December 14, 2022
Now when [the wise men] had departed, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream, saying, “Arise, take the young Child and His mother, flee to Egypt, and stay there until I bring you word; for Herod will seek the young Child to destroy Him.” When he arose, he took the young Child and His mother by night and departed for Egypt, and was there until the death of Herod, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying, “Out of Egypt I called My Son.” Matthew 2:14-15 (see also Hosea 11:1)
Because of Egypt’s long history of ‘death worship,’ (see Proverbs 8:36) its name had become synonymous with atheism. The land of Egypt was abundantly blessed with natural resources. As is so often the case, rich material blessings have a way of blinding men to their need of a Savior. But the purposes of God have never—ever!—been hindered by the blindness of men. There is no amount of rebellion against God that will thwart His divine foresight and planning.
The first Joseph, Jacob’s eleventh son, had also been given dreams from Yahweh. Hated by his own brothers, he was sold into Egyptian slavery. But God protected and preserved Joseph, whom we now understand to be a type of Christ. Joseph’s life was in alignment with the will of his heavenly Father; his faithfulness to Yahweh brought about fulfillment of the divine plan to save many people alive in those days of famine. This reality was also a foreshadowing of Jesus, who would come to save His people from their sins (Genesis 50:20, Matthew 1:21).
Moses—also a type of Christ—was commanded by the LORD to return to Egypt:
“. . . you shall say to Pharaoh, ‘Thus says the LORD: “Israel is My son, My firstborn. So I say to you, let My son go, that he may serve Me…”’” [But] Pharaoh said, “Who is the LORD, that I should obey His voice to let Israel go? I do not know the LORD, nor will I let Israel go.” Exodus 4:22-23a; 5:2
Behind Pharaoh’s attitude stood Satan himself. In his response, the controversy between good and evil is exposed: “Who is the LORD, that I should obey His voice . . . ?” Satan wanted to elevate himself above God. Putting Yahweh down, as if He is no one, is the attitude which depicts the very foundation of the entire controversy.
When Jesus was born, Satan stood behind Herod [to] seek the young Child to destroy Him.
Beloved, if you have a personal relationship with Jesus, Satan wants to hurt Him by hurting you. It is only in looking to Jesus that you will gain understanding of who He is . . . of His loving character. As He reveals His character of pure love, you will recognize where the Source of power for your transformation lies. Jacob, the deceiver, was renamed Israel which means Overcomer with God (see Genesis 32:28). And, just as Jesus—the ultimate overcomer—overcame the world (John 16:33) through faithfulness to His Father, He desires for each of us to also overcome Satan’s snares. Isn’t it wonderful to know that God can truly cleanse and re-create our character as originally intended; a restoration of His image in us! He wants to affectionately rename each of us with a name chosen by Him to represent the new character He desires to build in us!
“To him who overcomes . . . I will give . . . a white stone, and on the stone a new name written which no one knows except him who receives it.” Revelation 2:17