Joseph's Bones

“And the bones of Joseph, which the children of Israel brought up out of Egypt, buried they in Shechem, in a parcel of ground which Jacob bought of the sons of Hamor the father of Shechem for an hundred pieces of silver: and it became the inheritance of the children of Joseph” (Joshua 24:32 KJV).

Since Joseph had been dead for hundreds of years, it might be curious as to why Scripture would mention such a mundane thing here as burying his bones. Why even mention it here? The reason for mentioning it is that it illustrates a great lesson about faith. The bones of Joseph tell us that faith testifies, faith influences, and faith honors.

Faith testifies – “Joseph took an oath of the children of Israel, saying, God will surely visit you, and ye shall carry up my bones from hence” (Gen. 50:25). The Israelites brought the bones of Joseph with them because Joseph had commanded them to do so. When Joseph gave this order, he said that God would deliver Israel from Egypt. This was a statement of faith. Men of faith speak out about their faith. Our faith in God should testify unashamedly about our belief in God. Joseph believed the Word of God that promised Israel’s deliverance from Egypt, and he testified publically of his belief.

Faith influences – “And Moses took the bones of Joseph with him” (Gen. 13:19). Several centuries after the death of Joseph, we are told that that Moses took the bones of Joseph with him. Here we want to note that just as sin influences other people, so faith also influences other people. Yet, in contrast to sin, faith influences people in a good way. Joseph’s faith influenced Moses to the extent that when the Israelites left Egypt, he went to the trouble of taking the bones of Joseph with them.

Faith honors – “Buried they in Shechem.” Our text tells about Joseph’s bones being buried in Israel after Israel arrived in the Promised Land. This burial was an honor for Joseph. After all the years, Joseph was honored for his faith. Faith always honors those who have faith. The greatest honors, however, will be in heaven. God will see to it that faith is highly honored in heaven.

(Adapted from Butler’s Daily Bible Reading)

Soli Deo Gloria (To God Alone Be The Glory)

Quotation of the Week

“Faith is not believing that God can – it’s knowing that He will!”

Anonymous

Word Study

Confirm

In 1 Peter 5:10 we read, “After you have suffered for a little while, the God of all grace, who called you to His eternal glory in Christ, will Himself perfect, confirm, strengthen and establish you” (NASB).

Confirm is the Greek word sterizo (στηριξω). The word means to make firm or solid, to set fast, to fix firmly in a place, to establish (make firm or stable), to cause to be inwardly firm or committed, to strengthen. The basic idea is that of stabilizing something by providing a support or buttress so that it does sway.

In classical Greek, sterizo means to secure, establish, make fast, firm. Literally, the word carries the idea of setting a stone fast in the ground. Metaphorically, sterizo means to confirm, encourage, or strengthen someone. In our verse, sterizo refers to a divine promise that amid our sufferings, God will give the believers the needed stability, inner strength and resolve to continue to resist the onslaughts of the adversary, the devil, and to stand fast in the faith.

Bible Facts

In 2 Sam. 22:1-51, David sang a song of praise to God for His goodness in delivering him from his enemies and from King Saul. This personal song of praise of David has been adapted to serve as a public hymn in Psalm 18.

Bible Trivia

Which Old Testament writer tell us that the sun traveled backwards?

**Answer to last week’s trivia: Three Old Testament writers asked the question, “What is Man?” Who were they? Job (Job 7:17; 15:14); David (Psalm 8:4; 144:3); and Solomon (Ecc. 6:11).

That’s in the Bible

“Make light of”

“But they made light of it, and went their ways, one to his farm, another to his merchandise” (Matthew 22:5 KJV).

In Matt. 22:1-14, Jesus is speaking about the parable of the wedding feast. In verse 5, He states that the invited guests ‘made light of’ their invitations and so went their own ways. Jesus’ message was that God extends a gracious invitation to people to participate in His kingdom. Even today, people still make light of God’s invitation. Yet, accepting the invitation leads to joy while rejection leads to punishment.

Did You Know – Christian History

Haverford College is a private, coeducational liberal arts college located in Haverford, PA. The college was founded in 1833 by members of the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers) to ensure an education grounded in Quaker values for young Quaker men. Haverford College was officially chartered on March 15, 1856, and was the first Quaker college established in the United States. The college was ranked 11th among all colleges and universities in the 2014 edition of Forbes’ “Top Colleges,” and 9th among national liberal arts colleges by the 2013 edition of U.S. News and World Report. Although the college no longer has a formal religious affiliation, the Quaker philosophy still influences campus life.

A Little Humor

Two men were shipwrecked on an island. The minute they got on to the island one of them started screaming and yelling, “We are going to die! We are going to die! There is no food! No water! We are going to die!” The second man was propped up against a palm tree and acting so calmly that it drove the first man crazy. “Don’t you understand? We are going to die!” The second man replied, “You don’t understand. I make $100,000 a week.” The first man looked at him quite dumbfounded and asked, “What difference does that make? We are on an island with no food and no water! We are going to DIE!” The second man answered, “You just don’t get it. I make $100,000 a week and I tithe ten percent on that $100,000 per week. My pastor will find me!”

Thought Provoking Church Sign

“We are saved not by what we do but by what Christ has done!”