Wrapped Up In Abba’s Love
(7 minutes)
This is the story of the family of Jacob, who had settled in the land of Canaan, where his father Isaac had lived as an immigrant.
Jacob's son Joseph was seventeen, and he served his older half brothers, the sons of his father's wives Bilhah and Zilpah, helping them watch over the flocks. One day Joseph went to his father with a bad report about their behavior.
Now Israel's love for Joseph surpassed that for his other sons because he was born to him in his old age. So Israel had made him a richly ornamented robe (a coat of many colors).
When Joseph's brothers saw that their father loved him more than he loved them, they hated him and would not speak a kind word to him.
One night Joseph had a dream, and when he shared it with his brothers, they hated him even more! (Genesis 37:1-5)
This bears repeating! Something was made available to Joseph that was not made available to the other kids, simply because he was identified as one beloved of his father. If you believe that you are God's favorite, it's going to open something up to you.
What will it open up?
The ability to dream. Joseph could dream big dreams, and it turns out Joseph was the only one who could identify himself as Daddy's favorite. That's no coincidence. Abba is trying to give us a key in this story. What if our ability to have hope and dream Kingdom-sized dreams depends solely on our ability to be rightly identified as Abba's favorite?
"How big you dream communicates how deeply you believe God loves you. And if you're not dreaming, and you're saying that God loves you, I beg to differ. This is a danger for every single one of us because of this reason: we fall into traps we think we're supposed to be in, we walk a few years down the road and all of a sudden the thing that brought fulfillment no longer brings fulfillment. And you know what happens? Your eyes start wandering. You start looking for something else to bring some sort of fulfillment into your life. And until you get a coat that identifies you as beloved, you will run after anything that looks shiny. This is why beloved identity is so important. This is why it's so important that you fall in love with Jesus and you realize how much He loves you. You let Him smother you with kisses before you do anything." (Pastor Tim)
Jesus did nothing for thirty years. He didn't do one single thing until He was fully immersed in the Father's affection. If Jesus needed to be wrapped up in this coat, how much more do we need to be identified as one beloved of the Father?
Your getting wrapped up in Abba's extravagant love will release you to start dreaming extravagant dreams. If you aren't dreaming, it's not because you don't have dreams, it's because you don't believe you're really loved. Dreams are the natural byproduct of believing you're deeply loved by Abba.
Joseph was beloved and dreaming big dreams, but was still immature. So Yahweh took Him on a journey of maturity, a process that He loves to walk out with us. I think Joseph is able to withstand the process because of the foundation he had - his beloved identity and the dreams that Yahweh had given him. Joseph finds himself on the other side of his wilderness walk with the maturity he needs to handle the anointing that Yahweh put on his life. When it comes time for his dreams to be realized, to have all of his family bowing down before him, he has the grace and compassion required to bring transformation, healing, and wholeness to his people. A nation is saved because of Joseph.
Would you believe that the healing of a nation is wrapped up in you? Would you believe that the entire cosmos is standing on tip toe, waiting with great expectation, for you to be revealed as a fully alive, fully mature, beloved son and daughter of Yahweh. The earth is groaning and anxiously waiting for you to be planted as a Mighty Oak of Righteousness. And it all begins right here: letting Abba fully cover you, from head to toe, in the coat of beloved identity so you can dream again. Will you let Him smother you with kisses? Will you let Him fully immerse you in His affections for you?
Don't be surprised when you start feeling hope rise inside of you, because a beloved son and daughter cannot help themselves - they must dream big dreams.
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Worship: "Beautiful Jesus" by Melissa Helser
Honor: Give Online to The Wilderness Place
Share With Us: We would love to hear how you're encountering Abba in your daily walks. Don't hesitate to share what you're hearing, seeing, or sensing in His presence. Email us here!