Genesis 41:29 Behold, there come seven years of great plenty throughout all the land of Egypt: 30 And there shall arise after them seven years of famine; and all the plenty shall be forgotten in the land of Egypt; and the famine shall consume the land; 31 ..."For it shall be very grievous. 34 Let Pharaoh do this, and let him appoint officers over the land, and take up the fifth part of the land of Egypt in the seven plenteous years. 35 And let them gather all the food of those good years that come, and lay up corn under the hand of Pharaoh, and let them keep food in the cities.
This passage of scripture refers us to the grievous famine that came over Egypt in the days of Joseph, after God had warned pharaoh in a dream about a deadly drought that would last for seven years. The dream was doubled to pharaoh twice, meaning that it was already decided in the courts of heaven, and would therefore certainly come to pass. If such a direct warning comes to mortal man from God, then the next logical step would be for them to make ample preparations to survive during the devastating period that was to ensue. The prophecy and the interpretation was obviously made public, because pharaoh immediately set Joseph over all the land to gather food in abundance and to store it in cities that were to be built specifically for that purpose. Let's read:
Genesis 41:46 And Joseph was thirty years old when he stood before Pharaoh king of Egypt. And Joseph went out from the presence of Pharaoh, and went throughout all the land of Egypt. 47 And in the seven plenteous years the earth brought forth by handfuls. 48 And he gathered up all the food of the seven years, which were in the land of Egypt, and laid up the food in the cities: the food of the field, which was round about every city, laid he up in the same. 49 And Joseph gathered corn as the sand of the sea, very much, until he left numbering; for it was without number.
However, it seems as if most of the populace did not take the prophecy seriously, for when the deadly drought began to grip the nation, the people were forced to buy food from the hand of Joseph who had taken God at His word. And as time went on and the famine began to deepen significantly, the people were then forced to sell their homes, livestock, and farms to pharaoh, in order to avoid starving to death, for as God had previously predicted, the drought would be very grievous. Finally, the Egyptians had exhausted all of their material resources, with only the clothes on their backs remaining, and thus they came to Joseph confessing their dire plight, and offering to sell their souls into bondage to pharaoh, just so that they could eat and not die. Let's read:
Genesis 47:13 And there was no bread in all the land; for the famine was very sore, so that the land of Egypt and all the land of Canaan fainted by reason of the famine. 15 And when money failed in the land of Egypt, and in the land of Canaan, all the Egyptians came unto Joseph, and said, Give us bread: for why should we die in thy presence? for the money faileth. 18 When that year was ended, they came unto him the second year, and said unto him, We will not hide it from my lord, how that our money is spent; my lord also hath our herds of cattle; there is not ought left in the sight of my lord, but our bodies, and our lands: 19 Wherefore shall we die before thine eyes, both we and our land? buy us and our land for bread, and we and our land will be servants unto Pharaoh: and give us seed, that we may live, and not die, that the land be not desolate.
The following two lessons constitute a very stern warning from God to all Christians living in the 21st century, when the dawning of eternity will be preceded by the institution of the mark of the beast. Lesson #1: Those of us who come up to that time burdened down with financial debt will be severely tempted to sell our souls into bondage in exchange for the economic privileges that would otherwise be terminated. Those astronomical credit card debts that many of us are just paying interest on, will one day come back to bite us when the devil takes center stage, and offers debt forgiveness in exchange for receiving the mark of the beast in our right hand or in our foreheads. This is one of the weapons in his arsenal which many of us are ignorant of, and so he tempts us through human agencies to live beyond our means, and to go deeper and deeper into debt, from which it then becomes increasingly difficult to extricate ourselves. Let's read:
Revelation 13:16 And he causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads: 17 And that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name.
Lesson #2: Those Christians who do not lay up in store the spiritual bread which is needed against that time, will succumb to the spiritual famine which will spread across the land in those evil days, and will like the Egyptians of old, be cornered into selling themselves into spiritual slavery. The bread here referred to is the written and Living word which many of us are too indolent or busy to lay up in store, and thus when that dreadful time comes around, we may find ourselves destitute of the Holy Spirit, who alone will be able to sustain us spiritually and physically during those evil days. Let's read:
Amos 8:11 Behold, the days come, saith the Lord God, that I will send a famine in the land, not a famine of bread, nor a thirst for water, but of hearing the words of the Lord: 12 And they shall wander from sea to sea, and from the north even to the east, they shall run to and fro to seek the word of the Lord, and shall not find it.
In our day and in our own experiences, we are often bombarded with duties, responsibilities, work, school, cares of this life, and a plethora of activities which eat away at the fabric of our Christian experience with The Lord, and because of this, many of us are in very grave danger of being unprepared for the spiritual drought that is now shaping up, soon to overspread the entire land. It does not matter to satan what so-called valid excuses he presents to us, once he can separate us from the source of our strength, for he knows all too well that if he succeeds in this area, the entire house of cards will fall under his jurisdiction sooner or later, and this is why we are warned over and over again in the scriptures not no permit the cares of this world to overrun our Christian experience. Let's read:
Luke 21:34 And take heed to yourselves, lest at any time your hearts be overcharged with surfeiting, and drunkenness, and cares of this life, and so that day come upon you unawares. 35 For as a snare shall it come on all them that dwell on the face of the whole earth. 36 Watch ye therefore, and pray always, that ye may be accounted worthy to escape all these things that shall come to pass, and to stand before the Son of man.
We therefore end with a sobering passage of scripture which bears out this warning, and it is the will of God that we be not only hearers but doers of the word, for the time is at hand. Let's read:
Matthew 25:1 Then shall the kingdom of heaven be likened unto ten virgins, which took their lamps, and went forth to meet the bridegroom. 2 And five of them were wise, and five were foolish. 3 They that were foolish took their lamps, and took no oil with them: 4 But the wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps. 6 And at midnight there was a cry made, Behold, the bridegroom cometh; go ye out to meet him. 8 And the foolish said unto the wise, Give us of your oil; for our lamps are gone out. 9 But the wise answered, saying, Not so; lest there be not enough for us and you: but go ye rather to them that sell, and buy for yourselves. 10 And while they went to buy, the bridegroom came; and they that were ready went in with him to the marriage: and the door was shut. 11 Afterward came also the other virgins, saying, Lord, Lord, open to us. 12 But he answered and said, Verily I say unto you, I know you not. 13 Watch therefore, for ye know neither the day nor the hour wherein the Son of man cometh.
He that hath an ear to hear, let him hear what The spirit saith unto the churches. God bless!