A Bad Deal
What do you do when someone hands you a bad deal?
That's what happens to Jacob in Genesis 30. The cheater gets cheated. Uncle Laban has learned that good fortune has come to his house because of Jacob's presence. So Laban gives Jacob the opportunity to strike a deal in order to get him to stay. He even asks what Jacob wants. Jacob doesn't ask for much. He wants to own the speckled and spotted lambs and goats. Laban says fine. Then that very day, Laban removes every male stripped and spotted goat, every female speckled goat, and all the black sheep from the flocks and gave them to his sons.
Laban is really a piece of work.
What would you do?
Jacob goes to work diligently. He doesn't complain. He doesn't manipulate. He doesn't steal or resort to trickery. He does something unusual however:
Genesis 30:37–43 (NLT) Then Jacob took some fresh branches from poplar, almond, and plane trees and peeled off strips of bark, making white streaks on them. 38 Then he placed these peeled branches in the watering troughs where the flocks came to drink, for that was where they mated. 39 And when they mated in front of the white-streaked branches, they gave birth to young that were streaked, speckled, and spotted. 40 Jacob separated those lambs from Laban’s flock. And at mating time he turned the flock to face Laban’s animals that were streaked or black. This is how he built his own flock instead of increasing Laban’s....
... 43 As a result, Jacob became very wealthy, with large flocks of sheep and goats, female and male servants, and many camels and donkeys.
Was this magic? Was this witchcraft?
No. John Calvin says it was something God told him to do. It's not something we do today. This was a special instruction of God so that Jacob would know God has his back even when other people took the shirt off it.
Christians are bound to experience the shrewd and often manipulative tactics of those apart from Christ... especially in business. Our Church just bought a building from a guy who will never need the money. At the closing he was nickling and diming over some leftover oil in the tank wanting us to pay for it. Eventually he relented but it was a bit vexing in the moment.
What is our response to these situations?
If we are in Christ, we respond with assurance that God will take care of us in spite of who tries to take advantage of us. Our response is to obey his Word just like Jacob does here. When we are cursed, we bless. When someone takes our tunic, we give our cloak. Does this make us pushovers? No. It solidifies to the world around us that Someone is looking out for us and we don't have to! It tells the world that our God's generosity level is ALWAYS higher than their thievery level.
Some take notice.
And the Gospel is given a powerful platform from which to be preached.
That's what happens to Jacob in Genesis 30. The cheater gets cheated. Uncle Laban has learned that good fortune has come to his house because of Jacob's presence. So Laban gives Jacob the opportunity to strike a deal in order to get him to stay. He even asks what Jacob wants. Jacob doesn't ask for much. He wants to own the speckled and spotted lambs and goats. Laban says fine. Then that very day, Laban removes every male stripped and spotted goat, every female speckled goat, and all the black sheep from the flocks and gave them to his sons.
Laban is really a piece of work.
What would you do?
Jacob goes to work diligently. He doesn't complain. He doesn't manipulate. He doesn't steal or resort to trickery. He does something unusual however:
Genesis 30:37–43 (NLT) Then Jacob took some fresh branches from poplar, almond, and plane trees and peeled off strips of bark, making white streaks on them. 38 Then he placed these peeled branches in the watering troughs where the flocks came to drink, for that was where they mated. 39 And when they mated in front of the white-streaked branches, they gave birth to young that were streaked, speckled, and spotted. 40 Jacob separated those lambs from Laban’s flock. And at mating time he turned the flock to face Laban’s animals that were streaked or black. This is how he built his own flock instead of increasing Laban’s....
... 43 As a result, Jacob became very wealthy, with large flocks of sheep and goats, female and male servants, and many camels and donkeys.
No. John Calvin says it was something God told him to do. It's not something we do today. This was a special instruction of God so that Jacob would know God has his back even when other people took the shirt off it.
Christians are bound to experience the shrewd and often manipulative tactics of those apart from Christ... especially in business. Our Church just bought a building from a guy who will never need the money. At the closing he was nickling and diming over some leftover oil in the tank wanting us to pay for it. Eventually he relented but it was a bit vexing in the moment.
What is our response to these situations?
If we are in Christ, we respond with assurance that God will take care of us in spite of who tries to take advantage of us. Our response is to obey his Word just like Jacob does here. When we are cursed, we bless. When someone takes our tunic, we give our cloak. Does this make us pushovers? No. It solidifies to the world around us that Someone is looking out for us and we don't have to! It tells the world that our God's generosity level is ALWAYS higher than their thievery level.
Some take notice.
And the Gospel is given a powerful platform from which to be preached.
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