SF610 - A LESS THAN PERFECT DAD ( Genesis 25 21-28)
SF610
A LESS THAN PERFECT DAD
Genesis 25:21-28
INTRODUCTION
Jacob - Background
Not considered a man of great faith
Certainly not thought of as the “model Dad”
He had more than one wife
He had a blended family
He experienced tragedy in his family
Broken relationship with Father and Brother.
Broken relationship with his in-laws.
Marital problems
Daughter Dinah raped - sons commit murder.
Dissension and hatred among his sons
He played favorites
Lost his fortune in the famine
Despite all this God worked in Jacob’s life and used him
1A. GOD CHOOSING JACOB
(Malachi 1:2‑3) ""...Yet I have loved Jacob, {3} but Esau I have hated,...""
Why would God choose Jacob?
"I know of no reason for God to choose Jacob, because in him was no good thing." John Phillips
1B. The Fact of God’s Choice
(Romans 5:8) "But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us."
(Ephesians 1:4) "For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight...”
There was a day in the life of Jacob when he chose God but there was never a day in the life of Esau when he chose God.
2B. The Folly of God’s Choice
We would not have chosen Jacob
Because of his name...
Jacob = he deceives
Because of his nature...
He was quiet, impatient, greedy, crafty, He defeated his brother (Genesis 25), He deceived his dad (Genesis 27)
3B. The Force of God’s Choice
Earthly blessings - Father of Israel
Eternal Life
2A. GOD CHALLENGING JACOB (GENESIS 28:10-15)
So, we find Jacob away from home for the very first time. He is lonely and frightened. At this point he is still unsaved. The memory of Esau's threat still ring in his ears. With no thought of God he goes to sleep.
1B. Jacob’s Dilemma (10-11)
Left the security of home
Lost the standing of a son
2B. Jacob’s Dream
Jacob Encounters...
God’s person (12)
God’s promise (13)
God’s purpose (14)
God’s presence (15)
3B. Jacob’s Declaration
The reality of God’s presence (16)
The result of God’s presence (17)
4B. Jacob’s Decision
Prompt compliance (18a)
Public confession (18b-19)
Luz = separation
Bethel = house of God
Personal commitment
Rely on God’s provision (20)
Respect for God’s place (22a)
Remember God’s portion (22b)
3A. GOD CHASTENING JACOB
1B. Concerning His Ways
The matter of his wives (29:13-29)
Poetic Justice
God sees that we get what we deserve. Laban callously palmed off Leah on Jacob, purposely deceiving him. What cared Laban that his methods were underhanded, despicable, and mean? What cared Laban that he was trampling on the most sacred feeling of Jacob's heart?
Go back seven years in Jacob's life. See him standing before his blind father pretending to be Esau, his older brother.
What had Jacob cared....
Now he had to reap just what he had sowed.
"The mills of God grind slowly, but they grind exceedingly fine."
The matter of his wages (31:7)
Poetic Justice:
What cared Laban that Jacob was his own kin, his nephew? What did he care he was taking advantage of a weaker man temporarily in his power? To Laban Jacob was a mere tool to be used and tossed aside once he had been made to minister to his own personal ambitions.
Go back some fourteen years... Recall how Jacob treated Esau the day Esau came in weak from the hunt and wanted some of Jacob's stew...
2B. Concerning His Walk (32:22-32)
Jacob being broken by God (22-27)
Jacob being blessed by God (28-30)
Jacob being branded by God (31-32)
At Bethel he saw the ladder, at the Jabbok he saw the Lord; At Bethel he became a believing man, here he became a broken man; At Bethel he became a son of God, here he became a saint of God. He left Bethel with a new spring in his step; he left Jabbok with a lasting limp in his walk. At Bethel he died to his sin; here he died to self.
4A. GOD CHANGING JACOB
The rest of the story of Jacob teaches us that there are no short cuts with God. No one-time experience will solve all your problems.
After the crises comes the process - it is the process that makes the difference...
1B. The Process God Used
The defilement of Dinah (34:1-7)
The deception by Simeon and Levi (34:8-f)
The death of Rachel (35:16-26)
The disappearance of Joseph (37:31-35)
2B. The Person God Created
A man of victory (47:7)
This was Jacob’s finest hour.. He blessed Pharaoh. He said to Pharaoh “You may be a prince with man, but I am a prince with God!”
A man of virtue (49:29-33)
Don’t bury me in Egypt...
Been in Egypt 17 years but Egypt had not been in him 17 seconds.
A man of vision (49:1-28)
In his blessing of Israel he sees the future of God’s people
He is able to see things in God’s Word that no one else can see.
APPLICATION
God Has Chosen You -
Have you chosen Him?
Have you responded to God’s Challenge?
In prompt compliance?
By public confession?
Are you experiencing God’s Chastening?
Your ways or your walk?
You be Changed by God
Into a man of victory, virtue and vision!