In\nthe first couple chapters God showed that He created man to be in the image of\nthe trinity. One of the characteristics that is exclusively given to man by God\nis freewill, the ability to make choices. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Adam\nwas given simple instructions about his responsibilities and what he was to\naccomplish in obedience to God. He was to:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
To\nbe all of what God meant man in total obedience to be is a true definition of\none who is created in God\u2019s image. God provided Adam with the opportunity that\nno man has experienced. He was to be in perfect harmony with His creation and\nrelationship with Him. As we shall see\nin chapter 3 and probably preceding the description of God walking in the\ngarden in the cool of the evening, that special time with the Lord had surely\nbeen going on from the time man was first created. There was nothing to spoil\nthe perfect world of Eden as long as man was in perfect communion with the\nFather.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
All\nof that was about to change as man asserted his free will. From the events seen\nin chapter 3 it appears that having a perfect world was not enough for man. The\nman and woman were easy targets for the wiles of the devil. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Eve\nwas about to commit acts that would radically redefine the course of history\nand showed her open rebellion to God\u2019s authority. The apostle John summed up\nwhat we shall see in his letter to the church at Ephesus. He wrote about the\ntrap the world offers into which Adam and Eve were caught. He said, \u201cFor all\nthat is in the world, the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the\nboastful pride of life, is not from the Father, but is from the world\u201d. Of the\nthings man believes are so important are temporary at best for he wrote, \u201cThe\nworld is passing away, and also its lusts.\u201d 1 John 2:16-17<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Falling\nfor the serpent\u2019s sales pitch she turned her attention once more to the tree of\nthe knowledge of good and evil with a new level of interest. At the time of her\ndecision Eve did three things that clearly showed a heart attitude of rebellion\nagainst God\u2019s authority. She:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Sadly,\nwith the eating of the fruit she received the very thing she desired because\nthe eyes of both of them were opened. \nBut with all of man\u2019s rebellion against God the results are never what\nGod had determined was the best for them. (Gen. 3:6-7<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The\nonly difference between what Eve did and Adam\u2019s sin is she allowed herself to\nbe deceived while he voluntarily took the fruit from her hand and ate it. They\nnow had the knowledge of good and evil. As a consequence of that one act on the\npart of both of them every generation since that time has been cursed with a\nsin nature. (Gen. 3:6)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Things\ndid not turn out as expected. Instead of becoming like God they were soon to\ndiscover that God did not relinquish His throne and authority. Instead of\nbeing:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
It\nis interesting that God pronounced His judgments on the serpent before laying\nout the future for Adam and Eve and all of those would follow after them. For\nhis part in the devil did not get the outcome he hoped for out of the\nincident. Knowing that Jesus was going\nto come in the future, I believe he either hoped to dominate the couple or that\nGod would destroy man because of sin and Christ would never be born. God stated\nthree things to the serpent. He would:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
(Gen.\n3:14-16)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
It\nis a commentary on the condition man that after the fall there is no reference\nin the Bible of God speaking communing with the two of them again. Man had\nbroken the relationship. Nothing He\nwould say could repair the damage caused by their rebellion. Man would have to\nwait thousands of years before redemption came in the form of the God\/Man, the\nsecond Adam. From that point own the\nScripture is full of the failures of man to be reconciled with the Father. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
In\nthe story of Cain and Abel is seen the sin of man after the fall being played\nout for all to see. At some point both men seemed to acknowledge the reality of\nGod. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Each\nperson who is saved comes to Christ in a unique way. The common factor is the\nrealization that he or she is in need of a Savior. To acknowledge that fact\nbrings about the defining moment of beginning a life in Christ. What is\ndifferent for each person is the way he comes to that decision. Many can tell the exact moment when he became\na Christian. To others the understanding of the need for Christ comes over a\nperiod of time and many experiences feed into the story. For every person\nsalvation is in a way a mystery. How is it that the Almighty Creator of the\nwhole universe has provided a way for each person who desires it to have a\npersonal relationship with Him? As we\nread through the Scripture, we are not always told the exact point in time when\na person moves from being lost to gaining eternal life. The other mystery is\nthat only God knows when the decision made is genuine and will lead one into\neternity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
This\nis true of the two brothers, the first children of Adam and Eve. The Bible tells us that the men knew God, at\nleast knew of Him. Surely their parents\nhad told them all about what God had done in creating the world and their part\nof the story. Each man reacted\ndifferently. Their sacrifices brought to Him reflected the view they had of\nGod. The practice of worship would lead to the defining moment in the life of\none of them. I say just one because by the time the story reaches its climax\nAbel would be dead. It is obvious that Abel had a deeper relationship with the\nFather than Cain.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Somehow,\nhe understood it was not enough to just bring some of the harvest as Cain did\nby the best and the first of his possession to be presented as an acceptable\nsacrifice.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
This\nmay have become a pattern in Cain\u2019s life to present to God enough to get\nby. Finally, God came to him to settle\naccounts. It reminds me of the number of\ntimes Jesus spoken of being faithful with what God has put into the hands of\nman to manage for Him. Cain had been remiss in honoring God with the sacrifices\nHe deserved. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Rather\nthan being repentant of his sin his response was to become angry and\ndespondent. God provided Cain with a second chance. He first asked him a\nquestion. \u201cWhy are you angry? And why has your countenance fallen?\u201d He then\nprovided him with a solution to his sinful attitude. He said, \u201cIf you do well,\nwill not your countenance be lifted up? And if you do not do well, sin is\ncrouching at the door and its desire is for you, but you must master it.\u201d (Gen.\n4:6-7) <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Here\nis the second recorded defining moment in the life of Cain. The first was the\nacknowledgement of God. The second was\nthe opportunity to repent and return to the Father who had given life and\nblessings. At that moment Cain chose to\nrebel against God. He took out his anger\nand frustration on his brother Abel and killed him. Because of anger and\njealousy, we have the written account of the first murder in the world. (Gen.\n4:8)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
As\nusually happens people will lie to cover up their guilt. Cain could not however\nhide what he had done from God. God declared him guilty by stating that He knew\nwhat had taken place. The very thing that keeps a man alive, the blood that\ncourses through his veins had been spilled out and Abel\u2019s blood was seen in\nheaven as evidence of the crime committed. Cain\u2019s life was spared because God\nhad not yet established the law that said that a man was to be executed when he\nkilled another human being. In a way\nCain\u2019s sentence was fitting. He was cast out into the strange and unfamiliar\nworld to roam and fear all of his life with no place to call a permanent home.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Sin\nis lurking at the door of every man\u2019s life to destroy his relationship with the\nFather. Paul admonished the Romans to be careful with these words, \u201cTherefore\ndo not let sin reign in your mortal body so that you obey its lusts.\u201d (Rom.\n6:12) Cain did not heed the warnings he had received from God. He chose to give into that sin. He allowed it\nto become his master. After a defining\nmoment is reached, any act that follows is just an extension of that decision.\nThat moment was a turning point in Cain\u2019s life from which there was no turning\nback. (Gen. 4:3, 5-7, 13-14; Rom. 6:12; Heb. 11:4-5)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
One\nof Cain\u2019s descendants, Lamech followed in his footsteps. In him was seen the\nsame kind of rebellion against God in full bloom. In the killing of both man\nand boy he set himself as judge and jury in deciding to mete out the extreme\npunishment against the two of them. Gen. 4:23. Neither of the acts committed\nagainst him would justify murder on his part. Not only that, he set himself up\nas greater than his father, Cain. His statement to his two was a good indicator\nof the pride that filled his life. He said, \u201cIf Cain is avenged sevenfold, then\nLamech seventy-fold.\u201d (Gen. 4:24) <\/p>\n\n\n\n
After\nthat one glimpse into the life of Lamech and his evil actions, he is never\nmentioned in Scripture again. I think that this incident was inserted to show\njust how far a man would go in turning away from God. His defining moment made\nhim an infamous character in the annals of time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
When\nCain was banished to wander on the earth as a vagrant there was no one to\npreserve the line of Jesus. Adam and Eve however were determined to carry out\nthe mandate of God to multiply and inhabit the earth. To them was born Seth. At\nthe time of his birth Eve spoke the following words, \u201cGod has appointed me\nanother offspring in place of Abel. For Cain killed him.\u201d Through him the\nancestry of Jesus continued and was not destroyed, as the devil may have\ndesired. (Gen. 4:25) Notice he was to be listed in the descendants of Adam. Cain\nwas excluded, although there were children born to him. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
After\nSeth, Enosh his son was born. More importantly it was the writer put it, \u201cThen\nmen began to call upon the name of the Lord.\u201d (Gen. 4:26) Why am I including\nthe tow verses 25-26 in material on defining moments? It seems to me that the\nMoses was trying to show his listeners that the world had come through a time\nof apostasy. Both Cain and Lamech had brought a new level of evil and rebellion\ninto the world. It was now time for men\nto turn back and begin to worship the Lord. \nProbably the manifestation of this was a return to the presenting\nsacrifices. We first were exposed to them in the life of Abel and men were once\nagain beginning to acknowledge the Lord in their lives.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
It\nis interesting that the mention of man calling on the name of God occurred at\nthe beginning of the genealogy of Adam following the birth of Enosh. We are\ntold, first of all, \u201cWhen God created man, He made him in the likeness of God.\u201d\n(Gen. 5:1) Moses then goes on to said, \u201cHe created them male and female and He\nblessed them and named them Man in the day they were created.\u201d (Gen. 5:2) <\/p>\n\n\n\n
It\nis obvious that it was important because author spoke concerning man and woman\nand their relationship to Him and to each other more than once. The normal God given relationship He set up\nfrom the very beginning was between man and woman. Through their union\neventually the Savior of the world would come.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
It\nwould be in the life of Enoch, seven generations from Adam, that we see a man\nwho in ways revealed to us came to know God in a personal way. We shall see it again, but it is still a\nwonderful mystery to see the way God works in the lives of men. Enoch at some\npoint had his defining moment. We are given a clue because from the time of the\nbirth of his son Methuselah when he was sixty-five years old, he spent the rest\nof his three hundred sixty-five years walking with His Father. We have to ask\nourselves what cause that one man to have such faith. Although, it is an amazing fact that unlike\nany of us he had available combined wisdom of all of his ancestors dating back\nto Adam were still alive during his lifetime. We would think that the stories\ntold by them would have influenced the spiritual life of each person to the\nextent that they would have been like Enoch. The question is how was Enoch\ndifferent? What moved in his heart that completely changed his life in a way\nthat made him unique among the early patriarchs? It was obviously the Holy Spirit working is\nhis heart that brought him into the personal relationship with God. We to this day do not understand how out of a\nfamily or a group of people that one person will be attuned to the calling of\nChrist while those around him do not hear the call. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Not\nonly was Enoch a true follower of God but also a prophet. In naming his son\nMethuselah he spoke a prophecy of the judgement on mankind that would take\nplace because of the depravity of each man\u2019s heart that was becoming rampant in\nthe world. The fulfillment of those words would take place at the end of\nMethuselah\u2019s life. The meaning of his name was \u201cWhen he dies, it will come.\u201d (Gen\n5:22-24)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
His\nreward for his faithfulness was to be translated into heaven without having to\ngo through the pangs of death. We can now have that same experience because of\nwhat Christ did for each of us on the cross.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
None\nof us know the impact our descendants will have on the world. Lamech, Enoch\u2019s\ngrandson and Methuselah\u2019s son spoke words about his son that could have only\nbeen a hope. He seemed to be depending on the next generation to make the world\na better place to live. We hear this all\nthe time when it is said, \u201cwhat kind of world are we going to leave to our\nchildren?\u201d Or \u201cI hope they can straighten out the mess we have made of things.\u201d\nTo me it is a sad state of affairs when we try to live vicariously through our\nchildren and taking responsibility for the time we are given here on earth.\nLamech said basically:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
(Gen. 5:28)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
When\na man recognizes the part, he plays in this fallen world, it is the beginning\nof working towards solutions. We can never accomplish anything by continually\nblaming others. No one gets anywhere by\nconstantly throwing pity parties. God wants us to confess our sins so that He\ncan forgive us. Only then can anyone be used for the benefit of the human\nrace. We are not given the responsibility\nto fix the whole world, but we surely can try to make where we are a better\nplace. Misplaced as it was for Lamech,\nlike him each person does have hope that his or descendants will add to the\nworld and not be weight that drags it down.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
God\nwas preparing for the future. Noah could not know lay ahead. We are told before the story unfolded for him,\nhe had three sons, Shem, Ham and Japheth through whom the whole world would be\nrepopulated. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
By\nthe time Noah had reached the age of five hundred the world had become an\nimmoral and evil place. Sexual immorality had become prevalent with children\nbeing born who did know or want to have anything to do with God. For the most part godless parents will\nproduce godless children. It was at critical period in the history of Adam\u2019s\ndescendants that God determined to bring judgment on His creation. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
In\nthe midst of such a trying time there stood out one man who was different than\nall others. Not even Noah\u2019s father or grandfather found favor with God as both\nlived well after God\u2019s prophecy to destroy the world had been given. In fact,\nMethuselah lived up to the year of the great flood.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Once\nagain, we see God working in a man\u2019s heart in spite of the circumstances\nswirling about him. Noah is described as:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Although\nNoah was a man after God\u2019s own heart, he still had to face his hour of decision\non his own. It had to be difficult for him to comprehend that God was going to\nbring judgment on the earth with a great flood when there had never been rain\nup until his day. Then to be told to\nbuild a great boat because the rain was going to come at some point in time\ntook a lot of faith. True to his\ncharacter the Scriptures tells us, \u201cThus Noah did according to all that God\ncommanded him, so he did. (Gen. 6:22; Heb. 11:7)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
It\ntook a hundred years, but the floods came just as God had promised. Because\nNoah had been willing to be obedient from the first moment God came to him, he\nand his immediate family and the animals were saved from being destroyed along\nwith every other living being on the face of the earth. (Gen. 7:23)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
There\nturned out to be one dark spot in the story of Noah. The decisions of each of\nhis three sons when their father became drunk and lay naked in his tent would\naffect the lives of each of them from that moment on until this day. Each of\nthe son\u2019s responded to Noah\u2019s situation in a different way. In patriarchal\nsociety when the father was to be respected and held in high esteem Ham did\njust the opposite by sharing with his brothers their father\u2019s condition. Both\nShem and Japheth acted to protect Noah\u2019s name. Each of them took a blanket,\nbacked into the tent and covered their father without looking at him. We do not\nknow how he knew that it was Ham who had shown such disrespect, but it is\nobvious from the prophecy he proclaimed that he did. While the two older\nbrothers received a blessing the family of Ham through his son Canaan was\ncursed forever. The land the Israelites would eventually conquer was named\nafter Noah\u2019s grandson.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
When\nthe people began to spread out over the face of the earth a number of them came\nto the land of Shinar. There they decided to build a city and a tower to\nestablish a name for themselves. The tower was an effort to show that man did\nnot need God to succeed. They could build a building that would reach all the\nway to heaven. It would ultimately become the city of Babylon. God would not\nput up with such arrogance but so long. He came into the presence of the people\ninvolved and not only scattered them but changed their language so they could\nnot understand one another any longer. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
The\nattitude of man is still the same as in the day of the Tower of Babel. He is\ncontinually attempting to make a place for himself without God. As He did with\nthe people, who were rebelling against Him, God will intervene and bring about\njudgment. One thing for sure God will\nnot be ignored by any people and not suffer the consequences of that decision.\n(Gen. 11:4-9)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
For\neach of us there, if we are honest with ourselves, is the realization that the\nrelationship with God that is growing in our lives is not a straight line from\nconversion to a committed true disciple of Jesus Christ. There are fits and\nstarts, hills and valleys, mistakes, right and wrong decisions. Sometimes we\nstay on the path toward godliness, but quite often we stray in many different\ndirections. As we take a look at Abraham\u2019s life there are many aspects that we\ncan identify in ourselves that are reflected in his walk. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
The\nlife of Abram who would later be called Abraham is an interesting study in\nhuman nature. He would be called a\nfriend of God and a man of righteousness, but in his life, there were many\ndecisions made that seem to be in conflict with those descriptions of him. Like\nus the development of his character was a slow process. It would take more than\ntwenty-five years for his faith to become strong. However, from the very first that we hear of\nhim in Genesis God saw the potential end results of complete devotion for Him,\nHe would obtain from Abraham. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Even\nthough it would be one of the important incidents occurring in his life that\nwould be a defining moment for him, we have mistakenly thought it was Abram who\ndecided to leave Ur of Chaldeans. In Actually, it was Terah, Abram\u2019s father who\nled the expedition from his home country of Ur to Haran in present day Syria.\nHis plan was to ultimately proceed into the land of Canaan. Terah, however died\nthere in Syria. Abraham thus became the\npatriarch of the family at that point in time. He probably would have settled\ndown there in Haran if the Lord had not intervened. The earlier decision of his\nfather did however position Abram and his family to follow through on Terah\u2019s\noriginal plan to move into Canaan. (Gen. 11:31-32)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
There\nwere many events that would occur in Abraham\u2019s life leading to a greater and\ngreater relationship with the Father. Of course, none of the others would have\ntaken place unless he had been obedient in to leaving all that was familiar and\ncomfortable. God had plans had for him he could not even begin to comprehend.\nUntil the death of Terah he had been under the authority of his father. He was\nnow to make decisions that would affect the future of his family. Those choices\nwould define him as a man of God.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The\nBible never explains why Terah decided to leave Ur of the Chaldees in the first\nplace. There could been many reasons, but there have been a couple of\npossibilities. It may have been the need for new grazing land for his flocks of\nsheep. He may not have been very concern\nabout the influence that the pagan culture was having on his family. We will see\na weakness in Lot later on that might give credence to the latter idea. It is a\nmystery known only to God why such a drastic change would be brought about in\nthe life of a family. We do not have an explanation from Scripture to let us in\non God\u2019s decision- making process. There only one way we know about the events\nthat took place. It was while in Syria that Abram received instructions for the\nnext phase of his life. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Having\nsaid that it would not be an unusual situation for a family to pick up and move\nfrom one place to another. Abram\u2019s family was probably nomads as shall be seen\nby his travels throughout the rest of his life. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
What\nwould have been different was the method by which Abram was called to leave\nHaran. The actual act of moving would\nnot seem strange for a man who had an adventurous nature and was always looking\nfor greener pastures. However, to be directed to go into a land completely\nunknown to him took courage and a certain degree of faith. This mindset may\nhave played a part in his willingness to move. From the very beginning of time individuals have\nbeen curious about what lay ahead around the next bend of the road. (Gen.\n12:1-4; Acts 7:3-4; Heb. 11)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
As\nwas mentioned above, Abram who would become Abraham was a man of many\ncontrasts. On the one hand we are told that Abram was declared righteous\nbecause of his faith. He then turned around and did things that spoke of a man\nwho thought he was in control of his own future.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Thankfully,\nGod did not turn His back on Abram but was with him both in Egypt and Gedar.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
(Gen.\n12:1-4; Acts 7:3-4; Heb. 11)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Fits\nand starts are terms that could be used to describe Abram\u2019s process toward truly\nbecoming the man of God through whom the covenant would be realized. Some of\nthose experiences that would occur along the path toward God included:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
(Gen 12:10)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Lot,\nthe albatross around Abraham\u2019s neck comes into the picture. He reminds me of\nthe son who is still living in the basement of his parent\u2019s home until he is\nthirty expecting them to take care of him in the same way they did when he was\nyoung. Even it was common in that culture for a number of generations to live\ntogether two things stand out about the relationship between Abraham and Lot.\nFirst, Lot was not Abraham\u2019s responsibility because he was not his son but a\nnephew. Secondly, God had specifically commanded Abraham to leave all of his\nfamily behind in Haran before going into the land of Canaan. It was time for Lot to separate from his\nuncle and begin a life on his own. Following the journey into Egypt there arose\na conflict between the herdsmen of Abraham and those taking care of Lots\nlivestock. There was not enough grass\nfor the combined livestock to feed. Abraham allowed Lot to choose any of the\nland for his new home. Abraham would then go in the opposite direction. Lot\u2019s\ndefining moment came when he decided to move toward Sodom and Gomorrah. Like so\nmany choices made during a person\u2019s lifetime his move looked like a good idea\nat first. He chose a land with plenty of water and as the Bible says, it was\n\u201clike the garden of the Lord.\u201d Although, initially he located his family close\nto the two evil cities he eventually moved into Sodom. (Gen. 13:10,12) <\/p>\n\n\n\n
It\nwas Lot\u2019s decision to move to Sodom which set in motion the events that would\nbe devastating to his family. It brought about:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
(Gen.\n14:11-16; 19:1-38; Luke 17:32)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
As\nwas mentioned earlier, one of his mistakes was having Absalom by Hagar at the\ninsistence of Sarah. His lack of faith of\nnot waiting for God\u2019s timing in having a descendant led to conflict in his\nfamily. Ultimately, after Isaac had grown into childhood things came to a head\nwhen Sarah commanded that Ishmael and his mother be sent away. Ishmael grew\ninto a man who was at odds with those around him. The world is still\nexperiencing the evil that came from Abraham taking the future in his own hands.\n (Gen. 16: 1-12; 21:9-21)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The\nchild of promise was born to Abraham and Sarah. God\u2019s covenant to Abraham was\nbeginning to come to fruition at the birth of Isaac. (Gen. 21:1-8)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
It\nis an amazing thing that for all the experiences Abraham had in his over one\nhundred years it took his willingness to offer Isaac as a sacrifice to have God\nsay to him what had never been part of their conversation before. God was about\nto test him in a way that had taken place in his life. To offer one\u2019s only son\nwould be ultimate sacrifice that a parent could make. Abraham was obedient in a\nway that not many people would be. Of\ncourse, this was a picture of what God would do with His own Son. Jesus willingly\nlaid down his life as a sacrifice for all of us. The moment that would decide\nto whom He owed everything was being willing to give up that one who was his\nonly true hope for the posterity of his family and future of God\u2019s chosen\npeople. His name was Isaac. At this decisive\nmoment, Abraham heard God speak. He said, \u201cI know that you fear God, since you have\nnot withheld your son, your only son, from Me.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n
In\nthat one moment Abraham\u2019s life was turned from one of self-preservation to\ntotal commitment. He understood that God was the One truly in charge of his\nlife and the events surrounding him. In faith was evident in the fact that he\nbelieved that God would provide the lamb for the sacrifice or somewhat raise\nIsaac from the dead. Figuratively, he\ndid receive his son back from the dead. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
(Gen.\n22:8,10-12,16-18: Heb. 11:17-19)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
It was only after Abraham offered the substitute for Isaac\ndid God speak to him and then made one of the greatest promises of all. He was\ntold that He would be the ancestor of the Savior of the world. (Gen. 22:16-18)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Abraham had gotten old and there was no suitable candidate\nfor a wife for Isaac to be found among the people of Canaan. Therefore, Abraham sent his trusted servant\nto Syria to find a wife for Isaac from the family of Laban, his nephew. We discover the next defining moment in the sequence\nof events leading up to the choice of Rebekah to be Isaac\u2019s wife. We might find\nit amazing that she would decide to go with Abraham\u2019s servant whom she had\nnever met and travel to a foreign land to marry someone she did not know. Her\nwillingness to leave her family would eventually lead to the birth of Jacob and\nEsau who would continue the lineage of Abraham which would lead to the birth of\nChrist. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
(Gen 24:58)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The story shifts from Isaac to certain important events in\ntheir lives that would impact history from that point on. That is exactly what\ndefining moments do in each person\u2019s life, some on a much larger scale than\nothers as we shall see in the lives of the grandsons of Abraham. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
In a way the destiny of each of them was established before\nthey were born. Rebekah was told by God what the future held for the two boys.\nThe family of one would be stronger than the other. The promise that would turn\ndecorum on its head was that the older would serve the younger son, thus given\nhim first place over his brother. As the events unfolded in each of their lives\nit will be seen how decisions made by each of them would bring the prophecy to\npass.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
It was Esau who set the stage for Jacob to become the inheritor\nof the promises made to Abraham and thus become the more dominant brother. By\nhis actions Esau disqualified himself from being used by God.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Esau married a Hittite woman from the descendants of Canaan,\nthe son of Ham. As we read earlier Canaan had received the curse from Noah and\nwould become servants of Shem. This marriage displeased Isaac and Rebekah and\nexcluded him from being an ancestor of Jesus. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
(Gen. 26:34-35)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The second major decision, to sell his birthright for a bowl\nof bean soup set the stage for the others that would affect his place in\nhistory down the road. It showed a man who was more concerned about his\nphysical needs which brought immediate gratification without regard for the\nfuture consequences of his action. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
(Gen. 25:29-33) <\/p>\n\n\n\n
The final act that sealed his place in history was\ncompletely out of the hands of Esau. It was a request made by his father and a\ndeception perpetrated by Jacob and Rebekah. That act of deception became the\ntruly defining moment of her life. It came a great personal cost to her. The\nsequence of events that were all part of her desire to ensure the position of\nJacob to receive the portion of Isaac\u2019s estate which would have normally gone\nto the eldest son. Rebekah:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
One has to wonder if later in life reflected on her actions.\nShe had to ask herself was the consequences she experienced worth the deception\nthat she has carried out against her husband.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
(Gen. 27:5-41)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
After Jacob had stolen the blessing intended for Esau, Esau\ncame to the stark realization of what he had so flippantly given up for a bowl\nof bean soup.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
(Gen. 27:36-38; Heb. 11:20)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
What seemed like a good idea at the time would cost Jacob 20\nyears of his life as he had to flee from his brother and leave the home he had\nalways known. During those years with\nLaban his father-in-law he married two sisters and had 12 children in all. Benjamin\nwas not yet born. He finally fled from Syria to return back to his father in\nCanaan. As he travelled, he was confronted\nby none other than Jesus.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
(Gen. 27:43-32:33)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
While waiting to meet Esau, for the second time in his life\nJacob found himself completely alone. The first time was he fled from his\nbrother and found himself at Bethel. It was completely different from his\ncurrent situation. The previous time he had nothing to lose because everything\nhad belonged to his father. Even though he had the birthright and the blessing\nthey were just empty possibilities because he did not know what the future held\nfor him. His circumstances were now different. He had responsibilities for all\nhe possessed. There was now a family, slaves and livestock of various kinds to\nbe considered. There was a possibility\nthat he could lose all of it when he met his brother. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Only when he had faced his greatest challenge in life by\nwrestling with God\u2019s messenger would he receive the name, \u201cIsrael\u201d. Indeed, God\ngave him a new name which mean one who strives with God and man and succeeds.\nAlthough that event was to be defining moment for Jacob, the one thing it did\nnot accomplish immediately was killing his old human nature. His old sin nature\nwas still evident in his subsequent meeting with his brother.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
(Gen. 32:14-30)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
When thinking about Esau it is easy to write him off as one\nof the lesser characters in the Bible. This may be a natural tendency because\nwe read in Malachi 1:2 and Romans 9:13 that God loved Jacob and hated Esau. If\nEsau was not important to God, why should we give him much attention. There are\nsome practical concepts about forgiveness and overcoming circumstances that are\nseen in his life. He held onto the\npromise from Isaac that he would eventually break the yoke of servitude from\naround his neck. (Gen. 27:40) So, let us step back a take another look at\nEsau\u2019s life and what God can do in one person we might view as a second class.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
It is evident as we shall see that sometime during the\nperiod of the twenty years since Jacob had left that God had been working in\nEsau\u2019s life. No, he could not get the birthright or blessing back because they\nwere no longer his. The one thing he had\nthe power to do was to forgive his brother. No longer did he hold onto the\nhatred he had for Jacob but had relinquished it long before he was to meet with\nhis brother. As we see in the Scripture in a way the shoe was on the other foot\nso to speak. Jacob possibly because of guilt had a great fear of meeting his\nbrother face to face again. Esau had forgiven Jacob and thus was a free man\nlong before Jacob knew that he was free from the penalty of his sin.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Jesus brought forgiveness to each of us long before we knew\nthat it was available to us. We walked around with the guilt resulting from our\nold sin nature until God met us where we were and said we were free and part of\nHis family. Like, what Jesus did for all mankind, Esau was offering\nreconciliation between Jacob who did not deserve forgiveness and himself. Esau\nwas making the offer even before Jacob knew it was available to him. The\nforgiveness of Esau was a foreshadowing of what was done for each of us through\nthe death of Jesus on the cross. He brought two parties who were at enmity with\neach other brought them together in a new relationship.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
One other point that needs to be made before moving on. It\nis clear that a new view of the relationship that might be available to him was\nimportant enough for Esau to go to Jacob. If he had still wanted to kill Jacob\nall he had to do was wait until he had gotten closer to home. He made the\njourney from his place of comfort to go to meet his brother not knowing what\nawaited him. Again, this has to remind us of Jesus who left His home in glory\nto become just like the man He came to save not knowing how He would be\nreceived. His sacrifice offered every\nperson the opportunity to have his own personal defining moment of be\nreconciled to God.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
(Gen. 32:6)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
What was taking place in Jacob\u2019s heart was just the\nopposite. If there was to be any relationship with his brother reestablished it\nwould be on his terms. Everything he contrived\nwas for, ultimately his own self-preservation. This was obvious from the grand performance he\nput on to attempt to placate Esau. What is seen in his excuses his mistrust of\nhis brother. One of the reasons given was so full of holes that it should have\nbeen plain to see by all what Jacob was doing. He had presented Esau with a\ngift from his herds and flocks to be taken back by Esau to his home. When Esau suggested they travel together\nJacob basically said that his animals were not up to the trip. Those presented\nas gift were from the same herds and flocks as the one\u2019s Jacob claimed could\nnot be pushed. To his credit and showing the kind of man he had become, Esau\nreturned home with the gift and without Jacob and all that belonged to him.\nEsau had changed but at that point Jacob appears to be same man he was before\nthe whole episode.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
(Gen. 33:1-13)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Jacob still had many lessons to learn, but that was the\nbeginning point of the changes that need to take occur in his life. There in\nPeniel he received the blessing and promise, not from man but from God. He\nbelieved that God had preserved him even though he had seen the very face of\nGod and lived.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
(32:24-30) <\/p>\n\n\n\n
An incident involving Jacob\u2019s daughter occurred because he did\nnot follow through on his promise to continue his journey until he came to the\nplace where Esau was living. Establishing a residence among the people of\nShechem led to rape of Dinah and the subsequent death of all the men in\nShechem. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Of course, not all of the responsibility need fall on\nJacob\u2019s shoulders. Shechem the son of Hamor was old enough to control is\nemotions and not rape Dinah. The act,\neven though Shechem tried to play down the severity of his actions by offering\nto marry the girl. His offer did not placate the anger of her brothers leading\nto the destruction of a whole city. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
(Gen. 33:18-34:31)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Jacob was commanded to travel to Bethel and live there to\nreestablish the relationship he had. He wisely followed God\u2019s command. His\nfirst time at Bethel had been when he was fleeing from Esau. It was there that Jacob had been a\nrudimentary altar and promised that if he returned to the land that God would\nbe his God and that he would tithe all that he had. (Gen. 35:1)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The decision to share his dreams with his brothers and then\nhis father would forever alter the course of Joseph\u2019s life. It started a\nsequence of events that would take him all the way to Egypt. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
(Gen. 37:5-10)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Not only was it a defining moment in the lives of Joseph and\nhis brothers but also a breaking point in a relationship that was fragile at\nbest and was to get even worse. Even\nthough it might seem that the dreams Joseph were the cause of the hatred his\nbrothers had for him, the roots went very deep in the dynamics of the family\u2019s\nlife. They were only the tipping point\nthat drove the brothers to take drastic measures against him. The decision to\nsell their brother would have a permanent effect on each of their lives from\nthat point on. Every day they had to live with the consequences of their\nactions. I will cover some of the forces at work when I write specifically\nabout Judah. Although he played a major role in what took place in this\nnarrative, I would prefer to view the changes that God brought about in his\nlife by the time he made the second trip down to Egypt.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
(Gen. 37:26-35; 42:21-22)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Without going into a lot of detail before looking at the\nfuture events in Joseph\u2019s experiences in Egypt there is one point to be made\nhere which will emphasized again. Joseph\u2019s time of testing and trials came\nabout partly because of Jacob\u2019s partiality towards him. He was his father\u2019s\nfavorite son and the affection he had for him was on display for everyone to\nsee. We can see how this would breed jealousy in the hearts of his brothers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
(Gen. 37:3)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
As mentioned, Joseph was his father\u2019s favorite son. This led\nto an attitude of superiority towards his brothers. The beginning of his\ndownfall came when he tattled to his father bringing \u201ca bad report\u201d about them\nto Jacob. (Gen. 37:2) Compounding the situation were the dreams that placed\nJoseph as ruler over the other brothers and then over the whole family\nincluding Jacob and Leah. (Gen 37:5-10) <\/p>\n\n\n\n
From that point on they could not even speak to him because\nof their anger. Their opportunity came to get rid of the pest. Jacob sent him to\nfind out how his brothers were doing while watching over the sheep. They all\nsaw his appearance, first as an opportunity to kill him so they would longer\nhave to put up with him. They changed their minds and decided to sell him to\nMidianite traders. They could not of course see by killing him would eventually\nput their own lives and those of their families in jeopardy. They were also short-sighted\nin not thinking how their actions would affect Jacob when they presented to him\nsupposed evidence of Joseph\u2019s death. (Gen. 37:18-35)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Before we return to Joseph this would be a good place to\nlook at Judah\u2019s part in the future of Jacob\u2019s family. To do so we will not be\ncovering the events in the rest of Genesis in chronological order. More\nimportant than the order we have an opportunity how the events in one\u2019s life do\nbecome defining moments that change a man\u2019s life. God does truly is the One working behind the\nscenes moving a person in a particular direction. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Some of the things that occurred in Judah\u2019s life were\ncompletely beyond his control. In a way God would take even the wrong decisions\nand use them for His purpose and glory. Let\u2019s look at see how Judah got to the\npoint of being God\u2019s instrument.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
For Judah to reach the level of maturity he showed in the\nthings that took place in Egypt, at some point made the life changing decision\nto become a servant of God. He could not have shown such a willingness to\nsacrifice himself without the love of God living within him. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
We have all made mistakes for which we are truly sorry and\nare thankful for God\u2019s forgiveness. Like Judah we are to grow from those\nexperiences and have a desire to be a stronger and wiser disciple of Christ.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Jacob in his last blessing to his sons, clearly identified\nthe characteristics that were operative in their lives and what it portended\nfor each of their families in the future. What they were was going to affect\nwhat the future held for each of them. In a way it was a defining moment for\neach of them based on past decisions and actions. Let us take a looked at how\nJacob viewed each of his sons. I will focus on five of them. Those brothers\nwould play a significant role in the future of Israel. Although all twelve\nwould become the patriarchs of the tribes not much was written of them in the\nScriptures. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Like Joseph no man may know when those events\nmight occur that bring about major changes the direction of his or her\nlife. There may be a decision that you\nhave been thinking about but putting off because of circumstances Your thoughts may be on a job change, getting\nmarried, making a move to a new location, or mending some fences with\nsomeone. It could be the ultimate\ndecision of becoming a follower of Jesus Christ.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
There is not a single one of us who\nhave not made choices that have impacted our lives for good or bad, success or\nfailure. I don\u2019t know if any of you are\nfamiliar with what I would call a decision tree used in witnessing tools like\nContinuing Witness Training (CWT) or Evangelism Explosion (EE). It is also used in certain sales training. It goes something like this. For every yes or no answer there is a certain\npath you take until you get to the next yes or no answer. This continues until either, a sale is made,\nor someone accepts Christ, or you can see that any further conversation is\nuseless.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
History is full of examples of\nthose who came to that turning point when they went down a path that led them\nto being part of our world. I think of\nthose men who have brought about great destruction and oppression like <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Stalin <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Hitler<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Marx<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Lenin<\/p>\n\n\n\n
At the opposite end of the spectrum\nwe find<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Billy Graham<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Charles Colson<\/p>\n\n\n\n
And many others we could name.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Even churches arrive at a defining\nmoment, when the decisions made could possibly affect how it is to minister in\nparticular community, whether it will grow and be healthy or become another\nstatistic. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Of course, in each of our lives\nthere are some things over which we have no control. Things like our relatives<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Where we live in our early lives<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Even what we wear <\/p>\n\n\n\n
And what we are made to eat<\/p>\n\n\n\n
For a while we are pretty much at\nthe mercy of what others see as beneficial for us.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Later as we grow, the decisions we\nmake have greater consequences than whether we eat green peas and oatmeal. These are what I call critical moments or\nturning points. Even those which we do\nnot think as important may impact our health and happiness.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I would like for us to look at the life of\nJoseph who ultimately would hold the future of the nation in his hands. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Let us start with some of the\nthings that were decided for him.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
4. \nThe fact he was his father\u2019s favorite. (Gen. 37:3)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\na. Threw him in a well.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\nb. Planned to him<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\nc. Sold him to Ishmaelites (Gen\n37:26-28<\/p>\n\n\n\n
With the decision to sell Joseph,\nhis life would be altered in way of which he would have never dreamed could\nhappen to him. No longer would he be in\nthe protective environment under the watchful loving care of Jacob. He was thrusted into the strange and new\nworld of Egyptian culture. It would be a\nplace totally unlike anything he had ever experienced.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Before we look at the rest of the\nstory it is critical for us to understand that it is not always the situation\nin which we find ourselves that is the measure of the maturity of a person but\nhow we react to what is happening to us. \nJoseph from the very beginning had two options. He could have become\nbitter and uncooperative. He chose the\nbetter path of working as to the Lord and not to man. (Eph 4) This turned out\nto his benefit because the Lord blessed him in every place in which he found\nhimself.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
During his sojourn in Potiphar\u2019s\nhousehold there came the critical moment when he would make a decision that\nwould change everything for him. We read\nabout it in Gen. 39: 7-12. These verses\nshow the real test of Joseph\u2019s faith and character. It would have been so easy to have started a\nrelationship with Potiphar\u2019s wife which in the short term may have been\nbeneficial to his success. Sooner or\nlater Potiphar probably would have discovered their little secret and Joseph\nwould have been executed. By staying\ntrue to God <\/p>\n\n\n\n
in the face of such a great\ntemptation he may have landed him in jail for a while, but God was still\nworking out His purpose for the Israelites through Joseph. As it is said about Moses in the book of\nHebrews \u201cby faith Moses when he had grown up, refused to be called the son of\nPharaoh\u2019s daughter, choosing rather to endure ill treatment with the people of\nGod than to enjoy the passing pleasures of sin, considering the reproach of\nChrist greater riches than the treasures of Egypt.\u201d (Hebrews 11:24-26) That statement\ncould have also been attributed to Joseph.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
It seems such an injustice for a\nperson of Joseph\u2019s high moral character to be put into prison. As strange as it may appear, this too was all\nin God\u2019s plan for him and God\u2019s chosen people. \nWe need to take note here that the jail where Joseph was incarcerated\nwas where Pharaoh\u2019s prisoners were detained. (Gen 39:19-20)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
His decision to stay true to God\nresulted in Joseph being put in charge of all the others in the part of the\njail where he stayed. Here was the one\njailed being given the keys to the vault. \nEventually in his position he came into contact with Pharaoh\u2019s cupbearer\nand baker. (Gen. 40:1-4)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Joseph combines the best of the choleric and\nmelancholy types of personalities. On\nthe choleric side he displays the drive and passion to face the difficulties\nand the changing environments in which he found himself. His decisions were based for the most part on\nhis relationship and trust in God. Even\nthough he was a take-charge type of person he learned the art of being gentle\nand caring for those with whom he came in contact. The other part of his personality showed up\nin his ability to analyze situations with great clarity. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
His life seems to be divided into\nfour different periods depending on the events surrounding him. We first heard about him as an immature 17-year-old\nwho bragged to his brothers about dreams he had. In these dreams his brothers and other family\nmembers would eventually bow down before him. (Gen. 37:5,9) Of course this did\nnot set well with them. This led, along\nwith other family situations for them to first begin hating him, then wanting\nto kill him and then actually selling him to some Midianites on the way to\nEgypt. (Gen. 37) <\/p>\n\n\n\n
\nWe next find him in Egypt in the home of Potiphar where he begins to\nshow his potential. The Scriptures tell\nus that, \u201cThe Lord was with Joseph, so he became a successful man.\u201d (Gen. 39:2)\nIt goes on to say, \u201cJoseph found favor in his sight and became his personal\nservant, and Potiphar made him overseer over his house, and all that he owned\nhe put in his charge.\u201d (Gen. 39:4)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The next episode finds Joseph in\nprison. He was put there, not for\nanything that he did, but that he remained true to his commitment to God. When Potiphar\u2019s wife tried to seduce him\nseveral times, he continually refused saying, \u201cHow could I do this great evil\nand sin against God.\u201d (Gen. 39:9) Potiphar\u2019s wife eventually accused him of\nsexual abuse. This landed him in\njail. Even there, God was with him,\ntherefore he found favor in the eyes of the jailer. The chief jailer put him in charge of all of\nthe prisoners that led to his encounter with the cupbearer to Pharaoh, which\nled him to the next important step in his life. \nIt is there we see Joseph come to full maturity. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Joseph spent two years in jail\nbefore being called by Pharaoh to interpret two dreams. It turns out that only\nJoseph I was able to tell the Pharaoh the meaning of those dreams. He spelled out to him a clear and concise the\nmessage from God of what Egypt would be facing for the next fourteen\nyears. Based on this information Joseph laid\nout a strategy for the Pharaoh, which allowed for Egypt to persevere through\nthe tough time in their history. There\nis a telling statement by Pharaoh to show what God had done in Joseph\u2019s life\nduring the 13 refining years he had spent in Egypt. \u201cHe said, \u201cCan we find a man like this, in\nwhom is a divine spirit?\u201d (Gen. 41:38) Pharaoh then said, \u201cSee I have set you\nover all the land of Egypt.\u201d (Gen.\n41:41)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Joseph was put into the position,\nnot only to save Egypt but, to bring about the salvation of Israel. For seven years he administered the strategy\nthat he had shared with the Pharaoh. \nWhen the famine came there was plenty food in Egypt because of the job\nJoseph had done. The land of Canaan\nwhere Jacob was living was going to be affected by the famine that occurred in\nEgypt. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
The second trip by the brothers revealed the true heart of\nJoseph. With a perfect opportunity for revenge he showed great mercy in\nforgiving what his brothers had done to him. Of all the defining moments his\ndeclaration to the twelve men before him may have been his greatest. He said to\nthem concerning their treatment of him. In verse 5 of chapter 45 he said, \u201cNow\ndo not be grieved or angry with yourselves, because you sold me here, for God\nsent me here before you to preserve life.\u201d In verses 7 and 8 he said, \u201cGod sent\nme here before you to preserve for you a remnant in the earth, and to keep you\nalive by a great deliverance. Now, therefore, it was not you who sent me here,\nbut God.\u201d Following the two trips that\nJoseph\u2019s brothers made to Egypt. Joseph\nwas successful in bringing Jacob and his family to Egypt for their survival,\nwhere Jacob lived out the rest of his life. After his father\u2019s death Joseph was\npresented with another opportunity recompence his brothers. They had great fear\nthat he might do just that and came to him with a plea for forgiveness. Once\nagain Joseph showed his character by sharing with them his view of what life\nhad handed him. He stated to them that he had no desire to punish them. He\nunderstood that what had happened was according to a plan by God that was\nbigger and more far reaching than any of them could comprehend. He made a\nstatement and also asked them a question to which the answer should have been\nobvious by then. He said, \u201cDo not be afraid,\nfor am I in God\u2019s place\u201d? He, with that\nquestion relinquished any right to judge them or take revenge. With regard to\nreason he had been brought into Egypt he did say, \u201cAs for you, you meant evil\nagainst me, but God meant it for good in order to bring about this present\nresult, to preserve many people alive. (Gen. 50:19-20)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
In the first couple chapters God showed that He created man to be in the image of the trinity. One of the characteristics that is exclusively given to man by God is freewill, the ability to make choices. Adam was given simple instructions about his responsibilities and what he was to accomplish in obedience to […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[28],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-740","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-defining-moments"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/biblicalmastery.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/740","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/biblicalmastery.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/biblicalmastery.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/biblicalmastery.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/biblicalmastery.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=740"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/biblicalmastery.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/740\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":741,"href":"https:\/\/biblicalmastery.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/740\/revisions\/741"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/biblicalmastery.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=740"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/biblicalmastery.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=740"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/biblicalmastery.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=740"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}