His Presence and His Promise

In the beginning of this passage (chapters were added later) Jacob was fearful of the people around Shechem. God tells Jacob to go back to Bethel. God had a plan the whole time although Jacob did not know it. God told Jacob to go back to where He met with Jacob before. With all the land on the planet, much of the discussion in the U.N. today is over who gets the land in Israel. There is a spiritual struggle and God owns Israel as well as all the Universe. Even though thousands of years have gone by, God's plan will not be thwarted. Everything that God has promised, He will do. God has promised that there will be persecution for all who follow Christ. We can count on tribulation coming but we need to be of good courage because Christ has overcome the World. We need to rejoice when it is beautiful and we need to rejoice when it is not. God has provided with everything we need in order to do His will. God can do what we cannot and He will do everything He has promised. Jacob recognizes that God was with him everywhere he went. We cannot run away from God. If we have not done what we were supposed to do in the past, then we need to stop and do it now. How we dress is tied to cultural things. We should not be calling attention to ourselves in a sexual way. Also, people should not have to look at us and wonder if we are male or female. Jewelry is not where a woman's beauty lies, instead it is our character. We are not be afraid of people, instead we are to fear, obey, and trust God. God worked with people in different ways in different people during different times. Today, if we are in Christ, Christ lives in us. How long did Isaac wait to die, at least 40 years.