Title: God Changes the Subject of Fear
Contents
May 23rd Wednesday Dawn Worship Genesis 35:1-22
Fortunately, Jacob seems to have been blown away by God's command to go to Bethel. In verse 2, he and everyone in his household commanded them to purify themselves and change their clothes, throwing away all foreign gods they possess. When they obeyed the command and gave away all the idols and earrings that were in their hands, Jacob surrendered them, buried them under an oak tree, and left. The people around you must have felt a lot of pity as you witnessed the burial of various gods and amulets that you cherished and carried around, and things that would have been made of various gold and silver jewelry. But Jacob, who had come to his senses, was able to carry out this purification work because he knew what holiness and holiness God wanted. As the fear of God grows in this way, the idols and deities of the world that have captivated our hearts in the past will be changed to insignificant things. The only problem is that we lose our fear of God.
Look at verse 9. “When Jacob returned to Paddan-aram, God appeared to him again and blessed him.” As a sign of fulfillment of the promise he had given in the past at Bethel, Jacob's name was changed to Israel. And he confirms the promise again. “I am Almighty God; be fruitful and multiply; a nation and many nations will be born of you, and kings will come out of your loins. I will give you the land that I gave to Abraham and Isaac, and I will give it to your descendants after you.”
However, the confirmation of these promises did not lead to success in reality. According to the article after verse 16, the road back home was still long and difficult. Meanwhile, Rebekah's nurse, Deborah, died, and most of all, her beloved wife, Rachel, died. The last son, Benjamin, survived, but Jacob must have wept for a long time as he grabbed the body of Rachel, who left behind a bloody son. Also, not long after, when he heard the news of his eldest son Reuben's crime against Bilhah, his eldest son, he must have once again collapsed. What is surprising in these deaths and losses is that no accounts of Jacob's shaking or fear appear. Now, Jacob seems to have matured enough to feel God's hand sovereignly continuing hope for the future through the meeting with God in Bethel and the birth of Benjamin.
Even today, there are couples who are waiting for a new life in the immediate vicinity of me, but at the same time, there is also Master Kwon waiting for death, relying solely on oxygen masks and nutritional supplements before taking their last breath. A new life will soon be born, but someone will leave us at the call of God. You may not be mature enough to accept these joys and sorrows together, but in the midst of that, you can only trust in God who is leading your work. Jacob's tumultuous life eloquently eloquently tells us that only the path of faith that expects the great God is the narrow path we must walk. I hope this morning will also be a prayer time to look up at the great God and to raise up the emotions and thoughts related to various losses, pains, and joys to the Lord.