Faith Chase Episode 3: Genesis 43 – Exodus 12

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Hello! Welcome to Episode 3 of the Faith Chase Podcast. I’m Heather Tabata, and this podcast is about making our faith real in everyday life.

I really appreciate the people who have joined in so far, and if this is your first episode, welcome! Last week we talked about Genesis 25-42, and this week we’ll be in Genesis 43-Exodus 12. Already through the first book of the Bible and well into the second!

Last week ended with the cliffhanger of Joseph hiding money in his brothers’ sacks of grain when they were on their way back home.

So Simeon is in Egypt and the brothers head on home. They told Jacob about everything that had happened, how Simeon was still there, and how Joseph told them to bring Benjamin back. Then they opened the sacks of grain and guess what? There’s the money!

Jacob was really upset. He said that Joesph was gone, Simeon was gone, and now they wanted to take Benjamin. Jacob told them that he wasn’t going to send Benjamin back with them, so they didn’t do anything.
When they’d eaten the food they bought in Egypt, Jacob told them to go back and buy more. The brothers told him again that they had to take Benjamin, and Jacob didn’t want to send him.

Then Judah said to Israel his father, “Send the lad with me, and we will arise and go, that we may live and not die, both we and you and also our little ones. I myself will be surety for him; from my hand you shall require him. If I do not bring him back to you and set him before you, then let me bear the blame forever. – Genesis‬ ‭43‬:‭8-9‬

Years ago when they’d thrown Joseph in the pit, Judah was the brother who spoke up and said they should sell him instead. Eventually they persuaded Jacob to let them take Benjamin with them. Jacob sent money for more food, the money that had been put back in their sacks, and gifts to take on the way.

When Joseph saw them coming, he told his steward to get a meal ready because they were going to eat with him in his house.
Now the men were afraid because they were brought into Joseph’s house; and they said, “It is because of the money, which was returned in our sacks the first time, that we are brought in, so that he may make a case against us and seize us, to take us as slaves with our donkeys.” – ‭Genesis‬ ‭43‬:‭18‬

I would have been scared too! They talked to Joseph’s steward and tried to explain what had happened with the money before. He told them not to worry, that their God had given it to them, and brought Simeon to them.

When Joseph came back home to eat, he asked his brothers how they were doing and how their father was. He saw Benjamin and got very emotional.
Now his heart yearned for his brother; so Joseph made haste and sought somewhere to weep. And he went into his chamber and wept there. Then he washed his face and came out; and he restrained himself, and said, “Serve the bread.” – ‭Genesis‬ ‭43‬:‭30-31‬

They ate together, and then Joseph told his steward to put food in their sacks with their money and to put his cup in Benjamin’s sack. In the morning, the brothers start back home. But before they are far away, Joseph sends his steward to catch up to them and ask him why they took the cup.

Look, we brought back to you from the land of Canaan the money which we found in the mouth of our sacks. How then could we steal silver or gold from your lord’s house? With whomever of your servants it is found, let him die, and we also will be my lord’s slaves.” – ‭Genesis‬ ‭44‬:‭8-9‬

You’d think that after the last trip, when the money ended up in their sacks and they didn’t know how, they wouldn’t have been as quick to say they didn’t have it, and especially not to stake their lives on it. So the servant looked through their sacks, starting with the oldest brother, and ending with the youngest – Benjamin. And that’s where it was.

The brothers tore their clothes, which was something people did then when they were extremely upset or worried. They went back to the city.

Joseph asked them what they had done. Judah said that they couldn’t clear themselves, and that God knew their sin. Maybe he was remembering what they’d done to Joseph. Judah said that they were all Joseph’s slaves.

Joseph disagreed, and said that he would only keep Benjamin as a slave, and the rest of them could go.

Judah begged Joseph not to do that.
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“Now therefore, when I come to your servant my father, and the lad is not with us, since his life is bound up in the lad’s life, it will happen, when he sees that the lad is not with us, that he will die. So your servants will bring down the gray hair of your servant our father with sorrow to the grave. ‭Genesis‬ ‭44‬:‭30-31‬

Judah said that he would stay instead of Benjamin, because he couldn’t do that to his father.

Then Joseph told everyone to leave them, and he told his brothers who he was. They were afraid, but Joseph was gracious to them.

But now, do not therefore be grieved or angry with yourselves because you sold me here; for God sent me before you to preserve life. For these two years the famine has been in the land, and there are still five years in which there will be neither plowing nor harvesting. And God sent me before you to preserve a posterity for you in the earth, and to save your lives by a great deliverance. So now it was not you who sent me here, but God; and He has made me a father to Pharaoh, and lord of all his house, and a ruler throughout all the land of Egypt. – ‭Genesis‬ ‭45‬:‭5-8‬

I love Joseph’s perspective here. He could have been bitter after everything he’d been through, but he wasn’t. He saw how God arranged things for a bigger purpose than they could have seen at the time. Joseph told them to go home and get their families and move to Egypt and he would see that they were taken care of.

When they got back to Jacob and told him, he didn’t believe them at first. But they’d brought carts from Egypt to move their families, and he finally did. There were 70 of them who went to Egypt.

On the way, God spoke to Jacob.

So He said, “I am God, the God of your father; do not fear to go down to Egypt, for I will make of you a great nation there. I will go down with you to Egypt, and I will also surely bring you up again; and Joseph will put his hand on your eyes.” – ‭Genesis‬ ‭46‬:‭3-4‬

God reminded Jacob of his promise to make their family a great nation. God always does keep His promises. He’d made the same promise to Abraham, and Abraham didn’t see it happen. Neither did Isaac. But that didn’t mean it wasn’t coming.
Joseph went to meet his father, and they were reunited. I’ve wondered why, in all the time that he was in Egypt, Joseph didn’t send his father a message or something. Maybe Joseph wondered why Jacob didn’t come find him.

Joseph told Pharaoh his family had come.
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The land of Egypt is before you. Have your father and brothers dwell in the best of the land; let them dwell in the land of Goshen. And if you know any competent men among them, then make them chief herdsmen over my livestock.” – Genesis‬ ‭47‬:‭6‬

Jacob actually met Pharaoh, and Jacob blessed him. Jacob and his family settled in Goshen, and Joseph kept taking care of the people during the famine.

Jacob gave his blessing to his sons and died in Egypt. When he passed, his sons were afraid that Joseph would get even with them. They sent messengers and asked his forgiveness.

Joseph told them not to be afraid.

But as for you, you meant evil against me; but God meant it for good, in order to bring it about as it is this day, to save many people alive. – Genesis‬ ‭50:20

Joseph died in Egypt too, and he made his family promise that when God brought them out of Egypt, that they would take his bones with them.

Eventually, the Pharaoh who knew Joseph died, and the Israelites were slaves to the Egyptians. The new Pharaoh was afraid that the Israelites would revolt against them.

Therefore they set taskmasters over them to afflict them with their burdens. And they built for Pharaoh supply cities, Pithom and Raamses. – Exodus‬ ‭1‬:‭11‬

So, the Israelites were slaves in Egypt, but God was still with them. Their nation kept growing, and the Pharaoh was afraid of them. He told the midwives that when the Hebrew women had children, if the baby was a boy, to kill him. The midwives were God-fearing though, so they didn’t do it, and God blessed them for it. God tells us to obey the people who have authority over us, but when we’re told to do something wrong, our first responsibility is to God.
Then Pharaoh commanded them to drown any sons who were born. One Hebrew woman who had a son hid him as long as she could. When he was three months old, she wove an ark, put the baby in it, and put the basket next to the river bank.

Pharaoh’s daughter came to the river and saw the baby. She knew he was a Hebrew, and she felt sorry for him. The baby’s sister had waited nearby, and she offered to get a nurse for the baby. Pharaoh’s daughter told her to do it, and the girl brought her mother back. Pharaoh’s daughter told the woman to take care of him for her, so she took him home to nurse him until he was older. When she brought the boy back to Pharaoh’s daughter, she raised him as her son, and she called him Moses.

When Moses grew up, he saw how hard the Hebrews were having to work as slaves. He watched an Egyptian beating a Hebrew. There was nobody else around, and Moses killed the Egyptian. After that, he saw two Hebrews fighting, and the one who was in the wrong asked if Moses was going to kill him like the Egyptian. Moses was afraid and he ran to Midian, which is in the area of Saudi Arabia. While he was there, he married a Midianite woman named Zipporah and had a son.

In the meantime, that Pharaoh died, and the Israelites cried out to God because of their slavery.

So God heard their groaning, and God remembered His covenant with Abraham, with Isaac, and with Jacob. ‭- Exodus‬ ‭2‬:‭24‬

I think it’s interesting how the Bible points out that God heard the Israelites. He would have known what they suffered anyway, but He paid attention when they asked Him for help. The Angel of the Lord appeared to Moses in a burning bush and talked with him.

And the LORD said: “I have surely seen the oppression of My people who are in Egypt, and have heard their cry because of their taskmasters, for I know their sorrows. – ‭Exodus‬ ‭3‬:‭7‬

God told Moses He was going to bring them out from under the Egyptians and take them to a good land. He told Moses to go to Pharaoh and lead the people out of Egypt. Moses wasn’t all that excited about the plan.

But Moses said to God, “Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh, and that I should bring the children of Israel out of Egypt?” – Exodus‬ ‭3‬:‭11‬

This would have been a terrifying order, but God was telling Moses directly what to do. God promised to be with him and told Moses again to go to Pharaoh and lead the Israelites out.

Then Moses said to the LORD, “O my Lord, I am not eloquent, neither before nor since You have spoken to Your servant; but I am slow of speech and slow of tongue.” So the LORD said to him, “Who has made man’s mouth? Or who makes the mute, the deaf, the seeing, or the blind? Have not I, the LORD? Now therefore, go, and I will be with your mouth and teach you what you shall say.” – Exodus‬ ‭4‬:‭10-12‬

This is twice Moses has talked back to God about doing what He said. Of course God would know if Moses wasn’t a good orator. So why does Moses try to find excuses in weaknesses that God knew about before He told him to go?

But maybe we do that sometimes. Maybe there’s an opportunity to do something, but what we focus on are the reasons we can’t. Maybe we need to focus on the reasons God can.

So Moses returned to the LORD and said, “Lord, why have You brought trouble on this people? Why is it You have sent me? For since I came to Pharaoh to speak in Your name, he has done evil to this people; neither have You delivered Your people at all.” ‭- Exodus‬ ‭5‬:‭22-23‬

And the Egyptians shall know that I am the LORD, when I stretch out My hand on Egypt and bring out the children of Israel from among them.” ‭- Exodus‬ ‭7‬:‭5‬

But indeed for this purpose I have raised you up, that I may show My power in you, and that My name may be declared in all the earth. ‭- Exodus‬ ‭9‬:‭16‬

And thus you shall eat it: with a belt on your waist, your sandals on your feet, and your staff in your hand. So you shall eat it in haste. It is the LORD’s Passover. ‘For I will pass through the land of Egypt on that night, and will strike all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both man and beast; and against all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgment: I am the LORD. Now the blood shall be a sign for you on the houses where you are. And when I see the blood, I will pass over you; and the plague shall not be on you to destroy you when I strike the land of Egypt. ‭Exodus‬ ‭12‬:‭11-13‬

And you shall take a bunch of hyssop, dip it in the blood that is in the basin, and strike the lintel and the two doorposts with the blood that is in the basin. And none of you shall go out of the door of his house until morning. For the LORD will pass through to strike the Egyptians; and when He sees the blood on the lintel and on the two doorposts, the LORD will pass over the door and not allow the destroyer to come into your houses to strike you. ‭- Exodus‬ ‭12‬:‭22-23‬

Then he called for Moses and Aaron by night, and said, “Rise, go out from among my people, both you and the children of Israel. And go, serve the LORD as you have said. Also take your flocks and your herds, as you have said, and be gone; and bless me also.” And the Egyptians urged the people, that they might send them out of the land in haste. For they said, “We shall all be dead.” ‭- Exodus‬ ‭12‬:‭31-33
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Faith Chase Episode 2: Genesis 25 – 42

Hello! Welcome to Episode 2 of the Faith Chase Podcast. I’m Heather Tabata, and this podcast is about making our faith real in everyday life.

It’s been an exciting week for the little podcast! We’ve gotten up and running, I’ve heard from a few of you, which is awesome, and the podcast is available on more platforms, including iTunes and Apple Podcast.

If this is your first episode, welcome aboard! We covered Genesis 1-24 last time, and today we’ll be talking about Genesis 25-42. The plan is to read through the Bible this year together. Every week we’ll read the chapters on our own, and then at the end of the week we’ll come together to talk about them. So if you missed the beginning, you can still catch up, or if you want to work through at your own pace that’s fine too. I’ll leave the podcasts up all year, so they’ll be here whenever you’re ready. Please chime in along the way. The main goal is to read through the Bible this year, but sharing the experience will help keep us motivated. So let’s dive in!

Last week we finished up by talking about how Abraham was tested when God told him to sacrifice his son. Genesis 25 picks up with Abraham’s death and starts following Isaac. When he and Rebekah had children, they had twins: Jacob and Esau. Esau was older, and in the Old Testament times the oldest son traditionally became the head of the family, so we’d expect Esau to be the one God fulfilled His promises through. But that’s not quite what happened.

Now Jacob cooked a stew; and Esau came in from the field, and he was weary. And Esau said to Jacob, “Please feed me with that same red stew, for I am weary.” Therefore his name was called Edom. But Jacob said, “Sell me your birthright as of this day.” And Esau said, “Look, I am about to die; so what is this birthright to me?” Then Jacob said, “Swear to me as of this day.” So he swore to him, and sold his birthright to Jacob. – Genesis‬ ‭25‬:‭29-33

One thing that has always amused me about the Bible is how it doesn’t sugar coat anything. These families were dysfunctional. Just imagine Esau coming home from working their land and saying he’s so hungry he’s about to die, and Jacob says, “Sure, I’ll give you some food, just let me get what you’d inherit.” So they make the deal. And that’s how Jacob got part of what Esau would have been entitled to by being the oldest.

There was a famine, and God told Isaac where He wanted him to go.

Dwell in this land, and I will be with you and bless you; for to you and your descendants I give all these lands, and I will perform the oath which I swore to Abraham your father. And I will make your descendants multiply as the stars of heaven; I will give to your descendants all these lands; and in your seed all the nations of the earth shall be blessed… – Genesis‬ ‭26‬:‭3-4‬

So God makes the same promise to Isaac that He made to his father, Abraham. This is really important because this is the family line that Jesus will be born into.

As Isaac traveled, his servants dug a well for water, and they fought over it with some of the shepherds who were from that area. So Isaac’s servants dug a second well. The same thing happened. They tried a third time.

And he moved from there and dug another well, and they did not quarrel over it. So he called its name Rehoboth, because he said, “For now the LORD has made room for us, and we shall be fruitful in the land.” – ‭Genesis‬ ‭26‬:‭22‬

This reminds me of Romans 12:18, which says, “If it is possible, as much as depends on you, live peaceably with all men.” Isaac’s servants had a disagreement with these herdsmen. They could have kept making an issue out of the first well. After all, they did all the work, only to have it stolen, right?

But they didn’t. They moved on and dug another well. And when it caused a problem, they moved on and tried again. I think especially the second time it would’ve been hard to do that. I’d have thought, “Look, I was the bigger person once already. Enough is enough.” But they moved on until there was a well that didn’t cause a fight. They gave God the credit, because they said He’d made room for them.

In Genesis 27, the family gets really dysfunctional. All families have issues, and maybe this one can give us hope because we aren’t alone. Besides the birthright that sons inherited, the fathers would give specific blessings to the sons. So when Isaac was old and wanted to give his blessings, he told Esau to go hunt and make food for him, and then he would bless him.

Well, Rebekah, Isaac’s wife, heard it. So she told Jacob to let her cook food for Isaac and to go in and tell his father that he was Esau so he could get the blessing. She took Esau’s clothes and disguised Jacob as his brother and sent him in to Isaac with food. Isaac’s eyesight was so bad he felt Jacob’s hands and smelled his clothes to try to make sure it was Esau, and because Jacob was disguised, Isaac thought it was Esau. But he asked Jacob if it was Esau, and he said he was. I mean, that took some audacity, to lie to your blind father like that.

Isaac did bless Jacob, thinking he was Esau. When he was finished and Jacob left, Esau came in with food ready to feed his father and be blessed. That’s when Isaac realized he’d been tricked. Jacob was afraid Esau would kill him, so he fled from home.

While Jacob was traveling, God passed on the promise he’d made to Abraham and then to Isaac. Jacob had a dream of a ladder that reached to heaven.

And behold, the LORD stood above it and said: “I am the LORD God of Abraham your father and the God of Isaac; the land on which you lie I will give to you and your descendants. Also your descendants shall be as the dust of the earth; you shall spread abroad to the west and the east, to the north and the south; and in you and in your seed all the families of the earth shall be blessed. – Genesis‬ ‭28‬:‭13-14‬

Jacob traveled to where Rebekah’s relatives lived, and he met Rachel. He fell in love and wanted to marry her. Her father, Laban, told him he could, but he had to work seven years for him first. There’s some romance in the Bible, too.

So Jacob served seven years for Rachel, and they seemed only a few days to him because of the love he had for her. – Genesis 29:20

But it didn’t end well easily. Rachel had an older sister who wasn’t married, and the custom was the oldest daughter married before the younger ones. So at the wedding, Laban tricked Jacob and traded Rachel for her sister Leah. Jacob wasn’t too happy about it when he figured out what had happened. Laban agreed to let Jacob marry Rachel too, but this caused problems in their family for years. It was no secret that Rachel was Jacob’s favorite.

When Leah had her first son, what she said is heartbreaking to me.

So Leah conceived and bore a son, and she called his name Reuben; for she said, “The LORD has surely looked on my affliction. Now therefore, my husband will love me.” – Genesis 29:32

I don’t know how willing Leah was to help trick Jacob to begin with. Maybe she was at fault too. But in this time, women weren’t respected like they are today, so she may not have had much choice. Whatever the case, she was married to someone who loved her sister more. There are so many examples of the problems favoritism causes in the Bible, and this is a big one.

Eventually both Leah and Rachel had children, and Jacob wanted to go back home. But he and Esau still hadn’t worked things out. So as they were traveling, Jacob sent messengers ahead to tell Esau that he was coming.

Then the messengers returned to Jacob, saying, “We came to your brother Esau, and he also is coming to meet you, and four hundred men are with him.” So Jacob was greatly afraid and distressed; and he divided the people that were with him, and the flocks and herds and camels, into two companies. – Genesis 32:6-7

Consequences have a way of finding us, and it looked like Jacob was going to have to deal with some pretty harsh ones. So he split his servants and family up that way if Esau did attack them, hopefully at least part of them would get away. He also got a present ready for Esau and sent people ahead with it. But when they got near each other, Esau ran to meet him and hugged him. Esau forgave Jacob, even though Jacob couldn’t undo what he’d done. When the birthright and blessing were given, that was the end of it. Families will have disagreements and sometimes we’ll hurt each other, but we need to try to work it out and not let the hurt affect our whole lives and everyone we care about.

Then God talked to Jacob.

And God said to him, “Your name is Jacob; your name shall not be called Jacob anymore, but Israel shall be your name.” So He called his name Israel. Also God said to him: “I am God Almighty. Be fruitful and multiply; a nation and a company of nations shall proceed from you, and kings shall come from your body. ‭Genesis‬ ‭35‬:‭10-11‬

Here God gave Jacob the promise He had made to his father Isaac. It’s also when God changed Jacob’s name to Israel, and he is the father of the 12 sons who became the tribes of Israel.

Now we get to another incident when favoritism led to big problems in a family.

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. But when his brothers saw that their father loved him more than all his brothers, they hated him and could not speak peaceably to him. ‭Genesis‬ ‭37‬:‭3-4‬

Remember how Israel had 12 sons? Maybe he gave gifts to the other 11 sons, but if he did it’s not recorded. So Joseph’s brothers got jealous. After that happened, Joseph had a dream that his brothers and parents bowed down to him. And he told his family about it.

Now his brothers really didn’t like that. One day they were taking care of their flocks of animals, and Israel sent Joseph to check on them. They saw Joseph coming and started planning what they could do. Some of them wanted to just kill him, but his brother Reuben suggested they could throw him in a pit. Reuben planned to come back for Joseph, but he didn’t tell his brothers that.

So that’s what they did. They took his special tunic and threw Joseph in the pit. Before Reuben could get Joseph out, some traders came by on their way to Egypt. Another of the brothers, Judah, said they should sell Joseph to them rather than killing him. So they sold him, tore his coat, put blood on it, and took it to Israel. They told him they found it and asked if it was Joseph’s.

Israel knew it was, and he assumed that Joseph had been killed. He grieved for Joseph like he’d died. I can’t imagine the brothers putting their father through something like that and letting him think his son had died. They were so jealous of Joseph that they let it completely take over.

Joseph was sold to Potiphar, who was one of Pharaoh’s officers and a captain of the guard. Even though all this had happened to him, God hadn’t forgotten Joseph.

The LORD was with Joseph, and he was a successful man; and he was in the house of his master the Egyptian. – Genesis‬ ‭39‬:‭2‬

Joseph worked hard for Potiphar and earned his respect. Potiphar put Joseph in charge of everything he had. Then one day, Potiphar’s wife tried to seduce Joseph. He told her that he couldn’t do that to his master and to God. She lied and told the servants and her husband that Joseph had tried to take advantage of her.

Even though Potiphar had trusted Joseph enough to put him in charge, he listened to his wife’s lie and threw Joseph in prison. It’s amazing how fast someone’s reputation can be ruined. Joseph hadn’t done anything wrong, but he was going to suffer anyway because of one lie.

But just like when he worked for Potiphar, Joseph worked hard and earned the prison keeper’s respect.

The keeper of the prison did not look into anything that was under Joseph’s authority, because the LORD was with him; and whatever he did, the LORD made it prosper. – Genesis‬ ‭39‬:‭23‬

Joseph could have said, “I’ve had such a horrible life, nobody’s been fair to me, and I just quit.” But he didn’t. Even in prison, he made the best of his circumstances. It’s a good example for us. It’s so easy to start feeling sorry for ourselves about something that’s not going right in our lives, whether it’s something significant or minor. But it doesn’t give us a pass on using our abilities and trying to do the best we can for God.

Two of the prisoners who were there with Joseph had dreams, and he interpreted them correctly. One of them was the chief butler to Pharaoh, and he got out of prison and served Pharaoh again. Two years later, Pharaoh had a dream that nobody could explain to him. The butler remembered Joseph and told Pharaoh about him, so he sent for Joseph to see if he could tell him what the dreams meant. Joseph told Pharaoh that God could give Pharaoh an answer.

The first part of the dream was that seven well-nourished cows came up from the river and ate in a meadow. Then seven skinny cows came from the river and ate the first cows, but they were still skinny. The second part was that seven healthy heads of grain grew on a stalk. Then seven thin heads of grain came up and ate the first ones, but they were still skinny.

Joseph explained to Pharaoh that there were going to be seven years when crops did really well and there was plenty of food, and then there would be seven years of famine. Joseph told Pharaoh that he should start storing food in the good years so they’d be able to survive the famine.

Then Pharaoh said to Joseph, “Inasmuch as God has shown you all this, there is no one as discerning and wise as you. You shall be over my house, and all my people shall be ruled according to your word; only in regard to the throne will I be greater than you.” – ‭Genesis‬ ‭41‬:‭39-40‬

The Egyptians didn’t worship God, but because of the way Joseph lived and because he gave credit to God, even the king had to acknowledge Him. Joseph was put in charge again, and this time he was second only to Pharaoh. The famine came, just like Joseph said it would.

So all countries came to Joseph in Egypt to buy grain, because the famine was severe in all lands. Genesis‬ ‭41‬:‭57‬

Guess who came to buy food from Joseph? His brothers! The famine was bad in Canaan too, so Israel sent them to get grain from Egypt. When they met Joseph, they didn’t recognize him, and they bowed down in front of him. He recognized them, and he didn’t tell them who he was. He told them they were spies and held them for three days.

Then he told them that he would let all but Simeon go back home, and they had to come back with the youngest brother, Benjamin, for him to let Simeon go. Before they left, Joseph had the money they had paid put back in the grain sacks, but the brothers didn’t know it. Isn’t that whole situation ironic?

That’s all for this week! Next week we’ll talk about what happened with Joseph and his brothers. In the meantime, let’s work on this week’s reading schedule. Let me know what you think! Head over to the website, http://www.heathertabata.wordpress.com, or Facebook, Twitter or Instagram, and let me know what your favorite verses from the week were, a question you had, or something that stuck with you. See you in a week!

Faith Chase Episode 1: Genesis 1 – 24

Hello! Welcome to Episode 1 of the Faith Chase Podcast. I’m Heather Tabata. This podcast will be about making our faith real in everyday life. This year, I want to share reading through the Bible. I’ll be following a canonical plan, which means starting at the beginning in Genesis and reading to the end in Revelation. I won’t be reading it on the podcast; I’ll just share highlights and thoughts about how it’s relevant to us today.

We’ll cover an average of three chapters a day. I’ll be posting a calendar I made based on the YouVersion plan I’m following on my website, http://www.heathertabata.wordpress.com. January is already up. It’s free to download and share, so check it out for our schedule. If you get behind, don’t give up, just catch up when you can. I’ll try to post the podcasts about every Tuesday, but I’ll be leaving them up, so if you aren’t ready to listen then you can always come back for it.

I really want this to be a conversation, and not just a one-sided monologue, so please do comment or ask questions. You can share your thoughts on my website under the Faith Chase tab, or you can find me on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook @HeatherTabata. I’ll also post transcripts of the podcasts to the website, and I’ll share a link to the podcast episodes there.

Why is this so important? We’re all busy. We’ve got school, jobs, families, and hobbies. But if we want something to really give our lives lasting meaning, we can look to faith for that.

I’m not going to ask you to believe the Bible because I do or because your preacher does. It’s not enough to say, here’s a really good book that all these people say is true so you need to accept it. We need to have reasons for what we believe. As we go through the year, I’ll share some of those with you.

So let’s get started! Today’s episode is on Genesis 1 – 24.

The Bible has two sections, the Old and New Testament. The Old Testament is first, and Genesis is the first book. It starts with the account of how God created the world and everything in it. The Bible says He spoke it into existence. I know this isn’t the most popular viewpoint today, but there’s a lot of evidence to support it.

There are lots of examples of intelligent design. One example is the bombardier beetle. It shoots hot liquid out turrets in its back when it feels threatened. To do this, it has two chemicals that react stored in separate compartments. When it wants to fire, it mixes them, but there’s an inhibitor in there too. So it also has to add an anti-inhibitor to allow the reaction to happen.

Explaining this by evolution doesn’t make sense. This is a complicated system, and there wouldn’t be any benefit to the beetle to only have part of it for generations and then another part of it. If the combination didn’t work right, it could even explode itself. One of the key concepts to evolution is that living things keep the traits that are beneficial to them. So for a beetle to gradually put this system together would mean generations of beetles spent energy on something that didn’t give them any advantage. The beetle needed all of this system to be perfectly put together the first time.

The creation story goes on to tell how God made people. Genesis 1:26 says, “Then God said, ‘Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.” I love how God says He was going to make people in His likeness. What an honor to think that God shared some of His traits with us.

There’s something else in this verse that’s neat. Notice how God says “Us” and “Our?” He’s not referring to Himself in the plural third person for no reason. This is the first indication of God being a Trinity with three parts making up the whole. We’ll talk more about this later on, but the gist is that God isn’t just one Being.

When God was creating people, He knew that we don’t do well by ourselves. Genesis 2:18 says, “And the LORD God said, ‘It is not good that man should be alone; I will make him a helper comparable to him.'” God made people designed to complement each other. It’s not good for us to try to isolate ourselves and get through life without needing anyone.

This is part of the reason we need to spend time together as a church today. First Corinthians 12:17-18 says, “If the whole body were an eye, where would be the hearing? If the whole were hearing, where would be the smelling? But now God has set the members, each one of them, in the body just as He pleased.” The church is designed to have people coming together, sharing their talents, and supporting each other.

Genesis goes on to tell about Adam and his descendants. A lot of times names in the Bible had a special meaning. Adam and nine of his descendants, the first 10 men at the beginning of Jesus’ lineage, had names that told a story. In order, they are: Adam, Seth, Enosh, Cainan, Mahalalel, Jared, Enoch, Methuselah, Lamech, and Noah. The meanings of their names, in order, are:

  • Adam – Man
  • Seth – Appointed
  • Enosh – Mortal
  • Cainan – Sorrow
  • Mahalalel – The blessed God
  • Jared – Shall come down
  • Enoch – Teaching
  • Methuselah – His death shall bring
  • Lamech – The despairing
  • Noah – Peace

Doesn’t that sound like Jesus? In the first five chapters of the Bible, God basically shared the gospel.

Then comes the story of Noah. Genesis 6:9 tells us, “This is the genealogy of Noah. Noah was a just man, perfect in his generations. Noah walked with God.” Our reputations are so important. Noah had a good one. People aren’t always going to think well of us, but we can be known for standing up for what’s right, even if people look down on us for it.

When God told Noah to build the ark, he did, and he preached for years to try to get people to change and follow God, but people didn’t listen. So, even though they were the only eight people who did what God wanted, Noah and his family got on the ark. After the flood, God promised in Genesis 8:21-22 that as long as the earth lasts, the seasons won’t stop and the time for planting and for harvesting will continue.

Genesis 12 tells about the beginning of the Jewish nation. Verses 1-3 say, “Now the LORD had said to Abram: ‘Get out of your country, From your family And from your father’s house, To a land that I will show you. I will make you a great nation; I will bless you And make your name great; And you shall be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, And I will curse him who curses you; And in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.'”

We usually call Abram Abraham today. His name was Abram to begin with, but later God changed it to Abraham. When God says that all the families of the earth will be blessed through Abraham, this is another prophecy about the Messiah, Jesus.

Abraham did what God asked him to do and left his home and family and moved away with his wife. This took a lot of faith, but Abraham had struggles too. He and his wife were old and hadn’t been able to have children. God had promised Abraham he would have descendants, and in Genesis 15:2, Abraham asks God what He is going to do because he doesn’t have children. Then in verse eight, Abraham asks again how he can know that he is going to inherit the land God had promised him.

Rather than be angry at Abraham and sent a lightning bolt at him for questioning Him, God gave Abraham a sign and a promise. This is a good lesson for us, because questioning God isn’t something He punished people for. God wants to give us proof that we should believe Him, and then He expects us to do that, but He understands when we have doubts, and He can help us through them.

Eventually God did bless Abraham and Sarah with a son, Isaac. After a few years, God asked something really hard of Abraham. Genesis 22:1-2 says, “Now it came to pass after these things that God tested Abraham, and said to him, ‘Abraham!’ And he said, ‘Here I am.’ Then He said, ‘Take now your son, your only son Isaac, whom you love, and go to the land of Moriah, and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains of which I shall tell you.'”

I don’t have children, so I can’t know how Abraham felt after waiting so long for Isaac, and then being told God wanted him to do this. I do have dogs, and the thought of being told this about them makes me sick.

But Abraham got his son and headed for the mountain. When they got there, Abraham went as far as putting Isaac on an altar and having the knife in his hand. Then an angel stopped him and told him not to hurt Isaac, because God could see he wouldn’t hold anything back from him.

Hebrews 11:17-19 explains this some more.

By faith Abraham, when he was tested, offered up Isaac, and he who had received the promises offered up his only begotten son, of whom it was said, “In Isaac your seed shall be called,” concluding that God was able to raise him up, even from the dead, from which he also received him in a figurative sense.

So Abraham believed that even if God had him kill Isaac that God could make it right. Even if it meant bringing him back from the dead.

Now let’s think about what happened here. Doesn’t the Bible say that God won’t tempt us? So why did He do this?

It’s not that God was tempting Abraham. There’s a difference in tempting someone, trying to get them to mess up, and testing them, or putting them in a difficult situation expecting them to do the right thing.

Let’s say I’m 17, have my license, and my parents are letting me go over to a friend’s house for a party one night. It’s the first time I’m driving myself to something like this, and they tell me to be home by ten. Maybe they’re testing me. They know that I’m capable of not doing anything bad and getting home by curfew, and they want me to do that. But they want to show me that I can do the hard thing and follow the rules so I’ll appreciate my freedom and the next time something happens where it would be harder for me to do the right thing I’ll be readier for it.

So that’s the first episode! I hope you enjoyed it. Now I want to hear from you. What were your favorite verses or stories from this week? What stood out to you? Head over to the website or Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram and let me know! Time to get started on this week’s reading. See you in a week!