27 1-29 Sins That Will Destroy The Home
liberty bible church 7/6/08 P.M.
By Tom Zobrist
“sins that will destroy the home”
Genesis 27:1-29
introduction
Illus. of A very short boy wanted so badly to play basketball. He even told his dad that he wanted to become a pro when he was older. Knowing that his son would never be able to play the game, the dad asked the local coach if there was anything he could recommend to make the boy taller. "You might take him down to the museum and put him on the old torture stretch rack," the coach said. Several weeks later the coach asked the father if putting the boy on the stretch rack had helped. "Well, it didn’t make him any taller, but he confessed to several things that I never knew."
We don’t use torture racks today to get our families to confess, but we still have sins that we harbor that can cause problems in our homes. What are some of these sins that are so dangerous to our homes and families?
OPEN to passage.
Prop. In this passage, we see common sins that break down the home and what we can do about it.
Open in PRAYER.
PREVIEW the passage. We’ve already seen Jacob steal Esau’s birthright. Tonight, we see him receive the blessing, but not in the way that God may have initially intended. Within this passage, we see some common sins that can cause problems in any home and they certainly do here in the home of Isaac and Rebekah. The first sin that will destroy the home if left unchecked is the sin of…
i. selfishness vs. 1-4
Illus. of “Kept the Larger Piece” You may have heard the story of two friends who met for dinner in a restaurant. Each requested filet of sole, and after a few minutes the waiter came back with their order. Two pieces of fish, a large and a small, were on the same platter. One of the men proceeded to serve his friend. Placing the small piece on a plate, he handed it across the table. “Well, you certainly do have nerve!” exclaimed his friend. “What’s troubling you?” asked the other. “Look what you’ve done,” he answered. “You’ve given me the little piece and kept the big one for yourself.” “How would you have done it?” the man asked. His friend replied, “If I were serving, I would have given you the big piece.” “Well,” replied the man, “I’ve got it, haven’t I?” At this, they both laughed. Our Daily Bread, August 11, 1992 Who is selfish in this home that creates such a problem?
a. Isaac is selfish
1. Certainly Isaac would have known about God’s oracle to Rebekah. Cf. Gen. 25:23 Why would he seek to bless Esau, in spite of what God had said?
V 1 2. A point is made about Isaac’s age and very poor eyesight. He calls Esau to himself and makes a request.
V 2-4a 3. Isaac loved wild game and its his flesh that drives him to send Esau and out pay him with a blessing. A last meal of sorts, compromised by a misdirected blessing.
V 4b 4. It is this last statement that set in motion a series of events that would seriously compromise this already fragile home. Jacob and Esau had problems. Esau had married two women that were problems for his parents. This home was already struggling. Now, add this and you get real problems. And Isaac was one of the catalysts.
b. Esau is selfish
V 5b 1. By agreeing to this plan, Esau saw an opportunity to take back what he had lost previously. He had sold his birthright and now he had a chance for the blessing. But, he would have to break the oath he had made in Gen. 25:33. But, he does it anyway. He goes ahead and heads out for the hunt.
2. Both Isaac and Esau demonstrate a selfishness that leads the entire family down a wrong pathway.
Trans. SELFISHNESS is one of the sins that can destroy a home. Second is the sin of a…
ii. lack of faith vs. 5-17
Illus. of “Prime the Pump” The following letter was found in a baking-power can wired to the handle of an old pump that offered the only hope of drinking water on a very long and seldom-used trail across Nevada’s Amargosa Desert: “This pump is all right as of June 1932. I put a new sucker washer into it and it ought to last five years. But the washer dries out and the pump has got to be primed. Under the white rock I buried a bottle of water, out of the sun and cork end up. There’s enough water in it to prime the pump, but not if you drink some first. Pour about one-fourth and let her soak to wet the leather. Then pour in the rest medium fast and pump like crazy. You’ll git water. The well has never run dry. Have faith. When you git watered up, fill the bottle and put it back like you found it for the next feller. (signed) Desert Pete. P.S. Don’t go drinking the water first. Prime the pump with it and you’ll git all you can hold. Keith Miller and Bruce Larson, The Edge of Adventure
Without faith in God and one another, families will struggle. We see that here.
a. Rebekah demonstrates a lack of faith
V 5a 1. Being the doting mother, Rebekah listens in to the conversation that Isaac has with Esau. Whether she was sneaking around or in the room we’re not told, but we do know that she used this inside information to undermine what her husband was trying to do. Whether she was right or wrong in her motives, her methods were not right. The ends never justify the means. So, Esau leaves to hunt the game his father desires. AS soon as this happens, Rebekah springs into action. She fears that the promised blessing that was to be given to Jacob would not be fulfilled. She failed to believe that God could overcome these circumstances, so seeks to manipulate the situation herself. And manipulate may be too kind of a word for what is about to take place. She not only does this herself, but she draws in Jacob as well.
V 6-7 2. She fills in Jacob on what has taken place between father and son, rather than speaking to her husband about the problem. She goes to her favorite between the two boys. No doubt what Isaac was about to do violated what God had intended at the birth of these boys. But, she goes about correcting the problem in the wrong way.
V 8-9 3. Rebekah’s lack of faith lead to this conniving plan. She thought she could simulate the taste of wild game by using a couple of lambs from the flock. If this is not bad enough…
V 10 4. She wanted Jacob to take it to him that he might receive the blessing.
V 11- 5. It’s important to note here that Jacob isn’t concerned about right or wrong or feeling guilty about his lack of
12 faith, he’s worried about getting caught. And if he gets caught, he might bring a curse rather than a blessing on himself. Illus. of the sign of problems in the home is when all parties involved are more concerned about themselves than they are about the others around them. That is true in any organization, whether it’s a home, a church, or a country.
V 13 6. Rachel offers to take the curse. They are willing to risk anything to get their way, rather than waiting for God.
b. jacob demonstrates a lack of faith
V 14 1. Jacob obeys his mother, even though he knew what he was doing was wrong.
V 15- 2. She dressed Jacob in Esau’s best clothes and used the goat skins to make Jacob appear hairy like his brother.
16 Wherever Isaac might touch, she puts the skins so that blind Isaac would be deceived.
V 17 3. She sets Jacob up perfectly and sends him in.
Trans. SELFISHNESS and LACK OF FAITH are sins that can destroy a home. Finally in this passage, because these are not the only sins that can destroy a home, finally, the destructive sin of…
iii. deceitfulness vs. 18-29
Illus. of David Vassallo, 46, boarded a jetliner in Philadelphia, Penn., for a flight to North Carolina and allegedly bragged to another passenger that he was an undercover federal sky marshal. The man he was talking to was quite interested, since he was an undercover federal sky marshal. Vassallo, a postal employee from Virginia, was arrested and charged with impersonating a law enforcement officer. (Philadelphia Daily News) In the end, the deceitful person hurts themselves, as well as those deceived. Jacob discovers that here.
A. Jacob’s lies
V 18 1. Jacob goes in and speaks to his father. Even though siblings may sound alike, there are subtle differences. It may be that Isaac picked up on that here.
V 19a 2. This is his first lie. He lies about who he is. Illus. of fooling mom on the phone. She yelled at me once because she thought I was Matt. She changed when it was me. Jacob lies for a very selfish, sinful purpose.
V 19b- 3. He lies about going hunting and how successful he was in the hunt. He even said that God brought game right
20 to him so that he didn’t have to search too long. Isaac thought that he had returned a little too quickly. He is suspicious already, perhaps by the sound of his voice.
b. Isaac’s self-Deception
V 21 1. Rather than trusting in God, Isaac trusts in his own flesh. Note how many times here he trusts his physical senses rather than the promises and commands that he knew God had given when these boys were born. Here he wants to “feel” him.
V 22 2. It must be Esau. He feels hairy.
V 23 3. So he decides to bless him.
V 24 4. He double checks one more time. These blessings were not done flippantly. They had a great deal of meaning and could not be revoked, changed, nor duplicated.
V 25 5. Here he is deceived by the tasty food. It is easy to be fooled by our senses. Illus. of not liking mushrooms, yet eating some at the men’s breakfast a few months ago. I was fooled. As is Isaac here.
V 26- 6. He kisses him and feels his hairy neck and smells the clothing. It is the smell of Esau. So he begins the
27 blessing. Esau smells like the outdoors. It has a distinct smell. Kids have it after playing outside all day. It’s not just from BO. God has blessed the outdoors. It is a good smell.
c. the blessing
V 28 1. It included prosperity in crops. He would never lack for the necessities of life.
V 29a 2. It included domination over the surrounding nations. He would be powerful.
V 29b 3. It included domination over his brethren. He would be the leader in the family, even though he was not the elder of the two boys. This was true, yet Jacob always worried about the relationship, since this blessing was acquired so deceitfully.
V 29c 4. Like his grandfather Abraham, those that bless him will be blessed and those that curse him will be cursed. Cf. Gen. 12:3
This would have been a great blessing, had it not been gained in such a manner. For the rest of their years, there was turmoil on this house. Esau wanted to kill his brother Jacob had to leave. Rebekah never again got to see her beloved Jacob. Al because of these sins of…
conclusion
SELFISHNESS, LACK OF FAITH, and DECEITFULNESS; three sins that will destroy any home, especially a Christian home where we know what God requires and fail to obey at times. How do we avoid these and what do we do when they creep in?
1. Faith must be in God first. GOSPEL
2. These sins are part of our old nature. They cannot be overcome without the HS. Cf. Phil. 2:1-4
3. When these sins are committed, they must be confronted, confessed, and forgiven. Over and over again.
4. Secret sins will eventually find you out in the home. It is better to deal with them and overcome them. I.e. pornography is one, love of popularity, materialism, all result from these sins.
Illus. of texting has become the new mode of communication for our world. What it has done has further impeded good oral communication and become the time waster for our children; they text in cars, in conversation, and in church. It is an obnoxious habit that is breaking down our homes even further. They create an environment where we can become even more selfish, if that is even possible. There may be some that disagree, but the question is, do they help or hinder in the long run?
Selfishness, lack of faith, and deceitfulness are destroying our homes; but they can be overcome with the help of the HS. But, we must be willing to deny ourselves and wait for God to lead us His way. Then certainly, we will be blessed.
pray
liberty bible church 7/6/08 P.M.
By Tom Zobrist
“sins that will destroy the home”
Genesis 27:1-29
introduction
What are some of these sins that are so dangerous to our homes and families? In this passage, we see common sins that break down the home and what we can do about it.
i. vs. 1-4
a. __________________________________ is selfish
Cf. Gen. 25:23
b. __________________________________ is selfish
Cf. Gen. 25:33
ii. vs. 5-17
a. __________________________________ demonstrates a lack of faith
b. ___________________________________ demonstrates a lack of faith
iii. vs. 18-29
A. jacob’s __________________________________________
b. Isaac’s _____________________________________________
c. the blessing
Cf. Gen. 12:3
conclusion
How do we avoid these and what do we do when they creep in?
1.
2.
Cf. Phil. 2:1-4
3.
4.