Nepaug Bible Church - http://www.nepaugchurch.org - Pastor's Evening Sermon Notes - http://www.nepaugchurch.org/ev/ev20000130.htm

GENESIS: THE SOURCES OF GOOD AND CALAMITY IN OUR ORIGINS
Part III - God's Ongoing Program Of Countering Man's Apostasy At Babel
T. Round Nineteen - Reacting To Failure By Submitting To God's Chain-Of-Command, Not By Manipulating
(Genesis 28:1-9, 10-22)
  1. Introduction
    1. Unfortunately, all Christians sin; 1 John 1:10 tells us so. However, we are to rebound from sinful failure by taking ahold of God's grace through the confession of that sin, 1 John 1:9, followed by a return to doing things God's way and by God's power and leading, 1 John 2:1, 3.
    2. The wrong way to try rebounding from failure is to try to manipulate circumstances around us in our own effort and wisdom, for that simply leads nowhere and we cannot please God on our own, Rom. 7:15-24.
    3. The way Jacob and Esau each differently responded in chapter 28 to their mutual failures of selfish conniving in Genesis 27 acts as a lesson for us in what NOT to do after defeat as well as what to do:
  2. Reacting To Failure By Submitting To God's Chain-Of-Command, Not By Manipulating.
    1. After Jacob had deceptively stolen Esau's blessing, Esau became so enraged that he threatened to kill Jacob once his father, Isaac had passed away, Genesis 27:41. This precipitated the need for Jacob to flee from his brother for his l ife, going back to his uncle Laban in Paddan-Aram, Genesis 27:42-44.
    2. Well, following this family fracturing event, Isaac blessed Jacob with the Abrahamic Covenant blessing before sending Jacob on his way, Genesis 28:3-4, 5.
    3. At this point, there is a divergence in HOW Esau and Jacob handled their failures: one went the route of manipulation where the other the way of obedience to God's chain-of-command:
      1. On the one hand, Jacob humbly heeded his parents, leaving for Paddan-Aram to live with Laban in accord with the wishes of Rebekkah and the order of father, Isaac, Genesis 28:6a, 7.
      2. On the other hand, Esau took things into his own hand to try manipulating matters around him to gain his parents' approval on his OWN, Genesis 28:6-9:
        1. Esau witnessed his father, Isaac warning him not to take a wife from the Canaanites, Genesis 28:8.
        2. He also saw that Jacob catered to his father's will in heeding him regarding the trip to Laban, 28:7.
        3. Feeling that Jacob was playing along with his parents to win their favor, Esau felt he needed to outdo his brother in winning his parents' political support: accordingly, he realized his Canaanite wives did not please his parents, so he went and married a woman of the partly-related Ishmaelites, Gen. 28:9. He thought that this would impress his parents to like him and favor him more!
      3. The RESULTS of these actions by Esau and Jacob show the futility of man's manipulations versus submitting to God's chain-of-command in rebounding out of sinful failure:
        1. Since the children of Ishmael were of the unblessed line of Abraham, and since Esau was not of the blessed line from Isaac, Esau's marital choice was foolish: his manipulation in this realm could not improve his chances of blessing as he missed God's will en route, thus missing God's blessing!
        2. Opposite Esau, Jacob enjoyed God's reward of gracious promise of future blessing, Gen. 28:10-22: (a) As Jacob obeyed his father and traveled alone to Paddan Aram, he stopped to sleep and put a rock for his pillow on the ground, Genesis 28:10-11. (b) In this lonely, lowly state of slumber while fleeing due to his failure, Jacob received a wonderful dream: God extended His GRACE all the way to reach Jacob by a very long ladder, Genesis 28:12. (c) God then revealed that His grace would reach Jacob so far as to make His presence go with Jacob even when he left the land due to his failure, Genesis 28:13-15. (d) Deeply moved to respect God for His dream of grace to him, Jacob honored the Lord and promised to follow Him if He kept Hi s word to bless Jacob, Genesis 28:16-22.
Lesson: Following their MUTUAL failure at HOME, ESAU tried to MANIPULATE his parents to gain their approval and blessing where JACOB simply OBEYED his parents. As a RESULT, Esau faded from view as far as enjoying God's blessing where JACOB took ce nter stage in God's blessing.

Application: The way out of sinful failure to enjoy God's blessing is NOT through manipulation, but through SUBMISSION to God's chain-of-command and WILL for us. GOD blesses us in accord with His GRACE extended through our submission to His chain- of-command, not by manipulative works!