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for neither Abraham nor Melchizedek had human affirmation, but they
affirmed one another. Melchizedek knew that Abraham was hearing God,
and Abraham knew that Melchizedek had also heard Him. They met, “and
he blessed Abraham, saying, ‘Blessed be Abraham by God Most High,
Creator of heaven and earth. And blessed be God Most High, who
delivered your enemies into your hand.’ Then Abraham gave him a tenth of
everything”
(Genesis 14:1–20).
It’s easy to understand how imperfect individuals can misunderstand and
follow only tradition, because they lack a personal spiritual relationship with
God. This was especially so, because knowledge of the things past became
more readily available, but the intellectual tradition wants us to play the role,
rather than actually be connected or chosen by God. It occurs because
knowledge ties the mind to the ancestral practices only. In other words until
the spiritual evidences itself within, there is little else to depend on except
knowledge. We can know the spiritual realities of the past by applying them
to the present.
Perseverance under Great Trial
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Joseph
Isaac’s seed was Jacob, and Jacob is the father of the first twelve tribes of
Israel. The word
Israel
has a very deep meaning; its essence or summation is
“chosen of God” for a special reason. As progenitor, the seed is
evolutionary according to the alignment of the human will, which is in turn
essential to God’s Divine Will. An evil force continually looks for a
weakness to infect the seed, and it uses the imperfect mind to promote
disobedience—therein is man’s trial.
Jacob had many sons by many wives, but he understood that the Hebrew
line was to continue through Rachel’s son [through a specific woman]. The