5. The Life Of Isaac- The Man Who Grew The Wrong Way Series

THE LIFE OF ISAAC

“The Man Who Grew the Wrong Way

(Genesis 21-35)

5. The Life of Isaac - The Man Who Grew the Wrong Way

Genesis 21-35

Bob Marcaurelle

homeandchurchbiblestudy.com bob marcaurells

A special committee was evaluating the work of a teacher about whom they had received many com¬plaints. One member spoke up and said, "We must remember this lady has 22 years of teaching experi¬ence.” A younger member who had recently been in the lady’s class responded, "I disagree with you. She doesn't have 22 years experience. She has one year’s experience repeated twenty-two times.”

Longevity does not necessarily lead to maturity. Length does not always lead to depth. Long hours can be put in with very little put into the hours. .

Christians are like the moon in all of its stages. We are always growing larger or smaller It is bad when our service for Christ is better in our past that today. There are a lot of "used to be good” Christians walk¬ing round and one of them was Isaac.

Isaac lived longer than any of the Patriarchs, 180 years, but he did the least. His life is just jammed into the Bible as the tail end of Abraham and the introduction to Jacob. He has been called the ordinary son of an outstanding father and the ordinary father of an outstanding son.

Few preachers deal with his life and when they do, they don't know what to do with him. Maclaren called him the first apostle of peace, the first man in the Bible to live the Sermon on the Mount. Alexander Whyte said it would have been best for all concerned if Isaac had died as a young man on Mount Moriah. Let's look at this man who grew the wrong way.

A. A MAN OF GOD IN THE MAKING (Gen. 21-22)

1. The Foundation of Good Examples (Ch. 21)

Isaac came into this world on the wings of laughter. After many years of waiting when Sarah was long past the age of child bearing, God sent Isaac, the child of promise. Sarah named him Isaac "he laughs,” which pointed to her laughing at God when He told her she would have a baby at age ninety (18:12). But it also pointed to the joy of his birth (21:6). Abraham threw a party (21:8). The whole atmosphere was one of joy.

It is wonderful that human beings come into this world with a clean slate. It has been said that every baby is another proof that God has not given up on this world. What awesome power resides in tiny fists. And it is power that can go either way.

Eighteenth Century, England was cold and dead to the things of God. The educated regarded Chris¬tianity as defeated and on the way out. And what did God do? He put a baby in the arms of Susanna Wesley and that boy was used of God to bring about the greatest revival since the Apostles.

But power can have a tragic outcome. Germany, after the First World War was a beaten, unhappy country. A German mother was no doubt happy when she saw her new baby. It could be good news for her country. She named him Adolph Hitter and we all know it was bad news for the whole world.

Isaac, in the beginning, took the right course. He had some hard times. It must have hurt and confused him when his father drove his half-brother Ishmael and his mother away because his mother hated them (21:8-21).

Isaac had a good example in his father. Abraham had more good points than bad. Isaac watched him make peaceful agreements with his neighbors (21:22-34) and most of all worship God at altars he had built in the beautiful outdoors (21:33).

The best safeguard for the next generation is a good example by this generation. The best deterrent for juvenile delinquency is the absence of parental delinquency. And in the earliest and most formative years, a child's dominant influence comes from his parents

“There are little eyes upon you and they're watching night and day

There are little ears that quickly take in every word you say

There are little hands all eager to do everything you do

And a little child who’s dreaming

Of the day he'll be like you - Author Unknown

Isaac had good examples (25-34) but also bad examples (9-14) from his parents. A bad example can be made good if our child sees us apologize and seek theirs and God’s forgiveness. We don't have to be perfect to be good. These words have helped me.

"You don't need to be right all the time. Your child wants a man for a father, not a formula. He wants real parents, real people, capable of making mistakes without moping about it."