As a parent, grandparent, great-grandparent, I’ve noticed there’s often a really good child, a reasonably good child, and a renegade child among each generation. Same parents, but very different children. It’s a frightening prospect to consider their adult lives.
Have you ever wondered if God has had to deal with that same pattern in us? I have recently been thinking of a phrase so often used in the Bible, … Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob; the first three generations of the family God chose. Why did He not identify Himself as the God of Adam, Cain, and Enoch? Why did He choose to be identified as the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob?
Abraham’s dad, Terah, was an idolator. (Joshua 24:2) Some Jewish traditions say he made idols. The Bible does not specify how Abraham learned about Jehovah God. We just know the Bible reads Now the LORD said to Abram, “Go from your country and your kindred and your father’s house to the land that I will show you. And I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and him who dishonors you I will curse, and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.” Genesis 12:1-3 (ESV) What would it take for a son, in that day, to break away from his dad’s belief system? He must have had some form of a maverick streak in him. Furthermore, Abraham was not sinless. Yet, from that point on, he was reasonably compliant with God. He came to be known as a “friend of God”. He had an extraordinary faith in God that he did not get from his biological family. In essence, Abraham served as a remarkable follower of God, much like an exemplary child. Jesus even identified Himself with Abraham. God is a God of excellent children.
Isaac believed in God, but not to the level his father did. We might say he was a very ordinary child of God. He was neither a wonder man like his father, nor a bad person. God is also the God of ordinary children.
What do we know about Jacob? If we look back into his youth, he was a deceiver. He manipulated his father and brother, Esau, out of his family birthright. He escaped his brother’s fury, only to find his match in his uncle Laban. Laban recognized Jacob’s deceitful nature and sought to outwit him. But that didn’t work well for him. Jacob, aided by God, managed to outsmart Laban and get some of his sheep. Not too many would call that being an excellent or even ordinary person. He was considered the black sheep of the family, a problematic child. However, God says He was also the God of Jacob. The all-night wrestling match with an angel God sent profoundly altered Jacob.
I wrote all that to point out that God is the God of the excellent, the ordinary, and even the not so good follower of God. I see that as very encouraging! When believers fall short, I find myself being critical. This person, like all of us, is created in God’s likeness. And God will wrestle with the bad believer because He loves and cares for them as He does the ordinary and excellent ones. We find it challenging to imitate Paul’s divinely inspired message, “Love one another with brotherly affection. Outdo one another in showing honor.” I face the challenge of spiritual maturity while also honoring individuals who may seem dishonorable. How about you?