A GUILTY CONSCIENCE WILL WHIP YOU

Proclamation:

“I am unworthy of all the kindness and faithfulness You have shown Your servant.  I had only my staff when I crossed this Jordan, but now I have become two camps.  Save me, I pray, from the hand of my brother, Esau, for I am afraid he will come and attack me, and also the mothers with their children.”  Genesis 32:10-11 (NIV)

Explanation:

These are the words of God which were written by Moses under the influence of The Holy Spirit of God.  When Jacob and Laban parted company, Jacob returned to his homeland and prepared to face his brother Esau.  It had been more than twenty years since Jacob had left home after tricking his father, Isaac, into giving him the blessing which was meant for Esau and caused his brother to despise him and plan to kill him. (Genesis 27:1-45)  Since that time he had acquired much wealth, flocks, and herds, in addition to having a large family.  Jacob sent messengers ahead of him to Esau with a peace offering and his reply was that he was coming to meet him with four hundred men. (Genesis 32:3-6)  When he heard this, Jacob became afraid and distressed, and prayed that The Lord God would save him from his brother. (Genesis 32:7-11) 

Application:

The Lord God may have forgiven us of our sins but the devil will not let us forget them and frequently reminds us of them.  Our sinful memories can rob us of our peace of mind and cause us much distress.  We need to pray that God will forgive us and restore unto us the joy of our salvation (Psalm 51:12) and grant us His peace. (Psalm 29:11)  Each of us is a sinner, but some of us have been saved by the grace of God and forgiven of our sins.  The Bible teaches us that if we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us of our sins and to cleanse us from all of our unrighteousness. (1 John 1:9)

BE CAREFUL WHAT YOU ASK THE LORD GOD TO DO

Proclamation:

“Laban said, ‘This heap is a witness between you and me today.’  That is why it was called Galeed.  It was also called Mizpah, because he said, ‘May The Lord keep watch between you and me when we are away from each other.’”  Genesis 31:48-49 (NIV)

Explanation:

These are the words of God which were written by Moses under the influence of The Holy Spirit of God.  Jacob worked for his father-in law, Laban for twenty years, seven years before he was tricked into marrying Leah, seven more years in order to have Rachel as his wife, then six years as his dowry for Rachel.  During that time Jacob fathered twelve children, four with his wife, Leah, two with Rachel’s servant Bilhah, two with Leah’s servant, Zilpah, then three more with Leah, and one with his wife Rachel. (Genesis 29:31 to Genesis 30:24)  When Jacob wanted to leave, he and Laban did not part company on good terms.  They divided the herds of sheep, goats, and cattle between them, with the spotted and streaked animals going to Jacob and the solid color ones remained with Laban. (Genesis 30:32-35)  However God caused Jacob’s animals to be healthier and more productive than Laban’s animals. (Genesis 32:11-12)  Jacob left with all that he had while Laban was away and when he found out he pursued Jacob and caught him in the hills of Gilead.  After a lengthy discussion they ended with the agreement above.  The heap was a pillar of stones and basically a line in the sand which they both agreed not to cross.

Application:

This text has often been used as a benediction at the end of worship services.  However, this is not a blessing, this was more of a curse between two men who did not trust each other and they wanted The Lord God to punish the other if they broke their agreement.  These words are more appropriately spoken to someone that you don’t trust when they will be out of your sight.  This is more of a request for God to punish someone who breaks a promise to you.  However, we should be careful when we ask The Lord God to punish someone for doing wrong.  We are to forgive people of their trespasses and wrong doings as we are forgiven for ours by our Heavenly Father. (Matthew 6:14-15)  We should remember that Jesus, The Christ, told Peter that we ought to forgive our brother who sins against us not seven times but “seventy times seven” times. (Matthew 18:21-22)

PEOPLE WHO PLAY TRICKS ON OTHERS WILL GET TRICKED

Proclamation:

“When morning came, there was Leah!  So Jacob said to Laban, ‘What is this you have done to me?  I served you for Rachel, didn’t I?  Why did you deceive me?’”  Genesis 29:25  (NIV)

Explanation:

These are the words of God which were written by Moses under the influence of The Holy Spirit of God.  Jacob left the land of Canaan to flee from his brother, Esau, and to honor his father, Isaac’s request not to marry a woman from Canaan. (Genesis 28:1)  He went to the land of his mother, Rebekah’s brother Laban.  There he met Laban’s beautiful daughter Rachel, fell in love with her, and agreed to work for Laban for seven years in order to have her because he did not have a dowry to offer him for her. (Genesis 29:18)  Jacob thought that he had married Rachel but was given Leah instead.  Jacob had been drinking at the wedding feast and Leah was heavily veiled when she was brought to him.  Laban tricked him because it was their custom that the eldest daughter, Leah, must be married before the younger daughter. (Genesis 29:26)  So Jacob worked a second period of seven years, after he married Leah, so that he could have Rachel. (Genesis 29:30)  Jacob, who had tricked his father, Isaac, in order to get the blessing of his older brother, Esau, (Genesis 27:19-25) was himself tricked, by Laban, into marrying Leah.

Application:

There are a lot of appropriate old sayings which fit this situation, “Players will soon get played.”  “Those who play tricks, will eventually get tricked.”  “As you sow, so shall you also reap.” (Galatians 6:7)  The Lord God is not to be played with, and He does not like liars and deceivers.  People who deceive others will pay for it sooner or later.  Be true to yourself and present the real you to others.  All of the blessings which The Good Lord has in store for you are yours and yours alone, no one else can get them.  However, you can mess up and lose out on your conditional blessings.  So, do not pretend to be someone that you are not, in order to impress others or to get that which you do not deserve.  God is always watching.

PLAYING FAVORITES AMONG YOUR CHILDREN HAS BAD OUTCOMES

Proclamation:

“Esau held a grudge against Jacob because of the blessing his father had given him.  He said to himself, ‘The days of mourning for my father are near, then I will kill my brother Jacob.’”  Genesis 27:41 (NIV)

Explanation:

These are the words of God which were written by Moses under the influence of The Holy Spirit of God.  Abraham’s wife Sarah died at the age of one hundred twenty-seven, (Genesis 23:1) and she was buried in a cave overlooking a field in Canaan. (Genesis 23:19)  Abraham sent his senior servant to his home country to find a wife for his son Isaac. (Genesis 24:1-4)  When he got there, the servant prayed and then he found Rebekah. (Genesis 24:12-16)  It was in her arms that Isaac found comfort after his mother’s death. (Genesis 24:67)  In the mean time, Abraham remarried and had five more sons. (Genesis 25:1-4)  He lived to be one hundred seventy-five years old before he died. (Genesis 25:7-8)  Later on when Isaac was sixty years old, he and Rebekah had paternal twin sons, Esau and Jacob. (Genesis 25:26)  The problem was that Isaac loved Esau and Rebekah loved Jacob. (Genesis 25:27-28)  When the boys grew up and Isaac had gotten old and his eyes were weak, Jacob, with the help of his mother, tricked Isaac into giving him the blessing that he had planned to give his oldest son, Esau, and he held a grudge against Jacob and planned to kill him. (Genesis 27:1-45)

Application:

We are blessed to have children. (Deuteronomy 33:24)  We are to train them in the way that they should go. (Proverbs 22:6)  We are to nurture them and bring them up in the fear and admonition of The Lord God, but we are not to provoke our children to anger. (Ephesians 6:4 and Colossians 3:21)  By showing more love and favor to one child more than the others, parents cause children to resent their siblings and that resentment can lead to some very bad outcomes. 

DON'T VALUE YOUR CHILDREN MORE THAN GOD

Proclamation:

“Then God said, ‘Take your son, your only son, whom you love, Isaac, and go to the region of Moriah.  Sacrifice him there as a burnt offering on a mountain I will show you.’”  Genesis 22:2 (NIV)

Explanation:

These are the words of God which were written by Moses under the influence of The Holy Spirit of God.  After The Lord God destroyed the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah, Abraham moved on from Canaan southward towards Egypt.  Again Abraham referred to his wife Sarah as his sister. (Genesis 20:2)  While they were in a foreign land, Sarah became pregnant and bore a son, Isaac, to Abraham when he was one hundred years old. (Genesis 21:1-5)   Sarah did not want Abraham’s other son, Ishmael, to share in his inheritance with her son, Isaac, so she told him to “get rid of that slave woman,” Hagar, and her son. (Genesis 21:8-10)  Sarah’s request distressed him, but after talking to The Lord, he did what Sarah wanted. (Genesis 21:11-14)  Some time later, when Isaac was a young man, God tested Abraham. (Genesis 22:1-2)  He passed the test and The Lord God promised to bless him. (Genesis 22:9-18)

Application:

Unfortunately, today too many parents value and love their children more than their mates and more than they value and love The Lord God.  Our children can take us to brunch on Sunday morning but we can’t take them to church on Sunday morning.  The Lord God said that He was a jealous God and no one should make anyone or anything a god above Him. (Exodus 20:3-5 and Deuteronomy 5:7-9)  We are to love The Lord God with all our heart, soul, and strength. (Deuteronomy 6:5, Matthew 22:37, Mark 12:30, and Luke 10:27)  Nothing is to come before God in our lives.  We are to make God first, and everything else fall into place after Him. (Matthew 6:33)

DON'T LOOK BACK LONGING FOR THE PAST SINFUL LIFE

Proclamation:

“Then The Lord rained down burning sulfur on Sodom and Gomorrah from the Lord out of heaven … destroying all those living in the cities, and also the vegetation in the land.  But Lot’s wife looked back, and she became a pillar of salt.”  Genesis 19:24-26 (NIV)

Explanation:

These are the words of God which were written by Moses under the influence of The Holy Spirit of God.  After being warned that The Lord God was going to destroy the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah, (Genesis 19:12) Lot was told to take his wife and two daughters and get out of the city and go to the mountains. (Genesis 19:15)  They were told by one of the angels of The Lord to: “Flee for you lives!  Don’t look back, and don’t stop anywhere in the plain!” (Genesis 19:17)  When they reached safety in the city of Zoar, the destruction of the cities began and Lot’s wife turned and looked back behind them.  As she looked back she was changed into a pillar of salt. 

Application:

There has been much speculation as to why Lot’s wife looked back.  Some say that she longed for the life, the lifestyle, or the possessions that she left behind.  Some say that she did not believe that anything serious would happen if she just briefly looked behind them.  Some say that she was not a believer.  Regardless of the reason why she did it, she disobeyed the angel of The Lord and was punished immediately.  Once we are saved, we are not to go back to our old sinful ways, or wish for them, or look back longing for them.  Jesus, The Christ, said that no one who takes us the work of God and looks back longingly is worthy of the kingdom of God. (Luke 9:62)  Jesus also said, “Remember Lot’s wife.”  He said this while explaining to His disciples regarding the coming of the kingdom of God (Luke 17:22-33) after telling them that no one should go back into the house for his possessions or back into the field for anything. (Luke 17:31-32)  We are to learn from past mistakes and do better, and not long to return to our past life.  We should not value our past so much so that we ruin our future.

THE RIGHTEOUS WILL BE SPARED WHEN THE WICKED ARE DESTROYED

Proclamation:

“Then Abraham approached Him and said, ‘Will You sweep away the righteous with the wicked?  What if there are fifty righteous people in the city … What if only ten can be found there?’  He answered, ‘For the sake of ten, I will not destroy it.’”  Genesis 18:20-32

Explanation:

These are the words of God which were written by Moses under the influence of The Holy Spirit of God.  When Lot and Abram parted company, Lot chose the well-watered plain of the Jordan and moved his herds and flocks near Sodom.  Unfortunately the people of Sodom were wicked and sinned greatly against The Lord. (Genesis 13:11-13)  It came to pass that the kings in area made war with the other kings nearby, they were defeated and Lot was captured and his possession taken. (Genesis 14:1-12)  When Abram learned of this he took 318 of his servants and attacked and routed them, rescuing Lot and the other captives. (Genesis 14:13-16)  The Lord God told Abram that He was his shield and his very great reward, (Genesis 15:1-5) and God promised him a son.  Abram’s wife Sarai was also old and she was barren, so she gave Abram her slave/handmaid Hagar so that he could have a son.  After she conceived, she began to despise her mistress and Sarai began to mistreat her so she left. (Genesis 16:1-6)  Hagar was confronted by the angel of The Lord and returned and bore Abram a son named Ishmael. (Genesis 16:7-15)  The Lord God changed Abram’s name to Abraham (Genesis 17:5) and his wife Sarai’s name to Sarah. (Genesis 17:15)  God made a covenant with Abraham (Genesis 17:10-11) and promised him that Sarah would bear him a son and he will be called Isaac. (Genesis 17:17-19)  Then The Lord appeared to Abraham (Genesis 18:1-2) and told him that the sins of the people in Sodom and Gomorrah were so great that He was going to destroy the cities. (Genesis 18:17 and 20)  This is when Abraham questioned The Lord regarding sparing the lives of the righteous living among the wicked. (Genesis 18:22-32)

Application:

The Lord God destroyed the whole earth but spared Noah and his family. (Hebrews 11:7)  Here He told Abraham that He was going to destroy Sodom and Gomorrah but He would spare the righteous there, namely Lot and his family. (Genesis 19:15-16)  He said that if there were ten righteous people there, He would spare the cities for their sakes.  Even when surrounded by wickedness and corruption, a child of God should maintain his faith and Christian walk.  By doing so we will find grace and favor in the eyes of The Lord and thereby be spared the wrath of God which will come to those people who are doing evil.