Genesis Ch26v1-33 - Relentlessly Faithful

One, Genesis chapter 26, right at the beginning of the Bible.

Genesis 26 · chapter mention

Now as I read, we're going to read all of chapter 26.

As I do, I want you to think a little bit with me.

You know we've been looking at the life of Abraham from Genesis 12 through to chapter 25.

Just think about all that you learnt about Abraham.

And as we read chapter 26, I want you to compare and contrast the life of Abraham and Isaac.

So see if you can see any differences between the two.

And see if you can spot anything similar or the same experiences that they went through.

So as I read, try and do a bit of comparing, contrasting work.

Let's read chapter 26, starting at verse 1.

Now there was a famine in the land.

Besides the previous famine in Abraham's time.

And Isaac went to Abimelech, king of the Philistines in Gerar.

The Lord appeared to Isaac and said,

Do not go down to Egypt.

Live in the land where I tell you to live.

Stay in this land for a while and I will be with you and will bless you.

For to you and your descendants I will give all these lands

and will confirm the oath I swore to your father Abraham.

I will make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky

and will give them all these lands

and through your offspring all nations on earth will be blessed.

Because Abraham obeyed me and did everything I required of him

keeping my commands, my decrees and my instructions.

So Isaac stayed in Gerar.

When the men of that place asked him about his wife,

he said,

She is my sister.

Because he was afraid to say,

She is my wife.

He thought,

The men of this place will kill me on account of Rebekah

because she is beautiful.

When Isaac had been there a long time,

Abimelech, king of the Philistines,

looked down from a window

and saw Isaac caressing his wife Rebekah.

So Abimelech summoned Isaac and said,

She is really your wife.

Why did you say she is my sister?

Isaac answered him,

Because I thought I might lose my life on account of her.

Then Abimelech said,

What is this you have done to us?

One of the men might have slept with your wife

and you would have brought guilt upon us.

So Abimelech gave orders to all the people,

Anyone who harms this man or his wife

shall surely be put to death.

Isaac planted crops in that land

and in the same year

reaped a hundredfold

because the Lord blessed him.

The man became rich

and his wealth continued to grow

until he became very wealthy.

He had so many flocks and herds and servants

that the Philistines envied him.

So all the wells that his father's servants

had dug in the time of his father Abraham,

the Philistines stopped up,

filling them with earth.

Then Abimelech said to Isaac,

Move away from us.

You have become too powerful for us.

So Isaac moved away from there

and camped in the valley of Gerar

where he settled.

Isaac reopened the wells

that had been dug in the time of his father Abraham,

which the Philistines had stopped up

after Abraham had died

and gave them the same names

his father had given them.

Isaac's servants dug in the valley

and discovered a well of fresh water there.

But the herdsmen of Gerar

quarrelled with those of Isaac

and said,

The water is ours.

So he named the well

Essek

because they disputed with him.

Then they dug another well

but they quarrelled over that one also.

So he named it Sitna.

He moved on from there

and dug another well

and no one quarrelled over it.

He named it Rehoboth

saying,

Now the Lord has given us room

and we will flourish in the land.

From there he went to Beersheba.

That night the Lord appeared to him and said,

I am the Lord God of your father Abraham.

Do not be afraid

for I am with you

and I will bless you,

will increase the number of your descendants

for the sake of my servant Abraham.

Isaac built an altar there

and called on the name of the Lord.

There he pitched his tent

and there his servants dug a well.

Meanwhile,

Abimelech came to him from Gerar

with Ahuzah,

his personal advisor

and Fickle,

the commander of the forces.

Isaac asked them,

Why have you come to me

since you were hostile to me

and sent me away?

They answered,

We saw clearly

that the Lord was with you.

So he said,

There ought to be a sworn agreement

between us,

between us and you.

Let us make a treaty with you

that you will do to us no harm,

just as we did not harm you,

but always treated you well

and sent you away peacefully.

And now you are blessed

by the Lord.

Well, Isaac then made a feast for them

and they ate and drank.

Early in the next morning,

the men swore an oath to each other.

Then Isaac sent them on their way

and they went away peacefully.

That day Isaac's servants came

and told them about the well

they had dug

and they said,

We found water.

He called it Sheba.

And to this day,

the name of the town

has been Beersheba.

Well, let's pray

and ask for God's blessing to us

as we think about this scripture.

Father, thank you.

Thank you for this ancient account

of the life of Isaac

and his relationship with you.

And we pray that as we look at it together,

we would encounter the same living God

who continues to bless his people.

Father, we do not want to go out of this building

being the same as what we came into it.

But we want to leave encouraged,

filled with confidence

in our trust in you,

changed in how we live our lives,

living for your glory.

So help us now

by the power of your Holy Spirit,

we pray.

In Jesus' name.

Amen.

Well, how did you get on

in your compare and contrast?

It sounds a bit like

kind of class time again,

doesn't it?

What was the difference

and what was the same

about the life of Isaac and Abraham?

Well, the only real difference is

their names.

One was called Abraham

and one was called Isaac.

Yes, they had wives

and their wives' names were different too,

but the rest is virtually the same.

That's what we're to see

in chapter 26.

Isaac's experience

is the same as Abraham's experience.

And to help you,

I've got a little chart

on the screen

that you can follow along.

This is what we're to see,

that they were the same.

They had the same experiences.

Look at verse 1.

Now there was a famine in the land

beside the previous famine

in Abraham's time.

So they both faced the same crisis.

No food and no water.

In fact, we'll discover

as we go through the account

that Isaac also faces

the same fears.

He's afraid his wife

will be taken

and he will be killed.

So he pretends

that Rebecca

is his sister.

The exact same thing

as his father had done.

And they also face

the same opposition

as locals fight

over access to water

and to wells.

And Isaac,

just like Abraham,

makes an agreement

with the surrounding nations.

So it seems that

there is a pattern

to life.

A pattern that can be

common to us all.

You see,

we might live in different times

and different places,

but there's a familiarity

to life.

We all face

different crises.

We all have

different kinds of fears.

We all have opposition.

But that's not all.

The main comparison

between Abraham

and Isaac

is God's

faithfulness.

God was faithful

to Abraham

and God is faithful

to Isaac.

In the familiarity

of life,

God is relentlessly

faithful.

You see,

generations may come

and go,

but God

remains the same.

He is consistently

and persistently

faithful.

He's loyal

and dependable.

You can count

on this God.

He's not going

to let you down.

He is the same God

yesterday,

today,

and forever.

So in the familiarity

of life,

let's see how God

is relentlessly

faithful.

four things

we're going to look

at.

Here's the first one.

Whoops,

how did that happen?

Well,

there you've got

them all at once.

No surprises.

So what's the crisis

as we remember

God's promise

in a crisis?

What's the crisis?

Well,

it's there in verse 1,

isn't there?

Now there was a famine

in the land.

Now we might

deface famine

ourselves,

but back in our

history,

in the nation of Ireland,

there was a terrible famine.

Thousands died

and over a million

people travelled

to the US

in search of a better life.

It's a normal

and understandable

response.

When you haven't

got food,

you move out

to go find it

somewhere else.

And that's exactly

what Isaac did.

Look at the rest

of verse 1.

He went to Abimelech,

king of the Philistines,

in Gerar.

But it seems

this was just

a stop-off point.

Isaac had plans

to take his family

down to Egypt

where food grew

in abundance

and water flowed

freely.

Now while understandable

to go down

to Egypt,

going down

to Egypt

was to walk

away

from God.

Look at verse 2.

Look at the warning.

The Lord

appeared to Isaac

and said,

Do not go down

to Egypt.

Live in the land

where I tell you

to live.

You see,

God had made

the promise

to Isaac's

father Abraham

that he would

have a land

for himself

and for his people.

So if they were

to head off

down to Egypt,

it would be

an act of

disobedience.

Egypt might have

solved an immediate

problem.

It would have put

food in the belly.

But it would

create a deeper

crisis

in his relationship

with God.

God

faithfully

reminds

Isaac

of his

promises.

That he is

a faithful

God.

In fact,

the same

promises he

had given

to his father

are now

repeated

personally

to Isaac.

Let's review

them very quickly.

Verse 3.

God says,

Stay in the land.

I will be

with you

and I will

bless you.

God promises

to be present

with his

people.

The rest of

verse 3.

Second promise

for you,

to you and your

descendants,

I will give

all these

lands.

So God

promises to

be present

and he promises

to give them

a place

to live.

There's a

third promise

in verse 4.

He says,

I will make

your descendants

as numerous

as the stars

in the sky.

So God

will be present,

he gives them

a place,

and he promises

them a big

people.

They will be

a great

people.

And then the

end of verse 4,

the last

promise.

And through

your offspring

all nations

on earth

will be

blessed.

Did you get

the promise?

God says,

I am going

to have a

people and

they will

be in

God's

place,

enjoying

God's

presence,

who in

turn are

going to

be a

blessing to

all the

nations

around them.

This is

the kind

of God

I am.

I made

that promise

to Abraham

and I'm

keeping that

promise and

this promise

is for you,

Isaac.

It's as if

God is coming

to Isaac

personally and

saying,

I am

your God

to.

I'm not

going to

fail you,

I'm not

going to

forget you

in your

crisis.

I wonder

what kind

of crisis

you are

facing

today.

Some

change in

your

experience

of life,

a trouble,

a concern.

And

sometimes

the only

option we

can see,

the only

solution we

can come

up with is

to do the

Isaac thing

and head

for Egypt.

Turn away

from God

and trust

our own

direction.

Well,

the right

response is

always to

obey God,

even if it

doesn't make

sense to

us.

So,

end of

verse 6,

or verse 6,

Isaac stayed

in Gerar.

He did

what God

had said.

He settled

down and

he confronted

his crisis

head on with

the promises

of God

ringing in

his ears.

And we

need to

hear that

same promise

today as

we go

through life,

whatever

crisis may

come,

listen to

the promise,

I will be

with you,

I will

never leave

you,

and I will

never forsake

you.

I am the

same yesterday,

today,

and forever.

You see,

in the

familiarity

of life,

God is

relentlessly

faithful.

He does

not forget

his people.

So,

remembering

God's promise

in a crisis.

Number two,

seeing God's

sovereignty

in our

fears.

As Isaac

settles down

in Gerar

with his

family,

he faces

another

challenge.

It seems

that the

kings in

that place

were known

to take

the wives

of visitors

and kill

off the

husbands.

So,

Isaac comes

up with

an old

family plan.

He did

exactly

what his

father had

done.

He told

porkies,

didn't he?

Look at

verse 7.

When the

men of that

place asked

him about

his wife,

he said,

oh,

she's my

sister.

because he

was afraid

to say,

she is

my wife.

He thought

the men

of this

place might

kill me

on account

of Rebecca

because she

was beautiful.

I mean,

that's what

happens when

men abuse

their powers

of position.

They take

as they

please.

So,

naturally

enough,

Isaac is

afraid

for his

life.

And we

might think,

well,

wasn't that

a clever

plan on

Isaac's

part?

No,

don't be

fooled by

his plan.

It's wrong

on two

counts.

First,

it seems

that he's

quite happy

to put

his own

wife in

danger

with all

these other

men to

save his

own bacon.

Not very

loving.

It seems

he's forgotten

his wedding

vows to

protect and

to cherish.

Second,

he's just

had a

personal

commitment

from God

who came

to him

and said,

I will

be with

you and

I will

bless

you.

And as

soon as

the challenge

comes,

it seems

he's forgotten

that promise

too.

His fears

are real,

but his

response to

those fears

are sinful.

Rather than

speak the

truth about

his wife,

rather than

trust God's

promise,

he does

what he

thinks is

best for

himself.

well,

so far

so good.

It seems

to be

working,

doesn't

it?

He's

keeping

his life.

However,

his plan

is about

to unravel.

Verse 8,

when Isaac

had been

there a

long time,

so this

has gone

over years,

Abimelech,

king of the

Philistines,

looked down

from the

window,

and what

did he

see?

Isaac

caressing

his wife,

Rebecca.

It seems

Isaac and

Rebecca's

secret

rendezvous

had raised

suspicion.

That's not

the way

brothers and

sisters behave

with each

other.

The game

was up.

Verse 9,

so Abimelech

summoned Isaac

and said,

she is really

your wife.

Why did

you say

she is

my sister?

His heart

has been

exposed.

Isaac is

a selfish,

out for

himself,

I know

better than

God sort

of guy.

But what

we need to

see here is

not just

his sinful

response to

his fears.

What we're

to see is

God's

sovereign care

over his

people despite

their sin.

Look at

verse 11,

so Abimelech

gave orders

to all the

people,

anyone who

harms this

man or

his wife,

shall be

put to

death.

The order

could have

been so

different from

the king.

The king

could command

anything.

He could

have said,

let's put

Isaac to

death and

we'll take

Rebecca.

But no,

God in his

sovereignty

preserves and

protects Isaac

and Rebecca.

in some

ways it

shouldn't

happen but

it does

because this

is the kind

of God

we have

who is

watching over

his people.

Now don't

you and I

have our own

fears?

We might

fear our

spouse being

taken by

somebody in

the town we

visit.

But don't

we have fears

about speaking

the truth and

declaring what

we believe.

Fearing how

people will

respond to

us.

Fears about

trusting God

to deliver on

his promises.

And like

Isaac, ashamed

to say it,

we've not

always responded

rightly.

Instead of

asking God to

strengthen our

faith and

enable us to

trust, well

we've adopted

the Isaac plan

haven't we?

We've told

lies.

But to our

astonishment

as we look

back over

our life, we

see God's

sovereign hand

of care upon

us, watching

out for us.

Of course, this

doesn't mean it's

a free pass to

sin and go,

it doesn't matter

what I do, God's

looking after me.

No, but doesn't

it amaze you?

Aren't you

amazed at how

God watches

over our life

even when we

make sinful

choices and

selfish decisions?

This is the

kind of God

we have who's

faithful to his

people.

You see, in the

familiarity of

life, God is

relentlessly

faithful.

Third,

experiencing God's

flourishing in the

opposition.

salvation.

Well, despite

Isaac's wobbles,

God continues to

bless.

This is the

faithfulness of

God.

Verse 12,

Isaac planted

crops in the

land and the

same year reaped

a hundredfold

because the

Lord blessed

him.

The man became

rich and his

wealth continued

to grow until

he became very

wealthy.

Now, that's

great for Isaac,

but there's a

problem when

you become

successful.

It breeds

enemies.

People don't

like you

anymore.

The locals

have had

enough.

Verse 14,

he had so

many flocks

and herds,

the servants

from the

Philistines

envied him.

So all the

wells that his

father's servant

had dug,

well, they

just filled

them up with

earth.

A little bit

of skull

duggery was

going on.

The message

was crystal

clear.

Isaac, pack

your bags and

get out of

town.

We don't

want your

sort round

here.

In fact, he

got his

marching orders

from the

king himself.

Verse 16,

Abimelech said,

move away from

us, you've

become too

powerful.

So Isaac

moved away

from the

people.

We would

think that's

the end of

the situation,

but it's

not.

It seems

the locals

wouldn't let

him settle.

Wherever

Isaac went,

they followed

as he

began to

dig wells

for water.

No sooner

had he

started than

the protesters

arrived.

No wells

here.

Down with

Isaac.

Save our

planet, or

whoever else

happened to

be there.

In fact, the

hostility was

so severe,

Isaac named

the wells,

we see this

in verse 19

and 20,

Essek and

Sitna.

Or in

English, we

would say

disruption and

opposition.

Now it's

not like

Isaac could

just head

off into

town and

buy some

water

himself.

No, this

was serious.

The water

supply had

been cut

off.

No water,

no life.

What's he

going to

do?

Well, he

would do

the thing

that we

would do

in a

desperate

situation,

dig another

well.

Would it

be different

this time?

Well, let's

see, verse

22.

He moved

on from

there and

dug another

well and

no one

quarreled

over it.

He named

it Rehoboth

saying,

now the

Lord has

given us

room or

given us

space and

we will

flourish in

the land.

You see,

once again,

we see the

faithfulness of

God at work

in the life

of Isaac.

All the

opposition,

but yet God

remains true.

But God

does even

more than

this.

He digs

him out

of an

even bigger

hole.

You see,

this is

God being

faithful to

his plan.

You see,

there was a

time when

God's people

were in

God's place

and they

enjoyed God's

presence.

They were

given all

that they

needed and

more.

All the

food they

wanted,

all the

water they

wanted.

In fact,

they flourished

in that land,

didn't they?

we know

it as

the

Garden

of Eden.

Adam and

Eve were

given those

clear instructions

to be

fruitful and

increase,

to fill the

earth and

to subdue it.

Man and

woman together

were to

expand the

borders of

Eden so

that humanity

might flourish

enjoying God

and displaying

his glory.

That was

the plan.

But enter

the opposition,

the serpent.

Instead of

flourishing,

the man and

woman failed.

Instead of

displaying God's

glory, they

rebelled and

took the glory.

But despite

all of the

opposition,

God remains

faithful to

his plan.

Fast forward

from the

Garden of Eden

to Isaac

digging wells

and we see

something of

God's faithfulness

being worked

out.

God's people

in God's

place,

enjoying God's

presence.

They have

been given

room,

they have

been given

space to

flourish in

the land

just as

God had

said.

You see,

sometimes we

see God's

faithfulness up

close and

personal.

Other times

we need to

take a bigger

step back and

see the bigger

picture and

see how God

is stubbornly

fulfilling his

plan for the

world because

he will always

have his

people in

his place,

enjoying his

presence so

that they

might flourish.

You see,

in the

familiarity of

life, God

is relentlessly

faithful.

people.

Fourth,

celebrating God's

blessing in

the nations.

So Isaac and

his family

continue to

flourish.

They live and

enjoy God's

presence.

His blessing is

being poured out

upon them.

But guess what?

God's blessing was

never to be

restricted to

Isaac.

God's promise

was always to

bless the

nations.

At first,

it seems

trouble is on

the horizon.

This time,

the heavy gang

have arrived,

verse 26.

The protesters

have gone home.

Now the big

guns have come

out, verse 26.

Meanwhile,

Abimelech had

come to him

from Gerar,

with Ahuzah,

his personal

advisor,

and fickle

the commander

of his

forces.

The military

might are

there.

Isaac asked

them,

why have you

come to me

since you

were hostile

to me and

sent me away?

Are you

looking for a

fight?

What's going

on here?

But Abimelech

hasn't come to

fight.

He's come to

be blessed.

Look at

verse 28.

They answered,

we saw

clearly that

the Lord

was with

you.

End of

verse 29.

And now

you are

blessed

by the

Lord.

Abimelech

has been

watching

Isaac's

life,

and he's

seen God's

goodness and

kindness to

Isaac,

and Abimelech

wants a

piece of

the pie.

You see,

God's people,

when they're

blessed,

and when

people look

in and see

the blessing

of God

upon them,

they are

also drawn

to God.

In Abimelech's

case, he

has a

plan.

Let's

read verse

28.

He

answered,

we saw

clearly that

the Lord

was with

you,

so we

said,

there ought

to be a

sworn agreement

between us

and you.

Let us

make a

treaty

with you.

So promises

are given

one to

each other,

agreements

are made,

documents

are signed.

Verse 30,

Isaac then

made a

feast for

them,

they ate

and drank.

Early the

next morning

the men

swore an

oath to

each other,

then Isaac

sent them

away,

and they

went

peacefully.

It seems

something of

God's blessing

has begun

to rub

off on

Abimelech.

He now

leaves a

blessed man.

He now

goes home

peacefully.

Abimelech

leaves having

tasted

something of

God's goodness

and kindness.

Now this

encounter

mightn't seem

much to us,

but on

reflection it

is something

huge to

celebrate.

The nations

are now

beginning to

be blessed

through Isaac,

through his

family,

as they

come into

contact with

God's

people.

And what

Abimelech

has just

experienced is

a foretaste

of the

ultimate

peace that

we can

have and

that we

can enjoy.

You see,

God had

made these

promises to

Abraham,

now he's

made these

promises to

Isaac,

that the

nations of

the world

would be

blessed

through their

family.

Look back

with me to

verse 4.

Remember

God's

promise,

the end

of verse

4?

God

says,

all

nations

on earth

will be

blessed.

Through

your

offspring,

all

nations

on earth

will be

blessed.

God

is saying

through

their

offspring,

a seed

would

come,

a son

who

would

bring

the

blessing

of peace

to

all

nations.

The New

Testament

makes that

clear to

us.

You can

see the

verse on

the screen.

The promises

were spoken

to Abraham

and to

his seed.

Scripture

does not

say,

and to

seeds,

meaning

many

people,

but,

and to

your

seed,

meaning

one

person

who is

Christ.

You see,

the promise

of blessing

and peace

is to

be found

in our

relationship

to Jesus

Christ.

You see,

it's as we

encounter

Jesus,

as we

come to

him,

we find

peace.

Through

Jesus,

through his

death for

our sins,

we gain

peace with

God and

we are

filled with

his peace.

So when

we face

into our

crisis,

when we're

overcome

by fears,

when we

experience

opposition,

we can

turn to

one who

fills us

with peace

and he

sends us

with his

peace.

Abimelech

saw in

Isaac

something of

God's

blessing

and he

was drawn

to it.

He

sought it

out.

He

longed

that he

could know

this

God

too.

I

wonder

what it

is as

people

look in

at the

community

of

Carigalline

Baptist

Church.

What do

they see?

Are they

drawn?

Are they

attracted

by what

the people

have?

You see,

as we

run to

Jesus,

we are

receiving

that peace

in our

guilt and

shame.

We enjoy

peace with

one another

as we

forgive

one another.

We

experience

peace

within our

own lives

as we

pray it

back to

God and

he fills

us

with

peace.

We

are a

people

who

are

flourishing

under

God's

blessing.

Through

Jesus we

have become

a community

of peace

where the

lost and

the broken

and the

hurting

are welcome

and can

come and

meet the

risen Lord

Jesus for

themselves.

The church

becomes a

refuge for

the nations

because the

church,

the people

of

Carigoline

Baptist

Church in

this context,

we are

God's

people in

God's

place,

experiencing

God's

presence so

that through

the church

the blessings

of Christ

might flow

to the

community

around us.

You see

in the

familiarity

of life

God

is

relentlessly

faithful.

He

doesn't

give up.

He

doesn't

forget.

He has

made His

promises and

He has

kept His

promises

throughout the

generations and

He is

keeping His

promise to

us today.

He is

faithful

and He

will cause

His people

to flourish.

We are

blessed.

Let's

pray.

Amen.

Father God,

we look

back over

our lives

and we

can see

so much

that is

perhaps

repeated,

so much

the same,

the endless

cycle of

familiarity,

the routine,

but yet

in every

step that

we take,

in all

that we

do,

you are

constant.

You never

change.

You are

persistently

and consistently

faithful.

You are

doing what

you have

promised.

You have

caused a

people to

exist

for your

glory.

help us

that we

might live

out this

life well,

that we

would become

an attractive

community

as we

share the

peace of

Christ with

those around

us.

Father,

we long

that by

your Holy

Spirit,

the lost,

the broken

and the

hurting

will find

a refuge

and a

place of

peace

amongst

your

people.

We pray

for your

Spirit to

be at

work and

we ask

it,

Lord,

for our

good and

for your

glory alone.

In

Jesus'

name,

Amen.

Amen.

Well,

we're going

to sing

together

one hymn

that

summarises

what we've

been thinking

about.

Great is

thy

faithfulness,

O God,

my Father.

He is the

faithful God.

If you know

this God,

then I

encourage you

to sing it

out to

encourage

those around

you.

Let's

stand

together

as we

sing.