Burunche’s Blog

Genesis 31:1 – 18 “Now Jacob heard that Laban’s sons were saying, “Jacob has taken away all that belonged to our father and built all this wealth at our father’s expense.” And Jacob saw from the countenance of Laban that his attitude toward him had changed. Then the LORD said to Jacob, “Go back to the land of your fathers and to your kindred, and I will be with you.”

So Jacob sent word and called Rachel and Leah to the field where his flocks were, and he told them, “I can see from your father’s countenance that his attitude toward me has changed; but the God of my father has been with me. You know that I have served your father with all my strength. And although he has cheated me and changed my wages ten times, God has not allowed him to harm me. If he said, ‘The speckled will be your wages,’ then the whole flock bore speckled offspring. If he said, ‘The streaked will be your wages,’ then the whole flock bore streaked offspring. Thus God has taken away your father’s livestock and given them to me.

When the flocks were breeding, I saw in a dream that the streaked, spotted, and speckled males were mating with the females. In that dream the angel of God said to me, ‘Jacob!’ And I replied, ‘Here I am.’ ‘Look up,’ he said, ‘and see that all the males that are mating with the flock are streaked, spotted, or speckled; for I have seen all that Laban has done to you. I am the God of Bethel, where you anointed the pillar and made a solemn vow to Me. Now get up and leave this land at once, and return to your native land.’”

Then Rachel and Leah replied, “Do we have any portion or inheritance left in our father’s house? Are we not regarded by him as outsiders? Not only has he sold us, but he has certainly squandered what was paid for us. Surely all the wealth that God has taken away from our father belongs to us and to our children. So do whatever God has told you.” So Jacob got up and put his children and his wives on camels, and he drove all his livestock before him, along with all the possessions he had acquired in Paddan-aram, to go to his father Isaac in the land in Canaan.”

By now Jacob has served Laban for more than 21 years. Jacob’s wives and their maid servants have borne Jacob eleven sons and one daughter. In this passage we see the summary of all Laban’s trickery and how he has changed Jacob’s wages ten times. If Laban were running a modern company, he would be increasing his benefits as CEO while destroying the employee pension fund. Laban’s the kind of guy who would replace all the clerks in a store with self – service units. If Laban were running a hospital, he would be trying to cut the work force as much as possible while demanding that every action be documented by computer, an impossible task.

Rachel and Leah are furious that Laban has sold them and squandered the dowry; even worse, Laban now treats his two daughters as outsiders! Such treatment is virtually unknown in a culture in which family is everything. Evidently, Laban is someone who uses people but who does not love them. Laban’s sons are no better than he; they resent Jacob’s prosperity without any regard for the years of hardship and toil Jacob has invested. If Jacob has ever had any lingering desires to cheat, steal, and manipulate, his experiences with Laban have taught him the suffering those actions can cause. God has forgiven Jacob but God has also matured Jacob.

It is in this passage that God clearly demonstrates that HE has been the One controlling the color of the sheep and the goats so that Jacob would benefit. Forget Jacob’s attempts to control the situation by using peeled poplar rods; God emphatically states that He has helped Jacob. After this discussion, Jacob gathers up his family, his livestock, and his servants and leaves for Canaan.

APPLICATION: There are lots of people today who behave as Laban has behaved. Loyalty, long years of faithful service, hard work, diligent attention to detail – none of this matters apart from the bottom line. How does this relate to forgiveness?

1. God has forgiven Jacob and Jacob has worked faithfully; that is why God has blessed Jacob.

2. Jacob has a long list of very just grievances against Laban; however, carrying those grievances for the rest of his life is not going to help Jacob. Jacob must forgive Laban, even though Laban doesn’t deserve it and is not about to ask for forgiveness. We don’t choose to forgive because someone earns our forgiveness; we choose to forgive so that we are not carrying a huge burden of resentment.

3. Jacob now realizes that his brother Esau has some very just grievances against him and that he will need to ask for forgiveness and make restitution.

If you have been mishandled at your work place or anywhere else, you have a choice: forgive and be free or hold grudges and suffer. Your unforgiveness does nothing to those who have hurt you; you are the only one suffering, and the cost may be high – hypertension, ulcers, angina, collagen vascular diseases, even cancer. If you are someone who has behaved like Laban, you need to examine your heart and see if you need to seek forgiveness from anyone else.

PRAYER: Father God, help us to examine ourselves and see if we have offended anyone. Help us to seek forgiveness and to even make restitution if that is necessary. And help us to forgive anyone who has wronged us so that we will walk free from that burden. In the mighty Name of King Jesus. Amen.

Genesis 30:29 – 43 ”Then Jacob answered, “You know how I have served you, and how your livestock has thrived under my care. Indeed, you had very little before my arrival, but now your wealth has increased many times over. The LORD has blessed you wherever I set foot. But now, when may I also provide for my own household?” “What can I give you?” Laban asked.

“You do not need to give me anything,” Jacob replied. “If you do this one thing for me, I will keep on shepherding and keeping your flock. Let me go through all your flocks today and remove from them every speckled or spotted sheep, every dark-colored lamb, and every spotted or speckled goat. These will be my wages. So my honesty will testify for me when you come to check on my wages in the future. If I have any goats that are not speckled or spotted, or any lambs that are not dark-colored, they will be considered stolen.” “Agreed,” said Laban. “Let it be as you have said.”

That very day Laban removed all the streaked or spotted male goats and every speckled or spotted female goat—every one that had any white on it—and every dark-colored lamb, and he placed them under the care of his sons. Then he put a three-day journey between himself and Jacob, while Jacob was shepherding the rest of Laban’s flocks.

Jacob, however, took fresh branches of poplar, almond, and plane trees, and peeled the bark, exposing the white inner wood of the branches. Then he set the peeled branches in the watering troughs in front of the flocks coming in to drink. So when the flocks were in heat and came to drink, they mated in front of the branches. And they bore young that were streaked or speckled or spotted. Jacob set apart the young, but made the rest face the streaked dark-colored sheep in Laban’s flocks. Then he set his own stock apart and did not put them with Laban’s animals.

Whenever the stronger females of the flock were in heat, Jacob would place the branches in the troughs, in full view of the animals, so that they would breed in front of the branches. But if the animals were weak, he did not set out the branches. So the weaker animals went to Laban and the stronger ones to Jacob. Thus Jacob became exceedingly prosperous. He owned large flocks, maidservants and menservants, and camels and donkeys.”

Between Jacob and Laban, it’s a toss – up to know which one is trickier! Laban pretends to be the generous uncle but really wants to cheat Jacob again. Jacob really has been a very faithful shepherd and has taken good care of Laban’s flocks and herds for many years. When the two agree that Jacob will have the dark and speckled and streaked or spotted sheep and goats as his wages, Laban immediately goes through the flock before Jacob can get there, removes all the sheep and goats that should have gone to Jacob and sends them far away. But Jacob concocts a plan to expose the strongest of the remaining sheep and goats to speckled and spotted poplar rods when they breed. “What?” you ask “How ridiculous! That won’t work!” Actually, you are quite correct; however, while Jacob thinks he’s being tricky, obviously God is intervening. The net result is that Jacob prospers despite all Laban’s machinations.

How does this story relate to God’s forgiveness? Remember that God has chosen to work through Jacob, even though Jacob has cheated his brother. Jacob has had an encounter with God that has left him a changed man. God has forgiven Jacob and is blessing him in this situation.

APPLICATION: Do you feel cheated at your work place? Has a supervisor brought a bad report about you or threatened you? The question is this: have you been a faithful worker? Have you fulfilled your duties as well as you can or have you slacked off, using lack of motivation as an excuse? Search your heart and ask God to show you if there are any areas in which you have failed to perform as well as you could. Then ask God to show you how you can improve. Remember that God keeps the records and God is the One who rewards, not whatever company for which you are working.

1 Corinthians 4:2 “Now it is required of stewards that they be found faithful.”

1 Corinthians 4:5 “Therefore judge nothing before the appointed time; wait until the Lord comes. He will bring to light what is hidden in darkness and will expose the motives of men’s hearts. At that time each will receive his praise from God.”

Forgive that boss/supervisor/coworker who has made your life miserable. In the end, you will not answer to them but you will answer to God.

PRAYER: Father God, thank you for loving us. Please open our eyes to the ways in which we may have failed to discharge our duties properly by using other people’s criticism as an excuse. Thank you that it is your desire to bless us and to help us grow into the fullness of your grace. In the mighty Name of King Jesus. Amen.

Genesis 29:14 – 30 “Then Laban declared, “You are indeed my own flesh and blood.” After Jacob had stayed with him a month, Laban said to him, “Just because you are my relative, should you work for nothing? Tell me what your wages should be.”

Now Laban had two daughters; the older was named Leah, and the younger was named Rachel. Leah had no sparkle in her eyes,a but Rachel was shapely and beautiful. Since Jacob loved Rachel, he answered, “I will serve you seven years for your younger daughter Rachel.” Laban replied, “Better that I give her to you than to another. Stay here with me.” So Jacob served seven years for Rachel, yet it seemed but a few days because of his love for her. Finally Jacob said to Laban, “Grant me my wife, for my time is complete, and I want to sleep with her.”

So Laban invited all the men of that place and prepared a feast. But when evening came, Laban took his daughter Leah and gave her to Jacob, and he slept with her. And Laban gave his servant girl Zilpah to his daughter Leah as her maidservant. When morning came, there was Leah! “What have you done to me?” Jacob said to Laban. “Wasn’t it for Rachel that I served you? Why have you deceived me?”

Laban replied, “It is not our custom here to give the younger daughter in marriage before the older. Finish this week’s celebration, and we will give you the younger one in return for another seven years of work.” And Jacob did just that. He finished the week’s celebration, and Laban gave him his daughter Rachel as his wife. Laban also gave his servant girl Bilhah to his daughter Rachel as her maidservant. Jacob slept with Rachel as well, and indeed, he loved Rachel more than Leah. So he worked for Laban another seven years.”

God has kept his promises to Jacob by preserving him and guiding him to his mother’s family. While heading eastward, Jacob encounters a group of shepherds, who inform him that he has arrived at Haran, the city where his uncle Laban lives. More than that, Rachel, Laban’s daughter, is just coming to water her father’s sheep. Jacob identifies himself, helps water the sheep, and then accompanies Rachel to her father’s house. By now, Jacob is already in love with Rachel; when Laban asks Jacob how he wishes to be paid, Jacob asks for Rachel as his wife.

But trickery evidently runs in the family! Rachel is drop – dead gorgeous; however, her older sister Leah “has no sparkle in her eyes.” Perhaps Leah has cataracts or perhaps she simply isn’t quite as pretty as Rachel. Perhaps Leah has spent her entire life being compared unfavorably to Rachel. You can imagine the gossip in Haran: “Well! As for those two girls, they barely look like sisters! How Leah can be so plain and how Rachel can be so beautiful is something I SIMPLY don’t understand!” Perhaps one venomous old lady was cackling to her friends as they carried water and Leah overheard them. All we know is that Leah is plainer and less attractive than her sister. At this point, Laban has evidently given up on getting a husband for Leah, so he seizes this opportunity to trick Jacob and marry off Leah at the same time. Poor Leah!

Jacob wakes up the morning after his wedding night to find Leah in bed with him! Up to this point, Jacob might have had a good opinion of himself; after all, he’s gotten away with both his brother’s birthright and blessing. But Laban is older and trickier. Now Jacob finds himself as the victim of someone else’s manipulations, and there’s not a thing he can do about it. To get Rachel as a wife, Jacob serves Laban for another seven years.

By now you might be wondering how this story can illustrate God’s forgiveness. But look at the situation:

1. God helps Jacob to find his mother’s family, no mean feat in those days.

2. God allows Jacob to meet Rachel immediately, so that Jacob will have an incentive to work for Laban.

3. God uses Laban’s manipulations to keep Jacob in this situation. God is not being unkind to Jacob, but Jacob needs to learn how it feels to be manipulated and that there are always consequences.

4. God is using this situation to mature Jacob, not to destroy him.

5. God is already laying the groundwork for what will become the twelve tribes of Israel. God is always doing using situations to accomplish far more than we can possibly guess.

APPLICATION: Perhaps you are wondering if God has abandoned you. Your job has evaporated, or your family is having problems. Perhaps you can identify with Jacob wandering out there in the wilderness and hoping he is on the road that will take him to his longed – for destination. Perhaps you feel that God must be punishing you for something. Your first step should be to pray and ask God to show you any mistakes you might have made. God is a good Father and He does not play guessing games with His children. If God shows you something you should confess, ask Him to forgive you and get that out of the way first. Next, ask God to show you if there is anything in your situation that you have been ignoring that might provide a way out of your problems. Remember that when God spoke to Moses from the burning bush, God asked Moses, “What is that in your hand?” All Moses had was his shepherd’s staff, but God used that staff to do miracles. Many times, we expect that God will provide something big and flashy while meanwhile, God has something modest that we have been overlooking. Be assured that as soon as you confess any sin and really mean it, God will forgive you.

PRAYER: Father God, this morning many of us feel confused. The things we counted on have vanished. Lord, if we are cherishing any pet sins, show us and help us to turn away from those sins and to confess them to you. Thank you that you have promised to forgive us. And Lord, please help us to re-examine our situations so that if you have already made provision in some small way, we will not overlook those things. In the mighty Name of King Jesus. Amen.

Genesis 28:10 – 15 “Meanwhile Jacob left Beersheba and set out for Haran. On reaching a certain place, he spent the night there because the sun had set. And taking one of the stones from that place, he put it under his head and lay down to sleep. And Jacob had a dream about a ladder that rested on the earth with its top reaching up to heaven, and God’s angels were going up and down the ladder. And there at the top the LORD was standing and saying, “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 now lie. Your descendants will be like the dust of the earth, and you will spread out to the west and east and north and south. All the families of the earth will be blessed through you and your offspring. Look, I am with you, and I will watch over you wherever you go, and I will bring you back to this land. For I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you.”

Rebekah’s plan to get Jacob away from Esau before Esau can kill him has worked. Isaac has sent Jacob back to Rebekah’s relatives to find a wife. And on the way from Beersheba to Haran, Isaac spends a night in the open and has a vivid dream.

“Wait a minute!” you say. “This is JACOB, the guy who stole his brother’s birthright and his brother’s blessing as the first born twin. Why should God bless this guy?” Good question. Let’s look at the alternative. God told Abraham that Isaac would be the son of the promise, the one through whom God would work. Isaac only had two sons, Esau and Jacob. Esau was an impetuous macho man who couldn’t think further than his appetites of the moment. Jacob, while manipulative, was a thinker and a planner.

Many times we think that someone must be perfect before God can possibly work through that person, but that’s wrong. There are no perfect people. King David was an adulterer. King Solomon allowed his wives to divert him into weird religions. St. Paul began life as Saul, the Pharisee and persecutor of Christians. Frankly speaking, God always has to work through imperfect people; that’s the only kind available. But God also changes people as he works through them.

If you had had the opportunity to interview King David after he repented from committing adultery with Bathsheba and having her husband murdered, you would have found him to be very humble and aware of his own failings. David said in Psalm 51:10 – 12 “Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me. Cast me not away from Your presence; take not Your Holy Spirit from me. Restore to me the joy of Your salvation, and sustain me with a willing spirit.”

Paul said of himself, “So then, I too was convinced that I ought to do all I could to oppose the name of Jesus of Nazareth. And that is what I did in Jerusalem. With authority from the chief priests I put many of the saints in prison, and when they were condemned to death, I cast my vote against them. I frequently had them punished in the synagogues and tried to make them blaspheme. In my raging fury against them, I even went to foreign cities to persecute them.”

Let’s see what happens to Jacob…

v. 16 – 21 “When Jacob woke up, he thought, “Surely the LORD is in this place, and I was unaware of it.” And he was afraid and said, “How awesome is this place! This is none other than the house of God; this is the gate of heaven!” Early the next morning, Jacob took the stone that he had placed under his head, and he set it up as a pillar. He poured oil on top of it, and he called that place Bethel, though previously the city had been named Luz. Then Jacob made a vow, saying, “If God will be with me and watch over me on this journey, and if He will provide me with food to eat and clothes to wear, so that I may return safely to my father’s house, then the LORD will be my God. And this stone I have set up as a pillar will be God’s house, and of all that You give me I will surely give You a tenth.”

WHEW! Suddenly Jacob is not nearly as smug and self – assured as he was; in fact, this dream has thoroughly shaken Jacob. Jacob has had an experience of being in the presence of God, and he will never be the same again. For the rest of Jacob’s life, he will carry with him the sense of God watching over him.

APPLICATION: Do you believe that God can use you, or do you think God has given up on you? Remember that God is not worried about your ABILITY but about your AVAILABILITY. If you will allow God to use you, God will transform you. Make no mistake; yes, you should confess any sins you know you have committed to God. But trust that God will not only forgive you but that God will cheerfully use you for His purposes and His glory if you will only let Him.

PRAYER: Father God, thank you that you forgive us our sins and that you will use anybody who will turn himself over to you. Thank you that you have promised to lead us and guide us. In the mighty Name of King Jesus. Amen.

Genesis 27:1 – 17 “When Isaac was old and his eyes were so weak that he could no longer see, he called his older son Esau and said to him, “My son.” “Here I am,” Esau replied. “Look,” said Isaac, “I am now old and do not know the day of my death. Take your weapons—your quiver and bow—and go out into the field to hunt some game for me. Then prepare a tasty dish that I love and bring it to me to eat, so that I may bless you before I die.”

Now Rebekah was listening to what Isaac told his son Esau. So when Esau went into the field to hunt game and bring it back, Rebekah said to her son Jacob, “Behold, I overheard your father saying to your brother Esau, ‘Bring me some game and prepare me a tasty dish to eat, so that I may bless you in the presence of the LORD before I die.’ Now, my son, listen to my voice and do exactly as I tell you. Go out to the flock and bring me two choice young goats, so that I can make them into a tasty dish for your father—the kind he loves. Then take it to your father to eat, so that he may bless you before he dies.”

Jacob answered his mother Rebekah, “Look, my brother Esau is a hairy man, but I am smooth-skinned. What if my father touches me? Then I would be revealed to him as a deceiver, and I would bring upon myself a curse rather than a blessing.”

His mother replied, “Your curse be on me, my son. Just obey my voice and go get them for me.” So Jacob went and got two goats and brought them to his mother, who made the tasty food his father loved. And Rebekah took the finest clothes in the house that belonged to her older son Esau, and she put them on her younger son Jacob. She also put the skins of the young goats on his hands and on the smooth part of his neck. Then she handed her son Jacob the tasty food and bread she had made.”

In the ancient world, there were birthrights and there were blessings. Yesterday we spoke about the birthright, but in addition, fathers could also bestow blessings on their sons, particularly the first – born. Esau has always been Isaac’s favorite and Isaac wants to make sure that he blesses Esau before he dies. But while Esau is out hunting, Rebekah and Jacob conspire to secure Isaac’s blessing for Jacob as well.

Taking advantage of Isaac’s blindness, Rebekah fixes food and then dresses Jacob in Esau’s clothes and places goat skins on Jacob so that he will smell and feel like Esau. Isaac is taken in by the deception and gives Jacob his blessing:

v. 27 – 29 “Ah, the smell of my son is like the smell of a field that the LORD has blessed. May God give to you the dew of heaven and the richness of the earth— an abundance of grain and new wine. May peoples serve you and nations bow down to you. May you be the master of your brothers, and may the sons of your mother bow down to you. May those who curse you be cursed, and those who bless you be blessed.”

Esau returns, fixes food, and then finds that Isaac has already blessed Jacob. These blessings were irrevocable; Isaac cannot take back the blessing he has already spoken. When Esau begs Isaac for a blessing, Isaac says: “Behold, your dwelling place shall be away from the richness of the land, away from the dew of heaven above. You shall live by the sword, and serve your brother. But when you rebel, you will tear his yoke from your neck.” (Genesis 27:39-40)

At this point, Esau is furious! But Isaac is dying; all Esau needs to do is to wait until the mourning period is over and then he can kill Jacob. Rebekah realizes the danger Jacob is in; meanwhile, Esau has previously married two local women who have created nothing but problems for Rebekah and Isaac. Using the problems these women have created as an excuse, Rebekah convinces Isaac to send Jacob back to Rebekah’s relatives to find a wife.

APPLICATION: Are you a Jacob or an Esau or a little bit of both? Have you manipulated situations to your advantage, wronging someone in the process? Or have you been the aggrieved party? Ask God to show you where you might have wronged someone and then ask Him to help you apologize and make amends. If you have been wronged, ask God to help you forgive the person who has hurt you. Forgiveness is a gift you give yourself because you are the one who suffers most as long as you refuse to forgive.

PRAYER: Father God, thank you for loving us and forgiving us, no matter how many times we have sinned against you. Show us anyone we might have hurt and then help us to make things right with them. And if there is anybody who has hurt us, help us to forgive them so that we do not continue to suffer. In the mighty Name of King Jesus. Amen.

Genesis 25:24 – 28 “When her (Rebekah’s) time came to give birth, there were indeed twins in her womb. The first one came out red, covered with hair like a fur coat; so they named him Esau. (Hairy) After this, his brother came out grasping Esau’s heel; so he was named Jacob. (He grasps the heel/he deceives.) And Isaac was sixty years old when the twins were born. When the boys grew up, Esau became a skillful hunter, a man of the field, but Jacob was a quiet man who stayed at home. Because Isaac had a taste for wild game, he loved Esau; but Rebekah loved Jacob.”

Abraham is dead and Isaac has married a gorgeous lady named Rebekah. Rebekah gives birth to twins. Even in the womb, the boys struggle with one another, and things don’t get better as they get older. Esau, the first – born, is an impetuous macho man while Jacob is quiet but intelligent.

v.29 – 34 “One day, while Jacob was cooking some stew, Esau came in from the field and was famished. He said to Jacob, “Let me eat some of that red stew, for I am famished.” (That is why he was also called Edom. “Edom” means “red.” ) “First sell me your birthright,” Jacob replied. “Look,” said Esau, “I am about to die, so what good is a birthright to me?” “Swear to me first,” Jacob said. So Esau swore to Jacob and sold him the birthright. Then Jacob gave some bread and lentil stew to Esau; he ate and drank, and then got up and went away. Thus Esau despised his birthright.”

Wikipedia says this about the birthright:The birthright (bekorah) has to do with both position and inheritance. By birthright, the firstborn son inherited the leadership of the family and the judicial authority of his father. Deuteronomy 21:17 states that he was also entitled to a double portion of the paternal inheritance.

Esau acts impulsively. As he did not value his birthright over a bowl of lentil stew, by his actions, Esau demonstrates that he does not deserve to be the one who continues Abraham’s responsibilities and rewards under God’s covenant, since he does not have the steady, thoughtful qualities which are required. Jacob shows his willingness as well as his greater intelligence and forethought. What he does is not quite honorable, though not illegal. The birthright benefit that he gains is at least partially valid, although he is insecure enough about it to conspire later with his mother to deceive his father so as to gain the blessing for the first-born as well.

Two brothers with totally different personalities, each one the favorite of a parent – what a set – up for disaster! Esau is a drama king; was he REALLY about to die from hunger? And although this is an ancient story, such problems continue to the present day. One family of our acquaintance was torn apart when three siblings fought over the items left by an elderly relative. Two of the siblings reconciled; however, the third died just before he could make peace with a sister.

APPLICATION: Are you having problems with a sibling? Perhaps you have always believed that your brother or sister was the chosen child while you came out second best. Perhaps your family has squabbled over an inheritance. The number of ways in which brothers and sisters can fight is unlimited. But some day, you might find yourself at a grave side wishing that you had made peace. Settle your differences while there is still time! No amount of money or other stuff is worth hating a brother or a sister! And you might get a surprise. Two of our friends each believed that the other was the father’s favorite, only to learn in late adulthood that the father loved both of them but was unable to compliment them to their faces.

PRAYER: Father God, help us to forgive family members who may have wronged us. And help us to see where we ourselves might have wronged them. Let your healing flow in our families so that we will not have any regrets later on. In the mighty and precious Name of King Jesus. Amen.

Genesis 22:1 – 18 “Some time later God tested Abraham and said to him, “Abraham!” “Here I am,” he answered. “Take your son,” God said, “your only son Isaac, whom you love, and go to the land of Moriah. Offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains, which I will show you.” So Abraham got up early the next morning, saddled his donkey, and took along two of his servants and his son Isaac. He split wood for a burnt offering and set out for the place God had designated.

On the third day Abraham looked up and saw the place in the distance. “Stay here with the donkey,” Abraham told his servants. “The boy and I will go over there to worship, and then we will return to you.” Abraham took the wood for the burnt offering and placed it on his son Isaac. He himself carried the fire and the sacrificial knife, and the two of them walked on together.

Then Isaac said to his father Abraham, “My father!” “Here I am, my son,” he replied. “The fire and the wood are here,” said Isaac, “but where is the lamb for the burnt offering?” Abraham answered, “God Himself will provide the lamb for the burnt offering, my son.” And the two walked on together.

When they arrived at the place God had designated, Abraham built the altar there and arranged the wood. He bound his son Isaac and placed him on the altar, atop the wood. Then Abraham reached out his hand and took the knife to slaughter his son.  Just then, the angel of the LORD called out to him from heaven, “Abraham, Abraham!” “Here I am,” he replied.

“Do not lay a hand on the boy or do anything to him,” said the angel, “for now I know that you fear God, since you have not withheld your only son from me.” Then Abraham looked up and saw behind him a ram in a thicket, caught by its horns. So he went and took the ram and offered it as a burnt offering in place of his son. And Abraham called that place The LORD Will Provide. So to this day it is said, “On the mountain of the LORD it will be provided.”

And the angel of the LORD called to Abraham from heaven a second time, saying, “By Myself I have sworn, declares the LORD, that because you have done this and have not withheld your only son, I will surely bless you, and I will multiply your descendants like the stars in the sky and the sand on the seashore. Your descendants will possess the gates of their enemies. And through your offspring all nations of the earth will be blessed, because you have obeyed My voice.”

This is a long passage but every part of it is necessary. God had promised Abraham to give him a son in Abraham’s old age and God had done so. Now God is testing Abraham to see if Abraham will give up his most precious possession – that same son. God orders Abraham to go to Mount Moriah and sacrifice Isaac as a burnt offering. Abraham doesn’t hesitate, even though he loves Isaac dearly. The next morning Abraham, Isaac, and two servants set out, traveling for three days. When they reach the place God has chosen, Isaac carries the wood while Abraham carries the fire (most likely in a clay pot) and the sacrificial knife. By now Abraham must be shaking and in tears as he ties up Isaac and places him on the altar. But just before Abraham proceeds to slaughter Isaac, God stops him and shows him a ram that he can slaughter instead. Abraham joyfully unties Isaac and sacrifices the ram that God has miraculously provided instead.

How does forgiveness enter into this story? 1. At no point does Abraham appear to have second thoughts or to argue with God; Abraham simply obeys. There is never any indication that Abraham becomes annoyed with God for putting him through all this agony. Abraham trusts God and obeys Him without any resentment.

2. Just as Abraham trusts God, so Isaac trusts Abraham and does not resent him for Abraham nearly killing him.

APPLICATION: Many times God may ask us to give Him our Isaac – our dearest possession, whatever that might be. Perhaps the thing most dear to us is our family, our spouse, our profession, our home, or some other worthy thing. Abraham had to obey blindly, trusting God. When Abraham and Isaac climbed Mount Moriah, Abraham fully expected to come down from that mountain alone, but he obeyed anyway. It was Abraham’s obedience and his refusal to resent God that opened the way for incredible blessings, blessings that are still in evidence today.

How would you react if God asked you to give up whatever is dearest to you? Would you obey, trusting that God knows better than you do, or would you withdraw, become offended and angry, and resent God? Has something of the sort already happened to you? Have you become so angry with God that you cannot even pray? Are you convinced that God really hates you? It’s time for you to forgive God.

PRAYER: Father God, help everyone who reads this to understand that you are good and loving and that if you ask us to give up our dearest possessions, we can still trust you. Help us not to resent you for the things and people we have lost – for lost employment, homes, friends, or relatives. Help us not to resent you but to forgive you and to trust that you still love us and are working for our good. In the mighty Name of King Jesus. Amen.

Genesis 21:9 – 20 “But Sarah saw that the son whom Hagar the Egyptian had borne to Abraham was mocking her son, and she said to Abraham, “Expel the slave woman and her son, for the slave woman’s son will never share in the inheritance with my son Isaac!” Now this matter distressed Abraham greatly because it concerned his son Ishmael. But God said to Abraham, “Do not be distressed about the boy and your maidservant. Listen to everything that Sarah tells you, for through Isaac your offspring will be reckoned. But I will also make a nation of the slave woman’s son, because he is your offspring.”

Early in the morning, Abraham got up, took bread and a skin of water, put them on Hagar’s shoulders, and sent her away with the boy. She left and wandered in the Wilderness of Beersheba. When the water in the skin was gone, she left the boy under one of the bushes. Then she went off and sat down nearby, about a bowshot away, for she said, “I cannot bear to watch the boy die!” And as she sat nearby, she lifted up her voice and wept. Then God heard the voice of the boy, and the angel of God called to Hagar from heaven, “What is wrong, Hagar? Do not be afraid, for God has heard the voice of the boy where he lies. Arise, lift up the boy and take him by the hand, for I will make him into a great nation.” Then God opened her eyes, and she saw a well of water. So she went and filled the skin with water and gave the boy a drink. And God was with the boy, and he grew up and settled in the wilderness and became a great archer.“

This time Ishmael is the one who has mouthed off. Quite possibly, Hagar was muttering things to herself, making fun of Sarah. “Huh! Who does she think she is? She acts as if nobody has ever had a baby before! And that Isaac is the homeliest infant I have ever seen! Stupid old woman!” Anyway, Ishmael makes fun of nonagenarian Sarah and her son – bad move! Abraham has treated Hagar and Ishmael well, but Sarah is the chief wife and has the final say, as head wives do around the world. Abraham loves Ishmael, but there’s nothing he can do. God advises Abraham to let Hagar and Ishmael go; however, the promises God made Abraham will still be working in Ishmael and Ishmael will also become a nation.

As the story goes on, Hagar and Ishmael wind up wandering around in the Wilderness of Beersheba. Even today, that area is extremely bleak. But God does a miracle and creates a well, perhaps a spring of water, to save Hagar and Ishmael. Ishmael does go on to found not one, but several nations.

Why did God help Hagar and Ishmael? Isaac was the son God had promised. By mocking Isaac and Sarah, Ishmael was actually mocking God. Interestingly enough, the name “Ishmael” means “God will hear.” Even though God heard Ishmael’s taunts, He also heard Hagar’s anguish and Ishmael’s cries when he was about to die of thirst and saved them.

This story brings out an important aspect of God’s forgiveness: God forgives us even when we have created problems for ourselves by the things we have said. One veteran missionary in India had a saying that bears repeating. When Jesus was arrested in the Garden of Gethsemane, one of the disciples, possibly Peter, took a sword and cut off an ear from one of the high priest’s servants, a man named Malchus. Poor Malchus! Peter had just made a bad situation worse by his impetuosity. But Jesus immediately stretched out his hand and healed that ear, reattaching it miraculously. Working in a large mission hospital with a number of health workers from different countries can lead to all kinds of misunderstandings. When this missionary doctor would realize that she had put her foot in her mouth and created problems, she would ask God to “do a Malchus’ ear on this situation,” in effect, praying that God would miraculously heal the bad situation she had just created by speaking foolishly. And God would heal that relationship.

What a great prayer! And how many times a day do most of us need God to step in and salvage situations after we have said the wrong thing! Romans 6:23 says, “For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Christ Jesus came not just to free us from our sins but also to help us so that we can live holy and righteous lives. If we follow Jesus, we will sin because we are human and fallible. But we have a wonderful promise. 1 John 1:8-9 says, “If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” God is a forgiving God, even when we create problems for ourselves, IF we face our sins and confess them. Malchus got his ear reattached. Hagar and Ishmael found a spring of water that saved their lives. Whatever problems you have created by things that you have said, God can deliver you if you will turn to Him.

APPLICATION: Chopped off anybody’s ear recently? Offended someone by the way you have spoken? Tell God about it and ask Him to help heal those broken relationships.

PRAYER: Father God, thank you for loving us and for forgiving us. Help us to turn to you quickly and to seek your guidance so that we will speak wisely and kindly. In the mighty and precious Name of King Jesus. Amen.

Genesis 21:1- 7 “Now the LORD attended to Sarah as He had said, and the LORD did for Sarah what He had promised. So Sarah conceived and bore a son to Abraham in his old age, at the very time God had promised him. And Abraham gave the name Isaac to the son Sarah bore to him. When his son Isaac was eight days old, Abraham circumcised him, as God had commanded him. Abraham was a hundred years old when his son Isaac was born to him. Then Sarah said, “God has made me laugh, and everyone who hears of this will laugh with me.” She added, “Who would have told Abraham that Sarah would nurse children? Yet I have borne him a son in his old age.”

After all the half – truths, the manipulation, and the refusal to believe that God would really fulfill his promises – after all the times Abraham and Sarah have refused to believe – God has still come through! Sarah earns the record as the world’s oldest mother and delivers a healthy baby boy. Abraham and Sarah name the baby “Isaac” which means “he laughs.” Did God suggest the name? Who knows? God certainly has a sense of humor so it’s possible.

From a medical standpoint, Sarah’s pregnancy is truly miraculous. Sarah had probably stopped menstruating years ago. God had to rejuvenate Sarah’s ovaries, her uterus, and her vagina. The older a mother is, the more likely it is that the baby might have some genetic problems; yet, Baby Isaac was perfectly healthy. Presumably, Sarah was able to breast feed, yet another miracle. While there have been cases of elderly men fathering children, it’s also true that God would have to make sure Abraham’s sperm count was adequate and that Sarah and he were capable of having sex.

Why did God wait so long to give Abraham and Sarah their promised son? If Isaac had been born when both his parents were younger, they might not have valued him as much, nor would they have had as much respect for God. And God had additional purposes in mind.

God was establishing a people for Himself and He wanted to do it in such a fashion that there would be no doubts that He had his hand on Abraham and his family. From Abraham’s time onward, God did miracles for Abraham’s descendants and for the nation of Israel when it became established.

In Deuteronomy 4 God warns the Isaelites: “32Indeed, ask now from one end of the heavens to the other about the days that long preceded you, from the day that God created man on earth: Has anything as great as this ever happened or been reported? 33Has a people ever heard the voice of God speaking out of the fire, as you have, and lived? 34Or has any god tried to take as his own a nation out of another nation—by trials, signs, wonders, and war, by a strong hand and an outstretched arm, and by great terrors—as the LORD your God did for you in Egypt, before your eyes?

35You were shown these things so that you would know that the LORD is God; there is no other besides Him. 36He let you hear His voice from heaven to discipline you, and on earth He showed you His great fire, and you heard His words out of the fire. 37Because He loved your fathers, He chose their descendants after them and brought you out of Egypt by His presence and great power, 38to drive out before you nations greater and mightier than you, and to bring you into their land and give it as your inheritance, as it is today.”

What has God ever done for you? “Nothing!” you say. Is this true? You have been given life and health, perhaps a home and a family and work to support these things. Did you deserve this? Do any of us deserve any of the blessings God gives us? This past year as COVID – 19 has ravaged the world, many of us have had to re – think the things we have taken for granted for years. Family gatherings, meeting friends at restaurants, attending sporting events of any kind, and even normal shopping – all have had to be drastically curtailed. Ask anyone recovering from COVID and they will tell you that simply to breathe without difficulty and fear is a blessing.

APPLICATION: Perhaps you are angry with God; you feel that things that you enjoyed have been taken away from you. But what do you have left? Perhaps it’s time to choose to forgive God and to appreciate those things that you do have. Gratefulness has been proven to bring health and healing.

PRAYER: Father God, thank you for your blessings and your mercy. Thank you that we are alive and can praise you. Help us to look around us and to realize that we are surrounded by people and things that are every bit as miraculous as was the birth of Isaac to two senior citizens. And help us to let go of our resentments when things don’t go just the way we want them to. Help us to trust as Abraham and Sarah did that you have a better plan. In the mighty Name of King Jesus. Amen.

Genesis 20:1 – 7 “Now Abraham journeyed from there to the region of the Negev and settled between Kadesh and Shur. While he was staying in Gerar, Abraham said of his wife Sarah, “She is my sister.” So Abimelech king of Gerar had Sarah brought to him. One night, however, God came to Abimelech in a dream and told him, “You are as good as dead because of the woman you have taken, for she is a married woman.”

Now Abimelech had not gone near her, so he replied, “Lord, would You destroy a nation even though it is innocent? Didn’t Abraham tell me, ‘She is my sister’? And she herself said, ‘He is my brother.’ I have done this in the integrity of my heart and the innocence of my hands.”

Then God said to Abimelech in the dream, “Yes, I know that you did this with a clear conscience, and so I have kept you from sinning against Me. That is why I did not let you touch her. Now return the man’s wife, for he is a prophet; he will pray for you and you will live. But if you do not restore her, be aware that you will surely die—you and all who belong to you.”

Abraham was at it again! He didn’t trust that God would protect him, so he lied about his relationship with Sarah. When does this story actually take place? If you go by the sequence of chapters, Sarah has got to be close to 90 by now. Perhaps this story actually took place earlier about the same time as the story about Sarah entering Pharaoh’s harem. Abraham refused to acknowledge Sarah as his wife, stating instead that she was his sister. Now evidently Abraham and Sarah were half – brother/half sister “same father/different mothers” as the Ghanaians would put it. Abraham had insisted that Sarah refer to him as her brother but not as her husband. Poor Sarah!

Fortunately, King Abimelech had not laid a hand on Sarah, and God told Abimelech in a dream that He had kept Abimelech from sinning. God had made all the women in Abimelech’s household sterile and threatened to kill Abrimelech and his household if Abimelech didn’t let Sarah go. Abimelech gave Abraham livestock, servants, and 1,000 pieces of gold and offered him the best land in his kingdom. Abraham prayed for Abimelech and God removed the curse of sterility from the women of Abimelech’s household.

Right about now you are probably thinking, “Huh! Great example! Why did God bother to help Abraham?” Good question. Why did this story make it into the Old Testament to be preserved for thousands of years? The point of the story is not how bad Abraham was, but how good and forgiving God was. God had made promises to Abraham and God was going to honor those promises. At the same time, God protected Sarah as well as protecting King Abimelech, who was evidently a good man.

APPLICATION: How many times have we told half – truths or presented situations to make ourselves appear as innocent as possible? How many times have we repeated our past mistakes? And how many times have we refused to acknowledge that we have habitually lied, both to ourselves and to others? Have we promised to attend a child’s school function, only to repeatedly fail to turn up because we were still at work? Has our family had to wait to leave on vacation for several hours as one family did because the doctor/father had failed to dictate all his charts until the last minute? Have we left a trail of broken dreams in our wake?

PRAYER: Father God, we confess that we are no better than Abraham! We have told half – truths and made promises that we have broken repeatedly. Lord, forgive us for lying. Help us to tell the truth and to fulfill the promises we have made. Thank you that you will forgive us just as you forgave Abraham all those years ago. In the mighty Name of King Jesus. Amen.