Jacob Plans His Funeral (Gen. 47:28-31)

 

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 02-06-2008

 

My Worship Time                                                                  Focus:  Jacob plans his burial

 

Bible Reading & Meditation                                    Reference:  Genesis 47:28-31

 

            Message of the verses:  “28 Jacob lived in the land of Egypt seventeen years; so the length of Jacob’s life was one hundred and forty-seven years.  29 When the time for Israel to die drew near, he called his son Joseph and said to him, "Please, if I have found favor in your sight, place now your hand under my thigh and deal with me in kindness and faithfulness. Please do not bury me in Egypt, 30 but when I lie down with my fathers, you shall carry me out of Egypt and bury me in their burial place." And he said, "I will do as you have said." 31 He said, "Swear to me." So he swore to him. Then Israel bowed in worship at the head of the bed.”

 

            Jacob would live 137 years and he had spent seventeen years with Joseph before he was sold into Egypt and seventeen years with him in Egypt after Jacob and the rest of his family moved there, but he had missed twenty-two years with Joseph because of the sin of his sons, yet God had used that time to prepare Joseph to become a leader in Egypt so that he could bring the rest of his family to Egypt to preserve their lives.

 

            Jacob was one of the patriarchs and his father and grand-father along with his wives were buried in the Promised Land and he too wanted to be buried their when his life came to an end on planet earth.  Jacob made Joseph swear that he would bury him in Cannon for he did not want to be buried in Egypt, for in Egypt they worshipped idols and thus it would not be a good testimony to the Lord his God to be buried in Egypt.  Jacob planned his funeral carefully so that he would bring honor and glory to God.  It is also good to note that Joseph was now taking over as a first born son over Ruben because of Ruben’s sin with Jacob’s wife.

 

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  I know that God forgives all of my sins, yet there are always consequences to any sin that I commit, and when I look at the sin that Ruben committed against his father by sleeping with his concubine, that moment of fulfilled lust in his life cost him the rights to being the first born son of which he truly was.  These are good lessons to learn.

 

My Steps of Faith for Today:  To continue to learn contentment, and thus trust the Lord to continue to bring spiritual growth for my life through the  tests and trials He has sent me into.

 

Memory verses for the week:  Philippians 1:9-11

 

9. And this I pray, that your love may abound still more and more in real knowledge and all discernment,
10. so that you may approve the things that are excellent, in order to be sincere and blameless until the day of Christ;
11. having been filled with the fruit of righteousness which comes through Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God.