4/11/2024 0 Comments Sermon audio genesis 47![]() ![]() ![]() And in this vision we hear the support God offered Jacob through the covenant promises. ![]() But we can commend Jacob for this: in the face of questions and before a journey like his, he went to his God in worship.Īnd that night as he slept, God came to Jacob and spoke to him. So often, when life is confusing, worship is the last thing on my mind. That’s a lesson for us in and of itself, of course. We don’t hear his words here, but we see him approaching his God in worship. Jacob needed support and he knew where to go. Jacob seeks out and offers sacrifices to his faithful God who (as he said chapters earlier) “has been with me wherever I have gone.” (Gen. Before he leaves, though, he stops to worship the God of his father, Isaac. The opening of Genesis 46 is striking as Jacob comes to the southernmost town of Canaan, about to cross out of the Promised Land. Let’s see how the covenant promises, people and rescuer were at work here in Genesis, supporting Jacob and his family. Because of God’s grace we have the support (1) of His covenant promises in Christ, (2) the support of His covenant people in the Church and (3) the faithful, eternal support of Jesus himself, our covenant Rescuer. And as we journey we have questions about the way to go is this or that decision good and right or just easy? Maybe it’s about too little work or too much work, marriage troubles or failing health, struggles with besetting sins or questions about how to be faithful with what we have you and I are always people in need of support because we are weak, much too weak to go on this journey alone.īut as God was gracious to Jacob and his people because of the Covenant, God will be gracious to us in the New Covenant as we rest in Christ. We endure evil days and grieve over sin, both our own and the sins of others that wound us and wound those we love. Like Jacob we’re on this journey, living in a strange land as aliens and sojourners here. You and I live in a day when we need support because life can be hard. Where would their food come from? How would they find their way? Would they ever arrive in the Promised Land? This story would have bolstered their faith in their faithful God and helped them recognize how they, too, were being taken care of.Īnd this story is a comfort for us in our time of the Story, too. As Israel left Egypt some 400 years later, they were being led on a difficult journey – one that was full of fear and questions – and the people once again found themselves in need of support from their God. This story would have been an immense comfort to the original audience. Through these three things, God takes care of Jacob, removing his fear and supporting him in every way he needs during this season in life. Throughout these two chapters we’ll see how God gave Jacob and his family support through three things: (1) His covenant promises, (2) His covenant people and (3) His covenant rescuer. God was always acting out of a concern for this covenant – a covenant that ensured the redemption of His people and creation. God had made a covenant with this family and it was a relationship that depended on God alone. Why were they going now? Was it right or was it just easy? Was this actually a huge mistake? Jacob needed the support of his God.Īnd God graciously gave it. And God once forbade Jacob’s father, Isaac, from going down to Egypt in a time of famine. After all, God promised Abraham that Canaan would be his family’s home. Jacob needed that support because here, as the people of God left the Promised Land on their way to Egypt, it seems as though there was some anxiety and fear about the move. And in this story we see how God has always given His people more support to sustain us. Everything that happened – the brothers’ sin, Joseph’s suffering and rise to power – everything happened because the Sovereign God was rescuing His people.Īnd while that bare truth is comforting for the people of God, our weakness has always needed more to support us through life. Last week we saw the sovereign hand of God behind and beneath all things. How was God going to support His people through those years? But this story becomes much more significant as we understand this: when Jacob left Beersheba heading south, it would be the last time an Israelite saw the Promised Land for 400 years. Scripture Intro: This is the story of Israel’s journey and arrival in Egypt – how God supported them on both the journey as well as when they got there. ![]()
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