Choosing God Instead of the World - Learning From the Lives of Jacob and JosephSample

Read: Genesis 32:1–21; Psalm 56:3–4, 10–11

SOAP: Psalm 56:3–4

When I am afraid, I trust in you. In God—I boast in his promise—in God I trust; I am not afraid. What can mere men do to me?

Into the text

God was with Jacob. God called him out of a foreign land to return to the land of promise, the land of his fathers. God protected Jacob from harm, keeping Laban, his father-in-law, and his enemy from harming him or his family. Jacob was walking in obedience, fulfilling his vow to return to the promised land and walk with his God.

But then Esau, his brother and first enemy was closing in. Even though God protected him from Laban, Jacob was very afraid and upset. He had stolen the blessing of the firstborn from his brother, and the last time they saw one another, Esau had vowed to kill him.

Very early in Jacob’s life, his shrewd character was revealed. He was cunning and clever, skilled at getting what he wanted. He knew how to manipulate a situation or deceive a person to accomplish his plans. Until this point, there is no record of him seeking God’s help. The scenes surrounding this event show the development of Jacob’s character. He trusted God to protect him from Laban, and he was obedient to God’s command to return to the land. In all of the previous situations that Jacob manipulated, it is never recorded that he prayed before acting. Yet, now, when his first enemy was coming his way with 400 men, Jacob sought God’s protection and deliverance.

Even though he was beginning to change, Jacob still developed a plan to save himself. The gifts he set aside for Esau were an attempt to repay him for the blessing he had stolen years earlier. Jacob sought to appease his brother by giving him a large portion of the blessing that God had appointed to him, not Esau. Jacob’s gift shows he was so afraid of Esau’s wrath that he was willing to give up what God had divinely given him. Jacob asked God for rescue but then tried to rescue himself.

How often do we, like Jacob, seek God’s protection, provision, or wisdom and then continue with our plans? As we seek to choose the things of God and not the things of the world, we must recognize that we often have to wait for God’s answer. His plans are never thwarted, His blessings never delayed, but our tendency to be afraid and upset can easily cause us to rely on ourselves for deliverance. Instead of trusting His timing, we might take extreme measures to guarantee our rescue. May we trust God in all circumstances and wait for His deliverance.