Reaping What We Sow…

Jacob and his wives are the subject of this post. We start in Genesis 29, and continue into Genesis 30.

(Genesis 29:25) “Why then have you deceived me?” Jacob, did you forget that sowing and reaping thing? “Do not be deceived: God is not mocked, for whatever one sows, that will he also reap.” Laban, cheated Jacob, by bringing his oldest daughter Leah to be his wife, instead of Rachel. Leah was the oldest daughter, and it was customary to give the oldest daughter in marriage first. Jacob had served seven years in order to have Rachel as his wife. Now, Laban tells him to serve seven more, and then he can also have Rachel. Jacob did just that. Oh, Jacob! (Galatians 6:7) And now, he’s taken sisters for wives, too. Jacob, you’re asking for it. What about the rivalry that’s sure to ensue? (Leviticus 18:18) (Galatians 6:8) God saw that Leah was hated, and Rachel loved by Jacob, so Leah’s womb was opened, while Rachel was barren. Why do I have the feeling that there’s bound to be trouble here? Verses 32-35 let us know how Leah felt. In (Genesis 30), we see Rachel, filled with envy, and taking matters into her own hands. She tells Jacob to go in to her servant, Billah, so she can have a child. Sure enough, Jacob went in to Rachel’s servant, Billah, and had a child with her. Apparently, nobody told Jacob about Grandpa Abraham and his wife Sarah, and her servant, Hagar. The reason I’m mentioning this is that when God tells us to teach our children, (Deuteronomy 6:7, 1:19) (Ephesians 6:4), I’m pretty sure that includes letting them know how the “follies” of disobedience, envy, etc., turned out. That would forewarn them about the bad consequences, wouldn’t it? Neglecting to do so is how generational curses get passed on instead of being broken off of families. Leah did the same thing. She gave her servant Zilpah to Abraham, so she (Leah) could give him more children than Rachel. The two women were now caught up in competing for Jacob’s love. (Genesis 30:1-24)

I don’t recall God bringing Adam anyone but Eve. (1Tim. 3:2) tells us, “Therefore an overseer must be above reproach, the husband of one wife, sober-minded, self-controlled, respectable, hospitable, able to teach, not a drunkard, not violent but gentle, not quarrelsome, not a lover of money.” You bet he’d better not love money; because with all those kids and those, now four wives, he’ll never have any! Not for long, anyway. I’m smiling. Jacob was the overseer of his family, as every man is. And, as we all have seen and still see today, more than one wife, or woman, for that matter, at a time is not a good thing. You’re asking for trouble there. That sets everybody up for envy and rivalry, and all sorts of misdeeds, and emotional harm. Their story is a good lesson to us today. We still need to seek God first, and heed His Word, not letting our emotions, or desires get the best of us.

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Jacob the Deceiver?

(Genesis 27:35) “But he said, “Your brother came deceitfully, and he has taken away your blessing.” Genesis 27 gives us the story of Jacob robbing Esau of his blessing; which is different from his birthright. So, Esau was cheated twice by Jacob. When the truth was discovered, Esau wept aloud. Isaac then declared this to him: “Behold, away from the fatness of the earth shall your dwelling be, and away from the dew of heaven on high. By your sword you shall live, and you shall serve your brother; but when you grow restless, you shall break his yoke from your neck.” (Genesis 27:39-40)

When we read the chapter from beginning to end, it is Rebekah, however, who is the culprit behind all of this. Esau hated Jacob for what he’d done, and actually planned to kill him as soon as Isaac died. Rebekah found this out she told Jacob to flee to her brother Laban, to protect him. She told Isaac that she didn’t want Jacob to marry a Canaanite woman, because the Hittite women Esau had married made her life bitter. Isaac blessed Jacob and sent him off to find a wife at Laban’s encampment. Esau saw and heard all this, and married one of Ishmael’s daughters to spite his parents. What a mess!

Mom, what were you doing? What were you thinking?! It wasn’t Rebekah’s place to change the order of things, was it? That’s a lesson to us to keep things in the order that God has put them. I remember my grandmother saying often, “this is the order in which this, or that, is done.” I also remember my dad cocking one eyebrow and saying, “aha, you put the cart before the horse, didn’t you?” There’s also that deception thing. Not only is Rebekah deceiving her husband, she’s entreating her son to deceive him, and also to defy authority. (2Cor.10:5) teaches us that, “We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ.” He obeyed God, even unto death on the cross.

I got the feeling that there was a little favoritism going on in this family. Did you? That’s a big no-no, isn’t it? All of ‘em get loved the same; one just as much as the others! Favoritism creates envy; and where there is envy, there is all manner of evil. (James 3:16) “For where jealousy and selfish ambition exist, there will be disorder and every vile practice.” Then, there’s that thing about putting a stumbling block in front of a brother or sister. Can you imagine the pain of being betrayed by your brother, and then again by your parents? As parents, we need to be on top of all that stuff, don’t we? It’s our responsibility to do the right things, and to teach them to our children. Even when they’re grown, we’re to build them up in love, encouraging them and reminding them of God’s will and His Word, when they need to be reminded.

Isaac isn’t innocent by any means either. He didn’t even ask Jacob what he thought he was doing. He could have rescinded that blessing, I believe, and given it to Esau anyway. And he could also have gone before the LORD in regard to Rebekah. Now, there was strife and real enmity in the family. That’ whole thing is a lesson to us about keeping our proper place(s), which Jesus did. (Philippians 2:5-8) When we do that, and we stand and stay on the word of God, we can keep things in their proper order, and we can better help our children, and our brothers and sisters, to grow in the LORD.

Love you from Café du Mondieu

They Do As We Do…

(Genesis 25:29-34) (ESV) Once when Jacob was cooking stew, Esau came in from the field, and he was exhausted. And Esau said to Jacob, “Let me eat some of that red stew, for I am exhausted!” (Therefore his name was called Edom) Jacob said, “Sell me your birthright now.” Esau said, “I am about to die; of what use is a birthright to me?” Jacob said, “Swear to me now.” So he swore to him and sold his birthright to Jacob. Then Jacob gave Esau bread and lentil stew, and he ate and drank and rose and went his way. Thus Esau despised his birthright. (Deut. 5:16)

Let me tell you, as the oldest child in the family, there are responsibilities that fall on the oldest sons and daughters; aren’t there? There are in our family. When Esau despised his birthright, he scoffed, in effect, at that responsibility. Privilege is not the right to do what you want to. It is the responsibility to do what you ought to. Esau was to inherit the leadership of the family, and the judicial authority of his father. That’s a big responsibility. My personal belief is that we need to teach leadership and judicial authority to all of our children. They will someday all be heads of families; and, each one in the extended family needs to work in cooperation with the others.

Esau made light of that birthright when he joked about dying, too. But Jacob isn’t innocent in this in the least bit. What was this “sell me your birthright,” thing? Your brother is hungry, after coming in from the field, which helps to feed you. What?! There should have been a bowl of stew waiting for him. That’s the least you could do. See, this is where that “do unto others,” thing comes in again. (1Cor. 12:31) says, “So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God. “ (Col. 3:17) comes to mind, as well.

Now, when I read about how Isaac lied to Abimelech in Genesis 26, telling him Rebekah was his sister, I can see where Jacob may have learned that stuff. We learn what we live. And, we live what we learn. Fortunately, Abimelech caught Isaac laughing with Rebekah, and figured out the truth. He issued an edict saying anyone who touched either one of them would die. This is a heads-up to us as parents. We may not realize that our children may be watching and learning from what they see in the way we handle things and conduct ourselves. “First clean the inside of the cup, and then the outside will be clean,” comes to mind. (Matt. 23:26)

That’s not an easy thing to do; especially when you come from a background of dysfunctionality and distress. But Jesus said with God all things are possible. Life is not a test; it’s a journey. Let me tell you, too, everything you’ve gone through leaves you with treasure. You come away with exactly what someone else, somewhere, and at some time, will need. And God is great at connecting people. Don’t discount yourself; and don’t give up. All will be well.

Love you from Café du Mondieu

Saturday Silly-December 17, 2022

Hmm, I really had a wake-up call the other morning. I was on my way out to the South Strip Terminal on the bus. As we came up toward the South Strip Terminal exit, on Paradise Road, I happened to see the sign directing folks to the Rental Car Return lot. People, it was right there in the middle of, nowhere, really. They expect you to turn and take that steep incline down, across those loose rocks, and then across that four lane road coming from your right, on to the Rental Car Return lot?! Can’t you just see that one? Imagine what kind of dings and scratches those loose rocks are going to put on that car. Boy, I know things are getting tough, but do you really expect me to believe they couldn’t even pave a little road there? Or, have you go to the next traffic light?! Listen, you rental car company owner, I was born at night, but it wasn’t sometime late last night! And, what was that city planner thinking? How do you have people just drive down an embankment of rocks? It’s a good thing I’d already had my coffee. I’d have thought I was dreaming that one.

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What’s In A Name?

We’re picking up in Genesis 25 today. Abraham finished out his life with Keturah, having six more sons by her. He died at the ripe old age of 175.

(Genesis 25:1) Now Abraham had taken another wife, named Keturah, and she bore him Zimran, Jokshan, Medan, Midian, Ishbak, and Shuah. – (Genesis 25:5) Abraham left everything he owned to Isaac. But while he was still alive, Abraham gave gifts to the sons of his concubines and sent them away from his son Isaac to the land of the east. Abraham was buried with his wife Sarah, in the cave at Machpelah. The two concubines spoken of here, are Keturah, and Hagar, of course.

Of course, Ishmael, and the sons of Keturah had children. And (Genesis 25:18) tells us “Ishmael’s descendants settled from Havilah to Shur, which is near the border of Egypt as you go toward Asshur. And they lived in hostility toward all their brothers. This would suggest that they didn’t get along with Isaac, or with Keturah’s sons or grandsons. That goes back to what Sarah did to Hagar, I believe. There was hostility between the two of them, that translated to Hagar’s descendants. We’ll look at that again a little later.

Meanwhile, Isaac and Rebekah are married, and expecting twins. I love verse 22! The twins were struggling within her, and “Rebekah went and inquires of the LORD.” See, God is no respecter of persons; and apparently, Rebekah knew that. We don’t need a middleman, Ladies. We can go directly to the source too! We can, “go boldly to the throne of grace..” (Hebrews 4:16) God told her that there were two nations in her womb, the people would be separated, and one would be stronger than the other. He also told her the older one would serve the younger. When they were born, Esau, which means hairy, was the stronger one, and Jacob had hold of Esau’s heel. The name Jacob means “he deceives”, and to supplant, or circumvent. Sadly, the story of Jacob’s family is filled with deception, supplanting, and circumvention. Do you get the feeling that what we call our children may have some influence in their lives? I went through a period in my life, when I was actually living right down to some of the name /things I was called; and on purpose. By these accounts, we can see that our attitudes, words and actions, really do have great influence, and effects in our children, and even our grandchildren’s lives. There is still hurt and hostility between some of the descendants of Abraham to this day. As always, I’m reading from the ESV.

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Raise Them To Be Godly

Today’s post comes from Genesis 24; the story of Isaac and Rebekah’s arranged marriage and meeting. As always, I’m reading from the ESV. Something I got from this story was what an impact a “godly,” or “well-bred,” woman can make. Not just a woman, either; but an intelligent, well mannered person-so males are included here.

(Genesis 24:15-24) Before he had finished speaking, behold, Rebekah, who was born to Bethuel the son of Milcah, the wife of Nahor, Abraham’s brother, came out with her water jar on her shoulder. The young woman was very attractive in appearance, a maiden (woman of marriageable age) whom no man had known. She went down to the spring and filled her jar and came up. Then the servant ran to meet her and said, “Please give me a little water to drink from your jar.” She said, “Drink, my lord.” And she quickly let down her jar upon her hand and gave him a drink. When she had finished giving him a drink, she said, “I will draw water for your camels also, until they have finished drinking.” So she quickly emptied her jar into the trough and ran again to the well to draw water, and she drew for all his camels. The man gazed at her in silence to learn whether the LORD had prospered his journey or not.

Not only did Rebekah give Abraham’s servant a drink, but she also drew water for his camels. We can see that this is a model of a woman of worth, or what is called, a well-bred woman. (Proverbs 19: 14) says, “House and wealth are inherited from fathers, but a prudent wife is from the LORD. “ (Proverbs 41:10) “An excellent wife who can find? She is far more precious than jewels.

We have good reason to study the Word of God, Ladies. We have good reason to raise our daughters up to be Godly women. (Proverbs 12:4), (Proverbs 14:1), (Proverbs 31:10) Of course, the entire 31^st Proverb, starting with verse 10, gives us an example of a Godly woman. She is intelligent, well mannered, hospitable, kind, industrious, and knowledgeable in regard to business matters. She’s also patient, sensitive, and loving. I love verse 21! She has no fear for her house when it snows…that scarlet clothing is translated as “doubly clothed,” but I believe in the Blood of Jesus Christ, too! They’re covered! Amen? Amen.

Clearly, we can see that women are not, nor were they in biblical times, wimpy, wishy-washy, and weak. But, there are fine lines in all of life’s doings, aren’t there? Yes, and it’s not easy being a woman in the world-whether in biblical times, or in today’s fast paced world. Thank God, we have a Savior and Master who helps us to be the best we can be. PS-There is no male or female in Christ Jesus; so it is just as important to raise sensitive and tender men, as it is to raise strong women. As a matter of fact, what could the world accomplish if we all just raise decent, kind, and loving human beings? Hmm…

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God Provides It All

(Genesis 22) gives us the story of Abraham and Isaac, of God telling Abraham to sacrifice his son, Isaac, and of God, Himself, providing a substitute sacrifice. God provided a ram for the sacrifice. God also made a promise to Abraham, in (verses 15-18) –And the angel of the LORD called to Abraham a second time from heaven and said, “By myself I have sworn, declares the LORD, because you have done this and have not withheld your son, your only son, I will surely bless you, and I will surely multiply your offspring as the stars of heaven and as the sand that is on the seashore. And your offspring shall possess the gate of his/their enemies, and in your offspring shall all the nations of the earth be blessed, because you have obeyed my voice.” Again, we can see that provision for the grafting in of all, until we are all truly one family. (Matt. 1:1), (Matt. 3:9), (Acts 2:39), (Acts 10:35), (Acts 13:26), (Galatians 3:8)

We can see that Abraham had learned to trust the LORD. Just as God provided the lamb for the sacrifice then, He provided the lamb for the sacrifice that would pay the price for all the sins of all men for once and for all time. That lamb was Jesus Christ, His only begotten Son. (John 1:14) (John 3:16), (1John 4:9)

Abraham also obeyed the LORD. Now, stop and think for a minute. Can you imagine yourself being told by God to sacrifice your son? And, this is your only son with your wife; or with your husband. Women are called by God to do things, too. There is nothing on record that would indicate Abraham even hesitated slightly. This is what it means to love the LORD with all your heart, and all your strength. There have been times when I thought I was tested. Let me tell you, I don’t know that my heart wouldn’t burst inside my chest at a request like that. I’d be on my face before the LORD. “LORD, take me, but spare my baby, please!”

Thank God, we don’t have to go through that. But God does have some requests of us. They have to do with obeying His Word/Laws, and with the way we treat others. (1Sam. 15:22) tells us, “And Samuel said, “Has the LORD as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the LORD? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to listen than the fat of rams.” (Mark 12:32-33) God also said, “For I desire steadfast love and not sacrifice, the knowledge of God rather than burnt offerings,” in (Hosea 6:6) And, (Proverbs 12:13) says, “To do righteousness and justice is more acceptable to the LORD than sacrifice.” Again, that comes down to doing unto others as we would have them do unto us, and remembering the law of sowing and reaping. Something else – God provides us with even the will, or desire, to do righteousness and justice. Isn’t He awesome?!

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What’s That? Love Is…

(Genesis 21:9-21) Chapter 21 gives us, not only the story of Isaac’s birth to Sarah and Abraham, but also the expulsion of Hagar and Ishmael from the family. –Or their home, anyway. Verses 9-21 give us the account of what transpired.

Apparently, Ishmael, Abraham’s son by Hagar, the Egyptian servant, was mocking Sarah’s son, or as the JPS Tanakh puts it, “he was making sport.” Abraham had made a great feast on the day Isaac was weaned. According to Jewish Rabbinical traditions, a child would be weaned anytime between 18 months to 5 years of age. This would have put Ishmael anywhere from 14-18 years of age. You’d think he would have known better than to make sport of a little guy. He should have, anyway. But, wait a minute! Aren’t you, Sarah, his mother too?! He’s Abraham’s son! Didn’t you say, “…So I can build a family by her?.” (Genesis 16:1) But, there was a rift between Sarah and Hagar, his mother. See, how much children are influenced by our emotions, attitudes, and actions toward others? There had to have been tension in that household. Isn’t that a challenge in the blended families we have today? Step-parenting is a challenge, isn’t it? Thank goodness, love never fails.

Now, Sarah has Hagar and Ishmael expelled from the family’s dwelling place. Abraham hadn’t wanted to send them away, but God told him to listen to, and do, everything Sarah told him to do. He also promised him that Ishmael would also become a great nation. Hagar and Ismael end up in the wilderness of Beersheba. One skin of water and some bread was all the provision Abraham sent them off with. What?! Not even an animal to carry the stuff for them? Abraham!

Hagar and Ishmael run out of food and water, of course. Now, Hagar left Ishmael under one of the bushes, and went off a little way. She couldn’t bear to watch him die. God intervened. He heard Hagar weeping, and heard the boy also. God told Hagar to take Ishmael by the hand and lead him to the well that, apparently, she hadn’t seen before. She filled the skin with water, and they lived. Verses 20-21 tell us “And God was with the boy, and he grew up and settled in the wilderness and became a great archer. And while he was dwelling in the Wilderness of Paran, his mother got a wife for him from the land of Egypt.” Can you see God working to graft everyone in, in one way or another? Even Abraham’s covenant with Abimelech, the King of Gerar, made a provision for, apparently, some of the Philistines. Do we serve an awesome God?! Yes! Yes! Yes, we do!

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That Old Enemy, Fear

(Genesis 20) gives us the story of Abraham, Sarah, and Abimelech, the King of Gerar. There are a couple of things we can learn from this story. Abraham told Abimelech that Sarah was his sister, and she said Abraham was her brother. Abimelech took Sarah, apparently, intending to make her his wife, but had not yet approached her to have sex with her, when God gave him the scoop. (John 14:6) “I am the way, the truth, and the life.” God also prevented Abimelech from approaching Sarah to have sex with her. So, we can see that God is a just God. He knew Abraham and Sarah lied to the man, and He wanted to keep him safe from committing a grievous sin.

Abimelech questioned Abraham about this in verses 9-10. “ how have I sinned against you, that you have brought on me and my kingdom a great sin? You have done to me things that ought not to be done.” And Abimelech said to Abraham, “What did you see, that you did this thing?” Abraham’s was operating in fear when he lied. In verse 11, Abraham said, “I did it because I thought, ‘There is no fear of God at all in this place, and they will kill me because of my wife.’ Okay, but, in verses 12-13, Abraham’s trying to make excuses to justify himself for lying. See how fear (unclean spirit, which happens to be a sin when we receive it)*, causes us to sin? Abraham sinned twice more. First, he received that fear into his heart, then he lied, and now he’s trying to justify himself by making excuses. It’s a downward spiral. *There is no fear in God. Both God, and Jesus said many times, “fear not.” (Isaiah 54:4), (Isaiah 54:14), (Isaiah 41: 10, 14) Fear is one of the devil’s favorite weapons. It’s probably the most frequent cause of misjudgment, miscalculation, and misdeed. In God Calling, A.J. Russell, one of the daily messages tells us to fight fear like the plague to fight it will all of our strength. You can read those messages at twolisteners.org (Luke 12:32), (Matt. 10:31), (Matt. 9:2, 22), (Matt. 14:27), (Mark 6:50), (John 16:33)

Abimelech returned Sarah to her husband and sent the two of them off, after making some restitution to them. (Genesis 20:14-18) God had closed the wombs of all the women in the house of Abimelech because of Sarah. That’s a heads-up to us. Sin never affects just one person. Even if/when you’re all alone in your sin, you’re not the only one involved in it. God sees, hears, and knows everything. So, even if nobody else is involved, or affected by your sin, He is.

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Did I Miss Something?

(Genesis 18 & 19) (ESV) are the subject of today’s post. In these two chapters, we get the stories of God’s promise to Abraham regarding his son Isaac, who was born to Sarah, Abraham’s wife. God said He would establish His covenant with Isaac, whom Sarah would bear. I have to laugh, myself, when I read that God named Isaac, Himself. Isaac means “he laughs.” You see? Abraham wasn’t going to be able to forget that he’d laughed himself when God said he and Sarah would have a son; and at their ages. Jesus did say that with God all things are possible, didn’t He? (Matt. 19:26) I’ve cited that scripture, because that’s the one thing we seem to miss most often; isn’t it? We’re forgetful creatures, at best. Sarah laughed just like Abraham had. God called her on it, though. He didn’t punish her, but He let her know she couldn’t lie to Him. Sure enough, she gave birth to a son; Isaac.

In the meantime, though, God was not happy with Sodom and Gomorrah. (Genesis 18:20) “Then the LORD said, “Because the outcry against Sodom and Gomorrah is great and their sin is very grave, I will go down to see whether they have done altogether^* according to the outcry that has come to me. And if not, I will know.”’ (the footnote says, it translates as, “deserve destruction”). Abraham heard the LORD, and interceded for Sodom. God said if He found ten righteous men there, He would not destroy the city. See, Abraham was learning that “ask and you will receive,” thing; wasn’t he?

In chapter 19, two angels came to the city of Sodom, and were greeted by Lot. Immediately, the men of the city showed their wickedness. The angels struck them blind, and all in Lot’s house were safe that night. In the morning, the angels bade Lot to take his family and leave the city. Lot lingered?! Apparently, he was waiting for his intended sons-in-law to come to their senses. They thought he was joking about the LORD being about to destroy the city. The angels actually seized Lot, his wife, and his two daughters, and led them out of the city by the hand. Lot! Did you miss something in all that transpired the night before?

Now, Lot was told to flee to the hills, and not to stop anywhere in the valley. He was granted by the angels, that the city of Zoar would not be destroyed, so that he could flee there. He was afraid he wouldn’t make it to the hills. That thing about all things being possible with God comes to mind again. See how often, and how easily, we forget that? Lot’s wife, who apparently was lagging behind, turned and looked back. They’d been told, not to look back. They’d seen the power of God when the angels struck the whole city of men blind. And, isn’t it interesting about wickedness, that even when you’re struck blind because of it, you can’t seem to stop yourself from attempting to achieve your wicked desire? The men wore themselves out all night? What?!

Lot ended up fleeing from Zoar, too. He and his two daughters lived in a cave up in the hills. Now the daughters, who had witnessed all that transpired, and seen the power of God at work, decide they need to take things into their own hands. They got their father drunk and laid with him, to “preserve offspring for him.” Did you miss where your mother was turned into a pillar of salt for disobeying the two angels? You’re not supposed to lay with your father. That’s one of the laws God gave. You got pregnant by manipulation and deception. (Deut. 5:6), (Leviticus 18:7-8), (Leviticus 20:11), (Leviticus 20:14) (Matt. 7:7) “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.”

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