WHEN THE BAD GUY GETS WHAT'S COMING TO HIM

Revenge movies are a genre that seems quite popular with the general, American population:  Taken, The Count of Montecristo, Gran Torino, True Grit, Gladiator, Man On Fire, and I'm sure you could name more.  We seem to enjoy seeing the bad guy get what's coming to him.  

Genesis 29, gives us that kind of satisfaction.

In this chapter, Jacob comes to the end of his 500-mile journey and arrives in the land of Haran.  He comes to a well with a large stone over it.  A beautiful shepherdess arrives with her father's sheep.  Her name is Rachel and her father is Jacob's mother's brother, Laban.  Jacob is overtaken with his good fortune and introduces himself.  He rolled the stone away from the well and watered his uncle's sheep.  

Rachel ran to tell her father the good news and he came to warmly greet Jacob.  After a month of Laban's hospitality, they strike a deal.  Jacob will work for Laban for seven years;  in return, he'll be allowed to marry Rachel.  

So Jacob served seven years to get Rachel, but they seemed like only a few days to him because of his love for her.  [29:20]

Laban prepared a feast of marriage and that evening,

...he took his daughter, Leah and gave her to Jacob, and Jacob lay with her...When morning came, there was Leah!  So Jacob said to Laban, 'What is this you have done to me?  I served you for Rachel, didn't I?  Why have you deceived me?  [29:23,25]

There it is!  The moment we've been waiting for.  The deceiver is deceived!  Justice is served.  Jacob got what was coming to him.  Ahhhh - how sweet it is!  

Laban explains to Jacob that it is not the custom of his people to marry the younger daughter before the older.  He tells Jacob to fulfill the marriage week with Leah and THEN he can have Rachel as his wife.  BUT, he must agree to work for Laban for another seven years!  This is the point in the movie where the audience is in the aisles high-fiving one another!  

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God ALWAYS evens the scales!  He is a just God!  He may not do it in the way we desire or according to our time-frame, but He does do it!  

In the last chapter of Job, we see that Job got back twice what he had earlier lost.

After a horribly painful and humiliating death on a cross - there was a magnificent resurrection!

Paul suffered innumerable sufferings [II Corinthians 11:21-30], but he was also given a tour of Heaven while still alive on this earth that no one else (except perhaps John) has seen [II Corinthians 12:2-4].

Listen, if you have suffered - and I know many of you have - keep trusting Jesus and He will balance the scales and see you through!  Don't abandon your faith!  Your faith in Him is the key that unlocks His promise of deliverance!  

In her classic novel, Hinds' Feet On High Places, Hannah Hurhard persistently reminds us that God will come to us in a moment's notice when we are in trouble [If you haven't read this classic - you might want to].  

Pour out your heart to Him in your grief, pain and injustice.  This just God NEVER LEAVES YOUR SIDE!  

 

GOD GETS OUR ATTENTION!

 If you've been reading this blog, then you know we've been following the stories surrounding Esau and Jacob.  The dastardly deed is done, and now Jacob has essentially been sent far away (to protect him from Esau's wrath).  Isaac and Rebekah have sent him to Paddam Aram to take a wife from among Rebekah's brother's clan there.

We can only imagine the loneliness that Jacob experienced as he set on on this 500-mile journey.

Jacob must surely have had similar feelings.  Was he remorseful over his actions regarding Esau?  Did he have regrets?  Did he too, feel abandoned?  Did he already miss his parents?  

As the sun set, he took a stone and used it for a pillow and laid down to sleep.  

He had a dream in which he saw a stairway resting on the earth, with its top reaching to heaven, and the angels of God were ascending and descending on it.  [28:12]

There above it stood the Lord, and he said: “I am the Lord, the God of your father Abraham and the God of Isaac. I will give you and your descendants the land on which you are lying. Your descendants will be like the dust of the earth, and you will spread out to the west and to the east, to the north and to the south. All peoples on earth will be blessed through you and your offspring.  I am with you and will watch over you wherever you go, and I will bring you back to this land. I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you.”

When Jacob awoke, he thought that he had stumbled onto the gateway to Heaven.  He marked the spot with his rock-pillow and anointed it with the name Bethel [Beth = house;  El = God].  

Then this ungodly young man did something he had never done before:  he made a vow.  It's words indicate that he was not thoroughly convinced.  But he WAS intrigued.  God had made a start in Jacob's life, mind and heart.  This start would take years of adversity to mature - but God had gained a foothold in Jacob's life.  Here's the vow:

“If God will be with me and will watch over me on this journey I am taking and will give me food to eat and clothes to wear so that I return safely to my father’s household, then the Lord will be my God and this stone that I have set up as a pillar will be God’s house, and of all that you give me I will give you a tenth.”

Jacob intends to test God out.  It's an "If...then" statement..  He's not convinced.  But he's curious.  That's the way many of us begin our walk with God.  Jacob's wrestling match with God has begun!  

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Sovereign God,

We may never know why You chose Jacob over Esau in Rebekah's womb.  Why You chose to be known as the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob instead of Abraham, Isaac and Esau?  You are sovereign!  You do what You want to do and use whom You want to use.  

Therefore God has mercy on whom he wants to have mercy, and he hardens whom he wants to harden.  [Romans 9:18]

"Who has known the mind of the Lord? Or who has been his counselor?"   [Romans 11:34]

Our role is simply to trust You - no matter what happens.  Help us to do so.  Help us not to get caught up in controversies or squabbles or family entanglements;  but rather to walk ever forward with our hand in Yours!  

For the Kingdom's sake.  Amen.   

 

 

DESPERATE FOR APPROVAL

Children of all ages yearn for the approval of their parents.  Young children will even act badly in an attempt to get attention from a parent.  It is a cosmic need to know that you are loved and accepted by your parents.  Those of us who had good parents who loved us, supported us, provided for us, encouraged us and blessed us have little idea how fortunate we were!  So many in our world yearn for these things and never receive them.  They act out in ways that shock and offend us - and all they really want is to know that someone cares enough to confront them and express love and concern for them.  

We have a vivid picture of this in Genesis 28.  Jacob has traded Esau a bowl of stew for his birthrite.  Now, years later, he deceives their father, Isaac, and steals Esau's blessing.  Esau is enraged over these injustices and plans to kill his brother after Isaac dies.  

Esau is a grown man at this point and has taken several wives from among the local Hittite women.  

When Esau was forty years old, he married Judith daughter of Beeri the Hittite, and also Basemath daughter of Elon the Hittite. They were a source of grief to Isaac and Rebekah.  [26:34-35]

Now Esau learned that Isaac had blessed Jacob and had sent him to Paddan Aram to take a wife from there, and that when he blessed him he commanded him, “Do not marry a Canaanite woman,” and that Jacob had obeyed his father and mother and had gone to Paddan Aram. Esau then realized how displeasing the Canaanite women were to his father Isaac; so he went to Ishmael and married Mahalath, the sister of Nebaioth and daughter of Ishmael son of Abraham, in addition to the wives he already had.  [28:6-9]

Notice how desperate Esau was for some sense of approval by his parents.  He goes to great ends to adjust his life in a way that he feels might please them.  When he fully realizes how offensive his previous marriages (to Hittite women) were, he quickly marries one of Ishmael's daughters in hopes that it will be pleasing to his parents.  It was a desperate attempt to gain their blessing by marrying a wife from within the family system.  

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We've all seen it!  A young child who repeats scores of times, "Mom."  "Mom."  Mom."  "MOM."  "Mom."  'MOM."  "MOM!"  The same thing happens with "Dad!"

They want to be watched.  They need to be affirmed.  Their spirit needs validation from the one person who really matters.  

And quite often - they just can't get it.  

Gradually, eventually, they realize that if they act out - they get noticed.  Even negative recognition is better than no recognition.  

It happens every day!  

Parenting is a MASSIVE RESPONSIBILITY!  It can be draining.  But, it can also be very rewarding!   

If you're a Christian - and I hope you are - pray and ask God to help you every day to be a great parent!  Don't settle for average!  Your children deserve the best!  God gave them to you.  He entrusted them to your care.  He will help you raise them to be healthy, well-adjusted, and God-respecting.  You're not in this alone.  Pray with your spouse (if they will) and seek God's wisdom and patience in this ginormous task before you!  

Heavenly Father,

Give us all we need to raise our children in healthy, happy environments to be balanced, wholesome and winsome adults who honor You!  Give us wisdom, patience and devotion to this lifelong task!  And may our children rise up and call us blessed for our hard work and dedication to their growth and development!  

For the Kingdom's sake.  Amen.  

DYSFUNCTIONAL FAMILES

 I'm sure you've noticed that even the word dysfunctional is spelled dysfunctionally.  :-)

Wikipedia defines a dysfunctional family:

A dysfunctional family is a family in which conflict, misbehavior, and often child neglect or abuse on the part of individual parents occur continuously and regularly, leading other members to accommodate such actions.

I think it's safe to say that Isaac and Rebekah had a dysfunctional family.  And they all suffered as a result!  

Isaac seems to have developed a preference for his first-born son, Esau.  Rebekah took a special interest in the second-born, Jacob.  We must keep a door open that her actions could have been motivated by the fact that God had told her:

“Two nations are in your womb,
    and two peoples from within you will be separated;
one people will be stronger than the other,
    and the older will serve the younger.”

 Chuck Swindoll suggests that there were other ways God could have brought this about:  

• Truthfulness with the boys from the beginning - helping them to understand that this was God's will for their lives.
• Equal love for both boys from both parents.  Esau could have graciously released the birth rite to Jacob in humble obedience to God's sovereign will.
•  Jacob could have received the blessing and offered to share his wealth and privilege freely with Esau.   [Fascinating Stories of Forgotten Lives,  pp.51-69]

 Instead, Isaac and Rebekah appear to have lost the closeness of their marriage relationship.  We don't even know if she ever told Isaac about God's message regarding Isaac.  She clearly - like Jacob - practiced deception against Isaac.  While likely loving each of the boys, they played favorites.  

The end is sad!  Isaac feels betrayed.  Esau is enraged and plans to kill his brother after his father dies.  Rebekah is worried over the whole situation.  And Jacob is fearful and forced to leave his homeland.  

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So, what is the biblical formula for a healthy marriage and family?

A Husband is to Love his Wife
“Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church, and gave himself for it”   Ephesians 5:25

A Husband is to Cling to His Wife
“Therefore a man will leave his father and his mother, and will cling to his wife: and they will be one flesh.”    Genesis 2:24     [The implication of this (and other passages) is sexual exclusivity and fulfillment.]

A Wife is to Submit to Her Husband
Wives, yield to your husbands, as you do to the Lord,  Ephesians 5:22  (New Century Version)    [Debbie always preferred the TLB version of I Peter 3:1, Wives, fit in with your husband's plans...]

Marriage is a Covenant – so God is Part of Every Marriage
“… the LORD hath been witness between you and the wife of your youth, against whom you have dealt treacherously: yet is she your companion, and the wife of your covenant.” Malachi 2:14     That sets it apart from other relationships!  Paul declares this unity to be a profound mystery in Ephesians 5:32.

Forgiveness is the Key to Happiness in the Home
“And be kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ’s sake has forgiven you.” Ephesians 4:32

Train Children Early and Consistently                                                    “Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it” Proverbs 22:6. The Hebrew means from infancy to adolescence, while training carries the connotation of narrowing or hedging in. Training a child means appropriate instruction according to the age of the child, and it begins in infancy.

Teach Your Children about God                                                               "These commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates.  “ Deuteronomy 6:6–9. 

Hal's Personal Counsel                                                                              PRAY!  Pray alone!  Pray together as a couple!  Pray together as a family!  Pray individually with your kids!  Walk them to their beds - even when they become teens - and sit and talk with them and pray over them!  Prayer has a healing, comforting, assuring effect!  DON'T IGNORE IT!!!!!

GET UNDER THEIR UMBRELLA

There's a relatively minor incident recorded in Genesis 26 that needs to be unpacked.  

Isaac was living among the Philistines and had led them to believe that Rebekah was his sister (a blatant lie designed to protect him).  During his time here, God was prospering Isaac.  

But one day Abimelech [a Philistine term that equates with the Egyptian term 'Pharaoh'] saw him being affectionate with Rebekah and figured out that they were married.  He was not happy with Isaac.  

What is this you have done to us?  One of the men might well have slept with your wife, and you would have brought guilt upon us.  [v.10]

Abimelech gave orders:

Anyone who molests this man or his wife shall surely be put to death.  [v.11]

So Isaac and Rebekah remained in the land in safety with the respect of all the people.  And God prospered them significantly!  That same year, they reaped a hundredfold, because the LORD blessed him.  [v.12]

Eventually, Isaac became so wealthy that he made himself a threat to the Philistines.  He had so many flocks and herds and servants that the Philistines envied him.  [v.14]

As a result, Abimelech said to him, Move away from us;  you have become too powerful for us.  [v.16]

Isaac moved to the Valley of Gerar - where his father, Abraham had previously lived - and settled there.

During this time, God renewed His covenant with Isaac - the same covenant He had made with Abraham:  I am with you;  I will bless you and will increase the number of your descendants...  [v.24]

Meanwhile, one day Abimelech showed up along with his personal advisor and the commander of his forces.  He spoke to Isaac:  

We saw clearly that the LORD was with you;  so we said, 'There ought to be a sworn agreement between us - between us and you.  Let us make a treaty with you that you will do us no harm, just as we did not molest you but always treated you well and sent you away in peace.  And now you are blessed by the LORD.'  [vs.28-29]

 After a feast, they made their agreement:  Isaac sent them on their way, and they left him in peace.  [v.31]

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I believe this incidental story sends a message:  If and when you find someone who is experiencing the blessing of God - get under their umbrella!

Isaac was clearly experiencing the blessing of God!  Abimelech was enough of a man of faith to recognize that what was happening to Isaac was supernatural.  Abimelech was smart enough to figure it out and act accordingly.  His thinking was:  "I don't want this man as an enemy!  God is clearly favoring him!  I want this man as a friend!"  Then he made a long journey and sought out a treaty to insure that they were in a good relationship.  He realized that he had potentially offended Isaac by asking him to leave.  Smart leader - good-thinking man.

We see illustrations of this principle throughout the scriptures:

• Joshua aligned himself with Moses and learned from him!
• Jonathan saw God's blessing on David and entered into a covenant friendship with David as a result!
• Elisha recognized the Spirit of God at work in Elijah and decided to follow him and eventually to succeed him as a prophet of God.
• Twelve men (and a small group of women) saw something divine in Jesus and gave up everything to be with Him.  
• A long list of men (and some women) noticed the deep commitment of the Apostle Paul and how God was with him and consequently travelled with him.

While I attended seminary at Asbury Theological, I felt like I was walking among spiritual giants.  I spent as much time as I could with leaders like:  Dr. Don Demaray, Dr. Don Joy, Pastor Clyde Van Valin, Dr. Gilbert James and many others.  I watched them.  I learned from them.  I imitated them.  I soaked up some of the blessing that was so evident in their lives.  

Later in life, God moved me to Akron, Ohio, where I aligned myself with Pastor Brenda Young for nearly six years.  I watched her.  I listened carefully to everything she said.  I followed her lead and example.  And I grew as a result!  I stayed under her umbrella until she and God nudged me out into new territory.  :-)

It's a solid principle!  When God brings you into the purview of someone He is blessing - STAY THERE UNTIL HE MOVES YOU ON!

Watch!  Listen!  Submit!  Learn!  Soak in the blessing that has settled on this person!  Let God grow you through their influence and experience.  

VERY IMPORTANT!  Don't worship them!  Worship the God who is blessing them!  God has a plan for your life and He's brought you to this person/place for a reason.  Don't resist or thwart His providential leadership!  Maximize your opportunity.  Stay soft in His hands and let Him work out His perfect will in your life!  FOR HIS GLORY!  AMEN!

A LOVER - NOT A FIGHTER

Genesis 26 gives us a good bit of information about Isaac - Abraham's one and only son.

In chapter 26, God warns Isaac of an impending draught.  God renewed His covenant with Isaac using the same words He'd used with Abraham!  

Isaac was living among the Philistines and feared them.  He told Rebekah to report that she was his sister.  For his father, Abraham, this had been partly true;  but for Isaac it was simply a protective lie.  

Abimelech, [Abimelech was to the Philistines as Pharaoh was to the Egyptians - a title] eventually realized that they were husband and wife, and was angry with Isaac.  He gave orders that no one should molest Rebekah.

God significantly prospered Isaac with blessings of wealth, flocks, herds and servants!  So much so, that the Philistines became jealous and Abimelech asked him to leave their area.  

Isaac moved back to the Valley of Gerar [where Abraham had previously lived and dug wells].  He began to dig wells for his flocks and people.  Local herdsmen quarreled with him over the first two that he dug;  being a lover and not a fighter, he simply walked away.  Finally, he dug a well that they did not quarrel over:  Rehoboth.

Then, Abimelech arrived with several leaders and sought a treaty with Isaac - which tells us how wealthy, significant and influential he had become under God's blessing.  They made a sworn agreement of peace.  

That same day, Isaac's men found water in another well.  He named it Shibah, which eventually became Beersheba.  

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Isaac was a peaceable man.  He chose to avoid conflict rather than fight.  God honored him and prospered him.  

Does this make him an example for all?  No.  He happened to be a lot like his father.  Abraham was also a peace-lover;  however, when Lot was taken captive, Abraham took on a coalition of kings to free his nephew.  Even peace-lovers will fight when they must!  

There is room in this world for people of all personality types.  

Thank You, Lord, for the diversity of people You've made.  We are not all alike.  We vary in color, shade, ethnic background, gender, appearance, language, customs, and personality types.  You made us all!  You love us all.  You've provided Your grace and salvation for all of us!  Your kindness is beyond measure!  For this we are all eternally grateful.  Now, help us to learn to love each other and get along.  For Your Kingdom's sake.  Amen.  

THERE ARE LOTS OF ESAU'S IN OUR WORLD!

 The latter portion of Genesis 25 includes the story of the birth of Esau and Jacob to Isaac and Rebekah.  Remember:  Isaac was Abraham's one and only son.

These twins struggled in their mother's womb so much that she called on God for an explanation.  God told her:  

Two nations are in your womb, and two peoples from within you will be separated;  one people will be stronger than the other, and the older will serve the younger.  [v.23]

Esau was born first [the older].  He was hairy [Esau means hairy].  Then Jacob was born [the younger];  he came out holding on to his brother's heel.  [Jacob means:  he grasps the heel - figuratively, he deceives].  

The boys grew up.  Esau became a hunter and lover of the wild.  Jacob was a more civilized and cultured man.  

One day, Esau came home from hunting and found Jacob cooking stew.  He was famished and asked for a bowl.  Jacob offered him a bowl in exchange for his birthright [as first-born].  Foolishly, with no thought for the future and no concern for his eventual offspring, Esau quickly agreed to the deal.  

Esau's nonchalance is evident in the line:  He ate and drank, and then got up and left.  [v.34]

And the deal was done.  In a simple bowl of stew, Esau forfeited his right to a double-portion of his father's inheritance [See Deuteronomy 21:15-17]!  A very foolish move!

The chapter ends with a judgment on Esau:  So Esau despised his birthright.  [v.34]

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There are lots of Esau's in our world today!

People who make quick decisions that jeopardize their future!

• Choosing a vocation based purely on income rather than considering gifts, aptitude, personality and interests. 
• Taking out loans that will significantly limit them in the future.
• Buying large homes that they truly can't afford.
• Accruing debt (schooling, credit cards, etc.) that will limit their options for many years.

Esau suffered for his decision.  

Jacob also suffered for abusing his brother knowingly.  But we’ll find out later that he hasn’t learned his lesson yet.  

We'll have to keep reading to see if they ever reconciled...  :-)

Observation:  Esau didn't sin in this scene.  He had the right to make a foolish decision and did so.  

Observation:  Even when we do sin - we always have the right to forgiveness!  

Observation:  Somehow the providence of God was playing itself out in this progression of events since God had predicted the whole scenario while they were in the womb. 

Lord,

Your Word advises us to be wise as serpents and as innocent as doves. [Matthew 10:16]

Through meditation and the direction of Your Holy Spirit help us to mature in the area of decision-making for our own good and the good of our descendants. 

Thank You for Your grace!  Amen.