FAITH WORTH FOLLOWING: FOLLOW THE LEADER

Pastor Jonathan Falwell 

Genesis 24:1-15 

1. The Plan for the Future

Genesis 24:1–5 NKJV Now Abraham was old, well advanced in age; and the Lord had blessed Abraham in all things. 2 So Abraham said to the oldest servant of his house, who ruled over all that he had, “Please, put your hand under my thigh, 3 and I will make you swear by the Lord, the God of heaven and the God of the earth, that you will not take a wife for my son from the daughters of the Canaanites, among whom I dwell; 4 but you shall go to my country and to my family, and take a wife for my son Isaac.” 5 And the servant said to him, “Perhaps the woman will not be willing to follow me to this land. Must I take your son back to the land from which you came?”

• Abraham had seen the blessing of God’s hand upon his life and knew of His faithfulness
• Abraham had a clear desire to ensure the next generation followed God’s leading

2. Trusting God even when it may seem unlikely

Genesis 24:6–9 But Abraham said to him, “Beware that you do not take my son back there. 7The Lord God of heaven, who took me from my father’s house and from the land of my family, and who spoke to me and swore to me, saying, ‘To your descendants I give this land,’ He will send His angel before you, and you shall take a wife for my son from there. 8 And if the woman is not willing to follow you, then you will be released from this oath; only do not take my son back there.” 9 So the servant put his hand under the thigh of Abraham his master, and swore to him concerning this matter.

• Abraham didn’t want Isaac to go back to their homeland because of God’s promise of this land
• Abraham again trusted God to deliver not only on the promise, but on Abraham’s desires

3. Knowing the source of our deliverance

Genesis 24:10–14 Then the servant took ten of his master’s camels and departed, for all his master’s goods were in his hand. And he arose and went to Mesopotamia, to the city of Nahor. 11 And he made his camels kneel down outside the city by a well of water at evening time, the time when women go out to draw water. 12 Then he said, “O Lord God of my master Abraham, please give me success this day, and show kindness to my master Abraham. 13Behold, here I stand by the well of water, and the daughters of the men of the city are coming out to draw water. 14 Now let it be that the young woman to whom I say, ‘Please let down your pitcher that I may drink,’ and she says, ‘Drink, and I will also give your camels a drink’—let her be the one You have appointed for Your servant Isaac. And by this I will know that You have shown kindness to my master.”

• This servant found himself with a difficult task, so he simply leaned on his faith
• GK Chesterton said, “It isn’t that Christianity has been tried and found wanting. It is that it has been found difficult and so never really tried.”[1]
• His prayer is one in which we can learn a great deal for the difficult tasks which lie ahead for us all: Simply make it a matter of prayer

4. Seeing the goodness of our God

Genesis 24:15 And it happened, before he had finished speaking, that behold, Rebekah, who was born to Bethuel, son of Milcah, the wife of Nahor, Abraham’s brother, came out with her pitcher on her shoulder.

• God delivered on the servant’s prayer even before the prayer ended
• While this may not be your experience of God’s answer to your prayers in the same timing; in essence, it really is: God always answers with what is the best for us all

William Barclay said, “Prayer is not flight; prayer is power. Prayer does not deliver a man from some terrible situation; prayer enables a man to face and to master the situation.”[2]

Takeaways:

1. If you’re not dead, God’s not done
2. Never forget the Bible’s admonition – “Behold, I am the Lord…is there anything too hard for me?”­ – Jer. 32:17
3. Believe!

[1] G.K. Chesterton, What’s Wrong with the World (Ignatius Press, Reprint 1994.)

[2] Edythe Draper, Draper’s Book of Christian Quotes (Tyndale House Publishers, 1992.)