Past performance is not a guarantee of future success.
Like me, you’ve probably heard variations of this. Finance companies will give this caveat so you realize you might lose your money.
But why do we say things like this?
Because humans can’t control the future. We can’t guide where things are going. But the Lord can. He guides the present into the future because He’s already there. The Lord can make promises because He has the power to make them happen.
As I wrote last week about Genesis 23, today shifts the emphasis from Abraham to Isaac. The promised child has been given to Abraham and Sarah. Sarah has died, and now Abraham is securing the future for his son, Isaac. Let’s read Genesis 24:1-9.
1 Abraham was now very old, and the Lord had blessed him in every way. 2 He said to the senior servant in his household, the one in charge of all that he had, “Put your hand under my thigh. 3 I want you to swear by the Lord, the God of heaven and the God of earth, that you will not get a wife for my son from the daughters of the Canaanites, among whom I am living, 4 but will go to my country and my own relatives and get a wife for my son Isaac.”
Genesis 24:1-9, New International Version
5 The servant asked him, “What if the woman is unwilling to come back with me to this land? Shall I then take your son back to the country you came from?”
6 “Make sure that you do not take my son back there,” Abraham said. 7 “The Lord, the God of heaven, who brought me out of my father’s household and my native land and who spoke to me and promised me on oath, saying, ‘To your offspring I will give this land’—he will send his angel before you so that you can get a wife for my son from there. 8 If the woman is unwilling to come back with you, then you will be released from this oath of mine. Only do not take my son back there.” 9 So the servant put his hand under the thigh of his master Abraham and swore an oath to him concerning this matter.
Abraham is nearing the end of his life. He basks in the Lord’s goodness. Yet, something still needs to be done. He must find a wife for his son Isaac.
Abraham is concerned with the Lord’s promise through Isaac. In his explanation to his servant, Abraham clarifies that Isaac’s wife was not to come from the Canaanites. This appears to go back to Genesis 9:25-27 when the lineage of Canaan was cursed. Abraham didn’t want the family line of the Lord’s blessing mixed with the family line cursed by the Lord.
There is also concern that Isaac doesn’t return to Abraham’s homeland because the Promised Land (Canaan) is now their home. This is where the Lord told Abraham to go and to settle. Abraham’s hold on the land was uncertain. However, he was determined not to relinquish the land the Lord gave him.
There’s also the confidence in Abraham’s faith. He believed the Lord would provide a wife for Isaac. This would secure the legacy of Abraham. We still deal with Abraham’s faith in the Lord fulfilling His promise. There is a lot of confidence in Abraham at this point. His faith is very strong compared to where he started.
There are takeaways for us today here. First, we should still marry within the family of faith. Scripture is consistent that we should not be unequally yoked with unbelievers (marriage or otherwise). That’s still true today. If we are followers of Jesus, we should choose business partners who share our faith. We should choose spouses who share our faith.
Another takeaway is Abraham’s faithfulness. His faith is mature at this point. Scripture hasn’t been silent about Abraham’s faults, but now, he is seasoned. He finally believes the Lord’s promise.
It’s easy to look at this logically but remember: Abraham is living his life and not reading it! We can be the same way. We have so much in our lives. A “reader” would think we have all the reason to trust the Lord. But do we?
Do we have the faith Abraham did? Do we trust the Lord’s promise in peace? Abraham did. He rested in the Lord. He trusted.
Look back over your life. Don’t you have enough evidence to rest like Abraham did? Hasn’t the Lord shown up so many times? Hasn’t He done what only He can do?
Take an inventory of His promises and deliverance. See what He’s done in your life. And then look forward in faith and rest in Him. Just like Abraham.
Life Meets Theology 