SEPTEBER 1, 2024

Bible verse “GENESIS 28:1~5”

Sermon title "The Jacob’s life 4"

preacher Rev. Joshua Oh

Rebekah made Jacob receive the blessing of the firstborn, but it wasn't because she knew God's will or plan. People, no matter how hard they try, can never know God's will or plan in advance. If someone teaches that they can know God's will or plan through prayer, that person is a heretic. Isaac and Rebekah wouldn't have known that making Jacob the firstborn was God's will or plan, even up until the moment they died. Since no one taught them, they couldn't have known. How could they have known that 'the Messiah would be born from Jacob's descendants' unless someone told them? There wasn't even a Bible at that time.... We, on the other hand, have the completed Bible, so we know it was God's will. Anyway, Rebekah told Jacob to quickly go and get a goat before Esau returned from hunting, and then she prepared a delicious meal for Isaac, one that he loved. Genesis 27:12 accurately describes Jacob's personality and character: “What if my father touches me? I would appear to be tricking him and would bring down a curse on myself rather than a blessing.” Jacob was timid and introverted. Then Rebekah said in verse 13, “My son, let the curse fall on me. Just do what I say; go and get them for me.” Rebekah was annoyed with Jacob's constant objections. 'Jacob, I'll take the curse for you, so just go and get the goat.' Once a person decides to do something, they stop thinking about justice or fairness. What I mean is, once someone makes up their mind, they don’t consider whether what they are doing is right or wrong, whether it's something that people will agree with or criticize. They just have to do it to satisfy themselves. Like a moth drawn to a flame, they move towards it unconsciously. This urge comes from the sinful nature that arises from sin. However, God uses even the sinful nature that led Rebekah to act according to His will. Originally, it was right and expected that Esau would receive the blessing of the firstborn, and it was something that people would approve of. But Rebekah wanted to make the second son, Jacob, receive the blessing of the firstborn. From God's perspective, Rebekah was fulfilling His will, but from Isaac and Esau's perspective, the idea of Jacob becoming the firstborn was absurd. Rebekah was doing something that made no sense. If Rebekah had listened to Jacob and felt guilty, and then decided not to proceed with making Jacob the firstborn, the genealogy from Isaac to Jesus would have been completely messed up. Of course, God wouldn't have let that happen. This shows that people can never know what God's will is. Who would have known that Rebekah's seemingly reckless actions were actually God's will? Even Abraham wouldn’t have known. If people could understand God's will just by praying a lot, and if they could live according to God's will, there shouldn't be a single person in this world who suffers unjustly, lives with sorrow, or experiences regret. We shouldn't be living like this if we are living according to God's will. Our church should have grown to a congregation of at least hundreds by now. But people can never know God's will. It’s only after something happens that we might finally realize, “Ah, that was God’s will.” Of course, most of the time, we don’t recognize it even after it happens. I remember a friend who wanted to start a business. He decided to partner with another person of faith, and they prayed until they received an answer from God. Three months later, they received God's answer to go ahead and start the business together, so they did. But what happened? Since they prayed and received God's answer, you’d think the business was a huge success, right? But no, it was a complete failure. Within a year, they had become enemies and parted ways. They went to the same church but ended up not speaking to each other. Do you think this is just their problem? No. This kind of issue happens repeatedly within the church. No matter what someone does, they always say they prayed about it first. They say they made their decision after praying. But then, when things don’t go well after just a few months, they say, “I guess it wasn’t God’s will after all.” This is where there should be no misunderstanding—I’m not saying we shouldn’t pray. What I mean is that praying means you accept the results and take responsibility for them. If you prayed and started something, don't blame others or God for the outcome; you must take responsibility for it yourself. If you prayed and started something, don’t end up fighting and becoming enemies within a year. Instead, even if it takes 10 or 20 years of enduring, patience, and perseverance, keep going until you've given everything you have. That is the responsibility of someone who prays. Why did they end up fighting within a year? If they had started with prayer, they should have followed the teachings of the Bible by being patient, enduring, serving each other, and putting the other first. If they had done that, they wouldn’t have fought. They fought because they felt the other person was the reason the business wasn't doing well, or they thought the other person was taking more money. Ultimately, fights among believers are not about faith but about worldly things.    Rebekah made Jacob prepare a dish that Isaac loved, and that day she made it so delicious that it would have been enough to make one of them die from pleasure, and then she had Jacob take it to Isaac. It was also Rebekah who disguised Jacob before he went to Isaac. Even though they were twins, they had different scents, so Rebekah knew that Isaac would recognize Jacob by his smell. She had Jacob wear Esau's clothes. Esau must have been very hairy because she covered Jacob's hands and neck with goat skin to complete the disguise. Rebekah disguised Jacob so perfectly that Isaac, who could not see well, didn’t realize it was Jacob. Isaac said, "The voice is Jacob's, but the hands are the hands of Esau." The smell of the clothes and the feel of the hairy hands and neck fooled Isaac completely. How could Isaac, who was almost blind, not be deceived? Isaac enjoyed the delicious food Jacob brought, regained his strength, and then laid his hands on Jacob and gave him the blessing of the firstborn. Genesis 27:28-29 says, "May God give you heaven's dew and earth's richness—an abundance of grain and new wine. May nations serve you and peoples bow down to you. Be lord over 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." Isaac blessed Jacob with the blessing of the firstborn, but the strange thing is that he didn’t mention his son's name during the prayer. Usually, when blessing someone, you call them by their name. If Isaac had called Esau's name during the blessing, it would have been a disaster, so God prevented Isaac from mentioning his son's name. As soon as Jacob left after receiving the blessing, Esau returned from hunting. He prepared a delicious meal with the game he caught and brought it to Isaac. Isaac, who had just eaten the food and blessed who he thought was Esau, was lying down resting when someone else brought him another dish. When Isaac realized that the one he had blessed was not Esau but Jacob, Genesis 27:33 says, "Isaac trembled violently." Of course he did! The blessing of the firstborn, which could only be given to the eldest son, had been received by Jacob, the younger son. Isaac had given his full heart in blessing who he thought was Esau, but it turned out to be Jacob. It’s no wonder Isaac trembled violently—it must have felt like he was about to have a heart attack. Even though God had clearly told Rebekah when she was pregnant that the older would serve the younger, Isaac had completely forgotten God's word. It was like how today's believers hear God's word every week, read it, pray over it, and yet quickly forget it. However, Rebekah kept God’s words in her heart, and that’s why she made sure that Jacob received the blessing of the firstborn. So, we can see that the reason Abraham's lineage continued in faith was because of Sarah and Rebekah. The act of faith by one person, Rebekah, saved Abraham's family and ensured that the holy lineage leading to Jesus Christ was preserved. When Esau realized that Jacob had already received the blessing from their father Isaac, imagine how furious he must have been. Genesis 27:41 says, "Esau held a grudge against Jacob because of the blessing his father had given him. He said to himself, 'The days of mourning for my father are near; then I will kill my brother Jacob.'" Esau hated his twin brother Jacob so much that he was determined to kill him. But he couldn’t do it while his father was still alive, so he planned to kill Jacob after Isaac's death. Even though Esau was talking to himself, verse 42 says, "When Rebekah was told what her older son Esau had said..." Esau was someone who couldn’t hide his inner thoughts, and they always showed on the surface. Rebekah realized that once Isaac died, there would be a deadly conflict between the brothers. She knew that Esau, who was already quick-tempered, might actually kill Jacob, so she became very anxious and decided to send Jacob to her family to protect him. Verse 43 says, "Now then, my son, do what I say: Flee at once to my brother Laban in Haran." And where was Rebekah’s brother Laban living? He was living in Haran. In Genesis 24:4, Abraham said to his servant, "Go to my country and my own relatives and get a wife for my son Isaac." Where was Abraham’s homeland? It was Ur of the Chaldeans in Mesopotamia. He sent his servant to Ur of the Chaldeans to find a wife for his son Isaac. In verse 10, it says, "Then the servant took ten of his master's camels and left, taking with him all kinds of good things from his master. He set out for Aram Naharaim and made his way to the town of Nahor." So, the servant sent by Abraham went to the city of Nahor, in Ur of the Chaldeans in Mesopotamia. Who was Nahor? He was Abraham’s grandfather. The city was named after him. This implies that Abraham did not leave Ur of the Chaldeans for the sake of making a living. If he had stayed in Ur of the Chaldeans instead of leaving at God’s call, he would have become the lord of the city that his grandfather built. But he left it all behind and left Ur of the Chaldeans without hesitation when God called him to leave. Originally, Rebekah and Laban lived in Ur of the Chaldeans, but when Rebekah left to marry Isaac, Laban followed his sister out of Ur of the Chaldeans. However, they couldn’t follow her all the way to Canaan, where their in-laws lived. So, they settled in Haran, where Abraham had lived before moving to Canaan. Since Abraham had become very wealthy while living in Haran, Laban could use Abraham’s name to become a wealthy man in Haran. That’s how Rebekah’s brother Laban ended up living in Haran, and when Rebekah’s son Jacob was in danger, she sent him to Haran to take refuge. Given the situation, Isaac had no choice but to recognize Jacob as the firstborn. He knew it was impossible to take back the blessing he had already given to Jacob. In Genesis 28:3-4, Isaac called Jacob and blessed him again with the blessing of the firstborn before sending him to Haran. Why did Isaac have to acknowledge Jacob as the firstborn? There was God’s word, but Isaac had long forgotten it. Even though Isaac was not Abraham’s firstborn son by blood, he had become the firstborn in name and lineage, replacing Ishmael. Similarly, even though Esau was the firstborn by blood, he could not become the firstborn in name, and so Jacob, the second son, had to inherit the birthright of Abraham. This shows that no matter how much people try to change it, God’s will and plan cannot be altered. Even if people resist or reject it, God’s will and plan will ultimately come to pass. No matter how much Isaac wanted to establish Esau as the firstborn, if God said, "Jacob is the firstborn," then not even Abraham could reject or change God’s will. The same is true for our lives. No matter how much we resist or try to change things, we can only live according to God’s will and plan. But God’s will and plan are unknown until they come to pass. That’s why God demands obedience from us. Obedience is not about listening to God’s word, considering whether it’s doable, and then nodding in agreement once we understand it. Rather, obedience means following God’s word without knowing or understanding it fully. The faith and religious practice that God requires from us is obedience. That’s why the famous verse 1 Samuel 15:22 says, "To obey is better than sacrifice, and to heed is better than the fat of rams."  Did you obey God’s word today? Did you listen to God’s word? We must realize that obedience is better than any sacrifice, and listening to God’s word is better than the fat of any ram. Even if it doesn’t please us, even if it’s different from our thoughts, even if it’s not what we planned or wanted, if God’s word says so, we should be Christians who obey that word. I bless you in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ that you may be such a person. Amen.