Prayer
“As for me, I will call upon God; and the Lord shall save me. Evening, and morning, and at noon, will I pray, and cry aloud: and he shall hear my voice. He hath delivered my soul in peace from the battle that was against me: for there were many with me . . . Cast thy burden upon the LORD, and he shall sustain thee: he shall never suffer the righteous to be moved.” – Psalm 55:16-18, 22
Today’s Hymn
Words: Attributed to Dorothy A. Thrupp, 1836. Music: Bradbury, William B. Bradbury, 1859; first appeared in his Sunday school collection Oriola.
SAVIOR, LIKE A SHEPHERD LEAD US
Click here for tune.
Savior, like a shepherd lead us, much we need Thy tender care;
In Thy pleasant pastures feed us, for our use Thy folds prepare.
Blessèd Jesus, blessèd Jesus! Thou hast bought us, Thine we are.
Blessèd Jesus, blessèd Jesus! Thou hast bought us, Thine we are.
We are Thine, Thou dost befriend us, be the guardian of our way;
Keep Thy flock, from sin defend us, seek us when we go astray.
Blessèd Jesus, blessèd Jesus! Hear, O hear us when we pray.
Blessèd Jesus, blessèd Jesus! Hear, O hear us when we pray.
Thou hast promised to receive us, poor and sinful though we be;
Thou hast mercy to relieve us, grace to cleanse and power to free.
Blessèd Jesus, blessèd Jesus! We will early turn to Thee.
Blessèd Jesus, blessèd Jesus! We will early turn to Thee.
Early let us seek Thy favor, early let us do Thy will;
Blessèd Lord and only Savior, with Thy love our bosoms fill.
Blessèd Jesus, blessèd Jesus! Thou hast loved us, love us still.
Blessèd Jesus, blessèd Jesus! Thou hast loved us, love us still.
Thought Provoker
We are going to read one of the genealogy chapters of Genesis today (no groans, “all Scripture is profitable . . . “)!
Before you read, see how much you and your family know about the Bible’s genealogies by asking this question: Who is the most famous person ever to be born of Esau?
Need a hint (or two or three . . . )? He is a person in the New Testament. He was alive when Jesus was born. He was the “king” of Israel. He instructed the Magi. He gave the command to slaughter the baby boys in Bethlehem. Do you know who he is? (Herod the Great is a descendent of Esau!).
Dad’s Study
Genesis 36 is a long list of names! Are you and your family going to read them aloud today? While these may appear “boring” on the surface, here are some important lessons for us to learn.
1. God promised that Esau too would be the head of a nation (Genesis 25:23). Seven generations of the ungodly line of Cain were listed in Genesis 4, so seven generations of kings in the ungodly line of Esau are mentioned in vv. 33-39. God always keeps His promises! Yet, how sad that not one of these is mentioned in God’s list of the faithful; all are lost- those who depart from the living God. “They had temporary riches and the passing fame of this world, but nothing for eternity.”
2. Esau’s family tree is much more imposing that Jacob’s (Genesis 35:23-26), but this is the last that we hear it. “Despite their failures, the sons of Israel are the chosen instruments to accomplish God’s will on earth.”
3. Esau serves as a good illustration of the ungodly on the earth. He is destitute of faith. He despised his birthright. “The birthright involved the exercise of priestly rights vested in the family head.” The line of the Messiah could have come through Esau-but he sold it to Jacob to satisfy his flesh.
4. How urgent it is to impress upon your family the necessity of faith in the resurrected Christ, personally appropriated. Stress the importance of passing on the great heritage of faith we have received to each succeeding generation, lest like Esau and his lineage, others suffer the consequences of unbelief for eternity.
Click here for Matthew Henry’s Commentary.
Truth in Practice
Catechism
Question 64
Q. What is forbidden in the tenth commandment?
A. The tenth commandment forbids all discontentment with our own estate (1 Cor. 10:10), envying or grieving at the good of our neighbour (Gal 5:26), and all inordinate emotions and affections to anything that is his (Col. 3:5).
