A New Life

Good morning everyone, it is so good to be here this morning with you all. Right now we get to send out the kiddos to their class where you have the opportunity to learn about God in a way that makes sense to you. Then, remember, you gotta pay attention real good so that you can come find me after service and tell me something you learned today. Then of course we also want to welcome those of you joining us online, etc.

Today we are starting a brand new journey…we have pretty much closed out chapter on Isaac and now it’s time to take a look at Jacob and how the Promise that was made to Abraham, and then continued to Isaac will be fulfilled through Jacob. I love that as we read through Scripture we can first see how everything is actually connected, and then second see how there are so clearly many different stories within Scripture. Many stories with the same over arching theme, and the same main event, but there are all these small stories that make up God’s promises to you and me…I love that so much. I hope that as we have gone through Genesis over the last couple of years you have been blessed and you have been able to see how things are connected. If you haven’t been around for all of Genesis you can go back through the podcast and you can listen back to all of the Genesis messages starting in May of 2022 called Genesis: Back to the Beginning. We started with creation and actually looked at some of the different views of creation. Now here we are a little over halfway through the book of Genesis and getting into the fulfillment of the promise that was made to Abraham so long ago.

So we’ve talked about Jacob a bit already, you guys all know who Jacob is…he is the son who deceived his brother in order to get the birthright from Esau and then deceived his father in order to receive the blessing from Isaac. Jacob is a man who has lived his life with deception as a core element of his life. Now, these may be the only two times in his life he deceived anyone, but I kind of don’t think so because Esau actually insinuated that this was a common theme for Jacob. That was part of Jacob’s past and God was going to allow that to be a part of his consequences of his future to some degree. That is not always the case, but in this case it is. Let me tell you another story.

There was this guy I know who grew up in a home that loved the Lord with a family that worshiped the Lord. However this young man decided to do things his own way and make decisions that were not pleasing to the Lord. Kind of like Jacob did when he deceived Isaac. Anyway, this young man went through and lived a life that was completely ungodly and in many ways was antagonistic to those who were attempting to live lives pleasing to the Lord. Well, it just so happened that the Lord allowed this young man to come to the end of himself and found himself sleeping outside in a drunken state, unaware of anything that had happened the previous evening. This lifestyle led to this young man not able to hold a job and he was about to have to go on a journey do to being removed from his home. So…he went on a journey, and on that journey he had an encounter with the Lord God himself one morning. He had a vision that was so real that to this day this young man would tell you exactly what it looked like and what it felt like and what it smelt like and even where he sat when he had this encounter with the Lord. When this young man had this encounter with the Lord God everything changed, and it was not very long that he was married with his first child and then another child and God had blessed him with family that he did not deserve…Obviously I’m talking about me if you haven’t figured that out yet, but today we are going to see how Jacob after he had an encounter with the Lord God last week, will begin a whole new life this week and this life will be completely different as now he is living for the Lord and not simply for himself. You see, that is what God does…he takes our old, and makes it his new! Some of you here have forgotten about when God made you new, and I want you to sit back for a minute and just remember when you were made new…

Today we are going to be in Genesis chapter 29. We are going to go through most of the chapter and so you can go ahead and open up your Bibles there and be prepared to read along. If you left your Bible at home this morning, there are Bibles in the chairs in front of you that you can use this morning, or if you don’t have a Bible of your own there are Bibles in the back that we would love for you to have as a gift from us to ensure that you have the Word of God in your home.

So last week we saw that Jacob had an encounter with the Lord God…Typically when someone has an encounter with the Lord there is a change in your life and you will have a whole new life…You literally become a new creation, we read that in

2 Corinthians 5:17 (ESV)

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.

What is really cool is when you get to see that spiritual reality take place in physical form as well. I briefly told you my story and about how God literally gave me a whole new life, and we are going to see today how Jacob literally gets a whole new life as well, and his new life will include a wife and kids and everything…Actually, with Jacob, getting married isn’t really an option. The success of the covenant promises that God gave to Abraham depended on Jacob’s finding a wife and having a family that eventually becomes the people of Israel, the nation that would bring the promised Redeemer into the world. So, this is not just a redemption story for Jacob, but this is part of the redemption story for all mankind… So, go let’s ahead and turn over to

Genesis 29:1–13 ESV

Then Jacob went on his journey and came to the land of the people of the east. As he looked, he saw a well in the field, and behold, three flocks of sheep lying beside it, for out of that well the flocks were watered. The stone on the well’s mouth was large, and when all the flocks were gathered there, the shepherds would roll the stone from the mouth of the well and water the sheep, and put the stone back in its place over the mouth of the well. Jacob said to them, “My brothers, where do you come from?” They said, “We are from Haran.” He said to them, “Do you know Laban the son of Nahor?” They said, “We know him.” He said to them, “Is it well with him?” They said, “It is well; and see, Rachel his daughter is coming with the sheep!” He said, “Behold, it is still high day; it is not time for the livestock to be gathered together. Water the sheep and go, pasture them.” But they said, “We cannot until all the flocks are gathered together and the stone is rolled from the mouth of the well; then we water the sheep.” While he was still speaking with them, Rachel came with her father’s sheep, for she was a shepherdess. Now as soon as Jacob saw Rachel the daughter of Laban his mother’s brother, and the sheep of Laban his mother’s brother, Jacob came near and rolled the stone from the well’s mouth and watered the flock of Laban his mother’s brother. Then Jacob kissed Rachel and wept aloud. And Jacob told Rachel that he was her father’s kinsman, and that he was Rebekah’s son, and she ran and told her father. As soon as Laban heard the news about Jacob, his sister’s son, he ran to meet him and embraced him and kissed him and brought him to his house. Jacob told Laban all these things,

So if there is going to be a new life, you have to start out with…

The Meeting:

Yeah, you have to meet your new wife at some point. I’ll be honest, I don’t remember the first time I met Beth, although I know it would have been at the airport with me being there to gather luggage from all of the folks from her church. However, there is the first time I remember her is when we were back in the sound booth running the equipment back there while the choir was practicing and we were chatting and making a bit of an impression on each other there, with everyone else getting annoyed with us as we were paying more attention to each other than we were to practice.

So here we have an interesting situation. First of all Jacob has been traveling for a while and has recently learned to truly trust in the promises of God. Some of you know what thats like, or you are currently struggling to realize that truth in your own life. So Jacob shows us at Haran, or really just outside at the well and there is a very similar situation that seems to be happening. Let me remind you of something real quick here.

Back in Genesis 24 Abraham had sent his servant out to find a wife for Isaac. His servant went just outside of the city at a well and there he prayed that the Lord would make clear who he was supposed to bring back as a wife for Isaac. There were specific guidelines, one of which being part of the family. Anyway, very easily the Lord showed the servant Rebekah and made it very clear that she was to be Isaac’s bride. Now, it is not said in Scripture, but we can safely assume that this is a story that has been told around the house. So, when Jacob shows up at a well there is a very good chance he is praying that the Lord would make clear to him what he is to do. Either way, whether he is specifically praying or not, we do know that Jacob is trusting the Lord not his own wisdom.

So just like with his mother there are guidelines to him choosing a wife. Specifically, she needs to be part of the family line. Now what are the chances that as he is there at the well that a woman just happens to show up who fits the bill exactly as he is searching. She is a shepherdess, which is the first time this is mentioned in Scripture. That is only important because Jacob is a shepherd, so there is a connection there. Then she is apparently attractive based on Jacob’s reactions to her…then to kick it off, she is part of his family line. She is the daughter of Laban, his mother Rebekah’s brother. So all of this coming together was just too perfect and Jacob was incredibly excited! I mean what was the chances of all of this coming together…he was clearly the luckiest man alive!

Actually, something else is true. Something we have discussed over the years as we have seen God work in Abraham and Isaac and now Jacob. You see, God is sovereign over all of these events. Through this meeting at the well we can see the providence of God. Unbelievers might call this a fortunate coincidence, or a lucky guy…but believers must see past the moment and trust God’s work in Jacob’s life. We have to see the gracious leading of the hand of God in a situation like this. Really here’s the deal…In the life of the trusting Christian, there are no accidents, only appointments.…And, of course, these appointments are being made by God not you. In other words…there are no accidents, or luck…there is God working in your life, in the good and even in what you see as bad.

You see, God’s hand was working in this situation, and if God’s hand was working in this situation, then God’s hand is working in your situation as well. That is what I love about these Old Testament stories…they tell us about God’s character and they show us God’s promises fulfilled so that we can trust God with our lives!

Let’s see what happens next…

Genesis 29:14–20 ESV

and Laban said to him, “Surely you are my bone and my flesh!” And he stayed with him a month. Then Laban said to Jacob, “Because you are my kinsman, should you therefore serve me for nothing? Tell me, what shall your wages be?” Now Laban had two daughters. The name of the older was Leah, and the name of the younger was Rachel. Leah’s eyes were weak, but Rachel was beautiful in form and appearance. Jacob loved Rachel. And he said, “I will serve you seven years for your younger daughter Rachel.” Laban said, “It is better that I give her to you than that I should give her to any other man; stay with me.” So Jacob served seven years for Rachel, and they seemed to him but a few days because of the love he had for her.

Now, there was a meeting, and in this time period if there would be agreements with marriages. Marriages were not simple proposals between a man and woman, they were business transactions as well. So, that is what just happened here…We see

The Agreement:

And what an agreement it is…Ladies, do you think that your husbands would have worked for your fathers for 7 years and as a payment they would have had the pleasure of marrying you? I hope I’m not gonna have a rise in marital counseling after today… :) That is what just happened though…did you guys see that? Many of you have read this story, and you have kind of glossed over this because you heard this story in Sunday School or in a Bible School some time when you were a kid, but how many of you have taken the time to truly stop and actually think about this? Think about the time you have worked at your job…What if you were allowed housing, and you were allowed to eat, but you were not given any other payment for seven years because it was all going towards the price of buying your wife. That puts a whole new level to showing love doesn’t it? And you struggle to take out the trash? Listen…little secret here guys…I struggle to take out the trash to, so I’m not getting mad at you for something I have all figured out, ok. I’m saying maybe we all need to do a little better in that department.

That’s not really the point of today’s sermon though, that was just a little side point. It’s actually kind of interesting because Laban would have definitely remembered what happened when his sister was taken to marry Isaac. There was a very large amount of money that was given to the family for Rebekah, and so Laban is likely expecting something like this…however, Jacob doesn’t have that because he fled and did not come with money and gifts prepared to give to the family of Laban for a wife. So…Jacob lives with Laban for a month and works with and for Laban, just doing chores and spending time with Rachel whenever he can. Eventually that led to the conversation about Jacob getting paid for his work. You see, Laban has realized that there would be no family payment for Rachel, and so he might as well have other discussions with Jacob. Jacob offers him the perfect opportunity when he offers to work for Laban for seven years in order to marry Rachel. What Jacob didn’t know is that Laban was a master manipulator that would control Jacob for the next 20 years.

Let’s see what happens next…

Genesis 29:21–30 ESV

Then Jacob said to Laban, “Give me my wife that I may go in to her, for my time is completed.” So Laban gathered together all the people of the place and made a feast. But in the evening he took his daughter Leah and brought her to Jacob, and he went in to her. (Laban gave his female servant Zilpah to his daughter Leah to be her servant.) And in the morning, behold, it was Leah! And Jacob said to Laban, “What is this you have done to me? Did I not serve with you for Rachel? Why then have you deceived me?” Laban said, “It is not so done in our country, to give the younger before the firstborn. Complete the week of this one, and we will give you the other also in return for serving me another seven years.” Jacob did so, and completed her week. Then Laban gave him his daughter Rachel to be his wife. (Laban gave his female servant Bilhah to his daughter Rachel to be her servant.) So Jacob went in to Rachel also, and he loved Rachel more than Leah, and served Laban for another seven years.

What you will notice here is that in this agreement Laban did not actually promise that he would give Rachel to Jacob at the end of seven years. He only agreed to give Rachel as his wife. Remember how Rebekah was able to manipulate Isaac and use that to control situations, this was a skill, and it seems that this is a skill that runs in the family as her brother Laban is just as deceptive. So let’s take a look at

The Deception:

There is a part of me that feels awful for Jacob…there is another part of me that feels like, dude, you were so deceptive in the way you treated your family, and now that deceit is finally being used against you. I mean, the man who deceived his father is now deceived by his father-in-law, and the man who passed himself off as the firstborn son now receives Laban’s firstborn daughter to be his wife

Wow…I mean, that is pretty much all we can say is wow! Think about this whole situation for a moment. Why was Jacob so deceived? I mean, in this time and place the women would have been somewhat secluded, and there was no such thing as “dating” like we do now. However, Jacob was taking moments to be with Rachel for the last seven years. He knew her…how was he deceived? Was the tent was too dark…had he celebrated too much…was Leah a willing participant in this deception? There are many possibilities and there is likely a combination of all of these things happening. Likely Leah would have been told to obey her father and so whether willing or unwillingly she was a participant in this. She would have used some of Rachel’s mannerism, and maybe spoken in a voice like Rachel, and worn some of her clothing. Essentially, Leah treated Jacob the way he treated his father when he pretended to be Esau.We know that God in His grace forgives our sins when we confess them, but God in His justice many times allows us to suffer the painful consequences of those sins…this event is an outpouring of Jacob’s previous life of deceit

At the end of Leah’s marriage week, Jacob would marry Rachel and he would have another week of celebration…then he would get to work to pay off his debt of 7 years. However, that seven years would turn into thirteen years of hardship and conflict, not only because of his in-laws, but also because of his own wives and their maids.

Now, Laban must have congratulated himself on the success of his plan, not realizing that the Lord was actually ruling and overruling this entire event.

Later, Jacob’s son Joseph would say,

Genesis 50:20 (ESV)

As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good, to bring it about that many people should be kept alive, as they are today.

We are reminded in

Proverbs 21:30 (ESV)

No wisdom, no understanding, no counsel can avail against the Lord.

Today, as Christians we read in the New Testament

Romans 8:28 (ESV)

And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.

Today some of you are going through some very hard circumstances, and I want you to remember that God is working on your circumstances. Some of you are living your life and you have no idea how to deal with the things that are coming at you…I say that as someone who feels that every single day to be completely transparent with you. But here is what I know as I struggle to figure out how to deal with the questions and concerns I have…I know that God is the one in control and there is not actually anything that I can do control one single event in my life or in anyone else’s life…so my whole decision process comes from one questions…what is my goal? My goal is to live a life pleasing to the Lord and if that’s true then all I have to do is love God and love others…that is something I can do…so forgetting myself, I can love God and love others…I want to encourage you to join me in that effort this morning. If you’re not sure how to do that, or if you are wondering what it looks like to make Jesus the Lord of your life for the first time then let me ask you to reach out to me and let’s have a conversation about that…For everyone else…just look at your circumstances and realize that God is the one in control and make the decision to live a life pleasing to the Lord…

Let’s Pray…

Today we are going to have communion…and Im going to ask everyone to just come on up to the alter and leave your worries and your concerns at the alter and make the choice to trust the Lord with your concerns. Listen, you can’t do anything to fix your stuff anyway, let’s be real…so just take this moment and trust the Lord the way that he commanded you to. Jesus sat with his followers on his last night with them prior to his crucifixion and resurrection the worst and best weekend ever to have happened, and here’s what he said to them.

Mark 14:22–24 ESV

And as they were eating, he took bread, and after blessing it broke it and gave it to them, and said, “Take; this is my body.” And he took a cup, and when he had given thanks he gave it to them, and they all drank of it. And he said to them, “This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many.

Here’s what happened there…Jesus is sitting with his closest followers and he is telling them that he is going to willingly allow his body to be broken and his blood to be poured out for all…This is the promise that God made to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob…the is the ultimate fulfilling of that promise of being a blessing to the entire world…it happened on that great and terrible day. So this morning as you come up and take the elements, the bread is on the bottom and the juice is on the top, I want you to take those elements as you are sitting in your seats and as you are ready to actually trust the Lord with whatever it is that is on your mind and whatever it is that is weighing you down this morning. When you are ready to accept his blood as poured out for your life and your circumstance receive these elements as an offering of worship to him this morning. There will be music playing, so just come up as you are ready. There is also some elements in the back of the sanctuary for those that would rather take from there.

Let’s Pray…