Unit 1: The Word: God Calls Abraham’s Family
Key Verse:
Genesis 25:23 NLT
23 And the Lord told her, “The sons in your womb will become two nations. From the very beginning, the two nations will be rivals. One nation will be stronger than the other; and your older son will serve your younger son.”
Rebekah obeyed the word of the Lord concerning her children. Can we do the same?
What you need to know
Genesis 24:12-14 NLT
12 “O Lord, God of my master, Abraham,” he prayed. “Please give me success today, and show unfailing love to my master, Abraham. 13 See, I am standing here beside this spring, and the young women of the town are coming out to draw water. 14 This is my request. I will ask one of them, ‘Please give me a drink from your jug.’ If she says, ‘Yes, have a drink, and I will water your camels, too!’—let her be the one you have selected as Isaac’s wife. This is how I will know that you have shown unfailing love to my master.”
Long story short. Abraham sent his servant, Eliezer to the region of Harran to find a wife for his son, Issac. Eliezer prayed for a sign. God gave him a sign. God revealed to him a woman of virtue.
Proverbs 31:10 NLT
10
Who can find a virtuous and capable wife?
She is more precious than rubies.
Eliezer wasn’t looking for beauty. Beauty is fleeting. Eliezer was looking for virtue. Virtue is a characteristic of godliness. Eliezer was looking for a godly woman for his master’s son. Rebekah’s actions demonstrated that she had the virtue required to grow a nation.
Colossians 3:12 NLT
12 Since God chose you to be the holy people he loves, you must clothe yourselves with tenderhearted mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience.
The Lesson
Genesis 25:19-20 NLT
19 This is the account of the family of Isaac, the son of Abraham. 20 When Isaac was forty years old, he married Rebekah, the daughter of Bethuel the Aramean from Paddan-Aram and the sister of Laban the Aramean.
And so Issac married a woman from his father’s homeland in Harran, which still lies in the southern region of Turkey, in the Fertile Crescent of Mesopotamia. Rebekah was the granddaughter of Abraham’s brother, Nahor.
Genesis 11:26 NLT
26 After Terah was 70 years old, he became the father of Abram, Nahor, and Haran.
Genesis 24:15 NLT
15 Before he had finished praying, he saw a young woman named Rebekah coming out with her water jug on her shoulder. She was the daughter of Bethuel, who was the son of Abraham’s brother Nahor and his wife, Milcah.
_______________________________
Genesis 25:21 NLT
21 Isaac pleaded with the Lord on behalf of his wife, because she was unable to have children. The Lord answered Isaac’s prayer, and Rebekah became pregnant with twins.
Beloved, Issac demonstrated behavior that we should all emulate. He made his request known to God. Like his parents before him, he and his wife had trouble starting a family. Rather than settle for any alternative method, Issac went directly to the Lord. Issac understood that the promise that the Lord made to Abraham to make a great nation began with him. Beloved, be reminded that the Bible is full of God’s precious promises to us, His children. Issac’s actions remind us that when we go to God in prayer, we need to bring His Word with us.
Isaiah 55:11 NLT
11
It is the same with my word.
I send it out, and it always produces fruit.
It will accomplish all I want it to,
and it will prosper everywhere I send it.
2 Peter 1:3-4 NLT
3 By his divine power, God has given us everything we need for living a godly life. We have received all of this by coming to know him, the one who called us to himself by means of his marvelous glory and excellence. 4 And because of his glory and excellence, he has given us great and precious promises. These are the promises that enable you to share his divine nature and escape the world’s corruption caused by human desires.
____________________
Genesis 25:22-23 NLT
22 But the two children struggled with each other in her womb. So she went to ask the Lord about it. “Why is this happening to me?” she asked. 23 And the Lord told her, “The sons in your womb will become two nations. From the very beginning, the two nations will be rivals. One nation will be stronger than the other; and your older son will serve your younger son.”
And so we come back to Rebekah. When she sensed trouble stirring within her she sought the Lord as well. And God, Who is Faithful, responded. He explained to her that within her womb were brothers who would become rivals. One would be strong. Both would be great. But… the older would serve the younger. My position is that this fourth point spoken by the Lord rested on Rebekah’s heart because it would have been the one that contradicted the tradition of the largest portion of the inheritance being bequeathed to the eldest son, as well as leaving him in the position of patriarch of the family and progenitor of the royal or priestly lineage. Certainly, Rebekah understood this and knew that She and Issac would have to buck that tradition if they were to obey the Word of the Lord.
Certainly what the Lord revealed would run counter to tradition, but it was not unprecedented within the Hebrew tradition. The example of Cain and Abel comes to mind. It was Abel, the second son of Adam, or Cain who won God’s approval by the righteousness of his offering. Beloved, elevation, or rather, promotion comes from God. He who set the universe in motion knows exactly the order of the progeny of men.
Hebrews 11:4 NLT
4 It was by faith that Abel brought a more acceptable offering to God than Cain did. Abel’s offering gave evidence that he was a righteous man, and God showed his approval of his gifts. Although Abel is long dead, he still speaks to us by his example of faith.
Psalm 75:6–7 NLT
6
For no one on earth—from east or west,
or even from the wilderness—
should raise a defiant fist.
7
It is God alone who judges;
he decides who will rise and who will fall.
__________________
Genesis 25:24-26 NLT
24 And when the time came to give birth, Rebekah discovered that she did indeed have twins! 25 The first one was very red at birth and covered with thick hair like a fur coat. So they named him Esau. 26 Then the other twin was born with his hand grasping Esau’s heel. So they named him Jacob.[c] Isaac was sixty years old when the twins were born.
In time, the twins were born. Note that both Issac and Rebekah collaborated in the naming of the children. The first child from the womb was ruddy in appearance. He was called Esau, meaning ‘red’, which matched his ruddy, hirsute appearance. When the second son came forth, he was grasping his brother’s heel, thus he was named Ya’akov (Hebrew), or Jacob (English). Jacob’s name has two distinct, yet related meanings, given the context. The meaning most associated with its namesake is supplanter, which is one who supersedes or displaces another, especially by force or by guile. The second meaning is taken from an ancient derivative of the name which translates, “may God protect”. While many believe Jacob tricked his brother out of his inheritance, I would argue that Jacob simply ‘took’ what was his. God set it aside for him. But wait, I’ve jumped ahead…
Genesis 25:27-28 NLT
27 As the boys grew up, Esau became a skillful hunter. He was an outdoorsman, but Jacob had a quiet temperament, preferring to stay at home. 28 Isaac loved Esau because he enjoyed eating the wild game Esau brought home, but Rebekah loved Jacob.
Extrovert. Introvert. Neither quite fits here. Both demonstrate a force of character from which would grow two nations, Edom and Israel. Esau loved the outdoors. To describe him would have been to describe someone who actually may have loved his ‘alone time’ in the wilderness, hunting, and fishing. Conversely, Jacob stayed near home, possibly to enjoy the hustle and bustle of village life; the laughter of children. Quiet in temperament, but near home, Jacob learned the management skills that would serve him later in life. Under his mother’s watchful guidance, Jacob prospered.
Genesis 25:29-30 NLT
29 One day when Jacob was cooking some stew, Esau arrived home from the wilderness exhausted and hungry. 30 Esau said to Jacob, “I’m starved! Give me some of that red stew!” (This is how Esau got his other name, Edom, which means “red.”)
And so, as we come to the close of the lesson, we learn more of the character of the two young men. Literally, all of human history turns on the appetite of one brother, and the negotiation skills of the other. Esau comes in from a long day, frustrating day in the wilderness empty-handed and hungry. From the tone of the text, you can sense his ire. You can almost visualize the veins standing out on his forehead as he demands stew. He demands stew immediately!
Philippians 3:19-20 NLT
18 For I have told you often before, and I say it again with tears in my eyes, that there are many whose conduct shows they are really enemies of the cross of Christ. 19 They are headed for destruction. Their god is their appetite, they brag about shameful things, and they think only about this life here on earth.
Beloved, profanity is not just what you say, it's how you live. It comes down to conduct. Your lifestyle is evidence of your righteousness. We are to be fruitful Christians. In order for that to happen, we must keep our focus on Christ. Esau’s profane behavior revealed in a moment what God knew all along, Esau was not fit for leadership. God revealed it to Rebekah at the birth of the twins. Certainly, she saw to it that Jacob was prepared for this moment as well.
Genesis 25:31-34 NLT
31 “All right,” Jacob replied, “but trade me your rights as the firstborn son.”
32 “Look, I’m dying of starvation!” said Esau. “What good is my birthright to me now?”
33 But Jacob said, “First you must swear that your birthright is mine.” So Esau swore an oath, thereby selling all his rights as the firstborn to his brother, Jacob.
34 Then Jacob gave Esau some bread and lentil stew. Esau ate the meal, then got up and left. He showed contempt for his rights as the firstborn.
Jacob immediately assesses the situation and decides that the moment has come for him to step into the prophetic calling that God has placed on his life. You can almost feel the disdain he feels for Esau’s disdain for the one thing that has eternal ramifications for them both, the inheritance of their father, Issac. Esau sells his birthright to his younger sibling for a bowl of stew, a measly bowl of stew. The epitome of profanity. Jacob authoritatively stepped into his prophetic destiny. No second-guessing, no doubt. He seized the moment and started down the path that God ordained for him from before the beginning of time.
Selah,
wb
Hebrews 12:14-17 NLT
14 Work at living in peace with everyone, and work at living a holy life, for those who are not holy will not see the Lord. 15 Look after each other so that none of you fails to receive the grace of God. Watch out that no poisonous root of bitterness grows up to trouble you, corrupting many. 16 Make sure that no one is immoral or godless like Esau, who traded his birthright as the firstborn son for a single meal. 17 You know that afterward, when he wanted his father’s blessing, he was rejected. It was too late for repentance, even though he begged with bitter tears.
No comments:
Post a Comment