Nepaug Bible Church - http://www.nepaugchurch.org - Pastor's Sermon Notes - http://www.nepaugchurch.org/Sermons/zz20081012.htm

THRU THE BIBLE EXPOSITION
Genesis: Explaining The Foundations Of History
Part VII: Explaining God's Plan To Bless Men Regardless Of Apostasy
Q. Trusting God's Oversight When Every Human Responsible Fails
(Genesis 26:34-28:22)

Introduction: (To show the need . . . )

(1) Since the first draft of these sermon notes was formed on September 30th, the stock market has lost trillions of dollars in value, and the news media has been full of reports of how Americans with their retirement portfolios have been "let down" by irresponsible government officials and financial leaders. In fact, one conservative talk show host became so tired of ardently criticizing these leaders for "massive corruption" that I heard him say, "I'm just numb from it all -- I don't know what else to say!"

(2) However, many individual citizens allegedly share in this blame: articles that appeared in financial magazines and web sites months before the credit crisis hit Wall Street noted that failure by grassroots Americans who took out mortgages they could not afford to pay had precipitated the sub prime mortgage mess behind this crisis. Add to this the indulgence of many in our world who took advantage of easy credit to buy excessive amounts of goods, who thus fueled the economic flames that led to this meltdown, it is little wonder that one article blamed us all! It was like the Pogo Possum cartoon a generation ago where Pogo concluded, "We have met the enemy, and he is us!"

(3) This past week, at the local level, several sources have revealed that various Christians we know have been negatively impacted by extensive dysfunctional situations in family or extended family relationships!

Thus, not only have leaders in business and government or fiscally delinquent Americans let many down, but even family or extended family members have let their own kinfolk down!



Thus, we may ask, "When everyone upon whom we have come to rely as responsible parties sinfully fails us -- including perhaps even we ourselves -- how may we effectively respond?!"



(We turn to the sermon "Need" section . . . )

Need: "What can I do if everyone, including me, has failed me?!"
  1. In Genesis 26:34-28:9, everyone, even Jacob himself, failed Jacob:
    1. First, Isaac failed to show responsible love for his son, Jacob:
      1. Isaac told his eldest son, Esau to hunt for wild game and prepare it for a savory meal that he might give Esau the eldest son's blessing before he died, Genesis 27:1-4.
      2. However, in view of God's revealed will that Jacob be the covenant heir, this was a loveless, irresponsible act by Isaac toward Jacob:
        1. Isaac knew that God had told Rebekkah that Esau would see his offspring serve the younger son Jacob's seed, Genesis 25:21-23.
        2. When Esau then married two Hittite women opposite what his godly father Abraham would direct (Gen. 26:34-35; 24:3), and since these wives were a grief to Isaac and Rebekkah due to their paganism (Gen. 26:35; H. C. Leupold, Exp. of Gen., 1974, v. II, p. 734), Isaac knew Esau did not deserve God's blessing.
        3. Nevertheless, Isaac tried to bless Esau opposite what he knew should be Jacob's blessing, a heartless deed toward Jacob.
    2. Then, Rebekkah irresponsibly led Jacob to infuriate Esau against him:
      1. Rebekkah saw Isaac's favoritism of Esau lead him to bless Esau in violation of God's will, cf. Genesis 25:21-23 with 27:1-4.
      2. However, her response of urging Jacob to steal his father's blessing led Jacob to turn his brother Esau against him, 27:5-13, 14-41.
    3. Jacob himself sinfully failed to help his own cause by cheating his brother and inflaming his wrath against him: he knew from his mother (cf. Gen. 25:27-28) of God's Genesis 25:23 promise to bless him, but he yielded to her lead to steal Esau's blessing, Gen esis 27:14-30a.
    4. Finally, Esau sinfully failed Jacob: when Esau heard that Jacob had stolen his blessing, he planned to kill Jacob opposite God's revealed will that Jacob be the heir, Genesis 27:30b-41 with Genesis 25:21-23.
  2. Due to all of this failure, Jacob had to flee for his life, and Isaac's family splintered, never to be fully reunited again, 27:42-28:10:
    1. Rebekkah heard of Esau's plan to kill Jacob, so she urged him to flee to her brother, Laban in Haran until Esau's anger subsided. She feared that were Esau to slay Jacob, Esau would have to be slain in response, and she would lose both sons in one day, Genesis 27:42-45.
    2. Thus, she spoke to Isaac about Jacob's need to go to her brother, using as an excuse the need for Jacob to marry a woman from Laban's clan versus marrying a problem Hittite as Esau had done, Genesis 27:46.
    3. Isaac complied with her request, and send Jacob off to Laban in Haran with his blessing from the Lord, Genesis 28:1-5.
    4. [When Esau learned that his parents were unhappy with his Hittite wives, he married a woman of Ishmael's godless line to gain his parents' approval, exposing his spiritual darkness, 28:8-9; 26:34-35!]
    5. [Rebekkah died while Jacob was in Haran, and when he returned to Canaan, though they briefly met, Jacob and Esau never again dwelt together. Thus, Isaac's family tragically permanently splintered at Jacob's flight! Ryrie Study Bible, KJV, 1978 ed., ftn. to Gen. 27:46.]
  3. However, GOD ALLOWED all of this failure to occur since the OUTCOME FIT His ETERNAL PLAN, and He GRACIOUSLY ENCOURAGED Jacob by giving him an edifying dream and applying the ABRAHAMIC PROMISES to him, Genesis 28:10-15:
    1. God permitted the sinful, irresponsible actions by all of Isaac's family since the outcome of such actions fit His plan for Jacob to be heir of the Abrahamic Covenant, Romans 9:10-13. Isaac finally recognized this as seen in his second Genesis 28:1-4 blessing of Jacob.
    2. God then graciously condoned Isaac's recognition of Jacob, giving him an encouraging dream when he fled from Esau: God presented Himself at the top of a stairway with angels descending and ascending on it to indicate His constant care of Jacob, and to affirm him as heir of the covenant with the promise of blessing, 28:10-15; Ibid., p. 773.
  4. Jacob thus faced the future with hope in God, Genesis 28:16-22:
    1. When Jacob awoke, he revered God, and vowed to make Him his God if He kept His promise and restored him safely to his father, 28:16-21.
    2. Jacob vowed to view the place of the dream as God's house, and to tithe of all the material blessings God would give him, Genesis 28:22.
Application: If everyone upon whom we rely has sinfully failed us, including we ourselves, (1) may we trust in Christ for salvation to be a child of God (John 1:11-13; 3:16). (2) May we then (a) realize God let such failure occur since it fit His eternal plan, and (b) trust Him to ENCOURAGE us to (c) RESPOND in LINE with His Word. (3) Thus equipped, may we face the future in hope!

Lesson: Though everyone in Isaac's family failed Jacob, including Jacob himself, (1) God SOVEREIGNLY LET it all occur, for the OUTCOME FIT His ETERNAL PLAN, (2) and He ENCOURAGED Jacob by (a) an experiential dream and (b) by applying His covenant promises to Jacob!

Conclusion: (To illustrate the sermon lesson . . . )

The Lord abundantly applied this message this past week.

As the stock market swooned day after day, I admit I myself was tempted to doubt last week's Adult Sunday School lesson, and join the throngs who were cashing in their portfolios. You recall that lesson taught Ecclesiastes 11:1-6 directed that we trust God and stay invested if we had long-term goals, and even add to our portfolios!

Well, in support of that lesson, the Lord gave encouragements similar to the uplifting dream Jacob received, encouragements to us whose portfolios have suffered by the actions of other people similar to how Jacob had been let down by other people around him (as follows):

On Wednesday, Stephen Gandel and Paul J. Lim ran the story, "Money crisis: Where to put your money now" on CNNMoney.com, citing Standard and Poor's Equity Research find that if a diversified stock investor stays invested in a downturn, history shows he will make up 80% of his bear market losses in the first year of the recovery.

That means that heeding Ecclesiastes 11:1-6 actually makes a bear market work to a long-term investor's advantage: if one keeps his $100,000 portfolio invested in a downturn, and it loses 40% of its value, were he to add $5,300 more near the market bottom, within a year of the upturn, he would have his $100,000 back! But if he pulls his money out after the market slips just 6%, and waits until all is calm after the market rebound, and reinvests his remaining $94,000 principle plus $5,300, his portfolio would be $700 less than in the first case. Then, ten years later, due to the compounding of the more shares bought at the bottom, the first case would prove to be much better!

Now, lest one think he can time the reinvestment of his $94,000 to take advantage of the market upsurge, as Ecclesiastes 11:1-6 says, he can NOT! Ron Lieber's New York Times article, "Switching To Cash May Feel Safe, But Risks Remain" (Finance.Yahoo.com) last Thursday also noted that from 1963-2004, 41 years of the U. S. stock market, if a market timer had missed just 1 % of the market's best days, a very easy thing to do, he would have missed 96 % of its total 41-years of gain!

Thus, encouraged by the Lord's experiential indicators to keep trusting and heeding His Word like He encouraged Jacob in a dream, may we handle whatever unfair crises others or we have handed to us, and just trust in God's perfect plan and His Word!