Like Father, Like Son

Introduction: Handing Off the Baton

Boy, church, it is good to be with you, especially after last week. I hope you made it to our Easter service. If you didn’t, it was amazing. It was really cool to see that many people gathered together singing praises and just being reminded of why we do what we do—why we get to sing in this church and open the Bible. Today, we’re going to look at God’s word together. If you’ve got your Bible with you, I want to invite you to turn to Genesis chapter 25.

If you’re new around here, you picked a great week to enter in. We’ve been in the book of Genesis now for five months, going on six since last November. We’ve been working through four of the major characters in the back half of Genesis. Genesis 12 all the way through the end of the book in chapter 50 is about four main people: Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and Joseph. This is a family lineage. We just finished the life of Abraham, this great patriarch of the faith. We watched the highs and the lows and everything in between as we saw his life on display for about ten weeks.

This week, we are seeing the baton handed to his son, Isaac. This is the promised son who we saw coming, whom God miraculously gave to Sarah and Abraham. There were so many good things in Abraham’s life that we saw and that we admire, but unfortunately, many of the things that Abraham was not so proud of—the things that are marks on his character—are going to appear in the life of his son as well. As we dive into Genesis chapter 25, I want you to be on the lookout for two specific things about Isaac’s life: you’re going to notice that both his home life and his public life, in a lot of ways, are a mess.

A Messy Home Life: The Danger of Favoritism

Let’s look at the first issue of his home life in Genesis chapter 25, as we are introduced to the second of the four patriarchs.

Genesis 25:19-20 (NASB)

Now these are [the records of] the generations of Isaac, Abraham’s son: Abraham became the father of Isaac; and Isaac was forty years old when he took Rebekah, the daughter of Bethuel the Aramean of Paddan-aram, the sister of Laban the Aramean, to be his wife.

At 40 years old, as we saw in previous weeks, Isaac takes his bride, Rebekah. This was an arranged marriage for him, intended by his father to make sure he married a godly woman. She certainly is. We find out in this story that she is pregnant, not just with one kiddo, but with twins in her womb.

Genesis 25:24-26 (NASB)

When her days to be delivered were fulfilled, behold, there were twins in her womb. Now the first came forth red, all over like a hairy garment; and they named him Esau. Afterward his brother came forth with his hand holding on to Esau’s heel, so his name was called Jacob; and Isaac was sixty years old when she gave birth to them.

Two sons are in this womb: Esau and Jacob. That is their birth order. Esau means “red,” or more specifically, it refers to the nation of people, the Edomites, that come from him. He will be the father of that nation. He is described as being hairy all over, which is literally a pun for his name. Esau means, in a sense, “hairy.” He’s the type of guy that if he was walking down the beach in the summer, you’d ask him why he was wearing a sweater. He’s literally that type of guy.

Then we meet his twin brother, Jacob. Jacob’s namesake is written right as he comes out of the womb with his hand grasping his brother’s heel. His name literally means “heel catcher,” but it can also mean “trickster” or “deceiver.” Both of those descriptions are going to be true in Jacob’s life. It’s a picture of how he came out of the womb and his very nature.

Genesis 25:27 (NASB)

When the boys grew up, Esau became a skillful hunter, a man of the field, but Jacob was a peaceful man, living in tents.

When I think of Esau, the image that comes to my mind is someone like Bear Grylls. He’s a man’s man. When you look in the dictionary under “man,” there’s a picture of Esau. He’s hairy, he wears flannels, and he belches. He exudes all the stereotypical manly attributes. Jacob is very different than his older brother. He’s described as a peaceful man living in tents. A gentle way to describe that would be to say he’s a bit of a mama’s boy. He wants to be inside; being outdoors and hunting just isn’t his thing. He wants to be in with mama.

Genesis 25:28 (NASB)

Now Isaac loved Esau, because he had a taste for game, but Rebekah loved Jacob.

Isaac favors Esau. You’re going to see that Isaac and his son Esau are like two peas in a pod. It says here that he loved Esau. Now, “love” has the same connotation for us as it does in the Hebrew. You can love a lot of different things—you can love a pizza or you can love your wife. But it also means a loyalty towards, a choice of, or a favoritism of one over the other. Isaac has a loyalty to Esau, the older son. As a result, he begins to play favorites.

In the immediate, this creates a fracture between these two brothers that will not be resolved for over twenty years. This favoritism certainly isn’t all Isaac’s fault, but he’s the one that gets the ball rolling. It sets the table for a catastrophic blow-up in this family. Both kids, unfortunately, end up modeling the behavior of their father. Jacob will repeat the sins of his father. The favoritism he witnesses at home—his mother favoring him and his father favoring Esau—is something Jacob will take and turn from a molehill into a mountain with his own children. He’s going to take favoritism to an extremely unhealthy degree.

Esau will also repeat the sins of his father. He’s going to harden his heart towards God. We won’t see him willing to bow towards the Lord; he’s not going to care about spiritual things. Esau models what Isaac displays later in his life—a man who is spiritually dull. Esau follows in that stead. He eventually rebels, marries two pagan wives, and later adds a third. These wives are described as women who brought grief to Isaac and Rebekah.

This is the beginning of these boys’ lives, and unfortunately, much of this stems from their father. Isaac had such an incredible beginning—the boy prayed for by Abraham and Sarah, the miraculous birth from a barren womb. He walked in obedience with his father up Mount Moriah. He married a godly woman. Yet, toward the end of his life, he is painted as a carnal, fleshly, prayerless man who cares more about his own plan than God’s plan.

For those of us in the room who have multiple kids, we understand what it means to have different connections with each child. I’ve got three girls at home. I remember one weekend I was changing the oil in my truck. Two of my girls were like, “Dad, that’s dumb.” I asked if they wanted to learn, and they said, “Absolutely not.” But my other daughter was literally under the truck with me, asking where the oil pan was. There was just an easy, natural connection with her. All the things I like to do in the garage, she wants to learn. My other kids? They like to shop; they like to do nails. I’m a boy; I don’t always get that. I’ve had to make efforts to enter into their world and enjoy what they enjoy.

Isaac, unfortunately, simply won’t do that. He and Jacob have different interests, but Isaac refuses to bridge that gap. The problem is that Isaac knew better. Long before these kids even came out of the womb, God told them the plan.

Genesis 25:23 (NASB)

The LORD said to her, ‘Two nations are in your womb; And two peoples will be separated from your body; And one people shall be stronger than the other; And the older shall serve the younger.’

God made it clear that Jacob was the one who would ultimately get the blessing. But Isaac fought for Esau because he loved Esau. As a result, it sets the table for a twenty-year feud.

Trading the Eternal for the Temporary

Look at how this tension plays out in the famous story of the stew.

Genesis 25:29-30 (NASB)

When Jacob had cooked stew, Esau came in from the field and he was famished; and Esau said to Jacob, ‘Please let me have a swallow of that red stuff there, for I am famished.’ Therefore his name was called Edom.

Esau comes in from the field, and he is famished. We assume that’s not an overstatement; he’s been hunting all day and is in dire need. His brother, Jacob, ever the opportunist, sees a moment to take advantage. He seizes it.

Genesis 25:31-34 (NASB)

But Jacob said, ‘First sell me your birthright.’ Esau said, ‘Behold, I am about to die; so of what [use] then is the birthright to me?’ And Jacob said, ‘First swear to me’; so he swore to him, and sold his birthright to Jacob. Then Jacob gave Esau bread and lentil stew; and he ate and drank, and rose and went on his way. Thus Esau despised his birthright.

Can you imagine? For a bowl of soup and some bread, Esau sold his birthright. He despised the spiritual things in his life. You see it so clearly at the end of verse 34: he rose, he ate, and he walked away. He didn’t even care about what he had done. His belly was full, and he was a happy man. Again, you see this impulsive, thoughtless, carnal man—the same way Isaac becomes toward the end of his life.

At the end of the day, they both got what they wanted. Jacob remained true to his name—the trickster. He connived his brother and got what God had intended, but he got it in a way that dishonored the Lord. And Esau got a full belly. Both men left happy in the moment, but the foundation was laid for years of pain.

A Messy Public Life: Repeating the Sins of the Father

Unfortunately, it’s not just Isaac’s home life that’s a mess; his public life is a mess as well.

Genesis 26:1 (NASB)

Now there was a famine in the land, besides the previous famine that had occurred in the days of Abraham. So Isaac went to Gerar, to Abimelech king of the Philistines.

Isaac does exactly what his father did during a famine. He runs to the land of the Philistines to live among pagan people. Once again, he repeats the sins of his father.

Genesis 26:7 (NASB)

When the men of the place asked about his wife, he said, ‘She is my sister,’ for he was afraid to say, ‘my wife,’ [thinking], ‘the men of the place might kill me on account of Rebekah, for she is beautiful.’

If you’re having a moment of déjà vu, it’s because Abraham did this exact same thing. Isaac lies to the ruler, Abimelech, saying his wife is his sister just to save his own skin. He grew up in a home where deception was normative. He watched his dad deceive people, so when he gets in a jam, he repeats the pattern. However, just like his dad, he gets found out.

Genesis 26:8-10 (NASB)

It came about, when he had been there a long time, that Abimelech king of the Philistines looked out through a window, and saw, and behold, Isaac was caressing his wife Rebekah. Then Abimelech called Isaac and said, ’Behold, certainly she is your wife! How then did you say, ’She is my sister ‘?’ And Isaac said to him, ’Because I said, ‘I might die on account of her.’’ Abimelech said, ‘What is this you have done to us? One of the people might easily have lain with your wife, and you would have brought guilt upon us.’

Abimelech looks through a window and sees Isaac “caressing” Rebekah. I didn’t look up the Hebrew word for caressing, but I think we all know what it means! Abimelech realizes this isn’t his sister. He calls Isaac to account, and Isaac admits he lied because he was afraid. Just like Abraham, Isaac is called to a moral standard by a non-believer. Abimelech takes adultery seriously, rebuking the man of God for his lack of integrity.

This tension continues with a conflict over water rights. In a topography like Israel’s, finding water is a big deal.

Genesis 26:15 (NASB)

Now all the wells which his father’s servants had dug in the days of Abraham his father, the Philistines stopped up by filling them with earth.

Out of anger, the Philistines stop up Abraham’s old wells with dirt. They tell Isaac he isn’t welcome. Isaac moves on and digs new wells, but the local herdsmen quarrel over them, too. He names the wells “Essek” and “Sitnah,” which mean “contention” and “enmity.” Finally, he digs a third well that no one fights over.

Genesis 26:22 (NASB)

He moved away from there and dug another well, and they did not quarrel over it; so he named it Rehoboth, for he said, ‘At last the LORD has made room for us, and we will be fruitful in the land.’

Rehoboth means “plenty of room.” Finally, Isaac gets a breather. Eventually, Abimelech returns to make a covenant of peace with Isaac. They exchange oaths and eat together, and Isaac finally leaves the scene on the up-and-up. But if you evaluate his life from a 30,000-foot view, Isaac’s life is a bit of a train wreck. He plays favorites, causes family turmoil, and is dishonest in his business. On so many fronts, he appears to be a failure.

The “Sparky” Factor: Success in the Midst of Failure

There was a boy named Sparky. School was all but impossible for Sparky; he failed every subject in eighth grade. He flunked physics in high school with a zero, distinguishing himself as the worst physics student in the school’s history. He also failed Latin, algebra, and English. Sports were no better. He made the golf team but promptly lost the first important match, and then lost the consolation match as well.

He was socially awkward. His peers didn’t even dislike him; they just didn’t notice him. He never went on a date because he was too afraid of being turned down. Sparky was a loser, and everyone knew it. He decided he would just have to be content with a life of mediocrity. But there was one thing Sparky valued: drawing. He was proud of his artwork, even if no one else was.

In his senior year, he submitted cartoons for the yearbook, and they were rejected. That one stung. He decided he would try to become a professional artist anyway. He sent his resume to Walt Disney Studios, hoping to silence the doubters, but he was rejected again. Deep down, Sparky expected it. He’d always been a loser.

So, you know what Sparky did? He wrote an autobiography of his life in cartoons. He described his childhood self—the little boy loser, the chronic underachiever. That character is one the whole world knows. The boy who failed eighth grade, the artist rejected by Disney and his own yearbook, was Charles Monroe Schulz. He created the comic strip Peanuts and the boy whose kite would never fly: Charlie Brown.

Schulz’s life, and in many ways Isaac’s life, can be defined by failure when you first look at them. From the outside looking in, everything appears to be a mess. But something was happening behind the scenes. God was up to something. In fact, it’s the pagan king Abimelech who makes an observation about Isaac’s life at the end of chapter 26.

Genesis 26:28-29 (NASB)

They said, ’We see plainly that the LORD has been with you; so we said, ‘Let there now be an oath between us, [even] between you and us, and let us make a covenant with you, that you will do us no harm, just as we have not touched you and have done to you nothing but good and have sent you away in peace. You are now the blessed of the LORD.’’

Abimelech says, “We see plainly that the Lord has been with you.” He sees that God’s hand is on Isaac and that he is blessed. What was it about Isaac’s life that caused a non-believer to stop and say, “Despite the mess I see, I see God’s hand on you”?

The Faithful God of Broken People

Despite Isaac’s failures, despite his disobedience, and despite his shortcomings, God was still at work. Friends, if we’re honest, there is so much of Isaac’s story that we can identify with. We need to know: God, can you work in the midst of that? Can you use a failed person who walks in disobedience? Can you use people like us?

So often, we get tunnel vision. We only see the circumstances in front of us, and we fail to ask, “Lord, what are you doing in the midst of this?” What Scripture makes clear in Isaac’s life is that God’s hand is still very much on him. He still loves him, and He is still using him.

If we go back through this story with a fine-tooth comb, we see a different angle. At the very beginning, before the twins were born, Isaac sought God.

Genesis 25:21 (NASB)

Isaac prayed to the LORD on behalf of his wife, because she was barren; and the LORD answered him and Rebekah his wife conceived.

Isaac prayed for his barren wife, and the Lord answered. Even before the boys were born, God declared His sovereignty over their lives. Then, during the famine, God appeared to Isaac.

Genesis 26:2-5 (NASB)

The LORD appeared to him and said, ’Do not go down to Egypt; stay in the land of which I shall tell you. ’Sojourn in this land and I will be with you and bless you, for to you and to your descendants I will give all these lands, and I will establish the oath which I swore to your father Abraham. ‘I will multiply your descendants as the stars of heaven, and will give your descendants all these lands; and by your descendants all the nations of the earth shall be blessed; because Abraham obeyed Me and kept My charge, My commandments, My statutes and My laws.’

God reiterated the covenant of Abraham—land, seed, and blessing—to Isaac. He promised to be with him and bless him. And God didn’t just give future promises; He took care of him in the here and now.

Genesis 26:12-13 (NASB)

Now Isaac sowed in that land and reaped in the same year a hundredfold. And the LORD blessed him, and the man became rich, and continued to grow richer until he became very wealthy;

Isaac sowed in the land and reaped a hundredfold. He became wealthy and influential because the Lord blessed him.

Now, I’ll be honest with you—my notes are a bit of a train wreck right now! I think my printer had a mind of its own this morning. But what I want you to see, even if I have to ad-lib a bit, is that at the end of Isaac’s life, God’s hand is in all of it. Isaac is a man who operates in the flesh at times, and as we’ll see next week, that is how he often operates. Yet, he is also remembered in the “Hall of Fame of Faith” in Hebrews 11. He is a man with errors, but God is present.

That brings me incredible encouragement. I look at a guy like this, and then I look in the mirror and say, “Lord, on a lot of days, my life looks a lot like that. It’s a bit of a mess.” Can God use that? If I don’t walk perfectly, if I struggle with my flesh, is God big enough to work through me? The story of Isaac says yes. God uses people at times despite themselves.

I want to leave you with one last verse from Deuteronomy. It’s a reminder of how God goes about loving His people.

Deuteronomy 7:7-9 (NASB)

’The LORD did not set His love on you nor choose you because you were more in number than any of the peoples, for you were the fewest of all peoples, but because the LORD loved you and kept the oath which He swore to your forefathers, the LORD brought you out by a mighty hand and redeemed you from the house of slavery, from the hand of Pharaoh king of Egypt. ’Know therefore that the LORD your God, He is God, the faithful God, who keeps His covenant and His lovingkindness to a thousandth generation with those who love Him and keep His commandments;

God tells them, “I didn’t choose you because you were special or numerous. I chose you because I love you and I keep my promises.” Friends, this is the same God we serve today. He is the faithful God who keeps His covenant to a thousand generations. He didn’t set His love on us because we were so spiritual or deserving. He says, “I chose you because I love you, and I operate with broken, imperfect, flawed people all the time.”

In fact, that’s His specialty. He redeems the broken. This is the story of Isaac, the story of Israel, and ultimately, our story. We see it clearly in the rearview mirror through Jesus Christ, who laid His life down for us. That loving God kept His promise on the cross, sending His Son so that we would have life and our sins would be paid for. God is faithful, and He uses broken people like you and me every single day. Aren’t you glad?

Father, we are grateful. Even in my own mess of life, I’m grateful for your faithfulness and your ability to work through me. Thank you for your ability to forgive my sin and bridge the gap that was forever divided. Thank you, Lord, that you are a faithful God. You have shown that characteristic for thousands of years. You have loved people well who did not deserve it. You gave grace and loving kindness in abundance. We praise you for who you are. Thank you for Christ, in whom we glory the most because we have life and forgiveness through Him. Amen.