Law and Gospel February 21, 2008
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I don’t know how many of you have been listening to the White Horse Inn podcast. It is at the top of my list of favorite podcasts, and I have found the content to be edifying to me for the last few years, no matter where I am in my Christian growth. I have not been a Christian for all that long, you see, and counting only the time following my conversion I have listened to this podcast for a longer span of time than not.
The theme for 2008 is “Christless Christianity” and the latest episode, entitled “What Would Moses Do” has highlighted a topic that I wish I could have grasped a long time ago. That topic involves the difference between Law and Gospel. Both themes have examples in each of the testaments, and to my untrained eye, the difference between the two can be summarized by terms of responsibility.
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021908: God Faithfully Fulfills His Vows February 19, 2008
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Genesis 35-36
I find it to be quite interesting that there is no significant fallout after the prostituting of the covenant sign on the part of Jacob’s sons as well as the lack of leadership on the part of Jacob. God’s word to Jacob completely omits any mention of this or any of his other failings. Instead, He told Jacob to move to Bethel. This command wasn’t given so Jacob could flee the area where so much violence had taken place, but so Jacob could fulfill his vow before God.
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021308: Prostituting their Perspectives February 13, 2008
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Genesis 34
As several of my friends can attest, I have spent far too much time contemplating this writing. That is not to say that I could ever spend too much time contemplating the reading of the Bible, but I believe I did fall into the error of trying to fit two Biblical accounts together in ways that they were not intended, thus I over-contemplated my own writing. It is true that I was out of town for a few days. Add some travel time and the uber-important time spent reconnecting with the family, and I have been out of action on this blog for just under two weeks. Because my original concept didn’t pan out, I’ll stick to this one chapter for today.
In chapter 34, we can see that the family of Jacob had been getting just a bit too cozy with the locals in Canaan. I say this because Dinah went out to see the women. This was not an activity akin to birdwatching. Dinah was out to associate with them, not to observe their strange practices. And while she was out and about, Shechem gave her an up close and personal taste of these practices against her will. Following this despicable act, he spoke tenderly to her and desired her hand in marriage.
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Quick Question February 13, 2008
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Are you violently committed to the spread of the gospel?
Don’t answer until you read this post.
Thought for the Day February 11, 2008
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I’ve been busy traveling, celebrating birthdays, meeting friends and celebrating Giant victories for the last week or so. I plan to have my next Bible Reading installment out soon, but until then, I leave you with a thought:
“An optimist will tell you the glass is half-full; the pessimist, half-empty; and the engineer will tell you the glass is twice the size it needs to be”
-Anonymous
A few days off February 1, 2008
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Nothing new with that, huh?
I’ll be heading north to wish my sister a happy birthday, watch the Superbowl and attend the Desiring God pastor’s conference with a friend who I am excited to meet face to face. I don’t believe I’ll do any live blogging this time around, so I’ll catch up with you all in a few days.
013008: Between a Rock… January 30, 2008
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Genesis 32-33
To bring us all up to speed with Jacob, let me give you a recap of his life. He was the younger boy in a pair of twins, struggling against his brother Esau from the beginning of their lives in their mother’s womb. During this time, it was revealed to Isaac and Rebekah that the older son would serve the younger. So Jacob was predestined to be the covenant heir all along. Esau sold his birthright to Jacob for a stew to quench his hunger, though I doubt he was truly near death. Then Jacob, with the help of his mother, deceived Isaac to take the blessing that Isaac wanted to give to Esau, though God’s original intent was that Jacob would receive it.
Out of fear for his life, Jacob fled to Laban, and God met him and confirmed the covenant with him. Despite this, Jacob lived his life by his own strength and his own wits, sometimes coming out ahead and sometimes not. He fell in love with Rachel and was tricked into marrying her older sister Leah after seven years of work. Another seven years was required to marry Rachel. There was much contention between the two sisters, one desired his affection and the other desired offspring, and each of them were getting what the other craved in the beginning. Six additional years of labor, filled with plots between Laban and Jacob, continued and God blessed Jacob despite his underhanded (and worthless) tactics. Laban’s strategy was more sound, but the providence of God is mightier than any scheme of man.
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012808: Precurser to Plunder January 28, 2008
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Genesis 31
As I read chapter 31 a few times, I couldn’t help but think of Jacob’s departure as one where he plundered Laban. This is not to say that he was not within his rights to do so, but I believe it to be a precursor to the plundering of Egypt by Israel as Moses led them and they were laden with gifts. Also, when Israel left Egypt, they took the idols of Egypt with them in their hearts, signified by the golden calf of Aaron. When Jacob fled Laban, Rachel took the family gods with her, tucked in her saddle.
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It’s cold outside! January 24, 2008
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But not the same cold that the men of Snag had to endure. Read this article… and tremble!
Better yet, shiver! Yeah, that’s a more appropriate word to use.
012308: Matrimonial Mischief January 23, 2008
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Genesis 29-30
The opening scene in this reading should bring recollection to the meeting of Rebekah and Abraham’s servant in chapter 24. If you will recall, the servant was sent to find a wife for Isaac and he met the right woman at a well after earnest prayer that the Lord would guide his search.
Jacob met the woman he loved at a well also, but this meeting is quite a bit less faithful than the servant of Abraham, who I take to be Eliezer of Damascus. For one, Jacob did not inquire of the Lord. Therefore, he had no cue from God to determine who had been chosen for him. And when he kissed Rachel he did not praise God for His provision, but wept aloud.
He ended up working for Rachel’s hand in marriage for seven years, but Laban turned the tables on him in the night (when he was blinded by the darkness, I might add) and sent Leah in as his wife. Just as Jacob had deceived his father to take the older brother’s blessing, Laban deceived Jacob to marry off the older daughter first. Then he made Jacob work another seven years for the woman he originally wanted.
Jacob made it no secret that he preferred Rachel, and this caused strife among the sisters. God was faithful to them both, and each of them bore sons to Jacob, sons that would become the twelve tribes of Israel. As the girls contested with each other for Jacob’s attention, you can see some pagan activities, such as the exchange of mandrakes for a night with Jacob. Mandrakes were thought of as an aphrodisiac that would encourage fertility, which is exactly what Rachel desired. She did not trust the Lord to open her womb, but preferred to use her own means to accomplish this. The Bible makes it very clear that this was not a successful attempt to conceive, for Rachel did not bear any children for quite some time after that.
Later, we see the deal that Laban made with Jacob. Laban could see that the Lord was with Jacob and that the flocks he shepherded were thriving, and he wanted this to continue. This won’t be the last time in the book of Genesis that we see a covenant man find success because the Lord is with him. Earthly success is not guaranteed to all who God is with, but there are examples throughout the scriptures where people outside the covenant can see the blessing of God on someone and want in on the action.
After the deal is made, Laban took the animals that were to be Jacob’s and marched them away from the others, so their coloration would be less likely to spread. I don’t know how Jacob didn’t see this one coming! In fact, it’s exactly the sort of thing I would have expected of Jacob himself! But the story is not over. Jacob tried to obtain multicolored animals by peeling sticks and placing it before the animals as they bred.
I did quite a bit of reading to see if I could make sense of this tactic. Frankly, I’m not sure how Jacob expected this to work. It could have been a part of a magical plan to produce the desired offspring or it could have been an attempt to get into the minds of the animals during the procreation. The fact that Jacob achieved the desired results should not be taken as proof that he was successful in his attempts, however. The animals came out belonging to him out of the providence of God, not through his attempts. God was faithful to Jacob, though Jacob was not faithful to God through this time.
Thus, it is clear though this reading that the hero of the story is certainly not Jacob, nor is it Laban, nor the wives of Jacob nor their servants. The hero of this story, as in all Biblical stories, is God.
