Day 1 of Week 6 of the Patriarchs

October 17, 2008
Day One of Week Six
When Jacob Saw Rachel
 
Today's Treasure: Genesis 29: 10
"When Jacob saw Rachel daughter of Laban….he went over and rolled the stone away from the mouth of the well and watered his uncle's sheep."
 
If you were unable to view the video session, please read Genesis 28: 10 -22. It will help bridge the gap between the end of week five and today's lesson.
 
Now, please move to Genesis 29: 1-14. Today's lesson will focus on this Scripture. Record any elements you find particularly interesting from this Scripture.
Jacob saw Rachel for the first time at a well…just as Abraham's servant saw Rebekah for the first time at a well. Both stories in Scripture involve watering their animals.
I was taken aback by the sense of relief Jacob felt when he embraced Rachel. You can feel through the Scripture that he immediately falls in love with her, just as Isaac fell in love with Rebekah.
Laban is Rebekah's sister. Rachel is Laban's daughter. So, Jacob and Rachel are cousins
Rachel ran to tell her family what happened, just as Rebekah did many years before.
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Glance back at Genesis 28: 1 – 10. If you were Jacob – embarking on a pilgrimage of sorts and facing a new life- how would this experience affect your journey?
If I were on a journey like this, I would have felt very unsure and lonely at first. After hearing from God and knowing that He was taking care of me, I am sure my attitude would change tremendously. I would head into the journey with excitement and an appreciation for what God wanted to do in my life.
 
What did God tell Jacob in Genesis 28: 15?
I am with you
I will watch over you wherever you go
I will bring you back to this land.
I will not leave you until I have done what I promised
Wow!!! Doesn't that sound amazing? How could you not put on your walking shoes and skip along the way with words like these directly from God?
 
You know, we should embrace the journeys in our lives with this type of excitement. If we have received Jesus Christ as our personal Savior, these words should be our reality as well. We are children of God, just as Jacob is. These words belong to us just as much as they belong to him. It is our job to embrace them and believe them with all of our hearts. We must live our lives as though these words exist in our core!!!
 
 
 
How do the following New Testament=2 0promises exceed God's promise to Jacob in Genesis 28: 15?
Matthew 1: 22 – 23
"All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: 'The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel-which means, "God with us".' "
Matthew 28: 19 – 20
"Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age."
John 14: 16 – 18
"And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Counselor to be with you forever-the Spirit of Truth. The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you."
2 Timothy 4: 18
"The Lord will rescue me from every evil attack and will bring me safely to his heavenly kingdom. To him be glory forever and ever. Amen"
 
Read Genesis 29:3 again. What had to happen before the sheep could drink?
The shepherds had to roll the stone away for the water to flow
 
In verses 9 and 10, the story becomes interesting…
"While he was still talking with them, Rachel came with her father's sheep, for she was a shepherdess. When Jacob saw Rachel daughter of Laban, his mother's brother, and Laban's sheep he went over and rolled the stone away from the mouth of the well and watered his uncle's sheep."
 
If you pay close attention to the Scripture just prior to this, the shepherds had just explained to Jacob that they had to wait for all the other sheep to come in before they could roll the stone away. Beth suggests that they were forced to wait for more man power because the stone was very heavy. So, they waited for enough men to come to the well before trying to move the stone. Yet, when Jacob saw Rachel, you notice that he alone went over and rolled the stone to water her sheep. Do we think someone was trying to show off for the maiden?
 
According to Genesis 29: 11, what did Jacob do after removing the stone and watering the sheep?
He kissed Rachel and began to weep aloud
What is your customary way of greeting someone you have just met?
Oh, I love to hug!!! I will hu g a stranger in an instant because I feel like it makes them feel accepted by me and at ease!!! They probably think I am a nut job, but at least I have my reasons!!!
 
Would you greet him or her differently if you realized you had a tie of some kind?
Yes, I can relate to this in such a huge way!! Now that I am a cancer patient, I notice other cancer patients immediately and I feel an instant connection with them. I feel as though I am meeting a sister that God has brought into my path. I have hugged many women immediately and called them "sister" at our first meeting because we share that connection.
 
Now, imagine this is the way Jacob felt when he saw Rachel for the first time. He realized that she was family and he was no longer among strangers!!!
This story gets better and better...so s tay tuned for the rest of the week
In Him,
Tiffany Pate