"Before he had finished praying, Rebekah came out with her jar on her shoulder. She was the daughter of Bethuel son of Milcah, who was the wife of Abraham's brother Nahor. The girl was very beautiful, a virgin; no man had ever lain with her. She went down to the spring, filled her jar and came up again. The servant hurried to meet her and said, "Please give me a little water from your jar." "Drink, my lord," she said, and quickly lowered the jar to her hands and gave him a drink. After she had given him a drink, she said, "I'll draw water for your camels too, until they have finished drinking." So she quickly emptied her jar into the trough, ran back to the well to draw more water, and drew enough for all his camels. Without saying a word, the man watched her closely to learn whether or not the Lord had made his journey successful. When the camels had finished drinking, the man took out a gold nose ring weighing a beka and two gold bracelets weighing ten shekels. Then he asked, "Whose daughter are you? Please tell me, is there room in your father's house for us to spend the night?" She answered him, "I am the daughter of Bethuel, the son that Milcah bore to Nahor." And she added, "We have plenty of straw and fodder, as well as room for you to spend the night." Then the man bowed down and worshiped the Lord, saying, "Praise be to the Lord, the God of my master Abraham, who has not abandoned his kindness and faithfulness to my master. As for me, the Lord has led me on the journey to the house of my master's relatives." Genesis 24:15-27
I know we’re still in the same chapter and account of Isaac and Rebekah in Genesis but there is a lot of great stuff for us to glean from this passage and I want to make sure we don’t miss anything. We have been examining the Chief servant of Abraham and how his actions and attitudes offer us great insight into what the Lord expects from us in our own service. Up to now, we have examined principles of servanthood and steps to effective prayer. In this entry, we are going to learn once again from the chief servant as he shows us steps to properly give God the glory.
You’ll remember that Abraham sent his servant to look for a wife for Isaac. The servant was to go to Abraham’s country and had no other guidance regarding the woman to select except that she couldn’t be a Canaanite. So the servant sets out and as soon as he arrives at his destination, Nahor, and settles the camels near the well, he immediately enters into prayer and petitions God to help show him the woman he was to select. The servant asked God to show him two signs through the woman so he would know for sure she was the one that God intended the servant to pick. If the woman first gives him a drink when he asks and then goes and gives his camels water, then that woman would be the one.
This leads us to today’s scripture where we read that God was already moving forward with His plan even before the servant finished praying as Rebekah went to the spring, filled her jar and began to return to town. The servant saw her and "hurried to meet her." He then asks her to "Please give me a little water from your jar." After which she replies, "Drink, my lord" as she lowered the jar from her shoulder to her hands and gave him a drink. The first validation point has been accomplished and Rebekah quickly meets the second when she says, "I'll draw water for your camels too, until they have finished drinking." So Rebekah proceeded to draw enough water from the well to give all of the servant’s camels some water. Rebekah is the one and the servant gives her a "gold nose ring weighing a beka and two gold bracelets weighing ten shekels" before inquiring about her family and whether they had enough room for him to have a place to stay. Rebekah shows complete hospitality to the chief servant, a total stranger to her before now, and invites him to stay with her family. The servant, in response to everything he has just witnessed, enters into worship, bowing down and saying, "Praise be to the Lord, the God of my master Abraham, who has not abandoned his kindness and faithfulness to my master. As for me, the Lord has led me on the journey to the house of my master's relatives." In his response he teaches us three important factors needed to give God all the glory in whatever the situation.
1. We need to bow down and humble ourselves before Him. The servant began to come before God by bowing down…displaying humility…taking his rightful place before the His Almighty Father. As we approach God, we need to not approach Him casually but in total reverence. Bow before Him because He, and He alone, is God.
2. We need to worship and praise Him. Once the servant bowed and showed God the proper respect, he immediately began to worship Him and render praise. Have you stopped today to take account of all the blessings that God has bestowed upon you? If not, won’t you bow down now and render praise and worship to the One who gives you…who gives us all every good and perfect thing from above. God is our Provider, our Sustainer, and our Redeemer through the shed blood of His Son Jesus Christ. He is worthy of nothing short of our total praise and worship.
3. We need to acknowledge His goodness and give God all the credit for everything He does for us. The servant could have glorified himself for coming up with the clever signs to reveal the right woman. Instead, he praised God for His goodness, mercy and grace. Through providing the bride for Isaac, God had shown that He had "not abandoned and kindness" to Abraham, the servant’s master. Additionally, the servant added praise for what God had done for him. So again, what has God been doing for you that warrants you acknowledging His goodness? The answer is easy. God warrants our acknowledgement because He gives us everything good and perfect. No one else makes the way for you and I. No one is worthy of honor and praise but God and His Son Jesus. Give them all the glory…always.
In Christ,
Mark
PS: Please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it.
http://www.faithhopeandlove.info/
Send any prayer requests to faithhopegodlove@aol.com
No comments:
Post a Comment