December 8, 2013
Scripture:
Let’s look for a moment at Joshua 3. Israel is crossing the Jordan river; this is a type of he Lord in death and our death with Him. Read v. 15b. They were crossing the river when the banks overflowed, like the overflow of judgement that He bore to bring us into the promised inheritance.
Hymn 22 – Jesus is a loving Saviour
Prayer
Genesis 37, 39, 40, & 41
I’m sure that most of us know the story of Joseph. This afternoon, I want to look at a few gems from his life. In Genesis 37, we hear of Joseph for first time. One day, his father sent him to check on his brothers. When his brothers saw him coming, they called him “the master dreamer.” They called him this because they didn’t like the dreams he told them about. When he got to them, they caught him and threw him into a dry well. Later they sold him to a band of Midianites.
In chapter 39, we see Joseph’s fear of God. He had been sold by his brothers and was brought into Egypt. You might wonder if Joseph was afraid and wondered, “Why did this happen to me?” As Christians, we need remember that we are always in the love of God, and that all things work together for good. Joseph’s master Potiphar saw that God was with Joseph and put him over his house. Unfortunately, Potiphar’s wife asked Joseph to sin; Joseph wouldn’t and she made up a lie that had him thrown into prison. If I was Joseph, I would have been quite discouraged: he had honoured God, but he was put in prison. Joseph is one of the best Old Testament types of Jesus. Jesus came to do His Father’s will and that meant being crucified. But God was with Joseph in prison, and He made everything he did to prosper. The love of God is with us each day, there is no such thing as luck.
One night in prison both the butler and baker had dreams, but neither could tell the meaning. Through the Lord’s help, Joseph was able to tell them the meaning of their dreams. In Ecclesiastes, we read that all dreams come from God.
Time passed; and one night, Pharaoh had two dreams and they really puzzled him. The butler told Pharaoh about Joseph’s ability to interpret dreams. Pharaoh called for Joseph. Joseph was told the dreams and God gave him the power to understand them. Pharaoh then put Joseph in a place of power, so that he could guide Egypt through the time of plenty and the time of famine.
In the story of Joseph, Pharaoh is a type of God, and Joseph is a type of Jesus. The people were told to do what Joseph commanded. We are told to come to Jesus and to do what he asks.
Acts 5:12-28
Ananias and Sapphira started out this chapter, and their sin unto death brought great fear upon all the brethren. The Holy Spirit wasn’t only in the brethren, He was among them in great power.
Just as God worked through the Lord during His ministry, so the Lord worked miracles through the apostles that He had left behind. This was a day with great demonstration of power, while today is a day of weakness and nothingness. The High Priest and Sadducees were quite disturbed by what they were doing.
The church is mentioned in verse 11, and this is a new institution at this time. God’s people weren’t just the Jews any more; now there were believers. You don’t find many believers in the Old Testament—a few Gentiles brought into Judaism. The believers here in Acts were brought out of Judaism. The great numbers that believed were added, not to the church, but to the Lord. That’s a precious expression. Not only are our sins forgiven, but we are made part of the Lord.
There was tremendous spiritual blessing at this time, but there was also physical blessing. The apostles healed people, and the sick were laid in the street so that Peter’s shadow might possibly pass over them. This power was important because the Christians didn’t have the full Bible, and this was how they could demonstrate the power of the Holy Spirit. Word of this spread beyond Jerusalem and many came to be healed.
All this was wonderful, but it brought opposition. The High Priest was angry; what he didn’t realize was that his job was now dissolved. The temple and it’s trappings were all passé. Christ and His church had replaced all that. In the Gospels, it was the Pharisees that bothered the Lord; now, because the apostles were preaching the resurrection, it was the Sadducees that were up in arms.
The High Priest and the Sadducees couldn’t do miracles. They only had the power to make gospel preaching illegal. However, abuse is not an argument. Making fun of an argument doesn’t defeat it. They couldn’t argue with all the healings, and they wouldn’t join the believers. These men represent the system of law; they were totally unable to do any of the things that the disciples were doing.
So the High Priest and the Sadducees took the disciples and locked them in prison. It didn’t do any good, though. The angel of the Lord came and let the apostles out—another rebuke to the elders. Angels work for God, and they also work for us. This angel told them, “Go, stand, and speak to the people all the words of this life.” Where? “In the temple”; right in the head office of the enemy! The apostles were always in trouble, yet they were full of power. We also are to go, stand, and speak to people all the words of this life. It’s our privilege.
Hymn 380 (added): Standing by a purpose true, Heeding God’s command, Honour them, the faithful few! All hail to Daniel’s band!
Refrain: Dare to be a Daniel, Dare to stand alone! Dare to have a purpose firm! Dare to make it known.
Many mighty men are lost, Daring not to stand, Who for God had been a host By joining Daniel’s band.
Many giants, great and tall, Stalking through the land, Headlong to the earth would fall, If met by Daniel’s band.
Hold the Gospel banner high! On to vict’ry grand! Satan and his hosts defy, And shout for Daniel’s band.
Prayer