Salt + Light Fort Worth

um, before we dive into Genesis
direction, certain Chapter 29, um, but

just coming outta that prayer time, um,
we're gonna take a break from Genesis

in July, uh, and jump into some psalms.

Um, I.

And look at different kinds of prayers
that God's people have prayed through

the centuries and across the world.

Um, and there's, there's,
there's different ways to look

at different types of prayers.

There's, you know, dozens and dozens of
types, but one, uh, commentator, kind of

helpfully put them in four categories,
especially as you look through the Psalms.

Um, and the, the categories of psalms
that we're gonna look through in July

are, um, I trust you, you are good help.

And that's the one we feel
maybe most often at times.

And then, thank you.

Um, and so just, we, we, we
all sit in some weird stew

mix of all of those things.

Um, and, and they're all real.

And it's not like we're all over
here in one and at the expense of

the other three, that kind of stuff.

But, but its felt helpful even before
some of this stuff that we just

prayed through to go, like, it's,
let's, let's pause and just recognize

like all of those different ways to
approach God are, are valid and real.

So we're not gonna meet on, on
July 6th, but then the rest of

July we're gonna be looking at
those different types of prayers.

So, um, be here and pray with us,
and hopefully it'll help us all.

Um, even, uh, both in these rooms
and at home and with neighbors

and family, that kind of stuff.

Uh, have some different categories and
words to, to approach the Lord with

and times when we don't exactly know
what to say and this kind of stuff.

So, but for today, um, there's this
common theme in popular TV and one of

the most common themes in popular TV
is the theme of dysfunctional family.

Yes.

Spans the decades, spans the genres,
everything from Game of Thrones to madman.

I mean, even I Love Lucy had a massive
dysfunction in it back in the day.

It's not, it's new.

Um, Simpsons and Family Guy,
everybody loves Raymond.

The best show that's ever been
on TV is Arrested Development.

Like, it's all of these just
massive family conflicts, right?

And there's part of that that
makes, that makes us go like, well,

yeah, sure, we can resonate with
that because who doesn't have some

sort of dysfunction in our family?

And so watching that on the screen,
like we can ra relate a little bit

and also be really glad that at
least our family is not like that.

Um, and at the same time, if you read
ahead, which I hope you do every week,

you know that these chapters, Genesis
39 through or 29 through 31, um, none of

those show shows hold a candle to this.

Like this is, this is a mess.

One guy, four ladies, 12
kids, all under one roof.

It's, it gets weird.

Um.

It could easily feel, it feels like it
could easily be a, a award-winning reality

show full of massive family dysfunction.

Um, so where we've been, uh,
last week, Jacob, uh, last week

we, we saw Jacob and Esau and we
came to know Jacob as a deceiver.

He deceived his parents,
he deceived his brother.

He tried to deceive God.

Um, and in today's chapters,
Jacob continues that deceit,

but he also gets deceived.

He kinda meets his match
in his father-in-law.

His name is Laben.

And Laben uses Jacob uses his
own daughters for his purposes.

Uh, and in fact, on one hand,
Genesis, um, 29 through 31, we see

that most of the family members
are both deceitful and deceived.

Both deceitful and deceived.

And on the other hand, um, most
of them are let down by other.

By other family members.

Um, it is a massively dysfunctional
family, but at the same time, there's

good news kind of threaded throughout
this massively dysfunctional family.

'cause God is in these chapters as well.

Um, God meets each person
in this dysfunctional family

in a very specific way.

And so we get to see like God's purity
in God, in contrast with people's

deceit and God's grace in, in contrast
with people's sense of distorted

justice and God's devotion in, in
contrast with people's selfishness.

And so we get to see his redemption
in contrast with people's brokenness.

And we get to see God being who God always
is in all of these different situations.

And again, I can't help but but,
but take it back to some of the

things we just prayed through.

Like we don't know, we don't
see, we don't understand.

We feel lost, rejected, confused.

Like, God, where are you
in this kind of stuff.

And yet, if God can show up in certain
ways in this dysfunction, maybe there's

some hope for us that God can show
up in our dysfunction and will show

up in our dysfunction and does show
up in our dysfunction, whether it's

personal or household, or even global.

Um, and so we're gonna look at
these chapters through kind of

four different points of view.

We're gonna see Jacob's point of view,
Leah's point of view, Rachel's point

of view, Laban's point of view, uh,
and I hope that you find bits of your

story in theirs and as God meets them
and their unique brokenness and pain.

My prayer this week has been that
God would also meet you and that

you'd see God in, in specific areas
of brokenness and pain as well.

So lemme pray for us
that God would do that.

So God, would you meet each of us as we
find ourselves in some ways, perhaps like

one or two of these very real humans.

Um.

And yet, not in any specific way, 'cause
our stories are different than theirs.

But Lord, would you help us
to, to pay attention to you?

Would you help us to see who you
are in the midst of Jacob's story,

Leah's story, Rachel's story,
Laban's story, and our own story, um,

what he draws more closely to you.

Um, and help us pray.

All those prayers that
we'll see in the Psalms.

It's in your son's name.

Amen.

All right, so one story, four
different points of view,

Jacob, Leah, Rachel, and Laben.

Uh, as with past weeks, there's a
lot of details in these chapters.

If you didn't read ahead.

Let me summarize it real briefly for you.

Uh, so Jacob, uh, leaves his homeland
and arrives in a land of heron where his

ancestors and his extended family live.

He falls in love with Rachel.

He agrees to work for Rachel's dad, Laben
for seven years in order to marry Rachel.

But dun, dun, dun, he's
deceived and to marry.

And Rachel's sister, Leah instead.

And if this was a TV show, that
would be like the big reveal

at the end of the season.

The big cliffhanger, they
wake up and it's Leah Black.

Laben then allows Jacob and
Rachel to marry as well.

But then that pattern starts 20
years of Jacob being manipulated.

Laben changes terms, deceives
him, but at the same time, Jacob

builds a family and builds wealth.

And, and at the same time as that, there's
this massive dysfunction between everyone.

Leah is unloved.

Rachel's Baron both involve servants
in this weird fight to bear Jacob

more kids than the other sister.

He ends up with 12.

And all of this is happening while
Laben continues to use Jacob and Rachel

and Aaliyah for his own personal gain.

And then eventually Jacob hears from
the Lord that he's free to leave

and he flees laben with his wife
and kids and flocks and household.

But as he leaves, as they
leave, Rachel steals from Lavin.

I know.

Um, and then Laben pursues them.

But God warned Laben in a
dream not to harm Jacob.

And then the chapters end with this
tense parting, but this agreement to

live at this very tentative peace.

That's, that's a lot.

That, so that's a dysfunctional family.

Everyone's deceived, everyone's deceiving.

No one's perfect.

God meets each and works through each.

So four points of view.

We're gonna start with Jacob
at the end of chapter 28, where

Nicole left us off last week.

Jacob had made peace
with his brother, Esau.

Jacob had received a blessing and charge
from his dad, Isaac, go to Laben, find

a wife from our family, from our tribe,
and God met Jacob in a dream and, and

reiterated the same blessing and covenant
that God had given to Isaac and Abraham.

This, this blessing of land and seed,
this, this, this more descendants

than the stars in the sky and, and
maybe primarily God's presence.

He promised God's presence.

And so in chapter 29, Jacob does
exactly what his dad charged him to.

Jake, uh, we're reading Genesis
29, starting in verse 13.

He went to, he went to,
to, to laban's land.

He went to, um, meet his family and
as soon as Laben heard the news about

Jacob, his sister's son, he ran out to
meet him and embraced him and kissed

him and brought him into the house.

This looks great.

Jacob's Jacob told Laben all these
things, and Laben said to him, surely you

are bone and flesh, my bone and flesh.

And he stayed with him a month.

Then Laben said to Jacob, because
you're my kinsman, should you

therefore serve me for nothing,
tell me what will your wages be?

You know, Leman had two daughters.

The name of the older was Leah.

The name of the younger was Rachel.

Leah's eyes were weak, um,
let's say euphemism for, um,

she was not very attractive.

But the Bible's nice in this one instance.

Um, but Rachel was beautiful
in form and appearance.

Jacob loved Rachel,
which is objectification.

We can admit that.

And he said, I'll serve
you for seven years.

Four, your younger daughter, Rachel.

And so Jacob served for seven years for
Rachel, and they seemed to him, but a few

days because of the love he had for her.

Like that's a good, that's like
Shakespearean stuff right there.

Like that's, that's sweet.

So it seems like everything looks great.

Like Laben welcomes Jacob in,
come be part of our family.

They're madly in love here.

Seven years seems like a day all.

And then after the wedding,
Jacob consummate the marriage

in ways that people do.

There's no electricity there.

It's dark in the tent.

And as much as I love the
seven years, seems like a day.

This verse I also love.

In the morning, behold, it was Leah

and Jacob said to Laben, what is
this that you have done to me?

Did I not serve with you for Rachel?

Why then have you deceived me?

The deceiver is deceived there.

This is no accident.

Just to be clear, Laben had a plan.

Laben had a pattern to his life.

The plan.

He even explained to Jacob again,
you'd think if this was an accident,

sometime in those seven years,
his explanation would've come up.

Ah, this is not done in our country to
give the younger before the first born.

Like one of those would've
been good to know yesterday.

Kind of comments.

Complete the week with this one,
and then we will give you the

other one in return for serving
me for another seven years, y'all.

That is such a messed up statement.

And so Jacob did so and completed her
week, and then Laben gave him her,

his daughter, Rachel, to be his wife.

So Jacob went into Rachel also, and
he loved Rachel more than Leah and

served Laben for another seven years.

This is, this is Layman's plan all along.

And it started this pattern that we
see unfold over these chapters of 20

years of exploitation of, of everyone,
of deceit, specifically toward Jacob.

And, and as an aside, there's,
there's a lot in what I just

read that seems so foreign to us.

Um, to work for one spouse, uh,
was more normal in Genesis than

it is in most of the world today.

Still doesn't make it right,
but it, but it was more normal.

It's not God's design, though.

It's very transactional.

It's using people as currency.

Um, he's married to two wives.

God has never, never
designed poly uh, polygamy.

Um, as a reminder of just 'cause
something appears in the Bible

doesn't mean God condones it.

He allows it at times.

This is not God's design.

And in fact, the, the same bitterness
and envy that you might see on like

secret lives of Mormon wives, kind of
things like that same bitterness and

envy in spite and all this kind of stuff
plays out over the next chapters in,

in Jacob's family, Jacob is massively
let down by lab and changed his wages

10 times, exploited his work, and, and
Jacob's also let down by his wives.

Again, we'll see the other points of view,
but, but sticking with Jacob's point of

view, like he's, Jacob's gonna become
this pawn in this weird battle game over

who can provide Jacob more offspring.

But in all this and in so much more.

The good news is that God remains present.

God keeps his promise, the
covenant that he made of, of land

and seed more descendants than
the stars and God's presence.

God.

God fulfills that promise.

God gives Jacob 12 sons more than that,
the angel of the Lord said to Jacob and

ad dream Jacob and Jacob said, here I am.

And he said, lift up your eyes and see
all the goats that mate with the flock

or striped, spotted, and modeled for.

I've seen all that Laben is doing to you.

I'm the God of Beth El, where you
anointed a pillar and made a vow to me.

Now rise, go from this land and
returned to the land of your kindred.

God is present with him.

God's protecting him.

God eventually leads him out.

The man increased greatly had
large flocks, female servants,

male servants, camels, and donkeys.

And God blessed Jacob.

And then God protected Jacob.

God came to Laben in a dream by
night and said to him, be careful

not to say anything to Jacob.

Either good or bad.

Don't, don't harm him, is
the English summary of that.

What did God covenant with Abraham
and Isaac and Jacob land and, and

offspring and presence and blessing.

And despite all the deception that's going
on from everyone around Jacob, and despite

the hardship, God kept his covenant.

God blesses Jacob's efforts and there's
a fine line in this chapter between

being shrewd and being deceitful.

Shrewd is one of those words that's
both used of of Jesus by Jesus

in good ways, and also is used
of the enemy in the scripture.

Shrewdness is a tricky word.

And we see that in, in Jacob.

There's a fine line between being
shrewd and deceitful, and yet God

grows Jacob up through these chapters.

And, and at the end we see
Jacob as being someone who

hears from God and follows God.

And that's less about Jacob and more about
God being devoted to Jacob, despite the

mess and dysfunction going on around him.

That's Jacob.

That's the first point of view.

The next is Leah, uh, at first
and, and throughout these chapters,

frankly, it would be easy to see
Leah as only the victim of this

story, only the one deceived.

And, and while that is true, she also
lives into and picks up on the pattern

of deceit toward others that the
rest of her family emulates as well.

Again, you, you gotta
feel terrible for her.

She was given in marriage by a deceitful
dad to a man who loved her sister enough

to work seven years just to marry her.

So like what would Leah have seen
during those seven years of like

Twitter paid puppy love, like
seven years seems like a day.

Like she would've seen
them be madly in love.

And so Leah is this rejected sister
who's used by her dad, who was given

without say to a man who didn't love her.

That's who Leah is.

But Leah holds this card
that Rachel doesn't have.

We've said before, um, being able to bear
offspring in the ancient near East was not

just a blessing, it was a sign of status.

And so Rachel had Jacob's love,
but Leah can bear Jacob children.

Again, that feels foreign to us.

But it was a very prominent cultural
reality in every culture and

tribe in the ancient near East.

And in fact, Le Leah even sees that, that
her ability to have kids is, is one of

the primary ways that God meets Leah.

When the Lord saw that Ra, that Leo was
hated, he opened her Ro womb, but Rachel

was barren and Leah conceived and bore
a son and called his name Ruben for she

said, because the Lord has looked on my
affliction, now my husband will love me.

And she conceived again and Bo a son and
said, because the Lord has heard that

I'm hated, he has given me the son also.

And she called his name Simeon again.

She conceived to bore a son and said,
now this time my husband will be attached

to me because I have born him three
sons, therefore his name will be Levi.

And she conceived again and Bo a son and
said, this time I will praise the Lord.

Therefore, she called his name Judah.

Who does Leah credit for pregnancy.

She's thanking God.

She's praising God, she's worshiping God.

Even, even in these names, like you get
a sense of her yearning and tragedy,

and yet also her worship and praise
for God who met her and saw her when

no one else did in the next chapter.

That was chapter 29.

In chapter 30, God's gonna give
her two more boys and a girl.

And Leah's son, Judah was the
son whose line generations

later would lead to Jesus.

God blesses Leah in ways she
knows and in ways she never will.

And also like many times when God
blesses people with a gift, Leah

uses that gift to her own gain.

And uses that gift to
exploit others' weaknesses.

So see, she essentially exploits her
own womb and the womb of her servant.

Um, and maybe, I don't know if it's the
weirdest, I was gonna say, and maybe

the weirdest part of this chapter, but
there's just a lot of weird, in a weird

part of the chapter, she sells Rachel
Fruit in Return for a Night with Jacob.

There's a word for that for the record.

She gives Jacob, her servant Zpa,
who gives Jacob two more sons, who

then Leah claims as her own to win
this fight with her sister Rachel.

But bottom line, and through all the mess
and through all the pain and tragedy,

and taking things into her own hands.

And

she sees God as still being
devoted to her in a different

way than he was devoted to Jacob.

She gives God credit for
meeting her in her pain.

She gives God credit for blessing
her when no one else wanted.

Her people dismissed.

Leah used Leah, oppressed Leah.

But God met Leah and honored
Leah and blessed Leah.

And as hard as her life seems
that led Leah to worship God.

And I wonder if we'd be in the same
spot in whatever hardship we face.

Would we still be able to cut through
all the mess and there's a lot of

mess and praise and worship God.

Third point of view, see the
story from Rachel's eyes if

Leah was unloved but fertile.

Rachel was loved by Jacob, but Baron.

And so culturally, she'd be the,
the, the star, the Alister, the, the

favorite whose, whose star would've
faded and fallen pretty quickly.

That that's what would've
happened culturally.

And, and, and that led Rachel to
a place of envy toward her sister,

led her to a place of desperation.

She played Leah's weird sex games.

She gave her servant to Jacob as
a surrogate, just like Leah did.

And so, while she couldn't have kids,
just like Zpa, Rachel's servant,

uh, Leah's servant Bill Ha, who
was Rachel's servant, had two sons.

And like Leah, Rachel claimed
these sons as her own and

credits God with conception.

But she also blames Jacob
for her own infertility.

She steals from laben.

Like Rachel's not perfect either.

No one's good in this story.

And also.

Like these other characters,
like her other family members,

God is devoted to Rachel.

God's devoted to Rachel in a
different way or shows his devotion.

Maybe a better way to say it, shows
his devotion in a different way

than he does to Jacob and Rachel.

But God eventually redeems her
brokenness and opens Rachel's womb.

And that's not like, it's not like
it's one of those promises where

you can be like, if you just pray
enough, God is guaranteed to do this.

God.

God didn't have to.

He chose to meet her in her
pain, in her unique brokenness.

God remembered Rachel and God
listened to her and opened her womb

and she conceived and bore a son
and again, feel the relief in this

and feel the credit she's given God.

God has taken away my reproach.

She said, and she called his
name Joseph, saying, may the

Lord add to me another son.

Or may the Lord add to me my own son.

'cause she had again taken
credit for the two sons that

her servant had had.

There's one commentator said, uh,
Rachel was the first in affection,

but the last in fruitfulness.

And there's a patience, not
like a perfect holy patience.

We see a lot of impatience in trying
to take things in her own hands.

But what we know of Rachel
from these chapters is that she

persisted in prayer and persisted
in waiting and didn't give up on God

through seeing the fruitfulness
of her sister and seeing the

fruitfulness of the servants and
seeing the mess of her family.

God did not meet Rachel in her
timeline, but God did meet Rachel.

And I wonder what that says
to us in our patience and lack

thereof, or in our desire to
control how and when God meets us.

God was devoted to Rachel.

And then finally, it's worth looking at,
at Laben, uh, Laben who, who welcomed

Joseph as kin with a big hug and a place
to live and a family to be a part of, but

then exploited to Jacob for his labor.

Laban's, the guy who used his
daughters for his own gain.

By the end of the story, it
seems pretty clear that Laben

was estranged from his family.

This is Jacob talking to Rachel
and Leah saying, should we leave?

And, and this is one of the, one
of his wive's responses, are we not

regarded to our father as foreigners?

For he has sold us and he has
indeed devoured our money.

Not a great father-daughter relationship.

That's why I wanted to make sure this
didn't land on Father's Day last week.

He deceived everyone.

He manipulated everyone.

He tried to control everyone.

And on top of it, it's worth
noting Rachel stole Laban's idols,

which means that Laben had idols.

You gotta be there to steal 'em.

He worshiped other gods in the, in
the bit that Matt read earlier, uh, he

manipulated, probably lied to Jacob, but
said, I've, I've, I've, I've perceived

by divination, this kind of stuff.

Divination is one of those things that God
says, no, no to Laban's not a good guy.

He's not a godly guy.

But at the end, again, God shows
up and says, don't harm Jacob.

He pursues him.

Laben pursues Jacob and his family.

They have this conversation
and Lavin lets them go.

Lavin heard from God, even in his
ungodliness and was willing to obey.

And, and as an aside, like
there's some hope for me in that.

Because it shows that God reveals himself
yes to folks who follow him and know him.

But God also reveals
himself to folks who don't.

And that's just helpful for us
to remember as we think of our

unbelieving friends, family members,
neighbors, like we don't have to have

the pressure of convincing folks.

Only God can meet people.

And he does it exactly where they are.

In fact, God has to meet
us in our unbelief 'cause.

'cause nobody else has the ability
to bring anyone into belief.

God blesses laben as well.

Large family, large flock.

And at the end of these chapters,
at the end of chapter 31, Laben is

willing to put up literal boundaries.

It's a big word today,
but literal boundaries.

This is where I stop.

This is where your family starts.

He gives up control.

He obeys God.

He doesn't harm Jacob,
and he lets his family go.

Can.

C.

C.

Just wanna hear the Spanish version.

Yeah.

Thank you.

This is the very end of Genesis 31.

Laben said to Jacob, see this
heap and this pillar of stones,

which I've set between you and me.

This heap is a witness.

This pillar is a witness that not
pass over this heap to you, and

you'll not pass over this heap and
this pillar to me to do me harm.

And then the chapter ends by saying,
early in the morning, Laben arose

and kissed his grandchildren and
his daughters, and blessed them, and

laben departed and returned home.

So he, he's the source of so
much pain in his whole family,

the source of so much deception.

He did not live out the, the
role of father or patriarch.

Um, again, everybody's a mess,
but, but it may be hardest for,

for us to look at Laben and go,
God, even God even blessed him.

He created so much of the at least context
for the rest of his family's deceit.

And yet God even blessed him.

God was devoted to laben and showed that
devotion in different and unique ways.

So there you have it.

One weird story for very
different points of view.

Uh, and maybe you see glimpses or echoes
or some slight touch point or some

immediate full overlap of your own story.

In their story.

Like to, to zoom out, like, let's just
put it in some, some broader strokes.

Laben was just not a great dude who
did not follow God and yet God revealed

himself to Laben, provided for Laben.

God drew Laben to trust God.

Rachel was someone who
seemed to have it all.

But she was discontent.

She struggled.

Later in life, her star
fell, and yet God met Rachel.

As Rachel continued in persistent prayer,
Leah was unloved and rejected, and yet God

honored her and saw her and blessed her.

And then Jacob's, this deceitful trickster
who God grew in these chapters into

a man who was patient, who listened
to God, who obeyed God, and he did.

So even using other people's
brokenness as the deceit, as a means

to, to reign in Jacob's deceit.

Those are some of the broad strokes of
things going on in our chapters, and

those are some things, broad strokes
that go on in in a lot of our lives.

And there's this recurring
theme in these chapters.

God saw, God had seen her.

God saw him.

And that's, that's where the hope
and good news is in the midst

of all the other dysfunction.

It doesn't matter the circumstance,
it doesn't matter the point of view.

It doesn't matter the story.

It doesn't matter who you resonate with.

Most God saw them each and
God still sees each of us.

God saw them and God sees you
and, and that that word God sees

doesn't just mean he observes.

He's not sitting back watching
this crazy reality TV show unfold.

He's entering the plot line.

God sees you, means he meets you.

He knows you.

He engages with you.

He invites you to more

in church, just like God sees Jacob
and Rachel, and Leah and Laben

and all the others in the story.

God also sees you

not just observes you.

Watches your life unfold like a reality
TV show, but God still meets you and

still knows you and still engages
you and still invites you to more

God cares.

When you feel forgotten,

God heals everything that's broken.

Maybe not in this life, but
there's a promise there.

God redeems things that are lost.

God answers prayer when it
seems like no one's hearing.

Just as God was devoted to each
person in this dysfunctional story,

God is also devoted to dysfunctional.

You,

just as God is present with
these four folks in this

story, God is present with you.

Just as God makes promises to the folks
in this story, God makes promises to you.

Fast forwarding several thousand years.

Jesus understands brokenness.

Jesus was despised and rejected.

Jesus was the Messiah who was
then literally killed by the

folks that he was coming to save.

Jesus gets brokenness.

He was born in the line of Judah
from this rejected wife, Leah,

and, and he knows your struggle.

The author of Hebrews
even says it like this.

We don't have a high priest who's unable
to sympathize with our weaknesses,

but one who in every respect has been
tempted as we are, but without sin.

Jesus understands whatever dysfunction
is in your story and, and it's because

of that, that the author continues
and says, let us then with confidence

draw near to the throne of grace,
that we may receive mercy and find

grace to help in the time of need.

It's because Jesus
understands our brokenness.

That the door is open and we can
receive the promise of mercy and grace.

That's a lot of what we get to celebrate
when we take communion, is that in our

time of need, which let's be honest,
is all the time, whether we admit it

or not, in our time of need, we can go
to God and find his grace and mercy.

When life is hard in whatever form of
hard it is, God is at work for our good.

That's one of his promises.

He's not far off.

He does engage.

He both understands our struggle

and gives us his spirit to engage it
and is with us through all the ups and

downs, and so we get to approach God all
day and every day with that confidence

because of Jesus' death and resurrection.

So let's remember that
as we take community