DEVOTIONAL: GENESIS 29

<This is an excerpt from our devotional book for our current series through Genesis. Each book contains daily devotions and questions for reflection. For a free copy of our devotional books please visit our connect desk on Sundays, and to watch the accompanying sermon, click here>

Genesis 29:31-32—

“When the Lord saw that Leah was hated, he opened her womb, but Rachel was barren. And Leah conceived and bore a son, and she called his name Reuben, for she said, “Because the Lord has looked upon my affliction; for now my husband will love me.”

Again, we come to see the importance of looking to the next generation. With the line of Abraham, we watch the inheritance of the promise of God moving forward. Jacob, in many ways, seems like he should be a breaking point of the chain. From the beginning, Jacob is a manipulator who lies to his father, steals from his brother, flees the promised land in terror, foolishly consummates a marriage to the wrong woman, and it only continues.

And yet, God is more faithful than we would ever dare to be. God tells Moses that he is faithful for a thousand generations, and we see God’s faithfulness to Abraham extended into even a man like Jacob. Jesus taught that he came not to save the righteous but for sinners (Luke 5:32). Here we see the same heart of God, loving a sinner that constantly fails to live up to his calling. Do we believe that God loves us when we are fully aware that we do not deserve it? Do we believe that God can love others that we judge as unworthy? When we see Jacob, do we think God chose poorly and that he should abandon him and seek another?

We need to consider how we view the Jacobs in our lives. We need to be careful not to be like the older brother from the parable of the prodigal son. How might the story have gone if the younger brother met the older brother on the way to the father? Would the older brother judged and condemned the younger before he had a chance to find out how much the father loved and missed him?

The point of being a follower of Christ is being made more like Christ (Rom 8:29). While we all spend our lives relating to either brother in the story, ultimately, the one we are called to emulate is the Father. Sanctification is being made more like Jesus, and we need to be more compassionate like Jesus. When men and women of dubious life choices try to meet with Jesus, we need to be excitedly welcoming them in and not pushing them away because of what we perceive as uncleanness.

REFLECTION & NOTES

1. How does God’s faithfulness to Jacob give you peace in your relationship with God?

2. How do we welcome the “Jacobs” into our family of faith and our homes?

3. Is there a “Jacob” we can love and pursue now?