Judeo-Christian Clarion — Portions

In this week’s portion, Joseph is lifted up to the position of a ruler in Egypt. Due to a widespread famine, his brothers have to come down from Canaan to get food. Joseph devises a plan to find out if his brothers have changed from their hateful ways. Even after all his siblings have put him through, Joseph still has a deep love for them.

It is hard to read the story of Joseph without feeling some sense of pity for him. In some ways, we feel able to empathize with his struggles when nothing seems to be going right in our own lives. Throughout all of these tribulations, he proved himself faithful to God, an example for us to follow.

When we read about sibling relationships in Scripture, it seems there are more negative examples than positive. Starting with Cain and Abel, hatred and jealousy become sins which many fall into. Unlike this early story, however, Jacob and Esau are able to reconcile after years of separation. Reconciliation is important to God, and he requires that we make things right in our lives.

One of the most famous events in the life of Jacob is his dream of a ladder reaching to heaven. Yeshua alludes to it in a discussion with Nathanael. We want to take a close look at each of these passages to see what they mean together.

Jacob and Esau are presented throughout Scripture as polar opposites. Although the two are brothers, their relationship with God and with His plan brings them down two different paths. Paul uses their story to make a point about the relationship between the Jews and the Gentiles and in turn each group’s relationship with God. Let’s find out what’s going on here.

This weeks portion begins with the death of Sarah. After a full 127 years ripe with wanderings and trials, she finally found her rest. Paul uses an allegory in Galatians 4 which compares Sarah and Hagar to the old and new covenants. What do the covenants have to do with Sarah and Hagar?

Abraham stands as one of the greatest testimonies of faith in the Bible. As there is much discussion about the relationship between faith and works, we may be able to find some truths by looking at how Abraham applied each of these concepts in his life.

Being a follower of God seldom means having an easy life. Someone who knew this more than most was Abraham. Those who saw him, however, would have borne witness to the great blessing which God had brought upon him because of his obedience.

The story of Noah and the Great Flood is a sobering tale of destruction which has caused many to cautiously ponder its relevance to the current generation. What does Noah have to teach us on how we are to conduct ourselves in preparation for the Day of the Lord?

The very first words of the Bible tell of the origin of the world, and start out with a deceptively simple phrase: “In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.” A surface reading of these words would leave you with only the most literal understanding of the creation narrative. The apostle John, however, saw that there was something deeper and more important that needed to be understood.