The Jewish roots of Christianity

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Bible teaching with an emphasis on Israel, prophecy and the Jewish roots of Christianity

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Episode: “Stepping Closer to Destiny”
Jacob confronted his brother, who felt betrayed. Jacob’s wants were still foremost in his mind when he wrestled with an “angel” until he received a blessing. Faith in God pays the most blessed dividends.
Series: “Faith for the Future”
Our Journey with the Patriarchs
Abraham, Isaac and Jacob displayed their faith in God by taking small steps and sometimes leaps of faith. Oftentimes, these actions dramatically altered the course of their lives, while redirecting them toward greater dependence on the Lord. In this ten part series, Dr. Jeffrey Seif takes us through strategic events in their lives while Dr. Barri Seif (Jeff’s wife) provides a personal perspective. This ten part series also includes discussions with David and Kirsten Hart as well as dramatic reenactments filmed in Israel.

Caption transcript for Faith for the Future: “Stepping Closer to Destiny” (10/10)

  • 00:03 David Hart: Welcome to "Our Jewish Roots."
  • 00:12 ♪♪♪ David: Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for,
  • 00:15 the conviction of things not seen,
  • 00:17 for by it the men of old received divine approval.
  • 00:21 For whatever was written in former days was written for our
  • 00:24 instruction, that through endurance and through the
  • 00:28 encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope.
  • 00:36 "Faith for the Future: Our Journey with the Patriarchs."
  • 00:43 David: We are so glad you've joined us today.
  • 00:45 I'm David Hart.
  • 00:46 Kirsten Hart: I'm Kirsten Hart.
  • 00:48 Dr. Jeffrey Seif: I am Jeffrey Seif.
  • 00:49 A little sad 'cause we're putting a wrap on a series in
  • 00:51 the show, correct?
  • 00:53 David: It's been ten great programs.
  • 00:54 I can't believe we're done.
  • 00:56 Thank you for your insight, not only from you but your wife
  • 00:59 who's been sitting at this desk.
  • 01:01 Kirsten: Dr. Barri Seif will be right here.
  • 01:03 Jeffrey: She'll be here in short order,
  • 01:05 the better half, to be sure.
  • 01:07 David: Yes.
  • 01:08 Kirsten: But you've taken us on a wonderful journey of
  • 01:09 Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and their wives.
  • 01:13 Jeffrey: Yes, indeed.
  • 01:14 Well, life's a journey and Bible teachers journey back and,
  • 01:17 speaking of journeys, we're going back home,
  • 01:20 in fact.
  • 01:22 This series has been about faith for the future.
  • 01:24 We're looking a little fear for the future.
  • 01:27 Jacob was a tad bit uncertain as he went back to Canaan to face
  • 01:31 off his brother Esau.
  • 01:35 ♪♪♪
  • 01:39 male narrator: It had been nearly 21 years since Jacob had
  • 01:41 seen his twin brother, Esau, and now, on his journey back through
  • 01:45 Canaan, he is troubled by a message warning him that Esau is
  • 01:49 coming with 400 men.
  • 01:53 Because of Jacob, Esau had lost his birthright as well as his
  • 01:57 father's blessing.
  • 01:59 Bent on revenge, he had once sworn to slay his brother Jacob.
  • 02:04 ♪♪♪
  • 02:06 [speaking in Hebrew]
  • 02:58 Jeffrey: Our story begins today with the hero being in
  • 03:02 a really dark place.
  • 03:05 I know the series is all about faith for the future,
  • 03:09 but I'm telling you, he didn't have any,
  • 03:13 at least, not at this moment.
  • 03:16 The bottom fell out.
  • 03:19 He was really in trouble.
  • 03:21 Let's look at what the Bible says so you'll see that
  • 03:24 I'm not exaggerating.
  • 03:25 We're told in Genesis chapter 32,
  • 03:28 verse 8 in the Hebrew rendition; others,
  • 03:32 verse 7 says: "Jacob became extremely afraid and
  • 03:38 distressed."
  • 03:40 [speaking in Hebrew] in Hebrew,
  • 03:43 [speaking in Hebrew],
  • 03:45 that is, afraid and distressed.
  • 03:48 The word [speaking Hebrew] is noted too: extremely.
  • 03:52 We endeavored, of course, to bring that out in the drama so
  • 03:55 you don't just capture the words,
  • 03:58 but the emotion that comes along with it.
  • 04:00 The first thing that comes to the fore relative to this story
  • 04:03 is the fact that sometimes even in God's plan in his place,
  • 04:07 we can become extremely upended.
  • 04:13 God's working behind the scenes, but he's working with a human
  • 04:16 being that doesn't see it.
  • 04:19 Last time Jacob was where he is right now,
  • 04:22 he was running from Canaan.
  • 04:25 He had Israel in the rear view mirror.
  • 04:27 But now he has it in the windshield and he's heading back
  • 04:30 there and his unfinished business,
  • 04:32 Esau, was bent on killing him.
  • 04:34 And, quite frankly, brothers say,
  • 04:35 "I'm gonna kill you, and I'm gonna kill you,"
  • 04:37 they don't necessarily mean it.
  • 04:38 Esau meant it and he had the capability to do it.
  • 04:40 That's why Jacob's mom said, "You better get out of here.
  • 04:44 You can't handle your brother."
  • 04:46 But now, Mom's not there to protect him.
  • 04:47 Circumstances eroded in Syria where he was.
  • 04:50 This guy gets bounced around by circumstances.
  • 04:53 Something falls apart, he goes there.
  • 04:55 That falls apart, he goes there.
  • 04:57 It looks like his world is coming to an end,
  • 04:59 but God's just using those circumstances to get him where
  • 05:02 he needs to go.
  • 05:04 Interesting, isn't it, how God works providentially like that,
  • 05:08 but he's working with a human being who's extremely upset.
  • 05:11 He hears Esau's coming to greet him,
  • 05:15 he knows Jacob's coming back to town after a little over
  • 05:18 20 years, and it's not just Esau alone.
  • 05:21 He's got 400 men.
  • 05:22 Sounds like a war party to me, and Jacob knew he's capable of
  • 05:25 exacting vengeance, as I'd said.
  • 05:28 Well, what does he wanna do?
  • 05:30 He wants to play his cards correctly.
  • 05:32 When you go down to 21, and the verses might differ a little
  • 05:34 between the way the reckoning exists here in the Hebrew Bible
  • 05:38 and the English, but we're told here that Jacob looks to
  • 05:41 appease him.
  • 05:43 He sends gifts ahead in order to placate him,
  • 05:48 in order to calm this thing down.
  • 05:52 We're told as well, he sends gifts ahead of him with saying
  • 05:56 then, afterward he wants to "see his face and perhaps he'll lift
  • 06:02 up my face."
  • 06:05 People talk about a downcast countenance and,
  • 06:10 to be sure, this individual is working with it.
  • 06:14 Well, the story plays out good enough.
  • 06:17 Esau is minded to be kindly disposed toward him.
  • 06:20 Of course, Jacob's sent a lot of gifts in advance to try and
  • 06:24 warm his heart.
  • 06:25 He knew that his brother was very materialistic and his
  • 06:27 brother didn't have a mind for spiritual things,
  • 06:31 which is part why he didn't get the birthright and
  • 06:33 all the goodies.
  • 06:34 He wouldn't have known what to do with it.
  • 06:36 Jacob was the one who providentially was placed to
  • 06:39 carry that into the future in part because Esau wasn't worthy
  • 06:42 of doing it by virtue of these characteristics
  • 06:46 I've just described.
  • 06:47 Well, he placates him with gifts.
  • 06:49 You know, in the Bible we're told to be wise as a serpent and
  • 06:52 innocent as a dove.
  • 06:55 I see some of that at play here but not just Jacob's sechel.
  • 07:00 It's a Jewish term: not just his smarts.
  • 07:02 God's working through it.
  • 07:04 He and Esau get reconciled for the moment,
  • 07:06 but Jacob's--you know, Esau says,
  • 07:09 "Look, let me go with you and help you out."
  • 07:11 Jacob says, "Look, you know, not so fast, you know.
  • 07:15 That--you go ahead and, you know,
  • 07:17 I'll catch up with you down the road."
  • 07:18 He knew that Esau was very unstable and he might just
  • 07:21 change his mind.
  • 07:24 Well, I'll tell you someone who doesn't change his mind and
  • 07:27 that's the Lord.
  • 07:28 And God's working through this.
  • 07:29 Jacob left with nothing but two nickels to rub together.
  • 07:32 He comes back a very wealthy man but it's all in peril.
  • 07:34 But God gets him past all that and he gets him one step closer
  • 07:40 to his destiny as he's on the road,
  • 07:42 walking by faith into his future.
  • 07:46 female announcer: Our resource this week: the series,
  • 07:49 "Faith for the Future: Our Journey with the Patriarchs,"
  • 07:52 on DVD.
  • 07:53 Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob put their faith in action,
  • 07:56 changing the course of their lives,
  • 07:58 leading to increased dependence on the Lord.
  • 08:00 These ten programs feature Bible teaching by Dr. Jeffrey Seif
  • 08:04 with special guest, Dr. Barri Seif,
  • 08:07 plus dramatic reenactments filmed in Israel.
  • 08:10 Contact us and ask for the DVD series,
  • 08:13 "Faith for the Future."
  • 08:17 ♪♪♪
  • 08:22 ♪ Shaalu, shalom, Jerushalaim. ♪
  • 08:26 ♪ Shaalu, shaalu, shalom. ♪
  • 08:29 ♪ For the holy city of Jerusalem. ♪
  • 08:37 ♪ We will pray for peace, shaalu, shalom. ♪
  • 08:48 ♪ Shalom. ♪♪
  • 08:55 David: All of us at this desk love Israel so much,
  • 08:58 and Dr. Barri Seif is back with us.
  • 09:00 And people ask us all the time, what is a favorite place that
  • 09:06 you go in Israel and it's really hard for us to say.
  • 09:09 How about you?
  • 09:10 Dr. Barri Seif: Well, I love the landing.
  • 09:11 I love it when people applaud when the plane lands
  • 09:14 after that flight.
  • 09:16 That's the hardest part of going Israel,
  • 09:17 just that long flight getting there.
  • 09:19 But also, Galilee, that area, because we know that is a place
  • 09:23 where Yeshua was.
  • 09:25 And then also Jerusalem because of the three face that converge
  • 09:29 on that property and you see the different quarters,
  • 09:33 the different flavors of people.
  • 09:35 It's really a profound experience and I always like
  • 09:39 to encourage people, "You need to come back to Israel
  • 09:41 'cause you'll never see it all on a first trip."
  • 09:44 David: It's very true, yup.
  • 09:45 So, Kirsten, I thought you were gonna say flavors of food.
  • 09:48 Kirsten: I was ready to say, "Oh,
  • 09:50 I get you," on that.
  • 09:52 David: Kirsten loves the food there.
  • 09:53 I know you probably do too.
  • 09:55 Barri: Oh my goodness, you can tell it's God's land when
  • 09:56 you look at some of the vegetable sizes.
  • 09:58 They're humongous and so good.
  • 10:00 Kirsten: You eat fulfilled prophecy.
  • 10:02 You're eating fulfilled prophecy.
  • 10:05 Barri: That's beautiful, wow.
  • 10:07 Kirsten: And so true, that's good.
  • 10:09 Jeffrey: What makes me happy and I mean it sincerely is to
  • 10:10 see the faces of the people that go there.
  • 10:12 It's such a turn on for people to walk in the Bible lands and
  • 10:16 to see it and experience it for the first,
  • 10:18 second, time.
  • 10:20 I kind of pick up some of that radiance.
  • 10:22 It's like being at a wedding: you can't help but be a little
  • 10:24 happy just to see the bride and the groom and I love the faces
  • 10:26 of the people.
  • 10:28 Kirsten: We love seeing the faces,
  • 10:29 the people, in Israel.
  • 10:31 We also love seeing the faces, the people,
  • 10:33 from our Bible come alive.
  • 10:35 We're back to do that right now.
  • 10:37 Let's watch as Jacob has a nighttime wrestling match
  • 10:40 with the divine.
  • 10:45 male narrator: Thinking it best that he appease his brother,
  • 10:48 Jacob met with his servants, saying,
  • 10:51 "Maybe Esau will forgive me and accept me if I present
  • 10:54 him gifts."
  • 10:56 Specially selected herds of animals would be gathered and
  • 11:00 sent ahead of their personal meeting.
  • 11:03 His wives, maids, and children would also precede Jacob,
  • 11:07 but first, that very evening there would be a remarkable
  • 11:11 encounter with the divine that would change
  • 11:15 Jacob's life forever.
  • 11:18 ♪♪♪
  • 11:31 [speaking in Hebrew]
  • 12:01 ♪♪♪
  • 12:07 Jeffrey: It was a dark night, it was a cold night.
  • 12:10 Jacob found himself at a lonely place and what happened there,
  • 12:15 in Hebrew it says: "Vaya'avek," that is that he wrestled.
  • 12:21 And in that dark lonely place, he wrestled with God,
  • 12:26 we're told.
  • 12:28 I think, in fact, his whole life he had been wrestling.
  • 12:31 He needed to wrestle, he needed to lose.
  • 12:34 Strong guy, a lot of strength of his own person going,
  • 12:36 and he had some issues in his own person that needed to get
  • 12:39 polished up a little bit, but here we are.
  • 12:41 He's making his way back to Israel to the place of his
  • 12:45 destiny, of his future, to the place that's promised.
  • 12:50 And we're told here, that night, he wrestles.
  • 12:54 With God it was, in fact, and he goes on in verse 31.
  • 12:57 In my version here, it says: [speaking in Hebrew]
  • 13:02 "And Jacob named the place Peniel," from panim in Hebrew,
  • 13:08 face, and el, God, 'cause he saw the face of God there.
  • 13:13 [speaking in Hebrew] "I've seen God face to face."
  • 13:21 I believe, personally, that people need to have that
  • 13:25 face-to-face experience.
  • 13:28 People wanna be led by God and have faith for the future.
  • 13:32 Well, we need to see God face to face and be oriented
  • 13:37 toward the future.
  • 13:39 And that's what happens here.
  • 13:41 As I began this segment with, he found himself in a dark place,
  • 13:45 but then the light shined upon him.
  • 13:47 Not one artificially lit by a fire,
  • 13:50 but actually the face of God.
  • 13:52 God showing up as he is now finally,
  • 13:55 after over 20 years, making his way to his place.
  • 14:01 In this series, we've talked about faith for the future.
  • 14:06 Well, this Hebrew man's future was in Eretz Yisrael,
  • 14:12 the Land of Israel, actually named after him.
  • 14:15 His name was changed from Jacob to Israel.
  • 14:17 And here he is, on the final approach, to use
  • 14:20 airplane language,
  • 14:21 he's making his way into his destiny.
  • 14:24 And God shows up.
  • 14:26 Actually, God had been with him the whole time.
  • 14:28 He didn't always see him.
  • 14:30 Here, there's this face-to-face seeing.
  • 14:32 Sometimes, he just saw darkness.
  • 14:34 Sometimes, he's wrestling.
  • 14:37 Sometimes, things seem to be going against him.
  • 14:39 It's not always easy to see the face of God and the hand of God
  • 14:42 working through less than hoped-for circumstances.
  • 14:45 But it was what it was, to get this man where he needed to be.
  • 14:49 Whether it's him, whether it's me,
  • 14:52 whether it's you, God has a way of leading us on
  • 14:55 into the future.
  • 14:56 Let's have faith for the future and,
  • 14:59 when we do have faith in God for the future,
  • 15:02 the future can be very, very bright.
  • 15:08 My wife is gonna come in short order and close out this series,
  • 15:11 at least a teaching segment here,
  • 15:13 and I wanna thank you for going on the journey with me,
  • 15:17 with us.
  • 15:19 If you're at a place in life where you need some faith for
  • 15:21 your future, open up the Bible.
  • 15:25 What I've done here, well, what we've done,
  • 15:27 through dramatic vignettes; through storytelling;
  • 15:31 me, a little bit from the head as a professor type;
  • 15:34 Barri, a doctor too, my wife, coming from the heart.
  • 15:36 All of us, whether it's the production crew,
  • 15:39 the actors and actresses, the teaching staff,
  • 15:42 all of us, have endeavored to talk to you about faith for the
  • 15:47 future because we believe that faith pays dividends.
  • 15:52 If you're at a place in life where it's characterized by lack
  • 15:56 of faith, that is, lack of belief of your own prospects for
  • 16:00 the future, a lack of belief in God because you feel you've been
  • 16:03 let down in the past, let me tell you,
  • 16:07 get that shield of faith up.
  • 16:09 Let me encourage you to turn to him.
  • 16:11 He has a wonderful plan for your life.
  • 16:14 He's not just about leading Abraham,
  • 16:17 Isaac, and Jacob into their futures.
  • 16:21 He's about leading me and you.
  • 16:25 Kirsten: I grew up with an older brother and there were
  • 16:29 times where we wrestled on shag carpeting but I've never
  • 16:32 wrestled with an angel.
  • 16:35 That's bizarre and crazy, isn't it?
  • 16:38 How can Jacob win?
  • 16:41 Jeffrey: [laughing]
  • 16:42 I wrestle with an angel. This is my angel right here.
  • 16:45 Kirsten: You get points for that one.
  • 16:46 That's good.
  • 16:48 Barri: Ahh, ha, ha.
  • 16:49 Kirsten: Okay, I--we have two doctors right here,
  • 16:51 brilliant theologians.
  • 16:52 So, did Jacob need a humbling?
  • 16:54 Is that what it's all about?
  • 16:56 Barri: Well, I believe so.
  • 16:59 I think that Jacob experienced brokenness,
  • 17:03 not only physically but I believe in his heart,
  • 17:07 in his spirit.
  • 17:09 And yet God is adequate within that brokenness.
  • 17:12 And God blessed him after than brokenness happened.
  • 17:16 Kirsten: And the name "Israel," he got the
  • 17:19 name "Israel."
  • 17:20 Israel means wrestled with an angel, doesn't it?
  • 17:22 Barri: Mm-hm.
  • 17:23 Kirsten: Words--names are, like,
  • 17:25 really literal in Hebrew, right?
  • 17:27 Barri: Beautiful, yes.
  • 17:28 Kirsten: One that wrestled with an angel.
  • 17:30 Barri: Yes, and we see that name,
  • 17:31 Israel, they're still wrestling today in the 21st century,
  • 17:35 but God.
  • 17:37 Kirsten: No, that's good. David: That's good.
  • 17:39 We take you now to our last drama and then Dr. Seif,
  • 17:42 Barri Seif, will give us some more insight.
  • 17:45 Let's go to our drama now.
  • 17:46 ♪♪♪
  • 17:50 narrator: Jacob was relieved.
  • 17:52 Thankfully, his meeting with Esau had been cordial and
  • 17:55 without incident.
  • 17:57 While Esau returned to the hills of Edom,
  • 17:59 Jacob journeyed on through Canaan,
  • 18:02 stopping at Succoth, Shechem, and Bethel.
  • 18:07 It was here in Bethel that Jacob had previously anointed a stone
  • 18:12 to make the place he called the gateway to heaven.
  • 18:16 This house of God had been the site of his dream in which he
  • 18:19 saw angels ascending and descending a heavenly ladder.
  • 18:23 Here in Bethel, Jacob would once again hear the voice
  • 18:27 of the Lord.
  • 18:32 "And God said unto Jacob, 'I have changed your name
  • 18:35 to Israel.
  • 18:37 I am El Shaddai. Be fruitful and multiply.
  • 18:41 A nation, indeed, a group of nations,
  • 18:45 will come from you.
  • 18:46 Kings will be descendent from you,
  • 18:48 and the land which I gave to Abraham and Isaac,
  • 18:50 to thee I will give it and to thy seed after thee
  • 18:54 will I give the land."
  • 18:58 This road had been well traveled.
  • 19:01 Jacob's grandfather, Abraham, had walked it,
  • 19:04 starting in Ur, then Haran, then on as an alien through the
  • 19:11 land of Canaan.
  • 19:13 His father, Isaac, had walked it,
  • 19:15 this road of faith.
  • 19:17 Yes, it had some difficult turns,
  • 19:19 some narrow passageways, but in the end,
  • 19:22 it carved its way to a better place.
  • 19:25 This road will always be remembered as one of redemption,
  • 19:32 of praise and celebration to the God of Israel
  • 19:35 who transcends all time.
  • 19:39 ♪♪♪
  • 19:44 Barri: I love the country of Israel, modern Israel.
  • 19:48 It's exciting, it's vibrant, but I didn't always used
  • 19:52 to feel that way.
  • 19:54 Before I was a believer, Israel was just another country over
  • 19:57 there, across the pond.
  • 19:59 My parents went to Israel on their 25th wedding anniversary.
  • 20:04 But then, when I came to faith in Yeshua in 1980,
  • 20:09 I was in between jobs in 1987, and I had an opportunity to go
  • 20:15 serve with the Israeli Army on a program called Volunteers
  • 20:19 for Israel.
  • 20:21 I served for almost a month.
  • 20:23 We wore the army uniform, we ate at the army base,
  • 20:28 I lived in the Arab quarter of Tel Aviv.
  • 20:33 It was a very difficult experience for me.
  • 20:37 I realized that I truly was a Jewish American princess
  • 20:42 because there was no air conditioning.
  • 20:44 Culture shock, jet lag, language challenges,
  • 20:47 and on top of all of that, spiritual warfare.
  • 20:51 But I learned to be so blessed in the land.
  • 20:55 Since that time, I've been back three dozen times.
  • 20:59 Dr. Jeffrey Seif has been there over 50 times.
  • 21:02 There's nothing like the land of Israel.
  • 21:05 Now, in the late 1800s, Sir Wheatstone from Britain
  • 21:11 developed a process called stereoscopy which incorporated
  • 21:16 the three dimensions--length, width,
  • 21:19 and height--but then the fourth dimension is time,
  • 21:23 but when you go to Israel, you see the land and you see
  • 21:28 the Bible in the fifth dimension.
  • 21:30 That's spiritual dimension.
  • 21:32 There's nothing like going to Israel.
  • 21:35 Your Bible becomes alive.
  • 21:37 It's exciting and I wanna encourage you that if you've
  • 21:41 never been on a Zola tour, that--save your pennies and go.
  • 21:46 That trip will change your life.
  • 21:50 It will change your relationship with the Lord.
  • 21:52 And it will count not only for now, but for eternity.
  • 21:57 Shalom.
  • 22:01 David: Join us right now for additional content that is only
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  • 22:09 Visit our website, levitt.com, for the current and past
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  • 22:45 viewers like you.
  • 22:47 David: We've really enjoyed--we hope you've really
  • 22:50 enjoyed having Dr. Barri Seif with us.
  • 22:53 Thank you so much for your insight and--
  • 22:55 Barri: It's a blessing.
  • 22:56 David: --your teaching, along with your husband.
  • 22:58 Kirsten: Wisdom.
  • 23:00 Barri: It is a blessing, and fun.
  • 23:01 David: Good. Kirsten: Good, good.
  • 23:02 Well, you just bring a different angle.
  • 23:04 Not that your angle isn't wonderful,
  • 23:06 but together we're just thankful that we're all family and we're
  • 23:09 a team that wants to bring faith for the future.
  • 23:13 That's vitally important.
  • 23:15 Jeffrey: You know, I was thrilled to have Barri onboard.
  • 23:18 I was glad when our producer said, "Hey, Jeff.
  • 23:19 Let's do it."
  • 23:21 Because when we think of the footsteps of our forefathers,
  • 23:23 it's easy to forget our foremothers.
  • 23:25 Now I don't know if that's a name,
  • 23:27 if that's a real word, but the truth is,
  • 23:30 is these marvelous men were accompanied with
  • 23:33 marvelous women.
  • 23:34 And the journey of faith, it's something we all need today,
  • 23:39 'cause we all, you know, we fret,
  • 23:42 we're concerned about circumstances.
  • 23:44 It hits me, it hits you, it hits you,
  • 23:46 it hits all of us.
  • 23:48 And I'm glad I make the journey with this wonderful woman.
  • 23:50 I'm glad to be able to explore what the Bible says about
  • 23:52 walking by faith in an uncertain future.
  • 23:55 David: Yes, in your testimony back when you broke your feet--
  • 23:58 Barri: Yeah.
  • 23:59 Kirsten: Foot. Foot, right?
  • 24:01 Barri: Yeah, yeah.
  • 24:02 David: --you were in pain, but you heard from God
  • 24:03 during that whole time and that's really incredible.
  • 24:05 Barri: Well, when we go through those times,
  • 24:06 I didn't wanna waste it.
  • 24:08 I figured there was a purpose.
  • 24:10 I wasn't doing anything wrong.
  • 24:12 I just, you know, mis-stepped.
  • 24:14 And so, God turned it around, made it work for good.
  • 24:18 And it really was a lifetime lesson.
  • 24:20 Up to that point, I had gotten my MBA,
  • 24:23 had done marathons, but that was really an ultra-marathon.
  • 24:27 But we have faith, just like Sarah,
  • 24:30 and I really love that verse, Hebrews 11:11 that it says:
  • 24:33 "By faith Sarah received the ability to conceive," beyond the
  • 24:38 proper time, "because she considered him faithful
  • 24:42 who promised."
  • 24:43 And so I had to believe that God is faithful.
  • 24:46 He's not a bad guy.
  • 24:48 When I read in the Bible, "Delight yourself in the Lord;
  • 24:50 he'll give you the desire of your heart," my desire was to be
  • 24:53 vertical again, instead of horizontal and on a bed.
  • 24:57 And I just kept believing and then he brought even better
  • 25:02 fruit out of it.
  • 25:03 David: There was a reason that that happened,
  • 25:05 I think, for you to hear from the Lord.
  • 25:07 Barri: Yes, and these patriarchal and matriarchal
  • 25:11 couples, these individuals, give us the impetus to go forward to
  • 25:15 believe against all odds and circumstances.
  • 25:19 Kirsten: And for restoration where we saw in today's program
  • 25:23 that Jacob and Esau were restored in fellowship and in
  • 25:27 their relationship, and that's the God of restoration.
  • 25:31 It's a beautiful story in the end.
  • 25:33 Jeffrey: You made a point earlier about that too,
  • 25:34 about wrestling with the angel.
  • 25:37 In the Genesis text, we're told with the language that he
  • 25:42 wrestled with God, but in Hosea 12,
  • 25:46 therein the author gives voice to the messenger of God
  • 25:49 or the angel of God.
  • 25:51 We all wrestle a little bit with things divine on occasion,
  • 25:54 don't we?
  • 25:55 Barri: Mm-hm.
  • 25:56 Kirsten: Right, and I just want whoever's watching this
  • 25:59 right now, if you are hearing my voice,
  • 26:01 if you might feel that you are in a time of wrestling with God,
  • 26:04 so many people walk through that,
  • 26:07 God is a God of peace, joy, restoration.
  • 26:11 He wants to give you hope.
  • 26:13 There is an end to the wrestling,
  • 26:15 and he does restore relationship.
  • 26:18 David: If we listen.
  • 26:19 Kirsten: If we listen and obey, yeah.
  • 26:21 It's good news.
  • 26:23 Barri: Amen, and it's step by step.
  • 26:24 I keep thinking about Abram and Sarai,
  • 26:26 just that walking and the path, the journey,
  • 26:30 that they're on.
  • 26:32 It's just the same for us, step by step,
  • 26:34 with a little bit of light for every step.
  • 26:36 Jeffrey: You know, and at the end of the series,
  • 26:39 I would encourage you to go back and look at some of these
  • 26:42 because it's not just looking at the teaching of Jeffrey and
  • 26:46 Barri Seif and the Harts, it's reconstructing biblical journey
  • 26:51 story about people who brave the hazards of uncertainty and
  • 26:54 came out victors at the end.
  • 26:56 There's lessons for you, for God to speak to your heart by doing
  • 27:00 your part and looking at the biblical testimony.
  • 27:02 David: Thank you for your teaching,
  • 27:04 for your insight.
  • 27:05 Thank you for joining us at this desk.
  • 27:07 Can't believe it's over.
  • 27:09 Jeffrey: I wish it wasn't, but as you go,
  • 27:11 Shaalu shalom Yerushalayim.
  • 27:14 David: Pray for the peace of Jerusalem.
  • 27:18 ♪ We'll give thanks for the peace of Jerusalem, ♪
  • 27:21 ♪ peace on earth and goodwill to all men. ♪
  • 27:30 ♪ And the hope of those at the Garden of Israel through ♪
  • 27:35 ♪ his mighty arm and he brought us up from everywhere. ♪
  • 27:40 ♪ The hope of those that our God has brought us ♪
  • 27:42 ♪ home and we pray for peace. ♪
  • 27:44 ♪ Yes, we pray, shaalu shalom. ♪
  • 27:46 ♪ La, la, lye, ♪
  • 27:48 ♪ lye, lye, La, la, lye, lye, lye, ♪
  • 27:49 ♪ La, la, lye, lye, lye, Lye, lye, lye, ♪
  • 27:52 ♪ lye, la, la, la, la. ♪
  • 27:55 ♪ And the whole world knows that our God's brought us ♪
  • 27:57 ♪ home and we pray for peace. ♪
  • 27:59 ♪ Yes, we pray shaalu shalom. ♪♪
  • 28:01 ♪♪♪
  • 28:16 ♪♪♪
  • 28:18 CC by Aberdeen Captioning 1-800-688-6621 www.abercap.com

Episodes in this series

  1. Stepping Out in Faith
  2. Conflicting Directions and Destinations
  3. Delivering the Unexpected
  4. Sacrifice and Loss
  5. Toward the Unknown
  6. Love and Marriage
  7. Not by Sight
  8. Life’s Detours
  9. Patient Endurance
  10. Stepping Closer to Destiny

Guest organizations and links