A WHOLE MAN

11 Then Judah said to Tamar his daughter-in-law, “Remain a widow in your father’s house, till Shelah my son grows up”—for he feared that he would die, like his brothers. So Tamar went and remained in her father’s house.  Genesis 38:11 (ESV) Growing up as the middle child I was often asked if I was the forgotten one. Apparently, that is a real experience for many middle children. They are not the eldest nor are they the baby child and so, being stuck in the middle, I guess they are not thought of. That was not really my experience; although I do recall a specific family road trip where I had awoken to the smell of McDonalds french fries. The good news, I was right about the french fries. The bad news, they had stopped to eat McDonalds and just left me asleep in the van and there was no food for me. So, if being the middle child means having your whole family eat dinner inside of a McDonalds, not going through the drive-thru, but eating inside while you are asleep in the car is...

25 And in the morning, behold, it was Leah! And Jacob said to Laban, “What is this you have done to me? Did I not serve with you for Rachel? Why then have you deceived me?” 26 Laban said, “It is not so done in our country, to give the younger before the firstborn.  Genesis 29:25-26 (ESV)   There is a story about a boy who was sitting on a park bench with an older gentleman on the other end of the bench. As the story goes, the man reached over and grabbed the cookie that was sitting in between them. The boy was flabbergasted at the audacity of this stranger to take a bite out of his cookie! So, he grabbed the cookie and jeered at the man and took a bite before putting it back down on the napkin as if to say, “don’t touch my cookie”. The man just watched the boy and then picked up the cookie and took another bite. They continued to do this until the cookie was all gone at which point the man stood up and left. The boy was so upset and couldn’t believe how rude this man c...

"Whoever sheds the blood of man, by man shall his blood be shed, for God made man in his own image." Genesis 9:6 (ESV)  Anything coconut flavored, mustard as a condiment, and playing golf are some of things that I probably will never understand why people do. But these are just trivial things and they ultimately do not matter in the grand scheme of things. However, one action which is even more confounding, and breaks my heart severely, is watching a mother while I am preaching at an abortion mill enter into the clinic and leave as a mother of a dead child. How a person could convince themselves that this is the best and only course of action is beyond my comprehension. How they feel no pang, or willingly quench the conviction in their hearts as they murder their own child devastates me. Unfortunately, this is an area of ministry which is overlooked by many Christians. An area of ministry that many with their mouths profess disgust, but by their actions contradict th...

"But for Cain and his offering he had no regard. So Cain was very angry, and his face fell." Genesis 4:5 (ESV) In yesterday's reading, we learned in Genesis of the account of Cain and Abel. It is a sorrowful, destructive story about the first fratricide in the history of mankind. If only that were the end of Cain's wickedness, but what we discover is that the evil of Cain continues to greater depths. In Genesis 4:9, God asks Cain "Where is Abel your brother?" Cain is put in a situation that is familiar to us readers. It is the same as his father, Adam, when Adam was asked in the garden, "Who told you that you were naked?" Adam is given the opportunity to tell the truth but he shifts the blame to Eve in an effort to conceal his sin. And like father, like son Cain is given an opportunity to come clean and tell the truth. Instead, we read how he tries to conceal his sin by responding, "I do not know; am I my brother’s keeper?" I...

As we approach the New Year, we begin our Bible reading plan in Genesis, Matthew, and Ecclesiastes. In Genesis, you will find many topics discussed such as: who we are, how everything came into existence, why are we here, where sin came from, and why we need a Savior. But you will also find the doctrine known as the Covenant of Works. This was the original covenant which God had made with mankind. In the beginning, man had a moral relationship with God and were created in perfection. They knew no sin, had not yet sinned, and were not affected by the consequences of sin. God would freely walk with them in the garden and conversed with them with no veil needed. They were, at the time, perfect beings in the sense that they had no blemish; yet, they were not perfect in the sense of being Gods. The requirement was perfect obedience to the command of God and they would continue to reap the blessing of this perfect fellowship with God, which in and of itself was a grace from God. They...