Genesis 25: 21-23
Isaac prayed to the Lord on behalf of his wife, because she was childless. The Lord answered his prayer, and his wife Rebekah became pregnant. The babies jostled each other within her, and she said, “Why is this happening to me?” So she went to inquire of the Lord. The Lord said to her, “Two nations are in your womb, and two peoples from within you will be separated; one people will be stronger than the other, and the older will serve the younger.”
Sometimes I really do think God needs my help. He’s very capable of handling things on His own, but have you ever noticed that sometimes He takes longer than He should to answer your question or provide for that need? I’ve noticed that many times in my life and some of those times I’ve decided that my help, or a nudge in the right direction, would really be beneficial for Him. Besides, He has given me wisdom and discernment. Like I said, He’s very capable, but who wouldn’t turn down my help? I know of one woman who felt the same way. So, she decided to help God.
Rebekah was married to Isaac and if you remember, this was the Isaac that Abraham was prepared to sacrifice for God. God spared him and promised Abraham that He would make a great nation through Isaac. That great nation was born from Rebekah. Now, let’s assume that maybe Rebekah doesn’t know or understand this promise that was made from God. She’s pregnant with twins, she feels the babies fighting within her, and it causes her to be concerned. So she does what seemed best, she spoke to the Lord about it. He very clearly tells her that she has two children, and they will be great, but the older will serve the younger. Those are pretty heavy words for her to meditate on. And I’m pretty sure she forgot those words. Fast forward to when her sons, Esau and Jacob, are young men. Let me start by saying that Esau was only the firstborn by a few minutes and that Rebekah favored Jacob. Their father Isaac is going to die soon and per their custom, he needs to bless the first born son. He tells Esau to go hunt game and bring it to him and then he will bless him. Rebekah overhears this conversation and takes into account who she favors [which is Jacob] and possibly remembers that the older son is supposed to serve the younger. She decides at this point that God hasn’t come through on His promises. She does what any loving mother would do, right? She takes matters into her own hands and plays the deceiver to get the end result. Let’s read about it.
"Now Rebekah was listening as Isaac spoke to his son Esau. When Esau left for the open country to hunt game and bring it back, Rebekah said to her son Jacob, “Look, I overheard your father say to your brother Esau, ‘Bring me some game and prepare me some tasty food to eat, so that I may give you my blessing in the presence of the Lord before I die.’ Now, my son, listen carefully and do what I tell you: Go out to the flock and bring me two choice young goats, so I can prepare some tasty food for your father, just the way he likes it. Then take it to your father to eat, so that he may give you his blessing before he dies.” Jacob said to Rebekah his mother, “But my brother Esau is a hairy man while I have smooth skin. What if my father touches me? I would appear to be tricking him and would bring down a curse on myself rather than a blessing.” His mother said to him, “My son, let the curse fall on me. Just do what I say; go and get them for me.” (Genesis 27: 5-13)
Let me mention that Isaac is pretty much blind at this point, so it was easy to deceive him. Jacob received the blessing by deception, Esau was heartbroken and angry, Isaac was taken by surprise, and I’m not sure what was going on in Rebekah’s mind. But a curse did befall her and really the whole family. Rebekah did not trust God to follow through on what He proclaimed many years before. She deceived both her sons and her husband. I don’t know how His promise would have come through, but I know that it would have been much better for all the people involved than the way Rebekah chose to handle things. She chose to act out of her fears rather than her trust in God. I encourage you to read the rest of the story when you can. That one deceptive decision that Rebekah made and Jacob followed had catastrophic consequences for everybody for years to come. Jacob had to flee from Esau and he never saw his mother again. God still worked good through those poor choices, but oh how it could have been so much better!
"Now Rebekah was listening as Isaac spoke to his son Esau. When Esau left for the open country to hunt game and bring it back, Rebekah said to her son Jacob, “Look, I overheard your father say to your brother Esau, ‘Bring me some game and prepare me some tasty food to eat, so that I may give you my blessing in the presence of the Lord before I die.’ Now, my son, listen carefully and do what I tell you: Go out to the flock and bring me two choice young goats, so I can prepare some tasty food for your father, just the way he likes it. Then take it to your father to eat, so that he may give you his blessing before he dies.” Jacob said to Rebekah his mother, “But my brother Esau is a hairy man while I have smooth skin. What if my father touches me? I would appear to be tricking him and would bring down a curse on myself rather than a blessing.” His mother said to him, “My son, let the curse fall on me. Just do what I say; go and get them for me.” (Genesis 27: 5-13)
Let me mention that Isaac is pretty much blind at this point, so it was easy to deceive him. Jacob received the blessing by deception, Esau was heartbroken and angry, Isaac was taken by surprise, and I’m not sure what was going on in Rebekah’s mind. But a curse did befall her and really the whole family. Rebekah did not trust God to follow through on what He proclaimed many years before. She deceived both her sons and her husband. I don’t know how His promise would have come through, but I know that it would have been much better for all the people involved than the way Rebekah chose to handle things. She chose to act out of her fears rather than her trust in God. I encourage you to read the rest of the story when you can. That one deceptive decision that Rebekah made and Jacob followed had catastrophic consequences for everybody for years to come. Jacob had to flee from Esau and he never saw his mother again. God still worked good through those poor choices, but oh how it could have been so much better!
Remember I mentioned earlier that I think I need to help God out sometimes? Well, that’s when I’m thinking out of my fears. To be quite honest, I’m not really thinking at all. I’m reacting to fears and so I act and usually make a mess of things. Can you imagine if Rebekah, upon hearing that conversation between Esau and Isaac, prayed instead of conjuring up a deceptive plan or even had just spoken to Isaac about the matter? Well, let me end by offering some practical instructions for the next time you’re convinced you need to “help” God. You remember what you are supposed to do if you are on fire? “Stop, drop and roll!” Roll that fire out. Well how about when we feel like taking matters out of God’s hand, let’s Stop, Drop and Pray! Pray those fears out completely! I think we can all relate to Rebekah, even more so if you have a child and want the best for them. Yet whether we are single, married, or a parent, our fears can be very powerful motivators. We have to condition our fears to motivate us to literally stop our thinking, drop to our knees, and pray to the Lord. Can we all practice that this month?
STOP your thinking, DROP to your knees, PRAY to the Lord!
