A Lasting Legacy and A Blessed Gift

Genesis 49:1,2,9-12,28-29 Then Jacob called his sons and said, “Gather yourselves together, that I may tell you what shall happen to you in days to come. “Assemble and listen, O sons of Jacob, listen to Israel your father… Judah is a lion’s cub; from the prey, my son, you have gone up. He stooped down; he crouched as a lion and as a lioness; who dares rouse him? The scepter shall not depart from Judah, nor the ruler’s staff from between his feet, until tribute comes to him; and to him shall be the obedience of the peoples. Binding his foal to the vine and his donkey’s colt to the choice vine, he has washed his garments in wine and his vesture in the blood of grapes. His eyes are darker than wine, and his teeth whiter than milk… All these are the twelve tribes of Israel. This is what their father said to them as he blessed them, blessing each with the blessing suitable to him. Then he commanded them and said to them, “I am to be gathered to my people; bury me with my fathers in the cave that is in the field of Ephron the Hittite.

The last moments of Israel’s life are not lost in sorrow and brooding but are spent in ministering and prophesying about God‘s plans for his 12 sons.

When we read some of the prophecies, it seems as though Israel is telling some of his sons off but when we look at the future, all his prophecies prove true and this is witness to the fact that he spoke with vision that only God could give him.

Therefore we come to end of another era of a Bible great and wonder what God has in store for us today?

Jacob brought his sons together to explain to them how they needed to be together unlike the sons of his fathers Abraham and Isaac. Even though his words were harsh to some of his sons, they were purposeful and we will see and appreciate them in time.

The gift of prophecy that Jacob had been an interesting one because it helped him foretell great things about his own but when Joseph was lost those many years, he had no clue what happened.

This tells us that God gives us gifts that are to be used for His glory alone and not for our own benefit. Joseph’s ability to read dreams was a God-given gift and was useful for the glory of God.

Today I was also reminded of the lion of Judah, Jesus Christ, who came from Judah’s lineage and the words Jacob used for Judah seem to reflect Jesus most. Jacob was given the vision of Jesus and this was a prophecy of the coming messiah!

At some point in our lives, we will stop to exist and what matters not is how great we were or how much we were worth but the legacy we leave. The greatest legacy we can leave is the truth about the truth or the truth about Jesus Christ for he is the all-in-all and in Him is a life of fulfillment and purpose beyond any other.

I pray today that you and I will revisit the cross and re-examine our hearts to see how desperately we need Jesus as our Savior and how only He can make us complete.

In His Loving Service,
ServantBoy

Isaiah 46:13 I am bringing my righteousness near, it is not far away; and my salvation will not be delayed. I will grant salvation to Zion, my splendor to Israel.

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