Freeze -- Rebekah's Fear

2 Timothy 1:7 ESV

7 for God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control.

1 John 4:18 ESV

18 There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear. For fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not been perfected in love.

Not every kind of fear does the Bible discourage. In other places the Bible actually commands and commends fear.

Philippians 2:12–13 ESV

12 Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, so now, not only as in my presence but much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, 13 for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure.

Proverbs 1:7 ESV

7 The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge; fools despise wisdom and instruction.

Fear manifests itself in a couple of responses to it:

Fear that energizes

Fear that paralyzes

In this series we have spent some time considering fight or flight as responses… this weekend I want to not overlook how fear can FREEZE us.

I want to track how fear freezes us through the story of Jacob found in Gen. 25-35

Esau was the fighter; Jacob was crafty.

Esau face things head on; that’s exactly what Jacob tried to avoid. Not really a “head on” kind of guy.

Birthright (Stew) & Blessing (BBQ)

Genesis 27:41–45 ESV

41 Now Esau hated Jacob because of the blessing with which his father had blessed him, and Esau said to himself, “The days of mourning for my father are approaching; then I will kill my brother Jacob.” 42 But the words of Esau her older son were told to Rebekah. So she sent and called Jacob her younger son and said to him, “Behold, your brother Esau comforts himself about you by planning to kill you. 43 Now therefore, my son, obey my voice. Arise, flee to Laban my brother in Haran 44 and stay with him a while, until your brother’s fury turns away— 45 until your brother’s anger turns away from you, and he forgets what you have done to him. Then I will send and bring you from there. Why should I be bereft of you both in one day?”

Rebekah is scared of Esau — fearing for Jacob’s life — sends him away

Genesis 27:46 ESV

46 Then Rebekah said to Isaac, “I loathe my life because of the Hittite women. If Jacob marries one of the Hittite women like these, one of the women of the land, what good will my life be to me?”

So what does Isaac do? What every scared husband does!

Genesis 28:1–5 ESV

1 Then Isaac called Jacob and blessed him and directed him, “You must not take a wife from the Canaanite women. 2 Arise, go to Paddan-aram to the house of Bethuel your mother’s father, and take as your wife from there one of the daughters of Laban your mother’s brother. 3 God Almighty bless you and make you fruitful and multiply you, that you may become a company of peoples. 4 May he give the blessing of Abraham to you and to your offspring with you, that you may take possession of the land of your sojournings that God gave to Abraham!” 5 Thus Isaac sent Jacob away. And he went to Paddan-aram, to Laban, the son of Bethuel the Aramean, the brother of Rebekah, Jacob’s and Esau’s mother.

Jacob’s story isn’t a story about how Jacob’s fear froze him… Jacob’s story is a story about how Jacob’s parent’s fear froze him.

Fear is contagious; fear is handed down; fear is handed off.

Jacob heads to Laban’s house — just trying to survive.

7 years - Rachel — woops Leah

7 more years — Rachel

Coming upon 7 more years… getting wealthy… but just hanging there. Frozen… waiting for word from his Mother.

He’s dangling… frozen…

“Let it go”… “the cold never bothered me anyway”

The froze him in Carbon Hibernation — Like Solo!

Initially, being in that frozen spot wasn’t that bad...

But eventually, Jacob felt lost… forgotten… dissatisfied...

He starts to wonder after wives and kids and all the rest if his Mom had forgotten him?

Sent texts, emails, smoke signals “I’m still here!”

But he stayed… Frozen.

When you stay in one spot that long:

You ache

You can’t sleep

You cry

You hurt

You are rained on

You are riddled and run with fear for what to do with your own survival.

He was PARALYZED with fear.

aching… sleepless… crying… hurting… does anyone even know I am here?

Genesis 31:1–13 ESV

1 Now Jacob heard that the sons of Laban were saying, “Jacob has taken all that was our father’s, and from what was our father’s he has gained all this wealth.” 2 And Jacob saw that Laban did not regard him with favor as before. 3 Then the Lord said to Jacob, “Return to the land of your fathers and to your kindred, and I will be with you.” 4 So Jacob sent and called Rachel and Leah into the field where his flock was 5 and said to them, “I see that your father does not regard me with favor as he did before. But the God of my father has been with me. 6 You know that I have served your father with all my strength, 7 yet your father has cheated me and changed my wages ten times. But God did not permit him to harm me. 8 If he said, ‘The spotted shall be your wages,’ then all the flock bore spotted; and if he said, ‘The striped shall be your wages,’ then all the flock bore striped. 9 Thus God has taken away the livestock of your father and given them to me. 10 In the breeding season of the flock I lifted up my eyes and saw in a dream that the goats that mated with the flock were striped, spotted, and mottled. 11 Then the angel of God said to me in the dream, ‘Jacob,’ and I said, ‘Here I am!’ 12 And he said, ‘Lift up your eyes and see, all the goats that mate with the flock are striped, spotted, and mottled, for I have seen all that Laban is doing to you. 13 I am the God of Bethel, where you anointed a pillar and made a vow to me. Now arise, go out from this land and return to the land of your kindred.’ ”

Perfect love thaws being frozen by fear… and now Jacob, no longer paralyzed by his mother’s fearful silence, is energized by God’s call to return home.

He is no longer scared of his mom or dad or brother or uncle or wives — People pleasing.

He is now energized by wisdom — the energizing wisdom that comes from the fear of the Lord (Prov 1)

And we see Jacob now working into his living the salvation that comes when you have a fear and trembling to obey and honor the Lord.

And he meets God in the dessert “I’m still here”

And he meets Esau down the road “I’m still here”

And I wonder today if fear has frozen you… and God needs and wants to speak to you… and thaw the hibernation of your life… as his voice becomes the SOUND OF SURVIVING… and you re-engage with your life with the humble cry of devotion to God to those around you “I’m still here”...