God Protects Us from
Dishonesty
Jacob’s
name means supplanter, meaning one who manipulates others to get what they
want. Jacob was certainly a manipulator. But Jacob gets a father-in-law Laban
who made Jacob look like an amateur.
Genesis
31:6-8 says, “You know I have served your father with all my strength, yet your
father has cheated me and changed my wages ten times. But God did not permit
him to harm me. If he said, ‘The spotted shall be your wages’, then all the
flock bore spotted; and he said, ‘The striped shall be your wages’, then all
the flock bore striped.”
Laban
was trying to cheat Jacob out of a fair wage. But God was protecting Jocob
& making sure that he got a fair wage.
That
term “But God” is used several times in Scripture. Each time it is used it
means that one thing was true, but God changed it. In this case it was Laban’s
dishonesty with Jacob. Laban tried to cheat Jacob, but God changed the
circumstances so that Jacob was not harmed. He was really blessed.
Let’s
apply the truth of “But God” to our personal lives.
“But
God” means that if someone is trying to cheat or harm me, God will intervene
& change something to make for my good. Romans 8:28 says that God works all
things for good in the lives of people who love Him & live to accomplish
God’s purpose. Matthew 6:33 tells us that if we seek God’s kingdom & His
righteousness above anything else, God will provide for our needs. God will not
let us fall or be abandoned.
Raise
the Roof & Remove the Walls is trusting that God will make all things work
for our good & provide what we need when place Him first.
Let’s
apply the truth of “But God” to our culture.
Our
American culture has many, many problems. I hear a lot about how we humans must
go & fix all the problems in our culture. There are two huge problems with
that approach.
The
first is that we created the problems in the first place. God didn’t cause us
as a nation to turn away from Him. That was our decision. So, if we caused it,
how can we be the answer to fixing it? Second, we don’t have the power or
authority to fix the problems. They are bigger than human wisdom or ability.
When Laban changed Jacob’s wage from spotted to striped, God caused the
livestock to produce what Jacob’s wages were. Did Jacon make that happen? No,
God did. So, we bring before God our nation’s problems & then obey what He
tells us to do & trust Him, not our efforts to fix the problems.
Raise
the Roof & Remove the Walls is about turning our cultural problems over to
God & obeying Him as to what we do, trusting the fixing to God.
Let’s
apply the truth of “But God” to the church.
Are
there problems with the church? Yes, the church is not perfect mainly because
it is made of flawed people. So, do we abandon the church? No, because it is
not our church. The church is God’s. So, we don’t ignore the problems & we
don’t, in our own wisdom, try to fix the church. We go to God’s word & let
Him conform His church to His word & thus to His will.
Raise
the Roof & Remove the Walls is about acknowledging the church has problems
& seeking God to conform us as His church to His word & His will.
“But
God” is a powerful truth & we need to learn how to face the problems in our
personal lives, in our culture & in the church by obeying God & letting
the One who is all-powerful & all-knowing & who has all authority &
who is all-loving to fix the problems.
Raise
the Roof & Remove the Walls,
Joe
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