actually do and that is what I actually discovered as I began to study and the Holy Spirit threw  light on several other Scriptures,I realized that apart from redemption, there were some other reasons why Jesus came and these proved to be of great comfort to me and I sure believe will be to you also .

 So before we delve into these reasons,I would like to establish two things. The first of these is the fact that the coming of Jesus was not an afterthought. It was not a last resort or a fire brigade approach to the fall of man. This fall of man occurred as a result of the sin of Adam and Eve. They disobeyed God and their sin had to be atoned for by the shedding of blood (Hebrews 9:22 ).And although physical blood was shed when God made clothes for them (  Genesis 3:21), we are also told in Scriptures  that before the foundation of the world, the lamb himself was already slain (1 Peter 1:20 &Revelation 1:8).

The second of these truths is that the coming of Jesus to  the earth was not the beginning of his existence. There are several Scriptural references that support this pre-existence .Right from the Genesis account, we see God talking in the plural 'let us make man…'(Genesis 1 : 26 ).Also during the building of the Tower of Babel still in Genesis ,it was still the plural term used for let us go and see what man is doing (Genesis 11:1-9 ).

This pre-existence of Jesus is supported by Apostle John who tells us at the very introduction of the book of John : 'In the beginning was the word and the word was with God and the word is God ….'(John 1:1-3).These very first three verses are very much similar   to the first three verses of Genesis 1(Genesis 1:1-3).He goes further to also tell us in his first letter that there are three that bear record in heaven(1 John 3: ),the father ,the Son and the Spirit And in verse 8 of the same chapter, he tells us that the son of God “appeared”. This fact that he appeared denotes that he was existing somewhere else. This same letter contains the phrase he appeared in both verse 5&8(1 John 3:5,8).

Having established these two important truths as foundation blocks for our series, we will begin to consider in the next post some of the reasons why Jesus came.

In His Service,

Grace Tom-Lawyer

On the Way to the Palace-Potiphar's house 2

And the midianites sold him into Egypt unto Potiphar, an officer of Pharaoh’s  and captain of the guard”-Genesis 37:36 KJV King James Version

“And Joseph was brought down to Egypt and Potiphar , an officer of Pharaoh ,captain of the guard ,an Egyptian ,bought him of the hands of the Ishaemelites which had brought him down thither”-  Genesis 39:1 KJV King James Version

Another salient point we notice in these verses above is that Potiphar is an Egyptian. We have already noticed that this man who bought Joseph from the slave market had close links with royalty. He is an officer of Pharaoh and called the “chief executioner”. In other words, he dealt with the unpleasant business of getting rid of those the king was displeased with.

The fact that he brought Joseph to live in his house tells volumes about Joseph that we should not ignore. It appears that Joseph may have initially started out on the fields before working his way to serve in the household of his master. For Joseph to be able to do this effectively, he would have had to go through the challenges of learning a new language so as to be able to communicate properly. And with the language of the new people he found himself amongst, there was the added burden of learning a new culture in the midst of strangers.

The man on the Way to the Palace is one who must be able to adapt to changing circumstances and be ready to learn and unlearn as the  situation requires. Adaptability is an essential requirement for the man on the Way to the Palace.

It was no coincidence that Joseph was bought by someone who served the King, God had to position Joseph rightly and as such Potiphar’s house served as a training ground for Joseph. In addition to the language and culture of Egypt, he learned the business and politics of Egypt. It is also worth noting that Joseph’s sale to Egypt was all part of fulfillment of prophecy ( Genesis 15:13).

It takes a great degree of humility to be able to learn anything ( Proverbs 11:12;Psalms 25:8-9) .Forced with the estrangement from his father, Joseph decided to not to allow his history deprive him of the current moment or his glorious future. He maximized the moment by getting to know the Egyptian language, culture, business and politics.

In  Conclusion, the man on the way to the Palace  is one who is easily adaptable  and ready to learn new skills.  Refusing to learn and improve ourselves will eventually make us unfit for God’s purposes and getting to the Palace. This new location of Joseph is all part of God’s sovereign plan and on the Way to the Palace, our location is critical    and hence relocation should not be taken lightly or changed solely on economical reasons. He should also be one who is always ready to make the best use of whatever situation he finds himself in (Proverbs 16:4& Ecclesiastes 9:10).

In His Service,

Grace Tom-Lawyer.

On the Way to the Palace -Potiphar's house 1

“And the midianites sold him into Egypt unto Potiphar, an officer of Pharaoh’s  and captain of the guard”-Genesis 37:36 KJV King James Version

“And Joseph was brought down to Egypt and Potiphar , an officer of Pharaoh ,captain of the guard ,an Egyptian ,bought him of the hands of the Ishaemelites which had brought him down thither”-  Genesis 39:1 KJV King James Version

So Joseph,our prototype for the man  on the Way to the Palace  got delivered and pulled out of the pit(Genesis 37:24,28) and just before he could give his testimony of deliverance, he meets yet another challenge. With utter disbelief, he is accosted with the fact that the reason why he was pulled out of the pit was not for rescue but to  be sold  into slavery(Genesis 37:28) .How could God have answered his prayers with such glaring contradiction.

 I believe that as Joseph was sold to the Ishaemelites ( Genesis 37:28) and money exchanged hands ,hot tears flowed freely down his cheeks while he pleaded with  his brothers for mercy. With their grim faces set on seizing the momentous opportunity of getting rid of Joseph and his dreams, they chose to be stone deaf to their younger brother’s cries. 

Wittingly Joseph’s brothers had thought things through and knew that with his coat of many colours in hand, their fabricated story about his possible whereabouts  would  be believed by their father ,Jacob(Genesis 37:31-34  ).They did not mind their father grieving due to heir false evidence(Genesis 37:35). Moreso ,Joseph was almost as good as dead. Out of the way, he finally would no longer serve  as a threat to their father’s love.

Joseph in Egypt

And so Joseph got sold  to Ishaemelites who were travelling down to Egypt. From Dotham to Egypt was approximately  300  miles and could have taken about 15 days. Surely this was not his idea of a visit to that country and not anything that looked like his previous dreams. As a slave, he lost the freedom of what to wear, when to eat, sleep .His position as the favoured son in his father’s house had changed dramatically. He perhaps witnessed some other fellow slaves with him not make it to the market place due to the harsh conditions..Thank fully, we are told he did and he was later bought by Potiphar(Genesis 37:36).

We are told some important facts about Potiphar. In the two verses where Potiphar is mentioned ( Gen 37:36& 39:1), the writer of Genesis is careful to let us know that he is linked to royalty .He was an officer of Pharaoh which was the title for the Egyptian ruler or king. Egypt  was the centre of civilization and Pharaoh was probably one of the most powerful men on the planet at that time. Potiphar was an officer and some translations tell us that he was an eunuch. He acquired Joseph in the slave market and took him home.

The Bible does not shield from  us the fact that men that God  used also had their share of trouble and trying times. On the Way to the Palace, we can expect trouble. James in his letter tells us to welcome trouble  as friends(James 1:2  J.B.Phillips).It is all part of the deal for the man on the Way to the Palace . In short,the Psalmist seemed acquainted with this when he said “The righteous person may have many troubles ,but the Lord delivers him from them all”.(Psalms 34:19 NIV ). God placed Joseph in the house of Potiphar strategically and he continues to do so for every man who will eventually get to the Palace.

Another Joseph 5

Another Joseph 5

Today, hopefully we shall conclude on the life of this “Another Joseph” with the concluding verses of Luke Chapter two.

When Mary and Joseph had completed everything required by the Law of the Lord,they returned to their hometown , Nazareth in Galilee.The child grew up and became strong .He was filled with wisdom and God’s favour was on him  Luke 2 :39-40

According to Scriptures by the time Joseph and Mary had completed all that was necessary, they returned back to their home town with Jesus. The thing that struck me about the next verse is the fact that it says Jesus grew. There was something about the home that Joseph and Mary had that created the  right environment which  fostered growth. There are certain basic things that a child needs to be able to grow and develop properly. If the parents of a child do not provide these basic things, there is a high probability that development will be hampered and this would show up later in the life of the individual as an adult. The progress of Jesus was all rounded and not lopsided.

Each year his parents went to Jerusalem for the Passover Festival.When he was 12 years old,they went up to Jerusalem according to their custom. Luke 2:40-41

The obedience of this another Joseph is seen with this very next verses. It was required that all men appear three times before the Lord in Jerusalem. These times were during the festival of Unleavened bread - Passover(  Deutronomy 16:16   ), the festival of weeks ( Exodus 34:20,23,24)  and the festival of Booths  (Exodus   23;14,17 ). Even as the years went by, the obedience of Joseph and Mary to this instruction was not hindered. Jesus was not the only child in the family but his parents did not use him as an excuse for absence from the temple or what was commanded.

After the festival was over , they were returning home, but the boy Jesus stayed behind in Jerusalem. His parents didn’t know it. Supposing that he was among their band of travellers,they journeyed on for a full day while looking for him among their family and friends. When they didn’t find Jesus ,they returned  .After three days they found him in the temple .He was sitting among the teachers ,listening to them and putting questions to them ,Luke 2:43-46

It was also in obedience that Jesus was taken to the festival when he was twelve years of age  and the above verses show that after the festival, Joseph and Mary  assumed that Jesus was travelling in the company of friends and relatives when they set off to return. This story also shows us the humanity of Joseph and Mary and the fact that they were not above error. They probably noticed Jesus absence and felt he was still in their company somewhere. It was not too long they found out that they were wrong in their assumptions. Someone has said that assumption is the lowest form of knowledge. And although they missed it initially and traveled for a good one day without their son, when it was noticed , they retraced their steps back.

This is another quality of the life of “Another Joseph” that is worth emulating. He did not continue going on towards his home town when he discovered that Jesus was not in their company. He was not too proud to retrace his steps to search for his son and most importantly we see his fatherhood exhibited here. Joseph did not ask Mary to go and search for her son rather he followed her back and they went in search of Jesus together .

He did this willingly as we see the persistence with which he continued in the search until they found Jesus seventy two hours later. What an example for godly fathers.

But here in this story is  a point for us to always take heed to as we conclude these series of “Another Joseph “. The whole family had gone to fulfil religious obligation and somehow had not noticed that Jesus was not with them as they journeyed. It may be that you may have been going on doing God’s work, church business, so many good things and did not notice that things have been so crowded that there is no space for Jesus. Jesus is no more in the house, somehow you have left him somewhere. Following what Joseph and Mary did, it is not too late to retrace steps back because like one of my mentors,Selwyn Hughes  who has gone to glory says, “If God seems far away , guess who moved?

It is never too late to retrace your steps back to Jesus, he is patiently waiting for you(Revelation 3:20).There is indeed in everyman a void that only Jesus can fill.

 #Love to hear from you

Grace Tom-Lawyer. 

Another Joseph 4

The various gospels show the birth of Jesus and his early life with different emphasis and for us to fully appreciate this other Joseph we are studying, let us now turn  to Luke’s account as we continue to glean from the life of  “Another Joseph”.

“And all went to be taxed , every one into his own city .And Joseph also went up from Galilee ,out of the city of Nazareth ,into Judea ,unto the city of David, which is called Bethlehem  (because he was of the house  and lineage of David )”Luke 2:3-4  KJV King James Version

 

We can comfortably infer that  Joseph, was a  good citizen. He was one who obeyed the laws of the land. This journey back to Bethlehem was not convenient at all and he did have every excuse not to make it. After all, Mary his wife was heavily pregnant(Luke 2:5) but a man on the way to the Palace can learn from this example of responsible citizenship in the life of “Another Joseph”.Apostle Paul in his letters to the churches emphasized the matchless value of the witness of good citizenship and urged his readers to obey the government because they are however God’s agents for maintaining law and order( Romans 13:1-5;2 Peter 2:13-17 ). And it was because Joseph obeyed this government law that Jesus was born in where it was written that he would be born (Micah 5:2&Matthew 2:5-6).

The next verse subtly adds to the character of this man as we read  that he went to be taxed with Mary,his wife (Luke 2;5). This Joseph was able to also command his household to obey the laws of the land. Severally, we see him leading his household to obedience by being a good example(Luke 2:5).

“......And they came with haste and found Mary,and Joseph and the babe lying in a manger” Luke 2:16 KJV King James Version

After the  shepherds were instructed by the angels who shared the good news  about the birth of the saviour, they went and found Mary, Joseph and the baby. This man Joseph was not an absent father. He was involved even when Jesus was an infant and so could witness some of the great moments in the life of his adopted son.

“When the time came to do what the law of Moses taught about being made pure, they took Jesus to Jerusalem to present to the Lord”Luke 2:22  NCV New Century Version

 Not only do we find this Joseph obedient to the laws of his country, he is also obedient to what has been written in the law of Moses which was the much he knew( Exodus 13;13-16).Every firstborn was to be redeemed. Joseph  did not feel too big to do this rite as commanded. In our days, this action of Joseph could be likened to that of being a good church member. It is also worth noticing that when it was time to bring Jesus to the temple, he did it with Mary. He was not the kind of husband that would send wife and children to church and not be a participant .At various times whenever Luke referred to this family, Joseph is mentioned first showing that he was the leader, even in spiritual things and taking his rightful place as  the priest in his own home.

“And to offer a sacrifice according to that which is said in the law , a pair of turtle doves or two young pigeons” Luke 2:24 KJV King James Version 

Another thing about this Joseph was the fact that he gave(Luke 2:24). Not only did he bring Jesus to the temple but he offered the sacrifice required. According to the laws given by Moses, God made a provision for offerings to be done according to the financial status of the giver in order to foster compliance and willingness. Joseph did not allow his meagre means  to serve as an excuse for not giving what was required. He offered two turtle doves which was what was required if one was poor (Leviticus 12:6-8 ) and could not afford a lamb. Joseph was a man who gave according to his level without the need to impress.

And it was because he did all these that they were met by two people who gave prophecies: Simon(Luke 2:25-36) &Anna(Luke 2:36-38).

One of the rewards of obedience is blessings and the life of Joseph is full of several examples of this (Luke 2: 34) . When Joseph and Mary got to the temple, they were met by two people who eventually gave prophecies and strengthened their faith. There was definitely something about their promptness to obedience that allowed their paths to collide with the lives of destiny enhancers( Luke 2: 27,28,& 38).

There is so much more we cam cull from the life of this “Another Joseph” if we must eventually get to the Palace. A life of prompt obedience both to God and living in such a way that he could lead his family on different levels does make him worth emulating .As a father , he was present and involved in the life of the little one entrusted to him .I urge you readers to take a few moments to read through again and pray for the lives of your sons, brothers, uncles, husbands and fathers. We sure need a lot of godly male role models these days.

In His Service,

Grace Tom-Lawyer,