January 12: Genesis 27 to 28

THURSDAY, JANUARY 12, 2012
Genesis 27 to 28


Today’s reading continues the account of Isaac’s (fraternal) twin sons, Esau and Jacob.  Yesterday, we read the description of Esau’s selling his birthright for a bowl of stew.  In another telling example of how to win a man’s heart -- through his stomach -- we find that Jacob manages to “steal” Esau’s blessing through deceptively posing as his older brother, goaded by his doting mother Rebekah.  Jacob truly lives up to his name:  “He grasps the heel,” a reference meaning “he deceives.”  Indeed, this family appears to carry this tendency toward deception through the generations.  Abraham and Isaac had both employed the my-wife-posing-as-my-sister routine for self-protection, while Jacob and his descendants will use deceptive means with individuals and whole peoples.

As followers of Christ, we recognize that, in Christ, we find “the way and the truth and the life.” (John 14:6)  As we seek to reflect His character, we are called to be truthful.  Surely, Abraham and Sarah, Isaac and Rebekah, and Jacob could understand God’s desire for truthfulness, given His direct interactions with them.  Yet, in today’s reading, deception appears to bring out God’s sovereign choice:  the establishment of the Israelites, through Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, as His chosen people.

The Bible clearly demonstrates that God is sovereign over all creation.  He directs the affairs of individuals, kings, and nations according to His good purpose.  On a grand scale, God controls all of history:  “The LORD foils the plans of the nations;/ he thwarts the purposes of the peoples./ But the plans of the LORD stand firm forever,/ the purposes of his heart through all generations.” (Psalm 33:10)  As author Jerry Bridges argues in Trusting God, we must be certain of God’s sovereignty over everything in order to trust Him and summarizes God’s sovereignty as such:  “God in His love always wills what is best for us.  In His wisdom, He always knows what is best, and, in His sovereignty, He has the power to bring it about.”

In some manner, therefore, God must have selected Rebekah and Jacob’s duplicity as an instrument of bringing His ultimate plan to fruition.  Through Esau’s frustration, enmity grows between these brothers and the nations that will result, the Edomites and the Israelites.  Looking ahead to the Edomites’ history, we find that they will later receive land (Deuteronomy 2:2–12), but their enmity toward their “brother” Israel will remain fierce (Amos 1:11).  God will later direct judgment towards the Edomites (Jeremiah 49:7–22; Obadiah 1–21).  The Edomites would demonstrate their father Esau’s rebellious “pride” (Obadiah 3) and would perpetuate his rancor:  “Because of the violence against your brother Jacob,/ you will be covered with shame;/ you will be destroyed forever.” (Obadiah 10)

Yet, God hadn’t selected Jacob due to his inherent goodness, but his story does point to the beautiful (and not fully understandable) interplay between God’s sovereignty and human response.  In Romans 9:10–13, Paul points to the prophecy issued at the twins’ birth -- that “the older will serve the younger” -- to highlight “that God’s purpose in election might stand:  not be works but by him who calls.” (vv. 11b,12a)  God initiates with Jacob and reveals Himself to Jacob through the heavenly staircase.  God lays out a clear vision for Jacob and his descendants, prompting Jacob to view the place where he lies differently.  He constructs an altar at Bethel, recognizing it as “the house of God” and “the gate of heaven.” (Genesis 28:17)  In like manner, God has sovereignly called each person who has trusted in Christ, and, by His grace, we have responded and so worship as Jacob does here.

One might wonder:  Should I, like Jacob, act deceptively in order to forward God’s purpose?  Paul argues against “sinning so that grace may increase,” given that those in Christ have died to sin “in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life.” (Romans 6:1–4)  As we are in Christ, it appears that we have received a greater revelation, have enjoyed a greater relationship, and should demonstrate a greater response.  We ought to live our lives in order to honor God, and naturally loving others naturally honors Him more than seeking deceitful gain.


QUESTIONS

1.  How have you seen God’s sovereignty over the past week?
2.  How may you rejoice in God’s call on your life today?

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