Isaac’s Destiny
Genesis 26:1-33
October 19, 2014
Well there you have this story regarding Isaac.
I think we can say that it is “familiar” to say the least.
We read that whole chapter with this thought in the back of our mind saying, “Didn’t we already study this?”
Well the answer is “yes” and “no”.
While this is a new story & a new character, we’ve seen this story before.
In fact we have seen this story over and over and over.
And if you will allow me a little lead way this morning,
I don’t mind telling you that this is also your story, and my story.
God is up to something familiar here.
WHAT IS GOD UP TO?
He is determining Isaac’s destiny.
For the LAST COUPLE OF WEEKS
We’ve been throwing out that ever popular word “election”.
We’ve been talking about the elect, or the chosen.
God chose Isaac over Ishmael and God chose Jacob over Esau
This isn’t just my interpretation, Paul in the New Testament echoed that very point.
Romans 9:9-13 “For this is the word of promise: “AT THIS TIME I WILL COME, AND SARAH SHALL HAVE A SON.” And not only this, but there was Rebekah also, when she had conceived twins by one man, our father Isaac; for though the twins were not yet born and had not done anything good or bad, so that God’s purpose according to His choice would stand, not because of works but because of Him who calls, it was said to her, “THE OLDER WILL SERVE THE YOUNGER.” Just as it is written, “JACOB I LOVED, BUT ESAU I HATED.”
God chose Isaac, God chose Jacob
They were vessels of mercy
They were objects of grace
Now last week we did have a very important conversation about Esau
And how God did not do Esau wrong.
Esau was in fact a “godless” and “immoral person”
Who actually wanted nothing to do with the things of God.
The fact is that Esau didn’t want it, and neither do any other sinners.
The only reason anyone wants what God has to offer
Is because God first gives them the desire for it.
It is grace at work in our lives.
And thus far we have seen that grace through the concept of election.
It is grace that God chose us, even when unworthy, to be His sons and daughters and to inherit His kingdom.
• We didn’t deserve the right…
• We didn’t earn the right…
• We didn’t even petition for the right…
God elected, God chose, God did it all.
And as we have said a couple of times now,
He had every right to do that since He is the Potter and we are the clay.
He is sovereign.
SO WE HAVE TALKED ABOUT ELECTION.
But there is far more at work here than just election.
Grace is more than being chosen.
There is another word that I would like to give you this morning
That is equally controversial to many people.
That word is PREDESTINATION
Or Predestined
WHAT DOES THAT MEAN?
Very simply it is a word that means “to determine beforehand”
When you read this word in the New Testament
It is the Greek word PROORIZO
Acts 4:27-28 “For truly in this city there were gathered together against Your holy servant Jesus, whom You anointed, both Herod and Pontius Pilate, along with the Gentiles and the peoples of Israel, to do whatever Your hand and Your purpose predestined to occur.”
God already had a plan, and God carried that plan out to perfection.
The amazing thing is that God perfectly carried out His plan
In spite of all the different human pieces independently at work.
• God let Judas do what he wanted to do…
• God let the Pharisees do what they wanted to do…
• God let Caiaphas do what he wanted to do…
• God let Pilot do what he wanted to do…
And yet they all end up doing exactly what God “predestined to occur.”
God determined beforehand, He “predestined”
GOD WAS IN TOTAL CONTROL THE ENTIRE TIME
Now again this is NOT A POPULAR notion among many today.
Many will take this word and throw it out just as quickly
As they throw out the word election.
And yet, you have to do some pretty fancy Bible dancing to get around it.
Psalms 139:13-16 “For You formed my inward parts; You wove me in my mother’s womb. I will give thanks to You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; Wonderful are Your works, And my soul knows it very well. My frame was not hidden from You, When I was made in secret, And skillfully wrought in the depths of the earth; Your eyes have seen my unformed substance; And in Your book were all written The days that were ordained for me, When as yet there was not one of them.”
Job 14:1-5 “Man, who is born of woman, Is short-lived and full of turmoil. “Like a flower he comes forth and withers. He also flees like a shadow and does not remain. “You also open Your eyes on him And bring him into judgment with Yourself. “Who can make the clean out of the unclean? No one! “Since his days are determined, The number of his months is with You; And his limits You have set so that he cannot pass.”
Acts 17:24-26 “The God who made the world and all things in it, since He is Lord of heaven and earth, does not dwell in temples made with hands; nor is He served by human hands, as though He needed anything, since He Himself gives to all people life and breath and all things; and He made from one man every nation of mankind to live on all the face of the earth, having determined their appointed times and the boundaries of their habitation,”
You may not like the concept,
But again let me remind you who is God and who is not.
Many today would rather see God
As simply the One who set the word in motion,
And then backed off to let it play out however it might.
That simply is not true.
He is both Creator and Sustainer
He elects and He predestines
Paul said it like this:
Romans 8:28-30 “And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose. For those whom He foreknew, He also predestined to become conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brethren; and these whom He predestined, He also called; and these whom He called, He also justified; and these whom He justified, He also glorified.”
Not only does God actually choose and elect,
But He also takes His elect and then predestines them.
Of course you also recognize that
He continues on to call them and justify them and glorify them.
And all of that is the work of grace.
Typically we don’t think of grace until we get to the “justified” part.
When a sinner gets saved we all say it was grace,
But the reality is that grace was at work
Long before justification every occurred.
• There was grace when the sinner was CHOSEN
• There was grace when the sinner was PREDESTINED
• There was grace when the sinner was CALLED
Ephesians 1:3-6 “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ, just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we would be holy and blameless before Him. In love He predestined us to adoption as sons through Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the kind intention of His will, to the praise of the glory of His grace, which He freely bestowed on us in the Beloved.”
There it is again.
“He chose us…”
“In love He predestined us to adoption as sons…”
And of course all of this was done “to the praise of the glory of His grace”
I hope you see the point I am trying to make.
Grace is more than God agreeing to forgive a sinner who asks for it.
Grace is at work to Choose that sinner, Predestine that sinner,
Call that sinner, and then Forgive him.
And we haven’t even talked about the work of grace to secure his glory.
I just want you to see the work of God’s grace in your life.
And that is why we are studying the lives of Isaac and Jacob.
• Adam taught us about sin
• Noah taught us about judgment
• Abraham taught us about salvation
• Now in Isaac and Jacob we learn about grace.
Well we’ve already seen that the boys were chosen, that they were elect.
This morning let me show you that next they were predestined.
Paul said that everyone who God foreknows He also predestines.
Well, let’s look at that in the life of Isaac.
And again let me remind you that this is a very familiar story.
(It’s like we’ve read it before)
Indeed we have.
We saw it in Abraham, we see it in Isaac,
And to a large degree we see it in our lives.
Predestination is the process
By which God dictates your journey from election to glory.
In your life grace begins with election
In your life grace ends with glory
So in a very real sense, you are a chosen sinner
Whom God has determined to take to glory.
The process by which God moves you from sin to glory is predestination.
He sets your destiny.
He makes sure you come to know Him
And that is done in the life of every redeemed individual,
And it is clearly seen in the life of Isaac.
There are five points to see here this morning.
#1 A FAMILIAR FAMINE
Genesis 26:1-5
Obviously this part of the story is familiar.
It is the exact same way Abraham’s story began.
Back in Genesis 12 we had God calling Abraham out of Ur and into Canaan,
But the no sooner did he arrive than did the first difficulty arise.
Genesis 12:10 “Now there was a famine in the land; so Abram went down to Egypt to sojourn there, for the famine was severe in the land.”
And hopefully you’ll remember not just that Abram there said Sarai was his sister for the first time, but God also supernaturally intervened and kept Pharaoh from touching Sarai and ruining the plan.
God preserved Abram and sent him back to Canaan.
And yet here we have a very familiar scene.
Another famine.
Only here God does His protective work BEFORE everything goes south.
(2) “The Lord appeared to him and said, “Do not go down to Egypt; stay in the land of which I shall tell you.”
This time God gives Isaac clear instructions as to what to do.
AND THEN WE GET YET ANOTHER FAMILIAR PICTURE.
God actually tells Isaac what His plans are for the boy.
(3-5) “Sojourn in this land and I will be with you and bless you, for to you and to your descendants I will give all these lands, and I will establish the oath which I swore to your father Abraham. “I will multiply your descendants as the stars of heaven, and will give your descendants all these lands; and by your descendants all the nations of the earth shall be blessed; because Abraham obeyed Me and kept My charge, My commandments, My statutes and My laws.”
Does that sound familiar?
It is not much different than when God told Abram to leave Ur
And go to the land that He would show him.
In both cases we have God reaching out to the man He has chosen
And telling them that I have a great plan for you.
Just as God repeatedly told Abraham, God now reminds Isaac that:
• I will be with you
• I will bless you
• I will make a covenant with you
• I will multiply your descendants
• I will give you this land
It really is the same story only with a new character.
Previously God chose a sinful pagan named Abram
And then began to reveal His plan to him and to guide his life to fulfill that plan.
Now God is doing the same thing with Isaac.
(Incidentally it is the same thing He did with us)
Make sure you recognize who the catalyst is here.
This is not Isaac seeking out God to find out what the benefits are.
This is God seeking out Isaac revealing what great plans He has in store.
What else can you call that but predestination?
That is God “determining beforehand”
God elected Isaac
Now God is predestining Isaac
There is no other way to see that
Now again, just because we are talking about the sovereign hand of God,
Does not nullify the importance of faith, obedience or endurance.
God chose Abraham, but Abraham still had to obey
And that is true for Isaac
(5) “because Abraham obeyed me and kept My charge, My commandments, My statutes and My laws.”
Obedience is a crucial part of God’s sovereign plan.
But the point is we have here the second verse to the same old song.
God taking His chosen and laying out His great plan for them.
Obviously Moses would want to drive that point home to Israel.
God has chosen you and He has a great plan for you.
Do what He says.
A Familiar Famine
#2 A FAMILIAR FEAR
Genesis 26:6-11
Well the good news is that Isaac followed the Lord’s advice.
“So Isaac lived in Gerar”
This first step of obedience was akin to
Abram actually leaving Ur and heading to Canaan.
Abram wasn’t yet saved, but he was interested in the offer God had made
So he went to check it all out.
Isaac here did the very same.
“Ok God, I’m listening, what do You have for me?”
However, just because God promised blessing
Doesn’t mean that God eliminated hardship.
Abraham had trouble with Lot’s herdsmen
Abraham dealt with Lot’s kidnapping
Likewise Isaac soon found himself in a difficult predicament.
He was living among sinful people and he had a beautiful wife and cultural experience told him that his life was in danger because of this fact.
Obviously we would like for Isaac to place this problem in the hands of God,
And for him to trust God to protect the wife He had given him.
But Isaac had learned another way to deal with this issue
(he learned it from his father)
(7) “When the men of the place asked about his wife, he said, “She is my sister,” for he was afraid to say, “my wife,” thinking, “the men of the place might kill me on account of Rebekah, for she is beautiful.”
Now at this point let me remind you that this threat was real.
If you will remember back to Genesis 20 when Abraham did the exact same thing with Abimelech, God did not reprimand Abraham.
God confronted Abimelech.
We studied that chapter and talked about how most people like to let Abimelech off the hook as an innocent victim, but that chapter never does that.
In that chapter God confronts Abimelech, threatens death and judgment,
And then tells Abimelech to get Abraham to pray for him.
In short, Abimelech was a scoundrel
Who would have killed Abraham and Abraham knew it.
That doesn’t mean God would’ve let it happen, but the threat was genuine
And it still was for Isaac.
This was a legitimate threat, and Isaac responded just like his dad had done years earlier.
He lies and tells them that Rebekah is his sister.
(8-11) “It came about, when he had been there a long time, that Abimelech king of the Philistines looked out through a window, and saw, and behold, Isaac was caressing his wife Rebekah. Then Abimelech called Isaac and said, “Behold, certainly she is your wife! How then did you say, ‘She is my sister’?” And Isaac said to him, “Because I said, ‘I might die on account of her.'” Abimelech said, “What is this you have done to us? One of the people might easily have lain with your wife, and you would have brought guilt upon us.” So Abimelech charged all the people, saying, “He who touches this man or his wife shall surely be put to death.”
Now this is interesting.
My version and the NIV say that Isaac was “caressing” Rebekah
The KJV says he was “sporting” with her.
And so naturally the translators took the approach that the two of them were making out and this tipped Abimelech off to the truth.
And perhaps that is true.
But the Hebrew word here for “caressing” is TSACHAQ (tsaw-khak)
It means “to laugh outright”, “to mock”, “to make sport”
It is a word you have seen before:
Genesis 21:9-10 “Now Sarah saw the son of Hagar the Egyptian, whom she had borne to Abraham, mocking.”
That is where Ishmael was mocking Isaac (he wasn’t caressing him)
He was making fun of him
Listen, it is possible here that Isaac wasn’t caressing Rebekah,
But rather that he was mocking her.
As if to completely disdain all that God had given him.
And the only reason I point this out is because it paints an entirely different picture of Isaac, and one that I think is important.
Was Isaac afraid? Yes
But Isaac was also ungrateful for all that God had given him.
• God had specifically sent Abraham’s servant back to Mesopotamia to
find Isaac’s wife.
• And if you will remember God had handpicked Rebekah by having her
water the servant’s camels.
• And then God brought Rebekah back to Isaac as a precious gift to
comfort him after the death of his mother.
Rebekah was God’s gift to Isaac, and it is clear that
Isaac had not valued that gift as he should have.
At the very least endangering her by calling her his sister
At the very worst actually mocking her as unimportant
Now what is the point I want you to see from all of that?
Simply this: ISAAC WAS NO PRIZE
• He wasn’t noble
• He wasn’t brave
• He wasn’t smart (got caught)
If Isaac was ever going to fulfill the plans God had for him,
Then God was going to have work on him.
And that is what God is about to do.
God’s predestination of Isaac’s life is about to take shape.
Let me show you how God starts determining Isaac’s steps.
A Familiar Famine, A Familiar Fear
#3 A FAMILIAR FEUD
Genesis 26:12-22
Now again we see a very familiar occurrence.
Isaac is going to have water trouble just as Abraham had previously.
Genesis 21:25 “But Abraham complained to Abimelech because of the well of water which the servants of Abimelech had seized.”
But before we see the trouble
I first want you to see a very familiar blessing.
(12-14) “Now Isaac sowed in that land and reaped in the same year a hundredfold. And the LORD blessed him, and the man became rich, and continued to grow richer until he became very wealthy; for he had possessions of flocks and herds and a great household, so that the Philistines envied him.”
Regardless of the fact that Isaac was a bit of a thug,
God still chose to bless him immensely.
Was this not also what God did with Abraham?
(Even after his mistake in Egypt?)
Genesis 13:1-2 “So Abram went up from Egypt to the Negev, he and his wife and all that belonged to him, and Lot with him. Now Abram was very rich in livestock, in silver and in gold.”
So obviously God is working from the same script.
• God chose a less than noble person
• God revealed a great plan for this person
• God blessed him immensely even when he didn’t deserve it
Yet, there is a reason why God began with blessing.
Suppose you go home today and find a stray dog on your porch
And you do not want to keep this dog.
If you want the dog to leave, what is the worst thing you can do?
Feed it
Because if you feed it, it will instantly see you as a source of food,
And will identify you as a provider.
And once that dog identifies you as a provider
It will always have a propensity to return to you in times of trouble.
And that is precisely what God is doing here.
He is first setting Himself up as the provider.
He blesses Isaac.
And then He allows Isaac to undergo some turmoil.
Verses 15-21 reveal a series of events where Isaac has nothing but turmoil.
People are jealous of what he has and seek to take what is his, and Isaac lets them. (again, not necessarily a brave man)
It is a tough season of hardship for Isaac, until finally Isaac gets relief.
(22) “He moved away from there and dug another well, and they did not quarrel over it; so he named it Rehoboth, for he said, “At last the LORD has made room for us, and we will be fruitful in the land.”
So by the time Isaac finally gets a well that is uncontested, did you recognize who he gave the credit to?
“the LORD”
But earlier in the chapter Isaac was nothing but a person
Who was ungrateful for the things the Lord had given him.
He was like the spoiled little rich kid who had so much
He didn’t know how to be grateful for anything.
Funny how a season of hardship will make a person a little more grateful for God’s provision isn’t it?
Funny how when an old stray dog gets hungry it will return to the hand that once fed it…
God was the author of Isaac’s prosperity
God was the permitter of Isaac’s adversity
It was all part of God’s plan to teach Isaac to come to Him and be grateful.
See, before all of this adversity Isaac’s was all Abraham’s.
• Abraham had developed faith
• Abraham had believed God
• Abraham had passed the test
But Isaac couldn’t rest on Abraham’s faith,
Isaac had to have his own faith.
And God was teaching that to Isaac.
He blessed him, He oppressed him, and He delivered him
Can you see God directing the path?
A Familiar Famine, A Familiar Fear, A Familiar Feud
#4 FAMILIAR FAVOR
Genesis 26:23-25
Very interesting that Isaac now goes up to “Beersheba.”
If you will remember, this was the place where Abraham settled,
Even planted a tree.
In short, this is where Isaac was raised
This is where Abraham would have taught Isaac about God
And now Isaac is returning to his roots
He is in search of the God of his father
If you start the story here,
It looks like Isaac went searching for God and people then are prone to credit Isaac.
But look at the whole story
And see the grace of God at work long before Isaac ever started seeking.
Now, we read at the beginning from Romans 8
About how God foreknows and then He predestines.
And Paul says those He “predestined He also called”
God chooses, then God sets your destiny, and then God calls you.
Here is that call
(24) “The LORD appeared to him the same night and said, “I am the God of your father Abraham; Do not fear, for I am with you. I will bless you, and multiply your descendants, For the sake of My servant Abraham.”
Now that is not so different from what God told Isaac initially,
Only this time Isaac is more prone to listen
Because of what he has been through.
God is offering the covenant life to Isaac.
And those whom God called, Paul says, “He also justified”
Here is that justification
(25) “So he built an altar there and called upon the name of the LORD, and pitched his tent there; and there Isaac’s servants dug a well.”
And so there we have the salvation of Isaac.
• God chose Him
• God predestined Him
• God called Him
• God justified Him
And simply reading this chapter
Shows you who the author of all that was.
It was God.
He set Isaac’s destiny and then carried him to it.
Familiar Famine, Familiar Fear, Familiar Feud, Familiar Favor
#5 A FAMILIAR FINISH
Genesis 26:26-33
Paul said it best:
Romans 8:28-31 “And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose. For those whom He foreknew, He also predestined to become conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brethren; and these whom He predestined, He also called; and these whom He called, He also justified; and these whom He justified, He also glorified. What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who is against us?”
Well, let me show you Isaac’s glory.
Just like God did with Abraham,
Abimelech recognized God’s favor on him and so it happens with Isaac.
(28-29) “They said, “We see plainly that the LORD has been with you; so we said, ‘Let there now be an oath between us, even between you and us, and let us make a covenant with you, that you will do us no harm, just as we have not touched you and have done to you nothing but good and have sent you away in peace. You are now the blessed of the LORD.'”
There was no doubt in anyone’s mind that God was for Isaac.
Even Abimelech did not want to mess with Isaac
Because he could recognize God’s grace upon him.
“You are now the blessed of the LORD.”
God took Isaac to glory.
And that is the point.
It was grace at work in Isaac’s life.
Isaac was a spoiled little rich kid
Who wasn’t the least bit grateful
For all that God was doing in his life.
It would have been easy to completely write Isaac off.
However God had chosen Him
• And those whom God foreknows He predestines
• And those whom God predestines He calls
• And those whom God calls He justifies
• And those whom God justifies He glorifies
You see that in Isaac
You see that in Abraham
And hopefully you see that in your life
Moses certainly wanted the children of Israel to see it.
Because that is the gospel of God’s grace
Look at your life, see what you were.
• See how God has drawn you to Himself and revealed Himself to you.
• See even how the hard times where to cause you to run to Him.
• See the plans He has for you and the promises He has made
And understand that He will not let those plans fail
He wouldn’t let Abraham mess it up
He wouldn’t let Isaac mess it up
God had chosen them, God had predestined them,
And God would glorify them.
Now obviously that does not negate the importance of obedience or faith or endurance – they are the other side of the coin.
But it is apparent that Moses wants you first to see
God’s grace at work for you.
This morning RECOGNIZE that grace
This morning WORSHIP God for that grace
This morning RESPOND to that grace
Isaac was chosen but he still had to call on the name of the Lord,
And you do too.
• God has brought you to this point
• God has orchestrated the events
• God has prepared you to call on Him
So do it!
Romans 8:28-31 “And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose. For those whom He foreknew, He also predestined to become conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brethren; and these whom He predestined, He also called; and these whom He called, He also justified; and these whom He justified, He also glorified. What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who is against us?”
