We live in a culture that does not recognize or appreciate the father’s blessings, but the Bible teaches us the importance of t!
And now your two sons, Ephraim and Manasseh, who were born to you in the land of Egypt before I came to you in Egypt, are mine; as Reuben and Simeon, they shall be mine. Your offspring whom you beget after them shall be yours; they will be called by the name of their brothers in their inheritance. Genesis 48:5-6
Then Israel said to Joseph, “Behold, I am dying, but God will be with you and bring you back to the land of your fathers. Moreover I have given to you one portion above your brothers, which I took from the hand of the Amorite with my sword and my bow.” Genesis 48:21-22
I shared in the last devotional that Jacob cursed his firstborn son after Reuben decided to sleep with his father’s concubine. On the other hand, he blessed Joseph’s sons with double portion and treated them as his own sons because he was pleased with Joseph.
If you were to read the story of allotments in the book of Joshua, on its surface, it appears that it doesn’t makes sense for Ephraim and Manasseh, Joseph’s sons, to receive a double portion and for Reuben not to receive the double portion. However, reading the passage from Genesis 48 brings clarity to the distribution of the allotment.
Although, Jacob spoke the blessing and the curse some five hundred years before, they came into fruition when the land was allocated to Jacob’s descendants in the Promised Land. Ephraim and Manasseh received double portion as they were treated Jacob’s two sons and Reuben received one portion on the East side of Jordan River.
“Honor your father and your mother, that your days may be long upon the land which the Lord your God is giving you. Exodus 20:12
The above scripture is one of God’s Ten Commandments, and it is the first commandment that deals with our human relationships. The Lord cares so much about our relationship with our parents that He made this the first commandment in our human relationships.
Honoring our parents is about having a heart posture of honor for our parents. This does not mean that as adults we have to obey and follow everything they tell us, but we respect them for the role and the position that God has given them in our lives.
Interestingly, the above passage tells us that the Lord was going to provide land to the Israelites and that in order to enjoy it, they needed to be in the right relationship with their parents. We, on the other hand, tend to think about purchasing land, house, car, etc, as the priority of life for a young person. However, the above verse tells me that those things will come, but we need to make sure that we are in the right relationship with our parents and that we have their blessings in our lives.
The above verse also gives us the promise of long life when we honor our parents. The world offers all kinds of diets, vitamins, serums, and procedures to stay and live long, but the scripture provides the secret of long life is in honoring the parents. It is God’s promise!
A father’s blessings has a huge impact in the life of a person, and we need to do what we can to live at peace with our parents.
How is your relationship with your parents? Is there anything you can do to make things right?
I will continue with this subject in the next devotional.