Year 1, Day 23: Genesis 24

Faith of Rebekah

I have a few things to say on Genesis 24 that I think will be worth your time here.  First, let’s start with the incredible faith of Rebekah.  No wonder God blessed her!  I wonder, how many of us would even be willing hear someone come and say “I prayed to God and asked Him to do something and behold he did, so with that as evidence I ask you to follow me and leave your family and everything that makes you safe?”  How many of us would even be willing to hear it – much less follow them? 

How many of us are only willing to follow when God does something that really makes sense to us?  If that is the case, then I can’t help but wonder about another question.  If we only follow God when it makes sense to us, then who is really the disciple?  Can I be a disciple if I only follow when it’s advantageous to me?

Rebekah gives us a shining testimony of what it is like to be a true disciple of God.  She lives by the Spirit.  When she senses the Spirit, she acts.  When she hears a man of God speak words of God and discerns them to be true, she has no regret in following them.  You want to learn from a person of faith?  Learn from Rebekah!  I know I certainly can!

Rebekah’s Hospitality

Now let’s also take a look at her hospitality.  You know what struck me as I read this passage?  She not only draws water for the servant of Abraham, but also for his camels.  Let me say that again with the proper emphasis.  She draws water for his camels.  Do you know what camels are most known for as their prized trait?  Do you know why they were used to travel across the desert?  They could consume huge amounts of water and store it!  Rebekah looks at the camels and doesn’t bat an eyelash.  Genesis 24:10 tells us that the servant of Abraham had 10 camels – and these camels had just made a long journey across some land that wasn’t known for its plentiful water!  I’ve got to believe these beasts were thirsty.  Drawing water for 10 camels until they had their fill couldn’t have been an easy task.

Rebekah’s hospitality here is absolutely amazing.  When she offers to draw water, we’re likely talking about several hours of hard work to satisfy these 10 thirsty camels.  Remember that they don’t have pneumatics and faucets to draw the water up from the well.  But she does it anyway.  She proves herself worthy and hospitable.  She proves herself willing to do the work that was necessary.  She proves herself to be faithful to God’s own demonstration of caring for us.

Rebekah’s Purity

Furthermore, I admire Rebekah for her action when she meets Isaac.  I know cultural norms were different back then, but look at what Rebekah does when Isaac comes out to meet her.  Rebekah covers herself.  Isn’t that unique and special?

How often does our culture focus on women “luring men in” by the way the dress and flaunt their sexuality?  Don’t get me wrong, I’m not trying to be sexist here and I am certainly not placing the blame at the feet of women.  In truth, if men would stand up and respond more to a mature presentation and less to a sexual presentation I think our culture would gradually stop promoting sexuality as the primary means for men to meet women.  Ultimately, as a man I still come back and lay the blame at the feet on men.  If men didn’t respond more to the woman who dresses seductively and less to the woman who presents herself properly, then our culture would be in a better place!

So again I lift up Rebekah as a model for all of us.  She presents herself well with her modesty, her faith, her hospitality, and her wisdom.  She proves herself to be a good choice for Isaac.  She demonstrates herself to be a servant of the living God – a woman after God’s own heart.  We all can learn something from Rebekah.

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