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To all friends of HONEY FROM THE ROCK: I have decided to "retire" Honey from the Rock after 1,000 entries. You will still be able to access the entire archives of HFTR on our new website (still at www.poeministries.org). We hope to launch the new website within a few days.
However, I have created a new feature on our newly designed website: STRENGTH FOR TODAY. It will be briefer than the daily Bible studies I did on HFTR, but it will still contain good material designed to give you a spiritual vitamin pill as it were each day!
Thanks for all your kind comments on HFTR. You will find the Archives to HFTR under "Resources" on our new website. STRENGTH FOR TODAY will be the first thing you see when you log on to our new website.
God bless you all!
VICTOR KNOWLES
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| Posted by Victor Knowles at | | | |
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| To all Honey from the Rock fans. I have tried 3 times to post the 1,000th issue of HFTR with no success. We have signed a contract to do a total redesign of our website, including this blog. We will be back in several weeks. In the meantime, peruse some of the 1,000 studies we have already posted, OK? See you soon, Lord willing. |
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| Posted by Victor Knowles at | | | |
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An important announcement will follow this 1,000th episode of Honey from the Rock!
Joseph was now, in effect, the warden of the prison. One day he processed in two members of Pharaoh officials: the chief cupbearer and the chief baker. Both men had a dream one night and both fell into a funk as a result of their dreams (nightmares?). Joseph could see that they were troubled and he kindly took time to visit with them. I like what he said about dreams. "Do not interpretations belong to God?" (Gen. 40:8 NIV). God must have given Joseph the ability to interpret for he did so with both dreams. It turned out good for the cupbearer because on Pharaoh's birthday he was restored to his good graces, just as Joseph said he would. But the poor baker did not fare so well. Just has Joseph had said, he was hanged on a tree. Sometimes it is best not to know the meaning of a dream!
Back to the cupbearer. After telling him the meaning of his dream, Joseph said, "When all goes well with you, remember me and show me kindness; mention me to Pharaoh and get me out of prison. For I was forcipble carried off from the land of the Hebrews, and even here I have done nothing to deserve being put in a dungeon" (vs. 14-15). Incredibly, "the chief cupbearer, however, did not remember Joseph; he forgot him" (v. 23). I want to know how you do this? How do you forget a man who has saved you from the hangman's noose? But somehow the cupbearer did. It was two long years before he remembered Joseph (41:1). Let us not commit the sin of ingratitude.
Note: Today marks two milestones: (1) It is our 1,000th edition of Honey from the Rock. (2) Yesterday I signed a contract to do a total redesign of our website, including this blog. We will be "off the air" for several weeks. In the meantime, why not revisit some of the earlier entries? God bless you all. |
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| Posted by Victor Knowles at | | | |
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Joseph served two years in prison for a crime he did not commit. Did he become bitter? No, he did not. Why not? "But the LORD was with Joseph and showed him mercy, and He gave him favor in the sight of the keeper of the prison" (Gen. 39:21 NKJV). Once again we see Joseph experiencing the presence, mercy, and favor of God. He enjoyed daily fellowship with his Lord and Master. "And He walks with me and He talks with me, and He tells me I am His own" (C. Austin Miles). God was not about to abandon someone who had been so faithful to Him. The jailer somehow took note of this and wisely put the keeping of the prisoners into Joseph's hands. He was so trusted that the jailer didn't even have to look into the affairs of Joseph's running of the prison. Amazing. All of this was "because the LORD was with him; and whatever he did, the LORD made it prosper" (v. 23).
Have you known people like this? Perhaps you are yourself a person who can be so trusted. There is something about a person who has a calming assurance that everything is going to be all right. We want to be around them. We want to be like them. Life's injustices don't seem to bother them. They take things in stride ~ because they are in spiritual stride with their Lord and Savior. I am sure that the prisoners received better care under Joseph's administration than they ever had before. He was their friend and advocate. In this way Joseph is a type of Jesus Christ. Although we have all been in the prison house of sin, Jesus is our friend and advocate too. His presence assures us that we are not alone. His intercession for us gives us comfort and hope. His mercies are new every morning. The prisoners could have sung, "What a friend we have in Joseph!" We can sing, "What a friend we have in Jesus!" Funny thing is: a man named Joseph wrote that song!
Hymn: "What a friend we have in Jesus, all our sins and griefs to bear! What a privilege to carry everything to God in prayer!" (Joseph Scriven). |
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| Posted by Victor Knowles at | | | |
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"Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned." That is not in the Bible but there is a story in Scripture that illustrates this ancient maxim. Joseph is a slave in Egypt and is put in charge of the house of Potiphar, a high ranking official of the Pharaoh. Three times the text (Gen. 39:1-6) tells us that God was with Joseph. In fact, the blessing of the Lord fell upon the house of Potiphar just because of Joseph's godly presence. All well and good . . . until the day Mrs. Pot O'Fire got the hots for young Joseph.
"Now Joseph was well-built and handsome. After some time his master's wife looked longingly at Joseph and said, 'Sleep with me.'" (Gen. 39:7 CSB). Joseph's response to her advances would disappoint Hollywood. They would have to lie through their teeth to tell the story the way they would want to (of course that has never kept Hollywood from misrepresenting truth and history in the movies). The first thing he did was remind Mrs. Pot O'Fire that she belonged to Potiphar, not him (v. 8). Second, he recognized the sin factor: "How could I do such a great evil and sin against God?" (v. 9). He knew adultery was a sin. Third, every day he refused to go to bed with her; i.e., his temptations with the sultry seductress were daily, yet he fought her off (v. 10). Think about this. They were all alone. Who would know? But Joseph knew that God would know and that was enough for him. Fourth, the fateful day she grabbed him while no one else was around he literally fled from temptation. He ran away, leaving his garment in her hand (V. 13). The Bible says "Flee youthful lusts" and that is what he did ~ literally. Joseph wound up in prison over this incident but even there "the LORD was with Joseph and extended kindness to him" (v. 21).
Hymn: "Yield not to temptation, for yielding is sin; each victory will help you some other to win; fight manfully onward, dark passions subdue, look ever to Jesus, He will carry you through. As the Savior to help you, comfort, strengthen and keep you; He is willing to aid you, He will carry you through" ( H. R. Palmer) |
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| Posted by Victor Knowles at | | | |
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Joseph was now a slave in Egypt. Potiphar, an officer of Pharaoh, had bought Joseph from the Ishmaelites and was put into service in the Egyptian's house. Can you imagine how homesick Jospeh must have been? Whatever his feelings were toward his brothers, who had sold him into slavery, are not recorded. I am sure he felt some feelings of gratitude for Reuben, who had at least done what he could to spare his life. So now he is all alone as a slave in Egypt. Or is he all alone? I think not. Look at Genesis 39:2 ~ "The LORD was with Joseph, and he was a successful man..." Notice the correlation between the presence of the Lord and the prosperity of His servant! That should teach us something. Not only that, Potiphar saw that Joseph's God was with him and that it was the Lord who blessed everything that Joseph did. "And his master saw that the LORD was with him and that the LORD made all he did to prosper in his hand" (v. 3). Because of this, Potiphar made Joseph overseer of his entire household ~ quite an honor for a young slave boy!
Can you be a success in life without the presence of the Lord? I guess that depends upon one's definition of success. If you are talking only in worldly terms, the answer could be yes. Many people have climbed the ladder of success without God's help. And pushed a lot of people off that ladder on their selfish way to the top. But if we are talking spiritual success, the answer is no. You need God's presence, guidance and direction to be the man or woman God wants you to be. Without Him we can do nothing of spiritual and eternal value. With Him we can do all things. "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me" (Phil. 4:13).
Hymn/Prayer: "I need Thy presence every passing hour; what but Thy grace can foil the tempter's power? Who, like Thyself, my guide and stay can be? Through cloud and sunshine, Lord, abide with me." (Henry F. Lyte) |
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| Posted by Victor Knowles at | | | |
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I wonder how many of my readers remember an old song (not a church song) that goes, "Reuben, Reuben, I've been thinking." I actually wanted to name our son Reuben but my wife, remembering this old song, put a stop to that. So Reuben became Lincoln! Anyway, the biblical Reuben in our text today was doing some thinking, and it actually saved the life of his brother Joseph. Here is how the story went down. Israel sent Joseph to check up on how his brothers were doing. He finally tracked them down at Dothan. When his brothers saw him coming they conspired to kill him (Gen. 37:18). "But Reuben heard it, and he delivered him out of their hands, and said, 'Let us not kill him . . . Shed no blood, but cast him into this pit . . . and do not lay a hand on him' ~ that he might deliver him out of their hands and bring him back to his father" (vs. 21,22). Now do you see why I was attracted to the name Reuben?
The fact that Reuben heard of this conspiracy indicates he was not in on the premeditated murder plan. And when he heard about his brother's wicked plans, he devised a plan of his own. He suggested throwing him into a pit ~ but only so that he might somehow rescue Joseph and return him unharmed to his father. Later in the story Judah, to his shame, came up with the plan to sell their own flesh and blood into slavery. Again, Reuben was not in on the plot. When he returned to the pit, Joseph was gone, and Reuben tore his clothes in anguish and lamented, "The lad is no more; and I, where shall I go?" (v. 31). He was genuinely distressed. The only mark against Reuben in this story, as I see it, is that when the brothers lied to Israel about what had happened to Joseph (vs. 31-35), Reuben remained silent. He could have told his father what really happened, and that Joseph was alive (although in slavery), but he did not. What does this story tell you about Reuben's thinking? It appears that he alone had compassion for his brother. Had it not been for his intervention, Joseph would have died at the hands of his brothers. What can you do the next time you hear of someone wanting to assassinate someone's character or some group of people wanting to ruin someone's reputation? Seek ways that you can deliver the intended victim from spiritual harm by intervening on their behalf like Reuben did for Joseph.
Prayer: Holy Father, give us the courage and compassion of Reuben to stick up for others when they are being maligned by those who profess to be their brothers. Through Christ we pray. |
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| Posted by Victor Knowles at | | | |
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We hear a lot about "hate speech" and even "hate crimes" today. But the Bible talks about the sin of hatred. Earlier in Genesis we have seen the horrible results of unchecked hatred when Cain killed his own brother. Now we see hatred rear its ugly head once again. Joseph's brothers had a great hatred for their brother (see vs. 4, 5, 8). Three times the scriptures tell us about their exceeding and seething hatred. Their hatred led them to even discuss killing him. Finally, the settled on selling their own flesh and blood into slavery!
John tells us that he who hates his brother is in darkness and walks in darkness because hatred has blinded his eyes (1 John 2:9). In fact, "Whoever hates his brother is a murderer" (v. 15). Paul calls hatred a work of the flesh (Gal. 5:19). We are instructed to lay aside all hatred (Eph. 4:31; Col. 3:8). You would think that, of all people, Christians would not have to be asked to put off hatred, but we find those admonitions in the Bible. Hatred often rises up even in the church of the redeemed. Those who say they love God but hate their brothers and sisters in Christ are liars (1 John 4:20). One of the first commandments in the Bible is "You shall not hate your brother in your heart" (Lev. 19:17). The only things we should really hate are sin and the devil himself. Let us live above hatred. Let us never lower ourselves to the sin of Joseph's brothers. |
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| Posted by Victor Knowles at | | | |
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"Now Israel loved Joseph more than all his children, because he was the son of his old age. Also he made him a tunic of many colors" (Gen. 37:3 NKJV). Jacob is now going by the name Israel (see Gen. 32:28). He made a mistake that many parents have made ~ he loved one child more than others. The Bible tells us it was because Joseph was the son of his old age. I used to tease my father that he spanked my little brother David a lot less than he did me. Maybe that is because I did more things to bring on the spankings! Israel exacerbated the problem by making a special coat for Joseph. This did nothing to appease the hatred that Joseph's brothers already had because Joseph had brought a bad report to his father about some of their shenanigans (v. 2). They hated him so much that they could not speak one kind word to him. Joseph may have brought some of this upon himself but it was his father's inordinate love for him that created the problem.
Does God love one person more than another? Does he favor one nation above another? Does He love preachers more than members, elders more than deacons, older women more than younger women? God did not even spare His own Son at the cross. "He who did not spare His own Son, but gave him up for us all..." (Rom. 8:32 NIV). God's love for lost mankind is so far greater than the love Israel had for just one of his children. Let us not make the mistake of Israel but let us do our best to emulate the love of God.
Hymn: "The love of God is greater far than tongue or pen can ever tell: It goes beyond the highest star, and reaches to the lowest hell..." (F. M. Lehman) |
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| Posted by Victor Knowles at | | | |
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"Then they journeyed from Bethel. And when there was but a little distance to go to Ephrath, Rachel labored in childbirth, and she had hard labor" (Gen. 35:16 NKJV). Jacob and Rachel were almost home when she went into hard labor. I remember when our first child was born. Evelyn's hard labor frightened me but there were good nurses present there at Grape Community Hospital in Hamburg, Iowa to help her deliver our little Mindy. Rachel's midwife tried to encourage her with these words: "Do not fear; you will have this son also" (v. 17). I remember trying to encourage my wife during her time of labor. I felt so helpless. But our story turned out much better that this one. "And it was so, as her soul was departing (for she died) that she called his name Ben-Oni; but his father called him Benjamin" (v. 18). I am amazed that Rachel could hold on long enough not only to bear her son but to give him a name. It must have been one sad day.
So many thing happen to us "when there is but a little distance to go." I think of older Christian people who are "almost home." I want to encourage them to continue to be "faithful unto death." I don't want them to miss out on the glories of heaven that they have looked forward to all their lives. Our labor will not be in vain if we continue in faith to the end of the journey.
Prayer: Heavenly Father, help us to labor for You until the day You call us home. And use us to encourage older Christians to do the same. Through Christ we pray. |
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| Posted by Victor Knowles at | | | |
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