Got to have faith

Douglas Wilson introduces his book Future Men with a discussion of faith. He says, "Boys take a lot of faith."

We all do, which Wilson knows, but his focus is obviously raising boys into men. Even so, what he says in his second full paragraph about faith is worth considering in full:

"...Unbelief is always anchored to the present, while faith looks at that which is unseen. But even here we only get half the picture. Too often we think that faith only looks at heavenly things, but this truncated approach is really the result of an incipient Gnosticism. In the Bible, faith includes the ability to see that which is unseen because it is still future. Abraham rejoiced to see the day of Christ, not the day when he, Abraham, would go to heaven. Faith conquers kingdoms, faith stops the mouths of lions, faith turns armies to flight, and faith brings boys up to a mature and godly masculinity."

He continues further, but I hope you see the future-looking, hopeful, nature of biblical faith. We do not want to live by a "truncated" faith; we do not want to live by a wistful faith that sees the world in merely abstract, ethereal wonder and longing. Biblical faith is assertive and active, standing on the promises of God and reaching toward what will be, toward the God who holds the future itself.

Judah's journey to redemption

Judah. He's essentially the fourth patriarch of Genesis. Oh, if you know Genesis, then you're probably thinking, "Uh, Kent. That's not exactly right. Actually, Joseph is the fourth patriarch--if there even is one."

But I beg to differ. Sure, Joseph is blessed and in many ways receives the blessings of a firstborn son. And, as far as the narrative of Genesis goes, it ends with Joseph uttering the words of the blessing God originally gave to Abraham way back in Genesis 12 (see chapter 50:24-25). However, he isn't the one in the direct covenantal line; the seed of promise (to Abraham) won't come through him. 

No. The seed will come through Judah.

"Judah's a snake," you may be thinking. "Isn't he the one that suggested that he and his brothers sell Joseph? Wasn't he thinking about making money off his brother's suffering?"

Yes. This is true. I didn't say Judah was a paragon of virtue. Or that he was necessarily deserving of being the bearer of the promise.

I will say this: Judah, like most of God's people after him, will be moved from being a self-centered snake to being a man concerned with father, family, and the future.

{Brothers Sell Joseph into Slavery
Konstantin Flavitsky, 1855]