Genesis 27:1-4,
15-23, 28:10-17
“Good Out of Bad”
24 September 2017 St.
Andrew’s Military Chapel
Anyone who has a sibling can
probably tell numerous stories revolving around sibling rivalry and the
competition between siblings not just for parental attention, but for space,
making sure one doesn’t get the better deal, equality in rules and justice, the
list can go on and on.
I know that my brother and I also
experienced this sibling rivalry, especially in our younger years. We would
tell you tales of perceived injustices, of course those tales would be colored
by our perspectives with our parents holding the version of the story that is
probably closer to the actual account of events. This is because they were
observers and are able to recall events with a sort of detachment.
In some ways, the story of Jacob
and Esau is about sibling rivalry. The younger brother ends up with the
blessing from his father, even if obtained through trickery and deceit. The
relationship between these two twins was fractured for a long time, so much so
that Jacob had to leave his homeland and set out for somewhere far away from
Esau and any retribution that may arise from the stolen blessing.
While this episode shows outright
trickery, Esau had already promised to give Jacob his birthright all for some bread
and lentil stew to satisfy hunger after a hunt. Esau probably thought nothing
of that episode in their lives, but Jacob and Rebekah, their mother, didn’t
forget.
In our lives, sometimes we hear
people make predictions about what is going to happen in the world or in
someone’s life. These things frequently happen in church where someone will
declare full of authority that a certain person is destined to succeed in a
certain career. Perhaps it’s a family that is convinced a child will marry a
close friend’s child. It could be an innocuous comment such as “that girl right
there, she’s going places and will make the world a better place.” Comments
that aren’t said quietly and in hushed tones, but proclaimed and repeated for
everyone to hear.
The stars
of our story today were the recipients of such a comment. Before they were
born, it was predicted that the elder would serve the younger. Esau was born
first, Jacob second. Back then society was set up such that Esau would receive
the overwhelming share of any inheritance and the blessing of the father
because he was the firstborn son. Jacob would forever be expected to live in
Esau’s shadow.
Perhaps Jacob was worried that Esau
wouldn’t live up to his promise. Rebekah definitely seemed worried that her
favorite son, the one who was foretold to be the ruler wouldn’t get to fulfill
his destiny. For whatever reason, the birthright, or inheritance, wasn’t enough
for Jacob and Rebekah, they also needed the blessing to ensure that Jacob was
the one set above Esau. So, they devised a plan for Jacob to steal Esau’s
identity and get the blessing from Isaac, who was on his death bed. And it
worked. So much so that Jacob’s name later becomes Israel, the founding father
of Israel.
The fact that Jacob’s deception
worked is a difficult thing to accept for us and our expectation that the good
guys are the ones that always win. We want those who swindle and take advantage
of others to pay a price for those acts. Yet, it seems here that Jacob got
everything he was expecting.
So, what is the point of this
story? That’s a great question and I think there are many ways to look at what
Jacob’s story is trying to tell us.
First, there is the idea that the suggestions
and expectations of others do have significant weight. If Rebekah had never
received the word that the younger twin would be the one who received
everything, I doubt she would have been involved in this conspiracy. In fact,
there probably would never have been any deceit to try and steal the birthright
and blessing. And if there had been, Rebekah and Isaac would have put a quick
end to that because there was no expectation to upend society’s expectations
and tradition.
The words we use around people
matter. Especially when those with real or perceived authority are encouraging
or discouraging someone from taking a certain action. If a number of people who
I respect and admire are separately telling me that I’m destined to do great
things then I’m more likely to look for ways to do great things. A seed of hope
and desire is planted and I know that others believe in me so I am more
inclined to seek ways that help me live into those words.
Some would call this a
self-fulfilling prophecy and to an extent that is correct. However, there’s
more to it than someone hearing encouraging words and acting upon those. There
also has to be an inner desire towards that goal. Years ago, when people told
me I should look into becoming a pastor and a Navy chaplain because they had
discerned I’d be really good at it, if I hadn’t already had a glimmer of that
thought nothing would have come from those conversations. I’d walk away glowing
because people thought well of my gifts, but I would have never explored that
path.
The power of suggestion is strong
and can do great things. Because of that fact we need to be careful with
suggestions we us around others. Before suggesting a certain path, it would be
in our best interest to discern how the recipient of that suggestion views the
situation as well as possible second and third order effects. Because
encouraging a certain outcome can affect bystanders in a negative way, just ask
Esau. We have to encourage people to do things, but in a way that is healthy to
themselves and the larger community.
Now we come to a lesson from
Jacob’s story that not all of us will agree with, nor may even want to hear.
God can use anyone for God’s purposes in life. That’s a heartwarming sentiment
when the person that is being used for God’s purposes is one of the good guys
who brings God’s glory through upright and pure means and intentions. But it’s
a bit more difficult to understand when the one who literally becomes Israel
got there through deceit and trickery, even if he was foretold to become a
leader over his family.
For us to speak of an all-powerful
God we also have to believe that God can use anyone and anything for God’s
purposes. This means that God can turn something we see as wrong and sinful
into a beautiful part of creation. That doesn’t necessarily redeem the act or
the person, nor does it take away judgement on God’s part. However, it does
allow God to continue to create beauty from chaos.
While Jacob’s methods of obtaining
his blessing and the beginning of his road to becoming Israel grate at my inner
sense of justice, I’m grateful that God chose to use his follies and mistakes
for good. Like most of us in the world, I’m a broken and imperfect person
seeking to bring some rays of light into the darkness of the world. The fact
that God turned deceit and trickery into something that changed the world for
good, gives me hope in my darkest moments that even I am destined for good.
In fact, all of us are destined for
good. This story, like most of the stories we read in the Bible, are ways of
God making proclamations of our future directly to each of us. Through
Scripture God is telling us that we have a role to play in making the world
better, that we are the ones that will bless the world. God has blessed us
through telling us we are destined for great things. We need to listen to those
words and trust they are true. Then we can look at the world through a
different lens, a lens that sees places needing our skills where we can convert
chaos to hope.
We need to use our friends and
families to help ensure we aren’t resorting to methods such as Jacob used to
accomplish the great things for which we are destined. However, we have
repeatedly been told that we are here for a reason, to move ourselves and the
world towards the fulfillment of our potential. So, let us go from here seeking
way sot help ourselves and those around us find and reach their fulfillment,
helping God in the effort to transform the chaos of creation into the very good
beauty for which it was intended.
No comments:
Post a Comment