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Revival Series Pt. 14
“The Fruits of Revival”
Zachariah 12:10 - 11; 13:1, 2
Revival strengthens and deepens the believer’s experience with God
Revival can make you feel like you got saved all over again
Revival is not done on an individual basis, revival is intended for community
People come together for all kinds of foolishness. The people of God need to come together to overturn darkness.
Revival begins with earnest fervent prayer
True repentance - it was our acts of sin that crucified Christ
I need cleansing
Consecration - the idols have to come down
ICEBREAKER:
Genesis Chapter 38: Judah and Tamar
[MAP]
Genesis 38:1 - 4
1 It happened at that time that Judah went down from his brothers and turned aside to a certain Adullamite, whose name was Hirah. 2 There Judah saw the daughter of a certain Canaanite whose name was Shua. He took her and went in to her, 3 and she conceived and bore a son, and he called his name Er. 4 She conceived again and bore a son, and she called his name Onan.
Question #1: What are some possible reasons for the author’s decision to move away from Joseph’s story and focus on Judah instead?
Lesson: Much of the rest of Genesis focuses on Joseph, but to remind us of the line of succession the author briefly steps away from his story to focus on one of Joseph’s brothers. Judah would eventually become the son to inherit the promise and blessing of Abraham, but at this point in the story he was just another conniving member of a dysfunctional family. He was the one who came up with the idea to sell Joseph into slavery (37:26-27). The narrative in chapter 38 reveals Judah’s deeply flawed character.
Lesson: Judah married the daughter of a Canaanite named Shua. This impetuous move was made seemingly without much thought (38:2). He saw a woman he wanted; he went for her. Such impulsive lust would soon get Judah into trouble.
Genesis 38:5 -11
5 Yet again she bore a son, and she called his name Shelah. Judah was in Chezib when she bore him. 6 And Judah took a wife for Er his firstborn, and her name was Tamar. 7 But Er, Judah’s firstborn, was wicked in the sight of the Lord, and the Lord put him to death. 8 Then Judah said to Onan, “Go in to your brother’s wife and perform the duty of a brother-in-law to her, and raise up offspring for your brother.” 9 But Onan knew that the offspring would not be his. So whenever he went in to his brother’s wife he would waste the semen on the ground, so as not to give offspring to his brother. 10 And what he did was wicked in the sight of the Lord, and he put him to death also. 11 Then Judah said to Tamar his daughter-in-law, “Remain a widow in your father’s house, till Shelah my son grows up”—for he feared that he would die, like his brothers. So Tamar went and remained in her father’s house.
Question #2: What were some of the challenges of being a woman in the ancient world? Was Judah being reasonable or unreasonable in this situation?
Question #3: Was Judah being reasonable or unreasonable in this situation? Explain.
Deuteronomy 25:5 - 10 [Onan’s sin]
5 “If brothers dwell together, and one of them dies and has no son, the wife of the dead man shall not be married outside the family to a stranger. Her husband’s brother shall go in to her and take her as his wife and perform the duty of a husband’s brother to her. 6 And the first son whom she bears shall succeed to the name of his dead brother, that his name may not be blotted out of Israel. 7 And if the man does not wish to take his brother’s wife, then his brother’s wife shall go up to the gate to the elders and say, ‘My husband’s brother refuses to perpetuate his brother’s name in Israel; he will not perform the duty of a husband’s brother to me.’ 8 Then the elders of his city shall call him and speak to him, and if he persists, saying, ‘I do not wish to take her,’ 9 then his brother’s wife shall go up to him in the presence of the elders and pull his sandal off his foot and spit in his face. And she shall answer and say, ‘So shall it be done to the man who does not build up his brother’s house.’ 10 And the name of his house shall be called in Israel, ‘The house of him who had his sandal pulled off.’
Lesson: The custom of the day in this situations such as this was for the next living brother of the deceased to marry the widow. The first son from this marriage, then, would legally belong to the deceased older brother, providing him an heir and preserving his name (see Deut. 25:5-10). Onan, the brother in line for this task, was fine with taking Tamar as his wife, but because he knew that the first offspring would not be his, he intentionally avoided getting her pregnant (38:9).
Lesson: In other words, he was using Tamar for sexual gratification while refusing his responsibility to her and his brother. God was neither pleased nor deceived by this, so He put him to death also (38:10).
Genesis 38:12 - 28
12 In the course of time the wife of Judah, Shua’s daughter, died. When Judah was comforted, he went up to Timnah to his sheepshearers, he and his friend Hirah the Adullamite. 13 And when Tamar was told, “Your father-in-law is going up to Timnah to shear his sheep,” 14 she took off her widow’s garments and covered herself with a veil, wrapping herself up, and sat at the entrance to Enaim, which is on the road to Timnah. For she saw that Shelah was grown up, and she had not been given to him in marriage. 15 When Judah saw her, he thought she was a prostitute, for she had covered her face. 16 He turned to her at the roadside and said, “Come, let me come in to you,” for he did not know that she was his daughter-in-law. She said, “What will you give me, that you may come in to me?” 17 He answered, “I will send you a young goat from the flock.” And she said, “If you give me a pledge, until you send it—” 18 He said, “What pledge shall I give you?” She replied, “Your signet and your cord and your staff that is in your hand.” So he gave them to her and went in to her, and she conceived by him. 19 Then she arose and went away, and taking off her veil she put on the garments of her widowhood. 20 When Judah sent the young goat by his friend the Adullamite to take back the pledge from the woman’s hand, he did not find her. 21 And he asked the men of the place, “Where is the cult prostitute who was at Enaim at the roadside?” And they said, “No cult prostitute has been here.” 22 So he returned to Judah and said, “I have not found her. Also, the men of the place said, ‘No cult prostitute has been here.’ ” 23 And Judah replied, “Let her keep the things as her own, or we shall be laughed at. You see, I sent this young goat, and you did not find her.” 24 About three months later Judah was told, “Tamar your daughter-in-law has been immoral. Moreover, she is pregnant by immorality.” And Judah said, “Bring her out, and let her be burned.” 25 As she was being brought out, she sent word to her father-in-law, “By the man to whom these belong, I am pregnant.” And she said, “Please identify whose these are, the signet and the cord and the staff.” 26 Then Judah identified them and said, “She is more righteous than I, since I did not give her to my son Shelah.” And he did not know her again. 27 When the time of her labor came, there were twins in her womb. 28 And when she was in labor, one put out a hand, and the midwife took and tied a scarlet thread on his hand, saying, “This one came out first.”
Question #4: Was Tamar justified in her actions, or did she do wrong?
Lesson: Tamar now a widow twice over and still childless, was in a tough position. Legally she could expect to marry Shelah, the third son, But Judah seemed to blame Tamar for the death of his other two sons, and he refused to arrange the marriage (38:11, 14). The only way to secure inheritance rights for herself was to produce offspring, Tamar took matters into her own hands. Apparently Tamar knew Judah’s lustful ways, and so she planned to lure him.
Lesson: Judah responded to Tamar’s pregnancy with self-righteous hypocrisy, “Bring her out...and let her be burned to death!” (38:24). But after being confronted with the evidence, his own signet ring, cord and staff, he professed Tamar’s righteousness, and his guilt in not giving his son Shelah to her in marriage.
Lesson: The twins born to Tamar, like Jacob and Esau, the older of these two (Zerah, 38:30), would serve the younger (Perez 38:29). Thus the covenant line of Judah, meaning the line from which the Messiah would come, was preserved and continued, even in the midst of sinful circumstances. God program will not be thwarted. He never accepts or condones sin, but He can still “use” sin to sovereignly accomplish His kingdom plan.
Genesis Chapter 39: Joseph in Potiphar’s House
Question #5: What was your first real job?
Genesis 39:1 - 7
1 Now Joseph had been brought down to Egypt, and Potiphar, an officer of Pharaoh, the captain of the guard, an Egyptian, had bought him from the Ishmaelites who had brought him down there. 2 The Lord was with Joseph, and he became a successful man, and he was in the house of his Egyptian master. 3 His master saw that the Lord was with him and that the Lord caused all that he did to succeed in his hands. 4 So Joseph found favor in his sight and attended him, and he made him overseer of his house and put him in charge of all that he had. 5 From the time that he made him overseer in his house and over all that he had, the Lord blessed the Egyptian’s house for Joseph’s sake; the blessing of the Lord was on all that he had, in house and field. 6 So he left all that he had in Joseph’s charge, and because of him he had no concern about anything but the food he ate. Now Joseph was handsome in form and appearance. 7 And after a time his master’s wife cast her eyes on Joseph and said, “Lie with me.”
Question #6: Have you ever had to deal with workplace harassment? If so how did you handle it?
Lesson: At the same time that Judah was proving his own immorality, younger brother Joseph was showing the opposite characteristic of purity. Our lives as believers are diametrically opposite to the standard, morals and conduct of the world.
Points from this passage:
(39:2) - [The lesson of the sponge] When pressure is applied what is truly in you oozes out. Joseph was so full of the presence of God when life squeezed him, evidence of his dedication to God came out. He became a successful man (this is a description of a slave)
(39:3) - [Testimony] Notice that Potiphar didn’t just see Joseph’s good work ethic. He saw that the Lord was with him. That suggests Joseph must have been telling Potiphar about the Lord because how else would a polytheistic Egyptian have know about him?
(39:4 - 5) [Witness] Joseph shows us how we should conduct ourselves on our jobs. We should be the most punctual, most productive, most trustworthy, honest employees in our companies. Knowing God is with us should make us stand out dramatically.
Genesis 39:8 - 20
8 But he refused and said to his master’s wife, “Behold, because of me my master has no concern about anything in the house, and he has put everything that he has in my charge. 9 He is not greater in this house than I am, nor has he kept back anything from me except you, because you are his wife. How then can I do this great wickedness and sin against God?” 10 And as she spoke to Joseph day after day, he would not listen to her, to lie beside her or to be with her. 11 But one day, when he went into the house to do his work and none of the men of the house was there in the house, 12 she caught him by his garment, saying, “Lie with me.” But he left his garment in her hand and fled and got out of the house. 13 And as soon as she saw that he had left his garment in her hand and had fled out of the house, 14 she called to the men of her household and said to them, “See, he has brought among us a Hebrew to laugh at us. He came in to me to lie with me, and I cried out with a loud voice. 15 And as soon as he heard that I lifted up my voice and cried out, he left his garment beside me and fled and got out of the house.” 16 Then she laid up his garment by her until his master came home, 17 and she told him the same story, saying, “The Hebrew servant, whom you have brought among us, came in to me to laugh at me. 18 But as soon as I lifted up my voice and cried, he left his garment beside me and fled out of the house.” 19 As soon as his master heard the words that his wife spoke to him, “This is the way your servant treated me,” his anger was kindled. 20 And Joseph’s master took him and put him into the prison, the place where the king’s prisoners were confined, and he was there in prison.
Question: #7: When have you had to deal with negative consequences of doing the right thing?
Lesson: Women are often given credit for having intuition, or discernment, but for the crime for which Joseph was accused Potiphar could have had him executed or thrown in a dungeon. Perhaps Potiphar used some discernment about both his wife and Joseph.
Genesis 39:21 - 23
21 But the Lord was with Joseph and showed him steadfast love and gave him favor in the sight of the keeper of the prison. 22 And the keeper of the prison put Joseph in charge of all the prisoners who were in the prison. Whatever was done there, he was the one who did it. 23 The keeper of the prison paid no attention to anything that was in Joseph’s charge, because the Lord was with him. And whatever he did, the Lord made it succeed.
Closing: Joseph obviously had the gift of administration because from the time he was in the fields with his brothers, reporting on them to a house slave, and now in prison he always utilized his gift to the fullest. Can we still maximize our God given gifts no matter in what circumstance we find ourselves?
What principles can we glean from this story about how to resist temptation? How can we prepare ourselves now so that when temptation comes we can successfully resist?