TimFortner.com I John 4. The Tests for the Real Thing. Do you remember the cola wars? The advertising campaign was based on a taste test to see if you could identify the real Coca-Cola. Consumers overwhelmingly picked Coca-Cola as the real thing. And the tag line became- Coca-Cola- The Real Thing. In Psalms 34- the scriptures … Read more
I John 4: Part 2. What the World Needs Now What the world needs now- is love, sweet love; its the only thing that there is just too little of Burt Baccarach, circa 1960s song. When I fall in love- it will be forever. In a restless world like this is- love is over … Read more
Genesis 6: Noah and the Flood When we come to the story of Noah, we once again find a character from the early chapters of Genesis who made it to the Hebrews Hall of Faith in Hebrews 11. In verse 5 we read that God saw how great the wickedness was on earth. We are … Read more
Genesis 35: Jacob Returns to Bethel. Verse 1 of this chapter starts out with God speaking to Jacob. It makes me wonder had Jacob been calling on the Lord since the slaughter of the men of Shechem by his sons. Surely given the circumstances of what had happened in Schechem, Jacob was desperate to hear … Read more
Genesis 37: The Story of Joseph Begins What we are about to observe in this last section of Genesis is two fold: Joseph must be prepared for his role of leadership and this will involve a 13 year journey whose hardships will humble Joseph and clear the path for fellowship with his brothers. … Read more
Genesis 38: The Story of Judah and Tamar (Additional scripture: I John 1: 5-2:1) Verse1 tells us at that time, Judah left his brothers and went down to stay with a man of Adullam named Hirah. At that time refers to the time after they had sold Joseph into slavery ( Judahs … Read more
Genesis 41-42: From Rags to Riches. Joseph is the Cinderella Man isnt he? In just a matter of moments he goes from rags to riches. When we last saw Joseph standing in the court of the Pharaoh, he had just interpreted the dream successfully and told the king and his counselors what … Read more
Genesis 39: Joseph in Egypt In the last chapter we saw what happened to Judah when he was not in fellowship with the Lord. Recognizing that fellowship with the True and Living God is the secret and source to power over sin and temptation we see that Judah was finally forced to see … Read more
Genesis 40 -41: HE knows the way I take. Joseph had a can-do spirit- but he also had a cannot spirit. . When it came to sin against his employer/owner, Potiphar and sin against God- Joseph said I cannot do such a wicked thing. Do you have a can do … Read more
Genesis 31: A New Beginning. In verses1-3: we see that Jacob perceives the resentment and change in attitude of Labans sons and Laban himself toward Jacob. Word has come to Jacob that Labans sons were complaining and bitter over Jacobs prosperity and that the wealth Jacob had gained- rightfully belonged to their father … Read more
Genesis 30: Lets Make a Deal. This chapter sees Jacobs family increase, another encounter with his father-in-law and a series of deals not only with Laban but also with Leah and Rachel. Jacob sometimes seems to be the man who is always trying to please all those around him. … Read more
Genesis 27. The end of chapter 26 tells us Esau was 40 years old when he took to wife Judith a Hittite. We are told this grieved Isaac and Rebekah. It also reveals how little interest Esau really had in the Covenant Promise and blessing and had no interest in Gods Word. … Read more
Genesis 28: Jacobs Journey Isaac seems to have been shocked out of his carnal lethargy and now realizes what was almost a huge mistake in blessing Esau rather than Jacob. So now in the clear light of Gods will, he will bless Jacob again with the convenant blessing. Notice the name of God Isaac … Read more
Genesis 29: Jacob Arrives at His Uncle Labans House. The next three chapters of Genesis record the 20 years Jacob spent in the employment of his Uncle Laban. Jacob left Bethel a different man from what he was when he left his home. In New Testament terminology, Jacob was saved at Bethel. Now … Read more
Genesis 34: Dinah Defiled In this chapter, you will not read or hear the name of God. His Name ended chapter 33- it starts chapter 35. But in this chapter there is no mention of His Name. We do not see Jacob or anyone calling upon the name of the Lord. How can any of … Read more
Genesis 33: A New Name a New Walk? Jacob has a new name- Israel- he has also acquired a pronounced limp. A reminder of his encounter with the Living God. He is , as we continue to see, a flawed man who has a tendency to fall into old patterns of … Read more
Genesis 32: Jacobs Return. Lets Get Ready to Rumble! Having left Laban behind, Jacobs journey and thoughts turn toward his return to Canaan and meeting with Esau face to face. As it was at Bethel, Jacob is met in some fashion by the angels of God. Consider the following: Jacob … Read more
Genesis 19- The Destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah. This is a sad story in this chapter- made even sadder when you realize how much like Sodom and Gomorrah we have become in the United States and indeed in the world. Twice in Genesis, God has revealed to us there is a tipping … Read more
Genesis 20: The Old Nature The incident recorded in this chapter regarding Abrahams action is somewhat of a shock. Here is Abraham doing the same thing he did 30 years ago. We would have thought Abraham had reached a point of spiritual maturity that he would not commit such a sin as he had … Read more
Genesis 22: Mount Moriah- An Unusual Christmas Story. The word moriah means forseen of Jehovah We are told in Revelation before the foundation of the earth, the Lamb was slain. This means mans sin was foreseen by God. Therefore God built into the plan of creation- the plan of salvation. Consider the watchmaker … Read more
Genesis 23-. The Death of Sarah Genesis 23:1-4- Sarah lived to be a hundred and twenty-seven years old. She died at Hebron in the land of Canaan, and Abraham went to mourn for Sarah and to weep over her. Then Abraham rose from beside his dead wife and spoke to the Hittites. He said … Read more
Genesis 26. Like Father- Like Son. This is the only chapter that is devoted to Isaac. It comes at some time after the sons are grown for we will read of the marriage of Esau in the end of the chapter. Also there is no mention of Esau and Jacob accompanying their parents on … Read more
Genesis 24: Here Comes the Bride This story of a bride for Isaac is rich in type and symbolism. It has three dimensions which we will explore. It is the longest chapter in Genesis- containing 67 verses. Part of the length is due to the repetition of the story by the servant to Rebekah and … Read more
Genesis 25: Faith is living without scheming. If you are not familiar with the story of Jacob and Esau- you will soon see why I entitled this lesson- Faith is living without scheming. This chapter ends the life of one of the most famous men in the world- Abraham. Revered by Jews, … Read more