Jackson Chapel AME Zion Church

09/08/2026

This Wednesday we will have our last YACM Bible Study for the year at 6:50 on our conference call.
We will be studying Genesis 12 next Wednesday and grow in God’s word with us all September!

09/07/2026

09/07/2026

09/06/2026

The Joyful and Courageous Jackson Chapel AMEZ Church has some amazing news to announce this week! It's JOY!!

09/06/2026

Joseph
Jacob's second-to-last son is the central figure in the remaining chapters in Genesis, and his story is nothing short of epic. Joseph was reviled by his brothers. Parental favoritism fueled the brothers' envy: "Now Israel loved Joseph more than all his children…. But when his brothers saw that their father loved him more than all his brothers, they hated him and could not speak peaceably to him" (Genesis 37:3-4). The brothers conspired to kill him but, somewhat mercifully, sold him to passersby who were on their way to Egypt. They even staged Joseph's death to cover up their misdeed, presenting their father with Joseph's tunic dipped in goat's blood.

In Egypt, Joseph was enslaved to Potiphar, a prominent officer of Pharaoh. Although he was rejected by his own brothers and sold into slavery in another country, "The Lord was with [Joseph] and…made all he did to prosper in his hand. So Joseph found favor in his sight…. The Lord blessed the Egyptian's house for Joseph's sake" (Genesis 39:3-5). Then Potiphar's wife attempted to seduce Joseph. When he refused, she deceived her husband and reversed the entire story, and Potiphar imprisoned Joseph.

One night, two fellow prisoners each had a dream. God had given Joseph the incredible ability to interpret dreams, and Joseph accurately interpreted theirs. Joseph knew that one of the men would soon be restored to his position in Pharaoh's house, so he said, "Remember me when it is well with you, and please show kindness to me; make mention of me to Pharaoh, and get me out of this house" (Genesis 40:14).

But Joseph was forgotten—left imprisoned for two full years—until one night Pharaoh had a troubling dream and was unable to find anyone in Egypt who could interpret it. Finally, Joseph's former cellmate remembered him, and Joseph was brought to Pharaoh.

Joseph interpreted Pharaoh's dream, saying, "Indeed seven years of great plenty will come throughout all the land of Egypt; but after them seven years of famine will arise, and all the plenty will be forgotten in the land of Egypt; and the famine will deplete the land" (Genesis 41:29-30).

Joseph's words were so wise, even Pharaoh acknowledged that the Spirit of God was in Joseph, and he was elevated to the highest place of honor and power in Egypt. The famine was indeed so severe throughout the region that Joseph's brothers had to travel to Egypt from Canaan to buy grain from Pharaoh's storehouses, administered by Joseph. Over the next several chapters, Joseph hid his identity from his brothers as he tested their hearts.

When Joseph revealed himself, his brothers were distraught. But Joseph said, "Do not therefore be grieved or angry with yourselves because you sold me here; for God sent me before you to preserve life…. God sent me before you to preserve a posterity for you in the earth, and to save your lives by a great deliverance. So now it was not you who sent me here, but God" (Genesis 45:4-5, 7-8).

Joseph understood that God is sovereign. The circumstances of your life really don't matter if you resolve to trust the overruling, providential will of God in your life. The book of Genesis closes with a promise, spoken by Joseph at the end of his life: "I am dying; but God will surely visit you…and you shall carry up my bones from here" (Genesis 50:24-25).

The God of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and Joseph wants to visit you in the person of Jesus Christ. In Genesis, the very first book of the Bible, God introduces us to His Son, the Seed that would crush the head of Satan (see Genesis 3:15). Sixty-six books later, in Revelation 3:20, Jesus extends this invitation: "Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me."

Don't wait another second to open the door of your heart to Jesus.

Get a free chapter of You Can Understand the Book of Genesis

09/06/2026

Jacob
From a human perspective, the family history of the patriarchs is fraught with deception and dysfunction. Although God had providentially selected Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob to further His plan to build the nation that would produce the Messiah, these men were still merely human. Their humanness may seem to have challenged or even thwarted God's plan, but no person's actions can upset the will of God. He is sovereign, and His will always prevails.

Jacob was forced to flee his father's house because of his own conniving. "Esau hated Jacob because of the blessing with which his father blessed him, and Esau said in his heart, 'The days of mourning for my father are at hand; then I will kill my brother Jacob'" (Genesis 27:41). So Jacob found succor at his uncle Laban's house just after God repeated the promise He made to Jacob's ancestors.

While there, Jacob fell deeply in love with Laban's younger daughter, Rachel, and Laban agreed to allow Jacob to work for him for seven years to earn Rachel's hand in marriage. "So Jacob served seven years for Rachel, and they seemed only a few days to him because of the love he had for her" (Genesis 29:20). Jacob truly loved Rachel. On their wedding night, in a shocking act of manipulation, Laban switched his firstborn daughter, Leah, for his secondborn and Jacob's intended wife, Rachel. So Jacob labored seven additional years for Laban to finally give Rachel as his wife.

Family drama was a constant companion to Jacob, but God continued to work and continued nation-building. Jacob was blessed with twelve sons. Eventually, the Lord told Jacob, "Return to the land of your fathers and to your family, and I will be with you" (Genesis 31:3). So Jacob went home to Canaan with his wives, sons, livestock, and all his possessions.

The night before Jacob arrived in the land of his ancestors, he experienced a pivotal moment in his faith. Having sent his family and servants ahead of him, "Jacob was left alone; and a Man wrestled with him until the breaking of day. Now when He saw that He did not prevail against him, He touched the socket of his hip; and the socket of Jacob's hip was out of joint as He wrestled with him" (Genesis 32:24-25).

The Man Jacob wrestled turned out to be God Himself, and Jacob would not let go of God until He blessed him. Jacob had demanded blessing from his earthly father, Isaac. He had demanded blessing from his brother, Esau. And now he demanded blessing from his heavenly Father. God replied, "Your name shall no longer be called Jacob, but Israel; for you have struggled with God and with men, and have prevailed" (v. 28). God gave Jacob His blessing as Jacob surrendered to Him.

The best day of your life is when you stop fighting against God and instead fight with God—when you surrender. The question isn't, "Is God on my side?" The question is, "Am I on God's side?" It's a question one of Jacob's sons learned to ask as he endured various trials on the way to attaining unimaginable favor and blessing from the Lord.

09/05/2026

September 7 at 6:00 AM Pastor K. Michelle Davis will be giving the mediation for Salisbury AMEZ Church. The telephone # is 1-605-313-9670 access code: 4213360.