EXAMPLES FROM THE PAST

By Orville Freestone

Lakewood, Colorado

Daniel – A Purposed Life

“But Daniel purposed in his heart” – Dan. 1:8

When the Babylonians conquered the Kingdom of Judah they exiled the Jews to Babylon in three separate deportations. They left only a small population in Judah that soon fled to Egypt. (Jer. 43:7 & 52:16) The first to go into exile were the princes and prominent persons. Daniel and his friends Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah were among these. It was the policy of the Babylonians to “pick the brains” of the conquered peoples for their own benefit. Daniel and his friends were thus picked. Their “education” was learning the Aramaic language, the lore of the “wise men” and various government responsibilities. Such positions, some with considerable power, brought pressure to conform to the society, to assimilate. Thus began the twenty-six hundred years of Jewish resistance to “assimilation.”

The first problem Daniel faced was the matter of food. He “purposed in his heart” not to “defile himself” with the kings food. (Dan. 1:8) The reason for this was the kings food was not kosher. The wine and the flesh had been dedicated to the gods of Babylon. By courtesy and diplomacy he and his friends were excused from this requirement. This meant that their diet was of necessity vegetarian. A second problem was idolatry. Israel was the only nation that was not idolatrous. The third chapter of Daniel is about Daniel’s friend, not him. They too were true to their convictions, ready to face death in Nebuchadnezzar’s fiery furnace rather than to conform. Doubtless Daniel faced like pressure. Another problem arose over the matter of prayer. Daniel’s non-Jewish peers were jealous of his success. They observed that he was a man of prayer. Daniel openly prayed in the manner Solomon had prescribed. (I Kings 8:46-53) His enemies succeeded in making this illegal, but Daniel had the courage to continue to pray for his people. He did not fear the lions den. God assured him that his prayers were heard, (Dan. 10:12) but He had plans for his people and they were very long range plans.

Because of Daniel’s courage and faithfulness he was in a position to influence the government for good concerning his people. He also was entrusted with revelations concerning the future. Thus he ministered to those of his time and also to us. Daniel lived in an alien society, but not of his own choosing. He realized that he must live apart from the world around him. He was faithful to his responsibilities, but would not comfort to the spirit of the age. We also are in this world but not of it. (John 17:14) We, too, must not be conformed to this world. (Rom. 12:2)

EXAMPLES FROM THE PAST

By Orville Freestone

Lakewood, Colorado

DAVID – A HEART FOR GOD

“A man after God’s own heart” –

I Sam. 13:14

David was a very complex person; a shepherd, a musician, a warrior and a king, but his distinguishing characteristic was he had a heart for God. Unlike Saul, who justified himself when denounced by the prophet, David was repentant when accused of sin. David was a warrior who credited God for his success. (Psalm 18:20) He was a very sensitive person showing deep emotion in his psalms. As Israel’s king, he became the standard by which all his successors were judged.

David was the youngest son of Jesse (I Sam. 16:11-13) so it was he who cared for the sheep. At that time the wealth of a family was in sheep and cattle. Shepherding was menial work, but it was also a responsibility and David proved faithful in this position. He led the flocks to “green pastures” and beside “still waters” and defended them from wild beasts. (I Sam. 17:34) As a youth he showed not only bravery, but confidence in the Lord when he faced Goliath. He was “mighty and valiant,” (I Sam. 16:18) but humble and discreet and “the Lord was with him” (I Sam. 18:14) This was true throughout his life. He was genuinely humble. He was respectful toward Saul even when Saul sought to kill him. He honored the king as “the Lord’s anointed.” He was humble before the Lord when he put off his royal robes to dance and warship before the Ark of God. When his wife Mical rebuked him for not behaving like a king, he brushed off her criticism.

As a warrior, he led his troops and shared their dangers. He gathered a motley group of misfits (I Sam. 22:2) and welded them into a formidable force that became the core of his army. They were fiercely loyal to him. His personal bravery and loyalty won them to his cause. When all the tribes hailed him as king, he was able to build them into a nation. By treaty and by war he created a “greater Israel” that reached from Egypt to the Euphrates river.

In those days the first order of business for a new king was to secure his throne by eliminating all who might contest his claim. This David did not do. Most of those who would oppose his right to the throne were dead. Contrary to custom, David sought to find any of the house of Saul who were still living to “show kindness to” them. (2 Sam. 9) He found crippled Mephibosheth son of Jonathan. His love for Jonathan was tender and true and he secured his rights and property to his only remaining heir. His one great desire was to build a temple for The Lord to house the ark of God and the Law. This The Lord forbid him to do, but said that his son should build it. So David gathered all the materials on site before he died.

David was an acclaimed musician. Their music was very different from our western style and we do not know for sure how it sounded or what the musical terms for the psalms mean, but a measure of their greatness and of the others in the Book of Psalms is that they deeply affect us today. What is more familiar to Christians today then The Twenty Third Psalm? David’s music could lift Saul out of his depression and his poetry does the same for us.

David was not always wise concerning those to whom he entrusted responsibility, such as Abner who was not always loyal, or Joab and Abishai, David’s kin, who killed Abner. (2 Sam. 3:30) Nor was he wise in dealing with his sons. However, at the end of his life, only one thing was held against him, his great sin in the matter of Uriah the Hittite. David greatly wronged his friend and faithful warrior by committing adultery with his wife, then compounded the crime by having Uriah killed in battle. (2 Sam. 15:5)

The measure of his greatness was that when Nathan the prophet confronted him with this great sin, David said those seldom spoken words “I have sinned.” (2 Sam. 12:13) What other ancient oriental king would have accepted such reproof? God forgave David but he did not escape the consequences, which he humbly accepted. It was this repentance and his attitude toward God that made him “a man after God’s own heart!

EXAMPLES FROM THE PAST

By Orville Freestone

Lakewood, Colorado

SAMUEL – A FAITHFUL LEADER

“God let none of his words fall to the ground” –
I Sam. 3:19

Samuel was born in a most difficult time for Israel. The old confederacy of the tribes was badly fraying and the period of the Judges was coming to an end. It was a time of anarchy and chaos. Worse, most of the country was occupied by the Philistines. Samuel was the last of the Judges and also a prophet who would be the transitional leader to the age of the monarchy. 

Samuel was remarkable even as a child. In fulfillment of her vow, his mother took him to live at the Tabernacle with an aged priest as soon as he was weaned. In those days a child was weaned at about the age of three years. Imagine leaving such a small child away from mother the father and far from home! But there is no record of his crying for his mother. He always accepted life from the hand of the Lord. Most remarkably, as a child he heard the voice of God. How difficult it must have been for him to tell Eli that God said judgment would come to Eli and his sons.

Israel early accepted that Samuel was a prophet (I Sam. 3:20) and leader and his was a long career. Being a Levite, Samuel served Eli in the tasks allotted to the Levites, but he was not a priest and did not fill the office of priest. He offered the sacrifices that the Patriarchs and prophets such as Elijah offered, that is, the whole burnt offering. There were seers, “men of God,” and even prophets before Samuel, but he founded by his example the prophetic movement in Israel. (I Sam. 9:9)

Israel also accepted Samuel as a Judge and resorted to him for guidance and advice. Samuel also has a “circuit” as Judge where he traveled yearly to judge Israel. (I Sam. 7:15-17) As prophet and judge, he invested first Saul, then  David as king thus completing the transition from Commonwealth to Kingdom. Israel universally honored him. God attested to his life and ministry, for He  “let none of his words fall to the ground.” All that he said was true and all he foretold came to pass. (I Sam. 3:19) This is said of no other person in the Bible!

Samuel was a faithful and godly leader in the most adverse of circumstances. His character is in stark contrast to Eli and his sons, who were “corrupt and did not know the Lord.” Eli, himself, was rebuked by “a man of God” for not restraining his sons. (I Sam. 2:27-36) With so many leaders of high promise failing so miserably in office, Samuel shows what faithful leader, today as then, is like and what he can accomplish. May we be faithful  in whatever position we find ourselves and leave the outcome to the issues of our lives to God.

EXAMPLES FROM THE PAST

By Orville Freestone

Lakewood, Colorado

MOSES – HE CHOSE TO SUFFER

Moses chose to suffer with the people of God
–    Heb. 11:25

When Moses was born, the Israelites were an oppressed and enslaved people. Pharaoh ordered that all the male babies of the Hebrews be killed, thus beginning the many attempts at the destruction of this people, the first such “genocide.” (Exodus chapter 2) The importance of Moses cannot be overestimated.  After three thousand five hundred years his influence is strong in Judaism, Christianity and western civilization.

Moses was a fully bi-cultural man. From his Hebrew mother he learned his “mother tongue” and faith. As “the son of Pharaoh’s daughter” he “was learned in all the wisdom of the  Egyptians and was mighty in words and deeds.” (Acts 7:22) What were his accomplishments as an Egyptian prince is not told. We can safely venture that it included both military and government careers.  Theses were abilities that he later used in leading Israel. As to his character, we see that he had compassion for the oppressed. (Exodus 2) In Numbers 12:3 we read a parenthetic statement, probably inserted later by another, that “the man Moses was very meek, above all the men which were upon the face of the earth.” This is the account of the first third of Moses’ life.

At the age of forty he had a “mid-life crisis.” How could he, a Hebrew, separate himself from his own people and their suffering. But though he would identity with his people, they would not accept him. Thus, “by faith” he spent the next forty years as an exile. The first forty  years of his life were determined for him by Providence. The rest of his life was determined by his decisions!

We read (Heb. 11:24-28) of his decisions of faith. He refused to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter. He chose “rather to suffer affliction with the people of God, than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season.” He “esteemed the reproach of Christ of greater riches than the treasures in Egypt.” He “had respect unto the recompense of the reward.” He “forsook Egypt, not fearing the wrath of the king.” These five decisions not only determined Moses’ future, but also equipped him for the future. Not a lot is told about his life on the “backside of the desert.” (Exodus 3:1) Away from the pomp and glitter of  Egypt God could talk to him. Like Paul, he knew how to be abased as will as how to abound – Phil. 4:12. As a result, he “saw Him who is invisible.”

The final third of Moses’ life was spent leading his people from Egypt to Canaan, from bondage to freedom. It took thirty days to take Israel out of  Egypt, but forty years to take Egypt out of Israel! He is forever known as the great Lawgiver. The Torah was the legacy he left to Israel. The word Torah means much more than law. It is true that the New Testament phrase “the Law” usually means what the word law means to us and refers to the 613 commandments of the Torah. In Hebrew the word Torah means instruction. It also means the Word of  God. (Psalm 119:21). The Torah was a great revelation of God to Israel, leading them to the revelation of God in Christ. (Gal. 3:24). Moses is an example to us of the power of our decisions. Every persons life is the sum total of all one’s decisions.

EXAMPLES FROM THE PAST

By Orville Freestone

Lakewood, Colorado

JOSEPH – ALWAYS TRUE

“You meant evil, but God meant it for good” – Gen. 50:20.

The definitions of the word “true” as referring to human character are: faithful, loyal, constant, reliable, genuine. All of these terms are appropriate in describing Joseph: the scripture finds nothing to fault him. The purity of his life contrasts with “the evil report” of his brothers. (Gen. 37:2) Joseph was the son of Jacob’s favorite wife, Rachel. He was also, until Benjamin’s birth, the youngest son. In this account we see the evils of polygamy. There was jealousy among Jacob’s wives. Jacob’s favoritism for Joseph caused not only the jealousy of his brothers, but also their hatred. It was not a happy home.

It may have been unwise for seventeen year old Joseph to recount his dreams to his father and brothers. That only increased their hatred for him, but the Bible does not fault him and those dreams came to pass. His brothers certainly came to regret their behavior. For the next thirteen years (Gen. 41:46) he endured slavery and imprisonment for a crime he did not commit. When Potiphar’s wife “cast her eyes upon him” intending to seduce him he did not betray his master’s trust. His answer was “how can I do this great wickedness and sin against God.” While he was in prison he soon gained the trust of his keeper. In both circumstances he was trustworthy and reliable while remaining true to his godly heritage. Twice it is written that “God was with him.” (Gen. 39:2 & 21)

When Joseph interpreted Pharaoh’s dreams he was made second only to Pharaoh in the administration of Egypt. With his elevation to high office came pomp, privilege and wealth, (Gen. 41:37-45) but prosperity did not change Joseph, himself. He was given a princess for a wife and when he named his two sons (Gen. 41:50-52) he showed his sensitive personality and his piety. The name of his firstborn, Mannaseh, means “making to forget” and the name of his second son, Ephraim, means “making to be fruitful.” He could forget the hurts of the past and be thankful for the blessings of the present. This is a worthy achievement indeed! He was also true to Pharaoh and his responsibilities.

It was nine years after he interpreted Pharaoh’s dream before his own dreams began to be fulfilled. He was thirty nine when his brothers came to Egypt to buy food, twenty two years after they sought to do away with him. When he recognized them his heart longed for them. Now he could see God’s hand in all his misfortunes and those many years of exile and privation. He was true to his family freely forgiving them and saved them from disaster. But most of all, he was always true to God and “God was with him.” Nearly two thousand years before Paul wrote Romans 8:28, Joseph had learned the lesson!

EXAMPLES FROM THE PAST

By Orville Freestone

Lakewood, Colorado

JACOB – A DIVIDED HEART

“Unite my heart to fear thy name” Ps. 86:11.

Jacob’s life was turbulent and most of his troubles were self-made. He had a heart for God, but also a strong will to “get ahead in life.” His heart was divided. His two names, Jacob and Israel, indicate this duality. He was named Jacob – supplanter – at birth because he and his twin Esau “struggled” in the womb before and at birth. (Gen. 25:24-26) For many years he struggled to supplant his brother as the first-born. The tragedy was he didn’t have to vie for this place as God had promised it to him. (Gen. 25:23) He acquired the name Israel – Prince of God – when the Angel of the Lord finally subdued both his body and spirit. (Gen. 32: 24-32).

One of his “sharp business deals” was when he took advantage of his brother’s fatigue to bargain a meal for his birthright. To be fair, Esau little valued the birthright, in fact he “despised” it (Gen. 25:34) though later he regretted the deal. (Heb. 12:16-17) The birthright was not only for the family property, but included the patriarchal blessing. These blessings were highly valued and in the cases of Esau and Jacob they were prophetic. By subterfuge and lies Jacob and his mother cheated Esau of the blessing. (Gen. 27) This was unnecessary as it was God who would grant it. This caused such bitterness that Jacob had to go into exile. He never saw his mother again!

Under the guise of seeking a wife (he acquired two), Jacob fled to Syria to escape Esau’s murderous intent. (Gen. 27:41) It was a long journey from the Negeb of Canaan to Padan-Aram in what is today southwestern Turkey, on the Euphrates river. Jacob walked the whole distance camping in the open. We do not read of  God appearing to Esau or that he even had a bent toward God. He did appear to Jacob in a dream at the place later called Bethel, He saw a staircase to heaven with the Lord at the top who assured him of protection and blessing.

In his uncle Laban Jacob found his scheming equal. First Laban switched brides, claiming custom. (Gen. 29:26) Then he changed Jacob’s wages “ten times.” (Gen. 31:41) By hard work and selective breeding Jacob increased his cattle. Every time Laban sought to take advantage of Jacob God blessed Jacob and he acknowledged that. (Gen. 31:42)

After twenty years the Lord again appeared to Jacob and told him to return home. (Gen. 31:13) This time he did not travel alone. He had two wives, two concubines, eleven children and much cattle. The nearer they came to Canaan the more his conscience bothered him and the more he dreaded meeting his brother Esau even fearing him. It was then that one of the strangest events of scripture occurred. (Gen. 32:24-32) He was attacked in the middle of the night and  until daybreak. Finally Jacob realized that he was wrestling with the Angel of the Lord and he received from Him a new name, Israel, and God’s blessing. Why such a strange encounter? God was dramatically showing him that all his life he had not only been struggling within himself, but also with God. Now Jacob was a changed man., Now he was ready to meet Esau. When he returned to Bethel and worshiped he called the place El-Bethel, the God of God’s house. He had come to know God.

For the rest of his  life he was Israel. But the results of his earlier life followed him. He was troubled by his wayward sons and grieved over the loss of Joseph. But finally, his heart was no longer divided. He could live in peace. God would now be known as the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Joseph’s eleven brothers were reconciled to Joseph and they became the twelve patriarchs of the twelve tribes of Israel.

EXAMPLES FROM THE PAST

By Orville Freestone

Lakewood, Colorado

ABRAHAM – THE STEPS OF FAITH

“Those who walk in the steps of that faith
of our father Abraham” Rom. 4:12.

The apostle Paul wrote that the things that happened to the ancients were written for our learning, that we should not repeat their mistakes and errors, but learn from their experiences of faith (I Cor. 10:11). Abraham is certainly one of the greatest persons of history, not just of the Bible. After four thousand years he stands tall as an example of faith and as one of the foundations of western culture and thought. His imprint is deep in history. He is especially noted in scripture for his faith. Paul challenges us to follow in the steps of Abraham’s faith. What are they?

His first step of faith is that He believed God. God made seven promises to Abraham: “I will make you a great nation, I will bless you, I will make your name great, you shall be a blessing, I will bless those who bless you, I will curse him who curses you, and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.” (Gen. 12:1-3 ) Abraham believed what God said, even though it seemed impossible. This changed Abraham’s life: he became a pilgrim of faith. We, too, can believe God, and our lives will be changed.

Abraham’s second step of faith is that he obeyed God. It is difficult for us to comprehend what God’s command to Abraham meant, to leave his family and country and go to where he knew not. Our times are very different from him. To belong to a family and tribe was security. When he left Ur, he left one of the great cities of his day. But he obeyed God, went out to where he knew not, and became a pilgrim of faith. (Heb. 11:8-9) Peter assures us that we are pilgrims of faith and that we, too, can obey God. (I Peter 2:11)

The third step of Abraham’s faith is that he worshiped God. Wherever he went he build altars (Gen. 12:7; 12:8; 13:18; 22:9) and he returned to those altars to worship. (Gen. 13:4) Too often, when Christians move to a different place, or take another job, the church where they will worship is not a part of the plans. Then, when distance from their church is too great or there is none where they go, they become church drop-outs. The admonition to not forsake the assembling for worship (Heb. 10:25) is for our spiritual welfare.

The fourth step of Abraham’s faith is he trusted God. Genesis 15:6 reads “he believed in the Lord, that is he put his faith in the Lord, he trusted Him. He believed that God was able to raise Isaac from the dead, if that was necessary to fulfill His promise. (Heb. 11:18-19) This was a test of faith more severe than we are likely to have and we too, can trust the Lord for our lives. Like him, we can trust God’s promises to us. It is greatly important that we understand what are the promises of God for us. It is not true that “every promise in the Book is mine.” Some of the promises in the Bible are of judgment for the unbelieving. Other promises are to Israel and not for us. We do have “exceeding great and precious promises” on which we can trust our lives. It is important that we know what they are.

These are the steps of the faith of Abraham and we can walk in them too. But like us, at times Abraham’s faith failed. When there was a famine in the land of Canaan Abraham took his family to Egypt to survive. (Gen. 12:10) He lied about his relation to Sara causing problems all around. This was certainly not of faith, but God graciously protected them. When it became apparent that Sara could not have a child, they resorted to a common law of that time that a slave could be a surrogate mother for an heir. (Gen. 16) God soon made it clear that this was not what He had in mind. Only trouble came from this. Again in Genesis 20, Abraham lied about Sara being his wife. Again, the result was grief. It took a while for Abraham to learn that “works” are not faith. Even so, Abraham did walk by faith and became “the friend of God.” (II Chron. 20:7) These are lessons that we, too, must learn.

EXAMPLES FROM THE PAST

By Orville Freestone

Lakewood, Colorado

ABRAHAM – THE STEPS OF FAITH

“Those who walk in the steps of that faith
of our father Abraham” Rom. 4:12.

The apostle Paul wrote that the things that happened to the ancients were written for our learning, that we should not repeat their mistakes and errors, but learn from their experiences of faith (I Cor. 10:11). Abraham is certainly one of the greatest persons of history, not just of the Bible. After four thousand years he stands tall as an example of faith and as one of the foundations of western culture and thought. His imprint is deep in history. He is especially noted in scripture for his faith. Paul challenges us to follow in the steps of Abraham’s faith. What are they?

His first step of faith is that He believed God. God made seven promises to Abraham: “I will make you a great nation, I will bless you, I will make your name great, you shall be a blessing, I will bless those who bless you, I will curse him who curses you, and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.” (Gen. 12:1-3 ) Abraham believed what God said, even though it seemed impossible. This changed Abraham’s life: he became a pilgrim of faith. We, too, can believe God, and our lives will be changed.

Abraham’s second step of faith is that he obeyed God. It is difficult for us to comprehend what God’s command to Abraham meant, to leave his family and country and go to where he knew not. Our times are very different from him. To belong to a family and tribe was security. When he left Ur, he left one of the great cities of his day. But he obeyed God, went out to where he knew not, and became a pilgrim of faith. (Heb. 11:8-9) Peter assures us that we are pilgrims of faith and that we, too, can obey God. (I Peter 2:11)

The third step of Abraham’s faith is that he worshiped God. Wherever he went he build altars (Gen. 12:7; 12:8; 13:18; 22:9) and he returned to those altars to worship. (Gen. 13:4) Too often, when Christians move to a different place, or take another job, the church where they will worship is not a part of the plans. Then, when distance from their church is too great or there is none where they go, they become church drop-outs. The admonition to not forsake the assembling for worship (Heb. 10:25) is for our spiritual welfare.

The fourth step of Abraham’s faith is he trusted God. Genesis 15:6 reads “he believed in the Lord, that is he put his faith in the Lord, he trusted Him. He believed that God was able to raise Isaac from the dead, if that was necessary to fulfill His promise. (Heb. 11:18-19) This was a test of faith more severe than we are likely to have and we too, can trust the Lord for our lives. Like him, we can trust God’s promises to us. It is greatly important that we understand what are the promises of God for us. It is not true that “every promise in the Book is mine.” Some of the promises in the Bible are of judgment for the unbelieving. Other promises are to Israel and not for us. We do have “exceeding great and precious promises” on which we can trust our lives. It is important that we know what they are.

These are the steps of the faith of Abraham and we can walk in them too. But like us, at times Abraham’s faith failed. When there was a famine in the land of Canaan Abraham took his family to Egypt to survive. (Gen. 12:10) He lied about his relation to Sara causing problems all around. This was certainly not of faith, but God graciously protected them. When it became apparent that Sara could not have a child, they resorted to a common law of that time that a slave could be a surrogate mother for an heir. (Gen. 16) God soon made it clear that this was not what He had in mind. Only trouble came from this. Again in Genesis 20, Abraham lied about Sara being his wife. Again, the result was grief. It took a while for Abraham to learn that “works” are not faith. Even so, Abraham did walk by faith and became “the friend of God.” (II Chron. 20:7) These are lessons that we, too, must learn.