In the year of this Jubilee ye shall return every man unto his possession.
	Leviticus 25:13
In the year of Jubilee, any land that had been sold was to be returned to its original owner. That is, if a piece of property was sold to cover a debt or to rescue a household financially, it was to be restored to the family of the one who had sold it initially. With release of debt, rest from labor, and restoration of property, the year of Jubilee seems like a golden opportunity. And yet neither the Bible nor extra-biblical writers give any indication it was ever observed. Before we chide the Israelites for failing to take advantage of the glorious year of Jubilee, however, we would do well to look in the mirror. If you want to experience jubilee in your own life presently, it begins with releasing people from the captivity in which you hold them because you think they let you down, disappointed, or hurt you. “For if ye forgive men their trespasses,” Jesus said, “your Heavenly Father will also forgive you: But if ye forgive not men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses” (Matthew 6:14–15). It is the one who doesn’t set the debtor free who remains bound in misery. Even though you don’t feel it emotionally, you can decide today to do that which Israel never did: to cancel all debts and to experience jubilee in your soul.

This Daily Devotional is an excerpt from the book "A Pillar By Day" by Pastor Jon. "A Pillar By Day" is a collection of 365 short devotions from the Old Testament books of Genesis through Deuteronomy.

Hell is loneliness. Hell is doing something unwanted over and over.

May 10
	And Joseph wept when they spake unto him.
	Genesis 50:17
Joseph cries. The word translated “wept” isn’t the word for sobbing. It’s the word for quiet weeping. Tears just rolled down his cheeks. His brothers didn’t get it. They thought he was holding a grudge against them. They thought he was simply waiting for the right time to pounce on them. They thought he was angry with them, bitter toward them. So too, we often think of our Lord Jesus as keeping a record of our previous failures; that He must be getting tired of us, exhausted by us. But we are told that, like Joseph, Jesus wept . . . “If you had only been here, our brother would not have died,” cried Martha and Mary. “We told You he was sick. We sent You word, but You didn’t come. And now he’s dead.” And Jesus wept. He knew what He would do. He knew He would bring Lazarus back to life. So it wasn’t for Lazarus He wept. It was for the unbelief of Martha and Mary (John 11). Jesus wept a second time when He said, “O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, I would gather you under My wing and nestle You close to My heart, but you wouldn’t let Me” (see Matthew 23:37). If you think you’ve botched it so many times that the Lord must be just about ready to throw in the towel with you, you don’t understand the heart of our Lord. It was for the man most in need, upon the man who couldn’t handle things all that well, toward the man with the paralyzed hand that Jesus had compassion (Mark 3:1–5). So too, if you are struggling and are barely able to hold things together, you are the very one for whom Jesus has the most compassion. The person who’s not reaching out, not doing well, unable to handle life is the one for whom Jesus has special affection and on whom He has a laser-like focus. Each of us is struggling with one thing or another. Thus, Jesus would say to all of us, “No matter how withered it might be, stretch out your hand. Grab hold of Me. Receive from Me that which I long to give you.” No matter what pit you’ve dug, or what brother you’ve sold, our greater than Joseph has washed away your sin with His own blood.

	Joseph is a fruitful bough . . .
	Genesis 49:22
The Bible defines fruit in five specific areas . . . In Romans 1:13, Paul tells us that the winning of souls is fruit unto God. Did Joseph win souls? Indeed! He saved his whole family from famine and drought. So too, when you share with your family, neighbors, or friends the good news of the Gospel, saving them from the drought in their own souls and from the fires of hell, you bear fruit that pleases God. Romans 6:22 identifies holiness as fruit. Perhaps best epitomized by his flight from the advances of Potiphar’s wife, Joseph lived a holy life. In fact, he is one of only two major Old Testament characters of whom there is no recorded sin. Philippians 4:17 identifies tithes and offerings as fruit. Joseph gave more than money in Egypt. He gave his life. Colossians 1:10 says good works are a fruit unto God. Did Joseph do good works? Yes. He saved an entire nation from starvation by storing up goods to distribute when there was need. Hebrews 13:15 names praise as fruit. When Joseph came to Pharaoh with the interpretation of Pharaoh’s dream, he directed all praise to God (Genesis 41:16). These five areas, so evident in Joseph’s life, are summed up in a sixth New Testament reference to fruit: But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance: against such there is no law. - Galatians 5:22–23 The fruit of the Spirit is love as defined by joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, and self-control. The fruit of the Spirit is love. That’s why we give of our time and money. That’s why we lift our hands in praise. That’s why we share with others. With all of these qualities flowing through his life, no wonder Jacob said to Joseph, “You are a fruitful bough.” “Good for Joseph,” you might be saying. “But why should I be fruitful?” Because if we don’t satisfy Jesus, not only will we not satisfy anyone else, but we won’t satisfy even ourselves. Listen, gang, if you are not living to please God, then your life will dry up from the roots, from below the surface, from deep within, and you will experience emptiness, frustration, depression, and a lack of satisfaction. Live to please God, on the other hand, and your life will be marked by love.

This Daily Devotional is an excerpt from the book "A Pillar By Day" by Pastor Jon. "A Pillar By Day" is a collection of 365 short devotions from the Old Testament books of Genesis through Deuteronomy.

The whole family is saved from the famished condition of where they were previously and has been called to live with Joseph in a land of luxury. I personally believe the Lord wants to save entire families. “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ,” Paul said to the Philippian jailor, “and you will be saved - and your house” (see Acts 16:31). This doesn’t mean the whole family is automatically saved if the parent is a believer. But it does mean that a believing father or mother can expect the Lord to work in the rest of the family as he or she is obedient to the Word.

I’m simple enough to expect that my kids and grandchildren, should the Lord tarry, will travel with me, to be with the greater than Joseph - Jesus Christ - in the mansion He is preparing for us.

This note was left on my windshield yesterday . . .

I was so glad to see your car here, Brother Jon. I have the opportunity to share with you some wonderful news. While visiting my mother a few months ago, I accidentally left a set of tapes at her house. The tapes were of services I had missed from our current Genesis study. Now my mother thought I had left them there with hopes of converting her. But it truly was a mistake. I had really wanted to listen to them myself. But God is so faithful. For whatever reason, Mom started listening to the tapes, and she accepted Jesus as her Savior and is going to be baptized this Sunday in a church in Kennewick, Washington. My mother is saved. She’s saved, she’s saved! God used this chain of events just for her, and I couldn’t be happier. 

That’s not coincidence. That’s providence! Grandpa, believe it. Mom, don’t doubt it. Parents, lay hold of it. Believe that the Lord will work in your family.

This Daily Devotional is an excerpt from the book "A Pillar By Day" by Pastor Jon. "A Pillar By Day" is a collection of 365 short devotions from the Old Testament books of Genesis through Deuteronomy.

	And to his father he sent after this manner; ten asses laden with the good things of Egypt, and ten she asses laden with corn and bread and meat for his father by the way. So he sent his brethren away, and they departed: and he said unto them, See that ye fall not out by the way.
	Genesis 45:23–24
Here Joseph says, “I’m giving you everything you need to make the journey from where you are to where I am. Just see to it that you don’t fall out by the way.” It’s easy to fall out by the way. It’s easy to say, “My body is hurting. My stocks are dropping. My head is spinning. And it’s time to kick back a bit.” But our greater than Joseph would say to us, “Don’t do it. Don’t fall back. Don’t give up.” In this regard, it’s sobering to realize that Jesus told us only one-fourth of the seeds scattered would go on to bear significant fruit . . . In some people, the seed of the Word falls in soil and springs up quickly. But then comes the heat - tragedies, setbacks, and difficulties - that causes it to shrivel. In others, the cares of this world, the lust for riches, and the desire for other things are like weeds that choke out the Word. In others, the Word doesn’t take root at all. But some falls on soil where its roots grow deep and where it goes on to bring forth much fruit (Matthew 13). Over the years, I’ve known those whose roots have gone deep into the soil of the Word, whose lives have borne much fruit, who despite setbacks and shortcomings, have not fallen out of the way. May we be those kinds of people.

And the children of Israel did so: and Joseph gave them wagons, according to the commandment of Pharaoh, and gave them provision for the way. To all of them he gave each man changes of raiment; but to Benjamin he gave three hundred pieces of silver, and five changes of raiment.
	Genesis 45:21–22
The brothers didn’t seem to notice that Benjamin had three hundred more pieces of silver and four more suits than they did. So blown away were they by Joseph’s forgiveness that there was no room for envy or jealousy. I am so looking forward to that time when our greater than Joseph is revealed, when we are living with Jesus, for one of the Heavenly things about Heaven is that everyone will be one thousand percent thrilled for everyone else. Our competition-based society places a high premium on getting ahead. But this is not the way of the Kingdom . . . When the water stirred, the first one into the pool of Siloam would, according to tradition, be the one who would be healed. So what did Jesus do? He didn’t go to the ones close to the pool. He went to the guy in the back, the one who had been there for thirty-eight years, and took him away from the competitive scene altogether (John 5). The reason Joseph’s brothers didn’t even notice that Benjamin was three hundred pieces of silver richer and four suits ahead of them was because they had been forgiven, and earthly riches no longer mattered.

This Daily Devotional is an excerpt from the book "A Pillar By Day" by Pastor Jon. "A Pillar By Day" is a collection of 365 short devotions from the Old Testament books of Genesis through Deuteronomy.