This Sunday, we will be exploring Genesis 50 together, The Final Chapter According to God.
We have finally reached the last chapter of Genesis. It has been quite a journey through an amazing book. I pray that you have been encouraged and challenged along the way.
Genesis 50 is the final chapter of this great book. It is also the final chapter of Jacob and Joseph's lives here on earth. Both of their deaths and funerals are in this chapter.
With two deaths and two funerals, it goes without saying that Genesis 50 is also a chapter of sorrow and tears. In fact, crying and tears are mentioned on nine different occasions in the twenty-six verses of this one chapter.
So what does this chapter have to do with Christmas?
Everything!
Christmas is not the story of a little baby entering a pristine world to make us all feel better about the winter season.
It is an invasion. It is a visitation. It is a confrontation with the sin and death of this world.
It is the story of redemption.
This world is a world of tears. We do not live in the Garden of Eden. We live in a world impacted with sin, soaked with sorrows, devastated with death.
Is there any true hope?
In Genesis 50, we see the embers of hope. God's sovereignty assures us that we are part of a bigger story. God's promises are the anchors of our soul in the midst of life's storms. And God's goodness and love remind us that He will surely visit us with redemption.
All that is broken will be made whole.
All that is ruined will be made new.
Do not weep, the Lion of Judah has prevailed!
May God open our eyes to the wonders of the incarnation of our Savior, give us confidence and hope as we navigate the storms of this life, and fill us with joy as we look forward to His kingdom here on earth!

This Sunday, we will be exploring Genesis 49, Prophecy According to God.
Jacob is on his death bed. Hospice has been called in. The time of his death is quickly nearing.
But in a last moment of strength, Jacob calls all of his sons into the room. He speaks as their father. He speaks as a prophet. He speaks as a man who has weathered the storms of life and experienced both the firm discipline and gentle grace of the Lord.
He addresses each of his sons. He describes their character. He warns them of their weaknesses and sinful tendencies. He prophesies about their future. He sees the salvation of God coming through their seed.
Chapter 49 is one of the most difficult passages in Genesis to interpret. It is also one of the longest and oldest poems in ancient history.
Amazingly, it is also an appropriate Christmas passage as it prophesies about the coming Lion of Judah, Shiloh, the Prince of Peace, the Savior of the world!
May we see ourselves in this passage and may we see the beauty, power, and majesty of our Savior, Jesus Christ!

This week we will be exploring Genesis 48 together, Reversals According to God.
It seems that every week we are changing the title of the sermon from the one that is listed in the study guide. It's amazing that as you study a passage more deeply that God reveals deeper and deeper truths.
In this case, while redemption is certainly a theme in Genesis 48, the chapter seems to focus more on the unexpected reversals in life.
Life doesn't always turn out as we planned.
Sometimes we make good choices and it seems like bad consequences follow. Sometimes we pray for God to do one thing and it seems like He does the exact opposite. Sometimes we expect life to turn out in a certain way and it hits us with something totally unwanted and unforeseen.
These are the unexpected reversals of life.
God often blesses us with "crossed hands." He puts His hand of blessing on a part of our lives that we are not expecting and He chooses not to bless a part of our lives that we are wanting Him to.
This is one of the principles that we see in Genesis 48.
Jacob is nearing the end of his life. He is on his deathbed. He can't see. He can barely sit up. But the eyes of his faith are as clear as they have ever been in his life.
He finally sees as God sees.
And this moment is the pinnacle of his faith.
And, despite Joseph's strong objections, Jacob blesses the younger over the older.
It is an unexpected reversal (from a human standpoint).
But, in reality, it is part of God's eternal, beautiful plan.
Joseph just has to trust that his father knows what he is doing.
And we have to do the same.
May God open the eyes of our heart so that we can see Him more clearly, love Him more dearly, and follow Him more nearly than we ever have before!