For a full description of the (Y4) reading plan, see the “About” page.
Gen. 39
I noticed something about God’s blessing while reading this. God was with Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and now Joseph. Each man prospered because of God’s presence with them and the blessing He poured out on them. What I noticed, though, is that in each case God’s blessing didn’t stop there. In this case, “the LORD blessed the Egyptian’s house on account of Joseph” (from Gen. 39:5). God’s blessing overflowed through His chosen ones to those around them. That is a fulfillment of God’s promise to bless those who blessed them. However, it is also an indication to us as to what God’s presence in our lives should look like. The blessings that God pours out on us through Christ – His forgiveness, grace, mercy, etc. – should flow through us to everyone we come in contact with.
Mark 9
I have always wondered about Jesus’ comment regarding the demon His disciples could not cast out. He said, “This kind cannot come out by anything but prayer.” (Mk. 9:29b). When I read that this morning, my mind jumped to something Jesus told His disciples during their Last Supper. He told them that the day would come when they would not need to question Him but could go directly to the Father. He was talking about the direct channel we now have with the Father to pray in His name through the Holy Spirit. At the time He said this, however, He told the disciples, “Until now you have asked for nothing in My name.” (Jn. 16:24a).
While God certainly answered prayer prior to Christ’s death and resurrection, the coming of the Holy Spirit definitely changed prayer for us. That makes me think that Jesus’ response regarding this demon possessed boy was due to the fact that the disciples did not yet have that direct connection to God through prayer in Jesus’ name. And that thought just emphasizes to me how awesome it is that we now have the power of the Living God within us. Mind-blowing.
Job 5
Buried here in the middle of two chapters of flowery speech is a tidbit of advice from Eliphaz. He said, “But as for me, I would seek God, and I would place my cause before God” (Job 5:8). I’m not sure what to make of his statement. I can take it two different ways, even after looking up the meaning of the Hebrew word for “cause”. In light of Eliphaz’s initial encouragement for patience on Job’s part, I can see this statement as advice similar to what Paul wrote to the Philippians. “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.” (Phil. 4:6). Job’s “cause”, then, would be his concerns, his suffering, and his life.
However, Eliphaz put a whole lot more effort into asserting that trouble falls on the deserving than he did in his exhortation for patience and trust. From that aspect, then, I see his statement more along the lines of what John wrote in his first letter. “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” (1 Jn. 1:9). In this case, Job’s “cause” would be the reason for his suffering. Thus, Eliphaz’s advice would be for Job to confess whatever he had done wrong, laying it at God’s feet. Honestly, either way you take it, it isn’t bad advice. But I’d say that Eliphaz could have greatly improved his delivery.