The Christian Worker's Spiritual Food: Driven by Circumstance.

Written in Memory of Michael Jackson. 1958-2009

Driven by Circumstance. Genesis 46:1-27.

So Israel took his journey with all that he had, and came to Beersheba, and offered sacrifices to the God of his father Isaac. Then God spoke to Israel in the visions of the night, and said, "Jacob, Jacob!" And he said, "Here I am." So He said, "I am God, the God of your father; do not fear to go down to Egypt, for I will make of you a great nation there. I will go down with you to Egypt, and I will also surely bring you up again; and Joseph will put his hand on your eyes." Genesis 46:1-4(NKJV)

What a great promise from God. Though driven by circumstance, Jacob is given a promise of protection and honoring God he took it.

Then Jacob arose from Beersheba; and the sons of Israel carried their father Jacob, their little ones, and their wives, in the carts which Pharaoh had sent to carry him. So they took their livestock and their goods, which they had acquired in the land of Canaan, and went to Egypt, Jacob and all his descendants with him. His sons and his sons' sons, his daughters and his sons' daughters, and all his descendants he brought with him to Egypt. Genesis 46:5-7(NKJV)

The names of the children of Israel are contained in verses 8 through 25 and will be omitted due to space. However, the blessings upon Jacob, whose name was changed to Israel, shows the work of God to build this great nation.

As we have studied, Jacob was not always the best father; neither was his father, Isaac. Because of this Jacob raised his own son's to know of God, yet many strayed away from godliness. Their sins were terrible and at times tragic. Yet God chose to use these men to build the nation Israel.

Let it be a comforting thought; no matter the sin you have committed, God is willing to continue to work in your life for good.

There are those who were raised by parents who sinned against them. These children were mistreated and grow with character flaws which follow them throughout their life. The pain caused by a parent has a ripple effect that transcends generations and some lose their dignity, feeling less than adequate.

Some children grow to make friends with others who sin against themselves. Selecting to change the course of their own life, they follow others into depravity. Still God loves them and is willing to forgive their sin and restore them.

God has His hand in all situations; whether it is tragedy or trauma, God is able to use those events for good. In our passage there is a famine; however, God made a way to escape. In that escape, God continued His work to build the nation of Israel; a nation that would be His people, a nation that would bring forth a Messiah to save the world from sin.

All the persons who went with Jacob to Egypt, who came from his body, besides Jacob's sons' wives, were sixty-six persons in all. And the sons of Joseph who were born to him in Egypt were two persons. All the persons of the house of Jacob who went to Egypt were seventy. Genesis 46:26-27(NKJV)

The promise came from God to one man, Abraham. In faith, Abraham declared to his own son that he would be used by God to build this nation. Abraham's son, Isaac, told his son, Jacob, the same. Jacob could continue to tell His sons of the great work that the Lord was going to do and the message had to be bathed in faith.

Why would God use sinners to build a nation? That is a question that we must bring to our own selves. Why would God want us to be a part of His kingdom? Why would God consider sinners for such a prominent position as to be heirs to eternal inheritance? What have we done to deserve this?

The answer is that we have done nothing. For God so loved the world that He made the plan and built the nation that would bring His only son, Jesus Christ alive to walk among those who would despitefully treat Him and kill Him on a cross.