Blessings & Curses
The Book of Beginnings • Sermon • Submitted • Presented • 45:03
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· 1,468 viewsRebekah sought to bless her son Jacob through scheming rather than faith in God. Where in our lives are we most tempted to seek to obtain God’s favor through scheming rather then faith?
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INTRO
TNCC Verse
TNCC Answer
INTRO
If you had a sick friend how far would you go to see them well?
"Grabbing a rescue line, the father had to make the most excruciating decision of his life: to which boy would he throw the end of the life line? He had only seconds to make the decision. The father knew that his son was a Christian and he also knew that his son's friend was not. The agony of his decision could not be matched by the torrent of waves. As the father yelled out 'I Love You, Son!' he threw out the life line to his son's friend. By the time the father had pulled the friend back to the capsized boat his son had disappeared beneath the raging swells into the black night. His body was never recovered
If you had a sick family member how far would you go to see them well?
As the father yelled out 'I Love You, Son!' he threw out the life line to his son's friend. By the time the father had pulled the friend back to the capsized boat his son had disappeared beneath the raging swells into the black night. His body was never recovered
Illustration of need addressed.
If you had a sick spouse how far would you go to see them well?
If you had a sick child how far would you go to see them well?
What about an enemy?
Illustration of need addressed.
Connect illustration to present day hearers.
Transition = Show this need or similar issue was also the question behind the biblical text.
Clearly state the theme of the text/sermon.
Title & Text
Blessings and Curses
Theme
Rebekah sought to secure Jacob's blessing by her own scheming rather than trusting in the God who blesses.
Prayer
Prayer
God our Father we know that you love us...
THE SERMON BODY
Text
Rebekah was self deceived by believing she was acting out of love.
Rebekah shows her disbelief in God by her actions.
When we parent like Rebekah we place our children in real danger.
5 Now Rebekah was listening when Isaac spoke to his son Esau. So when Esau went to the field to hunt for game and bring it, 6 Rebekah said to her son Jacob, “I heard your father speak to your brother Esau, 7 ‘Bring me game and prepare for me delicious food, that I may eat it and bless you before the Lord before I die.’ 8 Now therefore, my son, obey my voice as I command you. 9 Go to the flock and bring me two good young goats, so that I may prepare from them delicious food for your father, such as he loves. 10 And you shall bring it to your father to eat, so that he may bless you before he dies.” 11 But Jacob said to Rebekah his mother, “Behold, my brother Esau is a hairy man, and I am a smooth man. 12 Perhaps my father will feel me, and I shall seem to be mocking him and bring a curse upon myself and not a blessing.” 13 His mother said to him, “Let your curse be on me, my son; only obey my voice, and go, bring them to me.”
Rebekah’s Plan To Deceive
5 Now Rebekah was listening when Isaac spoke to his son Esau. So when Esau went to the field to hunt for game and bring it, 6 Rebekah said to her son Jacob, “I heard your father speak to your brother Esau,
his son & her son
Offspring / Covenantal Blessing
his son & her son
christian & non-christian
christian brotherhood
father of christians = blessing children
Rebekah was self deceived by believing she was acting out of love.
7 ‘Bring me game and prepare for me delicious food, that I may eat it and bless you before the Lord before I die.’
3 Now then, take your weapons, your quiver and your bow, and go out to the field and hunt game for me, 4 and prepare for me delicious food, such as I love, and bring it to me so that I may eat, that my soul may bless you before I die.”
7 ‘Bring me game and prepare for me delicious food, that I may eat it and bless you before the Lord before I die.’
All blessings come from God
English Standard Version Chapter 27
that my soul may bless you before I die
we cannot be blessed apart from the Will of God
17 Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change.
it is up to us to use them accordingly
10 As each has received a gift, use it to serve one another, as good stewards of God’s varied grace:
8 Now therefore, my son, obey my voice as I command you.
Parental Authority = “because I said so”
Ten commandments
12 “Honor your father and your mother, that your days may be long in the land that the Lord your God is giving you.
childlike submission
commanded to sin?
Obey God rather then man...
29 But Peter and the apostles answered, “We must obey God rather than men.
9 Go to the flock and bring me two good young goats, so that I may prepare from them delicious food for your father, such as he loves. 10 And you shall bring it to your father to eat, so that he may bless YOU before he dies.”
Two young Goats
sin offering for Israel
5 And he shall take from the congregation of the people of Israel two male goats for a sin offering, and one ram for a burnt offering. 6 “Aaron shall offer the bull as a sin offering for himself and shall make atonement for himself and for his house. 7 Then he shall take the two goats and set them before the Lord at the entrance of the tent of meeting. 8 And Aaron shall cast lots over the two goats, one lot for the Lord and the other lot for Azazel. 9 And Aaron shall present the goat on which the lot fell for the Lord and use it as a sin offering, 10 but the goat on which the lot fell for Azazel shall be presented alive before the Lord to make atonement over it, that it may be sent away into the wilderness to Azazel.
one for offering / one for curse
What He Loves
34 For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.
The Blessing
meant for his son
prophecy given for the other
23 And the Lord said to her, “Two nations are in your womb, and two peoples from within you shall be divided; the one shall be stronger than the other, the older shall serve the younger.”
13 As it is written, “Jacob I loved, but Esau I hated.”
You cannot engineer Gods blessing for your children.
Rebekah shows her disbelief in God by her actions.
Jacobs Objection
Jacobs Objection
11 But Jacob said to Rebekah his mother, “Behold, my brother Esau is a hairy man, and I am a smooth man. 12 Perhaps my father will feel me, and I shall seem to be mocking him and bring a curse upon myself and not a blessing.”
Jacob’s Legitimate Concern...
25 The first came out red, all his body like a hairy cloak, so they called his name Esau.
prophetic foresight
lesson learned for Israel
18 “ ‘Cursed be anyone who misleads a blind man on the road.’ And all the people shall say, ‘Amen.’
curse is what he deserves
birthright
deception
Curse is what we deserve!
23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,
23 For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
God is not blind and will not be deceived.
When we parent like Rebekah we place our children in real danger.
Rebekah’s Substitution
13 His mother said to him, “Let your curse be on me, my son; only obey my voice, and go, bring them to me.”
Rebekah understood the reality of the possibility of a curse
setting your child up for a fail
the selfishness of this act
The Worlds view of good parenting is evil.
Gods Substitution
Jesus understood the gravity of the reality of the curse
setting us up for victory
the only truly self-less act… ever!
33 Then Isaac trembled very violently and said, “Who was it then that hunted game and brought it to me, and I ate it all before you came, and I have blessed him? Yes, and he shall be blessed.”
13 Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us—for it is written, “Cursed is everyone who is hanged on a tree”—
21 For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.
Expose the structure of the text.
Main points should support the theme.
16 “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. 17 For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. 18 Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God.
points should follow textual sequence unless good reason to change.
use simple and clear transitions to give structure to movement.
Use verse references before quoting so that listeners can read along.
Use personal observances to illustrate difficult concepts.
CONCLUSION
Be brief.
Don’t introduce new material.
narrow the focus don’t expand it.
Clinch the goal.
Give concrete applications.
Goal
Don’t parent like Rebekah!
Application
“Let your curse be on me, my son; only obey my voice, and go, bring them to me.”
Obedience
Evangelism
18 And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”
CLOSE
CLOSE
18 And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” CLOSE
After a few of the usual Sunday evening hymns, the church's Pastor slowly stood up, walked over to the pulpit and, before he gave his sermon for the evening, briefly introduced a guest Minister who was in the service that evening. In the introduction, the Pastor told the congregation that the guest Minister was one of his dearest childhood friends and that he wanted him to have a few moments to greet the church and share whatever he felt would be appropriate for the service. With that, the elderly gentleman stepped up to the pulpit and began to speak.
"A father, and his son, and a friend of his son were sailing off the Pacific coast," he began... "when a fast storm blocked any attempt to get back to the shore. The waves were so high, even though the father was an experienced sailor, he could not keep the boat upright and the three were swept into the ocean as the boat capsized."
The old man hesitated for a moment, making eye contact with two teenagers who were, for the first time since the service began, looking somewhat interested in his story. The aged minister continued with his story...
"Grabbing a rescue line, the father had to make the most excruciating decision of his life: to which boy would he throw the end of the life line? He had only seconds to make the decision. The father knew that his son was a Christian and he also knew that his son's friend was not. The agony of his decision could not be matched by the torrent of waves.
As the father yelled out 'I Love You, Son!' he threw out the life line to his son's friend. By the time the father had pulled the friend back to the capsized boat his son had disappeared beneath the raging swells into the black night. His body was never recovered," the old man said sadly.
By this time, the two teenagers were sitting up straight in the pew, anxiously waiting for the next words to come out of the old Minister's mouth.
"The father," he continued, "knew his son would step into eternity with Jesus and he could not bear the thought of his son's friend stepping into an eternity without Jesus. Therefore, he sacrificed his son to save the son's friend. How great is the love of God that he should do the same for us? Our Heavenly Father sacrificed His only begotten Son so that we could be saved. I urge you to accept His offer to rescue you and take hold of the life line He is throwing out to you in this service."
With that, the old man turned and sat back down in his chair as silence filled the room. The Pastor again walked slowly to the pulpit and delivered a brief sermon with an invitation at the end. However, no one responded to the appeal. But, within moments after the service ended, the two boys were at the old man's side.
"That was a nice story," politely stated one of the boys, "but, I don't think it was very realistic for a father to give up his only son's life in hopes that the other would become a Christian."
"Well, you've got a point there," the old man replied, glancing down at his worn Bible. As a big smile broadened his narrow face, he looked up again at the boys and said, "It sure isn't very realistic, is it? But, I'm here today to tell you this story gives me a glimpse of what it must have been like for God to give up His only Son for me. You see... I was that father, and your Pastor is my son's friend."
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COMMUNION
What it stands for
Warning
Communion Verses
COMMUNION TOGETHER
Fellowship With Each Other