Love Worth Finding

Guest (Male): Are you able to see the blessing waiting beyond death? Listen to Adrian Rogers.

Adrian Rogers: Are you ready to die? The Bible tells us in the book of Hebrews that one of Satan's ways to keep people in bondage is through the fear of death. And the Bible tells us in that same passage that Jesus, through death, destroyed him that had the power of death, that is the devil.

That is, if you're still afraid to die, it means two things: you're afraid of the power of death and the devil, and number two, that you don't really understand what Jesus Christ did for you.

Guest (Male): Welcome to Love Worth Finding, featuring the timeless truth of the gospel shared in the biblical messages of Adrian Rogers. At the end of Genesis, Joseph has reached the end of his life and gives instruction to his loved ones of what to do with the bones he left behind.

Joseph had faith that God would deliver the Israelites out of Egypt. So much so, he asked that they take his bones with them. When we understand the blessing in his box of bones, we'll learn how to live confidently and die without fear. If you have your Bible, turn to Hebrews chapter 11, we'll begin in verse 22, as Adrian Rogers shares the blessing in a box of bones.

Adrian Rogers: Find Hebrews chapter 11, and in a moment, we're going to look in verse 22. We're talking about champions of faith. One thing I desire for my life is faith and along with it, wisdom. I know that your Christian life is going to be in direct proportion to your faith. For Jesus said, according to your faith, be it unto you.

Now you may not be a champion singer or athlete, musician, business person, politician, but you—yes, you—can be a champion of faith. And that's why this 11th chapter of Hebrews has been written to encourage us, and we've been talking about champions of faith. And today we come to the life of a man named Joseph.

Joseph lived as a great man, and as proof of it, he died a great man. He lived by faith, and he died by faith. Look, if you will, in verse 22. "By faith, Joseph, when he died, made mention of the departing of the children of Israel." Let me give you the background there. The children of Israel, that's the Jewish people, were in the land of Egypt and they were living high, wide, and handsome.

They had it made. Joseph was the Prime Minister of Egypt. But he says, "You're going to be leaving here." He made mention of the departure of the children of Israel and gave commandment concerning his bones. Now friend, of all of the things that Joseph did—the story is magnificent and it takes verse after verse after verse in the Old Testament—but here God just chooses one little segment of the life of Joseph: the commandment he gave concerning his bones.

And what was the commandment concerning his bones? As we're going to see, Joseph said, "You're going to be leaving here. And when you do, take my bones with you. I wouldn't be caught dead here. I want you to take me out when you go. You're going on to Canaan. You're going to the promised land and I'll be dead. My body will molder and turn to dust. My bones will remain and when you go, take my bones with you."

Now what on earth does that mean? And what does that say to us today? Well, I want to talk to you today about the blessings in a box of bones. The blessings in a box of bones. You see, Joseph knew that he was going to die. Didn't bother him one scintilla of an iota. He's not bothered at all. He's ready to die. Are you ready to die?

The Bible tells us in the book of Hebrews that one of Satan's ways to keep people in bondage is through the fear of death. And the Bible tells us in that same passage that Jesus, through death, destroyed him that had the power of death, that is the devil. That is, if you're still afraid to die, it means two things: you're afraid of the power of death and the devil, and number two, that you don't really understand what Jesus Christ did for you.

Friend, look up here and let me tell you something. You are not ready to live until you no longer afraid to die. Now, I'm not afraid to die. Not at all. Not at all. Now, I can tell you that I may be afraid of the act of dying, but I'm not afraid to die. I'm not afraid of the consequences of death. Neither was Joseph.

But a lot of people are. Man is the only creature that knows he's going to die and he's trying desperately to forget it. If you don't believe that, look around and see the elderly woman with too much makeup. Look at the man way past middle age driving a sports car with a gold chain around his neck trying to look like a teenager.

And when people die, the funeral place is festooned with flowers and the cemetery's made to look like a memorial park. Few people go to funerals. Few people watch people die. We don't like to think of death. And if you talk about death, they'll change the subject like switching channels on the television set.

And if you continue, they'll look at you like you have smallpox. They don't want to talk about death. But death, if you know the Lord Jesus Christ, is not an enemy but a friend that will usher you into the presence of Jesus Christ. Now here's Joseph. Joseph was wise enough to know that he's going to die.

He's still alive. He's 110 years of age and he knows that he doesn't have much time and so he has made a commandment concerning his bones and he said, "God's going to take you out of Egypt. God's going to bring you into the land of Canaan and when he does, you take my bones with you." And the writer of the book of Hebrews chose that to illustrate the great magnificent faith that Joseph had.

Now what is the blessing in a box of bones? May I give you a skeleton outline? All right, now I want us to think about three major points as we think about the bones of Joseph. Number one, faith remembers the unbreakable promises of God. Faith remembers the unbreakable promises of God. Now Joseph said what he said because he was standing on an unbreakable promise of God.

Now I'm reading Genesis chapter 50, verses 22 through 26. "And Joseph dwelt in Egypt, he and his father's house, and Joseph lived 110 years. And Joseph saw Ephraim's children of the third generation"—he's seeing his great-grandchildren—"the children also of Machir, the son of Manasseh, were brought up upon Joseph's knees."

So there's Joseph, 110 years of age, dangling his grandkids on his knees and his great-grandchildren. "And Joseph said unto his brethren, I die, and God will surely visit you." Now if you don't mind marking your Bibles, underscore the phrase, "God will surely visit you," and bring you out of this land unto the land—now watch this—which he sware to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob.

And Joseph took an oath of the children of Israel saying, "God will surely visit you and ye shall carry up my bones from hence." So Joseph died, being 110 years old, and they embalmed him and he was put in a coffin in Egypt. Well, how did Joseph know these things? Why was he so certain? Why was he so adamant about it?

Well, obviously he knew the word of God. You see, God had made a promise to Abraham 300 years before this. Now you can put this down in your margin. I'll read it for you in Genesis chapter 15, verses 13 through 14. Here's what God said to the first Hebrew, to Abraham. And his name was Abram at this time.

And he said unto Abram, "Know of a surety"—there's our word again, surety, that is a certainty—"that thy seed, that is Abram, your children, shall be a stranger in the land that is not theirs"—He's talking of Egypt—"and shall serve them and they shall afflict them 400 years." Think of it now, four centuries. "And also that nation whom they shall serve will I judge and afterward shall they come out with great substance."

Now that's what God said. How did Joseph know therefore that they were going to leave? You don't have to be a rocket scientist to figure it out. God said it, Joseph believed it. Now that tells us something about faith. You have to have the word of God in order to have faith. The Bible tells us in Romans 10:17, "Faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God."

Now you're not going to have faith apart from hearing God. Faith is not positive thinking. Faith is not following a hunch. Faith is not merely hoping for the best. Faith is not a feeling of optimism. Faith is not self-confidence, wishing upon a star, crossing your fingers. Faith is believing what God has said and acting upon it.

God will speak through his word and then God will speak in your heart and you have this faith. And so here Joseph's faith is being displayed. He remembers the unbreakable promises of God. Faith is acting as if it is so because He said it is so, even when it does not seem so, so it can be so. You don't claim it and name it. God names it and then you claim it.

Now that brings up a real question. Is your faith weak or strong? Well, I would say that your faith is probably measured by your knowledge and your love of the word of God. Many are only dabbling in Bible study and therefore they are spiritual midgets when they ought to be spiritual giants. Faith comes by hearing.

Do you really love the word of God? Do you study it? It's very obvious that Joseph had marinated himself in the word of God, that he had saturated himself with the word of God. There was a great evangelist who was the counterpart of our Billy Graham. This man's name was Dwight L. Moody.

If you read Christian history, you'll read about Dwight L. Moody. Dwight L. Moody did not have a seminary education, but his biographer said that he took two continents and shook them for Jesus Christ: America and Europe. An ordinary man, former shoe clerk, but God used him mightily. Moody was a man of great faith.

Let me tell you how he got his faith. He said, "I knew I needed faith. I would pray and pray and pray and ask God for faith and I did not seem to have the faith that I needed." Then he said, "I discovered the word of God that says in Romans 10:17, faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God."

He said, "I began then to study the Bible, to read the Bible, to feed on the Bible, to assimilate the Bible, and I found this great faith just growing in my heart and in my life." You see, why was Joseph so certain? Well, he had the word of God. He had the promises of God. So first of all, faith remembers the unbreakable promises of God.

The promises of God are yea and amen in Jesus Christ and God will never, no never, no never ever, ever break a promise. Do you believe that? I hope you do, because you're not going to have great faith if you don't believe it. Now, number two, faith relies on the unshakable power of God.

You see, when you have the promise, then you need someone who has the power to fulfill the promise. Now look again in Genesis chapter 50 and verse 24. "And Joseph said unto his brethren, I die, and God will surely visit you and bring you out of this land." Who's going to do it? God is going to do it.

Unto the land which he sware to Abraham, Isaac, and to Jacob. Now this was the God who turned the Red Sea into a 48-lane superhighway. This is the God who judged the Egyptians. This is the God who did the miracles. This is God who has this unshakable power. Now, let me tell you something about faith.

Don't let your faith be stultified and diminished by circumstances, by appearances. When Joseph gave this prophecy, when Joseph gave this commandment, there was no reason that they should leave Egypt. They had it made. They were in a place of favor. They were in a place of high position. They had an inside track to the throne.

Joseph, the Prime Minister. And yet he says, "You're coming out." Now, today we may take some of the promises of God and we may look at them and say, "How on earth is that possible?" Maybe we better reexamine the Bible in the light of today's society and in the light of the circumstances around us. Don't you do it.

You friend, remember that no matter what it seems, God's word is reliable. Joseph has the unshakable power of God in his mind. Now also, don't you let your feelings keep you from believing the word of God. Feelings are fickle. Feelings come and feelings go and feelings are deceiving. The Bible is the word of God.

Naught else is worth believing. Don't put your faith in your feelings. Don't say, "Well, I feel it's this way or I feel it's that way." Very frankly, your feelings do not change the word of God. The devil wants to get you over into the realm of emotions and away from trusting the Lord. Martin Luther, who was the father of the Protestant Reformation back in 1517, was on some stairs in Rome trying to be right with God by doing penance and by doing good works.

And he's climbing these stairs, the Santa Scala, the holy stairs there, praying on each step. But he'd been studying the book of Romans. And a verse from the book of Romans began to reverberate through his soul: "The just shall live by faith. The just shall live by faith." And he saw it! He saw it! "Oh, God, I'm not saved by my good deeds, by my works, by my toiling, by my task, by my trying, but by trusting.

It is by faith." And he repented of his sin, trusted Jesus Christ as his personal Lord and Savior and was born again there, living by faith. Now, the devil doesn't like that. If you do that, the devil will come against you. The devil counterattacks. By the way, if you've never met the devil, it's because you and the devil been going in the same direction.

The devil will counterattack and so the devil came to Martin Luther and tried to get him off into the realm, the arena of his feelings. And Satan one time said, "Martin, do you feel your sin is forgiven?" He said, "No, I know my sin is forgiven because of the word of God." I heard about a youngster, a young man, went to a revival crusade and the preacher was preaching from John chapter 5 and verse 24.

"Verily, verily, I say unto you, he that heareth my word and believeth on him that sent me hath everlasting life and shall not come into condemnation but is passed from death unto life." That's John 5:24, the words of Jesus. That was the text for that night. The boy heard it, believed it, received it, was saved, rejoicing in the Lord.

With his Bible in his hand was going home when he met the same devil that came against Martin Luther. This boy later gave his testimony. He said, "It seemed as Satan was perched on my shoulder, whispering in my ear." He said, "You're not saved. You're not good enough. You don't understand enough. You don't feel just right. You're not saved. You'll never make it."

The boy said he went home and sat on the couch and he said, "It seemed that the devil was under the couch, just whispering to him, you're not saved, you're not saved." So he said, "I'm going to read that verse again." He took the Bible and opened it, John 5:24, that evangelist has said is your spiritual birth certificate.

And he read it again. "Verily, verily," that means truly, truly. "I say unto you," he said, "Jesus is speaking." "He that heareth my word," he said, "I've heard it. And believeth on him that sent me," he said, "I believed in the God that sent the Lord Jesus Christ." "Has everlasting life." He said, "I have everlasting life. There, devil, read it for yourself. Put it under the couch."

That's not altogether foolish. The next time the devil comes to you and tries to get you to doubt, don't get in an argument with him. He's not worth it. Point him to the word of God. Let the argument be between him and the word of God. You step out of that argument and guess who's going to win. God is going to win.

What I'm trying to say is this: that Joseph had faith. It was unshakable faith because it rested in the power of God, not in circumstances, not in emotion. Now tell you something else. Delay did not shake Joseph's faith. Now it had been 300 years since the promise was made, three centuries. And there was to be another one.

Joseph is not speaking of his body, he's speaking of his bones. He knew it was a long time coming. His body would molder and decay. But he said, "We're coming out of here." Now, a lot of things had to transpire. There had to arise another Pharaoh who knew not Joseph. But Joseph said, "We're coming out." Now friend, listen to me. Time cannot erode away the promises.

God gave Habakkuk a vision and God said to Habakkuk in chapter 2, "The promise is for an appointed time. Though it tarry, wait for it. Wait for it." God may seem slow to you, but God is always on time. Never ahead of time, never behind time, always right on time. The Bible says that Jesus came in the fullness of time.

Peter said in the last days they're going to come scoffers walking after their own lust. By the way, every time you see a scoffer, you'll find someone walking after his own lust. You show me somebody who makes fun of the word of God and I'll show you somebody with the devil's initials carved on their heart.

Show me a woman that makes fun of the word of God, I'll show you someone covered with the slimy fingerprints of sin. "There shall come in the last days scoffers walking after their own lust and saying, where is the promise of his coming? For since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of the creation."

What they're saying is, "All you preachers always preaching about the second coming of Jesus Christ. Where is it? How come it's been so long?" Peter says, "But beloved, be not ignorant of this one thing, that one day is with the Lord as a thousand years and a thousand years is one day." God doesn't punch a time clock when he goes to work. He doesn't wear a wristwatch.

God is not concerned with time. The fact that it had been centuries prior when God made this promise and it would be decades yet before the promise would be fulfilled, did not stampede Joseph. Joseph knew that the promise was going to be fulfilled. Why? Because it rest not in circumstances, not in emotion, not in chronology, it rest in God.

There is the unbreakable promise of God. There is the unshakable power of God. That's what we've got to remember if we want to have strong faith. That's why God took this one episode in the life of Joseph and used it as a cameo to teach us faith. Now, here's the third thing I want us to see in this particular passage of scripture and that is: faith results in the unmistakable peace of God.

Why did Joseph have such peace? There's no hint of panic here. He's about to die and he's playing with his grandbabies. He's speaking with a ring of certainty and victory in his heart. Where does he get this peace? Well, the peace comes again from the first two things. He remembers the promises of God.

He relies on the power of God. And therefore he is resting in the unmistakable peace of God. There is no panic here in all of this. Now was his faith rewarded? Let me give you some scripture here. Read now in the book of Joshua chapter 24 verse 32. "And the bones of Joseph, which the children of Israel brought up out of Egypt, buried they in Shechem in a parcel of ground which Jacob bought of the sons of Hamor."

Now here in the book of Joshua, Joshua takes the bones—the bones that were in Egypt, the bones that Moses carried across the burning sands of the Sinai and the bones now that come across the River Jordan and the bones that come to that place of Shechem and he is buried there. Now, it was as Joseph believed.

Moses carried his bones and Joshua carried his bones and it's always going to be just as God said it would be.

Guest (Male): Now coming up tomorrow, we'll hear part two of this vital message. But maybe today you have questions regarding your faith in Jesus Christ. We'd love to offer an insightful resource on our website: the Find Answers page. There you'll discover resources and materials that can answer questions you may have about beginning a relationship with God.

We also want to invite you to check out our Grow Your Faith page. If you're a believer, you can use this resource to get grounded and dig deeper in your faith. Go to lwf.org/radio and click the tab Grow Your Faith or Find Answers today.

Hi, this is Cary Vaughn, and this program has been brought to you by Love Worth Finding, a non-profit ministry showcasing the powerful preaching and teaching of Pastor Adrian Rogers. We operate solely through the generous gifts of individual supporters just like you. To give a gift today, call 1-877-LOVEGOD, that's 1-877-LOVEGOD, or write to us at Love Worth Finding, Box 38600, Memphis, Tennessee 38183.

You can also connect with us online by going to lwf.org/radio. There we offer helpful resources inspired by the timeless teachings of Pastor Adrian Rogers. Additionally, you can sign up for daily emails, donate to the ministry, and learn more about how to become an ambassador of the Word. Thank you so much for listening today. Be sure to join us next time for more profound truth simply stated right here on Love Worth Finding.

As America approaches 250 years, a lot of people are asking the same question: what does it really mean to live as a Christian here today? Not just in theory, but in everyday life at home, at work, in a culture constantly shifting. That's why we want to invite you to join us for the Faith and Freedom journey for this defining moment in our nation.

This six-week journey will walk you through teachings of Adrian Rogers on how to be a Christian in America. Filled with scriptures and guided prayers for our nation, Faith and Freedom is designed to help you grow deeper in your faith and live with confidence as a follower of Christ. Search for My LWF wherever you download apps and begin the Faith and Freedom journey today. And thank you for your generous support of Love Worth Finding.