Address—C.E. Lunden
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Jesus, my Savior, thou art mine, the Father's gift of love divine. All thou hast done and all thou art are now the portion of my heart.
I love.
You.
And they are all friends of us, and they love my heart's light, Oh my God.
Oh, Savior.
To me.
Close Elderly.
I.
I'd like to turn to the 25th chapter of Genesis Reverse. We'd like to read several verses this afternoon. Perhaps we'll comment as we go. Verse 23 of chapter 25 of Genesis.
And the Lord said unto her, Two nations are in thy womb.
And two manner of people shall be separated from thy bowels, and the one people shall be stronger than the other people.
And the elder shall serve the younger.
Now, this is only part of a story, I know, but it's a story that most here are acquainted with. The life of Jacob.
We notice here the sovereignty of God.
It's it's common, I suppose, with all of us in some measure.
To keep seeking something from cell.
As though our destiny even depended on ourselves.
Now this is true with a Sinner. As a rule, he thinks that his destiny depends on himself, and so naturally works comes before him. But you know, we don't lose the sense of this altogether when we're saved.
We still have a little inclination, I believe most to keep looking inward to see if there isn't something we can do in connection with our own blessings.
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But we discover in the life of Jacob that is all of God.
In fact, this verse shows us that it begins with God.
Now if you were to read in the last book of the Old Testament where Israel's history is over.
You would read Jacob have I loved and Esau have I hated.
But you don't read that here. No, this is the beginning of his history.
Has chosen Jacob.
Now look at the 3020 ninth verse. And Jacob sod pottage. And Esau came from the field, and he was faint. And Esau said to Jacob, Feed me, I pray thee, with this same red pottage, for I'm faint. Therefore was his name called Edom. And Jacob said, Sell me this day thy birthright. And Esau said, Behold, I am at the point to die, and what prophet shall this birthright do to me?
And Jacob said, Swear to me this day, and he swear unto him, and he sold his birthright unto Jacob.
Then Jacob gave Esau bread and potties of lentils, and he did eat and drink, and rose up and went his way, and Esau despised his birthright. Now in the 12Th of Hebrews he's called a profane man.
A profane man, he saw us. He despised his birthright.
We find that Jacob takes advantage of his brother when he's in need.
And that's another side of the story.
Because Jacob was bent upon one thing, and that was to get that birthright. Now, the way he went around to get it was quite a different thing. We can't approve of that, but we do approve of his faith. And we learn in these histories of the Old Testament. And by the way, there's 23 chapters here about Jacob.
There's 13 about Abraham and there's over 30 about.
David.
History that God gives us to these men and the precious lessons we learned from them. But here we find that Esau despises his birthright. He had the opportunity, but he despised it. Now it's true that God said the elder shall serve the younger, but it's just as true that in the history of Esau he despised his birthright.
Now in the 27th chapter.
The 22nd verse.
And Jacob went near unto Isaac his father, and he felt him. And he said, The voice is Jacob's voice, but the hands are the hands of Esau.
And he discerned him not because his hands were hairy as his brother Esau hands. So he blessed him.
Now we have a man.
Jacob, who is deceiving his old father.
In connection with getting the blessing.
And.
It says it's Jacob's voice.
That is Esau's hands.
Jacob's voice, but Esau's hands. The man of faith.
It's his voice, all right, but it's not his hands.
Now what a lesson that is for us this afternoon.
Dear young people, as we go in and out among men.
We may have Jacob's voice, but we do we have Jacob's hands too.
You know the Christian has been created to good works.
And how are these works to be followed out? Grace on our knees each day, seeking grace and help. So there might be Jacob's hands as well as Jacob's voice.
Is it so with us?
Now turn the page over. We can't linger long on these points, but.
In the 30.
Fourth verse.
And when Esau heard the words of his father, he cried with the great and exceeding bitter cry, and said unto his father, Bless me, even me also, oh, my father.
Now what's this all about?
It's about the blessing wherewith he had blessed Jacob. The father had blessed Jacob even though he had been deceived. And he says yeah, heenie shall be blessed. God ordered it so that Jacob would get the blessing.
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Regardless.
Esau despised it.
But now when Esau comes back to his father, hoping to be get a blessing.
It's too late.
It's too late.
He had despised his birthright, and the blessing and the birthright go together.
The blessing and the birthright go together.
And he cries out.
And we read in the book of Hebrews again.
About how he wept.
Not for repentance, though He wept for the blessing.
Not repentance.
Oh, how sad this is. He had gone too far off handedly, he said No, I don't want that birthright.
I don't want that. I'm hungry.
Sold out for a mess of pottage. He lost the blessing too.
But now turn to the 28th chapter.
The.
We find he is running from his brother.
Esau, because he has tricked him and his brother is going to kill him if he can. He won't be able to, but he wants to.
And so he is running from his brother, and it says in the 11 verse of the 28th chapter. And he lighted upon a certain place, and tarried there all night, because the sun was set. And he took of the stones of that place, and put them for his pillows, and laid down in that place to sleep. And he dreamed, and beheld a ladder set up on the earth, and the top of it reached to heaven, and behold the Angel of God ascending and descending on it.
Behold, the Lord stood above it and said, I am the Lord God of Abraham.
Thy father and the God of Isaac, the land where now lies to thee, will I give it to thy seed?
And thy seed shall be as the dust of the earth, and thou shalt spread abroad into the West, and to the east, to the north and to the South. And in thee and in thy seed shall all the families of the earth be blessed.
And behold, I am with thee, and will keep thee in all places whither thou goest, and will bring thee again into this land, for I will not leave thee until I have done that which I have spoken to thee of. Jacob awaked out of his sleep, and he said, Surely the Lord is in this place, And I knew it not. And he was afraid, and said, How dreadful is this place. This is none other but the House of God.
And this is the gate of heaven. Jacob rose up early in the morning.
And took the stone that he had put for his pillows, and set it up for pillar, and poured oil upon the top of it. And he called the name of that place Bethel, but the name of that city was called Luz at the 1St. And Jacob vowed a vow, saying, If God will be with me, and will keep me in this way, that I go, and will give me bread to eat, and ram it to put on, so that I come again to my father's house in peace.
Then shall the Lord be my God.
And this stone which I have set for a pillar shall be God's house. And of all that thou shall give me, I will surely give the 10th unto thee.
We have two things here. We have God's ways of grace with Jacob and his promises.
We have the return of Jacob in answer to God.
That if you'll do this.
Then I'll do this.
Now that's that's the same as Israel who said all the Lord has spoken. We will do.
It shows that Jacob doesn't know his own heart.
And it's true, is it not, that only God knows our heart, only God himself?
We don't know our own hearts.
He thought if he did certain things that surely God would bless him on that basis.
No, God isn't blessing on that basis, beloved.
Now he's going to bless on his own basis, and that's his sovereignty.
Oh, what a lesson we have to learn. Whether young or old, it's on the basis of His grace that He's going to bless.
He's a bountiful giver and he's going to give according to what's in his heart, not measured according to what's in your heart.
Isn't that good? It's what's in his heart.
Now where is Jacob? He's sleeping with a stone for his pillow.
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It said the sun had set.
This was a time of discouragement in the life of Jacob.
He was running from his brother. He might well run from his brother. He deceived him.
Does God leave Jacob because of this? No, God just brings in something richer into Jacob's life.
Is Jacob going to have to reap? Oh yes, he's going to have to reap. And you'll see several chapters following this where he reaps. He reaps bitterly.
But not until first God has promised him the blessing.
Isn't that just like our God?
Remember the time when the Lord said to Peter?
Satan's desire to have you, that it may sift you as wheat, but I've prayed for thee that thy faith fail not. But what did he say before that? Why is that? You're going to sit on the disciples are going to sit on 12 Thrones judging the 12 tribes of Israel.
Told them of their blessing for a long time to come. He did the same with David when he sat before the Lord.
Before he sinned and he told him about his house for a long time to come.
Oh yes, God encourages the hearts of His people even before we fail.
So here.
Now where does he find himself?
He finds himself at the gate of heaven. He doesn't know really what it means, but he was at the gate of heaven.
He finds himself in the presence of God.
And you know, dear young people, it's one thing to be to be under ministry and to sit and listen to these precious things, and it's quite another thing to realize that you're in the presence of God.
Whenever His word is opened, you are in the presence of God.
And to have him speaking to you.
And so he says why this is Bethel, this is none other but the House of God, and he sets up a pillar for it.
But now we go on, we go to the 32nd chapter. And Jacob went on his way, and the angels of God met him. And when Jacob saw them, he said this is God's host. And he called the name of that place May and am or two hosts.
2 hosts.
Now we find that in the next chapter or so, he's going to meet Esau, his brother who wanted to kill him.
I think it's marvelous as we trace the life of Jacob to see how God was on hand at every turn.
To guard him, as he had said, I will keep thee in all places, whether thou goest.
Dear young people, do you believe that this afternoon?
Do you believe that God will keep you in every place where you go?
He will.
Yes, he will. He said he will. Three times. This is recorded in the word of God, I believe.
Once in Joshua and once in Hebrews, I think I will keep thee.
And so we find 2 hosts. Now what are they? The heavenly hosts on the earthly host. Is that enough?
Is that enough to keep Jacob? Preserve him? But there's something else I believe here.
It gives us a little hint of the blessing that will come through.
The one who had been made the depositary of all of God's blessings.
There is not only going to be an earthly blessing, but there will be a heavenly blessing, and that's what you and I are enjoying.
Now as a heavenly people.
The 24th verse.
And Jacob was left alone. Oh how good these exercises for the man of God.
How good these exercises to be left alone in the presence of God.
Well, this is Jacob's case.
And there wrestled a man with him until the breaking of the day.
The breaking of the day.
This is going to be a change in the life of Jacob.
A tremendous change is going to take place in his life now.
He was a clever man, at least he thought he was, to arrange things so that he could have what he wanted. But it's going to be different now.
It's going to begin to be different, at least.
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And when he saw that he prevailed not against him, he touched the hollow of his thigh, and the hollow of Jacob's thigh was out of joint.
As he wrestled with him and he said, let me go for the day breakthrough. And he said, I will not let thee go except thou bless me.
And he said unto him, What is thy name? And he said, Jacob. He said, Thy name shall be called no more, Jacob, but Israel.
That is Prince with God, for as a Prince as thou power with God and with men, and has prevailed. And Jacob asked him, and said, Tell me, I pray thee thy name. And he said, Wherefore is it that thou ask this? Ask after my name? And he blessed him there.
And Jacob called the name of the place Peniel, for I have seen God.
Face to face in my life is preserved.
Now we find not Jacob wrestling with someone, but a man wrestling with Jacob.
A man wrestling with.
What for?
Well, Jacob's will had to be broken, that's all.
Had to be broken.
From now on, we see a helpless Jacob. His thigh is out of joint.
Helpless, Jacob. This we don't like, do we? The flesh doesn't like this at all.
But oh, it's going to be a way of blessing for Jacob.
And.
We find that he gets a new name, not Supplanter or Deceiver.
First name was.
But Israel, a Prince with God.
Now that's the result of this wrestling, he said. I've seen God face to face.
Have you been in the presence of God face to face? Have you come right?
Face to face with the reality of the Christian life, what it means, how the flesh has to go, it has to go.
And then the Lord takes that place.
We say Lord, but do we say it lightly, or do we really mean Lord when you say Lord?
If thou should confess with thy mouth Jesus as Lord.
And believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead. Thou shalt be saved.
That's a wonderful confession, but is it a practical confession in our lives?
Now we have the break of day. We had the sunset in the other case.
But this is the break of day for Jacob. It's a new beginning.
And.
He calls it.
Penial the face of God. I have seen God face to face.
Now the 35th chapter.
And God said unto Jacob, Arise and go up to Bethel, and dwell there.
And make there an altar unto God that appeared unto thee, when thou fled us from the face of Esau thy brother.
Then Jacob took on to his household all. Then Jacob said unto his household, and to all that were with him. Put away the strange gods that are among you, and be clean, and change your garments. And let us arise and go up to Bethel, and I will make there an altar unto God, who answered me in the day of my distress, and was with me in the way which I went.
And they gave unto Jacob all the strange gods which were in their hand.
And all their earrings which were in their ears, and Jacob hid them under the oak, which is by Shechem. And they journeyed, and the terror of God was upon the cities that were round about them, and they did not pursue after the sons of Jacob. So Jacob came to Luz, which is in the land of Canaan, that is Bethel, he and all the people that were with him.
And he built there an altar and called the place L Bethel.
Because there God appeared unto him, when he fled from the face of his brother.
Ninth Verse. And God appeared unto Jacob again when he came out of Python Aram, and blessed him. And God said unto him, Thy name is Jacob. Thy name shall not be called anymore, Jacob, but Israel shall be thy name. And he called his name Israel.
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And Jacob said unto him, And God said unto him, I am God almighty, Be fruitful and multiply. A nation, and a company of nations shall be of thee, and king shall come out of thy loins. And the land which I gave Abraham and Isaac to thee, I will give it to thy seed. After thee will I give the land.
And God went up from him in the place where he talked with him, and Jacob set up an altar.
In the place where he talked with him, even a pillar of stone, and he poured a drink offering thereon, and he poured oil thereon. And Jacob called the name of the place where God spake with him, Bethel. Now we have a new experience in the life of Jacob.
We skipped over several chapters that told of his reaping.
All the trials that he passed through, but we noticed that God had promised blessing before he ever passed through those trials.
And even in the trials, he got blessing.
Rich blessing.
Now that is the family that was given him Joseph and so on.
But now we find that he has come to.
The place where?
God tells him directly to rise and go to Bethel.
Now that's the place where God has spoken to him the first time. Bethel, the House of God.
Well, now Jacob knew that he was not fit to go to Bethel.
His house wasn't in order.
And.
Yet when God says go to Bethel, immediately he commands his house, something he never had done before.
His house was in disorder, he had idols in it.
God commanded him to go to Bethel.
And so he commands his household.
And they put away all the idols.
His house is cleansed. He couldn't go to Bethel unless his house was cleansed.
And his house is cleansed.
Now what effect does this have on Jacob? He discovers that God is coming in to do for him what he could not do for himself. Impossible.
Only God can undertake for us.
We can't do it ourselves.
And when he had the command, he knew that this was the only thing that he could do, command his household. And he did.
What effect does it have on him?
Well, we notice.
14th verse.
And Jacob set a pillar up, a pillar in the place where he talked with him, even a pillar of stone. And he pours a drink, offering on it, and oil. Now what does this mean?
In the sacrifices, at times there was a drink offering poured upon the sacrifice.
There had to be the same amount of oil as of wine.
It speaks of extreme joy.
Extreme joy on the part of the worshipper.
And this is the place that Jacob has come to, a place of extreme joy. Why?
Because on all these things that Jacob had sought to do for himself, they didn't work.
But when God comes in, everything goes right.
Everything goes right.
And he's overwhelmed with.
And not only has it made an order, as you notice before this, but now he makes a pillar of stone, and he pours a drink, offering and oil upon it.
Now he had had a pillar before, you know, in Bethel.
And it had oil on it, but no wine.
No, he was still, He was still Jacob then, but he's Israel now and he has the wine, the joy, because he's discovered what God is doing instead of what Jacob is doing. How wonderful this is.
But we'll go on in the 37th chapter. You'll notice he goes back to Canaan.
He goes back to Canaan.
Bethel really is in Canaan, but actually he goes.
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Makes his way down towards his father's house. You'll notice that in this 37th chapter.
Joseph is 17 years old.
17 years old. That's all we'll mention here.
And now we have a history in Canaan.
And we find during this history.
That Jacob is bereaved of Joseph, at least supposedly.
Of Joseph he thinks he is slain.
He is bereaved of Benjamin and Simeon because they are now to be put in prison.
You remember the story.
And we find that.
It looks as though everything is going bad for Jacob.
Is that dark, dark hour in his life?
When it.
He says everything is against me, everything is against me. Was it?
No, it wasn't brother, brother. It wasn't everything against him at all. Everything was for him.
Everything was for him.
Now in the 40.
47th chapter.
The 27th verse.
And Israel dwells in the land of Egypt, in the country of Goshen.
And they had possessions therein, and grew and multiplied exceedingly.
And Jacob lived in the land of Egypt 17 years.
So the whole age of Jacob was in 147.
Years.
Now let us.
These York verses we've read.
We find in the mean time.
That Joseph had become the governor of.
Egypt. He wasn't slain at all.
God has sent him ahead to preserve life for his people.
Israel.
And finally, when the news comes to Jacob that Joseph is alive.
And they'd sent the wagons to fetch him, he said it's enough.
It's enough.
You remember that little hymn, Lord? Tis enough, we ask no more. Thy grace around us, Porch.
So on.
What a difference from the first expression. All things are against me now, he says. It's enough. I've had enough.
And that's what Grace says, beloved. We can't take it in.
Now, many of our lives are much like Jacobs, aren't they? But remember the end of it.
There is a blessing at the end of it.
That he may do us good at our latter end is what he has in view.
And though there may be dark clouds in between.
And sorrows and awe. Remember, it's all for blessing.
Now we find that these 17 years in the land of Goshen probably were the happiest years in Jacob's life.
Here he is, a man with a hip out of joint. He's too old to do anything but just sit.
And meditate.
Turn to the book of Proverbs, just for a moment.
Proverbs 8.
Verse 12.
I wisdom dwell with prudence, and find out knowledge of witty inventions. Now that verse may seem a little difficult.
But I'm going to translate that word prudence.
This way.
To know what you're about.
Do you know what you're about there, young people?
Jacob had to come to Goshen to know what he was about.
To discover what the life was all about.
All the experiences that Jacob had.
Now I wisdom, dwell with prudence, one who knows what he's about.
And find out knowledge.
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Through reflection.
Find out knowledge through reflection.
17 years of it.
And what is the result of this reflection on his whole life that we've been following just briefly?
All blessing, not only blessing for Jacob, but blessing.
For his children.
But notice in a moment.
Here we have.
17 years of reflection.
The whole pathway, that whole life of 100 and.
30 years plus the 17.
What's it all about?
All that we would learn earlier. What's it all about? We might save ourselves many sorrows that he learns it here.
With his leg out of joint, an old man.
Not able to do anything but sit in the presence of God, he discovers what it's all about.
Oh, there are many who will never discover what it is all about. Thank God for any who discover.
What life's about?
To think of a God of grace that wants to bless us and he insists on blessing us.
In spite of ourselves, that's what happened to Jacob.
And now in the 48th chapter.
We find the blessing of Ephraim and Manasseh.
And the book of Hebrews refers to this.
It says he blessed both the sons of Joseph when he was dying.
Leaning upon his staff. What does that mean?
Well, you know, in the book of Ecclesiastes at the end.
We have an old man at the end of the book.
An old man, a picture of one who's leaning on his staff. Beloved. Woe be to the man who doesn't have a staff when he leaves this world, you know what I mean?
While Discover doesn't discover that he's absolutely helpless and he needs to lean on someone else.
Jacob learned to lean. He didn't start out that way.
He started out using his own cleverness, he thought.
Which only led him into trouble, made enemies, but now he is leaning on his staff and he blesses both the sons.
Of Joseph, How does he bless them? By crossing his arms.
What does that mean?
Well, you see.
He had learnt the truth of sovereignty.
Joseph said Father, no, that's not right.
You're blessing the youngest.
Oh no, Jacob had learned something.
He learned the sovereignty of God.
And he said, no, my son, that's the way it must be.
Yeah, that's the way it must be.
Jacob, if he'd gone according to nature, he would have blessed them that way. But you know what terse Deegan said.
Across the will of nature lies the path of God.
Cross the will of nature, those the path of God.
He had his will broken and now he learnt the path of God.
And he blesses those sons, but now briefly in the 49th chapter.
And Jacob called unto his sons, and said, Gather yourselves together, that I may tell you.
That which shall befall you in the last days, gather yourselves together and hear ye sons of Jacob, and hearken unto Israel your father.
Now, we're not going to go into these prophecies.
Of Jacob.
But simply to state this.
That he had now the wisdom that come through reflection.
Comes through reflections we had in Proverbs.
He had been in the presence of God.
Able to accurately tell forth what was to happen to his sons in the latter days.
He had the mind of God.
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I'm sure it was inspired, but still, it was the exercise.
Of his own soul now, before these 17 years, he never could have done this.
But he has come to the place now where he is able to tell exactly.
What would happen to his sons in the latter days? And this takes in, Beloved, the whole history.
Of God's people in this world.
Right down to the millennial day.
The prophecies of that man Jacob.
Whose name once was not Israel.
But one who was clever.
One who was able to make his own way, but it didn't work.
And so now we find Israel calling his sons together and telling them all this to take place.
In the end of their days.
Telling forth the prophecy.
That had to do with God's people up until the Millennial day. What a marvelous thing this is.
And yet we can always say, you know, that our ways are so much like Jacob in his early years.
May God grant us then to take notice of these lessons that he learned, that we might learn them early.
And not be put into such a position where we are forced.
Finally, to acknowledge them by the breaking of the hip. Yes, God, God does allow things in our lives to bring us to it if we do not answer to what He has to say to us. May help us then, dear young people, to listen to the truth as we hear it, and to act upon it and to make it our own. Make it good to our souls.
And to remember this life of Jacob, and the end of it. How does all blessing? He had Joseph back, king over all Egypt. He had Miss Benjamin, son of my right hand.
Yet Simeon to hear that all these things at the end.
And he says it's enough. It's enough.
Shall we sing that little hymn #9 in the back of the book?