REBEKAH – WOMAN OF FAITH
GEN. 24
INTRODUCTION
A. HUMOR: GENDER CONFUSION, THE TEXAS WAY
1. Outside the ladies and men’s rooms of a Texas steak house, I found a confused and anxious young woman who sighed with relief when she saw me.
2. “Oh, I’m so glad you’re here,” she said. “I was afraid to enter. I didn’t know if I was a steer or a heifer.” [Christine Looney, Alger, Michigan; Reader’s Digest]
B. TEXT
Abraham....2 said to the senior servant in his household....4 “Go to my country and my own relatives and get a wife for my son Isaac.” 10 He set out for Aram Naharaim and made his way to the town of Nahor. 11 He had the camels kneel down near the well outside the town; it was toward evening, the time the women go out to draw water. 12 Then he prayed...“May it be that when I say to a young woman, ‘Please let down your jar that I may have a drink,’ and she says, ‘Drink, and I’ll water your camels too’—let her be the one you have chosen for your servant Isaac.” 19 [Rebekah] said, “I’ll draw water for your camels too, until they have had enough to drink.” 23 Then he asked, “Whose daughter are you?”...24 “I am the daughter of Bethuel, the son that Milkah bore to Nahor.” 26 [The servant] bowed down and worshiped the Lord...50 Laban and Bethuel answered, “This is from the Lord.... 51 Here is Rebekah; take her and go, and let her become the wife of your master’s son, as the Lord has directed.” 55 “Let [Rebekah] remain with us ten days or so; then you may go.” 56 But he said to them, “Do not detain me....” 57 Then they....58 called Rebekah and asked her, “Will you go with this man?” “I will go,” she said. Gen. 24:1-58, NIV. (Abridged for brevity)
C. THESIS
1. Women hear from God too. Rebekah was a woman who walked with God and her life was guided by the Holy Spirit. This story mirrors the reality of the Holy Spirit being dispatched to go and find a chaste Bride and bring her to Christ. In a way, it’s a love story!
2. We’re going to look at Rebekah’s humility, all the reasons she should NOT have gone with Abraham’s servant, and then see the reasons she DID go.
3. The title of this message is, “Rebekah, Woman of Faith.”
I. REBEKAH’S HUMILITY
A. REBEKAH’S LIFE IN NAHOR
1. The town of Nahor was a neighboring town to Haran, a city in N.W. Mesopotamia that was on the main trade route connecting Nineveh, Asshur, & Babylon to the East, and Damascus, Tyre, and Egypt to the West.
2. This was the third generation of Terah’s family to live there and they were obviously prosperous and settled in this urban setting.
3. “Rebekah” means “a rope, noose,” as of “a maiden who ensnares by her beauty” [Unger]. She was given a captivating or alluring name by her parents, foreshadowing her beauty.
B. HER HUMILITY
1. It was first remarkable that she went out to get water at the well herself, for the Bible says she had multiple maids (24:61). If she’d been lazy, she would have sent them, but she went herself.
2. Next it was remarkable that she would even speak to foreign men who had just ridden into town. In John 4:9, the woman at the well thought it unusual for Jesus to ask her for a drink. We all tell our kids not to talk to strangers!
3. Next, that she would agree to water his 10 camels until they had finished drinking (24:10,19). Studies show that a thirsty camel can drink 30 gallons of water in 13 minutes (brainly.in). Rebekah knew this. She put herself on the line to carry as much as 300 gallons of water to these stranger’s camels.
4. Another thought: the bucket size and depth of the well. A 5-gallon bucket can be picked up by a strong man, but a comfortable weight for a woman would be 2-3 gallons. If we say it was 3 gallons, then Rebekah would have had to draw up 100 buckets of water, carry them to the trough, and pour them in for the camels. Even if the well were only 50 feet deep, this would a considerable feat of endurance!
5. Evidently Abraham’s servant knew such a thing would be unusual and would be a sign only God could cause to happen! So it shows how kind, generous, and humble she was – a person of excellent character.
II. HER DECISION TO GO: KEY FACTORS
There were many reasons that Rebekah should have said “NO” to the invitation to go and marry Isaac. Here are a few:
A. OBSTACLES TO SAYING “YES”
1. A SLAVE’S WORD. She and her family had to take a slave’s word (and his 3 companions) for everything. Abram had been gone from Haran for approx. 64 years! (1921 to 1857 B.C.) Rebekah was a valuable commodity; she could be sold for quite a bit of money. They had to trust this man’s sincerity!
2. DISTANCE. Where this man was going to take Rebekah was 450 miles away, traveling on foot. The chances were (and their good-byes reveal it) that she might never see her family again. Many daughters would not have parted from their families!
3. DANGER OF TRAVEL. Going without an armed escort for 450 miles in a camel caravan would take at least 16 days if they didn’t stop to rest for a day anywhere. As Gen. 14 shows, there were roving bands of brigands who might attack them. If she were captured she might as well be dead. It was a huge risk. She would be much safer to marry a local young man and have a secure future.
4. UNKNOWN HUSBAND. She was committing herself to marry a man she had never met or seen. He might be very ugly, or maimed, or cruel, or even crazy. She was similar to a mail-order-bride of the 1800s who married settlers out West they’d never met or seen! It was a huge risk.
5. CULTURE CHANGE. She was going from being a big-city educated, beautiful & eligible girl who lived in a house, to living in remote areas in a tent as a nomad/gypsy. She would be “camping out” for the rest of her life. Would you want that?
B. REASONS TO SAY “YES”
1. Most likely, Isaac would be a good pick, because:
a. Her father Bethuel knew that Abram & Sarah both loved and walked with God. God seemed to be orchestrating this.
b. Abram & Sarah were both attractive, intelligent, and well-mannered, so that most likely their son would be nice looking and mannerly also.
c. They were very successful and wealthy, which hadn’t happened by accident. It indicated stability and comfort for Rebekah’s future.
2. Isaac’s name means “he laughs.” Most women prefer to be married to a man with a good sense of humor. It doesn’t say so, but I believe Rebekah asked Abraham’s servant many questions about her potential husband – his age, hair, personality, what his face looked like, his daily schedule, etc.
III. WHAT CONVINCED REBEKAH? HER FAITH IN GOD
A. GOD WAS ORDERING HER STEPS
1. It’s pretty obvious that Rebekah’s family had a relationship with God. Laban had greeted Abraham’s servant, “Come, you who are blessed by the Lord” (24:31). We know that God communicated to Laban on at least 2 occasions (30:27; 31:24).
2. Abraham’s servant felt comfortable constantly referring to God as the prime-mover of Abraham’s life (24:35). The oath of the servant was sworn to Jehovah. Abraham said, “The Lord before whom I walk will send His angel before you...” (24:40).
3. The servant told of how he prayed at the well and how Rebekah did exactly what he prayed for (24:42-46).
B. DIVINE TIMING & PROVIDENCE
1. Isaac wanted a wife & Abraham sent for one, just as Rebekah attained the age and desire to be a wife. The Spirit and the servant brought them together.
2. It’s amazing how the servant, without Google maps, came to the exact town, at the precise moment when young women went to the well to get the evening allotment of water.
3. Rebekah came out first and fulfilled his sign. She was the granddaughter of Abraham’s brother – the match Abraham was praying for.
4. When Laban & Bethuel heard these God-incidences, they said, “This is from the Lord!” (24:50-51) and they gave their permission for the marriage.
5. They wanted her to stay 10 more days (24:55); Abraham’s servant wanted to go at once. She said, “I’ll go!”
C. WHAT TIPPED THE SCALES? INNER WITNESS
1. Rebekah had a relationship with God. Gen. 25:22 tells how Rebekah prayed to God and He answered her.
2. So we can safely assume that when this momentous decision came, of whether to take this leap of faith and marry a man she’d never met, SHE PRAYED and God gave her peace, an inner confirmation in her heart that this was God’s will. So when the moment came, she was confident that God was in charge of her life and moving her in that direction.
CONCLUSION
A. ILLUSTRATION
1. Women have always had a key role in the work of God. In the O.T. were such famous women as the prophetess Deborah, who judged Israel (Judg. 4:4); the Shunamite woman who took in Elisha (2 Kgs. 4:8); Queen Esther, who saved Israel from annihilation (Esther 4:16); Hannah, who raised and dedicated her son Samuel to God (1 Sam. 1:28).
2. In the N.T. we find such outstanding women as Elizabeth, the mother of John the Baptist; and Mary, the mother of our Lord. We see that Christ’s own ministry was supported by a group of faithful women (Matt. 27:55, Lk. 8:3).
3. The Apostle Paul saluted Priscilla, Phoebe, Mary, Tryphena, Tryphosa, and Persis as being “fellow-workers in Christ Jesus” and those who “work hard in the Lord” (Rom. 16:1-3, 6, 12 NIV).
4. Indeed, so important is the involvement of women in the Gospel work, that women were the last at the cross, the first at the tomb, the first to proclaim the resurrection of Jesus, attended the first church prayer meeting, were the first to greet Christian missionaries in Europe, and were the first European converts.
5. Such facts should stir the heart of every woman of God to get in step with the great women of faith and do great things for the service of God!
B. THE CALL
1. How many of you ladies want to step up and get more involved in serving Christ?
2. How many want to make a new commitment to Christ? Let’s Pray!
