Not Despising or Losing but Enjoying the Birthright we Receive in God’s Sovereignty

Not Despising or Losing but Enjoying the Birthright we Receive in God's Sovereignty

Jacob treasured and pursued to gain the birthright, Esau despised the birthright, and Reuben lost the birthright. Even though Jacob was born second, he wanted the birthright and even tricked his older brother Esau to sell him the birthright for a … [Continue reading]

Our Birthright as Men and Believers is to Enjoy God, Express God, and Represent God

God created man in His image and according to His likeness so that man would express God with His image and represent Him with His authority (Gen. 1:26). By birth every human being has a birthright to express God and represent God. We are made for … [Continue reading]

God will Eventually Take Away our Natural Choice so that Christ may be Brought Forth

At the end of Genesis 35 we see one of the most touching stories in the entire Old Testament: Jacob journeys on from Bethel to Hebron, and on the way Rachel enters into labor and brings forth Benjamin (whom she calls Ben-Oni), and then she dies in … [Continue reading]

Entering into Full Fellowship with the Lord and with the Fellow Members of the Body

Gen. 35:27 And Jacob came to Isaac his father at Mamre, at Kiriath-arba (that is, Hebron), where Abraham and Isaac had sojourned.

Jacob was selected and chosen by God even before he was born. However, throughout his life he schemed and struggled to obtain the birthright and the blessing, and he wanted to have his way with everyone - even though the blessing was his by God's … [Continue reading]

Being Poured out as a Drink Offering over the Building of God for His Satisfaction

Not Hindering God in what He Wants to Do

It is a great blessing to read the Bible with "the glasses of God's economy" on. When we read the account in Gen. 35 with Jacob going to Bethel, setting up an altar, calling on the name of the Lord, having the Lord's speaking, setting up a pillar … [Continue reading]

Building an Altar at Bethel and Realizing God’s All-Sufficiency in the Church Life

Building an Altar at Bethel and Realizing God's All-Sufficiency in the Church Life

At his second coming to Bethel, Jacob built an altar there and called it El-Bethel, and God appeared to him and said to him, "I am the All-sufficient God" (Gen. 35:11). Previously, Jacob built an altar at Shechem, where he also pitched his tent and … [Continue reading]

Advancing from the Individual Experience of God to the Corporate Experience of God

In Genesis 35 Jacob had a radical turn from the individual experience of God to the corporate experience of God. As a result of being dealt with, broken, and transformed, Jacob experienced God as the God of Bethel, El-Bethel, the God of the house of … [Continue reading]