THE BLESSING OF GOD’S PEOPLE
Genesis 30
“If I have found favor in your eyes, please stay. I have learned by divination that the Lord has blessed me because of you.”
I firmly believe that Christians are a blessing to others just by being obedient to God and his Word. God’s wisdom and God’s ways are intended to prosper and not destroy and when they form the foundations of a society’s culture good things will come about. The world’s problems these days surely are the result of man’s rejection of God’s wisdom and embrace of greed and lust and even sloth.
I also believe that God will bring about good for those who fear him and do what is right in his eyes. Obviously we are not talking about becoming billionaires—I certainly am no proponent of the prosperity gospel—but I do believe that good will beget good and God will vindicate his people’s obedience. Naturally it does not preclude the fact that we must exercise our intelligence, wisdom and hard work.
The shenanigans of Jacob’s wives and also Laban overshadow the fact that Jacob has learned to value honesty and the fruit of his own hard work. I cannot give him any credit for the way he failed to control his wives—they clearly were in control of him—but Laban had no complaints about Jacob’s work and in fact came to value him to the extent of crediting him for his own wealth and success.
Jacob found God to be true to his promises and that clearly had an impact on him and his life decisions. How about you?
“You know how I have worked for you and how your livestock has fared under my care. The little you had before I came has increased greatly, and the Lord has blessed you wherever I have been. … And my honesty will testify for me in the future, whenever you check on the wages you have paid me. … In this way the man grew exceedingly prosperous and came to own large flocks, and female and male servants, and camels and donkeys.”