Daily Bible Study Devotional
Message Title: Through God's Grace
Date: Sunday January 08, 2012
Today's Chapters: Genesis 26-28
Preview of Today's Message: It is amazing when you see God bless the faithful servant, what is even more amazing is that even when we are out of His will we continues to bless us through His grace. All Scripture quoted from the King James Version.

Hello My Friend,

“But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us, Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;) And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus: That in the ages to come he might shew the exceeding riches of his grace in his kindness toward us through Christ Jesus. For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:” -Ephesians 2:4-8.

Salvation is not given to us by some merit in our part, it is God's gift to all who believe in the death, burial,and resurrection of Christ and personally received Him into their lives. God has graciously quickened us, saved us, made us new creatures, and prepared us to do good works, but it is through God's grace that we can mess up time and time again and still receive His blessings.

We do not hear much about Isaac's life beyond him being the promised seed that God promised Abraham. Much of this is due to the fact that he tried to altar God's will, but in every event God used some way to get His will back in order. First, we learn of a famine and just like his father he feared he would be killed for his wife and denied that Rebekah was his wife, but even through that lie God's grace blessed Isaac.

“And the LORD appeared unto him, and said, Go not down into Egypt; dwell in the land which I shall tell thee of: Sojourn in this land, and I will be with thee, and will bless thee; for unto thee, and unto thy seed, I will give all these countries, and I will perform the oath which I sware unto Abraham thy father;..And it came to pass, when he had been there a long time, that Abimelech king of the Philistines looked out at a window, and saw, and, behold, Isaac was sporting with Rebekah his wife. And Abimelech called Isaac, and said, Behold, of a surety she is thy wife: and how saidst thou, She is my sister? And Isaac said unto him, Because I said, Lest I die for her...And Abimelech charged all his people, saying, He that toucheth this man or his wife shall surely be put to death. Then Isaac sowed in that land, and received in the same year an hundredfold: and the LORD blessed him...And Abimelech said unto Isaac, Go from us; for thou art much mightier than we.” - Genesis 26:2,3,8,9,11,12,16.

Only a God as amazing as the Almighty, living God can bless a person even when they have trusted their own will before His. That is the power of His mercy and grace. “And God is able to make all grace abound toward you; that ye, always having all sufficiency in all things, may abound to every good work:” - 2 Corinthians 9:8.

Even before Esau and Jacob were born it was foretold that Jacob would be the blessed seed that would continue the covenant God made with Abraham, that he would be the father of many nations. However, Isaac tried to altar God's will by blessing Esau with everything he had and Jacob with nothing. Through a scheme, helped by his mother, Jacob got that blessing.

“And Rebekah spake unto Jacob her son, saying, Behold, I heard thy father speak unto Esau thy brother, saying, Bring me venison, and make me savoury meat, that I may eat, and bless thee before the LORD before my death. Now therefore, my son, obey my voice according to that which I command thee...And she gave the savoury meat and the bread, which she had prepared, into the hand of her son Jacob. And he came unto his father, and said, My father: and he said, Here am I; who art thou, my son? And Jacob said unto his father, I am Esau thy first born; I have done according as thou badest me: arise, I pray thee, sit and eat of my venison, that thy soul may bless me...And Jacob went near unto Isaac his father; and he felt him, and said, The voice is Jacob's voice, but the hands are the hands of Esau. And he discerned him not, because his hands were hairy, as his brother Esau's hands: so he blessed him.” - Genesis 27:6-8,17-19,22,23.

It did not take long before Esau returned and threatened to kill Jacob, for taking not only his birthright from him, but his blessing too. “And Esau hated Jacob because of the blessing wherewith his father blessed him: and Esau said in his heart, The days of mourning for my father are at hand; then will I slay my brother Jacob. And these words of Esau her elder son were told to Rebekah: and she sent and called Jacob her younger son, and said unto him, Behold, thy brother Esau, as touching thee, doth comfort himself, purposing to kill thee. Now therefore, my son, obey my voice; and arise, flee thou to Laban my brother to Haran; And tarry with him a few days, until thy brother's fury turn away; Until thy brother's anger turn away from thee, and he forget that which thou hast done to him: then I will send, and fetch thee from thence: why should I be deprived also of you both in one day? And Rebekah said to Isaac, I am weary of my life because of the daughters of Heth: if Jacob take a wife of the daughters of Heth, such as these which are of the daughters of the land, what good shall my life do me?” - Genesis 27:41-46.

Isaac realized that he was wrong in trying to give the blessings that should have been Jacob's to Esau, he did not reprimand him or Rebekah for what they did, instead he blessed Jacob with the blessings that he rightfully should have given him. He then sent him to Laban's to find a wife and also be protected from his brother. As Jacob was heading toward Haran he had no idea where he was headed, unlike Abraham and Isaac they had God guiding them, but Jacob knew he was leaving because he deceived his brother and was really fearing for his life. However, he was not alone, God was, in fact, guiding him. In a dream, God reveals that his seed will be the blessed promised seed and that He would always be with him.

“And he dreamed, and behold a ladder set up on the earth, and the top of it reached to heaven: and behold the angels of God ascending and descending on it. And, behold, the LORD stood above it, and said, 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. And Jacob awaked out of his sleep, and he said, Surely the LORD is in this place; and I knew it not.” - Genesis 28:12-16.

God's grace is beyond measure, only through God grace can we be saved from death and hell, only through God's grace can we go against His will and still be blessed, only through God's grace can we sin and not be condemned for it. We might not always be in God's will, we might not pray enough, read enough, give enough, serve enough, or even acknowledge Him enough, but that is what His grace is for. “But the God of all grace, who hath called us unto his eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after that ye have suffered a while, make you perfect, stablish, strengthen, settle you.” - 1 Peter 5:10.

Today's Psalm: “Thou art fairer than the children of men: grace is poured into thy lips: therefore God hath blessed thee for ever.” -Psalm 45:2.

Today's Proverb: “Let not mercy and truth forsake thee: bind them about thy neck; write them upon the table of thine heart:” -Proverbs 3:3.

Today's Prayer: God, only through the death of Your Son could we know the full extent of Your grace. Though our sins bring untold loss, Your grace brings infinite gain. Your grace exceeds our expectation, it is a refuge for our sinful souls. Thank You, for Your grace, it is incomprehensible, infinite, and indiscriminate to all those who call upon Your Son to save them. Lord, be with us in all that we do, lead us and guide us through the mercy and grace that only You can provide, while others frown upon us, Your grace is sufficient enough to keep our heads up high no matter how many times we fall. In Jesus' name. Amen.

Enjoy the rest of your day/night.
God Bless You, I am praying for you,
Christina

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