Category: Applied Theology

Hear Him

On By Bp. Justin ElwellIn Applied Theology, InspirationLeave a comment

“The angel of the Lord appeared to him (Moses) in a fire blazing from the middle of a bush. He looked and saw that although the bush was flaming with fire, yet the bush was not being burned up. Moses said, ‘I’m going to go over and see this amazing sight and find out why the bush isn’t being burned up’” (Exodus 3:2-3). 

 In Exodus 3:1 the Torah reveals that Moses is on the very mountain that he will eventually lead the children of Israel. The place where the power and condescending presence of the Lord will be manifest, Mt. Horeb. Yet, as Moses tends the sheep of his father-in-law Jethro, the Lord quietly appears in a bush, with the appearance of fire. Rabbinic tradition explains that Moses had left the flock of Jethro to find one lost lamb (cf. Lk. 15:4-7), and that his care for the lost sheep indicated that he was ready to shepherd the children of Israel. Further, the Torah is careful to record that Moses “looked and saw” the burning bush, causing him to turn aside to investigate (Ex. 3:2-3). As followers of Messiah, we learn valuable lessons from this event. 

Daily life can be filled with many distractions. Whether from employment, family, or personal struggles, there always seems to be something in need of our attention. And in the turbulence of life, our ability to discern the Lord’s voice can be overcome by many other voices. 

 The Bible is filled with miraculous demonstrations of the Lord’s power. For those observing the parting of the Sea of Reeds (Red Sea), there was little doubt as to the Lord’s presence. When the sun stood still for Joshua, it confirmed that the sovereign Lord heard his prayer. When Elijah called down fire from heaven to defeat the priests of Ba’al, this also confirmed His abiding presence. The record of miraculous events continues in the New Testament with demonstrations of healing and resurrection, and the atoning work of Yeshua/Jesus. Miracles are the work of the sovereign Lord, but is this how He desires to regularly speak with His people? 

 The episode of Moses reminds us of the quiet, abiding presence of the Lord, the I Am (Ex. 3:14). The Lord did not begin his conversation with Moses by calling him to the bush, this would be moments later (Ex. 3:4). Moses had to notice the fire. Much like the remembrance of Hanukkah, the miracle at work here is subtle. The oil of the Menorah that lasted eight days burned but was not consumed. To look at the Menorah one would not notice a miracle taking place unless one first turned to give attention. The burning bush burned, but was not consumed, a strange, but subtle sight to behold (Ex 3:2). 

 Moses needed to experience the quiet voice of the Lord, the stillness of His presence, and learn to recognize it, before the chatter of the children of Israel overwhelmed him. Elijah, having defeated the priests of Ba’al in a miraculous demonstration of God’s power, fled to Horeb because of the voice of Jezebel. At Horeb Elijah did not find the Lord in the wind, earthquake, or fire; but in the, קוֹל דְּמָמָה דַקָּה, “still small voice,” or another way, the sound of sheer stillness (1 Kgs. 19:11-12). 

 While miracles are wonderful gifts from the Lord affirming His abiding presence, His desire is that His people would learn to listen to His voice, in the quiet. The episode with Moses, and even Elijah, remind us that we must give attention to life around us, beyond what is consuming our focus. God is still working among His people, in glorious ways, yet we must take the time to notice, turn, and discern what He is doing in that moment. As followers of Messiah, we must learn to hear and recognize the voice of our Shepherd before we enter the storms of life or experience the thunder and earthquakes of His condescending presence, and His miraculous manifestations. As Messiah said, “My sheep listen to my voice, I recognize them, they follow me, and I give them eternal life” (Jn. 10:27). 

 When Moses and Elijah were speaking with Messiah face to face on the Mount of Transfiguration (Matt. 17:1-5), Peter, when raising his voice presumptuously, hears the voice of the Father in heaven speaking and quieting him by saying, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased; listen to him” (Matt. 17:5). As if to say, “Peter, hear Him. With all that will be in the years ahead, learn to hear Him now.” This is my prayer for us dear reader, that we continue to learn to hear Him, to know Him, and follow Him wherever He may lead us. 

 Maranatha. Shalom.  

“… As Ephraim and As Manasseh”

On By Bp. Justin ElwellIn Applied Theology, InspirationLeave a comment

In the last days of Jacob’s life, he is blessed to have not only lived seventeen years with Joseph, the son believed dead, but he also lived with Joseph’s sons. Jacob is then able to bless Ephraim and Manasseh before his passing. In Genesis 48:20, we read:

“So he blessed them that day, saying, “By you Israel will pronounce blessings, saying, ‘God make you as Ephraim and as Manasseh.’” Thus he put Ephraim before Manasseh.” 

For thousands of years this blessing has been pronounced over the sons of a house, but why? (For daughters a different blessing is spoken.) 

Joseph named his sons during two seasons of his life: healing and prosperity. Manasseh comes from a root meaning to forget. Forget what? The pain he has suffered by the hands of his brothers. He wants to forget; by this we note that he has not yet come to a place of forgiveness. Ephraim is from a root meaning fruitful. Joseph had prospered in Egypt. He had a wife, children, and a position of great authority. This he wants to remember. 

 Jacob, however, does not want to bless “the forgetting” over “the fruitfulness,” because it is when we recognize the blessing, the fruitfulness of our lives, that we walk in the healing that allows us to forgive and heal the pain, and to echo Josephs words in our own lives: “And as for you, you meant evil against me; but God meant it for good, to bring to pass, as it is this day, to save much people alive” (Gen. 50:20; cf. Ro. 8:28-29).

 Joseph then demonstrates this deep forgiveness: “Now therefore do not fear; I will sustain you, and your little ones.’ And he comforted them, and spoke kindly unto them” (Gen. 50:21). Joseph demonstrates the strength and forgetfulness of forgiveness by caring for and sustaining the very ones who inflicted harm upon him, and their children. 

In the moment of blessing, Jacob adopted his two grandsons as his own sons, thereby permitting them to be joint-heirs, covenant partners, with his other sons in the Promised Land. Here we see an early type of the “spirit of adoption”, a doctrine developed by the apostle Paul that he uses to give assurance to Gentile believers in Yeshua/Jesus (Ro. 8:15-17). 

When we bless our children, we know that they will have challenges and victories. As parents we would love to protect them from the challenges, and the grief that often results. Still, we know as parents, the blessing that often comes from setbacks and upsets. With this blessing, spoken by Jacob, we are putting fruitfulness over forgetfulness. We are telling our children not to overlook the trails along the way, but to see how the Lord has used them to bring forth fruit in life. 

Placing the hand of blessing upon sons and daughters connects them, even in the midst of a turbulent season, to the heart of their father and mother. It gives the calm assurance of presence, care, direction, love, but most importantly, the reminder that the arms of the Heavenly Father, and earthly parents are there to embrace, comfort, and correct them as they mature in this life. 

Maranatha. Shalom. 

The Deep Valleys of Good

On By Bp. Justin ElwellIn Applied Theology, InspirationLeave a comment

אֲנִי יוֹסֵף, הַעוֹד אָבִי חָי

“I am Joseph! Is my father still alive?” 

In those quiet times of reflection, has the Lord ever shown you a glimpse of a moment in your past that was worked together for good in the present (Ro. 8:28)? When the expected did not happen, or when the unexpected disrupted the course of life? 

 Joseph knew he was to be a ruler, a grand leader that his brothers, mother, and father would bow before. Yet, the Joseph who dreamed the dreams that enraged his brothers, could not discern the deep valleys before him that would lead him to that moment. Still, even then, the young and pompous Joseph could not have imagined that it was not the reverence he wanted, but the reconciliation; it was not honor but an embrace that his heart would desire. 

 Joseph revealed himself by proclaiming: “I am Joseph!” Here is the revelation of a name, but the inquiry about Jacob confirmed Joseph’s identity: “Is my father still alive?” The Torah tells us that the brothers were troubled, more likely nervous, before his face (Gen. 45:3). Joseph knowing his brothers, ceases to be the exalted leader, becomes the caring brother, “And now do not be distressed or angry with yourselves because you sold me here, for God sent me before you to preserve life” (Gen. 45:5; cf. 45:7). 

 When the brothers first appeared before him, Joseph remembered his dreams (Gen. 42:9). It would seem with this realization the Lord began to minister to Joseph’s heart. After all, Joseph named his firstborn son Manasseh, “causing to forget.” He wanted to forget, but the Lord wanted him to remember. Why? 

 Joseph could have killed his guilty brothers without revealing his identity, and then sent Egyptian soldiers to retrieve Jacob. Without question his order would have been carried out. Yet, the Lord ministered remembrance: “Joseph, remember those dreams I sent you.” The power Joseph could have used to destroy for vengeance sake, the Lord used for salvation and reconciliation: “God sent me before you to preserve life.” The long years of separation, and the many years down in the deep valleys of his journey softened Joseph’s heart. By faith, Joseph was able to recognize that while the brothers intended evil, the Lord intended good (Gen. 50:20). 

The remnant the Lord would use to advance redemptive history was preserved (Gen. 45:7). 

 I believe that in our quiet moments the Holy Spirit can show us just how the Lord worked the intended good out of an apparent set back, loss or unexpected change. In my own life, there have been many occasions when I thanked the Lord for not allowing my dream to be realized as I stood in a dimension of that same dream that I did not recognize. 

 Paul the apostle began as an apostle of persecution but was found in his last days as an apostle of the Good News of Messiah Yeshua/Jesus. Paul had every reason to be confident in his flesh, his person (Phil. 3:3). Nevertheless, “whatever gain I had, I counted as loss for the sake of Christ” (Phil. 3:7). Paul was sent by a vengeful high priest but was met on his mission by the resurrected High Priest of heaven. At that glorious moment on the road to Damascus Paul would be sent into a long valley of hardship for the cause of the Gospel. Consider, however, the encouragement Paul gives to us, “I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For His sake I have suffered loss of all things and count them as refuse, in order that I may gain Christ” (Phil. 3:8). 

 Paul was able to see, after years of reflection, that in every twist and turn, with every beating and shipwreck, that the Lord’s hand was gently leading him along the mountaintops with the Good News to announce to those who yearned to hear it. What the enemy intended for evil, the Lord intended for good, even salvation of the lost. 

 Beloved reader, this season is difficult for many. You are not alone in your trial. Joseph was able to see the Lord’s hand working during all his years of trial and heartache. Paul, likewise, witnessed the Lord’s glory even while in the valley. While they both experienced pain, both Joseph and Paul knew that it was not in vain. 

 I leave you this encouragement: “But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.” Amen. 

 Maranatha. Shalom.