This week’s article picks back up with the conditions under which Isaac and Rebekah were brought together.
The Father sought to please and bring fulfillment to his son. Isaac was the promised son to Abraham and Sarah in their old age, and Isaac’s mother had died, therefore, the time had come for the father to seek a bride for his beloved son. He was still looking for the greater promise of God given through his son.
The father sends the trusty servant to perform the task of finding the right girl for the bride. Abraham was wise enough to know that Isaac might be too young to perceive the wrong ways of people around him, and that he himself might be too much involved with his son to recognize the good qualities in those whom he would meet. Therefore, he trusted the task to the servant.
The servant believes and trusts God. The servant had been proved. His love and faithfulness to the Master and to God had been established before the commission was given. The servant was true both to his master and to God, because he did not lean to his own understanding but sought the leadership of his master’s God. He asked for a sign and when he received it, he made a commitment.
All of the opportunities and promises offered to the bride had been presented by the servant, but the decision to make it real rested upon the decision of the Bride to be. A decision of no would have meant it was lost forever, but a decision of yes was to bring the blessings of a lifetime. This type of decision must be made by every bride to be, and the decision is not always easy. For Rebekah, it meant leaving family and going with the servant to meet the bridegroom and remain with him forever, and probably never to return to her own family. What happened to make this union possible?
The Bride believes the messenger. The servant had come from his master’s house with presents to show his master’s wealth and love. As he presented gifts to Rebekah, it was for the purpose of proving the wealth and sincerity of the invitation. Would the bride believe? Rebekah did believe the messenger and accepted all of his words as truth.
The Bride personally decides to go. This is the response desired by each individual looking for a life’s mate. One who has without pressure or push chosen to accept and give the type of love that lasts throughout life. In making the decision to go, Rebekah was accepting the invitation of the bridegroom whom she had never seen, but whom she believed was God’s choice, therefore, the right one regardless what other troubles might come.
The Bride receives the Groom’s Love. “And Isaac brought her into his mother, Sarah’s tent, and took Rebekah, and she became his wife: and he loved her, and Isaac was comforted after his mother’s death.” Genesis 24:67
This couple was brought together by the will of God without any formal courtship, yet they met, fell in love, were joined together, and as far as we know lived a happy love filled life.
Encourage One Another,
Bro. Jim Graham