The Trials of Isaac

Introduction:

Amen.

We will be in Genesis 26.

but let’s begin in prayer.

Prayer: Father, we come with grateful hearts. Joyfilled hearts, as we have sung praises of your name, and worship you oh, God. And Lord, continue to stir in our hearts, may Your Spirit fan the flames of our hearts and draw us now in a special way into your presence. Lord, we come humbly asking, praying that you will teach us, and change us. You are the potter and we are the clay. Do now what only you can. And if there be one lost gathered here this morning, save them. In Jesus name, Amen.

Introduction: Without a doubt David Livingstone was one of the most famous Christian missionaries our world has ever known and a pioneer missionary to Africa. In his short sixty years of life, he made a greater  impact on the entire continent of Africa perhaps more than any man who ever lived. Livingstone walked some 29,000 miles in his ministry. His wife died early in their ministry and he faced stiff opposition. Livingstone’s trials throughout his African journeys can be likened to what the Apostle Paul had to endure. “From coast to coast, Livingstone and his men faced trials. The missionary experienced severe illnesses of many kinds such as malaria and terrible fevers. He often starved and had very little clean water. There were hostile tribal groups along his path, in which only the Lord could save him. Livingstone and his party were even attacked by the Dutch, who wanted the slave trade to grow and hated what Livingstone was doing.”4. Not knowing how to face the hostility, Livingstone wrote the following prayer in his diary: “Send me anywhere, only go with me. Lay any burden on me, only sustain me. Sever me from any tie but the tie that binds me to Your service and to Your heart.”

I wonder if we are brave enough to pray that prayer. Enough faith to pray, SEND ME ANYWHERE, ONLY GO WITH ME. LAY ANY BURDEN ON ME, ONLY SUSTAIN ME.

Perhaps, some of you are facing difficult trials. Perhaps, in your walk with the Lord, there is great adversity. How will you handle it? How will you face these trials in a way that honors God?

Our lives could easily be written by the major trials of life and how we dealt with them.

This morning we will look at BUT a few trials of Isaac, the son of Abraham.

Interestingly, This is the only chapter in which Isaac is the main character. And compared to Abraham and Jacob, the texts about Isaac are minimal.

But none the less, I pray we will be able to see in Isaac’s life and trials, lessons for us when in our lives and trials.

Now, notice the first trial in verse 1.

Remember the promises of God

Genesis 26:1 “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.”

Trial #1 - famine. Just like that of his father, Isaac had to deal with a great famine.

Although, Isaac was in the promised land, life was not perfect.

He still had to deal with the life.

And a famine was devatating.

If this were a drought, he would be facing terrible loss.

Loss to his flocks and herds if there were not food or water.

Loss of his crops if there was not rain.

yet, even in the promised land, there is a Great temptation. temptation to leave. to leave the place he is supposed to be.

So Isaac weakened by the famine, succumbs to temptation, and headed southwest away from the promised land, moving toward Egypt.

On the way to Egypt, he stopped at Gerar, the capital of the Philistines.

Likely, to trade and set up in Gerar.

If this were a city, maybe a place for trade, or a place he and his herds could survive.

And we have heard of this king, Abimelech. He dealt with Abraham, also.

This may or may not be the same Abimelech. This could be a dynastic title. King george the 1st, king george the 2nd.

We don’t know. but this could have been some 90 years after Abraham’s encounter with this Philistine king.

and the philistines may be friendly now, but in the future they will have great hostility to the Jews.

So this trial of Isaac is significant, but it is one that his father dealt with also.

Genesis 26:2 “And the Lord appeared to him and said, “Do not go down to Egypt; dwell in the land of which I shall tell you.”

So famine comes, he leaves the promised land, he heads south west, toward egypt, stops in Gerar, on the border of Egypt.

And God intervenes. God intervened and instructed him to not to go to Egypt.

Now, going to Egypt probaby made sense.

Egypt could endure a famine. With the nile river, this place probably prospered.

In the Bible, Canaan was a symbol of the promised land and God’s blessings.

But Egypt was a symbol of the world.

So when it says, do not go down to Egypt, in a sense, it is going down.

Going away from God, to worldliness.

Just another reminder, the believer should never forsake the promised land for the world.

Because friendship with the world, means enmity with God.

But God tells isaac.

Genesis 26:3 “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.”

Genesis 26:4 “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,”

Genesis 26:5 “because Abraham obeyed my voice and kept my charge, my commandments, my statutes, and my laws.””

God tells Isaac of his promise.

Remember the promises of God. Remember the promises God made to your Father Abraham.

If you stay in the promised land you would be blessed.

So God confirms his covnenat with Abraham with Isaac.

And there are three things emphasized, land, offspring, blessing.

And Isaac was reminded, of his Father’s faith and obedience.

Now for us, we need to remember the promises of God, when trials come.

He will never leave us.

He will strenthen us.

I can do all things through Christ who strenthens me.

These are promises.

but friends, if you’ve been raised by Godly parents, as Isaac was reminded of Abraham’s faith,

Beloved, if your parents had faith, that is a truly blessing from God. Do not, do not take that for granted.

Not my father, but my mother, drug me to church from a young age.

I’d be the only child. I’d be sleeping on the pews.

My mother wasn’t perfect, but she had faith.

And I wonder where I’d be without her faith.

As Abraham’s faith, impacted Isaac, and we are reminded of that here.

Genesis 26:6 “So Isaac settled in Gerar.”

So Isaac was to remember God’s promises.

trial #1 famine

trial #2 fear

Realize the sins of our parents

Genesis 26:7 “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.”

We’ve seen this story before.

In Ch, 12, Isaacs father, told this same lie to Pharaoh. In ch 20, he does it again with Abrimilech.

Like father like son.

And the reason he lies, we are told, FOR HE FEARED to say MY WIFE.

Fear, Fear has caused a many many to make some bad decisions.

to lie, to sin.

But God has not given us a spirit of fear.

but Isaac, after this famine, compounded by fear, he lies, and tells them this is his sister.

Genesis 26:8 “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.”

Genesis 26:9 “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.’ ””

Genesis 26:10 “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.””

Genesis 26:11 “So Abimelech warned all the people, saying, “Whoever touches this man or his wife shall surely be put to death.””

This is truly God’s intervention.

God had the king see, isaac and rebecah, from a window, laughing, they were flirting with each other.

And the king confronts isaac, what have you done.

If we had touched her, guilt would have been upon us.

Guilt - for sins, even if you didn’t know it was sin.

Also, God is at work here, to preserve the promised seed. WHOEVER TOUCHES THIS MAN OR WIFE WILL SURELY BE PUT TO DEATH.

God’s protection.

I just think that this pagan philistine king, confronting a man of faith, must be shameful.

Isn’t that what sin does, brings shame.

Adam and eve sinned, and they hid from God and covered their nakedness, why? SHAME.

And Isaac was following in his father’s footsteps.

Realizing the sins of his parents, of his father.

And seeing how the sins of Abraham has effected him.

Parents, make no mistake about it, your kids see and learn all you do.

They see the good and they see the bad.

Their not stupid. They look up to you, and they think you know best.

I want my kids to model to good things in my life, not the bad.

But I know we think of and learn about generational curses.

That children have to do what their parents do.

Friends, by the grace and power of God, it doesn’t have to be so.

No matter, what others do. God is stronger and God is better.

Trial 1, famine, 2 is fear.

Next trial is finances

Recognize the provision of God

Genesis 26:12 “And Isaac sowed in that land and reaped in the same year a hundredfold. The Lord blessed him,”

Genesis 26:13 “and the man became rich, and gained more and more until he became very wealthy.”

Genesis 26:14 “He had possessions of flocks and herds and many servants, so that the Philistines envied him.”

So Isaac, becomes rich. crops were 100 fold. The Lord blessed him.

He had so much the Philistines were jealous.

Isaac, must recognize the provision of God here.

This is truly a blessing from God.

But is this not a great trial, a test also.

How we respond, when we have much, says something?

The love of money is the root of all evil.

So we must treat our money in a way that honors God.

through giving and tithes.

through good stewardship.

Through blessing others.

We must always keep in mind though, what we have is a blessing, given to us by God.

so this trial of finances and wealth, may be more difficult for some than others.

Genesis 26:15 “(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.)”

imagine how important water was. Famine or right after a famine.

This is probably desert land, so wells for water were critical.

And to fill someone’s well in, would be an act of war.

Isaac probably could have retaliated here, but he didn’t,

Instead he digs new wells.

Genesis 26:16 “And Abimelech said to Isaac, “Go away from us, for you are much mightier than we.””

Genesis 26:17 “So Isaac departed from there and encamped in the Valley of Gerar and settled there.”

God blessed Isaac and he was truly successful.

In his success, Notice, what he didn’t do. He didn’t return back to Canaan. He left gerar and settled in the nearby valley of gerar.

Donald Grey Barnhouse “Even though pushed out, Isaac did not go back to the promised land. Instead, he pitched his tent in the valley of Gerar and dwelt there. We perceive that Isaac was not walking close to God. There is no sense of great faith, as in Abraham. Did isaac know the God of Abraham as he should? If so, why did he remain so close to the scene of failure and sin? His proximity to the city which he had left would inevitably bring spiritual disaster. When we are out of the Lord’s will, the only way to get back is to return all the way. To go to the fringe is to remain outside.

We could say he was half hearted. he had half trust. one foot in and one foot out.

It seems he was relying on his security, and not his faith.

Friends, go all in. Too many are luke warm.

Their not hot, their not cold. their luke warm.

may our faith be greater than that. Let’s be on fire for God.

The trials of Isaac, Famine, Fear, finances, Next, trial a fight (argument)

Genesis 26:18 “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.”

Genesis 26:19 “But when Isaac’s servants dug in the valley and found there a well of spring water,”

Genesis 26:20 “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.”

Genesis 26:21 “Then they dug another well, and they quarreled over that also, so he called its name Sitnah.”

Genesis 26:22 “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.””

The next trial, fighting over wells. That’s a deep subject.

He digs one, Gerar starts a fight.

He digs another one, gerar starts a fight.

He digs a third, and they do not fight.

Some of the most difficult trials are with people. arguments and fighting.

I wonder what our response would be.

Sometimes when we dig wells, when we do something and there’s an argument, just move on and dig another well.

Maybe you’ll have to dig three, or maybe four.

But we can’t let others ruin our faith.

We can’t let others cause us to sin.

There is a right way to respond to these trials.

But they do have a purpose.

God uses our trials to drive us back to Him. To strengthen our faith.

Trial of Faith over fear.

Genesis 26:23 “From there he went up to Beersheba.”

Genesis 26:24 “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.””

Genesis 26:25 “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.”

Beersheba - had a lot of meaning to Isaac.

It is here Abraham made a treaty with the Philistines and built and altar.

It’s there his family settled after he was going to sacrifice isaac on the altar.

This is a special place to Isaac. He has seen God be faithful to his family here.

And God tells him fear not, i am with you.

Friends, is it not the presence of God that can overtake our fear.

God relieved his fear. God is the answer to fear. Faith.

trial - friendships.

Genesis 26:26 “When Abimelech went to him from Gerar with Ahuzzath his adviser and Phicol the commander of his army,”

Genesis 26:27 “Isaac said to them, “Why have you come to me, seeing that you hate me and have sent me away from you?””

Genesis 26:28 “They said, “We see plainly that the Lord has been with you. So we said, let there be a sworn pact between us, between you and us, and let us make a covenant with you,”

Genesis 26:29 “that you will do us no harm, just as we have not touched you and have done to you nothing but good and have sent you away in peace. You are now the blessed of the Lord.””

Genesis 26:30 “So he made them a feast, and they ate and drank.”

Genesis 26:31 “In the morning they rose early and exchanged oaths. And Isaac sent them on their way, and they departed from him in peace.”

Genesis 26:32 “That same day Isaac’s servants came and told him about the well that they had dug and said to him, “We have found water.””

Genesis 26:33 “He called it Shibah; therefore the name of the city is Beersheba to this day.”

We have abimilech and isaac, their is a friendship or relationship here. And they make a - treaty. covenant.

And to confirm it they have a feast.

We see Isaac being meek here.

He’s moved on from his lie with Abimilech.

he’s moved on from the fighting over wells at gerar.

isaac, forgets the past in order to build toward the future.

And he makes peace with his friends and neighbors.

Trial - frustration

Recall the plan of God

Genesis 26:34 “When Esau was forty years old, he took Judith the daughter of Beeri the Hittite to be his wife, and Basemath the daughter of Elon the Hittite,”

Genesis 26:35 “and they made life bitter for Isaac and Rebekah.”

This final trial of frustration, Isaac and rebekah are grieved.

Their oldest son, married a hittite.

He Ignored the standard given by Abraham.

As Isaac married rebecah, and they were equally yoked,

Esau married a foreign woman.

This grieved isaac.

This trial was different, but it was difficult.

Whether, frustration or grief, or disappointment, Esau made his choice. He chose to marry her.

But recall with the me the plan of God.

Isaac had twins. Two nations. The older will serve the younger.

And God’s plan is lining plan, is unfolding. Esau’s life and character is showing is why he ends up where he does.

Friends, there are many trials to consider.

famine or storms. fear, finances, fighting, friendships, frustrations.

God is using this all for a purpose.

To grow us strengthen us and draw us closer to himself.

oH, BUT IF IT WERE NOT FOR GOD’S GRACE.

oH, GOD’S GRACE IS AT WORK IN OUR LIVES. Philippians 1:6 “And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.”

aND GOD’S GRACE IS POWERFUL ENOUGH TO SUSTAIN US IN LIFE.1 Peter 1:5 “who by God’s power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.”

CLOSE:

PRAYER:.........AMEN.