The Family Dysfunctional

The Family Dysfunctional

I am sure that as you can see by the unique title, that this day’s lesson will be interesting and at times entertaining, and sad. I will be using my own family as an example. You say, what do you mean by dysfunctional family? Well the dictionary describes dysfunctional as not working normal or properly. I think we all can agree that most families today have some form of dysfunction.

Most families today eat on the run. Both parents work. Some parents must work two jobs just to survive and provide for their families wants. Notice that I said, wants. Not needs. We have become a nation of wants. If we see something we want it regardless or whether we need it or not. Kids are thrown into every program and sports that is running. When I was growing up there were four seasons, Spring, Summer, Fall, and Winter. Today we have added, football season, basketball season, baseball season, track, wrestling, etc. etc., the list just goes on and on.

The family alter is a thing of the past. Not many homes even know what the family alter is or was in this day and age, in which we live.  This is a good place to bring my family into the lesson. I know my family better than anyone else’s. So, using us as an example is the thing to do.

When my parents got married, my dad was 21 years old and my mom was 15 years old. I came along. In those early days of their marriage, there was love. But also, they could be mean to each other. They split up and then got back together. They eventually got on the same page and got in church and started living for the Lord. They raised me in church.

My dad was a hard worker. He did his best to prove for his family. It wasn’t always easy. But he provided. He worked 40 hours a week at the furniture plant in our little town. He farmed, raising tobacco to make extra money. He put up hay to sale. He hunted and fished putting food on the table. We didn’t go to the grocery store every time we wanted something to eat. We grew most of what we ate.

My dad was not the spiritual leader of our home. That is just the truth. He was not very spiritually minded when I was a young boy growing up. My mom tried to have the family alter in our home every evening. But my dad balked. He wanted to watch his sporting events on the TV instead of reading from God word and praying as a family. I heard an old man of God say one time, the family that prays together, stays together. Amen.

Maybe if my dad would have been the spiritual leader of our home as God had intended our home would not have ended up like so many other homes in America. My family home and life were torn apart by neglect. Which led loneliness, which in turn led to adultery. Which ultimately ended my home life. And I moved in with my Grandfather. Mom and dad went their separate ways. But the hurt, anger, and hate left deep ridges in our lives. I have written about this in other stories, in a series of stories I call Ramblings in the Night.

As a little boy, I can remember my mom reading her bible every morning. I can remember playing outside or in the basement of our house. And every morning after she would finish reading from Gods word, she would go into her bedroom closet and on bended knee pray. She prayed for me. She cried out to God on behalf of her little boy. She doesn’t know that I could hear her praying for me. But honey let me tell you. I could hear my momma praying for me. I have no memory of my dad ever praying for me. He says that he has prayed for me. I hope he has. But I’ve never heard him.

So, we see that if God is not part of the family dynamic then the family will be dysfunctional. I believe that in order for a family to truly be moving in the right direction God has to be a part of it. I’m sure that many would disagree with me on this. And they are intitled to their opinions.

Let’s get into the meat of the subject. Let’s look at 5 families from the bible. These families should be very familiar to most who have read and studied the word of God. Most should have learned about them in Sunday school class when you were a young child.

The first family we will look at is the First family in the Word of God. Adam and Eve. We see in the Book of Genesis chapter 4 verses 1-15, the bible says;

1 And Adam knew* Eve his wife; and she conceived, and bare*Cain, and said, I have gotten a man from the LORD. 2 And she again bare his brother Abel. And Abel was a keeper of sheep, but Cain was a tiller of the ground. 3 And in process of time it came to pass, that Cain brought of the fruit of the ground an offering unto the LORD. 4 And Abel, he also brought of the firstlings of his flock and of the fat thereof. And the LORD had respect unto Abel and to his offering: 5 But unto Cain and to his offering he had not respect. And Cain was very wroth, and his countenance fell. 6 And the LORD said unto Cain, Why art thou wroth? and why is thy countenance fallen? 

7 If thou doest well, shalt thou not be accepted? and if thou doest not well, sin lieth at the door. And unto thee shall be his desire, and thou shalt rule over him. 8 And Cain talked with Abel his brother: and it came to pass, when they were in the field, that Cain rose up against Abel his brother, and slew him. 9 And the LORD said unto Cain, Where is Abel thy brother? And he said, I know not: Am I my brother's keeper? 10 And he said, What hast thou done? the voice of thy brother's blood crieth unto me from the ground. 11And now art thou cursed from the earth, which hath opened her mouth to receive thy brother's blood from thy hand; 

12 When thou tillest the ground, it shall not henceforth yield unto thee her strength;  a fugitive and a vagabond shalt thou be in the earth. 13 And Cain said unto the LORD, My punishment is greater than I can bear. 14Behold, thou hast driven me out this day from the face of the earth; and from thy face shall I be hid; and I shall be a fugitive and a vagabond in the earth; and it shall come to pass, that every one that findeth me shall slay me. 15 And the LORD said unto him, Therefore whosoever slayeth Cain, vengeance shall be taken on him sevenfold. And the LORD set a mark upon Cain, lest any finding him should kill him. 

Cain was a tiller of the ground. A farmer. He raised crops. Able his brother raised flocks. He was a shepherd. And they both grew up under the teaching and instruction of their father Adam. And they both knew what was expected of them regarding offerings to God.

We see is verse number 3 that Cain brought of the first fruits of the ground. God was not happy with that offering. And God refused it in verse 5. And Cain got mad. I’m sure he sulked about it until it ate him up on the inside. His brother Abel also brought an offering from firstlings of the flocks, in verse 4, and the bible says that God respect for Abel’s offering.

Then the green-eyed monster of jealousy shows its ugly head. Cain goes to his brother Abel and as you read Cain kills his brother. Here is the first murder committed. Cain was wroth with God, and jealous of his brother Abel. And in anger smote his brother and killed him.  God required a offering of blood. Cain knew this. But he brought not the required offering as he was taught, and God rejected it and him.

The point here is it was about the blood.  God required a blood sacrifice, a blood offering. We can see that according to Hebrews chapter 10 verses 1-18;

1 For the law having a shadow of good things to come, and not the very image of the things, can never with those sacrifices which they offered year by year continually make the comers thereunto perfect. ² For then would they not have ceased to be offered? because that the worshippers once purged should have had no more conscience of sins. ³ But in those sacrifices,  there is a remembrance again made of sins every year. ⁴ For it is not possible that the blood of bulls and of goats should take away sins. ⁵ Wherefore when he cometh into the world, he saith, Sacrifice and offering thou wouldest not, but a body hast thou prepared me: ⁶ In burnt offerings and sacrifices for sin thou hast had no pleasure. ⁷ Then said I, Lo, I come (in the volume of the book it is written of me,) to do thy will, O God. ⁸ Above when he said, Sacrifice and offering and burnt offerings and offering for sin thou wouldest not, neither hadst pleasure therein; which are offered by the law; ⁹ Then said he, Lo, I come to do thy will, O God. He taketh away the first, that he may establish the second. ¹⁰ By the which will we are sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all. ¹¹ And every priest standeth daily ministering and offering oftentimes the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins: ¹² But this man, after he had offered one sacrifice for sins forever, sat down on the right hand of God; ¹³ From henceforth expecting till his enemies be made his footstool. ¹⁴ For by one offering he hath perfected forever them that are sanctified. ¹⁵ Whereof the Holy Ghost also is a witness to us: for after that he had said before, ¹⁶ This is the covenant that I will make with them after those days, saith the Lord, I will put my laws into their hearts, and in their minds will I write them; ¹⁷ And their sins and iniquities will I remember no more. ¹⁸ Now where remission of these is, there is no more offering for sin.

Even the first family was dysfunctional. One brother killed the other. Even when God asked Cain about his brother. Cain asked God, “Am I my brother’s keeper?”  Yes, we should be our family’s keepers. To watch over them and to love them. Even when we are mad at them. Nothing should hinder our love for our family. If there is something, then we need to go to that member in love and fix it.

Let move onto the second family, that I want to look at.  It is the family of Lot. Lot is the nephew of Abraham. Lots family will provide several points on the dysfunctional family. Let me stop and say right here. If God’s word did not tell me that that Lot was a righteous man. I’d would have sworn that when he died he went to hell. But God saw fit to let us know that Lot was a righteous man. Just not very spiritual. We can see in II Peter 2:7-8;

 7. And delivered just Lot, vexed with the filthy conversation of the wicked:

 8. (For that righteous man dwelling among them, in seeing and hearing, vexed his righteous soul from day to day with their unlawful deeds;)

Now then looking at the word of God in Genesis chapter number 13 we Lot about to separate from his uncle Abraham. God had blessed Lot with great wealth, flocks, herds, and all that. I believe mainly because Lot went with his uncle Abraham, when God told Abraham to get up and move.

But now the land could not sustain both Abraham and Lot. So Abraham told Lot to go out and have a look around. And decide which way he would like to go and Abraham would go the other direction. So, Lot did as he was instructed. We read in Genesis chapter 13 verses 10-13:

¹⁰ And Lot lifted up his eyes, and beheld all the plain of Jordan, that it was well watered everywhere, before the Lord destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah, even as the garden of the Lord, like the land of Egypt, as thou comest unto Zoar. ¹¹ Then Lot chose him all the plain of Jordan; and Lot journeyed east: and they separated themselves the one from the other.¹² Abram dwelled in the land of Canaan, and Lot dwelled in the cities of the plain, and pitched his tent toward Sodom. ¹³ But the men of Sodom were wicked and sinners before the Lord exceedingly.

The bible says that Lot lifted his eyes and chose the plain because it was well watered. My next point is this. It was about the bounty for Lot.  Lot saw profit in settling on the plains because he could grow flocks, and herds, and crops. And increase his wealth. The plains may have been good for cattle and sheep. But they were not a good place to raise a family.

Most families today are more interested in wealth, and material possessions than a Godly home. They are more interested in amassing wealth and prestige. Than making sure that their families are saved, born again and have a home in heaven. Say amen. You know that is right. They have got their eyes on this world and what they can get out of it and achieve. God is out of the picture. They don’t even think about God until Sunday morning, if they even think about Him then. That’s right. It’s true.  

Then we don’t hear much about Lot until Genesis chapter 18. God visits Abraham. He tells him about his plan to destroy Sodom and Gomorrah. Abraham petitions God to spare the city. He starts out if 50 be found if God would spare it. God said he would for 50. Then Abraham asked it to be spared for 40 sake. Again, God said yes for 40 sake. Then Abraham asked for 30 sake, then 20 sake, and finally for 10 sake. And God said yes for 10 righteous, He would spare the city.

And we know that 10 righteous could not be found in cities of the plain. In verse 20 of Genesis chapter 18 says; ²⁰ And the Lord said, Because the cry of Sodom and Gomorrah is great, and because their sin is very grievous; But God, in His love for Abraham sent his Angels to rescue Lot and his family.

In chapter 13 of Genesis Lot has set his eyes on Sodom and Gomorrah and the cities of the plain. In chapter 19 we see that Lot and family have taken up residence in Sodom.

19 And there came two angels to Sodom at even; and Lot sat in the gate of Sodom: and Lot seeing them rose up to meet them; and he bowed himself with his face toward the ground; ² And he said, Behold now, my lords, turn in, I pray you, into your servant's house, and tarry all night, and wash your feet, and ye shall rise up early, and go on your ways. And they said, Nay; but we will abide in the street all night. ³ And he pressed upon them greatly; and they turned in unto him and entered into his house; and he made them a feast, and did bake unleavened bread, and they did eat. ⁴ But before they lay down, the men of the city, even the men of Sodom, compassed the house round, both old and young, all the people from every quarter: ⁵ And they called unto Lot, and said unto him, Where are the men which came in to thee this night? bring them out unto us, that we may know them. ⁶ And Lot went out at the door unto them, and shut the door after him, ⁷ And said, I pray you, brethren, do not so wickedly. ⁸ Behold now, I have two daughters which have not known man; let me, I pray you, bring them out unto you, and do ye to them as is good in your eyes: only unto these men do nothing; for therefore came they under the shadow of my roof. ⁹ And they said, Stand back. And they said again, This one fellow came in to sojourn, and he will needs be a judge: now will we deal worse with thee, than with them. And they pressed sore upon the man, even Lot, and came near to break the door. ¹⁰ But the men put forth their hand, and pulled Lot into the house to them, and shut to the door. ¹¹ And they smote the men that were at the door of the house with blindness, both small and great: so that they wearied themselves to find the door. ¹² And the men said unto Lot, Hast thou here any besides? son in law, and thy sons, and thy daughters, and whatsoever thou hast in the city, bring them out of this place: ¹³ For we will destroy this place, because the cry of them is waxen great before the face of the Lord; and the Lord hath sent us to destroy it. ¹⁴ And Lot went out, and spake unto his sons in law, which married his daughters, and said, Up, get you out of this place; for the Lord will destroy this city. But he seemed as one that mocked unto his sons in law. ¹⁵ And when the morning arose, then the angels hastened Lot, saying, Arise, take thy wife, and thy two daughters, which are here; lest thou be consumed in the iniquity of the city. ¹⁶ And while he lingered, the men laid hold upon his hand, and upon the hand of his wife, and upon the hand of his two daughters; the Lord being merciful unto him: and they brought him forth, and set him without the city. ¹⁷ And it came to pass, when they had brought them forth abroad, that he said, Escape for thy life; look not behind thee, neither stay thou in all the plain; escape to the mountain, lest thou be consumed. ¹⁸ And Lot said unto them, Oh, not so, my Lord: ¹⁹ Behold now, thy servant hath found grace in thy sight, and thou hast magnified thy mercy, which thou hast shewed unto me in saving my life; and I cannot escape to the mountain, lest some evil take me, and I die: ²⁰ Behold now, this city is near to flee unto, and it is a little one: Oh, let me escape thither, (is it not a little one?) and my soul shall live. ²¹ And he said unto him, See, I have accepted thee concerning this thing also, that I will not overthrow this city, for the which thou hast spoken. ²² Haste thee, escape thither; for I cannot do anything till thou become thither. Therefore, the name of the city was called Zoar. ²³ The sun was risen upon the earth when Lot entered into Zoar. ²⁴ Then the Lord rained upon Sodom and upon Gomorrah brimstone and fire from the Lord out of heaven; ²⁵ And he overthrew those cities, and all the plain, and all the inhabitants of the cities, and that which grew upon the ground. ²⁶ But his wife looked back from behind him, and she became a pillar of salt. ²⁷ And Abraham gat up early in the morning to the place where he stood before the Lord: ²⁸ And he looked toward Sodom and Gomorrah, and toward all the land of the plain, and beheld, and, lo, the smoke of the country went up as the smoke of a furnace. ²⁹ And it came to pass, when God destroyed the cities of the plain, that God remembered Abraham, and sent Lot out of the midst of the overthrow, when he overthrew the cities in the which Lot dwelt. ³⁰ And Lot went up out of Zoar, and dwelt in the mountain, and his two daughters with him; for he feared to dwell in Zoar: and he dwelt in a cave, he and his two daughters. ³¹ And the firstborn said unto the younger, Our father is old, and there is not a man in the earth to come in unto us after the manner of all the earth: ³² Come, let us make our father drink wine, and we will lie with him, that we may preserve seed of our father. ³³ And they made their father drink wine that night: and the firstborn went in, and lay with her father; and he perceived not when she lay down, nor when she arose. ³⁴ And it came to pass on the morrow, that the firstborn said unto the younger, Behold, I lay yesternight with my father: let us make him drink wine this night also; and go thou in, and lie with him, that we may preserve seed of our father. ³⁵ And they made their father drink wine that night also: and the younger arose, and lay with him; and he perceived not when she lay down, nor when she arose. ³⁶ Thus were both the daughters of Lot with child by their father. ³⁷ And the first born bare a son, and called his name Moab: the same is the father of the Moabites unto this day. ³⁸ And the younger, she also bare a son, and called his name Benammi: the same is the father of the children of Ammon unto this day.

The cities of the plain were great for raising cattle, and flocks. They were excellent for increasing Lots wealth. But Sodom and Gomorrah were a terrible place to raise a family. It was about a lack of burden for one’s family and a refusal to believe.  The Angels told Lot that God was about to destroy the city, but Lot wouldn’t listen. They warned Lot to gather his family and run. Finally, we see in verses 12-14 that Lot goes to his children who were married and begs them to flee the city. But the bible says that he seemed as one that mocks. Lot waited to late to worry about his children. Gods vengeance was about to rain down and destroy the cities. His family refused to listen.

The Angels have to forcibly remove Lot, his wife, and two daughters that Lot offers to the men of Sodom, in exchange for not laying hands on the Angels. The Angels tell them to flee for the destruction of the cities were upon them. The Angels in verse 17 gives Lot and his family strict orders, not to linger but escape as fast as they can. To not look behind them, and not to stay on the plains. It was about looking behind and being disobedient. Because in verse 26, Lots wife turns back to look and see the destruction of Sodom and God turns her into a pillar of salt. Lots wife no doubt loved the city life. She more than likely had a prominent position in Sodom since Lot did. I think she looked back not just because of Sodom, but her family that stayed behind were judged with the rest of Sodom and Gomorrah and destroyed in the fire that God rained out of the heavens. Judge had come, and the price was too great.

But this isn’t the end of Lots story. We find him at the end of chapter 19 drunk and in a cave, committing incest with his two daughters. It was about a bargain between the sisters, to raise seed for their father. And we know that both daughters conceived, and both had sons to carry on Lots name. And from the incestuous rape of their father, came two of the wicked nations to ever live. And they are still causing problems to this day.

Lots family was grossly dysfunctional. Because of that dysfunction Lot lost his wife and his children. Lost his wealth, all because he set his eyes on a wicked world and forgot to seek Gods will in where he should raise his family. Sad very sad.

Let us look at one more family, shall we. In Genesis chapter 25 we find Isaac and Rebekah. God blessed them after Isaac prayed. Rebekah was barren. But we see that she conceived and had twins.

¹⁹ And these are the generations of Isaac, Abraham's son: Abraham begat Isaac: ²⁰ And Isaac was forty years old when he took Rebekah to wife, the daughter of Bethuel the Syrian of Padanaram, the sister to Laban the Syrian. ²¹ And Isaac intreated the Lord for his wife, because she was barren: and the Lord was intreated of him, and Rebekah his wife conceived. ²² And the children struggled together within her; and she said, If it be so, why am I thus? And she went to enquire of the Lord. ²³ And the Lord said unto her, Two nations are in thy womb, and two manner of people shall be separated from thy bowels; and the one people shall be stronger than the other people; and the elder shall serve the younger. ²⁴ And when her days to be delivered were fulfilled, behold, there were twins in her womb. ²⁵ And the first came out red, all over like an hairy garment; and they called his name Esau. ²⁶ And after that came his brother out, and his hand took hold on Esau's heel; and his name was called Jacob: and Isaac was threescore years old when she bare them. ²⁷ And the boys grew: and Esau was a cunning hunter, a man of the field; and Jacob was a plain man, dwelling in tents. ²⁸ And Isaac loved Esau, because he did eat of his venison: but Rebekah loved Jacob. ²⁹ And Jacob sod pottage: and Esau came from the field, and he was faint: ³⁰ And Esau said to Jacob, Feed me, I pray thee, with that same red pottage; for I am faint: therefore was his name called Edom. ³¹ And Jacob said, Sell me this day thy birthright. ³² And Esau said, Behold, I am at the point to die: and what profit shall this birthright do to me? ³³ And Jacob said, Swear to me this day; and he sware unto him: and he sold his birthright unto Jacob. ³⁴ Then Jacob gave Esau bread and pottage of lentiles; and he did eat and drink, and rose up, and went his way: thus Esau despised his birthright.

Two sons Rebekah gave Isaac. They were Esau and Jacob. Esau the elder son and Jacob the younger. Esau was Isaacs favorite and Jacob was Rebekah’s. That is always the case. And that is how a dysfunctional house is born. As we see at the end of this chapter Esau has given up a great treasure. It was about a birthright. As eldest son Esau was entitled to a huge inheritance or birthright. But we see in verses 30-33; Esau was hungry and asked Jacob to feed him. The price for that bowl of porridge was his birthright. And Esau gave it away willingly. And because of that we see in verse 34 Esau despised his brother. Not a happy home, no sir. But it doesn’t end there.

It chapter 27 Jacob with the help of his mother Rebekah rob Esau. This time It was about a blessing. Isaac was old and near his time to die. And he wanted fresh meat. Esau went out hunting. While he was gone Jacob with Rebekah’s help cooked up a lamb and tricked Isaac with the food into blessing Jacob instead of Esau.

 27 And it came to pass, that when Isaac was old, and his eyes were dim, so that he could not see, he called Esau his eldest son, and said unto him, My son: and he said unto him, Behold, here am I. ² And he said, Behold now, I am old, I know not the day of my death: ³ Now therefore take, I pray thee, thy weapons, thy quiver and thy bow, and go out to the field, and take me some venison; ⁴ And make me savoury meat, such as I love, and bring it to me, that I may eat; that my soul may bless thee before I die. ⁵ And Rebekah heard when Isaac spake to Esau his son. And Esau went to the field to hunt for venison, and to bring it. ⁶ And Rebekah spake unto Jacob her son, saying, Behold, I heard thy father speak unto Esau thy brother, saying, ⁷ Bring me venison, and make me savoury meat, that I may eat, and bless thee before the Lord before my death. ⁸ Now therefore, my son, obey my voice according to that which I command thee. ⁹ Go now to the flock, and fetch me from thence two good kids of the goats; and I will make them savoury meat for thy father, such as he loveth: ¹⁰ And thou shalt bring it to thy father, that he may eat, and that he may bless thee before his death. ¹¹ And Jacob said to Rebekah his mother, Behold, Esau my brother is a hairy man, and I am a smooth man: ¹² My father peradventure will feel me, and I shall seem to him as a deceiver; and I shall bring a curse upon me, and not a blessing. ¹³ And his mother said unto him, Upon me be thy curse, my son: only obey my voice, and go fetch me them. ¹⁴ And he went, and fetched, and brought them to his mother: and his mother made savoury meat, such as his father loved. ¹⁵ And Rebekah took goodly raiment of her eldest son Esau, which were with her in the house, and put them upon Jacob her younger son: ¹⁶ And she put the skins of the kids of the goats upon his hands, and upon the smooth of his neck: ¹⁷ And she gave the savoury meat and the bread, which she had prepared, into the hand of her son Jacob. ¹⁸ And he came unto his father, and said, My father: and he said, Here am I; who art thou, my son? ¹⁹ And Jacob said unto his father, I am Esau thy first born; I have done according as thou badest me: arise, I pray thee, sit and eat of my venison, that thy soul may bless me. ²⁰ And Isaac said unto his son, How is it that thou hast found it so quickly, my son? And he said, Because the Lord thy God brought it to me. ²¹ And Isaac said unto Jacob, Come near, I pray thee, that I may feel thee, my son, whether thou be my very son Esau or not. ²² And Jacob went near unto Isaac his father; and he felt him, and said, The voice is Jacob's voice, but the hands are the hands of Esau. ²³ And he discerned him not, because his hands were hairy, as his brother Esau's hands: so he blessed him. ²⁴ And he said, Art thou my very son Esau? And he said, I am. ²⁵ And he said, Bring it near to me, and I will eat of my son's venison, that my soul may bless thee. And he brought it near to him, and he did eat: and he brought him wine and he drank. ²⁶ And his father Isaac said unto him, Come near now, and kiss me, my son. ²⁷ And he came near, and kissed him: and he smelled the smell of his raiment, and blessed him, and said, See, the smell of my son is as the smell of a field which the Lord hath blessed: ²⁸ Therefore God give thee of the dew of heaven, and the fatness of the earth, and plenty of corn and wine: ²⁹ Let people serve thee, and nations bow down to thee: be lord over thy brethren, and let thy mother's sons bow down to thee: cursed be every one that curseth thee, and blessed be he that blesseth thee. ³⁰ And it came to pass, as soon as Isaac had made an end of blessing Jacob, and Jacob was yet scarce gone out from the presence of Isaac his father, that Esau his brother came in from his hunting. ³¹ And he also had made savoury meat, and brought it unto his father, and said unto his father, Let my father arise, and eat of his son's venison, that thy soul may bless me. ³² And Isaac his father said unto him, Who art thou? And he said, I am thy son, thy firstborn Esau. ³³ And Isaac trembled very exceedingly, and said, Who? where is he that hath taken venison, and brought it me, and I have eaten of all before thou camest, and have blessed him? yea, and he shall be blessed. ³⁴ And when Esau heard the words of his father, he cried with a great and exceeding bitter cry, and said unto his father, Bless me, even me also, O my father. ³⁵ And he said, Thy brother came with subtilty, and hath taken away thy blessing. ³⁶ And he said, Is not he rightly named Jacob? for he hath supplanted me these two times: he took away my birthright; and, behold, now he hath taken away my blessing. And he said, Hast thou not reserved a blessing for me? ³⁷ And Isaac answered and said unto Esau, Behold, I have made him thy lord, and all his brethren have I given to him for servants; and with corn and wine have I sustained him: and what shall I do now unto thee, my son? ³⁸ And Esau said unto his father, Hast thou but one blessing, my father? bless me, even me also, O my father. And Esau lifted up his voice, and wept. ³⁹ And Isaac his father answered and said unto him, Behold, thy dwelling shall be the fatness of the earth, and of the dew of heaven from above; ⁴⁰ And by thy sword shalt thou live, and shalt serve thy brother; and it shall come to pass when thou shalt have the dominion, that thou shalt break his yoke from off thy neck. ⁴¹ And Esau hated Jacob because of the blessing wherewith his father blessed him: and Esau said in his heart, The days of mourning for my father are at hand; then will I slay my brother Jacob. ⁴² And these words of Esau her elder son were told to Rebekah: and she sent and called Jacob her younger son, and said unto him, Behold, thy brother Esau, as touching thee, doth comfort himself, purposing to kill thee. ⁴³ Now therefore, my son, obey my voice; arise, flee thou to Laban my brother to Haran; ⁴⁴ And tarry with him a few days, until thy brother's fury turn away; ⁴⁵ Until thy brother's anger turn away from thee, and he forget that which thou hast done to him: then I will send, and fetch thee from thence: why should I be deprived also of you both in one day? ⁴⁶ And Rebekah said to Isaac, I am weary of my life because of the daughters of Heth: if Jacob take a wife of the daughters of Heth, such as these which are of the daughters of the land, what good shall my life do me?

So, we see that Jacob not only conned his brother Esau out of his birthright. Jacob also robbed him of his blessing from his father Isaac. Families fall all the time by methods that Jacob employed on his brother. Dysfunctional family drama.

I will close with this final family. This family left God’s country for the land of Moab, because of a famine in the land. The man’s name is Elimelech. His wife’s name is Naomi. They had two sons, Mahlon and Chilion, who were raised in Moab. Married wives from Moab, named Orpah and Ruth. You can find this story in the Book of Ruth. It is only 4 chapters long. But it is a rich and beautiful story. That finds a family out of the will of God. But by the end we see God’s will revealed to us.

Mahlon and Chilion, along with their father Elimelech die. Naomi is alone in a strange land, with two daughters in law. She bade them return to their mothers. Orpah does. But Ruth cleaves to Naomi and returns with Naomi back to Bethlehem.  

Naomi instructs Ruth to go into the fields and glean ears of corn. A man by the name of Boaz takes notice of her. Finds out who she is. From there we see that Boaz instructs his servants to leave ears for Ruth to glean and not to rebuke her.

Boaz ends up falling in love with Ruth. But first he has to confront a near kinsmen closer to Naomi than he is. The near kinsmen cannot perform the duty that is required of him and tells Boaz to do it.

It is about a birth. This birth is a holy birth. Because Boaz is a grand sire several times removed of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. If we look at the last chapter of Ruth chapter 4, we find that;

¹³ So Boaz took Ruth, and she was his wife: and when he went in unto her, the Lord gave her conception, and she bare a son. ¹⁴ And the women said unto Naomi, Blessed be the Lord, which hath not left thee this day without a kinsman, that his name may be famous in Israel. ¹⁵ And he shall be unto thee a restorer of thy life, and a nourisher of thine old age: for thy daughter in law, which loveth thee, which is better to thee than seven sons, hath born him. ¹⁶ And Naomi took the child, and laid it in her bosom, and became nurse unto it. ¹⁷ And the women her neighbours gave it a name, saying, There is a son born to Naomi; and they called his name Obed: he is the father of Jesse, the father of David. ¹⁸ Now these are the generations of Pharez: Pharez begat Hezron, ¹⁹ And Hezron begat Ram, and Ram begat Amminadab, ²⁰ And Amminadab begat Nahshon, and Nahshon begat Salmon, ²¹ And Salmon begat Boaz, and Boaz begat Obed, ²² And Obed begat Jesse, and Jesse begat David.

That’s right folks Jesus is a descendant of Boaz and Ruth. Let us look at Matthew chapter 1.

1 The book of the generation of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham. ² Abraham begat Isaac; and Isaac begat Jacob; and Jacob begat Judas and his brethren; ³ And Judas begat Phares and Zara of Thamar; and Phares begat Esrom; and Esrom begat Aram; ⁴ And Aram begat Aminadab; and Aminadab begat Naasson; and Naasson begat Salmon; ⁵ And Salmon begat Booz of Rachab; and Booz begat Obed of Ruth; and Obed begat Jesse; ⁶ And Jesse begat David the king; and David the king begat Solomon of her that had been the wife of Urias; ⁷ And Solomon begat Roboam; and Roboam begat Abia; and Abia begat Asa; ⁸ And Asa begat Josaphat; and Josaphat begat Joram; and Joram begat Ozias; ⁹ And Ozias begat Joatham; and Joatham begat Achaz; and Achaz begat Ezekias; ¹⁰ And Ezekias begat Manasses; and Manasses begat Amon; and Amon begat Josias; ¹¹ And Josias begat Jechonias and his brethren, about the time they were carried away to Babylon: ¹² And after they were brought to Babylon, Jechonias begat Salathiel; and Salathiel begat Zorobabel; ¹³ And Zorobabel begat Abiud; and Abiud begat Eliakim; and Eliakim begat Azor; ¹⁴ And Azor begat Sadoc; and Sadoc begat Achim; and Achim begat Eliud; ¹⁵ And Eliud begat Eleazar; and Eleazar begat Matthan; and Matthan begat Jacob; ¹⁶ And Jacob begat Joseph the husband of Mary, of whom was born Jesus, who is called Christ. ¹⁷ So all the generations from Abraham to David are fourteen generations; and from David until the carrying away into Babylon are fourteen generations; and from the carrying away into Babylon unto Christ are fourteen generations. ¹⁸ Now the birth of Jesus Christ was on this wise: When as his mother Mary was espoused to Joseph, before they came together, she was found with child of the Holy Ghost. ¹⁹ Then Joseph her husband, being a just man, and not willing to make her a public example, was minded to put her away privily. ²⁰ But while he thought on these things, behold, the angel of the Lord appeared unto him in a dream, saying, Joseph, thou son of David, fear not to take unto thee Mary thy wife: for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Ghost. ²¹ And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name Jesus: for he shall save his people from their sins. ²² Now all this was done, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken of the Lord by the prophet, saying, ²³ Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us.  ²⁴ Then Joseph being raised from sleep did as the angel of the Lord had bidden him, and took unto him his wife:²⁵ And knew her not till she had brought forth her firstborn son: and he called his name Jesus.

The greatest birth that ever took place. Started over there in a field when Boaz saw Ruth. Because of that, God planned for them to marry and have a son, and so many generations later the savior of all man would be born. But it started because the family was out of God’s will and dysfunctional.  

I hope you enjoyed the lesson. I know it’s long but there is a lot of verses to cover. I didn’t want to leave anything out if I possibly could. God bless all who read and understand.

Prepared and Written By: David M. Shuler

                                            16MAY2018