Family of God: Re: [FamilyofGod] A Wise Man Learns From the Mistakes of Others

If we teach our children well they will do well if we dont they wont.

On Mon Dec 27th, 2010 11:05 PM CST Michael J. Knight wrote:

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>A Wise Man Learns From the Mistakes of Others
>
>Isaac was not a wise person like his father Abraham was. Isaac's
>home was filled with partiality. Isaac was on Esau's side and
>Rebekah was on Jacob's side. Such an attitude is the best way to
>split a home. Esau and Jacob became lifelong enemies because of the
>partiality of their parents. One parent favoured one son and the other
>parent favoured the other. So the two boys became jealous of each other.
>And no doubt this separated Isaac and Rebekah too.
>
>What a beautiful marriage theirs was when they had started out as a
>couple chosen by God for each other and deeply in love with each other!
>But their partiality towards their children ruined their marriage
>thoroughly. The saddest part is that the reason for this partiality, in
>Isaac's case, was his love of good food: He liked the deer-meat that
>Esau would bring home regularly. Jacob was not a good hunter and so
>Isaac did not care for him. Isaac's blessing of Jacob (that caused
>so many problems) also came about through his love for deer-meat. A
>glutton like Isaac certainly doesn't come forth as a good father at
>home, like Abraham was. Godly fathers can at times have sons who act
>quite foolishly.
>
>We read in Genesis 26:7 of another of Isaac's foolish acts – but
>here he followed in his father's lying footsteps. When Isaac was in
>Gerar, the men there asked him about his pretty wife Rebekah. He told
>them that Rebekah was his sister. That was the lie that his father
>Abraham had said concerning his mother Sarah, on two occasions (Gen.12
>and 20). But Isaac had not learnt from his father's mistakes. We
>don't have to make the same mistakes that our parents have made
>before us. A wise man will learn from the mistakes of others so that he
>does not repeat them.
>
>In Genesis 26:34,35, we read: "When Esau was 40 years old, he
>married Judith the daughter of Beeri the Hittite, and Basemath the
>daughter of Elon the Hittite; and they brought grief to Isaac and
>Rebekah." We see here that Isaac was not as careful as Abraham was,
>to find a partner for his son. He allowed Esau to marry whomever he
>liked. He had spoilt Esau by his favouritism and partiality. Isaac was
>more interested in the food Esau brought him than in the wife whom Esau
>chose. These are some of the warnings in Scripture, for us today.
>
>Toward the end of his life, Isaac's eyesight began to fail. There is
>nothing serious about that. As we grow older our eyes will naturally
>become weaker. But the sad thing was that Isaac's spiritual vision
>also was dim and clouded. As we grow older, our outer man may decay. But
>our inner man should become stronger and our spiritual vision must be
>sharp. But Isaac's was not. He knew what God had said when his two
>children were in Rebekah's womb : "The older will serve the
>younger." But he still decides to go against God's word and to
>give his blessing to the older brother. Can you see his folly there? He
>tells Esau in Genesis 27:2, "I am going to die soon. Go and get your
>bow and your quiver and get some venison for me." This old man with
>one foot in the grave is still thinking of food!! No wonder he lost his
>spiritual vision.
>
>Paul said in 1Cor 9:27, "If I don't subdue my body, I will
>preach to others and still be disqualified myself." This is the
>reason why the word of God encourages us to fast from food now and then
>- so that we can keep our gluttonous desires and our sexual passions
>under control, so that we worship God and not our stomachs. It was love
>of food that made Isaac spiritually blind. And it is love of good food
>that has made many preachers spiritually blind too.
>
>Isaac was saying as it were, "Esau, go and bring me this venison. If
>it is tasty I will give you God's blessings. I know God told me many
>years ago that your younger brother is to receive the birthright. But I
>don't care about what God said those many years ago. You have been a
>good son to me and have always brought me good venison to eat. So I am
>sure God will understand if I give you the blessing instead of giving it
>to your brother who never brought me a good meal in his life"!!
>Think of the depth of Isaac's stupidity here. But God ensured that
>Isaac's plan failed.
>
>But to Isaac's credit, it must also be said that he had some of the
>good qualities of his father, when it came to dealing with people
>outside his family. We read of a time (in Genesis 26:18) when Isaac
>re-opened the wells that his father had dug earlier and that the
>Philistines had closed up out of jealousy. Those wells belonged to
>Abraham, because he had dug them. And so they now belonged to Isaac. But
>the herdsmen of Gerar quarrelled with Isaac's servants and said,
>"The water is ours!" So Isaac's servants went and asked
>Isaac, and Isaac said, "Give it to them.". Just like Abraham
>gave Lot the land Lot wanted, Isaac also follows in his father's
>footsteps here. Then Isaac dug another well (v.21) and the Gerarites
>quarrelled over that one too. And a second time, Isaac said, "Give
>that also to them." He moved away from there and dug another well.
>The Gerarites were ashamed by now and did not fight for this well. And
>so Isaac named it `Rehoboth', saying, "At last the Lord has
>made room for us, and we shall be fruitful in the land." Think about
>that phrase "Rehoboth, the Lord has made room for us." Isaac did
>not make room for himself by pushing people out. No. He gave up his
>rights and the Lord made room for him and he became fruitful.
>
>Remember
>Only one life, will soon be past,
>Only what is done, for Christ will last.
>
>The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the
>communion of the Holy Spirit be with you all. Amen. (2 Corinthians
>13:14)
>
>Love & Prayers,
>
>Michael J. Knight.
>
>http://groups.yahoo.com/group/A-C-T-S/
><http://groups.yahoo.com/group/A-C-T-S/>
>
>What we are is God's gift to us. What we become is our gift to God.
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