Tag: Rebekah

Isaac-Rebekah Individual Responsibility Honor-Support Family Leadership

Living in the Image of God M04S18

Bible accounts of Isaac-Rebekah interactions provide a lesson on transparent husband-wife honor and support for family leadership. Rebekah honored and supported Isaac’s overall leadership but did not expect him to honor her occasional leadership of specific family affairs. Therefore, she relied on bridging over potential disputes to perform her family leadership responsibilities. In one example, she took advantage of Isaac’s failing sight to redirect him to bless their younger son Jacob instead of older son Esau for family inheritance. In another example, she presented a concern they shared regarding marriage to convince Isaac to relocate Jacob but did not present her other concern that Esau was planning to kill Jacob. Their interactions highlight the need for a husband-wife union to expect and receive honor and support for each other’s contribution to family leadership. The accounts provide additional evidence that God uses the family leadership structure to communicate his will to the family.

Isaac-Rebekah Individual Responsibility Honor-Support Family Leadership 24:48

This discussion of Isaac-Rebekah interactions continues the bible study series on understanding the individual responsibility regarding family leadership. The series is based on bible examples of husband-wife interactions and relationships. Previous studies in the series led to understanding a family leadership structure with the husband as overall leader and the wife as spiritual gateway and occasional leader in specific matters. Also, the previous studies led to understanding that God uses the family leadership structure to communicate his will to the family and calls on the husband-wife union to honor and support each other’s contributions to family leadership. He blesses those that do.

Continue reading “Isaac-Rebekah Individual Responsibility Honor-Support Family Leadership”

Bridging Over Potential Dispute

Bridging Over Potential Dispute
Lessons from Isaac-Rebekah Interactions

Rebekah avoided potential dispute with husband Isaac while getting him to implement a course of action she believed in for their family. In one case, she redirected him to implement God’s instruction regarding relationships among their children by taking advantage of his failing site. In another case, she secured Isaac’s approval of Jacob fleeing to Haran, using a concern they shared to bridge over potential disagreement regarding her immediate concern of fratricide among their children.

CLICK PICTURE TO PLAY VIDEO

Download or Play Audio

Download PDF

 

 

 


Interactions between Isaac and Rebekah indicate unwavering commitment to their marriage and acceptance of Isaac as leader in family affairs. Evidence for their marital commitment arises from the fact they lived for twenty years without a child but did not seek alternative solutions to childlessness. Instead, they prayed and believed God will give them children through the marriage. He did. Regarding the acceptance of Isaac as family leader, the evidence can be derived from two key events that we discuss in more detail presently.

Sent away to survive and prosper
Sent away to survive and prosper
Sweet Publishing freebibleimages.org

However, in contrast with what we learned from the Shunammite couple, where family leadership was shared between the man and his wife through an informal division of responsibilities, Isaac’s leadership of family affairs appears total and unyielding with little if any room for Rebekah’s choice. His style of family leadership, though probably in keeping with customary practice, resulted in the unpleasant situation of his wife Rebekah deceiving him in order to implement an instruction from God regarding important family relationships. Additionally, at least one other significant event in their life shows Rebekah concealing a point of disagreement from her husband in order to arrive at a resolution acceptable to both of them. She bridged over potential dispute by focusing on a concern they shared.

We can learn from Isaac-Rebekah interactions that God may assign to a husband or his wife the responsibility to lead an aspect of family life. For example, as we discuss in more detail presently, God assigned to Rebekah the responsibility to safeguard and see to the implementation of his choice for the propagation of family inheritance.

Collaboration to accomplish goal
Collaboration to accomplish goal
© Grafxart | Dreamstime.com

Irrespective of whether God calls the husband or his wife, the guiding principles are the same. As we discuss in a previous bible study under Right Heart for Strategic Alliance, God expects the husband and wife to work together to accomplish the assigned objectives.

The Shunammite Couple lived according to this principle as we saw in a previous study. They shared family leadership amicably and assisted each other to accomplish family goals. God blessed them abundantly. In contrast, Isaac-Rebekah interactions provide an example of potential dispute due to unyielding family leadership by the husband. However, Rebekah devised ways to bridge over the potential dispute. In one case, she redirected her husband to implement God’s instruction regarding relationships among their children, by taking advantage of his failing site. In another, she secured Isaac’s approval of Jacob fleeing to Haran by presenting a concern they shared, thus bridging over potential disagreement regarding possible fratricide among their children

Continue reading “Bridging Over Potential Dispute”

Instruction to Parent for Child—Messaging Child through Parent

We discuss three biblical examples to illustrate that God may send message to a child as a clear instruction to the parent on behalf of the child. One example is drawn from God’s instruction to Abraham regarding circumcision of male offspring, the second from his instruction to Rebekah regarding Jacob-Esau relationship, and the third from his instruction to Joseph (earthly father of Jesus) regarding the flight to Egypt and back to Israel to protect baby Jesus from King Herod’s massacre of male children.

CLICK PICTURE TO PLAY VIDEO

Download or Play Audio

Download PDF

 

 

 


We continue our bible study series on parent-child relationships, focusing initially on the understanding that God sends messages to children through their parents. The study purpose is to increase awareness of the potential significance of parent-child interactions as among the mechanisms through which a parent passes critical guidance to a child. As we discuss in a previous bible study under Call of Samuel Example, God’s message to a child through the parent could be in the form of a clear instruction to the parent or a hidden instruction. In the case of a hidden instruction, God prompts a parent with information the parent passes to the child with neither parent nor child knowing at the time that the information is indeed a message from God. The current study focuses on messages delivered as clear instruction to a parent.

The example regarding Call of Samuel appears to be a mixture of the two forms. We will discuss hidden-instruction examples in subsequent bible studies.

Abraham ponders over God's instruction for descendants
Childless Abraham ponders
over God’s instruction for descendants
Sweet Publishing FreeBibleImages.org

In the current study, we discuss three examples of God’s message to a child delivered as a clear instruction to the parent. A characteristic of such message is the parent has responsibility to implement the instruction either directly for the child or by guiding the child through the implementation. The first example is drawn from God’s instruction to Abraham regarding circumcision of male offspring, the second from his instruction to Rebekah regarding Jacob-Esau relationship, and the third from God’s instruction to Joseph (earthly father of Jesus) regarding the flight to Egypt and back to Israel. Each of the examples discusses a clear instruction to a parent on behalf of a child.

Continue reading “Instruction to Parent for Child—Messaging Child through Parent”

Jacob Relocates to Paddan Aram

Covenant at Bethel

DOWNLOAD AUDIO                 DOWNLOAD PDF

Spousal Interactions by Leading the Leader

In this bible study, we learn about Jacob’s departure from Canaan to live with his uncle in Paddan Aram. Informed that Esau was threatening to kill Jacob, Rebekah advised Jacob to flee to Paddan Aram. However, to secure Isaac’s approval, she presented a different case that she could not bear the possibility of Jacob marrying a Canaanite. Isaac was convinced by this argument and instructed Jacob to move to Paddan Aram. Thus, Rebekah persuaded her husband by focusing on an issue that she and her husband were likely to agree but did not mention her other concern that could have led to a disagreement with her husband.

Continue reading “Jacob Relocates to Paddan Aram”

Jacob and Esau Early Years Interactions

Parental Blessing

DOWNLOAD/PLAY AUDIO                 DOWNLOAD PDF

This bible study focuses on the family of Isaac and Rebekah during the early years of Jacob and Esau. Their interactions remind us that children need parental blessing, through a parent fulfilling obligations to the child or responding to motivation due to a child’s good behavior. Parental blessing based on obligation alone may be less effective than blessing that is also motivated by a parent feeling good about the child. Therefore, children need to be good to their parents and should not rely on parental obligation alone to earn parental blessing.

Continue reading “Jacob and Esau Early Years Interactions”