BARGAINING WITH GOD

Believers in their lifetime often find themselves bargaining with God. This is not a new occurrence for this is what was recorded in Genesis concerning Jacob. Let me share his story with you.

In Genesis 27 Jacob the son of Isaac and Rebekah, and twin brother of Esau carried out an act of deceit with his mother and stole his brother’s blessing; consequently, his brother plotted to kill him. When Rebekah heard about the plot, she devised a plan to get Jacob out of harm’s way by sending him to her family in Haran to find a wife. So, following the wishes of his parents, Jacob leaves Beersheba and heads to Haran. After traveling during the day, it is evening time, and Jacob lies down to sleep and has a dream (Genesis 28:10 – 22). In this dream, he sees angels ascending and descending a ladder from heaven to earth. Also, he sees the Lord who says this to him, “I am the Lord God of Abraham thy father, and the God of Isaac: the land whereon thou liest, to thee will I give it, and to thy seed; And thy seed shall be as the dust of the earth, and thou shalt spread abroad to the west, and to the east, and to the north, and to the south: and in thee and in thy seed shall all the families of the earth be blessed. And, behold, I am with thee, and will keep thee in all places whither thou goest, and will bring thee again into this land; for I will not leave thee, until I have done that which I have spoken to thee of.” Jacob wakes up and fearfully acknowledges the presence of God. He then makes this vow, “If God will be with me, and will keep me in this way that I go, and will give me bread to eat, and raiment to put on, So that I come again to my father’s house in peace; then shall the Lord be my God: And this stone, which I have set for a pillar, shall be God’s house: and of all that thou shalt give me I will surely give the tenth unto thee.”

Please note God gives Jacob whose previous actions displayed him as not a decent person, beautiful promises. Rather than rejoice in these promises, Jacob gives God his requirements for his allegiance. His response shows his distrust. He did not take God at His Word, and God had to prove Himself honorable before Jacob would acknowledge Him as His God. Despite Jacob’s response God was with him and allowed Jacob to return safely to Bethel where he finally acknowledged the goodness of God (Genesis 35).

Jacob’s bargaining is similar to what we believers do. First, we are not deserving of God’s favor. He overlooks our faults and showers us with His grace and mercy. In His Word, we find hundreds of blessings provided for us; yet, we question and bargain with Him. God if you do this I will serve you, I will give to, I will go to, etc., etc., etc. Unfortunately, many of the vows we make to God we do not honor; but we still expect God to treat us lovingly.

If in the past out of blindness, ignorance, or unawareness of the promises of God you bargained with Him, today is a good time to ask for His forgiveness, and to make a change in the way you petition Him. I had to stop typing this blog, reflect on what I’ve done in the past, ask for forgiveness and requested insight and help for the future.

I pray this blog has given you something to think about for it has helped me.