Joshua 1:1-7 Surrender Yourself to God

Posted on May 14, 2011 by kurt bennett

Surrender Yourself to God (image courtesy of davidlermy.com)

Tonight was a great night. I attended a State Fire Chiefs Association awards ceremony where one of our crews was recognized for their efforts on the Oak Knoll, Ashland, Oregon Fire. The only problem is that I’m not available to write this week’s post. But God, in His grace, provided someone else to write the post for me. One of the people I admire most on the entire planet.

The following is a guest post by Don Bennett.

Now after the death of Moses the servant of the LORD it came to pass, that the LORD spake unto Joshua the son of Nun, Moses’ minister, saying, Moses my servant is dead; now therefore arise, go over this Jordan, thou, and all this people, unto the land which I do give to them, even to the children of Israel. Every place that the sole of your foot shall tread upon, that have I given unto you, as I said unto Moses. From the wilderness and this Lebanon even unto the great river, the river Euphrates, all the land of the Hittites, and unto the great sea toward the going down of the sun, shall be your coast. There shall not any man be able to stand before thee all the days of thy life: as I was with Moses, so I will be with thee: I will not fail thee, nor forsake thee. Be strong and of a good courage: for unto this people shalt thou divide for an inheritance the land, which I sware unto their fathers to give them. Only be thou strong and very courageous…

Joshua 1:1-7

Joshua was truly honored to be chosen to lead the people of Israel into the promised land. What an incredibly strong endorsement. By this time, inspite of wandering in the desert for 40 years, Israel had grown to be 3 million strong. No sooner had they begun their trip to the promised land than they encountered the incredibly powerful fortified city of Jericho. Joshua sent 3 men to Jericho to find out what the situation was there. With the help of a woman who believed that the God of Israel was the true God they found that rather than come out and fight, the people of Jericho were going to hide behind the incredibly strong walls of the city. Most Christians know the story of God’s angel appearing as a warrior to Joshua and giving him instruction to lead the people around the walls 7 days in a row. On the 7th day they were instructed to have the priests blow the ram’s horn and have all of the people shout at the same time. As the song says, “…the walls came tumbling down.”

The next obstacle confronting Joshua and his people was the city of Ai. Without praying or consulting the LORD, Joshua sent several men in to assess the situation. They returned and reported that “This should be easy. They don’t look very strong.” They didn’t know that three Kings, who feared the Israelis, were allied with Ai. Because of this alliance the fighting forces of Ai were much more powerful than they appeared. Perhaps even more powerful than Jericho’s. Again, without consulting or praying, Joshua sent only 3,000 men to engage Ai and they were routed. The survivors came running back and told Joshua that they had been met with a powerful force. Joshua, being a man of the LORD, lay prone on the ground, covered himself with dust, and prayed for GOD’s forgiveness for his, Joshua’s, being so arrogant. God forgave Joshua with a strong warning to remember who the authority was and to check in with the LORD before going off on his own. Obviously, Joshua learned very quickly to respect the LORD and to be grateful for his blessings.

In my life, from an early age, I did not always respect authority, and I always found that there was a price to pay. Growing up in Kansas, sports were always very important to me. In the 8th grade I was the quarterback on our football team. We had a coach named Mr. Burnett. He was young and easy to relate to. In fact at that time, he still often wore his letterman’s sweater from Coffeeville College. One day he asked me to stay after practice to talk.

He first asked me how I was doing.

I answered “I think I’m doing pretty well.”

He asked, “Why do you think you’re doing well?”

I said, “I really don’t know.”

He said, “I know why you are doing well. God gave you the ability to run fast and throw a ball fast, but you have a problem. You will never become a better player and teammate unless you work at improving yourself rather than just relying on your God-given ability.”

I was crestfallen! But I really didn’t learn much of anything from our talk. Because Coach Burnett continued to allow me to play quarterback, I was still getting what I wanted and didn’t learn the lesson that it’s a good idea to pay attention to those in authority.

In Proverbs 24:21 God tells us, “My son, fear thou the LORD and the king…” Coach Burnett was my “king” but I didn’t fear or respect him.

After 8th grade, my father was transferred to Chicago, Illinois. I went out for football. The first day of Freshman practice, Coach Ritchoff blew the whistle and came up to me. “You can’t play quarterback because you’re left-handed.” I informed Coach Ritchoff that that did not make any sense at all. All that earned me was running 10 extra laps and I got switched to running back anyway. Obviously, I had not learned my lesson.

I was very fortunate to be born into a family of good Christians and at the age of 3 I was singing “Jesus loves me this I know because the Bible tells me so” with my Sunday School class. I still think that’s a good song. I have always considered myself a Christian but it was a long time before I got the idea of what it was to be a Christian.

When things were easy, and I did well, I was very quick to feel prideful and superior as opposed to thanking God for my successes. When things didn’t go well, rather than assessing my own performance, I usually blamed my failure on someone else or general circumstances. Obviously, unlike Joshua, I was not quick to understand that my successes were all the result of God’s gifts and my failures came about when I strayed from the word of God.

I have found that when I attend church regularly and continue to read my Bible things go very well for me.

Jesus came and not only died to wash away our sins but was the perfect example of humility and selflessness. It isn’t easy in today’s crazy world to follow the example which Jesus set. When we focus on His example and love God, and love our neighbors as we love ourselves, we find ourselves so busy helping others that we won’t have time to be arrogant.

…I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing: therefore choose life, that both thou and thy seed may live: That thou mayest love the LORD thy God, and that thou mayest obey his voice, and that thou mayest cleave unto him: for he is thy life…

Deuteronomy 30:19-20

Genesis 11:27-32 Abram

Posted on March 26, 2011 by kurt bennett

Life is Short — Courtesy of Faith and Family Man

This is the account of Terah’s family line.

Terah became the father of Abram, Nahor and Haran. And Haran became the father of Lot. While his father Terah was still alive, Haran died in Ur of the Chaldeans, in the land of his birth. Abram and Nahor both married. The name of Abram’s wife was Sarai, and the name of Nahor’s wife was Milkah; she was the daughter of Haran, the father of both Milkah and Iskah. Now Sarai was childless because she was not able to conceive.

Terah took his son Abram, his grandson Lot son of Haran, and his daughter-in-law Sarai, the wife of his son Abram, and together they set out from Ur of the Chaldeans to go to Canaan. But when they came to Harran, they settled there.

Terah lived 205 years, and he died in Harran.

Genesis 11:27-32

In chapter 11 we see God bring His focus down from all of mankind to the family of Terah. You may recall that back in Genesis chapter 2 God moved us from an overview of creation to the account of man by rotating His telephoto lens from wide angle to zoom, so to speak. In chapter 1 of Genesis God’s word is at wide angle focused on all of creation — in Genesis chapter 2, verse 8 the Bible zooms in to record that part of God’s creation that is mankind. (bennett’s blog Genesis 2:4-7)

Now in Genesis chapter 11 we’ll see God narrow His focus even further until we will find ourselves reading the story of Abram and his descendants.

As God’s focus narrows we learn about Abram’s father Terah’s family, which provides important background to several of the stories we’ll read later in Genesis.

Nahor is Abram’s brother. From the descendants of Nahor and Milkah (Milkah was Nahor’s wife) will come the wives of Isaac and Jacob. (See Terah’s Family Tree at the bottom of this post)

Abram’s other brother, Haran, the father of Lot, dies unexpectedly. Lot was apparently under Abram’s care in the absence of Haran. Abram appears to be involved in his nephew Lot’s life right up until the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah. (verses 27-28)

Haran’s unexpected death reminds me of two friends of mine John and Gale. Both firefighters known for their great physical strength. Both blessed with beautiful families. Both known for their sense of humor. Both talented in surviving the dangers they faced at work fighting fire.

On a day off they decided to take John’s two seat Polaris RZR ATV onto some nearby mountain trails. Finding a trail through a large but steep meadow they decided to attempt to make it to the top. They were both confident that they’d be OK. They were skilled at negotiating such terrain, and besides, the ATV had harnesses to hold them in their seats.

Up they went, the tires of the ATV slipping at times but mostly biting into the dirt and rocks, carrying John and Gale up and up and up until they reached the end of the purely vertical part of the climb.

Success!

Then at the end of the vertical part of the trail they bore to the right which took them along the top of the meadow. Not as easy as it looked, side hill and uphill at the same time, but they were handling it, continuing up until they were almost 1,000 feet above their starting point.

At which point — their left front tire hit a rock. A rock about the size of a bowling ball half submerged in the ground. The left front of the ATV bounced and lifted up until the ATV rolled over. Not so bad at first, strapped in, rolling. But as they continued down the 1,000 foot vertical meadow they gained speed. They rolled and they bounced. More speed — they bounced higher and further. Even more speed — they flew through the air. The forces from the impacts exerted upon their bodies were more than any human being could withstand. Even for two firefighters such as John and Gale, known for their physical strength and skilled at surviving the dangers of fighting fire.

They finally came to rest against a tree.

They died — unexpectedly.

On a rainy day, on a curvy road, my friend’s young daughter who was also my family’s baby-sitter, died in a car accident right in front of me. That same friend lost his wife in a car accident a few years earlier.

A few weeks ago another friend’s teen-age son died suddenly and unexpectedly — of the flu.

While his father Terah was still alive, Haran died… (v. 28)

The fact is none of us knows when we might die. If you think you’ll get around to focusing on your relationship with God later, please think again. Not one of us knows the day of his death.

It could happen tomorrow.

Invest in that which will will have value when you’re living in eternity because each of us will spend eternity living with the consequences of how we spend our time and energy here, now, in this life.

Just for today, just one day, just this day — live for Christ.

You’ll spend eternity glad that you did.

“Do not work for food that spoils, but for food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you.”

Jesus Christ, John 6:27

Terah’s Family Tree:

Terah's Family Tree courtesy of fanningthedoor.wordpress.com

References:

Blue Letter Bible

Bible Gateway

MedfordFirefighters.com

Matthew Henry

Jon Courson’s Application Commentary: Volume 1

Whiffs of the Bread of Life

Faith and Family Man Blog

Genesis 11:10-26 Abram

Posted on March 19, 2011 by kurt bennett

Biblical Chronology Genesis 11

This is the account of Shem’s family line.

Two years after the flood, when Shem was 100 years old, he became the father of Arphaxad. And after he became the father of Arphaxad, Shem lived 500 years and had other sons and daughters.

When Arphaxad had lived 35 years, he became the father of Shelah. And after he became the father of Shelah, Arphaxad lived 403 years and had other sons and daughters.

When Shelah had lived 30 years, he became the father of Eber. And after he became the father of Eber, Shelah lived 403 years and had other sons and daughters.

When Eber had lived 34 years, he became the father of Peleg. And after he became the father of Peleg, Eber lived 430 years and had other sons and daughters.

When Peleg had lived 30 years, he became the father of Reu. And after he became the father of Reu, Peleg lived 209 years and had other sons and daughters.

When Reu had lived 32 years, he became the father of Serug. And after he became the father of Serug, Reu lived 207 years and had other sons and daughters.

When Serug had lived 30 years, he became the father of Nahor. And after he became the father of Nahor, Serug lived 200 years and had other sons and daughters.

When Nahor had lived 29 years, he became the father of Terah. And after he became the father of Terah, Nahor lived 119 years and had other sons and daughters.

After Terah had lived 70 years, he became the father of Abram, Nahor and Haran.

Genesis 11:10-26

There are 10 generations mentioned in this passage but only one person’s life story is recorded in detail. Think about this a minute. Have you ever heard the name Arphaxad kicked around in conversation? Have you ever heard or read anything about Reu? Neither have I.

It’s Abram (later renamed Abraham) who we read about, who we hear about, and who we talk about. I believe there are two reasons for this. 1) Abram/Abraham had faith in God. 2) God blessed Abram with a life that was filled with adventure.

A famous comedian once said, “Tragedy is when I cut my finger. Comedy is when you walk into an open sewer and die.” This speaks toward how you and I perceive adventure and stress. The great difficulties we see in the lives of others we tend to perceive as adventure but the same or even lesser events in our own lives we tend to perceive as stress.

Stress is a terrible thing, we think. Something to be avoided we say. We’re always looking for ways to reduce it.

We’re always seeking ways to make life,

…easier,

…more convenient,

…more comfortable.

Living like this just makes sense, right?

To the degree that we can, let’s take a look from God’s perspective. What does He think of stress? What were the lives like of those who’s stories He tells in His scriptures? People like Abram, David, Joshua, Joseph, Noah, Moses, Samson, Paul, and Jesus.

Let’s take just one of these men and examine his life a bit. Let’s talk about David, the man who the Bible says was a man after God’s own heart. (1 Samuel 13:14) Other than Jesus Himself, who might God want to give a better life to than David, the man after His own heart? Let’s see what God sent David’s way.

Apparently God had in mind for David’s flock to be attacked by bears and lions while providing David with only a sling for defense. (1 Samuel 17:34) David’s people were attacked by the giant Goliath and God chose David as the one to defeat him — again God, and David’s, weapon of choice was a simple sling. (1 Samuel Ch 17) David’s king, who David loved, pursued him with resources from the king’s army in a relentless attempt to end David’s life. (1 Samuel Chapters 18-26) A band of raiders kidnapped the families of David and his men and stole everything they had at Ziklag. (1 Samuel Ch 30) And there’s plenty more beyond these adventures — read 1 and 2 Samuel if you’re interested in hearing more.

There’s no disputing that God loved David dearly, yet He sent a myriad of adventures David’s way. And He recorded David’s story in detail.

Now here’s a bit of news for you: God has the same thing in mind for you and for me.

He’s writing His story of your life and of my life as He allows us to go through difficulties and trials. It’s not a matter of if you’ll go through trials, it’s just a matter of when. We’ll all experience failure, we’ll all be touched by serious health problems, we’ll all experience the death of people we love. All of us. It’s when not if. And keep in mind that this is just a partial list.

Knowing this, how are we to handle our adventures? A couple of thoughts:

1) Your Perception

G.K. Chesterton said, “An adventure is only an inconvenience rightly considered. An inconvenience is an adventure wrongly considered.” When we perceive something as a negative we reduce our capacity to handle it. Recognize that problems and challenges in life are part of God’s design. God has it in His mind to send you adventures. So in your own thinking and speaking, call them what they are: adventures.

2) Your Sabbath

God tells us to practice the principle of the Sabbath for a reason. Adventures won’t break you but failing to create sufficient waves of recovery can. High levels of adventure without recovery can be lethal but high adventure with relief is not only manageable but will actually strengthen you and your faith in the Lord. Had David’s flocks not been attacked by bears and lions it’s doubtful that he would have had the strength to defeat Goliath.

“You are not able to go out against this Philistine and fight him; you are only a young man, and he has been a warrior from his youth.”

But David said to Saul, “Your servant has been keeping his father’s sheep. When a lion or a bear came and carried off a sheep from the flock, I went after it, struck it and rescued the sheep from its mouth. When it turned on me, I seized it by its hair, struck it and killed it. Your servant has killed both the lion and the bear; this uncircumcised Philistine will be like one of them, because he has defied the armies of the living God. The LORD who rescued me from the paw of the lion and the paw of the bear will rescue me from the hand of this Philistine.”

(1 Samuel 17:33-37)

3) Your Physicality

The young man sought from his dad an opportunity to borrow the car. The young man’s dad saw an opportunity for his son to get a hair cut.

“Tell you what,” the dad said. “I’ll loan you the car if you get your hair cut.”

“But what about Jesus,” the son countered. “He had long hair.”

“Jesus walked everywhere He went,” the dad replied wryly.

Paul tells us that physical training is of some value. (1 Timothy 4:8)

I once heard Woodburn Fire Chief Kevin Hendricks tell the story of his involvement in the response to the tragic December, 2008 terrorist bombing incident that “killed Senior Trooper William Hakim, who worked as a bomb squad technician for Oregon State Police, and Capt. Tom Tennant of the Woodburn Police Department.” http://www.oregonlive.com/news/index.ssf/2008/12/police_identify_colleagues_kil.html When Chief Hendricks arrived efforts were being made to set up a command post across the street from the bank that was now in ruins as a result of the bomb. Hendricks was horrified because he knew the victims personally. In spite of his depression and stress he managed to think clearly enough to realize that no one had taken into consideration that there might be a secondary explosive device. Chief Hendricks directed emergency personnel to move the command post to the Woodburn Fire Station, a twenty minute walk, up the street. Only problem was, in his effort to get everyone out of the hot zone, Hendricks missed his ride so he had to walk. Hendricks recalled, “I’ll tell you what, that twenty minute walk did my head more good than I would have imagined.”

While experiencing an adventure it’s important to take time to do something physical. God designed us to be physical. We weren’t designed to be sedentary.

4) Your Refuge

Instead of succumbing to your anxiety, come to God. Surround yourself with the body of Christ — your brothers in Christ if you’re a man, your sisters in Christ if you’re a woman. Fellowship with Jesus at church. Read His word. Pray. Know where to go when things get tough.

Resist the urge to succumb to your emotions, or even worse, alcohol or drugs. In Matthew 6:27 Jesus asks, “Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life ?”

Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.(Philippians 4:6-7)

Say of the LORD, “He is my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust.” (Psalm 91:2)

5) Your Actions

Of course it’s essential that we pray for God’s direction in everything, however also notice that in every one of David’s adventures, David took action. With God’s help, David fought the bear, the lion, and Goliath. With God’s help David encouraged himself at Ziklag, rallied his men, and recovered their families and belongings. Notice also that these actions often involved helping others. David was defending the flock when he fought the bear and the lion. David was rescuing his family and friends at Ziklag. And David defended all of Israel when he defeated Goliath. Wherever you can, make your actions count on behalf of others.

Without God you can’t, but without you God won’t.

After prayerfully considering your adventure, it may be time to take action.

6) Your Thanksgiving

…give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus. (1 Thessalonians 5:18) Give thanks for your adventure. Find the blessings that God has wrought from the adventure that you’re experiencing. I’ve never experienced or heard of a life challenge that wasn’t also lined with blessings from God.

What a difference thanksgiving makes.

7) Your Story

Keep in mind that people are watching. As you go through the trials and challenges that God allows in your life, people are watching to see how you handle it. It’s essential to remember that your story and my story are for God’s glory. God in His sovereignty has decided to allow the various trials in your life so He can provide a testimony of His greatness to those around us.

Whatever happens, conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ.

(Philippians 1:27)

References:

Bible Gateway

Genesis 10 These are the clans of Noah’s sons, according to their lines of descent, within their nations. From these the nations spread out over the earth after the flood.

Posted on March 5, 2011 by kurt bennett

Martin Luther on the Table of Nations

This is the account of Shem, Ham and Japheth, Noah’s sons, who themselves had sons after the flood.

The sons of Japheth:
Gomer, Magog, Madai, Javan, Tubal, Meshek and Tiras.

The sons of Gomer:
Ashkenaz, Riphath and Togarmah.

The sons of Javan:
Elishah, Tarshish, the Kittites and the Rodanites. (From these the maritime peoples spread out into their territories by their clans within their nations, each with its own language.)

The sons of Ham:
Cush, Egypt, Put and Canaan.

The sons of Cush:
Seba, Havilah, Sabtah, Raamah and Sabteka.

The sons of Raamah:
Sheba and Dedan.

Cush was the father of Nimrod, who became a mighty warrior on the earth. He was a mighty hunter before the LORD; that is why it is said, “Like Nimrod, a mighty hunter before the LORD.” ¹⁰The first centers of his kingdom were Babylon, Uruk, Akkad and Kalneh, in Shinar. From that land he went to Assyria, where he built Nineveh, Rehoboth Ir, Calah and Resen, which is between Nineveh and Calah—which is the great city.

Egypt was the father of
the Ludites, Anamites, Lehabites, Naphtuhites, Pathrusites, Kasluhites (from whom the Philistines came) and Caphtorites.

Canaan was the father of
Sidon his firstborn, and of the Hittites, Jebusites, Amorites, Girgashites, Hivites, Arkites, Sinites, Arvadites, Zemarites and Hamathites.

Later the Canaanite clans scattered and the borders of Canaan reached from Sidon toward Gerar as far as Gaza, and then toward Sodom, Gomorrah, Admah and Zeboyim, as far as Lasha.

These are the sons of Ham by their clans and languages, in their territories and nations.

Sons were also born to Shem, whose older brother was Japheth; Shem was the ancestor of all the sons of Eber.

The sons of Shem:
Elam, Ashur, Arphaxad, Lud and Aram.

The sons of Aram:
Uz, Hul, Gether and Meshek.

Arphaxad was the father of Shelah,
and Shelah the father of Eber.

Two sons were born to Eber:
One was named Peleg, because in his time the earth was divided; his brother was named Joktan.

Joktan was the father of
Almodad, Sheleph, Hazarmaveth, Jerah, Hadoram, Uzal, Diklah, Obal, Abimael, Sheba, Ophir, Havilah and Jobab. All these were sons of Joktan.

The region where they lived stretched from Mesha toward Sephar, in the eastern hill country.

These are the sons of Shem by their clans and languages, in their territories and nations.

These are the clans of Noah’s sons, according to their lines of descent, within their nations. From these the nations spread out over the earth after the flood.

Genesis Chapter 10

This chapter of the Bible blows my mind!

It’s important to study the truths in Genesis chapter 10 so that we recognize that God’s word is in fact real and true. It amazes me how this ancient document provides an accurate account of the origins of today’s races and nations.

The flood is over. Only Noah, his three sons, and their wives remain. The entire human race is represented right here, right now, by eight people. What we have in Genesis chapter 10 is the origin of the races or what is often referred to as the Table of Nations. We don’t know how every line of every one of the sixty descendants of Noah named in this chapter works out, but most we do. Ethnology, linguistic studies, archeology, and physical anthropology continue to verify the truths of the Bible.

In this post I won’t address all sixty descendants of Noah but you’ll read about some of the more notable lines of ancestry. Most of this post is done in an outline format. Each indentation is an indication of a subsequent generation.

This is the account of Shem, Ham and Japheth, Noah’s sons, who themselves had sons after the flood. (v.1) (emphasis mine) Notice the order here — Shem is listed first. This is appropriate because Shem’s line turns out to be the most important as we’ll see later.

The Japhethites

The sons of Japheth: (v.2) Japheth’s descendants are that group of tribes that make up the Indo-European nations.

Parenthetically: It’s interesting to note that the Indian culture has its own account of the great flood. In it the hero is one who bears an Indian name however his sons are named Iyapati, Harma, and Sharma which correspond to Japheth, Ham, and Shem. And in the story the hero’s son Harma is cursed because he laughed at his father when he was drunk. This is an obvious reference to the same events found in the Biblical account of the flood.

Japheth: The sons of Japheth were Gomer, Magog, Madai, Javan, Tubal, Meshek and Tiras. (v.2)

Gomer: The sons of Gomer: Ashkenaz, Riphath and Togarmah. (v.3)

Ashkenaz: Ashkenaz is widely regarded as the father of the ancient Germanic people as well as the Scandinavians. It’s thought that the name Ashkenaz evolved into the name Askania which eventually became Scandanavia.

Riphath: Not obvious from our English translation but some scholars feel that the word Riphath, linguistically, implies ancestry to the Europeans.

Togarmah: Togarmah is interesting because even today the Armenians call themselves the House of Togarmah. The only controversy related to this ancestry is whether or not the Armenians are the whole house of Togarmah or are only one line of the house of Togarmah.

Javan: The sons of Javan: Elishah, Tarshish, the Kittites and the Rodanites. ⁵ (From these the maritime peoples spread out into their territories by their clans within their nations, each with its own language.) (v.4-5) Javan is the father of the Greeks. The Greeks say that the father of their race and all humanity is named Japetos, interesting because this name is linguistically linked to the name Japheth.

Elishah: some scholars believe that in this case the word Elishah translates as the word for Hellas which also implies an ancestry to the Greeks. Today we call the period of history in which the Greeks had the greatest influence in the world, the Hellenistic period and the Greeks of today refer to their country as Hellas. (see Hellas=Greece)

Tarshish: The name Tarshish is obviously connected to a place in the Bible — it’s mentioned 19 different times in the book of Psalms, Isaiah, Ezekiel, Jonah as well as other places. But it’s difficult to pinpoint Tarshish’s exact ancestry in the world. About all that we can be sure of is that the name is associated with the sea, islands, and a place far away. It also seems to be associated with smelting of metals.

More sons of Japheth:

Magog: Magog is widely believed to be the father of the Russian people. It’s interesting to note that a Babylonian king writing to an Egyptian Pharoah places Magog to the North of the Black Sea. The Great Wall of China erected to keep out the Russian people is called by the Chinese, the wall of Magog.

Tubal and Meshek: Tubal and Meshek are also associated with the Russian people. Meshek is linked to the Muskovy, an obvious reference to the Russian people. Even today we call those living in Moscow, Moscovites. Tubal and Meshek were regarded by the great conquerer Sargon as the Musky.

Madai is the father of the Medes. They settled West of the Caspian Sea. They’re obviously referred to often in the Bible, most prominently in the book of Daniel.

The Hamites

Ham: The sons of Ham: Cush, Egypt, Put and Canaan. (v.6) We owe a great deal to the Hamitic nations because they were the ones who were blessed with the gift of exploration and adaptation. The Hamites were the first to explore and settle the frontier.

Cush: The sons of Cush were Seba, Havilah, Sabtah, Raamah and Sabteka. The word Cush is often translated Ethiopia although both the Ethiopians and the Cassites were both descended from Cush.

Raamah: The sons of Raamah were Sheba and Dedan. (v.7)

Sheba and Dedan: Sheba and Dedan as well as Havilah from the previous generation are all the ancestors of the people we associate with Arabia today.

Nimrod: Nimrod is not mentioned in the original list of the sons of Cush but receives his own separate little vignette in the middle of the genealogies of Genesis chapter 10. Cush was the father of Nimrod, who became a mighty warrior on the earth. He was a mighty hunter before the LORD; that is why it is said, “Like Nimrod, a mighty hunter before the LORD.” The first centers of his kingdom were Babylon, Uruk, Akkad and Kalneh, in Shinar. From that land he went to Assyria, where he built Nineveh, Rehoboth Ir, Calah and Resen, which is between Nineveh and Calah—which is the great city.(v.8-12) According to the Jewish Talmud Nimrod was not only a hunter of game but also a hunter of the souls of men. The name Nimrod means “we will rebel.” It’s interesting that Nimrod, this rebel against God, founded Babylon and Assyria, two nations that warred against Israel. The Assyrians carried the ten Northern tribes of Israel into captivity in 722 BC and the Babylonians destroyed Jerusalem in 586 BC. We’ll learn more about where Nimrod’s rebellion takes his followers in the next chapter.

Egypt: Egypt throughout history and to this day speaks of the nation… Egypt. Egypt was the father of the Ludites, Anamites, Lehabites, Naphtuhites, Pathrusites, Kasluhites (from whom the Philistines came) and Caphtorites. (v.13)

Kasluhites: The people from whom the Philistines came. The Philistines we see often in the Bible. It’s interesting to note that their ancestry came from Egypt, ultimately.

Put: Put is the ancestor of the people of Libya.

Canaan: The Canaanites or the land Canaan are mentioned in the Bible 158 times. Their geographic area was that of Israel and the territory around it. Of course the Canaanites play a large role in numerous places in scripture. Their culture was so debauch that they eventually had to be wiped out, but not before God gave them 400 years to repent. Canaan was the father of Sidon his firstborn, and of the Hittites, Jebusites, Amorites, Girgashites, Hivites, Arkites, Sinites, Arvadites, Zemarites and Hamathites. Later the Canaanite clans scattered and the borders of Canaan reached from Sidon toward Gerar as far as Gaza, and then toward Sodom, Gomorrah, Admah and Zeboyim, as far as Lasha. (v.15-19) This group of “-ites” are the seven nations of the Canaanites who were dominant when Joshua conquered the land of Canaan.

Hittites: Interestingly, there was a time when scholars pointed to the Hittite civilization as an example of Biblical inaccuracy because there was no evidence to support the existence of this people. Since then much archeological evidence has been uncovered substantiating the existence of the Hittites.

Sinites: Many believe that the Sinites settled the area now called China and are the ancient ancestors of the Chinese.

The Semites

Shem: Sons were also born to Shem, whose older brother was Japheth; Shem was the ancestor of all the sons of Eber. The sons of Shem: Elam, Ashur, Arphaxad, Lud and Aram. (v.21-22)

Aram: The sons of Aram: Uz, Hul, Gether and Meshek. (v.23) Aram was the father of the Aramaeans. The name Uz was the name of the homeland of Job.

Arphaxad: Arphaxad was the father of Shelah, and Shelah the father of Eber. (v.24) Eber is where we get the word Hebrew. Eber is the father of the Hebrews. Abraham was six generations removed from Eber yet Abraham is identified as a Hebrew. Of course it will be from this line that the Messiah will come. For this reason the Bible says in Genesis 9:26 “Praise be to the LORD, the God of Shem!”

Eber: Two sons were born to Eber: One was named Peleg, because in his time the earth was divided; his brother was named Joktan. (v.25)

Peleg: Some very good scholars think the comment the earth was divided means that this was the time when the continents were divided and began to drift apart. Other well respected scholars have the view that this was the time discussed in Genesis 11 when the people of the earth were divided linguistically at the Tower of Babel. The name Peleg means divided.

Joktan: Joktan was the father of Almodad, Sheleph, Hazarmaveth, Jerah, Hadoram, Uzal, Diklah, Obal, Abimael, Sheba, Ophir, Havilah and Jobab. All these were sons of Joktan. (v.26-29)

Jobab: Jobab is identified by some scholars as the man Job from the book of Job in the Bible.

These are the clans of Noah’s sons, according to their lines of descent, within their nations. From these the nations spread out over the earth after the flood. (v.32)

The origins of the nations are laid out for us in Genesis chapter 10 as though God is speaking to us by showing that His word is real and true. He does this through the great dispersion of humanity throughout the earth and he also speaks to us in the tiniest details found in other parts of scripture as well as the small events in each of our personal lives.

The question is: are you listening?

Pay attention and turn your ear to the sayings of the wise;
apply your heart to what I teach,
for it is pleasing when you keep them in your heart
and have all of them ready on your lips.
So that your trust may be in the LORD,
I teach you today, even you.

Proverbs 22:17-19

References:

Dictionary of Scripture Proper Names by J.B. Jackson

Genesis 7:17-24 For forty days the flood kept coming on the earth, and as the waters increased they lifted the ark high above the earth

Posted on January 22, 2011 by kurt bennett

Noah's-Ark in the Storm

For forty days the flood kept coming on the earth, and as the waters increased they lifted the ark high above the earth. The waters rose and increased greatly on the earth, and the ark floated on the surface of the water. They rose greatly on the earth, and all the high mountains under the entire heavens were covered. The waters rose and covered the mountains to a depth of more than fifteen cubits.Every living thing that moved on land perished—birds, livestock, wild animals, all the creatures that swarm over the earth, and all mankind. Everything on dry land that had the breath of life in its nostrils died. Every living thing on the face of the earth was wiped out; people and animals and the creatures that move along the ground and the birds were wiped from the earth. Only Noah was left, and those with him in the ark.

The waters flooded the earth for a hundred and fifty days.

Genesis 7:17-24

What we find in this passage of scripture is that God can not only require the life of a person, but God can also require the life of a whole civilization. The people of Noah’s day continued on in their lives without regard for God, as though everything would continue as it was. (Genesis 6:5) But the day came when the door to the ark was shut and the people of Noah’s day had no recourse. They must have found the highest ground they could but it was to no avail because verse 20 tells us that the water rose to a height of 15 cubits above the highest mountain tops. As the water rose, and rose, and rose they must have thought about God’s provision for escape that they had seen under construction for the last 120 years or so. But by then it was too late, the water remained for 150 days providing for no chance of survival. Verse 22 tells us that everything on dry land that had the breath of life in its nostrils died. It was up to the people of Noah’s day to repent before the flood came.

A friend of mine was recently told that he has less than 5 years to live. He’s sought second opinions about his illness, including one from one of the top hospitals in the United States. Lamentably, they all give the same answer: less than 5 years. All of us will die of course and as Jesus has told us, it’s true that God could allow for any one of us to die tonight. (see Luke 12:13-21) Like the people of Noah’s day, the great questions of eternity are asked of us not during the judgment but during our day to day lives. These questions are asked of us quietly, almost inaudibly. What the people of Noah’s day experienced during the 120 years leading up to the flood, you and I are experiencing right now! It’s up to you and it’s up to me to live for God before the day of judgment. Like the time of the flood, deciding to live for God during the judgment will be too late! It’s up to you and it’s up to me to enter into the ark of our salvation, Jesus Christ, before the judgment comes. (see Join Christ’s Family)

My friend who’s dying is a believer and I’ve been tremendously blessed to watch him during his trial. You know, people are seldom influenced for Christ by our success. It’s when you’re demonstrating courage, courage from faith in Christ, courage in the face of difficulty, that’s when people find themselves drawn to God. My friend continues to work hard in his job as a firefighter, he’s kept his sense of humor, he’s kept his love for people. He continues to show grace and God’s love to others, just as he always has. That’s how it should be for any Christian during a trial. When the waters rise and increase greatly, when trouble comes and increases greatly, like the ark, we should be lifted up.

…we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope.

Romans 5:3-4

May our hope be in Him.

References:

Institute for Creation Research

Ray Stedman

Genesis 7:1-5 — Go into the ark, you and your whole family. Noah did all that the LORD commanded him.

Posted on January 1, 2011 by kurt bennett

Madeline

The LORD then said to Noah, “Go into the ark, you and your whole family, because I have found you righteous in this generation. Take with you seven pairs of every kind of clean animal, a male and its mate, and one pair of every kind of unclean animal, a male and its mate, and also seven pairs of every kind of bird, male and female, to keep their various kinds alive throughout the earth. Seven days from now I will send rain on the earth for forty days and forty nights, and I will wipe from the face of the earth every living creature I have made.”

And Noah did all that the LORD commanded him.

Genesis 7:1-5

The King James Version of verse one says that …the LORD said unto Noah, Come thou and all thy house into the ark; for thee have I seen righteous before me in this generation. Indeed the Hebrew word for “come” is used here in the original text. What does this mean? If God is directing Noah to “come” into the ark, it can only mean that God is in the ark already! He’s beckoning Noah and his family to come. This is how it always is with God. His heart is for you and for me to come unto Him. Jesus beckons you and I to come unto Him for He said, Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. (Matthew 11:28) This is the answer because Jesus Christ is the ark of our salvation! Coming unto Jesus is the solution to the problem of separation from God. If you haven’t already, listen to God’s heart, come unto Him. (see Join Christ’s Family)

Here’s more good news from verse one of our text. We know the Lord loved the world so much that he gave his one and only Son,that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. (John 3:16) We know that He loves the world and we know He loves individuals. But pause for a moment and think with me about this first verse in Genesis chapter 7. In verse one we see that God has obviously taken notice of Noah’s righteousness, yet He tells Noah to Come thou and all thy house into the ark… (v.1) God could have started over with just two. He’d already done it once with Adam and Eve. But He chose to save Noah’s whole family instead.

Isn’t it terrific that God desires to save not only you, but your whole family as well!

Take with you seven pairs of every kind of clean animal, a male and its mate, and one pair of every kind of unclean animal… (v.2) Seven pairs of clean animals would have been necessary to account for the animals sacrificed to the Lord. Only one pair would be required for the unclean.

And Noah did all that the LORD commanded him. (v.5)

A few days ago my wife Kathy asked me to install a new thermostat.

“I did some research on the internet and it should only take about an hour,” she said.

So I dove in, removed the old thermostat from the wall, pulled out seven wires, and found that only four were used by the old model. As I read the instructions I learned that the new model used five wires.

“No big deal,” I thought. “How hard can this fifth wire thing be?”

After some research online I had the panel off of our heating unit and I was looking for a place to hook up the fifth wire – no good, can’t find the “C terminal” inside my heating unit.

“C terminal?! What the heck is that anyway?”

After a few phone conversations with Al, our local heating guy, I learn that I need to go under the house to check a junction box.

“I hate crawling under the house! A raccoon used to reside there, what if he’s back? My back always hurts when I crawl under the house.” I said to my wife with enthusiasm.

Under the house I go, belly crawling my way around in the dirt I find the junction box. It turns out that the blue wire is connected to a gray wire at the junction box.

“Dirty trick!” I said out loud.

So I figure out I need some extra wire and it’s off to Home Depot. At the checkout counter I see one of those large flat carts next to my wife, it has a large box on it.

“What’s that?” I ask, trepidation in my voice.

“It’s a grill,” Kathy answers.

“A grill?” I ask increduously.

“We need a new grill,” she says flatly.

I look at the box and read the words out loud, “some assembly required.” Great, just what I needed.

“Why me,” I say. “It’s Christmas time, New Years time. It’s the holidays. I’m supposed to be watching football! For goodness sake the Chick-fil-a Bowl is on!”

When we return it’s back on the internet again, back to the heating unit again, under the house again…

“This was supposed to take only one hour! What about me time? For cryin’ out loud the Meineke Car Care Bowl is on!”

Are you getting the picture?

Nearly two days and one hundred or so complaints later the thermostat is still not installed. So I call a friend of mine who is an electrician, Rick Chown, to seek some advice. While we’re on the phone Rick and his wife Linda begin to share about their granddaughter Madeline. (just a few minutes ago I also spoke with Madeline’s mother, Rachel)

How she had her first surgery when she was one day old.

How she’s had over fifty surgeries during her nine years on earth.

How she’s had pieces of metal implanted in her back to support her spine.

How these had to be removed recently.

How she continues to suffer from infections.

And how she lights up a room with her smile and great attitude, in spite of her many painful challenges.

Rick shared this video of Madeline with me. She was recently fitted with a halo device which is attached to a rack designed to take pressure off her spine. She wheels around the Dallas Scottish Rite Hospital for Children in this thing, encouraging the other patients with her good cheer. (see Rogers Family Blog)

Wow! You can imagine how I feel.

…Noah did all that the LORD commanded him. (v.5) Noah knew what the Lord wanted him to do. Like you I often wonder what God’s will is for me. Sometimes I say to myself, “If only I knew what God wanted me to do, I’d do it.” I have good news. God tells me and God tells you what His will is for us.

…give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.

1 Thessalonians 5:18

“What does God’s will, giving thanks in all circumstances, look like?” you might ask.

Sometimes it looks like a little girl with a halo,

spinning and smiling,

spinning and smiling.

References:

Bible Gateway

Jon Courson

Rogers Family Blog

Genesis 6:16 — A window shalt thou make to the ark… (KJV)

Posted on December 30, 2010 by kurt bennett

A window shalt thou make to the ark…

Genesis 6:16

God directed Noah to build a window near the top of the ark. He provided light for Noah and his family, if…

If Noah chose to open the window.

God provides light for you and for me, as long as we choose to open up the window of His word.

It’s up to you and it’s up to me how much of God’s light we enjoy. His word is there, waiting for us. It might feel easier to watch Sports Center or that cooking show. You might feel like gravitating toward Facebook or Call of Duty: Black Ops.

But the degree to which we choose to spend time in God’s word is the degree to which our lives will be changed for His kindgom.

This is the message we have heard from him and declare to you: God is light; in him there is no darkness at all.

1 John 1:5

Let God’s light in.

Read His word.

References:

Bible Gateway

Jon Courson

Churches unite to help thousands of stranded passengers in Moscow’s airports

Posted on December 28, 2010 by kurt bennett

Apparently the U.S. isn’t the only country dealing with flight delays. Due to a recent ice storm that hit a large area of Central Russia hundreds of flights have been delayed. The airport in Moscow is designed to hold around 3,000 people but the crowds have swollen to 10,000 due to the flight delays. Interestingly, in this nation that not so long ago claimed atheism as their national religion, Churches and Synagogues have stepped up to assist with food, bottles of water, and perhaps most appreciated of all, bunches of those moist towlette thingies. If you’re interested you can read more at Churches unite to help thousands of stranded passengers in Moscow’s airports | Russia | RIA Novosti.

How great is it to see God’s people in action.

This is how it should be because the Bible tells us that…

…the fruit of the Spirit is love…

Galatians 5:22

Genesis 1:14-19 — The Fourth Day of Creation

Posted on December 21, 2010 by kurt bennett

And God said, “Let there be lights in the expanse of the sky to separate the day from the night, and let them serve as signs to mark seasons and days and years, and let them be lights in the expanse of the sky to give light on the earth.” And it was so. God made two great lights—the greater light to govern the day and the lesser light to govern the night. He also made the stars. God set them in the expanse of the sky to give light on the earth, to govern the day and the night, and to separate light from darkness. And God saw that it was good. And there was evening, and there was morning—the fourth day.

Genesis 1:14 – 19

Given this mornings lunar eclipse I thought it appropriate to repost from Genesis 1:14-19. The total eclipse began at 2:40 AM and lasted 72 minutes. You can read about it in the Washington Post article Lunar eclipse coincides with winter solstice.

On the fourth day God created the sun and the moon. The sun speaks of the great light of the world, Jesus Christ, for He said, “I am the light of the world…” (John 8:12) And the moon speaks of the lesser light, you and I, for Jesus also said, of His people, “You are the light of the world…” (Matthew 5:14) The only reason the moon shines is because it reflects the light of the sun and in like manner the only reason we shine, as a light of the world, is because we reflect Jesus Christ.

Perhaps you saw these two lights interact early this morning during the eclipse. A great and important lesson is found in here. When the world comes between the sun and the moon we on earth experience an eclipse and the light of the sun is blocked from people’s view. That is exactly what happens to me when I get caught up in the things of this world. When I become consumed by my performance at work, by a desire to prosper financially, by a pension for entertainment, or other things of the world. When I allow the world to come between me and my Lord, my own light is eclipsed, and I fail to reflect the great light of Jesus Christ. The same is true for any Christian. The same is true for you.

Remember that you and I are the church and as the church goes, so goes the world.

Let nothing come between you and Jesus.

For more go to Ray Stedman’s teaching on Genesis 1:14 – 19 or Jon Courson’s teaching on Genesis 1.

The Digital Story of Nativity

Posted on December 20, 2010 by kurt bennett

Too good not to share. Thank you Anastasia for sending this in!

bennett's blog

Bible Study / Commentary

Tag Archives: Christian living

Joshua 1:1-7 Surrender Yourself to God

Genesis 11:27-32 Abram

Life is Short — Courtesy of Faith and Family Man

This is the account of Terah’s family line.

Genesis 11:10-26 Abram

Genesis 10 These are the clans of Noah’s sons, according to their lines of descent, within their nations. From these the nations spread out over the earth after the flood.

Genesis 7:17-24 For forty days the flood kept coming on the earth, and as the waters increased they lifted the ark high above the earth

Genesis 7:1-5 — Go into the ark, you and your whole family. Noah did all that the LORD commanded him.

Genesis 6:16 — A window shalt thou make to the ark… (KJV)

Churches unite to help thousands of stranded passengers in Moscow’s airports

Genesis 1:14-19 — The Fourth Day of Creation

The Digital Story of Nativity

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Life is Short — Courtesy of Faith and Family Man

This is the account of Terah’s family line.

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