New Place with the Same God

Introduction

Today we are going to read about Isaac but we need to be reminded about Isaac’s life.

Who is Isaac’s dad? - Abraham, the kid who was almost sacrificed

Who is Isaacs mom? - Sarah, the lady who was so impatient for a kid she told her husband to go sleep with a servant and have a kid

Who did Isaac marry? Rebekah

Their first set of kids were twins. Esau & Jacob

We read in Gen 25 that Esau sold his birthright for a cup/bowl of soup

There are more to all of these stories but I wanted to share the highlights to refresh our minds to who Isaac was and how he is connected to other key players in Genesis.

Look at Genesis 26:1-5 “Now there was a famine in the land, besides the former famine that was in the days of Abraham. And Isaac went to Gerar to Abimelech king of the Philistines. And the Lord appeared to him and said, “Do not go down to Egypt; dwell in the land of which I shall tell you. Sojourn in this land, and I will be with you and will bless you, for to you and to your offspring I will give all these lands, and I will establish the oath that I swore to Abraham your father. I will multiply your offspring as the stars of heaven and will give to your offspring all these lands. And in your offspring all the nations of the earth shall be blessed, because Abraham obeyed my voice and kept my charge, my commandments, my statutes, and my laws.””

Isaac and his family were already headed towards Egypt. Gerar was a stop on the way to Egypt. God stopped him there so that He did not go to Egypt.

What do we know about Abraham going through Egypt? - Abram and his wife Sarai (their names were later changed to Abraham and Sarah) traveled to Egypt due to a famine in Canaan. Abram instructed his wife to tell people in Egypt that she was his sister instead of his wife. His reason was to protect himself. Because Sarai was so beautiful, Abram feared someone would kill him and take Sarai as his wife. The plan to pass her off as his sister would ensure that Abram would be well received by those he met.

Isaac was following his father’s pattern for where to go. But God told him to settle in Gerar. Do you know what Isaac did in Gerar? Remeber what we just talked about with Abraham and Sarah in Egypt?

Read Gen 26:6-11 “So Isaac settled in Gerar. When the men of the place asked him about his wife, he said, “She is my sister,” for he feared to say, “My wife,” thinking, “lest the men of the place should kill me because of Rebekah,” because she was attractive in appearance. When he had been there a long time, Abimelech king of the Philistines looked out of a window and saw Isaac laughing with Rebekah his wife. So Abimelech called Isaac and said, “Behold, she is your wife. How then could you say, ‘She is my sister’?” Isaac said to him, “Because I thought, ‘Lest I die because of her.’ ” Abimelech said, “What is this you have done to us? One of the people might easily have lain with your wife, and you would have brought guilt upon us.” So Abimelech warned all the people, saying, “Whoever touches this man or his wife shall surely be put to death.””

Now we are going to read the main story of the message.

Gen 26:12-25 12“And Isaac sowed in that land and reaped in the same year a hundredfold. The Lord blessed him, 13 and the man became rich, and gained more and more until he became very wealthy. 14 He had possessions of flocks and herds and many servants, so that the Philistines envied him. 15 (Now the Philistines had stopped and filled with earth all the wells that his father’s servants had dug in the days of Abraham his father.) 16 And Abimelech said to Isaac, “Go away from us, for you are much mightier than we.”

17 So Isaac departed from there and encamped in the Valley of Gerar and settled there. 18 And Isaac dug again the wells of water that had been dug in the days of Abraham his father, which the Philistines had stopped after the death of Abraham. And he gave them the names that his father had given them. 19 But when Isaac’s servants dug in the valley and found there a well of spring water, 20 the herdsmen of Gerar quarreled with Isaac’s herdsmen, saying, “The water is ours.” So he called the name of the well Esek, because they contended with him. 21 Then they dug another well, and they quarreled over that also, so he called its name Sitnah. 22 And he moved from there and dug another well, and they did not quarrel over it. So he called its name Rehoboth, saying, “For now the Lord has made room for us, and we shall be fruitful in the land.”

23 From there he went up to Beersheba. 24 And the Lord appeared to him the same night and said, “I am the God of Abraham your father. Fear not, for I am with you and will bless you and multiply your offspring for my servant Abraham’s sake.” 25 So he built an altar there and called upon the name of the Lord and pitched his tent there. And there Isaac’s servants dug a well.

Grow Where You Are

v12 says that Isaac sowed in that land, he put in the work, he proved himself, he provided for his family - that very same year reaped 100 hundred times as much. (Dude with a fat wallet - lady with a heavy purse) Do you know why Isaac was blessed? Was it because he was a masterful farmer and really good making a profit? Everything that Isaac received came from God. The Bible says that it was the LORD who blessed him. God has never promised anyone with a fat wallet, but He does promise to provide when we obey. Phil 4:19 “And my God will supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus.”

Let’s look at how Isaac has moved to different locations. He moved from his father’s land to Gerar. He moved from comfort to crazy place. He moved from the ordinary to uncommon. He left the familiar to become a stranger.

When I was reading this passage, I couldn’t help but notice the similar situation that we are going through. We left our father’s land, we left the youth room that many generations of students came through. We are in a crazy place that is uncommon, where we are like strangers.

I am sure that Isaac tried to make Gerar feel like home as much as possible for his family. Just like we are trying to keep Wednesdays and Sundays as normal as possible, there parts where it is not like Wednesday nights. It’s not like Sunday mornings.

It does not matter how different it feels when God is calling you to go somewhere. It does not matter how different it feels when God is calling you to do something. What matters is how obedient we are along the way.

I believe God wants to bless this time in the gym. I believe Jesus is calling students to salvation in this room. I believe He is calling students to be baptized. I believe He is calling students to a closer walk. Just like God worked in Isaac’s life in a new place, God wants to work in your life in this new place. Set aside the feeling of it being different. Set aside the awkwardness. Set aside your expectations. Obey God all the way and be ready for the change that will happen in your life.

We read in verse 15 that the Philistines stopped up the wells. This was a HUGE act of aggression that would normally be settled by war. This act of aggression would not ruin the well but create work for Isaac and his family. They would then have to go a dig out the well. It was more like a major inconvenience or annoyance. (2 step forward, 1 step back).

There are going to be people who want to put dirt in your well and interfere with the work God is doing in your life. Have an attitude like Isaac and don’t get angry at them. Don’t start any actual war or simple argument. Continue in obedience in God. If you continue in obedience to God, He will provide a plan in His time to remove you from that person or group.

Go Where You’re Told

Isaac packed up and headed out to find a new home for his family. His first stop was at the valley of Gerar but the Philistines who were herdsmen said that he was not welcome there. They called the well “Esek” because they contended with him.

Isaac moved further out and dug the well and the Philistines still said claimed he was on their land. This well was called “Sitnah” because of their accusations.

I imagine the Philistines spying on Isaac waiting for him to dig his well. Once it was dug and had water in it, the Philistines would come in and take it from them.

The well was a source of life and a vital part to survive in the desert area.

Isaac moved further away and dug a well. Guess what? There was strife over it. You might be wondering why did Isaac not take one of the first wells? When you go where you’re told, God will separate you and distance you from those who will interfere with your walk. God kept moving Isaac to separate him from the Philistines.

After he arrived at the place God wanted him and dug the well, he called it Rehoboth [ruh hoe buth] which means literally means “wide and spacious.” Isaac used the word to show the “Lord made room for us, we shall be fruitful.”

That space upstairs is our Rehoboth. It is a space that the Lord made room for you. How can we be fruitful with it? We all have friends that do not know Jesus. God is providing space for us to invite our friends to so they can hear about Jesus.

There will be groups like the Philistines where God separates us from them. There will also be people in your life that He brings closer because we have room from them.