Nepaug Bible Church - http://www.nepaugchurch.org - Pastor's Sermon Notes - http://www.nepaugchurch.org/Sermons/zz20081207.htm

THRU THE BIBLE EXPOSITION
Genesis: Explaining The Foundations Of History
Part VII: Explaining God's Plan To Bless Men Regardless Of Apostasy
X. God's Christmas Triumphs Over The Genesis 35:16-21 Defeats
1. God's Christmas Triumph Over Selfish Ambition
(Genesis 35:16-17 et al.)
    Introduction: (To show the need . . . )

    This Christmas, many people are concerned that the goals they have long held will either go unattained or become unfulfilling:

    (1) The noted "American Dream" of owning one's own home is proving to be just that for many ambitious would-be owners -- a dream. John Morell's article, "Housing Market Reality: Neighbor Wars" that ran November 25, 2008 on "TheStreet.com" revealed the current economy is dampening the moods of those who have their lifelong ambition of owning their own home at any cost become frustrated:

    (a) Morrel cited Michael Kushner, a real estate attorney in Aliso Viejo, California who claimed some families that had bought a nice home and purchased or leased expensive vehicles have suddenly lost their jobs or become unable to make their payments.

    Though folk in this position used to get sympathy from their neighbors, now the neighbors are upset at them! The foreclosure of homes hurts the value of the neighbors' houses, so now the neighbors complain that those in foreclosure should not have spent so much on buying a nice home or leasing the Hummers they couldn't afford!

    (b) This happens here on the East Coast as well. Steven Green, a psychotherapist and mediator in Boston, Massachusetts was reported in Morell's article as saying: "Neighbors are feeling the pinch of the economy and they're getting on each others' nerves more and more." The inability of homeowners to sell their homes and move away from bothersome neighbors in the current economic climate is adding to their frustration! (Ibid.)

    (2) Several believers have recently spoken to me about the dreams or goals they either currently have, or goals they once had, but now seem to be unfulfilling or unattainable.

    (3) In one of our discussions at our last Board Meeting, we digressed onto the subject of the problems that rise if our ambitions are obstructed. I couldn't resist saying: "Guess what our next Sunday morning sermon happens to address -- frustrated personal ambition?!"

    [Due to this event, I knew God had led in the formation of the first draft, so I have not changed the basic sermon layout since then!]

    Thus, convinced of God's leading in this message, we seek to answer the question: "If my past ambitions now seem to be out of reach or unfulfilling, what can I do about it this Christmas?!"

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

    Need: "This Christmas Season, goals I have long had now seem unreachable or fulfilling! It seems so sad, so, what can I do now?!"

  1. As Rachel went into severe labor near Ephrath in bearing her long-awaited second son, she knew she would die in the process, for her last words were "Ben-oni," "son of my sorrow or misfortune," Gen. 30:14-21, 22-24; Ryrie St. Bible, KJV, 1978, ftn. to 35:16-18.
  2. This realization was a VERY SAD experience for Rachel, for she had LIVED all her adult life with FRUSTRATED AMBITIONS:
    1. As a maid, Rachel had been set to be Jacob's first and only wife, but her father deceitfully gave her sister to Jacob in marriage, 29:15-25.
    2. When Jacob later married Rachel, he loved her more than her sister, Leah, so God closed Rachel's womb and made Leah bear children to foster balance in their difficult threesome marriage, Gen. 29:26-31.
    3. Rachel was frustrated that she had not been married to Jacob as his first and only wife, so she did not accept her childlessness from the Lord, and took her anger out on her husband, Jacob, telling him to give her children lest she die, Genesis 30:1, 2.
    4. God eventually graciously gave Rachel a son, Joseph, and she trusted God to give her another son, Genesis 30:22-24.
    5. However, still harboring resentment for her father, Laban who had put her into her unhappy polygamist union with her sister, Leah, Rachel stole his female figurine idols to claim his property for herself at his death, and then deceitfully kept them, Ibid., Ryrie, ftn. to Gen. 31:19.
    6. Jacob had been unaware that Rachel had taken Laban's figurines, so when confronted by Laban about the theft, Jacob had called for the death of the thief, whoever it might me, Genesis 31:30-32.
    7. God thus dispensed judgment in Rachel's death for her deeds in life:
      1. Rachel had come under the death penalty by Jacob's word for stealing (Gen. 31:19, 30-32) and keeping her father's idols with a lie involving her childbearing anatomy (31:33-35), so God's judgment was dealt out upon Rachel in the realm of childbearing.
      2. Rachel's failure to accept God's will to stay temporarily childless that erupted in her charge that her husband give her children lest she die in Genesis 30:1 was recalled by God, so He fittingly arranged for her to die in childbearing in line with her past words.
      3. Yet, Rachel had properly trusted God would give her a second son after Joseph's birth (Gen. 30:22-23, 24), so God kept her alive long enough to deliver Benjamin safely before dying, Genesis 35:16-18.
  3. In striking contrast to RACHEL, ANOTHER WOMAN who went into LABOR in NEARBY EPHRATH centuries later on the FIRST CHRISTMAS SUBMITTED to GOD'S WILL VERSUS SELFISH AMBITION, and it lead to EVENTUAL GREAT BLESSING:
    1. Moses wrote in Genesis 35:16-18 with 19 that the ancient city of Ephrath near where Rachel travailed and died in childbirth and there was buried was eventually named the city of Bethlehem in Judah.
    2. Well, Micah 5:2 uses both names -- Bethlehem and Ephrat(ah) -- to foretell Messiah's birth there, and Micah 5:3 predicted his mother would also travail in birth there [as had Rachel], Ibid., Ryrie, ftn. to Mic. 5:3; Charles L. Feinberg, Jonah, Micah and Nahum, 1951, p. 96.
    3. However, in contrast to Rachel's ambition to bear in competition with her sister in marriage and in anger at God, Messiah's Mother would bear in submission to God's will above her marital plans:
      1. Mary saw her plan to marry Joseph threatened by God's call to bear the Messiah as an unwed virgin, Luke 1:26-31; Matthew 1:18-19.
      2. Not knowing the effects that doing God's will would have on her marital plans, Mary SUBMITTED to God's will in CONTRAST to Rachel's selfish ambition, Luke 1:35-38; Gen. 29:31; 30:1-2.
      3. God then protected Mary's marriage to Joseph (Mtt. 1:18-25), and though being the earthly Mother of Jesus cost her great grief in witnessing His sufferings (Luke 2:34-35), in the end, she saw it RICHLY BLESS mankind, Luke 1:46-56; Acts 1:12-14; 2:1-47.
    4. Thus, though Rachel's selfish ambition led to final personal tragedy and frustration, Mary's submission to God's will led to great blessing!
Application: If our personal goals have been frustrated, (1) may we YIELD to GOD'S will to trust in His Son for eternal life, Acts 17:30; John 3:16. (2) Then, for blessing, may we (a) yield to God's will to rely on the Holy Spirit for behavior control (Gal. 5:16) to (b) present our bodies as living sacrifices to do God's will (Romans 12:1-2). (c) Romans 12:3-8 reveals this means using our spiritual gifts in the Church, and Romans 12:9-16:27 adds this also includes godly living.

Lesson: God offers rich blessing this Christmas to those whose personal goals seem to be frustrated PROVIDING they SHIFT from living to fulfill their SELFISH AMBITIONS to SUBMIT to DOING GOD'S WILL!

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

We began this sermon referring to problems many now have in relating to their neighbors arising out of the frustration of the goal of owning a home at any cost, even that of eventually losing it in foreclosure, and angering one's neighbors whose home values then fall.

However, an illustration was provided in our Church Body last week of how God's rich blessing comes by replacing selfish ambition with doing God's will of helping fellow needy believers! It offers a triumphant contrast to the "Neighbor Wars" noted in our introduction.

Last Sunday, a woman in our Church who needed sand for her winter driveway told a fellow believer of this need, explaining she was unable to get the sand herself due to a temporary physical handicap.

That need was mentioned to those who attended our Evening Service last Sunday, and, instead of ignoring it out of selfish ambition, two men present decided to address it. Monday morning, armed with shovels and buckets, they drove to the appropriate site to get the sand.

However, in the process, God provided special leading to make their effort succeed, a very rewarding event! The men had been told the Torrington sand shed was on Albert Street, but as they drove west first on East Albert and then onto Albert, they did not find it. They turned around at the west end of Albert to head back east, and were on the bridge at East Albert crossing the Naugatuck River when one of the men noticed an orange city truck was turning west toward them from traveling north on Arthur that runs along the east side of the river. Realizing the truck might have come from the sand shed, he ran his gaze south along Arthur until he spotted the sand shed off to the south!

In retrospect, this man noted that had he not seen that city truck make that turn at that moment from where their vehicle was situated to face east southeast on the elevated bridge, he would not have seen the shed off to the south: the landscape, road direction and hope of finding the shed on Albert Street, not Arthur Street some distance to the south of East Albert, had made spotting it any other way highly unlikely!

Thus, an event of selflessly meeting a fellow believer's need as a good neighbor was made satisfying by God in contrast to the great unhappiness seen in the selfish ambition in many neighborhoods today!

(1) May we yield to God's will to become believers in Christ to receive eternal life. (2) Then, may we ABANDON feeding our OWN AMBITIONS to DO GOD'S WILL, and find rich blessing!