And Jacob rose up from Beersheba: and the sons of Israel carried Jacob their father, and their little ones, and their wives, in the wagons which Pharaoh had sent to carry him. -Genesis 46:5 (KJV)
I have to say that I am intrigued with the wording of this verse; Jacob was carried by his sons the rest of the way to Egypt. He did not allow his advanced age (130 years) to be a hindrance, he did not allow his weakness to stop him, and he did not let any circumstances keep him from seeing the vision become a reality. What was the vision again? The vision the Lord provided can be summarized as follows:
- God is God.
- Don’t be afraid.
- I will go with you.
- I will bless you beyond your greatest expectations.
When we came to Bristol, Virginia, I learned an expression I had never heard before. Instead of saying, “I took him to the store,” it’s “I carried him to the store.” Well, we don’t mean that we literally carried him, but that is what this verse means. So advanced was Jacob’s age that walking, riding a donkey, or riding a camel was out of the question. He had to be carried. And it was his faith that empowered him to see the vision become a reality.
Understand that when God gives us a vision, He provides a picture of that the vision is going to be like. I think that I have a pretty good imagination, but you don’t have to have a great imagination to picture a vision that is truly from God, for God does that for us. He draws the picture and He sets it before us. We are then called to be obedient and faithful and move toward the vision whatever it may be. When a vision like that comes our way, what accompanies it is God’s promise of comfort, help, and guidance. This is something we are to always reminding one another of; that God is with us and that He will never leave us nor forsake us as He has promised in His Word. When Jacob’s father Isaac had blessed him all of those years earlier (See Genesis 27) he had painted a picture, a mental picture, of how blessed Jacob was going to be. In essence, he told him that he would be blessed by God beyond measure and that the hand of God would be upon Him in some wonderful ways.
Let us never forget that we have the power to bless one another in like manner. That’s why the Bible instructs us in Ephesians 4:29, “Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen.” Let’s not be found guilty of shooting down another person's vision that God has given. Rather, we are to encourage one another to follow whatever vision God has laid on our hearts and set before us. When we follow the vision God has given it has a way of opening up new realms of possibility for service in the kingdom of God. As God gives us personal vision, so He also gives a collective vision for the church. Do not be satisfied with the status quo, but rather move forward to greater depths of grace and service to God. Make a commitment today to be faithful to what the Lord is calling us to do.
