10/07/2021 - JACOB’S HAPPIEST DAY

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So Joseph made ready his chariot and went up to Goshen to meet his father Israel; and he presented himself to him, and fell on his neck and wept on his neck a good while. Genesis 46.29

The story of Jacob thrills me. I love this patriarch as if I were descended from him. His love for the Lord moves me; it is as if we were of the same family, which we are: the family of faith (Romans 4:11). What he suffered, when most of his sons brought the news that Joseph had been devoured by a beast, made him feel as if he had been abandoned by God, for he believed that the Almighty would keep the young man, whom he had sent to his brothers to see how they were doing.

One who believes never loses hope, especially if they have the Lord on their side, just like Jacob did. On the other hand, how many times must Joseph have cried when remembering his father, but, as a slave of a master, he could do nothing? However, when he became an authority in Egypt, he made his brothers return and, using a perfect ruse, saw his younger brother and declared himself to everyone (read Genesis, from chapter 42 to 45). His old father mustered the strength to meet him. What a moment!

The anxious emotion Joseph felt as he got his carts ready must have been enormous. He would finally meet his father again, whom he loved dearly and had not seen for a long time. Longing took over his heart, and tears streamed down his face. The fear of God that he saw in his father kept him from the traps of the enemy. Joseph did not fall into sin because of Jacob’s righteousness, who taught him to serve the Lord with all his soul.

Jacob could not wait to be face to face with the firstborn of his beloved wife. At that time, the 14 years he had served his father-in-law to marry her were nothing compared to the pleasure of having her with him and bearing children from her (Genesis 29:20). He was a servant, so he didn’t even consider the price to pay, because he knew it was part of a bigger plan. God kept him, and none of his was lost. The Almighty gave the wronged son, Joseph, the reward of the righteous. The Lord wiped his tears, saw his acts of faith!

When he got close to Jacob – who was already old and, therefore, could not remember well his son’s appearance – Joseph showed himself to him. What an emotion! Their hearts were beating rapidly! Trembling took hold of them, and Joseph threw himself on the neck of the one from whom he had descended, and they wept. The brothers, who almost killed him and, without compassion, sold him to the Ishmaelites (Genesis 37:27), wept too. God is faithful!

The Scriptures say that the weeping was long and happy. That weeping will also be abundant in us, as we see the beloved Lord coming down from Heaven to take us out of this evil world, out of the midst of thieves, prostitutes, and adulteresses, as well as the lies they tell to defraud us. Christ will return and redeem us forever. “Maranatha, now come, Lord Jesus” is our prayer (1 Corinthians 16:22)!

Beloved brother, never stop for a minute to seek to know the Lord and the strength of His power, for you cannot miss your chance to enter the Kingdom of Heaven. What awaits you in eternity is so wonderful that Christ had to pay for your redemption with His own life.

In Christ, with love,

R. R. Soares