Ten Commandments

In the times before Moses the word of God was never officially written down, but passed to each other verbally by generation to generation. People showed their love to God by following laws. The Ten Commandments was in the forefront of the laws of God before Jesus Christ.

Read Full Post »

Isaac’s Faith vs. the Philistines

After Abraham died Isaac inherited everything from his father.  He also received God’s promise to make his descendants into a great nation.  A great future waits for Isaac and all he has to do is listen to God. (Genesis 26:2-5)

God told Isaac not to go to Egypt and to live in Gerar, where he would be a unwanted.  He promised to bless him with riches and land because it was promised to Abraham. Isaac gets the blessing because he’s a descendant of Abraham and nothing else.  God’s promise holds for generations and can’t be broken.   All Isaac has to do was to follow the directions of the Lord.

The directions of God are not always easy to follow and Isaac will find living Gerar hard but rewarding.    In the land of Gerar there were many Philistines who were not the friendliest people.  Isaac even had to lie that his beautiful wife Rebecca was his sister so that they won’t kill him for her. (Genesis 26:7)  He had a lot of fear to live in the Gerar but he had to if he wanted to receive God’s blessing.

Fear was not all that Isaac faced, there was trouble over land issues with the philistines.  The Philistines got really jealous after his crops and animals multiplied to a great extent.  They were so jealous that they were trying to suffocate Isaac’s wealth by filling his wells with dirt and told him to move on.  Isaac didn’t quit and started again nearby in the valley of Gerar and he reopened the wells.  But more problems arose with ownership of the wells and the Philistines caused more problems.   Eventually Isaac did find a place where he was undisturbed to prosper again.  What’s even more amazing is that the king of Philistines, King Abimelech, actually came to him to enter in a covenant of friendship and peace because he saw God bless Isaac. (Genesis 26:28)

Throughout this whole adventure, Isaac never complained to God nor did he pick up arms and attack the Philistines for causing trouble.  His strength in the Lord never wavered. How diligently can we listen to God even through the obstacles in our life?  There are many times in my life where I stumbled but I never complained of why I stumbled because I know the Lord was with me.  Like Isaac we can never lose faith even if there are people who make life tough for us.

“What shall we say about such wonderful things as these? If God is for us, who can ever be against us?” (Romans 8:31)

Say you are trying to get a position at work, trying to buy a home, raising family, or even taking classes at college, there is always obstacles trying to get in your way.  But do you raise that white flag and quit? No, of course not! God gives us strength to persevere.  Isaac also never questions God’s motives to place him in the midst of enemies.  From time to time we question God’s directions, but who are we to question Him?  We desire to be told everything before we do anything but God doesn’t work like that.  Just how Isaac was told to live in Gerar, God tells to follow his commands without question.  God can make any bad situation to a positive one; we only need to be faithful to God and His commands.  Even Isaac’s enemies became friends because the Philistines saw the good works of God wherever he went.  No matter how bad the situation is, God always is watching over you and helping you in every step of the way.  Sometimes it’s not easy but our duty as a Christian is ask God to guide us, and follow His commands freely and without question; that is what faith is all about.

Ask yourselves, how far would you go to receive God’s blessing and is your faith strong enough?

Read Full Post »