Genesis 31:22–42

Well, good morning, good morning, good morning. Welcome to Coffee and Devotions. This is where every day you and I, we get together. We have a little bit of coffee. We get into God's word and we grow in our love for the Lord together. In this year, 2023, Lord willing, we'll make it from the book of Genesis to Leviticus. I'm sorry for not being able to jump on yesterday. And the Lord is sovereign.
And there was a late night, Sunday night. And then last night, I was still hoping to catch you here. And then had to go to the emergency room, got a little piece of mirror actually stuck in my eye. Long story, but very thankful I didn't become the blind man asking Jesus to heal me. So he did heal, but I think so. Anyways, why don't we have some coffee?
We'll pray and we'll get in the Lord's word. Father, we thank you so much for your word. We thank you for the blessing it is to sit at your feet to hear from you. Lord, we pray that as we read your word this morning, you would care for us and bless us. Lord, please help us to understand your word. And Lord, we pray that we would treat it with a reverence and respect that you deserve.
And yet, Lord, that we would not have to justify men's actions in jesus's name amen all right so we're at genesis chapter 31 beginning at verse 22 why don't we go ahead and jump in the lord's word now and laban was told on the third day that jacob had fled then he took his brethren with him and pursued him for seven days journey And he overtook him in the mountains of Gilead.
But God had come to Laban the Syrian in a dream by night, and said to him, Be careful that you speak to Jacob neither good nor bad. So Laban overtook Jacob. Now Jacob had pitched his tent in the mountains, and Laban with his brethren pitched in the mountains of Gilead. And Laban said to Jacob, What have you done, that you have stolen away unknown to me, and carried away my daughters like captive men with the sword? Why did you flee away secretly, and steal away from me, and not tell me? For I might have sent you with joy and songs, with timbrel and harp.
And you did not allow me to kiss my sons and my daughters? Now you have done foolishly in doing so. It is in my power to do you harm. But the God of your father spoke to me last night, saying, Be careful that you speak to Jacob neither good nor bad. And now you have surely gone, because you greatly long for your father's house. But why did you steal my gods? Then Jacob answered and said to Laban, because I was afraid. For I said, perhaps you would take your daughters from me by force. With whomever you find your gods, do not let him live. In the presence of our brethren, identify what I have of yours and take it with you.
For Jacob did not know that Rachel had stolen them. And Laban went into Jacob's tent, into Leah's tent, and into the two maids' tents, but he did not find them. Then he went out of Leah's tent and entered Rachel's. Now Rachel had taken the household gods, put them in the camel's saddle, and sat on them. And Laban searched all about the tent, but did not find them. And she said to her father, let it not displease my Lord, but I cannot rise before you for the manner of women is with me. And he searched, but did not find the household items. Then Jacob was angry and rebuked Laban. And Jacob answered and said to Laban, what is my trespass? What is my sin that you have so hotly pursued me? Although you have searched my things, what part of your household things have you found?
Set it here before my brethren and your brethren, that they may judge between both of us. These 20 years I have been with you. Your ewes and female goats have not miscarried their young, and I have not eaten the rams of your flock. That which was torn by beasts I did not bring to you, I bore the loss of it. You required it from my hand, whether stolen by day or stolen by night, there I was. In a day the drought consumed me, and the frost by night, and my sleep departed from my eyes. Thus, I have been in your house twenty years. I served you fourteen years for your two daughters and six years for your flock, and you have changed my way just ten times. Unless the God of my father, the God of Abraham, and the fear of Isaac had been with me, surely now you would have sent me away empty-handed. God has seen my affliction and the labor of my hands and rebuked you last night.
Well, we need to ask ourselves, A, what's this about? B, what's the best verse to summarize this? And C, what are we called to do in response to these words? So, what's this about? Well, Laban catches up to Jacob and there's a confrontation. The confrontation that Jacob had tried to avoid, right?
He had stolen away. He had seen that the countenance of Laban was no longer favorable towards him. And so he told his wives, he said, we're going to hightail it. We're going to get out of here. Well, now Laban is hot. He's mad. Three days after Jacob's gone, he wants to go pursue him. He wants to go find him. He wants to go confront him. And when he does, he overtakes him and said, dude, I should have killed you.
What are you doing, man? Right. But God had appeared to him and told him. don't say anything either good to him or bad now it seems the confrontation that happens here in verses 26 through 20 or yeah through through 30 is saying good and bad it's saying bad right he's confronting him but he's not doing him harm And here he's got one last question though.
His biggest problem isn't why have you stolen away my daughters and my grandchildren, right? You ran out of here and you didn't even give me a chance to say goodbye. But he's even asking him, why did you take my gods? And Jacob didn't know about this.
And so he actually makes a pretty rash volume. Go search everything I have. If you find it anywhere, you could kill whoever stole it. And Laban is like a madman, going tent to tent, room to room, searching everywhere, high and low, trying to find these idols, find these household gods. And Rachel deceives her father.
She's married a schemer and it seems like she's become a schemer. She says, Dad, it's that time of the month. I can't get up. Sorry, I can't honor you. And he trusts his daughter. He trusts his daughter. And he leaves. And now it's Jacob's turn. He's hot under the collar now. He explains himself.
I thought you were gonna kill me take everything I have you've changed my wages these these seven times or these ten times I've served you for 20 years 14 years for your daughters and six years for your flocks of I've labored for you And I was worried you were gonna swindle me or kill me He says God rebuked you when he told you not to say anything either good or bad And so here it's Laban who's being rebuked it but right this this is a tough passage it's a tough passage as we think through this because we see conflict we see deception we see that things aren't the way they're supposed to be Laban has tried to swindle Jacob. Jacob, his wife, Rachel, is now swindling her own father. People are mad.
And the only reason why this doesn't break out into absolute chaos and bloodshed, why this doesn't turn into a family massacre, is because the Lord showed up. Because the Lord stopped Laban from doing something even more rash. That is not justifying Jacob in his actions, or Rachel in her actions, or Laban in his actions. Laban had been unjust, changing the wages all the time, switching out which daughter. Jacob had schemed his way into getting the choice flock. Rachel has stolen from her dad.
These people are sinners, right? The story of the scripture is about sinners. It leaves us longing for the one day in which there's finally going to come one, and his name is going to be Jesus Christ, who is tempted in every way like they are, yet without sin. But you got to wait for over a thousand years before you're going to get to him. And that's the longing of the whole Old Testament. The whole Old Testament is this longing for that seed who would finally come and would crush the head of the serpent, who would finally not be the one who fails the fight for righteousness.
And the only reason why the whole world doesn't fall into chaos is because the Lord stops it. The only reason why Jacob is kept alive here is because God stops it. The Lord appears to Laban in a dream and says say nothing to Jacob, either good or bad. The Lord's preserving his covenant. The Lord's working it out in real history through real people. And thank God.
It's a messy story. It's a really messy story. It doesn't get any easier from here. Doesn't get any easier in other books of the Old Testament. Doesn't get any easier in the book of Acts either. God still works through sinful people. It's not any easier in my life today.
There's a shallow type of Christianity that looks at these stories and wants to whitewash them. Wants to make them look better, justify everyone. Wants to make it conform to the teaching of Jesus, but we don't have to. Or it will say there's incongruities here and there's incongruities in my own life.
That we long for the day of redemption. They longed for it here. And we long for it now. Waiting for the day to come when Jesus Christ will make all things right. When the order that he established in Eden will be once again when we will be able to no longer sin. Can't wait for that day. I think when we read this type of story, we just have to say, thank God. Thank God he's still working. He's still preserving his covenant line. He's still working through the covenant. He's still working through people. He's still bringing about his promises, even through people who don't deserve it.
What's the best verse in this? Well, I have what God says to Laban, verse 24 underlined. I have the very last part of verse 30, but why did you steal my gods? And then I also have verse 42 underlined, the last part of it. God has seen my affliction and the labor of my hands and rebuked you last night. Well, last seat calling.
Thank God for Jesus Christ. And thank God that even though you're not perfect, He's still working in and through your life. He's still using people like you and like me to bring about His purposes, His ends. Praise the Lord, He doesn't only work through perfect people. If that was the case, He'd either have to work through fiat divine miracles every single day, all day, Or, his plan wouldn't happen at all. Because there's no night, just no not run. It's only by the work of the Lord. So thank the Lord. Because he can use you. Just like he could use Jacob. Just like he could use Isaac. Just like he could use Abraham. He uses sinful people like us. For the furthering of his kingdom. For his glory. Let's pray.
Father, we thank you so much that we don't have to justify. the stories of the Old Testament, because we know that you are the only justifier. But when you justify it as a declaration of legal righteousness, you imputed to Jacob a righteousness that was not his own, but one that would come in Jesus Christ. He had faith in you and was declared righteous by you. So also us, Lord, So we thank you that we don't have to justify ourselves, but we can come before you and be honest about our shortcomings and failures. And we can trust in a righteousness outside of us.
We can look to Jesus Christ. Lord, we pray that you would please help us this day. Do not let this be a reason for us to sin. But Father, please lift our eyes up to you. And let us behold your glory and walk in your ways in Jesus's name. Amen. May the Lord bless you. May you walk in the joy and peace that comes only from Jesus Christ. May you pursue holiness. But may you always look to Jesus. And I'll see you tomorrow. Bye.
Thanks for listening to this week's message from God's Word for You, a ministry of Sharon R.P. Church in rural southeast Iowa. We pray that the message would be used by God to transform your faith and your life this week. If you'd like to get more information about us, feel free to go to the website, SharonRPC.org. We'd love to invite you to worship with us. Our worship time is 10 a.m. every Sunday at 25204 160th Avenue. Morning Sun, Iowa, 52640. May God richly bless you this week.