(Gen 42:4 ERV) Jacob did not send Benjamin. (Benjamin was Joseph’s only full brother) Jacob was afraid that something bad might happen to Benjamin.
This morning we continue our series, “Grace that is Simply Amazing” by continuing with our mini-series entitled, “Grace Based Success (Prosperity)”, by continuing in the story of Joseph, with a special emphasis on his father Jacob. Jacob knew it was time to send the boys to Egypt to buy grain. It had been 20 years since 10 of his boys sold Joseph into slavery, desecrated his coat of many colors, and lied saying Joseph was dead. As far as Jacob knew, he had lost his favorite son. Joseph was one-of-two boys born to Rachel. Rachel was Jacob’s first and strongest love. She was the apple of his eye. He loved Rachel so much that he worked 14 years to marry her. He loved her more than his other wives. She was able to give him two boys, one of which he thought was dead. The other was Benjamin, his youngest. Benjamin was also special in another way. Rachel, the woman he loved deeply, died giving birth to Benjamin. Joseph being dead (as far as he knew), meant that Benjamin was Jacob’s only living reminder of Rachel. Needless to say, Benjamin held a special place in his heart.
Now that you have the background, let me share with you what I consider to be a sad commentary. Jacob was willing to send 10 of his 11 boys to Egypt, but not Benjamin. Not because he wanted someone to stay home and help him around the house. Not because he needed Benjamin to watch over the sheep. Not because Benjamin was working on a major project. No, Jacob refused to send Benjamin because he was afraid something might happen to him. Fear is an incapacitating force. Fear will keep you from doing what you need to do, when you need to do it. Jacob was a man of faith, but Jacob also operated in fear. Jacob was the son of Isaac, the grandson of Abraham, the father of the 12 tribes of Israel, but… Jacob was afraid. This series is about learning how to attain Godly success in life. It is going to be hard to experience true success if you allow fear to stifle your progress.
So what does this mean to you today? A few things:
- Fear is a perverted form of faith. Faith is an expression of your confidence in God and in His Word. Fear is an expression of your confidence in satan and in his word. Example: God says that He has given His angels charge over you, to keep you in all your ways. The enemy says that life in your neighborhood is dangerous. Now, you have two “words” operating in your life. If you express confidence in the Word from God you will operate in faith, your faith will cancel out your fear, and you will enter every day with confidence that God will protect you. However, if you express confidence in the word from satan you will operate in fear, your fear will cancel out any faith you had, you will stay home, afraid of your environment, and you will never do what you need to do. Fear and faith both require confidence. It just boils down to WHOM you will express your confidence IN. If you have confidence in the word from satan you will operate in fear. If you have confidence in the Word from God you will operate in faith. Which will you choose today?
- Fear is an emotion. Emotions are to be a blessing and not a curse. God gave you emotions to enable you and to help you enjoy life, not to cripple or stifle you. Emotions become a problem when they are uncontrolled. You are supposed to rule over your emotions and not allow your emotions to rule over you.
- Fear is a choice. While fear is an emotion, it also comes as a result of a choice. You can choose to operate in fear, just like you can choose to operate in faith. When you make your ‘faith or fear’ decision, your decision will impact how you feel. So, in this way, you actually get to decide how you are going to feel. You get to tell your day what kind of day it is going to be. You get to tell your feelings how to feel. So my question is: what will you decide today?
- Fear is aroused either real or imagined threats. In the cases where the threat is real, fear must be channeled and controlled. This is where you need courage. Courage is not the absence of fear, but rather triumph over it. But in the cases where the threat is simply imagined or an illusion, you must learn to overcome that fear altogether. The enemy (satan) thrives on imagined fear. Every day he stops people from performing God’s will in their lives by simply posing imagined threats before them. This is what he did to Jacob and Jacob fell for satan’s trick. Don’t let the same happen to you!
- Fear cancels faith, just like faith cancels fear. You cannot be in faith and in fear at the same time. In four places in the Bible (Hab 2:4, Rom 1:17, Gal 3:11, Heb 10:38) God told you that He expects you, as the just, to live by faith. If you live by faith you will not fear.
Closing Confession: Father, I thank You for teaching me about Your grace and my requirement to live by faith. Your grace and favor are on me and they bring me peace and rest. I know You are with me and You always will be. This gives me hope and confidence. I am so convinced that You are ON, IN, WITH, and FOR me, that I will not allow fear to get a hold of my heart. Fear is not a factor for me. I overcome fear, because I am rooted and grounded in Your love for me. Perfected love casts out all fear. I declare: NO FEAR HERE! Fear has no power over me. My confidence is firmly rooted in my relationship with You, and since I am always in-faith, I will never be in-fear. I know I have a real enemy who wants to steal, kill, and destroy in my life. But I also know I have a real God, who shows up in my life in real ways, so I have nothing to fear. You are bigger than satan and any enemy that comes up against me. This reality brings me peace and I enter every day in Your REST. I thank You Father for helping me to rid my life of fear, worry, doubt, and unbelief. I declare this by faith. In Jesus’ name. Amen.
This is Today’s Word! Apply it and Prosper.
