THE BIBLE EXPEDITION MARCH 28, 2010 OVERVIEW

Transcription

1 THE BIBLE EXPEDITION MARCH 28, 2010 OVERVIEW Genesis 29 Jacob falls in love with Rachel; Laban deceives Jacob by having him marry Leah instead of Rachel; Laban then gives Rachel to Jacob as his wife Genesis 30 Sons are born to Jacob s two wives and their handmaidens; Jacob s flocks increase and his relationship becomes strained with Laban Genesis 31 Jacob slips away from Laban to return to Canaan; Though Laban pursues Jacob, he is warned in a dream not to do harm to Jacob As people, we are driven to achieve, and we often resort to human scheming in order to reach our self-prescribed destiny. What is human scheming? o Definition of the word scheme 1. A secret or devious plan; 2. A systematic plan of action We can easily identify the first definition as sin. But the second definition, if it is based on my own human energy and devises, is also sin. Examples of human scheming On job Trying to get ahead of someone and using criticism to make them look bad. At school compromising our values to have friends. To children A parent manipulating or harsh control of them to keep them in line. To wife A husband using verbal abuse to get them to do what you want. To husband A wife withholding sexual intimacy as punishment or as a tool to get your own way. To parents Children shading the truth so you can have your own lifestyle that you know you re parents wouldn t approve of. We see the futility of human scheming in Genesis 30. o Sometimes truth is stranger than fiction and the Bible is truth. Two very strange accounts of human scheming. Today s study passage: Genesis 30 LEARNING TO REJECT HUMAN SCHEMING Rachel and the mandrake plants (Vs.14-18, 22-24)

2 At this time, Jacob had 8 sons from 3 women and about 6 years had passed since his marriages. Rachel was barren and was jealous of Leah for having children. (30:1). She says to Jacob in verse 2, Give me children or I will die! She s a desperate housewife and she resorts to human scheming. Genesis 30:14-18 (NIV) 14 During wheat harvest, Reuben went out into the fields and found some mandrake plants, which he brought to his mother Leah. Rachel said to Leah, Please give me some of your son s mandrakes. [Mandrake The hebrew word is love apple. Some Asian cultures believe they help a woman to conceive.] Mandrake plant 15 But she said to her, Wasn t it enough that you took away my husband? Will you take my son s mandrakes too? Very well, Rachel said, he can sleep with you tonight in return for your son s mandrakes. 16 So when Jacob came in from the fields that evening, Leah went out to meet him. You must sleep with me, she said. I have hired you with my son s mandrakes. So he slept with her that night. 17 God listened to Leah, and she became pregnant and bore Jacob a fifth son. [The ironic thing was that Leah became pregnant that night.] 18 Then Leah said, God has rewarded me for giving my maidservant to my husband. So she named him Issachar. [Issachar = there is recompense or my hire] Now pick up the story in vs Genesis 30:22-24 (NIV) 22 Then God remembered Rachel; he listened to her and opened her womb. 23 She became pregnant and gave birth to a son and said, God has taken away my disgrace. 24 She named him Joseph, [or Jehovah has added - Clearly an expression of faith that God gave her Joseph, not her own human scheming.] and said, May the LORD add to me another son. Jacob and the white striped branches. (Vs , 31:7-12)

3 Genesis 30:29-43 (NIV) 29 Jacob said to him, You know how I have worked for you and how your livestock has fared under my care. 30 The little you had before I came has increased greatly, and the LORD has blessed you wherever I have been. But now, when may I do something for my own household? 31 What shall I give you? he asked. Don t give me anything, Jacob replied. But if you will do this one thing for me, I will go on tending your flocks and watching over them: 32 Let me go through all your flocks today and remove from them every speckled or spotted sheep, every dark-colored lamb and every spotted or speckled goat. They will be my wages. 33 And my honesty will testify for me in the future, whenever you check on the wages you have paid me. Any goat in my possession that is not speckled or spotted, or any lamb that is not dark-colored, will be considered stolen. 34 Agreed, said Laban. Let it be as you have said. 35 That same day he removed all the male goats that were streaked or spotted, and all the speckled or spotted female goats (all that had white on them) and all the dark-colored lambs, and he placed them in the care of his sons. [Laban removed all the abnormal colored animals to keep Jacob from easily building his own flock.] 36 Then he put a three-day journey between himself and Jacob, while Jacob continued to tend the rest of Laban s flocks. 37 Jacob, however, took fresh-cut branches from poplar, almond and plane trees [Plane tree = Sycamore tree] and made white stripes on them by peeling the bark and exposing the white inner wood of the branches.

4 38 Then he placed the peeled branches in all the watering troughs, so that they would be directly in front of the flocks when they came to drink. When the flocks were in heat and came to drink, 39 they mated in front of the branches. And they bore young that were streaked or speckled or spotted. [Some believe that the striped branches had some unknown power to produce striped or spotted offspring. Others say this was all just superstition. I believe that they had no power, and later we will see that Jacob came to understand this.] 40 Jacob set apart the young of the flock by themselves, but made the rest face the streaked and dark-colored animals that belonged to Laban. Thus he made separate flocks for himself and did not put them with Laban s animals. 41 Whenever the stronger females were in heat, Jacob would place the branches in the troughs in front of the animals so they would mate near the branches, 42 but if the animals were weak, he would not place them there. So the weak animals went to Laban and the strong ones to Jacob. 43 In this way the man grew exceedingly prosperous and came to own large flocks, and maidservants and menservants, and camels and donkeys.[jacob used selective breeding.] [Jacob tells his wives Rachel and Leah}- Genesis 31:7-12 (NIV) 7 your father has cheated me by changing my wages ten times. However, God has not allowed him to harm me. 8 If he said, The speckled ones will be your wages, then all the flocks gave birth to speckled young; and if he said, The streaked ones will be your wages, then all the flocks bore streaked young. 9 So God has taken away your father s livestock and has given them to me. 10 In breeding season I once had a dream in which I looked up and saw that the male goats mating with the flock were streaked, speckled or spotted. 11 The angel of God said to me in the dream, Jacob. I answered, Here I am. 12 And he said, Look up and see that all the male goats mating with the flock are streaked, speckled or spotted, for I have seen all that Laban has been doing to you. [Jacob came to believe it was God blessed his flock/herd.] Both Rachel and Jacob (Mr. and Mrs. Schemer) came to understand that God was working behind the scenes to care for them in His timing. This is the same attitude you and I need to develop. o We need to reject human scheming and trust God s sovereign work in our lives.

5 How do we do this? Three truths to help us reject human schemes: 1. Recognize that God can be your refuge even in the midst of struggles. (Psalm 9:9) Psalm 9:9 (NIV) 9 The LORD is a refuge for the oppressed, a stronghold in times of trouble. The words refuge and stronghold are the same in Hebrew. o They mean high fortress APPLICATION: o I often see this as an either/or situation: God is my refuge or I am oppressed and in trouble. The refuge is clearly internal and spiritual, rather than external and physical. Therefore, it is possible to be secure and at rest in Christ even when things aren t going the way I want them to. With this attitude, I won t need to scheme in times of difficulty. o I can rest in my refuge and seek His wisdom. 2. Reject the drive to control your own destiny. (Proverbs 16:9) Proverbs 16:9 (NIV) 9 In his heart a man plans his course, but the LORD determines his steps. APPLICATION: o I may make plans, but I don t control anything. God must approve or it s nothing good is going to happen. o Therefore, I need to trust God and accept my limitations. o Parent tip: We are doing a disservice to our children when we say, You can be or do anything you want to be and do. --- This power of positive thinking is a farce.

6 Study: College students more narcissistic [Excerpts] The study asserts narcissists "are more likely to have romantic relationships that are short-lived, at risk for infidelity, lack emotional warmth, and to exhibit game-playing, dishonesty, and over-controlling and violent behaviors." By David Crary, AP National Writer February 27, 2007 NEW YORK --Today's college students are more narcissistic and self-centered than their predecessors, according to a comprehensive new study by five psychologists who worry that the trend could be harmful to personal relationships and American society. Professor Jean Twenge of San Diego State University., examined the responses of 16,475 college students nationwide who completed an evaluation called the Narcissistic Personality Inventory between 1982 and The standardized inventory, known as the NPI, asks for responses to such statements as "If I ruled the world, it would be a better place," "I think I am a special person" and "I can live my life any way I want to." The researchers describe their study as the largest ever of its type and say students' NPI scores have risen steadily since the current test was introduced in By 2006, they said, two-thirds of the students had above-average scores, 30 percent more than in The study asserts that narcissists "are more likely to have romantic relationships that are short-lived, at risk for infidelity, lack emotional warmth, and to exhibit game-playing, dishonesty, and over-controlling and violent behaviors." Twenge, the author of "Generation Me: Why Today's Young Americans Are More Confident, Assertive, Entitled -- and More Miserable Than Ever Before," said narcissists tend to lack empathy, react aggressively to criticism and favor self-promotion over helping others. The researchers traced the phenomenon back to what they called the "self-esteem movement" that emerged in the 1980s, asserting that the effort to build self-confidence had gone too far. As an example, Twenge cited a song commonly sung to the tune of "Frere Jacques" in preschool: "I am special, I am special. Look at me." "Current technology fuels the increase in narcissism," Twenge said. "By its very name, MySpace encourages attention-seeking, as does YouTube." Some analysts have commended today's young people for increased commitment to volunteer work. But Twenge viewed even this phenomenon skeptically, noting that many high schools require community service and many youths feel pressure to list such endeavors on college applications. "Permissiveness seems to be a component," he said. "A potential antidote would be more authoritative parenting. Less indulgence might be called for." The new report follows a study released by UCLA last month which found that nearly three-quarters of the freshmen it surveyed thought it was important to be "very well-off financially." That compared with 62.5 percent who said the same in 1980 and 42 percent in Far better to say, You can be and do anything God wants you to be and do. Do you see how this moves the control and focus from ourselves to God and His infinite power (where it s supposed to be!)? 3. Turn your thoughts from your disappointment to God s character. (Isaiah 26:3) Isaiah 26:3 (KJV) 3 Thou wilt keep him in perfect [shalom] peace [shalom both perfect and peace are shalom], whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee. Perfect and peace are actually the same word Shalom.

7 o In other words, peace, peace Double peace. APPLICATION: o Two kinds of disappointment: 1. Situation related disappointment When dissatisfaction that results don t meet our expectations. ( I feel disappointed that my dream did not come true. ) 2. Character related disappointment When a person s character is flawed. ( They are a disappointment. ) o Concerning God, we may feel the first kind of disappointment, but never the second. And when we trust in God s character, that He will never be a disappointment, then we will not experience the first kind of disappointment. Maybe you ve been trying to handle life through human schemes. You re wobbling along trying hard to stay ahead but falling behind. It s negatively affecting your inner life, it s negatively affecting your relationships (especially with those you live most), and most importantly, it s affecting your relationship with Christ.isn t it time to just give up and let God s Spirit take control? Life Application Identify a situation that is causing you tension: Ask yourself: I am using human schemes to find a solution? Below is some marks of someone who has resorted to human schemes. Do they describe you? Feelings of tension and fear Striving Feeling it s all up to me Feeling all alone in the problem Disregarding for Biblical commands and principles Blindly trusting in popular strategies Seeking non-believer s counsel Consider the four secrets we talked about today. If you realize you need to work on one or more of them, memorize the verses that correspond to them. As often as it takes give the situation back to God and ask Him for His wisdom. This Week s Prayer Father God, Today, I decide to turn away from manmade schemes, and walk in the power of Your Spirit. Even in the midst of my unmet expectations, I choose to come to You as my refuge. Help

8 me to rest in You. I want to seek You and love you with my heart, soul, mind and strength. I now recognize that I will find true purpose and meaning only as I search out your boundless character. In Jesus name, Amen. For further study - A more detailed copy of this sermon, the Expedition A.B.F. notes, and maps/charts can be found at (Posted by 4 P.M. today) THIS WEEK S STUDY: JOHN (Easter edition)